Investigating Jesus - Part 23

Investigating Jesus Part 23
Who did Jesus say that He was?
The Vine

"I AM the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. (John 15:1).

In the Old Testament, the nation of Israel was to be a vine or vineyard. “The word of the Lord came to me: ‘Son of man, how is the wood of a vine different from that of a branch from any of the trees in the forest? Is wood ever taken from it to make anything useful? Do they make pegs from it to hang things on? And after it is thrown on the fire as fuel and the fire burns both ends and chars the middle, is it then useful for anything? If it was not useful for anything when it was whole, how much less can it be made into something useful when the fire has burned it and it is charred? ‘Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: as I have given the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest as fuel for the fire, so will I treat the people living in Jerusalem.” (Ezekiel 15:1-6).

Juxtaposed against Israel’s failure to be a vine, as we see here from our example from the book of Ezekiel, Jesus states that he is the true vine. Jesus was the reality, whereas Israel was the symbol. As the purpose of a vine is to produce fruit, the focal point is on what it takes to produce fruit (John 15:2). As Christian Disciples, we are to bear fruit by remaining close to Jesus. Why so? Because Jesus is the vine and we as His followers and Disciples are the branches.

And why is the Christian Disciple to bear fruit? As a means of bringing glory to God the Father (John 15:8) and thereby proving their Discipleship. As part of the ultimate mission of Jesus to glorify God the Father (John 12:28, John 17:4), it is imperative that Jesus’ disciples be fruit-bearers. This means that all Christian Disciple are to be his witnesses and therefore a commitment to mission and evangelisation is necessary. That is why the Christian Disciple prays in the Lord’s Prayer “your kingdom come” (Matthew 6:10).

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