Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed. Alleluia!
Today is the Fifth Sunday of Easter. The Sundays of Easter invite us to encounter and to engage with the risen Christ, and to open our eyes to who Jesus is. John’s Gospel offers a series of helpful clues in the ‘I am’ sayings of Jesus. Today’s Gospel reading opens with Jesus claiming, ‘I am the true vine’. In the Old Testament, the people of Israel are described as God’s vine. God planted the vine and expects fruit from the vine. John’s Gospel develops the image of Jesus as the true vine nurturing the branches.
Those who are part of that true vine bear much fruit. Those who are not part of that true vine cannot bear fruit. The vine symbolises the source of life in Christ. For those of you who wanted to do some thinking and preparation for today’s service during the preceding week, I invited you to reflect on the image of the vine. In today’s picture, from one of their books in the Christian Special Places series, Aled and Sian are discovering how the branches of their apple tree are all connected with the roots underground.
Risen Lord,
you are the true vine
and we are your branches.
Prune us and cleanse us,
feed us and nurture us,
that we may bear fruit in you;
now and always.
Amen.
Next Sunday, the Sixth Sunday of Easter, prepares us for the Feast of the Ascension. In the
Gospel reading Jesus is preparing his disciples for their ongoing life in the world after he has been taken from them. The image to help us prepare for next Sunday’s theme is teams. You can find out more about that theme by looking at the Educational Resources and the Preparation Resources.
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Exploring the Sunday Gospel – Fourth Sunday of Easter