Consumer Or Producer?
John 15:1-7
As many of you know, I spent a week up in Ohio a couple of weeks ago cramming all kinds of knowledge into my head. During that week there were a lot of things that really got me thinking. One of them was in the class I took on the local church in mission. We talked one day about why the local church isn’t as involved in local mission as they are as involved in mission in other countries. Joe Showalter is the teacher of this class. Some of you may know him, some may not, but he is President of Rosedale Mennonite Missions. He runs programs such as Reach, Swim, City Challenge (which is featured this month in the Brotherhood Beacon), and many more. He made a comment in class one day that really stuck with me and really made me think. He said that he’s had, on more than one occasion, a person or family come to him wanting to be sent somewhere as missionaries. When he started to do his research and call around to find out about something about these people, he couldn’t find any sign that they were involved in reaching lost people for the Lord in their own community here in the United States. He said what pattern shows him that going to Timbuktu will all of a sudden change this person or person’s attitude towards lost people. That really got me thinking, if I were to go before a missionary board, and try to convince them to send me somewhere, would there be enough evidence in my life to prove to them that I’m worthy of sending? Just think about it with me for a minute. Luke tells us that where your treasure is there your heart will be also. How much money do we give to missionaries overseas? Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for supporting missions overseas, but at what cost to the mission on the home front? Now ask yourself how much do we give to reach our own community for Christ?
All eyes are on one thing this coming week-the election. A week from Tuesday we will find out who will take the lead of our country for the next 4 years. I’d hate to be James Keaton that night. Trying to keep everyone’s attention is going to be hard to do. There are many issues that are important to voters. Things that get them fired up on both sides of the isle. One of the main issues this year is our economy! I’m sure you’ve heard or seen the rising and falling of the stock market of late. Probably mostly the falling! But the subject of the economy is something that we all watch because it does affect us all. A lot of our jobs are in the realm of construction, which has seen a slow down. This was caused somewhat by the credit crunch and housing market downturn, which can be traced back to banking and lending issues, which lead to stocks plummeting. I’m sure we’re all affected in there somewhere. Don’t worry there is a point to all of this!
The title of my message is simply a question-Consumer or Producer? In any economy there are 2 main components-consumers and producers. Producers manufacture goods that are then purchased by the consumer. If you go to the grocery store to buy a loaf of bread and a gallon of milk, a producer brought those items to the marketplace for you to purchase. You are the consumer. If the consumer doesn’t purchase, the producer must find other ways to get his product purchased. If the producer isn’t producing, the consumer goes elsewhere to find the items he is looking for. Both the producer and the consumer are needed to complete the process. Now that short lesson in economics 101 applies to you and the church how, you’re probably asking. Well, that’s what our message is about this morning. When it comes down to the Jesus are you a producer or a consumer? There are probably a million questions running through you heads about what in the world I’m trying to get at, but hopefully I can explain it to you.
Are we consumers or producers? Do we simply come to church and sit here every Sunday and just take in everything that is said, and then walk out those doors and not even think about Harry Homeowner next door who, as Jonathan Edwards put it, is hanging over hell on a string like a spider hanging over a fire on a thin web.
James 1:22-25 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deluding your own selves. (23) For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a mirror: (24) for he beholdeth himself, and goeth away, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. (25) But he that looketh into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and so continueth, being not a hearer that forgetteth but a doer that worketh, this man shall be blessed in his doing.
Many churches today are not producing producers. They’re producing consumers. People who want to be entertained, not trained. They want to be hearers, not doers. They look at church as a social outing rather than a place to learn and grow in Jesus. That’s what James warns against in being hearers of the word only. You become a consumer, not a producer. So what does Jesus say about being a consumer or a producer? Let’s look at our text this morning.
John 15:1-8 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. (2) Every branch in me that beareth not fruit, he taketh it away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he cleanseth it, that it may bear more fruit. (3) Already ye are clean because of the word which I have spoken unto you. (4) Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. (5) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing. (6) If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. (7) If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatsoever ye will, and it shall be done unto you. (8) Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so shall ye be my disciples.
Jesus had just eaten what we know as “The Last Supper” with his disciples. Judas has already gone on his way to betray him into the hands of the chief priests and elders. He was now in between “The Last Supper” and the garden of Gethsemane. Some scholars believe that the word picture of the True Vine was brought on by the vines that would’ve been beside the road in the garden. Whatever brought it on; this was a very strenuous time in the final days of our Lord’s life here on earth. I think what Jesus was trying to accomplish was just to reinforce to his disciples what He’d been teaching them for the past 3 years. He knew that in a couple hours they’d all be scattered around, and that Peter would deny Him 3 times. Jesus could see Calvary just around the corner, and yet He still had the heart of a teacher. He was trying to help His disciples cram for the biggest test they would face in their lives. So what was Jesus teaching us in this word picture of the True vine?
1) The Purging of Non Producing branches (vs. 2)
2) The Pruning of Producing branches (vs. 2)
3) The Place of the branches (vs. 4,5)
4) The Purpose of the branches (vs. 8)
Jesus tells His disciples here in verses 1, 2, that He is the vine, and God His Father is the husbandman, or vinedresser is what the Greek would transliterate into today’s language. If you wanted to really break it down further verbally you could actually call God the farmer. God tends to all the branches, both productive, and not. There are 2 things that Jesus says that God as the farmer does in this parable. First, He purges the branches that aren’t producing fruit. The branches that have become consumers on the vine and not producers, He cuts off. They’re just sucking up the sap from the vine, and not producing. But even more than that, when a branch is just there and not producing anything, it’s taking away nutrients from the branches that are. So, in purging the branches that consume, the farmer is actually feeding the branches that produce. Jesus warns the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2:4-5 But I have this against thee, that thou didst leave thy first love. Remember therefore whence thou art fallen, and repent and do the first works; or else I come to thee, and will move thy candlestick out of its place, except thou repent. The church at Ephesus thought they had it all together. They had ministries set up for taking care of the poor, and being hospitable to others. In spite of all the good they thought they were doing, God told them, you’re doing all these things, but you just don’t love me anymore. Repent, or I’m going to cut you off.
The second thing that God does to the branches is He prunes the productive branches, so they can produce more fruit. The ASV says “cleanseth” which is what the original Greek would translate to. The KJV says “purgeth”, which gives the thought of being cut off. I like the ASV better. Pruning is exactly that, cleaning up to allow for more productive growth. I want to read an excerpt I found on the internet from “My Grape Vine Blog” about pruning.
It seems like pruning grapes is still the number one headache for new grape growers. The fact that pruning is one of the most important manipulations of growing grapes, and that so many people do not understand or know how to prune grapes, is why so many new grape growers tragically fail. I get the feeling that people don’t realize how important pruning really is!
You must have some sort of structure or plan you follow each year. Most new grape growers just randomly cut off canes to make grape vine smaller – big mistake! What is very important to remember is; a grape vine reacts to the way you prune.
In other words, if you prune for fruit, you will have fruit; but if you prune for shoots, you will have only shoots! The “self-taught pruning methods” of new grape growers are normally “to prune for shoots” and that is in most cases why their grape vines do not produce grapes!
Aren’t you glad God knows what He’s doing? He knows exactly which branch needs what. He has a plan and He knows what it takes to accomplish that plan. Again in Revelation, we can look at the church in Smyrna. Revelation 2:9-10 I know thy tribulation, and thy poverty (but thou art rich), and the blasphemy of them that say they are Jews, and they art not, but are a synagogue of Satan. (10) Fear not the things which thou art about to suffer: behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life.
God allowed persecution in the church in Smyrna, to cleanse the church of all the people that He calls “the synagogue of Satan”. God has allowed things in churches that are abiding in Him to happen, to make the churches grow. I think of a modern day example of the underground church in China. Even though they are under threat of persecution and physical torture, the church is growing, and growing strong.
That brings us to the third point that Jesus brings out-the place of the branches. In verses 4 and 5, Jesus says, Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; so neither can ye, except ye abide in me. (5) I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing. The place for the branch is in the vine. Jesus says that if you don’t abide in me, you can’t bear fruit. If we want to bear fruit we have to be in the vine. Jesus says a branch cannot bear fruit by itself. A branch that is not connected to the vine is going to wither and die. It’s not getting the nutrients it needs to even sustain life, let alone bear fruit. Now I don’t claim to know everything about woodworking. I know a little. It is my primary profession, and I do dabble in some exotic species when I turn pens on my lathe. I’ve heard of Olivewood. I’ve heard of many kinds of species of wood, but I have yet to see or hear of someone making something out of wood from vines. It may be out there, who knows? But the point I’m trying to make is, once a branch from a grape vine, or really any other kind of vine, is cut off from the source, the only thing that it’s good for is to be burned. You can’t make furniture or cabinetry or even a peg to hang your coat up on out of the wood from a vine. Apart from bearing fruit it is good for nothing. Isn’t that really what we’re called to do? To be producers? I read a quote that said, “If you’re too busy to tell someone about Jesus, than you’re too busy.”
Purpose of the Vine (Vs.8) Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and so shall ye be my disciples. Our whole purpose according to Jesus, our Messiah, the Son of God, is to bear fruit. This is what glorifies God the most-When we bring someone into the fold of Christ. I saw a different side of the story of the parable of the prodigal son when I was in Ohio. The part of the story after the prodigal returns and wishes just to be called a servant in his father’s house and the father sees him afar off and runs to meet him and calls for the celebration. The part where the older son comes to the father and says I’ve been here all this time and you never let me even have a small party with my friends. The father says you’ve always been here, but the son that I lost has come home. We’ve been safe at home. We’re not the ones that the father is looking off on the horizon hoping to see again. We’ve been faithful. It’s the ones that are out there that are not under the shelter of the father’s house that He is longing to see come back home. If you were out there, and you were at one time, he’d be doing the same thing for you. The parable of the 99 says he’ll leave the 99 just to go get the one that’s gone astray. That is the true heart of God. God is mission minded. He is glorified when we bring others to Him.
I want to leave you with an excerpt from John Phillips’ commentary on this passage. In Hampton Court in London there’s a large greenhouse containing an old and magnificent vine. Its branches run everywhere. Its foliage is beautiful, its fruit colorful and abundant. Even the remotest tiny tendril, seeking a corner to which it can cling, is vitally connected with the parent stem. The vast vine is an organic whole. One branch does not try to dominate or direct another branch. Each branch runs back to the source. The branches are independent, yet dependent. Each reaches out to its corner of the greenhouse. Each adds its contribution to the splendor of the whole. Each is busy producing its own foliage, flowers, and fruit. Such is the Christian life, whether expressed individually in the life of each believer, or corporately as local churches. The branches reach out with life to the far corners of the earth.
My thought comes back to what Joe Showalter said. If you’re not a producer where you are, what evidence is there that you’ll produce somewhere else? And if there is no evidence of fruit, are we even producers? God help us to be producers, and not consumers.
