Bromley Baptist Church, 25th June 2006 Pictures of Jesus (17) John 15:1-17, The True Vine

 

1. The Vine as Israel

This passage means less to us than it did to the original hearers!

Jewish people see a very different cultural and emotional meaning in the vine. Their nation was the vine.

·    Ancient stones and coins bear the symbol of the vine.

·    When Jacob blessed his sons (Gen 49) Judah was said to “tether his donkey to a vine”, "Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall.”

·    Deut 32:32 Those who are false are poisonous -Their grapes are filled with poison,

·    The time of prosperity and peace during Solomon's lifetime was to be marked as Judah and Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, lived in safety, each man under his own vine and fig tree.

·    In Psalm 80 God brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it.

·    Jeremiah 2:21  I planted you like a choice vine of sound and reliable stock -

·    Isaiah 5 pictures God preparing a state of the art vineyard in which his vine only grew bad fruit.

The vine is the very identity of the nation of Israel - the Jewish people, planted by God, to be nurtured and grow, and to bear fruit.

What happened? Psalm 80 - the vine grew out of control, bearing bitter and wild fruit.

2. The Vine as Jesus

So in John 15 - here’s Jesus speaking to his disciples in the upper room with the fruit of the vine in front of them.  He says ‘I AM the true vine!’  Amazing! Jesus takes the national identity upon himself and the divine name I AM – ‘I AM THAT I AM’.

He revolutionises the way his disciples - and we - view our nature as God’s people - not that the people themselves are the vine but they are called to account for the fruit they bear. To Him, Jesus, who is the true vine, who embodies everything about Israel as God’s people. 

They can only bear fruit … 

·        if they are grafted in Jesus.

·        if the gardener is allowed to do what he wants with the vine!

The people of Israel forgot what they were there for! In bad days they struggled for existence - longing to bring glory to God! When things got better they clamoured for power.

Psalm 80 shows how they dominated the scene - even the cedars of Lebanon were overwhelmed. These people were preoccupied with themselves.

A vine isn’t meant to do that! It’s a waste of space and needs to be cut back to let the light in, let the gardener have access, let the fruit develop! Cut out branches that aren’t bearing fruit and even those that have fruit but you can see are going to be bitter and undeveloped.

3. We are the branches

We must turn from ourselves as the vine, from whatever else has been our vine, our world that has nurtured us and held us, enhancing our little kingdoms -  turn from independence to the Lord Jesus Christ who alone is able to nurture and protect, able to feed and enable us to fulfil our potential. Return once more to being in Him and Him alone, return to what we’re made for - to bear fruit for Him - the fruit of something really good and refreshing, really worthwhile to Him.

·        In a day of self and self assertion it’s difficult to take on board.

·        It was hard for the disciples

Christ pointed them away from themselves to Him and out through Him to others.

One Christian man stopped the gladiator fights. He was a spectator appalled at humans being made to fight like animals. He stood in the arena and shouted ‘In the name of Christ, Stop’. He was knocked down and beaten. He got up and shouted ‘In the name of Christ, Stop’. Again beaten - but again he called the games to halt. Eventually he was killed and swept aside. But the governor was impressed and challenged. He stopped the fights.

Christians are called to make a difference through sacrifice not dominate the world in power, to bring glory to God, not by might and power but by the Spirit.

An American Christian computer game involves killing evil people in the name of Jesus - a ‘shoot’emup.’ The reviewer asked questions about whether this was what Jesus meant when he taught about taking his yoke on himself, or turning the other cheek. We must not get drawn into the world’s self aggrandisement in the name of Jesus!

Jesus wants his branches clean, kept small so they bear better fruit, channels of Christ’s love and power for the benefit of others taking the fruit. - “This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”

The glory to God isn’t in magnificence, or the size we become, or something that impresses but in fruit -of lives lived in and for Him and in demonstration of His love!  The whole ethos and purpose of the vine is God’s love - remain in my love, show my love.

4. We have a dynamic calling!

Jesus goes on to show that we’re not into something just interesting or optional like a hobby! It’s a dynamic calling we mustn’t resist! It isn’t even a matter of me choosing it!

Jesus tells us -  You did not choose me, I chose you to go and bear fruit. (v.16)

Have you ever wondered why you became a Christian? Could we have changed ourselves?

·    Ask what turned you from following your way to following Jesus?

·    Ask what keeps you - is it your own enthusiasm as a ‘Christian hobbyist’?

·    Ask what will hold you to the end? Your own strength?

Jesus says that it wasn’t you that turned you - it was His grace, it wasn’t you that changed your thinking, but His mercy, and it isn’t you that keeps you going it’s His Spirit in you. He will hold you to the end and never let you go whatever happens!

Why did He choose you? Not because you were better / had more to offer / higher standards than anyone else - it was because he wanted to prove that out of a nobody He could bring glory!

Why did he chose to work through Bromley Baptist Church? It wasn’t because we were any better people than others or did things better than other churches - it was his grace and unknown purpose that planted us in the upstairs room of a pub and made his vine branch grow from there.

Will you seek that He shall be first and His desires for you be?

Will this church seek the glory of God - not by being impressive, smart and dominating but by being more like Jesus - bearing the fruit of the Spirit? Some churches like us have a reputation for being really polished, ‘practically perfect in every way’. Have we spent a lot of energy on loads of lush leaves to look really good - polishing them and pumping them up with foliage fertiliser - how much attention have we really paid to growing the fruit God wants?

5. What are the alternatives?

If we don’t bear fruit for the Lord’s glory what will happen? Jesus warns as the people of Israel were warned - the branch will be cut off and brought down. (Church to carpet warehouse!)

And how do we bear fruit? - Jesus tells us – “I am the vine, you are the branches, if a church, if a man remains in me and I in him he will bear much fruit. If anyone does not remain or abide in me he will be like a branch that is thrown away and withers.”  He wants us close, connected, abiding in Him and

seeking the Spirit of Jesus flowing through us!

Text Box: Group discussion and further thought. In groups, read Psalm 80 and John 15:1-17, summarise the notes & select from the following: 1. Ask anyone in your group who grows vines to (briefly) tell you about it. 2. If the church is not the building what function does the building perform? 3. How might Bromley Baptist Church building be used if we don’t bear fruit? What can we do to keep the church growing as God wants? 4. a. What signs can show that our individual Christian ‘growth’ is healthy? What are signs of unhealthy growth? b. What signs can show that the Church is healthy? What are signs of unhealthy growth? c. What signs can show that our homegroup is healthy? What are signs of unhealthy growth? 5. What might God use to ‘trim’ / ‘cut off’ the branches – in us as individuals or as a church? 6. Reflect silently on what you have discussed. Pray together about changes you feel are needed. Then the fruit will grow and bring glory to Him.