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The True
Vine.
In John's Gospel the chapters 13-17 are holy ground. There are
unfathomable depths of truth in every part of these majestic
passages. They have continuously over the centuries been yielding
refreshing water of life to all who will immerse themselves in them
by prayerful meditation and openness to the Holy Spirit's teaching.
In a recent encounter with them the Lord graciously granted me new
light and truth which have rejoiced my spirit, encouraged my heart
and stimulated me to write this message.
Jesus Prepares the Way for His Church
These five chapters contain the final teachings of Jesus before He
went the way of the Cross and the resurrection. The Master's words
had been indelibly etched into the heart of the beloved disciple who
recorded them. They were a distillation and concentration of all
that He had been imparting to them, and were preparatory for what
was to come in the establishment of the Church. Right at the very
centre of these chapters is a revelation straight from the heart of
Jesus concerning the true nature of the Church that was about to be
birthed. Here are the simple limpid statements in which that
disclosure of essential truth was made: "I am the true vine, and my
Father is the husbandman." "I am the vine, you are the branches.",
and "Abide in me, and I in you." For those who long to know Church
as God intends it to be, for those "in whose hearts are the highways
to Zion" (Ps.84:5) these words are truly spirit and life. The
remainder of Jesus' teaching both in word and example which these
chapters contain all revolve around this central core.
Two Vines-- The Degenerate and the True
"I am the true vine." or more literally, "I am the vine, the true."
For those first Jewish disciples to whom He was speaking the figure
of the vine would have been a familiar one. The vine was, in the
prophetic scriptures, a symbol of the people of God, Israel. But the
tragedy, revealed by the prophets, was that the vine had become
degenerate. It was producing wild grapes. The relevant scriptures
are Psalm 80:8-13, Isaiah 5:1-7, Jeremiah 2:21 and Hosea 10:1-2.
which should all be read. The story of Israel in terms of the vine
was that she had been brought out of Egypt, she had been a choice
vine of wholly pure seed, she had been planted with every care for
her life and growth, but she had failed to produce the fruit that
the Lord looked for.
Now Jesus was making the amazing claim to be the true vine,
replacing that degenerate plant that had failed to fulfil God's
purpose. Through and in Him God would raise up a people who would
bring forth much fruit for His glory. The true vine was Jesus and
those who belong to Him in organic union." I am the vine, you are
the branches." When the truth of that simple sentence begins to dawn
upon our hearts it will utterly revolutionise our conceptions of
Church. It is a death blow to all institutional Christendom. As
individuals are incorporated into Christ, as they abide in Him and
He in them, so they become, as branches, integrally part of the
Vine. The life flowing in the branches is the life of the Lord
Jesus. The branches have no autonomy, no vitality apart from Him.
Severed from Him they can produce nothing. The Lord Jesus is the
root stem branches leaves and fruit of the Vine. His life pervades
every part. Of the Church it is true that "Christ is all and in all"
(Colossians 3:11), and that it is "the fullness of Him who fills all
in all." (Ephesians 1:23) These truths are staggering. The Church is
Christ in living union with His people.
My Father is The Husbandman
Of this Church, Jesus said, "My Father is the husbandman." The vine
is the Father's vine and He cares for it. Isaiah had expressed this
reality centuries before when he prophesied, "In that day: a
pleasant vineyard, sing of it ! I the LORD, am its keeper; every
moment I water it. Lest anyone harm it I guard it night and day."
(Isaiah 27:2-3). It is of the utmost significance that the
predominant New Testament designation of the Church is "the Church
of God." ( Acts 20:28, 1 Corinthians 1:2, 10:32, 11:22, 15:9, 2
Corinthians 1:1, Galatians 1:13, 1 Timothy 3:15 )
As I have meditated on and prayed over these things I find myself
asking two questions;
1) Why have we not seen these great things concerning the true
nature of the Church and all that they imply?
2) How have we arrived at the present state of Christendom, with its
myriad sects divisions, denominations, ministries, missions, all
humanly organised and institutionalised ?
Parallels Between Israel & The Church
In answer to the second question it seems to me that there are
tragic parallels between the history of Israel and the history of
Christendom. Israel, planted as a choice vine, wholly of pure seed
(Jeremiah 2:21) became degenerate, rank and unfruitful. The true
vine, Christ in organic union with His people, has never become
degenerate and it would be blasphemous even to suggest that. But
alongside the true vine there has grown up a wild vine, rank and
luxuriant like that described by the prophet Hosea in chapter
10:1-2; "Israel is a luxuriant vine that yields its fruit. The more
his fruit increased the more altars he built; as his country
improved he improved his pillars." Is that not a picture of
Christendom? In all the preparations the Lord made for the Church
there is never a mention of institution, organisational plan,
hierarchical authority-structures, financial planning, church
buildings, headquarters or offices There was no instruction
concerning services, liturgy, praise and worship, clergy and laity
or religious rituals. But now every one of these things
characterises the church as the world sees it, and as most
Christians know it. Look at the massive institutionalism and
ecclesiastical bureaucracy of Rome, the Anglican church and the ever
proliferating denominations, streams and "ministries" in evangelical
and Pentecostal churches. Listen to the call for bigger and better
buildings, the constant begging for money to finance this one and
that one's "vision." Oh Hosea, you should be living in this hour!
Hijacked!
The Lord Jesus gave us a parable of a vineyard hijacked by the
husbandmen who had been hired to care for it in the owner's absence
(Matthew 21:33-43) This too is reflected in church history. The true
Church, the vine of which Jesus spoke has only one Husbandman, the
Father. Now a multitude of husbandmen tend the churches, often with
motives alien to the teachings and example of the Lord Jesus. I hate
to be critical. But in the light of the revelation of the true vine
what can one say?
A Remnant of the True.
When the Lord Jesus came Israel was a degenerate vine, as we have
seen. It was the leaders of the religious system, the wicked
husbandmen, the hijackers, who conspired to put Him to death. But
there was a remnant of the vine of pure seed still existing in
people like Zechariah & Elizabeth, Simeon and Anna, people who were
looking for the coming of the Messiah and "the consolation of
Israel." So too the true-vine-Church has persisted through the
centuries alongside the rank vine of Christendom. Now, it may be,
God's time has come for the burgeoning again of the true vine. Psalm
80 is a word for this hour with its thrice repeated cry and plea,
"Restore us O God: let Thy face shine, that we may be saved." As I
have contact with more and more fellow believers who are distressed
and disillusioned with current church life and structures and are
longing for a better way, I am encouraged by the words of another
Psalm, 102. "Thou O Lord art enthroned for ever; Thy name endures to
all generations. Thou wilt arise and have pity on Zion; it is the
time to favour her; the appointed time has come. For Thy servants
hold her stones dear, and have pity on her dust." (vs.12-14)
How may we enter into the experience of life in the true vine? How
may this living organism, wholly vitalised by the Lord Jesus be
rediscovered and restored? We will only make this rediscovery when
we are willing to let go of the other, the humanly organised and the
institutional. While our hands are full of that other we cannot
receive the true. We need to come to zero point! "Apart from Me you
can do nothing."
The Distinctive Marks of True-Vine Church
The true-vine Church, wholly after Jesus' heart, was planted on the
day of Pentecost. In the teachings of Jesus recorded in John 13-17
all the characteristics of that true Church had been foreshadowed.
Let me try, although the task is daunting, to indicate in broad
terms the distinctive features of the Church which the Lord Jesus
had in mind when He spoke of the true vine and the branches.
Humble Servant Leadership.
First, in
chapter 13 we have manifested by word and action the kind of
leadership which the Lord Jesus intended for His Father's Church.
There we see Him, in the full consciousness of who He was, the
Divine only Son of the Father, kneeling before the disciples and washing
their feet. "You call me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so
I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet, you
also ought to wash one another's feet." By that action and in these
words our Lord laid the axe to the root of the tree of worldly
concepts of leadership. The leadership in the Church which He
intended to build would be in stark contrast to leadership as
exercised in the world. I have written more fully elsewhere of the
characteristics of true-vine-Church leadership. Here I would simply
draw attention to the passage in Peter's first Epistle ch.5:1-5
which shows how well this apostle had learned Christ. I quote in
full.
"So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness
of the sufferings of Christ as well as a partaker in the glory that
is to be revealed. Tend the flock of God which is among you, not by
constraint but willingly, not for shameful gain but eagerly, not as
domineering over those in your charge but being examples to the
flock. And when the chief Shepherd is manifested you will obtain the
unfading crown of glory. Likewise you that are younger be subject to
the elders. Clothe yourselves, all of you with humility toward one
another, for 'God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the
humble'."
Now put John 13 and this from Peter alongside much of modern
churchdom. Look at the ecclesiastical pomp and show, the dressed up
prelates archbishops, cardinals and all the array of multi-titled
clergy. Listen to the broken hearts of believers crushed by
authoritarianism, and see the all-too-frequent grasping for shameful
gain. Think of the expensive lifestyles of jet-set religious
executives. Where does it all come from? Certainly not from the true
vine. I cannot but agree with George MacDonald when he says in his
novel, "A Daughter's Devotion", "Church talk and church ways and
church ceremonies ..... and church worldliness generally have
obscured Him (Jesus Christ) for hundreds of years, and will yet
obscure Him for hundreds more, until He comes to remove the scales
from the eyes of His own church-bound sons and daughters."
In the true-vine-Church those with leadership function will be
stamped with humility. There will be no striving for position or
pre-eminence, no ambition to be the greatest. As the Lord Jesus gave
an example to these first disciples of glad self-emptying
servanthood, so will true leaders be exemplary in willingness to
serve even in the most menial of roles.
The Absolute Uniqueness and Exclusiveness of Christ.
In chapter
14 there is recorded the claim of the Lord Jesus which sets Him
apart as wholly and absolutely unique. "I am the way, and the truth,
and the life; no one comes to the Father but by me." This is the
unshakeable, non-negotiable foundational confession of the true-vine
Church. "For no other foundation can any one lay than that which is
laid, which is Jesus Christ." (1 Corinthians 3:11) It is popular
today to believe that there are many ways to God. Many are prepared
to honour the Lord Jesus, but fall far short of according Him the
exclusive role as the only Saviour and the only one who can lead us
into the true knowledge of God. Also, inextricably linked with that
exclusive claim is the assertion of the Divine nature of the Lord,
"He who has seen me has seen the Father.", and "I am in the Father
and the Father in me." He who is fully man and fully God is the only
one who can impart the life that enjoys fellowship with the Father.
I have two press cuttings from the "N.Z. Herald" newspaper which
illustrate the trend, at least in main line churches, to erode this
recognition of the uniqueness and exclusiveness of Christ. Dean
Rymer of Auckland reported that , at a conference he attended in
Istanbul , "The dynamic Jesuit Francis Xavier D'Sa, told the
conference he incorporated many Hindu principles in his Roman
Catholic teaching. He said God had revealed Himself to all religions
in different ways. It was like a mountain which could be viewed
differently from all sides." (11/7/88) On 6th June 1988 in the same
paper was the headline, "Christ Focus Too Great Says Priest." This
priest, Father Matthew Fox said among other things, "Christianity is
one of many wells, such as Buddhism or Taoism which plummet the
depths and reach God." The degenerate vine rank in growth and
producing wild grapes is a reality now, just as in Hosea's day!
In contrast take note of Peter's uncompromising stance when he was
examined before the supreme council of Judaism in Jerusalem,
following the amazing healing of the lame man recorded in Acts 3.
"There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under
heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) Or
consider Paul's statement in 1 Timothy 2:5, "There is one God and
one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus." Such was
the unwavering essential testimony of the early Church living in the
fresh reality of her union with the Lord Jesus in the true vine.
Fellowship
Here we enter the holy of holies concerning the true vine;
fellowship and union with the Triune God. No words of mine can
convey the glory and mystery of this. I simply would urge each
reader to take time to go quietly before God, considering
particularly John 14:15-24 & John 17:20-26, and asking the Holy
Spirit to enlighten the eyes of the heart to know the realities
which these incomparable words of the Lord reveal. The fellowship of
the true-vine Church is nothing less than being taken up into the
love relationship of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; "I in them and
Thou in me that they may become perfectly one." (John 17:23) "In
that day you will know that I am in my Father and you in me, and I
in you." That is Jesus' description of fellowship, and throughout
the New Testament that is the supreme revelation of fellowship. It
is when we truly experience this amazing calling to be sharers in
the Divine and perfect love of heaven, the love which eternally
flows between Father, Son and Spirit that "sincere love of the
brethren, and loving one another earnestly from the heart" (1Peter
1:23) will flourish. Fellowship, as Jesus revealed it has nothing to
do with attending services or meetings, but everything to do with
deep love relationships, primarily with heaven, and secondarily with
each other. Where the divine-human relationship is known and
experienced, the believer-to-believer bonding of love will surely
follow. "We love, because He first loved us."
The All-sufficient Life-Provider in the True-vine Church The Holy
Spirit
We have seen that in these last teachings of the Lord Jesus before
the Cross and resurrection He was preparing His disciples for the
establishment of the Church. Those who were His called-out ones, the
"ekklesia", were to be incorporated in Him, sharing His life and
bearing fruit for the glory of the Father. It is in this context
that the Lord Jesus reveals the means by which all this will be
accomplished. It will be by the sending from heaven of One who will
fully represent His Father and Himself, the living and life-giving
Holy Spirit. The resources of this soon-to-be-manifest Church were
to be wholly from heaven. Its power and authority were not to be
derived from human abilities, personalities, organisational
structures or political influence, but from this Spirit-person
entering each believer and bringing the very presence of Christ
Jesus and His Father into every heart. Glorious mystery! Not to be
grasped by the intellect or perceived by human wisdom, but to be
received by childlike faith. The words of Jesus Himself concerning
this Comforter, Helper, Advocate are to be read and pondered in holy
wonderment and taken deep into our hearts. They need no exposition
from me. I urge you to spend time with the rich promises of John
14:15-26, 15:26-27, 16:7-15. Then turn to the record in "The Acts"
and see how utterly true and reliable these pledges from the Lord
Jesus proved to be. The Epistles throw further light on the total
adequacy in the Holy Spirit as the all-inclusive resource of life
and power for the Church. Everything for that early Church came down
from her exalted Head in heaven by the Holy Spirit. Those first
believers lived in the Spirit, walked by the Spirit, prayed in the
Spirit, were led by the Spirit and empowered by the Spirit. The Lord
Jesus through the Holy Spirit was in complete command, and through
the Spirit all the resources of heaven were made available. Of that
first Church, the words of Adolphe Monod were true, "All in Christ;
by the Holy Spirit; for the glory of God. All else is nothing." That
is the true-vine Church.
Where can we find a church like that today? The churches of
Christendom have become degenerate vines, depending for their life
and growth, not on humble reliance upon the Holy Spirit, but leaning
heavily on planning, organised programs. management skills,
entrepreneurial drive, entertainment and a host of other
worldly-wise schemes. The fresh spontaneity of energetic life
infused by the Spirit is hard to find. The early Christians were
used by the Lord Jesus under the direction of the Holy Spirit to
further His divine purposes. Today's churches want to use the Holy
Spirit to bless their plans.
Unity
In the prayer of Jesus in John 17, Jesus asked His Father concerning
those first apostles, "Holy Father, keep them in Thy name, which
thou hast given me that they may be one, even as we are one." Then,
interceding for all believers yet to be born into His kingdom, He
prayed, "That they all may be one; even as Thou, Father, art in me
and I in Thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may
believe Thou hast sent me. The glory which Thou hast given me, I
have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in
them and Thou in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the
world may know that Thou hast sent me and hast loved them even as
Thou hast loved me." That for which Jesus prayed was fulfilled at
Pentecost and in subsequent days. "Now the company of those who
believed were of one heart and soul." (Acts 4:32) This was what Paul
later wrote of as "The unity of the Spirit."
The degenerate luxuriant vine of Christendom makes a mockery of this
prayer of our Lord. The passing centuries have witnessed ever
multiplying divisions and the proliferation of sects and
denominations Aware, to some degree, of their guilt there are many
initiatives towards so called unity: the ecumenical movement, of
which the World Council of Churches is the supreme example,
cooperation between denominations for evangelism (to be followed by
competition for the converts!), shared theological colleges etc. But
all of these fail to address the true nature of the unity for which
the Lord Jesus so urgently prayed. The unity of the Spirit is not
the organisational unity of ecclesiastical mergers, but a divine
gift received by those who are incorporated into Christ in the life
of the one true vine. "Therefore let us go forth to Him outside the
camp, and bear the abuse he endured."
Knowing God and His Son, Jesus Christ.
The true vine Church is made up of those who have been born from
above into eternal life, and eternal life, according to the Lord
Jesus is "That they know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ
whom Thou hast sent." (John 17:3) The personal, relational.
experiential knowing of God characterises the life of each
individual branch of the Vine. Long before, Jeremiah had
foreshadowed this in his prophecy concerning the new covenant when
he declared, "They shall all know me from the least of them to the
greatest, says the Lord." In this knowledge of the Lord there were
to be no human intermediaries. "I will put my law within them, and I
will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they
shall be my people." That was the promise of God, and it was
fulfilled in the true vine Church. Each believer knowing and hearing
from God for himself through the "one Mediator", the Lord Jesus.
Those first Christians could all echo the cry of Paul's heart, "I
count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord."
In contrast the degenerate vine has spawned many intermediaries.
Instead of enjoying direct access "in one Spirit to the Father"
(Ephesians 2:18) people depend on priests, pastors elders,
travelling evangelists to give them access to God. They are living,
not in the New Covenant, but in the bondage of the old, failing to
avail themselves of their inheritance in Christ.
The Three-fold Character of Fruitful Branches
Three words concerning the character of living members of the true
permeate these chapters. They are: believe, love and obey. When
Jesus talks of abiding in Him it is to this trinity that He refers.
They are all intimate relational words expressing the bonds which
unite a disciple to His Lord. The belief is not in a creed, a
teaching, a doctrine, but a trust, reliance and dependence on a
Person and this trust is aroused by an encounter with One who is
utterly trustworthy, One who loves to the uttermost. As well as
trust this encounter arouses a responsive love and the love
expresses itself in glad obedience. This triple response of trust,
love and obedience ties the believer into the circle of divine love
flowing between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is as Jesus prayed
"that the love with which Thou hast loved me may be in them, and I
in them." (John 17:26b) These things are deep and wonderful beyond
expression. As the ancient hymn writer expressed it :
"But what to those who find? Ah, this
Nor tongue nor pen can show;
The love of Jesus, what it is,
None but His loved ones know."
The Hour of Destiny
I am aware that I have dredged only a bucketful of truth from a
great and unlimited ocean, but these are at least some of the marks
of the Church that Jesus had in mind as He shared with His disciples
in this last intimate discourse. What He said was spoken in the
acute awareness that "the hour had come" (John 13:1) the hour for
which He had come into the world. When He had finished speaking with
them He prayed His great intercessory prayer, beginning, "Father the
hour has come." He then moved inexorably towards the Cross, the
resurrection, the ascension and His exaltation, and the subsequent
outpouring of the Holy Spirit. It is through these climactic events
that the true-vine Church came to birth. It is on the events of that
"hour" that the true-vine Church is founded. It is from the ongoing
significance of these that her life depends. Only the final "Day of
the Lord" will surpass in glory all that was accomplished in that
awesome Divinely ordained "hour".
The Fullness of God
The first and last words of the chapters we have been considering
concern love. "Jesus, having loved His own who were in the world, He
loved them to the end." John 13:1. And, "I made known to them Thy
name, and I will make it known, that the love with which Thou has
loved me may be in them and I in them." Thus the true-vine Church is
held in the embrace of the love of God the Father, and of His Son
the Lord Jesus Christ. In between, these chapters are permeated by
that love. Take a highlighter and mark each occurrence of the word
"love", and then in meditation let the meaning of it all be unveiled
to your heart by the Spirit. And may He grant you "power to
comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and
height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses
knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."
(Ephesians 3:18) It was such a love-birthed, love-infused and
love-empowered Church that Jesus had in mind, and for which He laid
the foundations in that "hour" of which He spoke.
Earlier I asked the question, "Why have we not seen these great
things concerning the true nature of the Church and all that they
imply?" Is it not that we have persistently read the scriptures
through the coloured spectacles of tradition, that, accepting the
status quo, we have not dared to lay aside the spectacles and come
afresh to the word as if we had never read it before, humbly asking
the Holy Spirit to reveal what it means, and what are its
implications for us now? I am convinced that such a reading of these
chapters will be revolutionary for those who mean business with God
concerning His will for the Church. No longer will they be content
with the institutions, the denominations, the humanly organised.
Instead their hearts will be captured to know in experience the life
of the true-vine. which is Christ in living union with His own.
Jack Gray,
The Pilgrim Path
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