Sunday
05/03/15 Freeville/Homer Ave UMC’s
Sermon Title: “I am the true
vine”
(The “I” series: Part 2 of 5)
Old Testament
Lesson: Psalm 22:25-31
New Testament
Scripture: 1 John 4:7-21
Gospel Lesson:
John 15:1-8
My brothers and sisters, my friends, welcome once again on
this the Fifth Sunday of this our Easter Season. This season where death has
been overcome, that Christ has been risen, and this season where we are offered
our own spiritual resurrections. This season of new life, of hope, and of God’s
power and God’s love.
Last week I began a five week preaching series called the
“I” series. This series focuses on five “I” statements that Jesus Christ made about
who he was, about promises that he made to his disciples and to us, and about things
we as believers are supposed to do. Last week, I preached on the first “I” statement
I chose, of when Jesus said in the gospel according to John, “I am the good
shepherd” (John 10:11a, CEB).
In this sermon, I talked about how Jesus was telling his
disciples and us, that he is trustworthy, honest, and faithful. That unlike
people and leaders that have lead us astray, that Jesus Christ says, “I am the
good shepherd” (John 10:11a, CEB). Further, if we can put our trust in Jesus
Christ, the Messiah, God in the flesh, we can then realize that we are all
shepherds of something. That God has entrusted us all with various things, the
care others, and etc., making us all shepherds.
This morning however, I want to talk about the second “I”
statement that I chose. I took this “I” statement from the gospel according to
John reading from this morning, when Jesus said, “I am the true vine” (John 15:1a,
CEB).
Now has anyone here ever been to vineyard? Has anyone here
ever been up close to a grape vine? Has any here ever picked grapes? Has anyone
here ever drank wine? Has anyone here ever picked other things, like raspberries,
or blue berries, or etc.?
I ask these questions, because there are many plants that
produce fruit. Whether the plant is a bush, a tree, a plant that grows a vine, or
something else, there are many plants that grow fruit.
How
many of you hear this morning like to eat fresh fruit? How many of you like to
eat fresh fruit that you have picked from your own garden that grew on the plants
that you yourself tended to?
We hear in the Bible in many places scriptures about “bearing
fruit.” That fruit is generally seen as a good thing. That most people like
fresh fruit, and that most people love to see fruit hanging on the vine, a
bush, or a tree. That the fruit is the thing that we seek. In this way, I have
never seen someone who was picking raspberries, tear part of the plant off and
eat that, instead of the berries. This is because they wanted the fruit.
Imagine though if you were to tear off a grape vine, or a raspberry
stalk, or a piece of a blueberry bush that had fruit on it. Imagine if you then
quickly ate that fruit. After that fruit is gone, can you then regrow more
fruit on that same vine or that piece of the plant that you tore off? We know
that the answer is no. That the vine or the piece of the plant that you have torn
off will wither and die, without being connected to the main plant, tree, or
vine.
When we buy someone fresh cut flowers for example, we put
them in water, and sometimes even sprinkle in some of that plant food, but
soon, the flowers will wither and die.
I remember talking to someone once who had gotten a tooth
knocked out on accident. They put the tooth in a glass of milk the said, and
were able to get the dentist in enough time to get the tooth put back in, and save
it. Yet, if they were too late, then that tooth would not reconnect to the root
in the person’s mouth. If that were to happen, then the tooth would remain detached
from that person’s body.
I give you all of these examples about plants, fresh
flowers, and losing a tooth, because I want to connect these example to what
Jesus Christ said this morning, when he said, “I am the true vine” (John 15:1a,
CEB).
When Jesus said this, like his shepherd statement from last
week, he was once again using language that made sense at the time, to his
disciples and his other followers. While we do still have a lot of vineyards
today, like shepherds back then, there were many people at the time that Jesus
lived in, who worked in vineyards. Growing grapes, pressing them, eating them, and
making juice and wine, were very common things for the ancient Israelite
people.
Due to this, it is very likely that Jesus used this imagery
of a vine to talk about himself, because his followers would understand it
immediately.
In this way, Jesus was
telling his disciples, his followers, and us today, that he is like a grape
plant, or a raspberry bush, or a blueberry bush. By this, Jesus Christ is saying
that He, that God is the very source of life, love, and light itself.
That God is like a mighty tree trunk and a root system, and
we are all the branches of that tree. That our spiritual nutrition flows from
the mighty tree trunk and the root system of God. That if we separate ourselves
from the source of love, light, and life, we will wither and bear no fruit.
That a cut off tree branch will no grow leaves next year, because it’s cut off
from its source of life.
In all of these ways then, Jesus is simply telling us all
this morning, to stay connected to Him, to God. That we on our own cannot do
what God can. That we cannot make disciples of Jesus Christ for the
transformation of world by ourselves, but God can through us. When we are connected
to the vine that is Jesus Christ, that is God, then God can use us to change
the world for Him.
It is when we try to do everything on our own, that we cut ourselves
off from the vine, from the plant, from the bush, from the tree, from the
source, and then our faith grows weak. That our witness to the gospel of Jesus
Christ fades, and our ability to bear fruit goes out the door.
Given all of this, I think that churches in 2015 that are
making disciples of Jesus Christ, that are reaching out to the community and to
the world, that are loving each other radically, are churches that are
connected to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB).
I think that sometimes though we over think many of the
simplicities of the gospel of Jesus Christ. That when we love and trust God,
love others, care for others, and bear witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ,
that God uses us the branches to bear fruit. That churches who were once
feeling like they had no strong future, find new energy, new excitement, and
find that God is using them to bear all kinds of fruit.
All we have to do, is stay connected to God, to Jesus
Christ, and to one another. To follow God, and do all of the things that He has
called us to do. When we live like this, when we love radically, and when we care
abundantly, God uses us to bear fruit.
So a good question for us to ask ourselves this morning is,
do we trust God, and are we connected to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB). Or
do we just go to church, have some spirituality, but are not really and truly
connected? For when we are really and truly connected, a church that once looked
like withering bush, can grow into a mighty tree, with many branches. I don’t
know about you, but I want to see this church, a tree that is already growing, to
grow into a mighty tree of faith, of service, of love.
People have asked me before as young pastor, “Pastor Paul
how do we grow and strengthen our church?” Well this morning, Jesus says stay
connected to me, to God, and love each other radically, and through this, fruit
will grow, the community will change, and the world will be made better. This
is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is the gospel of truth.
For me myself, I know that I cannot do anything on my own.
That every day, I surrender my life to Jesus Christ, and do my best to allow
God to work through me. That through staying connected to God, I am able to bear
the fruit that God has called me to bear. When we do this my brothers and
sisters, everything changes. You will see a church that is thriving, growing,
and full of life, love, and light. To me then, the gospel of Jesus Christ
couldn’t be any easier.
I really like the reading from this morning from Psalm 22,
as it tells us a little bit about worship. It says in 22:25, “I offer praise in
the great congregation because of you; I will fulfill my promises in the
presence of those who honor God” (Ps. 22:25, CEB). That we come here, not for
us, but for Him, for each other, that in Him and through Him, all things are
possible, if we stay connect to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB).
In the reading from the Apostle John’s first epistle or
letter from this morning, John speaks of staying connected to God and to each
other. He says, “Dear friends, let’s love each other, because love is from God,
and everyone who loves is born from God and knows God” (1 John 4:7, CEB). That
in Him and through Him, all things are possible, if we stay connected to “the
true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB).
John then goes on say in 4:8-9, “The person who doesn’t
love does not know God, because God is love. This is how the love of God is
revealed to us: God has sent his only Son into the world so that we can live
through him” (1 John 4:8-9, CEB). John then goes on to say in 4:15, “If any of
us confess that Jesus is God’s Son, God remains in us and we remain in God” (1
John 4:15, CEB) John then says in 4:16b, “God is love, and those who remain in
love remain in God and God remains in them” (1 John 4:16b, CEB). So are we connect
to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB)?
In looking more closely at the gospel according to John
reading from this morning, Jesus begins by saying, “I am the true vine, and my
Father is the vineyard keeper. He removes any of my branches that don’t produce
fruit, and he trims and branch that produces fruit so that it will produce even
more fruit” (John 15:1-2, CEB). I do know about you, but sometimes I find that
God needs to prune me, that God needs to cut away things from me that keep me
from bearing fruit.
In this way, strong churches, healthy church, flourishing
church are churches that are connect to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB). We are
also a church here that is willing to be pruned or sculpted when we need to
remove things that keeping us from producing fruit.
Be encouraged though, as Jesus says in 15:3, “You are already
trimmed because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, and I will remain
in you” (John 15:3, CEB). When we are focused on God, on Jesus Christ, and when
we loving each other radically, reaching out, and excited about Jesus Christ,
it not only transforms the church, but the whole community.
Jesus does remind us in 15:4b however that, “A branch can’t
produce fruit by itself, but must remain in the vine. Likewise, you can’t
produce fruit unless you remain in me” (John 15:4b, CEB). Jesus then says, “I
am the vine; you are the branches. I you remain in me and I in you, then you will
produce much fruit” (John 15:5, CEB). Jesus then says this simple truth, “Without
me, you can’t do anything. If you don’t remain in me, you will be like a branch
that is thrown out and dries up. Those branches are gathered up, thrown into a
fire, and burned” (John 15:5c-6, CEB).
My brothers and sisters, this is why we have growing
churches and dying churches in American today. To be all that God has called to
us to be, we must stay connected to “the true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB).
I
would like to close this message with a story called, “Chuck Swindoll,” and the
source was listed as being that this story was “heard in a talk by Swindoll.”
Here is how it goes: “Chuck Swindoll is a well-known author and preacher. He
describes a moment of crisis in his life. He was speaking at a pastor’s
conference. By any measure it was successful. Participants begged him to speak
longer and were very engaged. But when he was alone in his room at the end of
each day he felt an emptiness and frustration.”
“Sensing
God was wanting to do something in his life Chuck called four trusted friends.
“I want you to listen to my life story and see if anything stands out to you.”
And so the four friends and Chuck Swindoll gathered. Beginning with his
earliest memory Chuck poured out his life story.”
“When
he had finished, one of the friends asked him a few questions and then said,
“Chuck, I want you to put your head on the table and close your eyes.” Chuck
put his head on the table and closed his eyes.” “Now I want you to imagine your
father is holding you in his arms. What do you feel?”
“Almost
instantly Chuck began to cry. For thirty minutes he cried his eyes out. You see
Chuck’s father had died when Chuck was seven months old. And as he closed his
eyes what he felt was pure unconditional love.”
“What
Chuck also realized that day was that while he had preached many times about
God’s great love he had never made that personal. With his head on the table
that day he really felt, for the first time, that Got loved him, that his
heavenly father loved him deeply, richly and unconditionally.” “And by his own
testimony, he was never the same again.”
My brothers and sisters, when we
stay connected to “the true vine,” then and only then can we
bear fruit (John 15:1a, CEB). Then and only then, can we be transformed, and
can God use us to transform this church, and this community. For the churches
all across American right now that don’t get this, that are shrinking, that are
worried about the future, they and us would do well to stay connected to “the
true vine” (John 15:1a, CEB). Amen.
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