This is the last of Jesus' “I am” sayings. The previous “I am's” involved Jesus calling people to him. This final “I am” explains what happens now that we're buddies. In this metaphor, God is the gardener, Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches. You, as a branch, have two options. You bear fruit and get pruned, or you don't bear fruit and get burned.
So what is this “fruit” you're supposed to produce so you don't get whacked? Some believe that this follows John's other mentions of “bearing fruit” where it was an indication of your success in Christian recruitment. Others see the “fruit” as the changes in your life as a result of being a Christian. But “fruit” in this context seems to be a simple representation that you are directly connected to God.
MISCONCEPTION CORRECTION: Vines that don't produce fruit are thrown into the fire. When imagery of fire appears everyone jumps to the conclusion that it represents final judgment and hell. This isn't always the case. In the Old Testament, fire usually represents God. As a proponent of “once saved, always saved,” this verse does not mean that God will change his mind later and send you to Hell's barbeque pit. The fire here is simply part of the vine imagery where the only use for use for a dead branch is as firewood.
The real punishment for not bearing fruit is not being connected to God. This seems redundant since the fruit represents a connection to God. So the punishment for not reading your Bible is that you didn't read your Bible? Man, I wish my Mom would have had a punishment policy like that when I was a kid. Let's clarify this concept. When you have a close relationship with God, it's like hanging out with your best friend. If you don't hang out with your best friend, you lose the relationship. Do you have a close friend that you didn't keep up with and when you bumped into them again you had lost your connection? The whole vine/branch metaphor is expressing the importance of a relationship with God.
If you unfriend God:
So what is this “fruit” you're supposed to produce so you don't get whacked? Some believe that this follows John's other mentions of “bearing fruit” where it was an indication of your success in Christian recruitment. Others see the “fruit” as the changes in your life as a result of being a Christian. But “fruit” in this context seems to be a simple representation that you are directly connected to God.
MISCONCEPTION CORRECTION: Vines that don't produce fruit are thrown into the fire. When imagery of fire appears everyone jumps to the conclusion that it represents final judgment and hell. This isn't always the case. In the Old Testament, fire usually represents God. As a proponent of “once saved, always saved,” this verse does not mean that God will change his mind later and send you to Hell's barbeque pit. The fire here is simply part of the vine imagery where the only use for use for a dead branch is as firewood.
The real punishment for not bearing fruit is not being connected to God. This seems redundant since the fruit represents a connection to God. So the punishment for not reading your Bible is that you didn't read your Bible? Man, I wish my Mom would have had a punishment policy like that when I was a kid. Let's clarify this concept. When you have a close relationship with God, it's like hanging out with your best friend. If you don't hang out with your best friend, you lose the relationship. Do you have a close friend that you didn't keep up with and when you bumped into them again you had lost your connection? The whole vine/branch metaphor is expressing the importance of a relationship with God.
If you unfriend God:
I really like this post..and this is why:
ReplyDelete1. It reminded me of when God was the fire in the 10 Commandments (and let's be honest, it's like the best movie ever)
2. It really annoys me when people unfriend God.
3. I think it's great that you clarified the vine and fire, since so many people get that jazz so wrong.
Way to make it easy to understand for the little people my prophetic friend.