THE GOD WHO PRUNES
- LifewithJesus
- Jun 4
- 10 min read
John 15:8 NKJV
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.
This is one of Jesus’ final lessons to the disciples, taught during the Last Supper before HE was crucified for our sins (thank you JESUS). Since Jesus knew it was His last conversation with them, I believe it holds great importance.
John 15 is a call to believers and followers of Christ to bear fruits (good works). It went ahead to emphasize that we cannot bear fruit by ourselves, we must abide in GOD to do that.
It paints a picture as we the branches, JESUS the true vine and GOD the vine dresser.
Lets look at the definitions to really understand the relationship as THE HOLY SPIRIT WILL HELP US:
Vine: the climbing plant that produces grapes as its fruit (Cambridge dictionary)
Vinedresser: a person who prunes, tends, or cultivates grapevines (Collins English Dictionary)
Branch: The branches of a tree are the parts that grow out from its trunk and have leaves, flowers, or fruit growing on them (Collins English Dictionary)
John 15:1-2 TPT
““I am a true sprouting vine, and the farmer who tends the vine is my Father. He cares for the branches connected to me by lifting and propping up the fruitless branches and pruning every fruitful branch to yield a greater harvest.”
Lets explore more the connection between the Vine and Branch.
The connection between the Vine and branch is a life-giving connection.
The vine and branch picture emphasizes complete dependence and the need for constant connection.
This speaks of the relationship between God and us; the branch bears the grape fruit. The vine exists to nourish, feed, and grow the branches, the branches exist to bear the fruit of the vine; So if a branch is cut off from the vine the branch dies, withers, and there is no fruit.
In the same way; as believers; we need to abide in JESUS to be able to bear good fruits; that’s the only way.
“When GOD wanted to create fish, HE spoke to the sea. When GOD wanted to create trees, HE spoke to the earth. But, when GOD wanted to create man, HE turned to himself. Then, GOD said “Let us make man in our image and in our likeness.”
I heard this saying multiple times now; the fishes function and grow well and are best when they are in their natural habitat, the water; so does the birds in the sky, so does the every other living thing in their natural habitat; same way we need to abide in JESUS to function well.
Jesus is the true vine. We must be rooted in Him if we will bear fruit for God; we must stay firmly connected to Him to remain spiritually productive.
A branch draws strength, nourishment, protection, and energy from the vine. If we remain in GOD and HIS words remain in us, not only do we remain healthy, grow stronger, and produce fruit, but Jesus’ love evaporates through us into the world, His nourishment flow through us; His love, His goodness. We bear fruits. If it is broken off, it quickly dies and becomes unfruitful.
But verse 2 says yes we can bear fruit, but we furthermore need to be pruned to bear more fruit, which is the main focus of this blog today.
THE PERSON OF THE SPIRIT OF THE LIVING GOD help us as we read, write; that its your words LORD, and minister to us that as we read, the word YOU speak to us are Spirit and they are life, this we pray and ask in JESUS name; Amen and Amen🙏
This is my personal journey with GOD at the moment, the GOD who prunes, why? To bear much fruit.
In John 15:5, Jesus identifies us, his disciples as the fruit-bearing branches. And in John 15:1, Jesus identifies the Father as the gardener. The gardener will remove all non-fruit-bearing branches from the vine. And he will also prune those that are bearing fruit so that they will be more fruitful.
Webster dictionary defines pruning as:
to cut off or cut back parts of for better shape or more fruitful growth
One of the applicable areas of Pruning is in agriculture, so to understand this better, lets look at this subject Horticulturally; Lets consider the same sample used in our text, A vineyard.
A grapevine is a shrub that produces long vines, each of which can produce clusters of grapes.Left to themselves, grapevines will mainly produce vines and leaves with few grapes.
Only with careful pruning can the skilled vinedresser or gardener coax them into producing large clusters of plump grapes.
A vinedresser or gardener prune their vineyard to maximize fruit production. With careful attention and the right conditions, they will produce an abundant harvest.
So you might ask what happens if I don't prune my vineyard? You will still produce fruits but with reduced Fruit Quality and Quantity.
In summary, regular pruning is essential for maintaining the health, productivity, and quality of grape vines, ensuring they remain manageable and produce high-quality fruit.
Every Gardner knows they have to do this, prune their tree to bear many, more quality fruits.
The same way vine pruning enables winegrowers to produce better quality grapes, which is ultimately reflected in the fruit itself, Pruning is very important also for us to grow in our walk with God, as it is about removing what hinders our growth so we can become more fruitful in our lives(Kantipur Themes). And GOD is the master pruner.
Yes we are already doing great and mighty things for GOD, yes we are able ministers of GOD, Apostles, bearing fruits; but there is always a call to bear more fruits, there is always a call of holiness and wholeness we still have to answer and work towards everyday, always.
First, know this that yes; God has called us to bear fruit, but there is still another call to bear much fruits. And that's where pruning comes in, to remove what can and is hindering our growth so we can become more fruitful spiritually in our lives.
Its more fruit and quality fruit.
Pruning is not punishment, GOD is pruning to bear much FRUIT, be patient, GOD is up to something, much fruit is on its way.
GOD prunes for a new season.
So what does the process of pruning look like?
Pruning can involve cutting off.
Pruning of a tree can be the selective removal of certain parts of a plant, such as branches, buds, or roots. It can be to remove dead or diseased branches to maintain the plant's health, chopping off the bits that don’t belong there to keep it in tip-top shape.
Same way God prunes us to Remove Sin.
Pruning is a way God cleanses us from sin and leads us toward righteousness. Sin hinders our spiritual growth, and God uses pruning to cut away sinful behaviors and attitudes so that we can live in purity. These verses remind us that God purifies us for His purposes.
Romans 6:22
“But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.”
Sometimes the cutting away might not even be dead or diseased branches; the pruning of a tree can also be removing good branches still. sometimes pruning involves cutting away some already grown branches to help thin out the tree to allow the tree have more access to air and light.
So your pruning might involve not just the removal and cutting off the sin but also the weights that so easily best us.
Pruning to remove Sin/weights that so easily beset us:
Hebrews 12:1NKJV
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
A thinning cut removes an entire branch at its point of origin on the trunk of a tree or on another branch while a Heading cut is made to remove the tips of branches, encouraging the plant to produce new growth to allow more room for more branch to grow
Both cuts are stimulants; after the cut is made; it affects the growth pattern; how you prune tree determines how a tree grows.
If you cut a branch out; it redistribute all the growth energy to the rest of the branches.
See; God doesn’t just remove the dead branches, sin from our lives; HE removes as well the unwanted branches, the weights.
Why the weights?
The same way a tree is pruned, where some parts are cut away, either via heading or thinning cut to achieve the structure the gardeners wants; same way GOD removes the unwanted branches to achieve the structure; the you HE wants.
GOD knows what is required for our growth, HE knows the concentration we need; HE knows what to remove from our lives for our maturity and becoming.
One of the advantages of cutting off even sometimes healthy branch is to facilitate new growth and create a more balanced tree structure.
Likewise;
God can remove branches from your life so that they don’t have any growth to give room for the right branches to have growths.
So many things can be taking up your time, energy, resources. They might not even be sin; they might be weights as well God wants to remove to align our lives to the stature he wants and growth pattern HE wants to bear the Fruits HE wants.
When correctly done, it helps trees grow healthier and look sturdier.
Proper pruning might be the one thing holding you, me back from consistent fruit production.
Pruning is not punishment, GOD is pruning to bear much FRUIT, be patient, GOD is up to something, much fruit is on its way.
Pruning for Fruitfulness
God’s pruning process also leads to fruitfulness. As He removes distractions, sins, and weaknesses from our lives, we become more capable of bearing the fruit of the Spirit and advancing His kingdom.
We should embrace God’s pruning so that we can live productive, fruitful lives in Christ.
Galatians 5:22-23
“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
They key to pruning is to Abide, you have to stay, abide in JESUS to be pruned by GOD.
Its a continuous process, that's why we need to stay and abide forever. It's might not be a fun process, but its one that will generate much yield, harvest and good quality fruits.
Don’t tolerate little sins, they are little foxes that spoil the vine. Abide, Stay; LET GOD transform truly. That's the goal, to be truly transformed more and more towards holiness, righteousness.
Song of Solomon 2:15 NIV
Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom.
Don’t joke with your consecration. The sins you tolerate now or weights will be a thorn in your walk with GOD later on.
Unpruned vines can become structurally weak due to the weight of excessive growth. This can result in broken branches or even the collapse of the vine.
GOD is pruning off and getting off the weights, the sin, that could choke up your fruits or even cos those things take up nutrients, that are taking attention.
LET GOD prune your life. Guess what, Pruning remove dead branches and sometimes, pruning can strip you naked. LET GOD prune you so you can come back fuller, whole and better.
In summary beloved; Give room for GOD to prune you. Again, Pruning is very important for us to grow in our walk with God.
I cry oh, oh I cry to GOD to prune me, I have struggled with things I never thought in life I would ever struggle with, even I grow more in my faith and walk with GOD; I discovered more and realized I need pruning, and I told you, I am in my season of pruning and I hold GOD on HIS word and promise to prune me, and HE does, oh HE does.
I got this revelation as the GOD who prunes me and its a promise of GOD to me, and with this revelation and the promise; I go to GOD, I cry to HIM to prune me from sins, character issues I am still struggling with and HE has and still is doing it.
This is one of GOD's promise to prune, prune us from every sin we are still struggling with.
It goes along with the promise that whosoever calls on HIM, HE wont cast away and whosoever hunger and thirst, HE would fill up.
John 7:37
On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink.
And some of us, if not most need to cry out to GOD to prune us.
Lastly, Can you reflect right now in your life, how is GOD pruning you, can you identify somethings you are going through now that looks like pruning?
I’ve found it’s helpful to evaluate my life periodically and ask God to show me if there are things that need to be cut off because they are hindering my relationship with Him.
Ask yourself: Am I dragging around “dead branches” in my life? Maybe it’s a bad relationship, an old wound from your past, a negative attitude that keeps you from enjoying life to the fullest or anything you look to for a sense of security other than God Himself.
It would be nice if we could see what God sees and say, “Yes, God. Let’s get rid of that dead branch.” But many times we’re too afraid to give up what we know, what’s familiar, for something new that we just can’t see or understand.
The truth is you can be miserable dragging those dead things around or you can go through the pain of letting God “prune” them away. Even though it’s uncomfortable, the best thing you can do is let God prune you, because after the hard part is over, you will see some amazing results!
To continue producing good and more quality fruits, continuous pruning is necessary.
So we are going to cry out to GOD to prune us and for the strength and grace not to grow weary of abiding and staying and of our pruning season.
GOD prunes us because HE loves us.
Prayer
YOU GOD alone are my heart desire LORD, YOU know me, YOU are my KING, my friend, my maker, my maker; o YOU alone does my spirit yield LORD; I cry out today for the strength to abide in YOU, the grace to stay in YOU LORD. I cannot exist without YOU, outside of YOU; YOU alone are my heart desire LORD, in YOU I am found, I have purpose LORD.
LORD, even as I stay and abide; I pray YOU prune me, prune me LORD, from every sin and weights that does so easily beset me, prune me from every character deformity, pride, lust, fleshy desire, unforgiveness, envy, malice, bitterness, LORD prune and LORD help me stay and abide continuously in YOU
I Love you forever and ever LORD; give me the grace to bear much fruit, good fruit to the glory of your name in JESUS name.
This we pray and ask in JESUS name🙏
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