The Vine That Holds On To Us
“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 15:5
My husband and I just recently took a trip to Napa, California. We have traveled to Napa before, but this time the beauty of the vines stuck out to me. Harvest was just ending, and the vintners were brining in the last of the grapes to be crushed. We we were able to see the grapes being dumped into large machines that would separate the grapes from their stems and then crushed so their juices could be turned into a fine wine.
I have never seen the vines turn to a golden yellow the way I did this week. As I looked across the valley, I saw fields of rolling hills filled with bright yellow vines that have worked so hard to produce the sweet-smelling fruit that permeated the town. The sight was beautiful and screamed fall has arrived.
The grass and all vegetation around the vines looked dry and brown. Being a gardener myself, I wanted to know how often they watered the vines. I knew that Napa was a very dry climate. There are many years where they may receive only 15-19 days of rain. My water bill would be astronomical in the South as I struggled to keep my plants alive. I was told that some vineyards are only watered a little through a soaker hose and others are not watered at all. I had a puzzled look on my face. I wondered how the vines could even stay alive with no water. The vintner said something that left me pondering for days. He said, “The best fruits come from vines that have struggled and have been placed under tension.”
Look at these verse as you think about your trials and difficult circumstances.
“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.” John 15:1-2
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
“We also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance , character; and character, hope.” Romans 5:4
This world brings many struggles. We are each placed under tension. But if we consider the verses in John 15 where Jesus tells us that He is the true vine and His Father is the gardener, that leaves us as the branches of the vine. Jesus is the vine that has lived under tension as well as the branches do. He is the vine that endured struggles to keep His branches alive. God does not create the struggles for His branches, but He does allow them so that we can produce beautiful fruit for Him. As I thought about the sweet fruit that comes from vines that are placed under tension, I think about the many struggles that surround us and the fruit that is produced out of them. Relying on Jesus through our struggles is the only way for us to produce good fruit. If we do not rely on Jesus, our vine, through our struggles then we are just a branch that will wither away and dry up. Sweet fruit can never come from a branch alone. The branch has to have a source that provides its nutrients, strength, and stability. John 15:5-6 says, “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. 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.”
Our job, as God’s creation, is to bear sweet fruit. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Without the Holy Trinity that leads us through our struggles, we would not be able to produce this kind of fruit. What does your fruit look like right now? Are you producing sweet fruit that is clung tightly to the vine or are you producing rotten fruit that falls off the vine as quickly as it grows?
Thanksgiving season is a time to reflect on what you are most thankful for. I am so thankful for the vine that supplies me everything I need to produce good fruit and restores me when I mess up. Our struggles can sometimes bring us down and make us waver from our vine, but our vine is strong enough to handle our mistakes and is there to strengthen us to health. May we see Jesus as a vine that is reliable, strong, and sturdy. This world is weak, confusing, and scary but we can be strong branches that are firm in Jesus Christ. We can survive the tension because we are rooted in Him.