John 15 - The NIV Application Commentary on the Bible: One-Volume Edition

The Vine and the Branches (15:1–17). What prompts Jesus to use this image? If Jesus left the upper room in 14:30, he may have stopped at the temple to teach and to pray. At the entrance of the holy place (west of the altar), steps led to a linen curtain. Above the curtain (beneath the roof line) grew a gigantic grapevine of pure gold, representing Israel. Wealthy citizens could bring gifts to add to the vine (gold tendrils, grapes, or leaves), and these would be added by metal workers to the ever-growing vine. Josephus claims that some of the grape clusters were the “height of a man.”

The vine and the vineyard were old and sacred images in Judaism (as in most Mediterranean societies). The vine represented the covenant people of God. In his final “I am” saying in this Gospel, Jesus declares that he is the true vine (15:1). That is, in this ancient imagery he has taken the place of Israel as God’s true planting. The new concept is that God’s vineyard holds one vine, and Israel must inquire if it is attached to him. No longer is Israel automatically seen as a vine growing in God’s vineyard. Men and women are now branches growing from one stock.

The picture of attachment to Jesus as a branch is attached to a vine is an apt description of the interior spiritual life Jesus has described since chapter 14. Here, however, the key word is “remaining” or “abiding” (menō), which is used throughout the discourse. Discipleship is not just a matter of acknowledging who Jesus is; it is having Jesus spiritually connected to our inner lives.

That connection also means being “pruned.” The Greek word for trimming or pruning in verse 2 (kathairō) is closely related to the adjective in 15:3, “You are already clean [katha ros].” Those who remain in the vine are being readied for more fruit-bearing by the word Jesus is giving them.

To fail to “remain” in Christ, to fail to find life in the vine (i.e., Jesus), risks separation from the vineyard and consequent destruction. There is only one evidence if a branch is truly alive: Does it produce clusters of grapes? Note carefully, however, what the metaphor is not saying. Fruit-bearing is not a test; that is, a branch does not have to demonstrate a level of productivity to be safe from destruction. Rather, fruit-bearing is a byproduct. Fruitfulness will be the inevitable outcome of an interior spiritual life with Jesus.

Jesus concludes the metaphor in verses 7–11 by drawing out some of the implications that come from “remaining” in him. Verse 7 compares remaining in Jesus and remaining in his word. No doubt this recalls the commands to obedience, in which keeping Jesus’s word is how we demonstrate love for him. Those whose lives are so in harmony with Jesus will find their prayers controlled by his word, and such prayers will be answered and bring added glory to God. The disciple steps into a relationship of love with both Jesus and the Father, out of which a transformed life, a fruit-bearing life, will flow.

Jesus desires “that my joy may be in you” (v. 11, emphasis added). It is likewise a gift of the Spirit, a gift of Jesus dwelling within, that makes this joy supernatural and substantial. Jesus’s joy has come through his reliance on God and his obedience to his Father’s will. We inherit the capacity given through the Spirit to enjoy God in the same manner.

Having described the life-giving vine, Jesus moves on to describe life among the branches. This is the second time that Jesus has commanded his followers to love one another. Such love for one another is a fulfillment of God’s love for us and in us, and to refuse to love leads John to describe such people as “liars”—people who show that they have neither seen nor experienced God’s love (1 John 4:20). Such love is an outgrowth of a life that has witnessed the dramatic quality of God’s love when his Son died on behalf of those he loves. Such love requires that we also love God with our entire heart, soul, and strength.

Jesus then calls his disciples “friends” to distinguish them from servants, who do not know the deeper thoughts of their masters (vv. 14–15). This title is unusual and speaks of the highest relationship possible between God and a human being. Jesus chooses us as friends, which gives us tremendous security that his affection for us will not disappear.

Where true friendship exists, true disclosure (or revelation) accompanies it. Disciples possess the word of Jesus, and they will receive ongoing revelations of Jesus. Disciples thus know God’s heart. When they therefore pray, their desires and God’s will harmonize, making them participants in God’s efforts in the world.

Conflict with the World (15:18–25). Jesus explains the hatred of the world as a continuation of the hatred he personally witnessed throughout his public ministry. Because the disciples are now separated from the world by virtue of their faith in Jesus, they qualify for similar treatment. Christians have passed from death to life and so should not expect the world’s affections.

Jesus repeats the proverb about servants and masters—not to compromise his disciples’ status as friends, but to teach that they now share his status as persons no longer welcome in this fallen world. This anticipation of conflict recalls the role of the prophets in the Old Testament. As bearers of God’s word, they expected harsh treatment when their announcements were unpopular.

Jesus discusses the guilt of the world by explaining that it is accountable before the revelation of God. Jesus’s ministry provided both words and works that pointed to God. Now that they have seen and heard him, their guilt is immovable.