April 28, 2024 – Easter +4B

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.” John 15:1-8

What lifts you up?

We often talk about things that are uplifting in our lives. For some people it is a song, or a genre of songs that is uplifting for them. Some will say a good cup of coffee is uplifting. For other people, it is being around family — or friends — or others seem to be uplifting to them. Some might report that going to church is uplifting — that taking communion, hearing the words of absolution to our confessions — remembering your baptism — that these together with the presence of other people of faith is an uplifting experience. So, we hear these words this morning:

Jesus said “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. He REMOVES (CUTS OFF) every branch IN ME that bears no fruit. And every branch that bears fruit HE CLEANS (PRUNES) to make it bear more fruit.

Do you see something wrong with the thought that people who are “In Christ” but, might temporarily be short on some fruitfulness — G-d is going to cut them off or remove them from G-d’s presence? Does that sound like the G-d you know — you know, the G-d of Grace I preach about every week? Are those words “Uplifting” for you this morning? They aren’t for me, that’s

for sure. If this is the kind of threat I am going to hear in church on a morning where I am having just a bit of a bad day, or feeling just a little more of my sinfulness, I don’t know what I would think of this Jesus person. Don’t we all go through some times where we are lacking some fruit-bearing properties? And, after all, I thought Lutherans didn’t believe in a works righteousness salvation plan — am I to believe now that salvation is truly based on my fruitiness — on my works? Is that what we hear in scripture?

Every day we cut ourselves off from G-d — in so many ways – through sin, selfishness, the evil in this world. And others can try to cut us off from G-d

— like certain prosperity preachers, or evangelists who want us to believe we have to “choose” Christ, or work our way up to heaven. But I do not believe that G-d cuts us off. Now, listen to me — I do believe G-d will prune us, cleanse us and discipline us with the refiner’s fire when we have erred, strayed, and turned from G-d. But I do not believe that G-d removes us — G-d doesn’t have to remove us —because the reality is, people will remove themselves. But as we learned last week, G-d does not stop pursuing us —

and Jesus does not stop loving us. And G-d will continue to intervene in our lives — lifting us up — giving us chance after chance after chance — because that is what Grace is all about.

Pastor Dave