God the Vinedresser

April 28, 2024; John 15: 1-8; 5th Sunday of Easter

We cannot adequately describe God. God is greater than us and different from us. God cannot be seen or examined. Therefore, the only way we can speak of God is by using images. We take something we know from our own experience and apply it to God, saying God is like this. The Bible does this all the time. The Bible says God is “my rock.” Well of course God is not a rock, but our experience of rock allows us to say something about God’s strengths and endurance. The Bible says God is “father.” God is unlike any father that we know, but our experience of father allows us to say something about God’s protection and love.

We depend upon images to understand God. This is why it is important not to overlook the image of God that Jesus gives us today in the Gospel. Jesus says he is the vine and we are the branches. But then he adds that his Father is the vine grower. What an interesting image of God. Jesus does not say that God is the vineyard owner. He says that God is the vinedresser. The humble worker that goes out each day into the fields to care for the vines.

So, what does this image of vinedresser tell us about God? It tells us that God knows each one of us as individuals. God knows our strengths and our blessings. God knows our weakness and our challenges. You see, vines can produce grapes for decades, and so an experienced vinedresser would work with the same vines for thirty or forty years. The vinedresser would know each vine. He would know the vines that are planted in good ground with sufficient sunlight and water. He would know the vines that are planted in rocky ground or on a slope where there is a danger of the soil being washed away. The vinedresser then would go out every day to care for each vine according to its needs.

The image of God as the vinedresser tells us that God knows where we are planted. God knows if we are planted in rich soil with good relationships, multiple abilities, and a secure income. When this is the case, God comes every day to encourage our growth and to rejoice in our productivity. But God also knows if we are planted in dry ground searching for water because of rejection, misunderstanding, or failure. God sees the dryness in our life and works to bring moisture so that we can live. God sees if the soil around our roots has been washed away by addiction, divorce, or abuse, and how we are clinging at rocks to survive. When this is the case, God works to bring new soil into our life so that we can grow again.

The image of God as the vinedresser tells us that God knows where we are planted. And God not only loves us, God works to see that we grow and live. God’s intention is to make us healthy and productive. That is why it is true wisdom to trust the vinedresser, to put ourselves into God’s hands.