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“I AM’S” OF THE BIBLE I AM THE TRUE VINE

LESSON 5

INTRODUCTION: When Jesus mentioned the true vine, He was certainly talking in a language that the Israelites could understand. The national emblem of the Jew was the vine. They knew what He was talking about, and for Him to say, “I am the true Vine,” was to say, “I am really your King. Your most important kingdom is My kingdom.” I. JESUS IS THE “TRUE” VINE. A. John 15:1, I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. This implies

that there is a false vine. The false vine is the Devil. B. Revelation 14:19, And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered

the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. This means we belong to one vine or the other and we bring forth the one kind of fruit or the other kind.

C. Either we belong to the True Vine, which is Jesus, and bring forth good fruit, which is souls; or we belong to Satan’s vine and bring forth bad fruit.

II. THE CHRISTIAN IS “IN” THE TRUE VINE. A. In verse 2, look at the words, in Me. John 15:2, Every branch in me that beareth

not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Those that are in Christ are part of the True Vine. We are the branches and He is the Vine.

B. The word in is very important here. When a person is saved, he is baptized into Christ. I Corinthians 12:13, For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. In that verse, when we believe “in” Jesus Christ, the word in is the little Greek preposition into. We go into Christ which means we are secure in Him and we are in Christ. II Corinthians 5:17 says, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. Notice the words, in Christ.

III. DEGREES OF FRUITBEARING. A. Fruit. John 15:2b, …and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it. B. More fruit. John 15:2c, …that it may bring forth more fruit. C. Much fruit. John 15:5, I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me,

and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

D. These are the degrees of fruit a Christian can bear. However, notice verse 8, Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. The only way we can glorify God is to bring forth “much fruit.”

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E. Notice how we can increase our fruitbearing. 1. To bring forth fruit, we abide in Christ. The word abide here is the same word

that is used in John 14:2a when Jesus said, In my Father’s house are many mansions... In other words, to bring forth fruit is to have our mansion now. It is a premature taste of Heaven. If we abide in Him, we can bring forth fruit.

2. To bring forth more fruit, He must purge us. John 15:2, Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit. This is like the pruning of a tree. Jesus prunes us. In other words, He takes things away from us. As we give up sins and as He takes sins from us, we can bring forth more fruit.

3. To bring forth much fruit, we must abide in Him and He in us. John 15:5, I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. To bring forth “fruit,” we abide in Him. To bring forth “more fruit,” He purges us. To bring forth “much fruit,” He abides in us as well as we abide in Him.

IV. IF WE BRING FORTH NO FRUIT, HE CASTS US INTO THE FIRE. John 15:6,

If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. This does not mean that He sends us to Hell, but it means that He takes our lives. In other words, if we do not bring forth any fruit, He will take us on to Heaven. He will not allow us to continue to live if we bring forth no fruit.

CONCLUSION: There are four states in which a Christian can find himself: no fruit, fruit, more fruit, much fruit. In which state are you? MEMORY VERSE: I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. John 15:1

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“I AM’S” OF THE BIBLE I AM THE TRUE VINE

LESSON 5

INTRODUCTION: When Jesus mentioned the true vine, He was certainly talking in a language that the Israelites could understand. The national emblem of the Jew was the vine. They knew what He was talking about, and for Him to say, “I am the true Vine,” was to say, “I am really your King. Your most important kingdom is My kingdom.” I. JESUS IS THE “______________” ______________. A. John 15:1, I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. This implies

that there is a false vine. The false vine is the Devil. B. Revelation 14:19, And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered

the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. This means we belong to one vine or the other and we bring forth the one kind of fruit or the other kind.

C. Either we belong to the True Vine, which is Jesus, and bring forth good fruit, which is souls; or we belong to Satan’s vine and bring forth bad fruit.

II. THE CHRISTIAN IS “____________” THE TRUE VINE. A. In verse 2, look at the words, in Me. John 15:2, Every branch in me that beareth

not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit. Those that are in Christ are part of the True Vine. We are the branches and He is the Vine.

B. The word in is very important here. When a person is saved, he is baptized into Christ. I Corinthians 12:13, For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. In that verse, when we believe “in” Jesus Christ, the word in is the little Greek preposition into. We go into Christ which means we are secure in Him and we are in Christ. II Corinthians 5:17 says, Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. Notice the words, in Christ.

III. DEGREES OF __________________________________. A. _____________. John 15:2b, …and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it. B. __________________ fruit. John 15:2c, …that it may bring forth more fruit. C. ___________________ fruit. John 15:5, I am the vine, ye are the branches: He

that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

D. These are the degrees of fruit a Christian can bear. However, notice verse 8, Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples. The only way we can glorify God is to bring forth “much fruit.”

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E. Notice how we can ______________________ our fruitbearing. 1. To bring forth fruit, we ______________ in Christ. The word abide here is

the same word that is used in John 14:2a when Jesus said, In my Father’s house are many mansions... In other words, to bring forth fruit is to have our mansion now. It is a premature taste of Heaven. If we abide in Him, we can bring forth fruit.

2. To bring forth more fruit, He must _______________ us. John 15:2, Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit. This is like the pruning of a tree. Jesus prunes us. In other words, He takes things away from us. As we give up sins and as He takes sins from us, we can bring forth more fruit.

3. To bring forth much fruit, we must ____________ in Him and He in us. John 15:5, I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. To bring forth “fruit,” we abide in Him. To bring forth “more fruit,” He purges us. To bring forth “much fruit,” He abides in us as well as we abide in Him.

IV. IF WE BRING FORTH NO FRUIT, HE ________________ _________ INTO

THE FIRE. John 15:6, If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. This does not mean that He sends us to Hell, but it means that He takes our lives. In other words, if we do not bring forth any fruit, He will take us on to Heaven. He will not allow us to continue to live if we bring forth no fruit.

CONCLUSION: There are four states in which a Christian can find himself: no fruit, fruit, more fruit, much fruit. In which state are you? MEMORY VERSE: I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. John 15:1

5Children’s Sunday School Lesson Handout“I Am’s” of the Bible - I am the True Vine

The True Vine

(your name)

In Sunday school this past week, we learned what Jesus meant when He said, “I am the True Vine.” The vine was the national emblem of the Jews; therefore, they knew exactly what He was talking about. To better understand what Jesus meant, solve the crossword puzzle below by reading each verse associated with the clues.

At Home: Name some various fruits that grow on vines. Talk about the important role the vine plays in the life of those fruits.Bible Text: John 15:1-8

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5

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1

8

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DOWN1. “...the ? of the earth...” (Revelation 14:19)3. “...that ye bear ? fruit...” (John 15:8)4. “...are we all baptized into one ?...” (I Corinthians 12:13)5. “...if any man be in ?...” (II Corinthians 5:17)7. “Every branch ? me...” (II Corinthians 5:17)

ACROSS2. “...cast them into the ?...” (John 15:6)3. “...bring forth ? fruit.” (John 15:2)4. “...ye are the ?...” (John 15:5)6. “...every branch that beareth ?...” (John 15:2)8. “I am the ? vine...” (John 15:1)

At Home: Talk about the Christian’s responsibility to produce fruit. Discuss the dangers of not producing fruit.Memorize: John 15:1

Write one way YOU can produce fruit this week.

Fruit-bearing BranchesAccording to John 15, not only is Christ the True Vine, but we are the Vine’s branches. The job of a vine branch is to produce the proper fruit. A grape vine, for instance, has many branches that produce grapes. As Christians, we should be branches that produce more Christians. Match the plants below to the proper fruit their branches should be producing.

We also learned this past week that, along with Christ being the Vine and we being the branches, God the Father is the Husbandman. The job of a husbandman in a vineyard is to take care of the vine, branches, and fruit. A husbandman will keep harmful things away from the vineyard, supply it with water, and remove branches that do not produce fruit. In the blanks below, write how God the Father performs each job of the husbandman in our lives.

Coconut

CherryStrawberry

Protects: __________________________________________________________________________________

Supplies: ___________________________________________________________________________________

Corrects: __________________________________________________________________________________

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.” John 15:1