What About Dead Branches?

I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit. (John 15:1-2)

For much of my life, many of the promises of the Bible seemed to be just out of my reach. Because of my views of God that made Him seem harsh, demanding, stern and even selfish, associated with almost every promise I could see a condition that seemed like an impossible demand precluding me from being able to enjoy it. It always seemed that the promises of God were too good to be true, but not in a positive way. They were probably true, but always with a catch precondition that I could not quite meet so I could not claim the needed blessing.

Even as I contemplate the memories of these feelings I sense again some of the intensity of my frustration of being forced to live in a system of religion that was unattainable and yet contained so many threats of punishment for nonconformity that I felt compelled to keep trying. Many, if not most, of my friends growing up threw in the towel at some point and gave up on religion, choosing instead to look for relief and satisfaction from other sources. Some admired me for choosing not to give up on religion, but I did not feel so privileged. I always felt that maybe I was the coward who stayed with religion because of fear rather than because it was fulfilling my deep longings and needs.

I have for many years been trying to make sense out of religion as a result of choosing to stay inside rather than indulging in the wild pleasures of sin for a season as the Bible puts it. I immersed myself in the education system that filled my brain with biblical information which has certainly proved to be a tremendous blessing for me in the long run. But for many years that information and familiarity with the Bible did not feel like a blessing but rather created a heavy weight of obligation that I had to maintain each day. Going through the routines of religious practices and disciplines often were performed only to keep some hope alive that someday I might break through the darkness and encounter a more consistent and caring kind of God behind the veil. But that is taking me in a different direction than what I want to explore this morning.

What caught my attention as I meditated on these verses was this cutting away of branches from the vine. It brought to mind the familiar feelings of frustration and even resentment that I have felt so many times when coming across examples of what seemed to be impossible demands of God keeping valuable promises just out of reach or threats of God meant to intimidate me into obedience. I guess I have been supersensitive to this sort of mentality for whatever reasons and so I see things like this where others find nothing at all. But for me, now when I come across this reaction I choose to face it head on, grab it by the throat and drag it out into the open to expose it to the light of what I have been learning about God over the past few years. I compare it and challenge it with the fresh revelations about God that are radically better than how I saw Him for all the early years of my experience.

What got my attention in this passage was that in my Bible I had penciled in the word 'up' next to where it talks about taking the branches away. I know I probably did this after hearing some teaching from someone in the past presenting a wonderful explanation of this passage that really inspired me. But because I can't remember what they said now I have to go back and research it for myself to rediscover the good news embedded in this seemingly negative threat against those who don't produce enough 'fruit' to satisfy God's expectations.

What I found when I looked up the Greek word behind this was actually exciting for me. And while it is true, as in many cases, that there are multiple possibilities within the definition to interpret one direction or another, given my changed views and beliefs about what God is really like over the past few years, I found reason for encouragement within this word. And even though I could not find a single Bible translation that offered an alternative reading that reflected the positive alternatives in this definition (except a neutral one translated from the Septuagint), I felt the Holy Spirit revealing to my heart implications here that are consistent with everything else I have been learning about God's extravagant goodness, kindness and love.

The word used in the Greek here is airo. It can be used to imply the following ideas found in Strong's definition that can take one in two different directions depending on how the translator chooses to believe what the author may have had in mind.

airo - to lift up; by implication, to take up or away; figuratively, to raise (the voice), keep in suspense (the mind), specially, to sail away (i.e. weigh anchor); by Hebraism (compare nasa') to expiate sin:--away with, bear (up), carry, lift up, loose, make to doubt, put away, remove, take (away, up).

Now, it is clear from the analogy that Jesus was using here that the meaning certainly implies the idea of taking away and removing branches that fail to produce fruit. That is how vine growers work with vines. But rather than being presented as a threat to induce performance or meant as a punishment for failure to perform, I find in this meaning real hints of a hopeful spirit behind the actions that the divine Vinedresser is doing that might not be present in the mind of a normal grape farmer.

Notice that the Father, the true Vinedresser here, can be seen as not just removing unproductive branches, but when He must do so the way in which He does it and the attitude which prompts Him is more redemptive and hopeful in nature, not punitive. Using terms from within the definition I see God keeping these individuals in His mind, seeking to do away with their sin, bearing them up, lifting them up, trying to make them doubt their security and maybe even getting them to see their apathy.

When I went a little further and looked up the connected word nasa' suggested as being connected to the meaning of the original word, it gets even more exciting. Within the definition of that word are such encouraging terms as bear up, bring forth, lift up, desire, extol and even forgive.

Given all the things I have been learning about what God is really like over the past few years that are very different from my views of God growing up, I find it quite consistent that while God may reluctantly have to separate unproductive branches from the vine because their supposed connection to Jesus is not making any difference in their lives; at the same time He will do everything possible to awaken them to their true condition. Even though they are ignorant or uncaring about their condition of emptiness, still He bears their sins and the weight of their guilt on Himself in hopes that they will wake up before it is too late and choose to be reconnected to the vine and open up the passages within them so that the life-giving sap of love can flow through them and cause them to bear real fruit.

Paul uses a similar analogy when he speaks of the Jews being cut off from the Olive tree of God. He notes that though they have been cut away because of their refusal to believe the truth about God as revealed in Jesus, at any time they could easily be grafted back in, and even more readily than gentiles who are not near so used to being connected to the trunk as the Jews have been. (see Romans 11) And with the Corinthian church, Paul had them cut off a member from the body for a time who was living in immorality of such a nature that even non-Christians were disgusted with his behavior. And yet in his second letter to that church Paul urged them to not alienate this man so much that he could not return to full fellowship after he had seen his mistake and turned away from his sin.

I see in all these things a different picture of God than the one I grew up with who was primarily looking for excuses to keep as many as possible out of heaven. Rather, I am starting to find overwhelming evidence in Scripture of a God who is passionate about drawing as many as possible into repentance and letting go of their resistance to His Spirit's convictions so that He can pump His grace and love through their lives in order to produce fruit that will attract others to the beauties of God.

I also see in this verse, not only the kindness and patience of God even with those who must be removed from the vine, but He is also working diligently with those who are producing only limited fruit in their lives, to encourage them to be even less resistant to the flow of His grace through their hearts. He wants everyone to be as fruitful and luxuriant as possible when it comes to displaying the good things meant to be experienced in the kingdom of heaven.

And what is this fruit that the Vinedresser wants to produce in my life by opening up the channels of mercy and compassion within me?

But the fruit that the Spirit produces in a person's life is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these kinds of things. (Galatians 5:22-23 ERV)

This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples. (John 15:8 NIV)