Asaph and Isaiah were both songwriters. Asaph sang to Yahweh, “You transplanted a vine from Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches” [Psalm 80:8-10]. This beautiful picture always stirs my heart. Yahweh’s majestic Vine even giving shade to the mountains and mighty cedar trees! Isaiah sang of a vineyard which belonged to Yahweh and was planted with ‘the choicest vines’ [Isaiah 5:2]. The vineyard was the nation of Israel, and the people of Judah were the vines Yahweh delighted in, but tragically they failed Him.
Yahshua brought this picture over into the New Testament with a heart-stopping difference. “I am the Vine; you are the branches,” He said [John 15:5, emphasis added]. The branches receive sustenance via the vine, but the vine functions through its branches! The vine must produce fruit, and fruit is borne on individual branches. Yahshua taught that fruit bearing was essential, since the branches which didn’t bear fruit would be removed and burnt. The only requisite for fruit bearing is to remain in Him, and the fruit bearing will be inevitable. Abiding or remaining in Yahshua “involves keeping in unbroken contact with Him,” writes Oswald Sanders, “keeping the channel of communication open, constantly depending on and trusting Him.”
We know Israel frequently failed to produce the fruit Yahweh was looking for, and we can feel His pain as He asks Ezekiel, “Is a vine’s wood as useful as the wood of a tree? Can its wood be used for making things?...No, it can only be used for fuel, and even as fuel, it burns too quickly. Vines are useless both before and after being put into the fire” [Ezekiel 15:2-5]. The only use for the vine is the production of fruit!
Yahshua is our Vine and the secret of His own incredibly fruitful life is “His unbroken contact and fellowship with His Father” [Sanders]. We need only to remain in close contact with Yahshua, to become fruit bearing branches on this heavenly Vine.
Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash
https://unsplash.com/photos/grapes-hanging-on-tree-tq2ClHwDbD8
Make Up Your Mind TimeClick to see the whole passage:
Matthew 11:16-17 NIV - “To what can I compare this - Bible Gateway
if you have any inclination at all to embrace [Yahshua], yield to it.
Isaac Butterworth
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