On the way to the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus declares his final “I AM” statement: “I am the true vine and My Father is the vinedresser.”

In this metaphor, we understand that Jesus is the central "vine" with the power to give nourishment to His "branches" (aka, His disciples). Anyone who chooses to follow Jesus and "remain on the vine" will be given what they need to "produce much fruit" by reproducing the life of Christ in their own lives.

However, any gardner can tell you that fruit-bearing comes at a cost to the plant — pruning. In order to prepare the branch for fruit production, a skilled gardener must cut and remove leaves, twigs, buds, and blooms. This allows the plant to stop pouring energy into lesser things and start focusing more energy into the fruit.

Back to the metaphor: we all have things in our spiritual walks that must be "cut." This removal process might temporarily hurt or sting, but if we hang on to the source and continue to abide in the vine, we’ll be shaped to look more and more like Jesus.

Key Text: John 15:1-11