Main point: The original audience of John 15:1-4 are the disciples who were clean already v.3 and Jesus’ command for them was to remain in Him or continue to do what they had done. Not only the Gardener (the Father) would help them to bear more fruit, but also Jesus would remain in them Who was the power for anyone to bear fruit. (NET) [v.1] The imagery of the vine underscores the importance of fruitfulness in the Christian life and the truth that this results not from human achievement, but from one’s position in Christ. Jesus is not just giving some comforting advice, but portraying to the disciples the difficult path of faithful service. To some degree the figure is similar to the head-body metaphor used by Paul, with Christ as head and believers as members of the body. Both metaphors bring out the vital and necessary connection which exists between Christ and believers.
Reflection: To remain in Christ must not be an easy task even to those who were already clean and bearing fruit v.2 and therefore Jesus needed to give them the command v.4. Also to remain in Christ reminded the followers that their abilities to bear fruit was not in themselves, but from the fact that Jesus was in them. The pruning of the Father or the word Jesus speaking to the followers would make them to bear more fruit v.2-3. In other words, the power of bearing fruit was from God and from God’s words. Perhaps it is due to pressure from persecution that Jesus needed to give them this reminder. What is our pressure to leave our faith? Or perhaps it is due to the pride of the followers that Jesus gave this reminder. Are we prideful when we see fruit in our lives?
(optional reading) Context: How did this passage link to the previous passage?
“He takes away every branch that does not bear fruit...v.2a” (NET) These statements may refer to someone who was never a genuine believer in the first place (e.g., Judas and the Jews who withdrew after Jesus’ difficult teaching in 6:66), in which case 15:6 refers to eternal judgment...When used of the relationship between Jesus and the disciple and/or Jesus and the Father, it emphasizes the permanence of the relationship (John 6:56, 8:31, 8:35, 14:10). The prototypical branch who has not remained is Judas, who departed in 13:30. He did not bear fruit, and is now in the realm of darkness, a mere tool of Satan. His eternal destiny, being cast into the fire of eternal judgment, is still to come. It seems most likely, therefore, that the branches who do not bear fruit and are taken away and burned are false believers, those who profess to belong to Jesus but who in reality do not belong to him. In the Gospel of John, the primary example of this category is Judas. In 1 John 2:18–19 the “antichrists” fall into the same category; they too may be thought of as branches that did not bear fruit. They departed from the ranks of the Christians because they never did really belong, and their departure shows that they did not belong.
V.3a “You are clean already…” (NET) The phrase you are clean already occurs elsewhere in the Gospel of John only at the washing of the disciples’ feet in 13:10, where Jesus had used it of the disciples being cleansed from sin. This further confirms the proposed understanding of John 15:2 and 15:6 since Judas was specifically excluded from this statement (but not all of you).
Comments