John 15: “I Am the True Vine”
1. “I Am the True Vine”
“I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser.” (Jn 15:1)
Christ’s “I Am” sayings culminate here — not merely metaphor but revelation of His divine life.
The “true vine” (ampelos alethine) stands in contrast to Israel, the unfruitful vine of the Old Testament (cf. Isa 5:1–7).
In Him, the promises of Israel are fulfilled and made fruitful.
St Augustine writes:
“He is the vine by nature, we are the branches by grace; He is not dependent on us, but we on Him.”
(Tractates on John 80.1)
The Father as “vinedresser” shows the Trinitarian pattern: the Son gives life, the Father cultivates, the Spirit bears fruit within us.
St Bede the Venerable comments:
“The vine planted in the earth signifies His Incarnation; the vinedresser’s care, the Father’s providence; the sap, the Holy Spirit flowing in the faithful.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
2. The Pruning of Love
“Every branch in Me that bears no fruit He takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” (v. 2)
To belong to Christ is not the same as to remain fruitful in Him.
The Father’s pruning is His loving discipline — suffering that refines and strengthens.
St Augustine remarks:
“He prunes with the knife of tribulation, lest abundance of leaves — that is, worldly comfort — hinder the fruit of good works.”
(Tractates on John 80.3)
Pain in the Christian life is not punishment but purification.
Pruning proves belonging.
St Ambrose writes:
“The husbandman spares not the vine that he loves, for he cuts away that which would hinder its sweetness.”
(On Repentance II.12)
3. “You Are Already Clean”
“You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” (v. 3)
Christ’s word purifies as sacramentally as baptismal water.
The same Word that created now cleanses.
St Bede notes:
“The Word of Christ cleanses those whom the water of baptism has washed; for faith and obedience keep pure what grace has begun.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
The “word” here includes both His teaching and His Eucharistic promise in the previous chapter.
To receive the Word is to be inwardly pruned.
4. “Abide in Me, and I in You”
“Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” (v. 4)
This is the essence of Christian mysticism: abiding.
The Greek meno means to remain, to dwell, to persist.
Faith is not a single act but a continual union.
St Augustine teaches:
“To believe is to abide; for he who believes for a moment and turns away has never truly believed.”
(Tractates on John 81.1)
Abiding is sustained by grace through prayer, the sacraments, and obedience.
5. “Apart from Me You Can Do Nothing”
“I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” (v. 5)
This is the most absolute statement on grace in the New Testament.
Without Christ, not “less” but “nothing.”
St Augustine writes:
“Not that we do nothing at all, but nothing that avails to salvation; for even to will good is His gift.”
(Tractates on John 81.2)
Here the doctrine of grace meets the practice of discipleship: all fruitfulness is participation in divine life.
St Bede adds:
“The branch that glories in itself withers; only the sap of Christ keeps it green.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
6. “If Anyone Does Not Abide in Me”
“If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast forth as a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned.” (v. 6)
The imagery turns solemn.
Disconnection from Christ leads to death; the withered branch symbolises apostasy.
St Augustine comments:
“The fire is not pruning but punishment; pruning is for correction, burning for rejection.”
(Tractates on John 81.3)
The Fathers saw this both as warning to the lukewarm and prophecy of final judgement.
7. The Power of Prayer in Union
“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will, and it shall be done for you.” (v. 7)
Union with Christ transforms prayer into participation in His will.
The soul united to Christ desires nothing contrary to His purpose.
St Ambrose notes:
“He gives all to those who ask in Him, for they desire only what He desires.”
(On the Holy Spirit II.15)
This verse reveals that prayer’s power lies not in human insistence but divine indwelling.
8. “By This My Father Is Glorified”
“By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.” (v. 8)
The fruit of grace glorifies the Father because it reveals His image in His children.
Holiness is the visible radiance of divine life.
St Bede comments:
“Fruitfulness is not for our boasting but for the Father’s glory; for the praise of the branch returns to the vine.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
9. “As the Father Has Loved Me, So Have I Loved You”
“As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you; abide in My love.” (v. 9)
No verse more clearly expresses the chain of divine charity: from Father to Son, from Son to Church.
The measure of Christ’s love for us is the Father’s eternal love for Him.
St Augustine exclaims:
“He loves us not as creatures merely but as the Father loves the Son — wondrous measure! The same charity by which God loves God flows into us.”
(Tractates on John 82.1)
This is Trinitarian participation: love begetting love.
10. “If You Keep My Commandments”
“If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” (v. 10)
Love is not a feeling but fidelity.
Obedience preserves communion.
St Bede notes:
“To keep the commandments is to remain grafted in love; for love is not lost by weakness but by wilful disobedience.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
Christ’s obedience becomes both model and means for ours.
11. “That My Joy May Be in You”
“These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” (v. 11)
Joy is the fruit of abiding love.
Christ’s joy is not earthly pleasure but divine delight in communion with the Father.
St Augustine writes:
“He gives not joy apart from Himself, but His own joy; the joy of peace, the joy of the Spirit, the joy of love that never fails.”
(Tractates on John 83.1)
Joy completes love as fragrance completes the flower.
12. The Commandment of Love
“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (v. 12)
The “new commandment” of chapter 13 now returns as the rule of the vine.
The sap that flows through every branch is charity.
St Ambrose comments:
“He commands nothing He does not give; for the commandment of love is itself the gift of love.”
(On the Holy Spirit II.16)
To love “as He loved” means sacrificially, universally, unconditionally.
13. “Greater Love Has No Man Than This”
“Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (v. 13)
This verse explains both Calvary and the Christian vocation.
Love is proved in self-giving.
St Augustine notes:
“The martyr does not exceed his Master but follows Him; Christ laid down His life for enemies that they might become friends.”
(Tractates on John 84.2)
The Eucharist renews this love daily: His life laid down and given again.
14. “You Are My Friends”
“You are My friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends.” (vv. 14–15)
Friendship with Christ is the summit of discipleship.
It combines obedience with intimacy.
St Bede writes:
“He calls them friends, not because equality is given, but because love replaces fear.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
The covenant of Sinai called Israel servants; the covenant of the Cross calls the Church friends.
15. “I Chose You and Appointed You”
“You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide.” (v. 16)
Election is grace preceding merit.
The initiative is divine; our response is grateful fidelity.
St Augustine writes:
“He chose us when we were nothing; He appointed us that we might not be nothing. Choice precedes fruit.”
(Tractates on John 85.1)
Fruit that “abides” signifies eternal works — souls won, virtues formed, love enduring.
16. “Love One Another” (Repetition)
“These things I command you, so that you will love one another.” (v. 17)
The repetition is deliberate — the circle of the vine closes with charity.
Love is the root, the sap, and the fruit.
St Ambrose remarks:
“He commands love as the sum of all pruning; for love cuts away what is useless and leaves what is fruitful.”
(On the Duties of the Clergy II.13)
17. “If the World Hates You”
“If the world hates you, know that it has hated Me before it hated you.” (v. 18)
The vine that bears fruit must face the world’s frost.
Union with Christ means sharing His rejection.
St Augustine comments:
“The Church must drink the same cup; for the world loves its own but hates what is born of grace.”
(Tractates on John 86.2)
Hatred becomes a sign of discipleship, not failure.
18. “Because You Are Not of the World”
“If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (v. 19)
To be “not of the world” does not mean withdrawal from creation, but difference in allegiance.
St Bede the Venerable notes:
“The branch grows in the world’s field but draws its sap from heaven.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
Holiness is distinction without disdain.
19. “A Servant Is Not Greater Than His Master”
“Remember the word that I said to you: a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you.” (v. 20)
This echoes chapter 13 — the towel of service becomes now the cross of suffering.
Humility and persecution are linked.
St Ambrose comments:
“He who serves must also suffer, for the same humility that bends the knee must also bear the Cross.”
(On the Mysteries 38)
20. “They Have No Excuse for Their Sin”
“If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse.” (v. 22)
Revelation brings responsibility.
To reject Christ knowingly is to reject light.
St Augustine explains:
“Ignorance may excuse; malice cannot. They saw truth and hated it.”
(Tractates on John 87.1)
The clearer the grace, the graver the guilt of refusal.
21. “They Hated Me Without Cause”
“It is to fulfil the word that is written in their Law: ‘They hated Me without cause.’” (v. 25)
Even hatred is foreseen in prophecy.
Christ bears unjust hatred to redeem unjust hearts.
St Bede comments:
“The innocent suffers willingly for the guilty, that He may turn causeless hatred into free love.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
22. The Promise of the Paraclete
“When the Counsellor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness to Me.” (v. 26)
Here the procession of the Spirit is clearly revealed — proceeding from the Father, sent by the Son.
This verse became central to the Church’s later defence of the Filioque: the Spirit proceeds from the Father through the Son, not as from two principles, but one divine source of love.
St Augustine writes:
“The Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, not as two, but as one breath of charity; for the same love unites both.”
(Tractates on John 99.6)
The Spirit’s mission continues Christ’s presence.
23. “You Also Are Witnesses”
“And you also are witnesses, because you have been with Me from the beginning.” (v. 27)
The Apostles are chosen not only to know but to testify.
The vine’s fruit becomes seed for new vineyards — the Church’s mission to the world.
St Bede concludes:
“He who abides bears fruit; he who bears fruit bears witness; thus the vine spreads through every nation.”
(Homilies on the Gospels, I.21)
24. Theological Summary
| Theme | Revelation |
| Vine and branches | Communion of Christ and His Church |
| Pruning | Loving discipline producing holiness |
| Abiding | Faith and obedience sustained by grace |
| Love and friendship | Highest intimacy with Christ |
| Hatred of the world | Fellowship in His suffering |
| Spirit and witness | Continuation of Christ’s mission |
St Augustine summarises:
“The vine is Christ, the branches the Church, the sap the Spirit, the fruit love. Cut off from love, nothing lives.”
(Tractates on John 86.3)
25. Moral and Spiritual Application
Stay grafted in Christ. Daily prayer and sacramental life keep the branch alive.
Welcome pruning. Trials refine, not ruin, those who belong to God.
Love sacrificially. Friendship with Christ means imitation of His love.
Witness boldly. The fruit of abiding faith is evangelisation.
Rely on the Spirit. All fruit, peace, and perseverance come from the divine sap of grace.
26. Christ the True Vine and the Church His Branches
| Symbol | Fulfilment |
| Vine | Christ’s divine humanity giving life |
| Branches | Believers united by grace |
| Sap | The Holy Spirit |
| Fruit | Love, holiness, mission |
| Pruning | Trials sanctifying souls |
St Ambrose concludes:
“He planted Himself in our nature that we might be rooted in His; He prunes by pain that we may blossom in charity.”
(On the Mysteries 39)
27. Closing Prayer
Lord Jesus Christ, true Vine of the Father’s planting,
graft us ever more deeply into Yourself,
that we may bear fruit that abides.
Prune away our pride and cleanse our hearts with Your word.
Send us the Spirit of truth to keep us in Your love,
that through joy, service, and sacrifice
we may glorify the Father and bring others to Your life.
Who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever. Amen.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 