Flashback Episode — A Fruit-Filled Branch: John 15:1-17

On the night of Jesus’ arrest, while the remaining eleven disciples are walking with Jesus to the garden just outside of Jerusalem, the gospel of John shares a powerful conversation Jesus had with these closest followers. In this conversation, we can learn a lot about who God really is.

If we think about the timing of this conversation, this is Jesus’ last chance to share with the disciples before His death – and Jesus knows there is a lot that still needs to be shared.

However, as I read this part of John’s gospel, I am drawn to a metaphor Jesus shares part way through the conversation. This metaphor is found at the beginning of John, chapter 15, and we will be reading from the New International Reader’s Version. Starting in verse 1, Jesus says:

¹ “I am the true vine. My Father is the gardener. ² He cuts off every branch joined to me that does not bear fruit. He trims every branch that does bear fruit. Then it will bear even more fruit. ³ You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. ⁴ Remain joined to me, just as I also remain joined to you. No branch can bear fruit by itself. It must remain joined to the vine. In the same way, you can’t bear fruit unless you remain joined to me.

⁵ “I am the vine. You are the branches. If you remain joined to me, and I to you, you will bear a lot of fruit. You can’t do anything without me. ⁶ If you don’t remain joined to me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and dries up. Branches like those are picked up. They are thrown into the fire and burned. ⁷ If you remain joined to me and my words remain in you, ask for anything you wish. And it will be done for you. ⁸ When you bear a lot of fruit, it brings glory to my Father. It shows that you are my disciples.

We’ll stop reading here because I want to focus in on the metaphor of being a branch on the vine. It would seem that Jesus emphasizes the idea here that what we say doesn’t really matter as much as the fruit we produce. When I read about Jesus describing us producing fruit, I get the picture that He is describing everything our lives produce. This would include our words, our actions, our projects, and even our relationships.

Everything our lives produce should be in harmony with everything else our lives produce. Otherwise our lives wouldn’t make sense. It would be weird to grow an apple that has the skin of an orange.

While God can grow anything and there may be an apple-orange hybrid fruit in heaven, this isn’t where I am going with this thought. Instead, I want to emphasize that our words, which are like the skin of our fruit, should match our actions, projects, and relationships, which are all like the inside parts of our fruit. Our words should match our actions.

Jesus describes God as walking along the vine looking for branches that are not bearing fruit. When He finds such a branch, He cuts it off. While this sounds harsh, this is what happens when someone who says they are a Christian does not live like they are. In our world and culture today, these people live worldly lives but claim to be Christians because they want to avoid hell more than they ultimately love Jesus. It’s my opinion that God is more interested in building relationships with us than simply having us around because we preferred to not spend time in the hot place.

But fruitless branches are not the only ones God the Gardener touches. When God comes by a branch that is bearing fruit, Jesus tells us that He trims those branches as well. Most gardeners will tell you that to get a plant to really start producing fruit, vegetables, or flowers (whichever the case may be for that plant), one must cut off some of the first things that are produced, and perhaps a little more afterwards. The process is known as pruning, and pruning in a spiritual sense is what really prompts fruit to grow in our lives.

However, pruning is the result of God cutting away things from our lives. These things might be friendships, hobbies, jobs, homes, cars, money, or really anything that God knows won’t serve us in the long run. God wants our hearts, and He will prune away the things in our lives that might draw our hearts away from His.

We cannot escape being touched by God the Gardener. Either we choose to be cut off because we are not fruitful, or pruned because we are being fruitful and God wants to see us produce even more fruit.

Jesus also challenges all of His disciples and followers to remain joined to Him. This is the only way we can truly bear fruit. Just like your favorite flower, if you leave it connected to the bush or plant, it will survive longer than if you cut it off to put it in a vase. While flowers in vases look pretty as decorations around the house, after a few days or weeks, most will have begun to wilt and die. This is because they are no longer connected to the plant.

The only way we can truly have life that never ends is to remain connected to the life-giver – and that is Jesus. Remaining joined to Jesus is the only way to have eternal life. If we separate ourselves from Him, we will dry up and die.

Jesus finishes the illustration of the vine by saying that when we are joined and connected to Him, with His words living inside of us, we are free to ask for anything we wish and it will be done for us. The whole context of this illustration is bearing fruit, so in truth, all of Jesus’ answers to our requests will center on us bearing fruit for God. When we bear a lot of fruit, it brings glory to God and it shows that we are Jesus’ disciples.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to remain connected with Him. Understand that God the gardener will touch your life and when He does, let Him prune you because you are being fruitful. Know that the things that God takes out of your life might not make sense now, but when we reach heaven, we will understand more and all our questions will be answered.

Also, intentionally pray and study the Bible for yourself to keep that connection with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit strong. It is through this connection that we are able to bear fruit, bring glory to God, and truly live like disciples of Jesus. Only through this connection can we truly do anything in life.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!