The Gardener

This devotional considers John 15:1-2.

I love the image of the Lord as a gardener. Jesus said, I am the true vine and my father is the gardener. The Lord as gardener helps me today because he is not afraid of the hard work of shaping me; he doesn’t give up. He is willing to spend his time in the soil, in the heat of the sun of my life. This reminds me of Adam and Eve in the Beginning, God as a caretaker, vinedresser who works almost nonstop because there is so much to do in caring for the vineyard. God working as a vinedresser helps us to understand how intimately involved he is in our lives, pruning, watering, protecting from pests, harvesting fruit. 

Jesus said he cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. When I read this, I was awed by Jesus’ humility. Jesus is from Heaven and from earth, Son of God and Son of Man, high priest familiar with our temptations. Our Lord and Savior also experienced the pruning of the Father.

So, when the Lord says to us that we are not alone, we should take it to heart. Many places in Scripture help us to understand this. These two verses alone help us to believe that the Father is very attentive to our lives—he is never unaware or indifferent. Vinedressers don’t get much, if any time away. It’s a year-round occupation. In tis the Lord wants us to know how close he is to the circumstances of our lives. He cares. He also knows what he’s doing when he removes things in us or around us that won’t help us grow or bear fruit.

We can also take comfort in knowing we are not alone because we serve the Lord who understands our sinful nature, as well as the nature of the world we live in. He does not look down from on high, from Heaven, in condemnation. He stoops low, to earth, to speak to us in our hearing, as he demonstrated to the woman caught in adultery. He stooped and wrote on the ground. Then when all her accusers were gone, he asked, Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? ‘No one, sir,’ she said. Then neither do I condemn you. Go now and leave your life of sin.

We serve a compassionate and merciful God who comes alongside us and calls us to live for him. My prayer today is for us to be settled on our spirits, contented, that we’re under the care of a master vinedresser. He knows our end from beginning. He’s not afraid of the hard work of pruning and shaping our lives so that we bear much good fruit.

Have your way in us today, Lord. And thank you for loving us and never leaving our sides.

Amen.