The vine and the branches
'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.' (Joh 15:1–2)
Chosen to bear fruit
Our Lord's allegory of the vine and the branches (Joh 15:1–16) is very important to us because it deals with a subject that is vital for our salvation—fruit-bearing. The New Testament was written in Greek, and we can deepen our understanding of this teaching by examining the words the Holy Spirit inspired the writer to use.
In v16 Jesus said that we have not chosen him, but he has chosen us and appointed us to go and bear fruit. The Greek word translated 'appointed' in that verse means to put something in its proper place. Jesus has chosen us, and placed us in our position, as Christians, so we can bear fruit for God. God expects us to bear fruit for him.
Let us look at this teaching from the beginning.
The true vine
'I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener.' (v1)
The Greek word translated 'true' in that verse means real, true, actual, not counterfeit, genuine. Jesus said: I am the real, the true, the actual, the genuine vine.
There are many counterfeit vines in this world we can attach ourselves to—religious leaders and gurus such as Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, whose teachings many cling to. But there is only one true vine who will enable us to bear fruit for God, and that vine is Jesus Christ.
The Greek word translated 'true' in v1 comes from the same root word as the Greek word translated 'truth' in Joh 14:6. Not only is Jesus the way, the truth and the life, but he is also the real, the true, the genuine vine; and his Father is the gardener.
Fruitless branches
'He [the Father] 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.' (v2)
The Greek word translated 'cuts off' means to take away or remove. Jesus said that his Father will take away or remove every branch in him that does not bear fruit.
Please note that these are branches that are in Christ. Some Christians believe that Jesus was referring to those who merely profess Christianity and are not true believers, but that was not what he said. He said: '…every branch in me…'.
The term 'in Christ' is used in the New Testament to describe born-again believers (Rom 8:1; 2Co 5:17); the apostle Paul said that he was 'in Christ' (Rom 16:7). A person cannot be cut off from a vine they have never been attached to. These are people who are in Jesus Christ and know Jesus Christ. Christians must bear fruit for the Father.
Pruning
The Greek word translated 'bear' in 'bear fruit' is phero, and the word translated 'fruit' is karpos. Both are used in the parable of the sower.
'It came up, grew and produced a crop [karpos fruit, crop, harvest], some multiplying [phero bearing] thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times.' (Mar 4:8)
By using the same Greek words in both teachings, the Holy Spirit is showing that producing a crop in the parable of the sower and bearing fruit in the vine and the branches are the same thing.
Jesus said that every branch in him that does bear fruit the Father prunes (Greek to make clean, purify, remove defilement or imperfections). So the pruning Jesus spoke about involves cleaning us up, purifying us, removing imperfections from our lives that defile us.
We sing the chorus: 'Purify my heart…', and that is where a lot of the Father's pruning and cleansing takes place—in our hearts. Jesus said:
'What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come—sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.' (Mar 7:20–3)
Sin has its origin in the human heart. We need to have our hearts cleansed so we can live godly lives and be even more fruitful for the Father.
Cleansing through the Word
'You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you.' (v3)
Jesus had cleansed his disciples by the word he had spoken to them. God uses his Word to clean and purify our hearts as the following scripture shows:
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. (Eph 5:25–8)
As Christians, it's important that we read and study the Word of God so that the Lord can do this vital work of cleansing in our lives.
Remain in Jesus
'Remain in me, and I will remain in you.' (v4a)
Jesus wouldn't tell us to remain in him if it was impossible for us not to remain in him. He is describing a reciprocal relationship: if we remain in him, he will remain in us.
The Greek word translated 'remain' (meno) means to remain, abide or dwell. As we remain in Jesus, he remains, abides and dwells in us by his Spirit—the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:9). However the word describes a state that begins and continues, yet may or may not end or stop [1].
The extent to which we experience God in our lives depends largely upon how closely we walk with him. We are told to come near to him and he will come near to us (Jam 4:8). What we do towards God, in that respect, he does towards us.
But the converse is also true: if we move away from God, he will move away from us. That is what happens to backsliders. As they move away from God, he moves away from them, and his presence and influence in their lives decreases. Is there a remedy for that? Yes, there is. They should return to him, and he will return to them (Zec 1:3).
Some Christians believe that God will never take his Spirit from them no matter what they do; that their salvation is eternally secure. But after David had committed adultery with Bathsheba and murdered her husband, he prayed:
'Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.' (Psa 51:11)
Those words were inspired by the Holy Spirit. He wouldn't have prayed that prayer if that could never have happened to him.
Jesus said that from everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded (Luk 12:48). David had walked closely with God for many years; better behaviour was expected from him because of that.
Phi 2:12 tells us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. That is something we have to do. The Greek word translated 'work out' in that verse means to bring about, accomplish. We are to bring about (cause to happen) and accomplish (carry out, complete) our salvation with fear and trembling (a reverent fear of God and of offending him).
In the Old Testament God's glory (his presence) left the temple because of Israel's sin; it drove him from his sanctuary (Eze 8:6). But he left progressively, pausing as he went, to give them time to repent (Eze 10:4,18–9).
In the New Testament our bodies, as well as churches, are the temples (sanctuaries) in which his glory (presence, Spirit) dwells (1Co 6:19; 3:16). Has God's attitude to sin changed since the Old Testament? Is he more tolerant of it now? No, not at all. 1Co 10:1–12 uses examples from Israel's history to warn us not to sin. We must be careful how we live.
'No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.' (v4b)
It is only as we remain in Jesus and allow his life to flow through us that we can bear fruit for the Father. We cannot bear fruit by ourselves, we must remain in the vine.
'I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.' (v5)
The decision to remain in Jesus is ours to make. If we do remain, he will remain in us and we will bear much fruit; apart from him we can do nothing. We can do nothing that will bless our Father in heaven unless Jesus Christ lives his life in us.
Discarded branches
'If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.' (v6)
Why are the branches that have not remained in Jesus thrown into the fire and burned? Because they are not producing fruit and are therefore of no use to the Father.
Jesus said at the beginning that he is the true vine and his Father is the gardener. A gardener, or vine grower, grows a vine for one purpose only: to gather fruit from it, because you cannot make anything with the wood of a vine, it is only fit for burning (Eze 15:1–5).
I believe Jesus compared us to the branches of a vine for that very reason because our main purpose, as Christians, is to bear fruit for God.
In Jesus' day a fruit grower wouldn't tolerate a barren fruit tree, he would cut it down, burn it, and plant another. This fact was referred to and given spiritual significance by Jesus in Luk 13:6–9, and by John the Baptist in Mat 3:7–10.
If we do not remain in Jesus we will not bear fruit and, like withered branches, will be picked up by the gardener and burned—a clear reference to hell (Mar 9:43–8).
A divine promise
'If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.' (v7)
Allowing our Lord's words to remain in us implies obedience to them. Jesus said that everyone who hears his words and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock (Mat 7:24).
If we remain in Jesus and obey his Word, allowing it to cleanse and refine us, we can ask for whatever we wish and it will be given us. Why is that? Because the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective (Jam 5:16).
Every prayer of Jesus was answered apart from one: when he asked to be spared from crucifixion. That request was refused because it wasn't in his Father's will (Mat 26:39–44). But every other prayer was answered, not because he was the Son of God but, as the Son of Man, he fulfilled the conditions for answered prayer:
- he always prayed in his Father's will (1Jo 5:14–5)
- he always prayed with faith (Mar 11:22–4)
- he always obeyed his Father's commands and did what was pleasing to him (1Jo 3:21–2).
If we meet those conditions our prayers will be answered also.
Glorifying the Father
'This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.' (v8)
The Greek word translated 'glory' in this verse means to give praise and honour to someone; to recognize them as being great, important or excellent.
If we allow Jesus Christ to live his life in us we will bear much fruit. That will show that we are his disciples and will glorify his Father on earth—revealing him to be great, important and excellent, and worthy of honour and praise.
Remain in his love
'As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.' (v9–11)
Jesus told his disciples that as the Father had loved him, so had he loved them (past tense). He then said that if they obeyed his commands they would remain in his love (future tense), just as he had obeyed his Father's commands and had remained in his Father's love. The promise was conditional: remaining in Jesus' love depended upon them obeying his commands.
Some Christians believe that Jesus will always love them no matter what they do. That is not what the Bible teaches. Jesus said that he had remained in his Father's love because he had obeyed his Father's commands. That means that if he had not obeyed his Father's commands he would not have remained in his love.
The words of our Lord must be studied carefully so that we do not deceive ourselves.
Jesus loved us while we were still sinners; he loved us so much that he gave himself for us (Gal 2:20). But now that we know him, his continued love for us depends upon our obedience to him. What was true for Jesus in his relationship with his Father, is equally true for us in our relationship with him.
The Lord has told us these things so that his joy may be in us and that our joy may be complete. Jesus wants us to have his joy. That joy comes from the love of Christ that is poured into our hearts when we walk in obedience to him and his Word. There can be no substitute for such love and joy in our lives. As the old hymn puts it:
When we walk with the Lord in the light of his Word
What a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will, he abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.
Trust and obey, for there's no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
Fruit that will last
'You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.' (v16)
Jesus has chosen and appointed us to go and bear fruit for the Father—fruit that will last. The Greek word translated 'last' can also mean remain or endure. The fruit we will bear as Christ's life flows through us will remain, it will last, it will endure for ever because it has been produced by God (Ecc 3:14).
Spiritual fruit
And now we come to the final point—the meaning of the word 'fruit' (Greek karpos) which is used so often in this passage.
When I was a young Christian I believed that the parable of the sower was about bringing people to Jesus: some bring thirty, some sixty and some a hundred people to the Lord (Mar 4:8).
As a seed, when planted, grows and produces other seeds, so Christians grow and reproduce themselves spiritually. And that was what I thought bearing fruit (producing a crop) for the Father was.
But if the measure of our fruitfulness in God's sight is based on the number of people we bring to Jesus then I, for one, have not been very fruitful in my life, because I certainly haven't brought thirty, sixty, or a hundred people to the Lord (as far as I know), and I don't suppose many other Christians have either.
The New Testament doesn't speak of bringing people to the Lord as a fruit we bear to God, although it does happen as a result of Jesus living in us. To understand the meaning of the word 'fruit' we need to look at how it is used elsewhere in the New Testament, and one of its most important uses is in Gal 5:22–3:
But the fruit [karpos] of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
When we remember that we cannot bear fruit for God unless we remain in Jesus, and that Jesus remains (dwells) in us by his Spirit, then the meaning of the word 'fruit', as used in Joh 15, becomes clear to us—it is the spiritual fruit produced in our lives by Christ's indwelling Spirit.
To the above list we can add:
- the fruit (karpos) of righteousness that comes through (Greek by the means of) Jesus Christ—the righteous life that Jesus empowers us to live (Phi 1:11)
- the knowledge (understanding) of God, perseverance, godliness and brotherly kindness (love for the brethren) that keeps us from being unproductive (Greek akarpos – unfruitful) as Christians (2Pe 1:5–8)
- and the fruit (karpos) that we bear when we do good works (Col 1:10), give to Christians who are in need (Rom 15:25–8), and confess (publicly acknowledge) his name (Heb 13:15).
Spiritual maturity
Luke's account of the parable of the sower says that the seed that fell among thorns stands for those who are choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and do not mature (Luk 8:14).
The Greek word translated 'mature' in that verse means to bring to perfection or ripeness. Spiritual maturity (perfection or ripeness) is not measured by the number of people we bring to Jesus, but by the quality and quantity of fruit we bear for God.
Righteous living, doing good works, loving the brethren and giving to those of them who are in need, together with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, understanding of God, perseverance, godliness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, is the spiritual fruit God wants us to bear for him.
Such fruit takes time to grow and ripen in our lives, and we can only produce that fruit as we allow Jesus Christ to live his life in us.
…Christ in you, the hope of glory. (Col 1:27)
Michael Graham
July 2001
Revised May 2024
[1] The Strongest NIV Exhaustive Concordance, Zondervan, 1999. Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version ®. NIV ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.