The Lutheran Hour
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"It’s Time to Show Whose We Are!"
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Text: John 15:1-8
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Grace, and mercy, and peace to you from the fruit-empowering, harvest-engendering Vine, Jesus Christ, Amen.
In Hampton Court, near London, there is a grapevine that is reported to be the oldest living vine in the world. It is over 230 years old. This grapevine has one root which is 12 feet round, and some of the branches are over 120 feet long. Despite its age the vine still produces 500 to 700 bunches of grapes each year, weighing anywhere from 485-705 pounds. Although some of the branches are 120 feet from the main root, they still bear the same sweet, delicious fruit year after year because they are connected to the old but fruitful vine. Each branch is connected directly to the stem and draws nourishment from it and produces fruit year after year after year.
Now, if branches could talk or had personality, you might say that every year these branches of this vine love to show whose they are. They love to publicly demonstrate by bearing fruit that they are branches of a sweet grape producing vine. If branches could talk, I think that they might say that their relationship to this vine is the most important thing in their lives.
Okay, branches can’t talk, but branches, otherwise known as believers connected to Jesus, the True Vine, we can! So, if someone asks you today, as a believer in Jesus, “What is the most important thing in your life?” What do you value most in your lives? What would you say?
For what you value most will be the center of your lives. What you value most will take up the most time in your day. What you value most will be the object of your spending, your wealth, your time, your talent, and your treasure. Why? Because it’s worth it!
One danger for Christians today is that they value Christ, but only in certain areas of their life! They are like branches slightly severed from the vine, beginning to wither. As such, their faith relationship to Jesus is privately engaging, but somehow publically irrelevant.
In the recent American tragedies of 9/11 or Katrina, we saw the power of faith, but we also see the confusion of the American culture on display. When the tragedies hit, people ran back to church; they got on their knees; the President rightly called for a day of prayer! But, in a culture, a culture which at one time had the Bible as a textbook in its schools but now often ridicules committed faith, in a culture that calls for prayer in crisis but blatantly ridicules believers on TV shows like ABC’s “GCB;” don’t know that show? Don’t worry about it. We are adrift in our own spiritual confusion and rebellion.
If you really think about it, it’s not merely a day of prayer that we need, right? It’s a life of prayer and service, flowing from a solid relationship to Jesus Christ. It’s not merely faith for the moment that we need to solve the ills of the day; it’s a real connection to the True Vine that is God’s Answer for the world.
Now, that’s a message worth preaching, worth hearing, worth believing, no matter what is going on in the world; no matter what’s going on in your life and in mine.
When our lives are rooted by faith in the Lord Jesus who is the Son of God, that’s what makes life worth living. That’s what makes our families worth celebrating, that’s what makes our neighbors the object of our prayers and concern. When Jesus says, “I’m the Vine, you are the branches,” He’s saying it’s time to show whose you are! “I am the Vine, you are the branches. If a man abides in me and I in Him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.”
Branches connected to life-giving vines can’t help but show whose they are. Jesus says, “God the Father is glorified when we bear fruit.” And others are blessed when they see Jesus in our lives.
But to show that we are His, we must first know and believe in who He is! Jesus says, “I am the Vine, you’re not!” He is the source of life. He is the source of eternal forgiveness and salvation for all who believe. In fact, Jesus says that His Disciples are “clean, blessed, forgiven” just because of His Word. Right in John 15:3, He tells each one of us, ‘You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you……” incredible….wonderful to believe!
Just think again of the relationship of branches, then, to the vine. The power comes up from the roots, through the stem! Branches are dependent on the vine for their strength, their growth, and even for their fruit. (Even pruning, from God’s perspective, is God trimming excess leaves or blooms so that you and I might bear even more spiritual fruit in our lives for others.)
He is the Vine, He alone.
There is no other source of life and salvation! So, this text is giving you permission to be what you are, as one who believes in Jesus, you are branches of the True Vine!
Jesus teaches this to His Disciples right before the time of His suffering and death. When they see Jesus hanging on the cross, they will be tempted to give in to despair. And, even after they see Him resurrected from the dead, even in joy, they will be tempted to live the Christian life on their own, as if they are the vine!
No, you are the branches. There is only One Vine. There is only One Source of eternal, abundant life now.
Some say that the most sensitive nerve in the human body is the one connected to the pocketbook. Now I realize that there are times when money, and faith, and church are spoken about wrongly. But what’s true is this, that where our time, talent, and treasure are at work, that’s where our values, our faith is also in action! Jesus, Himself, taught that “Where a man’s treasure is, there his heart is as well.” My point today, though, is that there are many who think that money, and wealth, and power, and prestige are valuable, life-giving resources; another Vine worth being connected to. Well, what do you say, disciples?
Hasn’t this recession at least taught us that all wealth in the world without God’s grace and mercy is not enough for the real issues of life? When it comes to such discussions, I’m already reminded that in this life there is one thing that puts everything else into its proper perspective and that one thing is your relationship to the God of the universe who created you and redeemed you.
Jesus says it even more clearly in our text and throughout the Gospels. He says, “I am the Vine; I am the Way, the Truth, the Life, I am the Resurrection, there is no other Name given by which you and I might be saved.” To be connected to Him is to receive the power to live life abundantly, now and forever. To be disconnected from Him is to be severed from the One who created you, redeemed you, and resourced you to be His own. If you miss that, then even the wonders of this life merely wither away on the vine over time.
Many years ago at the Tournament of Roses parade, the Standard Oil Company, now known as Chevron, had a beautiful float entered into the parade. In the middle of the January 1st celebration, the oil company’s float came to a grinding halt and the rest of the parade with it. The problem? The float committee, which had spent countless hours making sure that every flower was in place, which had spent literally days making sure that the music was just right, that the sound system was adequate for the task, they simply had forgotten to fill the float engine with enough gas! That’s right, the Chevron Oil and Gas Company float had run out of gas.
The directors of the Chevron float had done everything well but they had neglected to use their companies vast resources of oil. They had neglected to do the one thing needed to finish the work for that day. The parade waited while someone ran to get a gallon of gas.
Today is not the day to run out of gas. Today is not the day for you to be severed from the Vine, Jesus. Today is the day for you, no matter where you have been or what you have done, to be reconnected to Jesus Christ, the Vine who empowers all branches connected to Him, today is a call to repent of your sins and to believe again in Christ alone — no matter what you’ve done, confess your sin and believe again!
What a marvelous truth. Jesus is the Vine, you’re not. But we can be branches connected to Him by faith!
Disciples of Christ, connected to the Vine, it’s time to show whose we are!
For those who believe in Jesus that’s why we come to church, to be energized by God’s Word! We come to church to not only be resourced and sustained by Him; we come to show whose we are. We come to church to learn how to serve others as He, the Very God of heaven, serves us!
So, it’s not so much, “What can I do for Jesus, but what can Jesus, with His power and His Spirit, what can He do with my life, my family, my job.”
It almost sounds too simple to say, but it is simply true. Branch believers yearn to stay connected to Jesus, the Vine, through Jesus’ gifts, His Word, His sacraments.
We can’t wait to receive His gracious Word, His moral direction, His challenge to mission. We can’t wait to see where He will lead us, where He will stretch us and challenge us, because we know that He will continue to empower us with His grace and lead us by His spirit. Discipleship is an adventure of faith with a Guide who knows the trail well.
But abiding in Jesus has blessings for life; for Jesus says stay connected to Me, you will bear much fruit!
There are “fruits of faith.” The Bible talks about fruits of the Spirit, “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control.” There’s even a challenge to the life of faith, as St. Peter says, in 2 Peter 1:5ff:
Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; to self-control, perseverance; to perseverance, godliness; to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love; for if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
You cannot come to church, week after week, hearing the grace of Jesus Christ, trusting in the undeserved kindness of God, and exercising His moral direction and gracious service to others and not be changed!
Real power, the power of His Word, His Message, received by faith alone; you will begin to live life a different way! In fact, you can’t help but live all of life the way that St. Paul says in Romans 12, “In view of His mercy!”
Don’t ever forget that as believers, we don’t follow a philosophy; we don’t follow a careful set of rules made by men! We follow a Person, Jesus Christ! We believe that He is alive, risen from the dead, and living in the hearts of all those who believe in Him. In fact, we don’t believe you can be alive without Him!
That means that we look at each other differently as believers because Christ lives in each of us by faith. Serve another believer, serve Christ. And even when we look at unbelievers, we look at them differently, too. We are no different than they, but we have an incredible Savior that they can have, too. So, with gentleness and humility, we seek to serve them to Christ.
Connected to the Vine through His Gifts, we get to extend that power, that grace to others by letting the fruits of His Spirit come to fruition in our lives.
We’ve asked a question today….”what if branches could speak?” but how about asking another question, “what if fruit could speak?” I’m not sure how oranges feel when they’re being picked, or apples or grapes or any fruit for that matter; but where would we be if they stubbornly remained unpicked from the branch. Well, we’d be without the tasty, refreshing vitamin C-laden orange juice in the morning. We’d be without grandma’s apple pie or the Cabernet Sauvignon as a part of a fine meal. Fruit is meant to be picked. The fruit of our relationship with Jesus is meant to be given away.
Bearing fruit for others, it’s one of the ways that people see whose we are; see who we trust in, above all things.
Now is the time to show whose we are so that others might come to faith in Jesus because they know us.
Let people see what roots your life, what really holds you. Let them see it in the ups and downs of life, the seasons of life.
Let them see you in faith in the fall breezes of life, breezes that might begin to open you up to change, to the bright colors of trust in the midst of life’s transitions. Autumn color may draw attention to you but let it ultimately draw people’s attention to the God who makes beauty possible in life.
Let them see your connection to Jesus even when the winter cold chills the air. Let them see you connected to Christ though you face the same chilling winds of struggle, trial, and temptation. Let them see you then because Christ’s message of hope for you, especially then, may also be one for them as well.
Let them see you in the springs of life, when they see the budding flower of Christ’s forgiveness and mercy continue to dominate who you are or the fruit of His humility and grace, let that identify you as Christ’s person in the midst of their lives.
And let them see you in the summers of life, in the heat of opposition or in the glowing rays of the summer sun, in either struggle or success, as one who is, first and foremost, a man or woman of God in Jesus Christ.
As Christians, recipients of God’s gracious love, there’s one main question for each day of our lives; what will happen in this world? Not just because we’ve lived here, but because we’ve shown whose we are in everything we do!
We’re branches, connected to the Vine, bearing fruit for others to enjoy, so that they might heed the Psalmist’s invitation to “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” Now, that’s a vision worth striving for, each and every day!
Branches alive in the power of the vine; that’s the life that’s in store for all who would believe in Jesus. Receiving that life and living that life for others…that’s the purpose, the mission of being His church. We’re going to talk more about being on this mission for the next several weeks, so please, continue to tune in!
But, don’t forget, our message today is foundational. If you are a believer in Jesus, the Holy Spirit has graciously connected you to the Vine. Abide in Him, revel in God’s Word, commit yourself to receive His life-giving gifts, His baptism, His supper in the very place where His Name can be found, among His people, in His church. But, also know this….that branches connected to Him, can’t help but bear fruit, fruit that exists to bless others in His name.
A well-known Bible teacher, Keith Brooks spoke to businessmen and businesswomen on the Christian’s responsibility to be a light in this world. He emphasized that believers are to reflect the Light of Christ to the world. After the class, one of the members related to him an experience he had in his home which had impressed upon him this same truth. He said that when he went into his basement he made an interesting discovery. Some potatoes had sprouted in the darkest corner of the room. At first he couldn’t figure out how they had gotten enough light to grow. Then he noticed that the cook had hung a copper kettle from the ceiling near a cellar window. She kept it so brightly polished that it reflected the rays of the sun onto the potatoes and they sprang to life. The businessman said to Brooks, “When I saw that, I thought, I may not be a preacher or a teacher with ability to expound Scripture, but at least I can be a copper kettle catching the rays of the Son, Jesus, and reflecting His light to someone in a dark corner.”
I can be the branch connected to the Vine that bears fruit that others can enjoy and receive so that they can be grafted into a relationship with Jesus by grace.
Jesus says, “I am the Vine, you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit…This is to my Father’s glory that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.”
Brothers and sisters in Christ, it’s time to show that we are His! Amen!
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions and Answers) for May 6, 2012
Topic: A Journey to the Holy LandSeltz: Today we have a special edition of our Question and Answer session. We’re talking about an exciting opportunity for all of our listeners; an opportunity to walk where Jesus walked, to journey to the Holy Land. I’m Pastor Gregory Seltz and I have here with me in the studio Mr. Bruce Wurdeman, Executive Director of Lutheran Hour Ministries. Great to be here with you, Bruce.
Wurdeman: My pleasure.
Seltz: And now I understand that you’ve been in Israel a couple of times, right?
Wurdeman: That’s correct!Seltz: Well, what value did you find in personally being there?
Wurdeman: You know, for me there are two major benefits. First of all, whenever I read or hear a Bible story or hear the Sunday morning readings, I immediately have a visual of that story in my mind. It’s like retrieving pictures off your hard drive. Those stories come alive for me. And then, over the years, I’ve taught many adult Bible classes and do a weekly piece for our Men’s NetWork called, “Stuff They Didn’t Teach Me In Sunday School,” and I can draw pictures off of that hard drive and help my class feel like they’re in the midst of those stories, as well.
Seltz: Well, can you give me some examples, then, of how being there really shaped your understanding and your teaching?
Wurdeman: Sure. One of the most intriguing characters in the Bible, I think, is Herod the Great. He was the baby-killer of the Christmas story. And I’ve known for a long time that he walked that fine line between genius and insanity.
Seltz: Yeah, he did.Wurdeman: And all too often fell off the insanity side, but seeing his amazing buildings, at least the ruins of many of them, the projects of Caesarea, Masada, Jerusalem, gave me a better understanding for that first-century setting in which Jesus came. Another example would be walking that route that Jesus would have walked that Thursday and Friday of Holy Week. It’s a rigorous walk! He goes from Bethany on the other side of the Mount of Olives, down through the Kidron Valley, to the heart of Jerusalem, back through the Kidron Valley to the Garden of Gethsemane, back through the Kidron Valley to Caiaphas’ house for the nighttime trial, awake all night, across town in the morning to Pilate’s court, and then to Golgotha; and all that without sleep. So while His suffering for your sins and mine culminated in the cross, it certainly started a lot earlier than that as a beaten, tired Man spent a sleepless night traversing that city.
Seltz: Wow! Amazing! You know, that definitely adds a dimension to your teaching. It’s maybe like the difference between seeing something in 3-D and not just in a photograph in a book or words on a page.
Wurdeman: Absolutely.
Seltz: Well, what are some of those 3-D vistas that most interested you; you know, deep into your Biblical insight just because you saw them with your own eyes?
Wurdeman: Wow, that’s difficult to narrow down, but let me give you a few examples. Certainly the places that Jesus walked, the Sea of Galilee area, the probable location of the Sermon on the Mount around the Sea of Galilee, Caesarae Philippi, the site of Peter’s great confession of faith, and, of course, all of the Jerusalem area sites related to Christ, the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, the probable sites of Calvary, the tomb in Jerusalem, I could go on and on.
Seltz: You know, as you were running through that list, it reminded me of how historical and real the Christian faith is. Jesus is about grace and the dust of day to day living. But those are all New Testament sites, Bruce; I thought you were a bit of an Old Testament buff.
Wurdeman: Yeah, I guess so. I do love the Old Testament and standing at Jacob’s Well in Samaria, for example, drinking a cup of water out of the well. An Old and New Testament site, that’s something special for me. On my last trip there I had a chance to scamper around some old caves near where David defeated Goliath and while not directly related to the Biblical story, these caves were related to things we read about in the Old Testament. It was in these caves that the Canaanites, the pagans that Israel was supposed to have driven out, raised pigeons for sacrifice to their gods. Several thousand pigeons raised in those caves. And of course, standing at Qumran, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered, is an amazing experience also.
Seltz: Wow! Real stories, real people, a real Savior, a real journey; the place where it all happened. What a pilgrimage to strengthen our faith. Well, sadly, we are out of time, Bruce. Thanks for coming in. I want to remind our listeners that you can come along with us; with Bruce, myself, and Pastor Klaus; journey with us to Israel in November of this year. Something I’m anticipating with great joy. If someone wanted to come along with us, Bruce, who would they contact?
Wurdeman: They could call Carla Foy at our office; toll free number 877-333-1963; that’s Carla Foy at 877-333-1963.
Seltz: What an amazing journey it will be! Thanks again. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music Selections
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by Chris Bergmann. Used by permission.
“Amid the World’s Bleak Wilderness” by Jaroslav Vajda & Richard W. Hillert. From Praise to the Lord! by the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter’s in the Loop (© 1998 The Order of St. Benedict, Inc.) Augsburg-Fortress/SESAC
“Awake, Thou Wintry Earth” by J.S. Bach. From Paul Manz at Mount Olive by Paul Manz (© 1994 Paul Manz)
“This Joyful Eastertide” arr. Michael Burkhardt. From Hymn Improvisations, vol. 1 by Michael Burkhardt (© 1993 MorningStar Music Publishers)