The Parable of the Vine
“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman” (John 15:1).
The parable of the vine in the Gospel of John chapter fifteen is simple but profound. It teaches us about the enduring union Jesus wants to have with believers. This is an amazing union between the Son of God and sinners saved by grace. The “I AM” statement in this chapter is the seventh and last one in the book of John before our Lord Jesus went to the cross.
In the previous two chapters He and His disciples were in the upper room for the Passover feast, and Jesus again told them of the nearness of His departure. He would suffer and be killed not because He was guilty or committed any crime, but for the redemption of humankind. From the upper room, they headed to the Garden of Gethsemane, where Judas Iscariot would lead a mob to arrest Jesus. He was taken before the high priest, eventually came before Pilate, and later was crucified on the cross.
Along the way, Jesus told this parable to teach His disciples about their relationship with Him and His Father. “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman” (John 15:1), and in verse five, He referred to His disciples as the branches. He urged them to abide in Him for them to bear much fruit; “…. for without Me you can do nothing.” Now, let us look at each character in this parable:
The Husbandman [God the Father]
The husbandman is the vinedresser, normally a man of skill, an expert at growing grapes. He grows and cares for the vine. He makes sure the vine is well watered and fertilized as needed. He builds fences and watches for any insects that want to destroy the grapes. God the Father is not just the vinedresser, but He owns the vineyard. He is not a hireling. Jesus said, when a hireling sees the wolf coming to catch a sheep he flees because he does not own the sheep. Since the vineyard belongs to the Father, He watches very carefully over the Vine and of course the branches.
To have ownership of something is particularly important. Imagine your teenager comes to ask for your only car. You are hesitant because you doubt how well he will take care of it. As the owner, you take diligent care of your car; you are responsible for whatever happens to it, so you watch over it very carefully.
I remember some years ago while working for Ford Motor Company, a group was sent to Japan to study why their auto companies were so productive compared to the rest of the world. It was interesting to find out that one of the things that made them successful was that the line workers took ownership of their equipment. They could fix some problems on their own machines rather than waiting several hours for someone to fix a trivial thing.
Engrafting:
The husbandman is responsible for engrafting the branches. The branches, whether original or engrafted, are solely the work of God because no one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws him (John 6:44).
When I lived in Kaduna, Nigeria, my wife, and I loved to garden. We had a sizable piece of fenced land by our house where we grew all kinds of vegetables. We also had pawpaw, guava, and orange trees. We would go to a government agricultural farm to observe and buy plants. One thing that interested me most was how they would graft branches from one kind of orange to another orange tree; the original and the engrafted branches flourished together and bore fruit. This reminds me of Paul’s statement about us Gentiles being grafted to the olive tree in Romans 11.
The original branch is Israel—those in the bloodline of Abraham. Anyone who does not come from the bloodline of Abraham is referred to as Gentile. But on the true Vine, there is no difference between the Gentiles and the Jews. We both draw on the same source of power to bear the same kind of fruit. The spirit that dwells in the Son has become our life source. No matter your background, no matter what you have done, whether you are an alcoholic, a fornicator, poor or rich, educated or illiterate—once we come to Christ, we are all the same. “For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:13). As a result, we are to bear the same kind of fruit (love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; Galatians 5:22-23).
Pruning:
One of the most important things that the vinedresser does is pruning the vine’s branches. Without pruning, a rich crop cannot come forth. A vine produces multitudes of offshoots, and if they are not pruned, it will use its sap on these canes instead of conserving it for fruit. It will also grow bunches of grapes that will eventually tear the branches because of their weight and be of inferior quality. So, the vinedresser with a sharp knife meticulously cuts the canes close to the stem, leaving about an inch and a half of wood to bear good fruit.
Now the heavenly Father who is the Husbandman prunes us (the branches), who are in Christ (the Vine), so that we can bear more of His fruit. He is all-knowing, all-seeing, who prunes us. His pruning is not to harm us, but to help us bear much good fruit that lasts (John 15:16). How does the Father prune us? Through His word (John 15:3). His word is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). He looks within us and sees any activities that are self-centered, prideful, or self-exalting that will keep us from our purpose of bringing glory to the Husbandman, and He purges them.
The Joy of the Husbandman:
When the Father sees the fruit, we bear (Galatians 5:22-23), He rejoices. And the glory of the vineyard belongs to the Father only. When people pass by a vineyard that is good-looking or fruitful, they do not praise the branches or even the vine: they praise the owner who took diligent care of the vineyard. The fruit we bear is to benefit those around us. A mango tree does not bear fruit for itself, but for the people around to enjoy. The love, kindness, goodness, and peace that we bear are to benefit those around us; this gives joy to the Father.
The Vine [Jesus]
Jesus says, “I am the true Vine” (John 15:1). Israel as a nation was God’s chosen vine, and He poured His loving care on her, but Israel became degenerate and brought forth wild grapes (Psalm 80:8; Isaiah 5:1-7; Jeremiah 2:21; Hosea 10:1). Therefore, Jesus, as “the true Vine,” fulfilled what God had planned for Israel. The vine is the source of life for the branches. The vine goes down deep into the soil to get the water and nutrients and bring them to the branches. Jesus, the true Vine, is the source of life for believers.
This parable also shows us the interdependence between Jesus and believers. The vine and the branches are one. They depend on each other. Jesus made Himself dependent on us; this is the wonderful condescension of the grace of Jesus. Jesus wants the gospel of salvation to reach the entire world, though it started with just a few disciples. The world population is currently a little over 8 billion people, and according to Pew Research Center, we have about 2.38 billion Christians. God wants the remaining 5.62 billion.
The Branches [Christians]
A branch is important to the vine; it bears the fruit the vine wants to bring forth. The vine does not bear fruit by itself, so it needs the branches to carry its fruit. The branch’s sole purpose is, therefore, fruit bearing for the vinedresser or owner. The branch gets its life from the vine; without the vine, the branch has no place, and will wither and die. In like manner, a believer has been planted into Christ for the purpose of bearing fruit that God desires.
Branches are not responsible for going down deep into the soil to get food, water, or nutrients; we do not supply the sap to bear the fruit—the Vine (Jesus) is responsible for all that. We do not protect ourselves from pesticides; we do not fertilize or prune ourselves—the Husbandman (God) is responsible for all that.
Therefore, our one responsibility is to abide in Christ, because we cannot bear fruit unless we abide in Him. Jesus said, “…He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Abiding in Jesus means we must remain in Him or connected to Him, so that we can bring forth much fruit for the glory of God. We maintain our connection by feeding on the nutrients Jesus supplies through listening and meditating on His word, praying, and acting on or doing His word.
Let us ask for the grace to steadfastly remain in Him so that we can bear much fruit to the glory of God the Husbandman. May the Lord help us! Amen.