The True Vine

Text: John 15:1-8
Date: The Fifth Sunday of Easter5/14/06

Occasion: 150th Anniversary Year of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Rock Island, Illinois.

  A burglar entered a dark house. As he made his way into the living room he heard a voice say, “Jesus is watching you!” He stopped in his tracks. After a moment he continued to sneak further into the dark room. He heard the voice again, “Jesus is watching you!” Now a little frightened he looked toward where he thought the voice was coming and he saw a birdcage. In the cage was a parrot. He asked the parrot, “was that you that said ‘Jesus is watching me'”? The parrot said, “Yes.” The burglar, somewhat relieved, asked, “What's your name?” “Clarence,” said the parrot. “Clarence?” said the burglar. “That's a dumb name for a parrot. What idiot named you Clarence?” The parrot replied, “The same idiot that named the Rottweiler over there ‘Jesus.'”

  In this anniversary year of Immanuel congregation, and on this Fifth Sunday of our Easter celebration, the Gospel for today says not only that Jesus is watching you, but watching you with care; that He is also expecting to see certain things, but most of all that He is the Source of the things he expects of us. “I am the true vine,” he says, “and you are the branches.” The branches He expects to bear fruit. “Every branch that does bear fruit is pruned so that it bears more, and every branch that does not bear fruit is cut off and thrown away.”

  When Jesus says he is the “true” vine it calls to mind the Old Testament image of God's people Israel as a vine planted by the Lord. But whereas old Israel failed all of God's expectations, Jesus is the “True Vine,” the perfect Israel, the genuine Servant. He took on our human nature in order to fulfill God's Law perfectly for us, in our place. Having done that he also, then, became the one and only perfect sacrifice for our failings and sins, on account of which God now invites all mankind into His eternal kingdom through the forgiveness of our sins out of His perfect justice and love in Christ for his creation.

  Now, this is the Upper Room on the night he would be betrayed. Jesus is speaking not to the crowds but to his disciples. So these words are for each of you individually. He calls you branches. In your Holy Baptism you were grafted into Christ the vine, made a member of his kingdom. That means that you have the forgiveness of sins, eternal life and salvation. More than that, by his preached Word and sacraments he provides you with the proper nutrition that enables you live and grow and flourish and bear fruit.

  What is the “fruit” that he expects? Certainly we could look to the famous list of St. Paul on the “fruits of the Spirit” in Galatians 5, you remember, “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” [Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)]. But taking just the more immediate context of the words of our Lord, the “fruit” he was talking about that night included specifically at least three things: keeping his commandments or word, love for one another, and bearing witness. In verse 10 he says, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love” [John 15:10 (ESV)]. Then in verse 12 he says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” [John 15:12 (ESV)]. And finally this chapter ends with his words, “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning” [John 15:26-27 (ESV)]. So the fruit he expects is keeping his word, loving one another and bearing witness.

  It doesn't take much thought to get the image of the tangling, intertwining branches of a grape vine growing year after year into a complex plant. One of my favorite wines is called “old vine” Zinfandel. Though there is no legal definition of “old vine” it is usually agreed to be a vine at least 50 years old. Some vines are actually over 90 years old! These “old vines,” as you might expect, are OLD! As such they produce fewer bunches and smaller grapes. But it is thought by many that they also therefore provide a more intense, mature, concentrated flavor. You can imagine the greater care that must be taken, pruning those branches that are still producing and cutting back or even breaking off branches that have become dry, dead and brittle. So is Jesus' imagery of His Church as branches of the Vine. “Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit [the vinedresser] takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit” [John 15:2 (ESV)]. The Church and faith are living, lively active things.

  167 years ago, in 1839, C.F.W. Walther arrived in New Orleans, LA with approximately 800 immigrants from Saxony in Germany who eventually headed up the ol' Mississippi River and settled in Perry County, Missouri. A branch of the true vine, bearing the fruits of keeping Christ's word and love for one another, they were impelled by the Gospel to bring the witness of the Good News to the new frontier of America. Only eight years later a branch that we today call The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod was established and is today one of if not the oldest Lutheran branch still producing fruit in America today. Then, only nine years after that, in 1856, 150 years ago this June, some German immigrants established “The German Evangelical Lutheran Church” in Rock Island, Illinois! These were true branches of the True Vine! We know that because of the fruits they bore.

  Certainly those first fathers were dedicated to keeping Jesus' commandments or words, loving one another and bearing witness to the truth of salvation through Jesus Christ alone. And there were others, the Swedish Lutherans and even others still in the area that proclaimed the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Through the years there have been tough times and challenges. Just as Immanuel congregation was being established an economic depression as devastating as the famous one of the 1930s made life more difficult. A physician and surgeon of that time, Jeremiah Hall Lyford, said, “The autumns of 1845 and 1846 were the two most sickly seasons that I have ever known in this country.” And maybe you can think of some tough times in your experience. Through it all, however, faith hangs on to the promise that God can turn all our circumstances to serve our ultimate good, working endurance, character and hope [Romans 5:3-4 (ESV)].

  As we consider 150 years of history, however, let us not get overly sentimental or confuse the institution of a church body or a congregation as being the vine. Jesus Christ is the true vine and each individual believer, congregation or church body is but a branch, dependant on the vine for its life and bearing fruit. Under the great care of God the Vinedresser, each branch occasionally feels the knife. God uses times of turmoil or even suffering to prune his branches, to cut away whatever is only robbing energy, in order to produce more fruit and thus glorifying the Father. Sometimes, of course, branches die and must be completely cut off and thrown away, whatever or whomever is not abiding in his word, living in mutual love or bearing witness. So this image is in part a warning and is to make us individually or even as a congregation or a church body to take inventory and ask, “are we fruitful branches, or are we dying on the vine?”

  Jesus says that his disciples, YOU, are the branches. The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod is not the vine but only a branch. So also Immanuel Lutheran Church is a branch, an old one to be sure, but just a branch after all and not the vine. In many places people are talking about congregations as “mission outposts.” Jesus says that his branches bear godly fruit. Fruit-bearing branches show themselves to be of the true vine. Branches that do not bear fruit show themselves to be dead—even if they have been once connected to the true vine. This is a warning for all generations of the Church. In Martin Luther's day it was discovered that “the church” was very sick and almost dead. Yet, from the root of the Gospel it was born anew through a clear proclamation of the pure doctrine of the Gospel. Luther was not deceived, however, for he feared that the pure teaching would once again be overgrown with the weeds and thorns of false teaching. Years later, when the government forced the Lutherans to disregard some of Jesus' teachings in order to unite with the Reformed (called the Prussian Union), this was what was behind the Saxons coming to the new frontier in America. Yet even here they found weeds. The religious pluralism of America, while being the best that an earthly government can provide, threatened the clear and faithful understanding and faith of the Gospel, its fellowship and witness. The same is happening right now, especially today when denominational distinctions are popularly considered a negative thing and hearts are strangely warmed and there is great applause at the mere mention of the phrase “non-denominational.” We need to remember that a person or a church that tries to “stand for everything” ends us standing for nothing. There is truth and error. God's Word is truth.

  Jesus is still watching you and watching over you, his branches. In my now 27 years of being a pastor I have seen a sort of revival going on. I do not mean the supposed revival, however, of the big, mega-churches, the flashy programs and best-selling books you've seen or heard about. The true revival is slowly taking place in those congregations that are half the size they used to be, those struggling with having enough funds even to support one pastor much less those congregations with Lutheran schools. In the past decade or more I have been impressed with many of the young pastors coming out of our seminaries, pastors who are bearing the fruits Jesus is here talking about. They are keeping his commands and words as they are taking very seriously the pure understanding, preaching and teaching of the Gospel, together with the wisdom of the churchly teachers of the past, especially a revival of interest in the Augsburg Confession and Luther's Small Catechism. Love for one another and the goal of witness or testifying to Jesus is at the heart of the discovery of the wisdom of the historic liturgy that turns the spotlight off of ourselves and back on to Jesus Christ. I've heard some sermons where Jesus is barely mentioned and it's all about us and our works. We need to be “jealous” for Jesus Christ, brag about Jesus Christ, to tell everyone what he has done. I am looking forward to the new Lutheran Service Book that is coming out this fall. I think it is the best ever. For one thing congregations like Immanuel will be able to pick it up and find the familiar service we are doing this morning there. Many mistakes made in Lutheran Worship have been fixed. And, of course, the many worthy newer resources will be available.

____________________
Rev. Allen D. Lunneberg

Contacts:

deblocascio.stmark@sbcglobal.net

Pastor: Rev. Allen D. Lunneberg
7979 Commerce Rd.      (1/4 mile east of Union Lake Rd.)
West Bloomfield, MI 48324
Phone: 248.363.0741
Fax: 248.363.4755