The True Vine

The Decision to Kill Jesus

by Lane Rogers

Jesus is the True Vine (15:1-17)

1"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vine-dresser.

2"Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. 3"You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 4"Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. 5"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

6"If anyone does not abide in Me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned. 7"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8"My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples. 9"Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love. 10"If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. 11"These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. 12"This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. 13"Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. 14"You are My friends if you do what I command you. 15"No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you.

16"You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

17"This I command you, that you love one another.

I. Verse 1_____This is the last and final "I am" saying of the gospel. In this parable we have Jesus as the "true vine" and the Father as the "Vine Dresser." But___what does it mean for Jesus to be the 'True Vine" (i.e. is there a "false vine"). In the OT, Israel is often referred to as the vine or a vineyard (Hos. 10:1-2; Isa. 5:1-7; Jer.2:21; Ezek 15:1-5, 17:1-21; 19:10-15; Ps. 80:8-18). According to Josephus there was a large golden vine at the sanctuary entrance in the temple built by Herod. "It is striking that in every instance in the OT where Israel is referred to as the 'Vine' the nation is under judgment for its corruption and failure to produce "good fruit" (Isa. 5:1-7; Jer. 2:21). It seems then that Jesus is comparing Himself to Israel. Israel had failed in its calling but Jesus will not fail in His calling. I realize that most common interpretations have the "church" as the vine but that interpretation cannot be sustained based on the text. Jesus is the true vine not Israel.

II. Verses 2-4____Those who follow Jesus need to bear fruit. Those who do not bear fruit, the "Father takes away." This is not hard to understand if we understand the metaphor. In this parable, Jesus is the Vine and the Father is the "Vine-dresser."

The Father is the: γεωργός (ge&omacr;rgos 1092)
husbandman tilling the ground; as substantive, a farmer, husbandman.

In our story, the Father is the farmer taking care of Jesus the vine. It is the Father who prunes the vine of unproductive fruit. It is also the Father who prunes the vine in order to produce "more fruit." The disciples are told that they are :"clean"

καθαρός (katharos 2513)

1. pure--pure from everything that would change or corrupt the nature of the subject with which it is combined, free from every foreign admixture, whether good or bad; clean, and free from every stain, odour, colour, or any useless thing whatever; free from every false adornment (this specific meaning occurs only in Mar 14:3)

2. clean [adjective and adverb]

clean, free from impure admixture, without blemish in its kind, spotless, set clear.

3. clear

clean, free from impure admixture. (It has a more extensive meaning than ἁγνός (hagnos 53). A thing is καθαρός (katharos 2513) in, which there is no foreign admixture whether it be itself good or evil; ἁγνός (hagnos 53) is that which is not contaminated by anything in itself really evil. That which is ἁγνός (hagnos 53) is necessarily καθαρός (katharos 2513), but many things that are καθαροί (katharoi) are free from being ἁγνοί (hagnoi)).

From this narrative, we learn that it is the " word of Jesus" that cleansed the disciples as it will us. But what does Jesus mean here that they must abide in Him (V.4). If we use the parable as our descriptor, then it can only mean a branch must stay connected to the vine. If we disconnect the branch from the vine the branch will die.

III. Verse 5___"To remain or abide" in Christ then means we must be fruitful. If we remember other statements of Jesus(5:19; 30), Jesus said that without the Father He can do nothing and now that application is made to the followers of Jesus.

IV. Verse 6__This verse explains what happens to those who do not abide (remain) in Jesus. Being cast into the fire undoubtedly means being cast into hell (cf. Matt. 3:8-12, 7:19, 13:42, 25;41). The "wood" of the "branch" is good for nothing when severed from the vine. At certain times of the year the Jews were required to bring wood offerings to the Temple (Neh. 10:34, 13:31). The commandment (Lev. 6:8-13) was that only wood from trees be burned on the altar. The wood of the vine was soft and fit for nothing (Ezekiel.15:1-5). It was only good for a bonfire and needs to be destroyed (cf. Isa. 27:11).

V. Verses 7-10__Verses 1-6 tell us about the need to remain in Christ and trust in Christ. Verses 7-10 tells us that this applies to the Words of Christ. To remain in Jesus is to remain in His love. It ought not be a surprise at this juncture to find that to remain in Jesus and His love is to keep His commandments. In the Gospel accounts the obedience of Jesus to the Father is frequently mentioned (e.g. 4:34; 6:38; 8:29, 55). The point is that as Jesus obeyed the Father out of love, we then obey Jesus out of love.
VI. Verse 11__This relationship of "love" leads to unending joy. Jesus also experienced this joy even to the cross (12:24-26).
VII. Verse 12__This is the call of God, that the disciples should love one another just as Jesus loved them. This is not a new commandment (See Deut. 6-4-5). God has always demanded love.
VII. Verse 13__There can be no act of love greater than one human giving His life for another.
VIII. Verse 14-16 __I suppose we need to ask the question at this point, since we are told that we are "His friends" if we obey the Lord, what are we if we do not obey? Now Jesus reminds us that there is a new relationship with His disciples. They are no longer just servants. There is a marked difference between a friend and a servant. Now the disciples have privileges. Those privileges bestowed on the disciples were not on account of their worth but on account of grace.
IX. Verse 17__We end as we begun. The command for the disciples to love one another.

Disciples' Relation to the World

18"If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. 19"If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. 20"Remember the word that I said to you, 'A slave is not greater than his master ' If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. 21"But all these things they will do to you for My name's sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. 22"If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. 23"He who hates Me hates My Father also. 24"If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well. 25"But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, 'THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.'

26"When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me, 27and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning

The Hatred of the World for God's People

I. Verses 18-19___There are two reasons mentioned that are at the root for this hatred. (1) The world hates you because of Jesus. (2) Since you are a follower of Jesus, you are not of the world.

II. Verse 20__The saying the disciples are reminded of is in 13:16. A servant is not greator than the master. The persecutions that Jesus suffered will now be passed on to the disciples. The world will act in similar manner both in persecution and obedience.
III. Verse 21-25__The reason for the comming opposition to the disciples is now stated. "Because of My Name." The guilt of the world consists in its rejection of the revelation of Jesus Christ. To reject Jesus is to reject God the Father which is a great sin. Moreover the works of Jesus are the "works" of God. Hence it may be said that the world has seen God. This amounts to a complete rejection of the creator.
IV. Verse 25__This then is the ultimate fulfillment of Scripture. "They hated me for nothing" (Ps. 35:19 and Ps. 69:4). [Ps. 69 is one of the most used passages in the NT].
V. Verse 26-27__This latter menitons of sending the Paraclete on misson to humankind. The task of the Spirit is to "bear witness" concerning Jesus. The credentials of an apostle then are alluded to (See Acts 1:22).

Beginning with the baptism of John until the day he was taken up from us__one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection