Rev.
Debbie Cato
John 15:1-8
Gracious
God, may your Holy Spirit open our hearts and minds to your
words
of love and grace this day. Amen.
Vines, Branches, and Fruit
I love to
garden. When asked what my hobbies are,
I always say gardening. Unfortunately, gardening
is much harder than it used to be because I cannot kneel or squat, and it’s
hard for me to use a shovel or any large tool. And I always have weeds and I
can’t plant what I want. My arthritis really sucks. So, most of my gardening is relegated to pots
and a raised bed. How many of the rest
of you like to garden?
Those of
us who like to garden know that cutting back, pruning, and deadheading are an
important part of getting the results you want.
Certain flowers benefit from being deadheaded. Pinching the first flowers produced by
pansies will result in fuller plants and more blossoms later in the
season. Yet it’s so hard to take off
those first flowers! It’s counter-intuitive. Those first flowers are so pretty that it’s
easy to ignore the advice to pinch them off.
But pruning them now results in more beautiful plants later.
A lot of
plants are like that. They do better if
you cut them back – prune them, than if you just let them go. Marie pruned the roses in the front of the
church a few weeks ago. She cut them
back to almost stubs. But soon they will
grow and produce beautiful flowers for us to enjoy. They will come back much
better than if she had left them unpruned.
Vines left alone become thick trailing plants that attach themselves to other things. They will grow uncontrollably and result in one big tangled mess. If you want to see an example, I have some in my backyard that are out of control! A vine grower is needed to keep the vines in order. The paradox is that the vine grower must cut away lifeless, unproductive branches and prune those branches that are productive. At some point, all branches need to be cut. Young vines are not allowed to produce fruit for the first few years. This means drastic pruning is needed each season so the plant can develop to its fullest.[1]
In a vineyard, the best grapes are produced closest to the central vine.
Understandably, that is where the nutrients are the most concentrated. Jesus
draws an apt description of the life of a disciple from this metaphor of nature.
Jesus is the true vine, God is the grower, and we are the branches. Through this
image, two aspects of God’s created world are held together – we must be pruned
to bear fruit.[2]
Jesus is
speaking a word of hope and reassurance to his disciples – and to us all these
years later. Reassurance that comes from
remaining close to Jesus, weathering whatever storms may come.
Using the contemporary language of Eugene Peterson’s The Message, Jesus says, “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you.” The idea of making a home, of finding your heart’s true home in Jesus, brings a sense of peace to the turmoil that often characterizes our lives.[3]
When
someone is having a hard time, we often will casually give the advice to “hang
in there.” Those words are not very
helpful for someone who desperately wonders how to do just that. Jesus offers so much more than hanging in
there. Yes, hard times will come, but
living, abiding, finding our home in Jesus the vine and God the grower sustains
us, promoting even greater well-being.[4]
As Jesus
counsels and prays with his disciples, he invites them to stay close to him by
placing their trust in him. He warns
them that they cannot go it alone, trusting in their own strength. On their own, they would be cut off from
their life source. They would bear no
fruit.
This is a
good word for us today. The temptation
is strong for us to go it on our own. We
live in a society that promotes independence and making something of yourself. Though a valid goal, self-worth often become equated
with our own success and what we can produce.
It becomes very easy to think that it is all up to us and our own
resources.
God as
master gardener offers a better plan for our lives. Let us find our home in God’s word and place
our trust there. The harvest will be
bountiful. We are chosen to bear
fruit. Jesus is the one who has made
this possible. Here is real hope for
hanging in there on the vine of life.[5]
Our connection – the branches connected to the vine ensures new life and new growth. When God is doing maintenance, when we are being pruned, we are assured that new life and new growth will result. As long as the branches remain
connected to the vine, they live and produce full leaves and abundant fruit. Our
challenge – our community’s challenge is to stay connected to the vine. Stay
close to Jesus.
In John’s
mind, there are branches that do not produce fruit. They fail to live in love and are concerned
only with themselves. The branches that
do not yield fruit are the ones in the community who profess faith but do not
engage in acts of love. A sign of
discipleship is doing good works for the right reasons. There is an African
proverb that says: “Because
we are, I am” Because we
are, I am. The well-being of the
community determines who I am. If others
are doing well, I am doing well. If
others are hurting or struggling or mistreated, I am suffering. My self-worth is based on the well-being of
the community.
If we are
the branches, how close to the vine are we?
Are we close enough to draw our nutrients from Christ? Are we “Living in Jesus?” Do we “make our
home in Jesus and allow Him to make His home in us?” Do we live in love? We can only be fruitful
if the answers to the above questions are “yes”. We
don’t have to do it on our own. We can
draw our strength from Christ Himself.
“Abide in
me,” Christ says. Abide in me. What a wonderful invitation. Will you say, “yes?” Amen.
[1] Feasting on the Word.
Year B, Volume 2. Fifth Sunday of
Easter. John 15:1-8. Homiletical
Perspective. Barbara J. Essex. P 473.
[2] Feasting on the Word. Year B, Volume 2. Fifth Sunday of Easter. John 15:1-8.
Pastoral Perspective. Nancy R. Blakely. P 472.
[3]
Feasting on the Word. Year B, Volume 2. Fifth Sunday of Easter. John 15:1-8.
Pastoral Perspective. Nancy R. Blakely. P 474.
[4] Feasting on the Word.
Year B, Volume 2. Fifth Sunday of
Easter. John 15:1-8. Pastoral Perspective. Nancy R. Blakely. P
472.
[5]
Feasting on the Word. Year B, Volume 2. Fifth Sunday of Easter. John 15:1-8.
Pastoral Perspective. Nancy R. Blakely. P 476.
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