Prodigal Prayer Day: 5. I AM the Vine

In all the uncertainties of life, especially when you love a prodigal, and especially in this pandemic time, we seek something or someone solid, dependable, a sure foundation. We have all that in Jesus, whose name is I AM. Over the next few weeks, leading to the June 2 Worldwide Prodigal Prayer Day, we will discover seven ways Jesus is all we need—the seven “I AMs” He called Himself. (Read John 15.)

Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

So far in our I AM studies we have discovered that Jesus is Bread and Light—and yes, we need those. He is the Door and the Good Shepherd, and yes, it makes sense that we can get lost and need both.

This week Jesus tells us “I AM the Vine.” (John 1:5 ) So why do I need a vine?

This is one of the most important truths we need to comprehend. Pay attention because what we will look at today, though very briefly, is life-changing—for us and for our prodigals.

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful….

“Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.“ (John 15:1,4-5, 8) 

An overview of the purpose and the players in this metaphor: 

Purpose

“…you will bear much fruit…”

That’s God’s objective for us as long as we live on this earth. His desire is abundant fruit, an overflowing, fruitful life. 

The fruit we bear mostly falls into two main categories that together become the good works for which we were created. One part is the “who we are” or “how we live.” This internal fruit is summed up in the fruit of the Spirit: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22-23) 

The more external fruit might be seen as the lives we touch. It is often thought of as “sharing Christ” and “making disciples.” But this fruit also includes living out the love and compassion of Jesus, being good stewards of the gifts God has entrusted to us, and much more.

God desires for us to bear much fruit. Here’s how it happens, metaphorically: 

God the Father is the Vinedresser 

The vinedresser, or the gardner, chooses, plants, cultivates, feeds, prunes, protects the vine. His objective is to make sure he gets the most and best grapes—abundant fruit.

One verse from the passage above confuses people: “He cuts off every branch that bears no fruit.”  Part of the confusion is that he is talking to those He has claimed as His own. But probably the words used for many translations—“cuts off”—are not the usual  reading of the Greek “airo.” Normal usage of the word would be “lift up.” (According to Bruce Wilkinson in The Secrets of the Vine.)

Which is exactly what the vinedresser would do as he discovered weak, dirty branches lying on the ground, not able to produce fruit. He lifted them up, cleaned them, secured them to the branch so they could grow and produce good fruit. 

God the Son is the Vine

Jesus is the true vine. The vine consists primarily of the trunk and “cordons and “canes” that grow out from the trunk. The vinedresser provides support for these to grow out and up off the ground. The vine draws up from the roots and is the source of life for all the extended parts of the grapevine.

Jesus gives us these clear instructions: “Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”

So for us to be fruitful, we must stay connected to the Vine

God the Spirit is the “sap”

I confess I am enhancing the picture here, to help us understand.  How does the life that is in the Son get out from the Vine to produce those beautiful grapes, or our abundant fruit?

Jesus had just finished telling the disciples that the Holy Spirit would come to give us the life He was purchasing with His death. The Spirit would be the source of all we need to live the life God has given us, including bearing fruit.

The Spirit might be thought of as “the sap” that supplies us with nutrients that make the fruit possible. 

We are the branches

Growing out from the vine are the branches. The branches bear the fruit. To “bear” means to bring forth and to hold up. First come the flower clusters, then the fruit. At first small grapes, then many more and much larger grapes. 

Perhaps we—the branches--could be called Sap Tracks and Fruit Racks. Maybe that will memorable. 

Meaning for you and me?

Hopefully each of us who loves a prodigal desires to bear lasting, abundant fruit. So it is imperative that we submit to the “tending” by the Father and stay connected to the Vine—abiding, remaining, dwelling in Jesus. And that we seek to walk consistently in the power of the Holy Spirit. Love, mercy and grace should fill our lives and our words and flow out to our loved ones, drawing them to us and to our God.

And for our prodigals?

Always we pray. If they aren’t yet attached to the vine, we pray our lives and God’s grace will help win them.  We will seek to keep open hearts and arms for our wanderers for when they begin to turn or return. May we be useful in the hands of the Vinedresser to help lift them up out of the dirt, wash them off and help them establish a strong connection to the Vine.  Because the only way they will discover the abundant life they have been pursuing will be as they abide with Jesus.

Holding fast to the Vine,

Judy Douglass. 

P.S. I would encourage you to read more about this passage in Bruce Wilkinson’s Secrets of the Vine: Breaking Through to Abundance.

You will be blessed by this song.

June 2: How will we pray on June 2? If you are in a place where you can gather, then please do so. If you are part of a support group, or have friends with prodigals, you can gather via phone or zoom or google or Facebook to pray together. Or you can pray by yourself. We will have one or two zoom calls for locals in Orlando. More details to come.