“1 I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3You 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, 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, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. 8 By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples."
I love the richness to this metaphor, the whole and comforting truth behind it.
Jesus is the source, the vine. The vine distributes nutrients and everything the branches need in order for fruit to grow. Fruit cannot grow without the vine because the life of the branches lies in the vine.
Abide. Dwell. Rest in. Wholly embrace. That's how Jesus, our life-giving source calls us to his side. He offers us a rich and fruitful dwelling in him.
And then there's verse 6, which makes you think that Jesus saying, "Abide in me" comes with a cliffhanging threat like, "or else you'll be cast out and thrown in the fire." That's not what I see when I read verse 6.
I see a superficiality. Hiding behind a connection that's not really there.
A branch that is hardly connected to it's vine is a dying branch. What happens to it naturally is what is described in verse 6: it withers, and winemakers would take dead branches away and burn them.
What's promised in this passage is a fullness of life, a true and lasting connection, relationship that won't be broken off. If it is, it's the branch who chooses it, not the vine, so to speak.
It's healthy to squeeze the meaning out of this metaphor and ask of our relationship with Jesus: are we connected to him or are we hiding a deadness, a disconnect and hoping it will go unnoticed by God and by His people?
Jesus longs for a relationship, not a bonfire. He's not hoping anyone fails in their pursuit of a relationship with him. He is forever longing for a chance to give us, his branches a chance to last and to grow and bear fruit, which can only be done in dwelling in him.
Jesus with his life-giving, healing, redeeming outstretched hand calls to you today and fully knowing your past, present, and future calls, "Abide in Me and I in you." It's up to you to take hold.
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