I AM THE VINE

• Over the course of this study, we have learned that Jesus protects us, guides us, rescues us, and gives us meaning.

  • Now, as we close our study, we will see that Jesus calls himself a vine. Yes, you heard that right, Jesus called himself a plant. What does this have to do with you?

    • It’s actually marvelous. As the vine, Jesus consistently grants you energy, stamina, and growth.

ILLUSTRATION

Share a story about fuel / running out of gasoline. Here is how mine went.

• “Are they giving out free slushies or something?” I asked my friend while motioning to a 40-car line at the gas station. It was May in the South, so the weather was blisteringly hot. It’s got to be free slushies, I thought. This is the only reason there’d be such a long line for gas at 8:00 AM on a Tuesday morning. My train of thought was derailed by logic. Who drinks slushies in the morning? Do they make coffee slushies? Actually, that would be delicious. Why has no one created that yet?

• “You didn’t hear?” My friend motioned toward his Twitter newsfeed. “There was a cyber security attack on the Colonial Pipeline yesterday. The attack shut down the flow of gas into our area completely.”

• “You mean there’s no gasoline?” I pondered aloud. “Not for long,” he replied.

• Come dinner time, all of the gas stations in Raleigh were out of gasoline. If you hadn’t filled up, you were stuck.

• Four days later, I noticed the little orange fuel pump light illuminating my dashboard. “Time to find gas,” I said with a sigh. Usually, this was easy. In May 2021, it was nearly impossible. Every station was sold out. The pipeline hadn’t opened back up, so finding fuel was like finding a needle in a corn maze. While driving around town, my range meter dipped from 30 miles to 20 miles to 10 miles to 5 miles. Finally, just as I was about to get stranded, I saw a long line at a station. My car ran out of gas while waiting, but I was able to roll toward the pump using gravity.

TENSION

• If you want to move forward, you need fuel.

  • This is true for our vehicles, and it’s also true for our lives.

  • Sometimes our “low fuel” light illuminates on the dashboard of our hearts, souls, and minds. In these moments, we feel stuck, directionless, and stranded. So, what do we do when our souls feel depleted? Jesus has an answer for that. He breaks down this principle in John 15.

CONTEXTUALIZING THIS PASSAGE

• John’s fifteenth chapter takes place in the middle of mayhem.

  • Jesus is explaining His rapidly-approaching death to his disciples.

    • Feeling stuck and stranded, His faithful friends scramble for answers.

    • With love in His eyes, Jesus shows His disciples that His presence doesn’t depend on physical location.

      • There is something amazing in the works.

• Leveraging the metaphor of a vine and branches, Christ teaches his disciples that they can still draw strength from Him even when they aren’t in the same space.

  • “Remaining in Jesus” is not a physical practice but a spiritual one.

    • Let’s unpack our last “I AM” statement in which Jesus teaches that He is “the vine.”

    • What exactly does this mean to us today?

Jesus Provides Fuel

• What does a vine do? It gives energy and nourishment to the whole plant.

  • Thanks to vines, plants produce fruit.

  • Thanks to vines, plants grow.

    • Vines are the source of life-giving fuel to all living foliage.

    • Jesus is your source of fuel as well.

    • If you feel as though your spiritual tank is nearly empty, remain in Jesus, and He will energize you.

• When life drains you, let Jesus fulfill you. According to this passage, you don’t have to do anything except “remain in Jesus.”

  • Notice that “remain” is a passive verb.

    • Jesus didn’t say you have to pray thirty times a day. Jesus didn’t say you have to do a certain ritual.

    • Jesus didn’t say you have to solve all of life’s mysteries. If you’re feeling depleted, just embrace His presence, and He will fuel you.

      • Drop to your knees, whisper a prayer, read the Word, or put on a worship playlist.

      • Spiritual energy will be the result.

      • Remaining in God’s presence rejuvenates your life.

• Vines popped up all over the place in ancient Palestine. For the people of this time, twisting vine-like plants were the primary sources of food.

  • That’s why Jesus’s audience would have understood the power of pruning.

    • Gardeners had to prune the branches (cut off little sections) to ensure healthy and abundant fruit.

      • When carefully pruned and protected, Palestinian plants would produce sweet grapes, fatty olives, and juicy tomatoes.

      • When left unpruned, the vines would crawl everywhere and kill everything.

• Did you know that God prunes you as well? Why?

  • To ensure that you produce healthy and abundant fruit.

  • God is a good gardener.

    • In this passage, Jesus is the vine and we are the branches.

    • That means that Jesus is our source of life and we are the branches that produce fruit. What kind of fruit does God want to see in your life?

      • The Apostle Paul laid it out for us by listing “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).

• Good fruit requires thorough pruning. God picks up your branch on the vine of Christ and says, “I am going to clip away some of these unhealthy-looking leaves.”

  • Those leaves may be sinful behaviors, dangerous thoughts, or unhealthy patterns. Whatever they are, God wants to cut them out of your life to ensure you produce the best fruit.

• What does God the Gardener’s pruning process look like?

  • He may allow your sin to be uncovered.

  • He may snip away your selfish ambition.

  • He may allow a relationship to fall to the ground and wither away.

    • Yes, the process is painful, but the results are wonderful.

    • Fruits like love, joy, and peace will come bursting forth from your branches.

    • Embrace God’s pruning because it produces healthy fruit.

Jesus Pushes You to Flourish

• God is at work in your life. Like a gardener, He’s removing weeds, tossing aside stones, slicing off diseased leaves, and stomping invasive insects.

  • Jesus, the vine, is giving you fuel. God, the gardener, is helping you produce fruit.

    • So what happens next? As the bad falls to the earth, the good bursts forth, and you begin to flourish.

• According to Webster, flourishing means to “grow or develop in a healthy or vigorous way, especially as the result of a particularly favorable environment."

  • Notice the second part of that definition.

  • Flourishing requires a favorable environment.

  • That’s why Jesus uses this metaphor in our last “I AM” statement. Christ is building the perfect environment for you to thrive in life.

  • You, the branches, receive life-giving nourishment from the vine.

  • Jesus, the vine, is your only source of life.

• God wants to see you flourish in every facet of your life. That’s why He works so hard to protect your environment and provide your energy.

  • Jesus is your true source of energy and the pathway to your destiny.

  • Rest in Him, rely upon Him, and remain in Him.

Landing: Do you know why I love the “I AM” statements?

• They are Jesus talking about Jesus in His own words.

• As we’ve explored these passages, we have seen that Jesus is our Shepherd, our ultimate reality, our resurrection, and our route toward peace.

  • Do you notice how every promise is designed to bring you closer to the Father? That’s what Jesus came to earth to do.

    • He came to shatter any divider between you and God.

    • Ultimately, Jesus is saying, “I AM everything you need.

    • Look no further because “I AM already with you.”

TALK IT OUT

Go through these questions with your circle. Be honest. Be open. Talk through the tough stuff.

Ice Breaker: Go around your circle and share this week’s highs and lows. What was the best part of your week and what was the lowest part of your week?

Q1: What stuck out to you from this message?

Q2: What are some indicators that your spirit may be running low on fuel?

Q3: If Jesus is the vine and we are the branches, what does that mean about our relationship with Him?

Q4: What are some places in your life you’d like to see flourish? How can you invite God into that process?

Q5: Of all the “I AM” statements we have studied over the last four sessions, what has been the most impactful for you? Why is that?

Application: Write down anything you need to cut out of your life to have a healthier relationship with Jesus. Ask God to help remove it from you, then embrace God’s pruning. If there is anything God’s trying to cut out from your life, welcome His work with an open heart.

READ THESE PASSAGES IN ORDER EVERY DAY

2 Samuel 15

2 Samuel 18

1 Kings 1

1 Kings 2

1 Kings 3-4

1 Kings 5-6

1 Kings 7-8

Do the following with each passage:

ASK– God to connect with you here. In prayer, start by slowing down and inviting God to be present. Begin with focus and openness to see what God has for you today.

READ– the selected section of Scripture slowly. Take note of the words and phrases that intrigue you, reading them a second time if necessary.

REFLECT– on what grabs you. How does this passage personally relate to your own life and experiences?

RESPOND– to the Scripture. Speak directly to God about what’s on your mind and heart. Look for ways to live out what you’ve uncovered.