Gospel John 15.1-8
Jesus the True Vine
15 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine grower. 2 He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. 3 You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.
Sermon: Bear Fruit!
“Just living is not enough, one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower.” H.C Andersen wrote.
It is the 2nd day of May. It is spring. It is sunshine. What a beautiful morning and what a beautiful time of year. Living sure is brighter, better and more beautiful with sunshine, freedom and flowers.
One of the absolute advantages and blessings living in Southern California is the climate; and I was feeling especially blessed this Thursday morning, when I after my morning walk with Saxo, could move my sermon preparation and office out into the garden. And for a moment I felt the truth of H.C. Andersen words about sunshine, freedom and flowers. Looking at all the trees, enjoying all the blooming flowers and listening to all the busy chirping birds.
“I am the vine, you are the branches,” Jesus said to his disciples and to us almost 2000 years later.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. And my Father is the vine grower.”
Sitting in the Spring garden watching the lime tree, the avocado tree, the grapefruit tree and the lemon tree, reaffirmed the sense of being a human being in the big generous creation. What a blessing to be seated in the middle of all of this – this abundance of yellow lemons heavenly hanging on the tree, might not be Vine – but still God is the grower and the gardener. And we are blessed to be living in this creation.
Jesus continued: “He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. …. My father is gloried by this, that your bear much fruit and become my disciples.”
This week the trees on the church campus sur-rounding our beautiful church has been trimmed and pruned. And a couple of trees even had to be cut down, as they were too close to the buildings or simply had to be removed to give other trees the air and space to bear fruit and grow.
Trees are wonderful allegories. Trees are wonderful images of our human life. As humans we too begin as a small seed, small and depending on care. As humans we too spout and grow, we need nourishment, sunshine, rain, and fertilizers, we need to be pruned and trimmed as the branches set and we try to reach to the sky.
As humans we are connected. Our lives are branches intertwined on the family tree, - and we bear fruit.
My family on my father’s side has a wonderful Slaegtsbog/ Genealogy Book that was made for my father, Hans Erik, and his siblings Ellen, Niels Aage, Aksel and Poul. It is this beautiful book in a beautiful wooden cover, and it unfolds the history and the family tree of Krogh Nielsen. My fraternal grandmother my farmor had 15 siblings, so there are many branches. And the book goes even further back in history all the way to mid-1600. Looking at at family tree make you humble and proud at the same time. It gives you a sense of history and the sense that we are indeed connected, intertwined, marked by the many fruits that the families bear, formed by years, choices, challenges, possibilities, successes, failures, hopes and dreams. We are indeed not isolated islands, but branches on family trees.
“I am the true vine, and m Father is the vine grower…. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.”
The fruit we bear. When we look at our lives we often think about our legacy and our impact: what we did, how we continue the family tree with our family, what kind of fruit we did bear in life and what we leave behind.
Sometimes we find joy and pride, sometimes we find disappointment and bitterness, sometimes we may even think that we did not bear any fruit at all.
The fruit we bear. What we have planted and produced, and what we hope to plant and produce.
Take a moment to think about your family tree. The beginning, the trunk, the branches, the buds and the fruit. What are you grateful for, what are you hopeful for, what do you regret and how do you prune, fertilize and nourish the family tree? What the true fruit on your family tree – the lasting fruit?
Besides of being blessed with the possibility of sitting the the garden preparing this sermon and feeling free, smelling flowers and feeling the sunshine, - Southern California is also the home of the Oscars.
The annual celebration of movies – and this years Oscars was celebrated last Sunday from the iconic Union Station in LA. And as a Dane you had to be proud as two Danes were celebrated and given an Oscar for their accomplishments: Mikkel E G Nielsen for Film Editing of “Sound of Metal” and Thomas Vinterberg for the best foreign movie “Another Round”/Druk. So, both received recognition for the fruits of their work and talents. Congratulations!
And yet, I want to focus on something else from the Oscars. Every year a special Humanitarian Award is being awarded to somebody who has made a humanitarian impact in the world.
This Award is called the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award. Jean Hersholt does not really sound Danish, does it – but Jean Hersholt was indeed a Danish Actor and a celebrated humanitarian. And if ever there was a great Dane in Hollywood it was Jean Hersholt – and one of its great hearts as well. He was born in 18 Denmark, and as many Danes he decided to emigrate to US to seek opportunities. He came to Hollywood in 1914 as the silent movies were taken the lead. He started as a movie extra and progressed into smaller roles. He became a very sought-after actor as a villain, and he was playing alongside Rudolf Valentino. Hersholt became popular and well paid. He continued his career into the sound movies and because of his accent, his mellow voice and good looks he continued to have success. In 1937, he had a radio series portraying a kind small town doctor. To find a character name, Hersholt turned to his most beloved author, his countryman, H.C. Andersen, for a name: Dr. Christian. Hersholt was very fond of H.C. Andersen, collected several editions which later went to the Library of Congress and he translated many of the fairytales of HCA. And if you visit his gravesite at Forest Lawn in Hollywood his gravesite is adorned by a sculpture of Clumsy Hans – Klods Hans.
Hersholt was not clumsy, but generous. And exactly his generous nature truly gave him a lasting name – and an Oscar Award. He formed the Motion Picture Relief Fund in 1939 to support industry employees with medical care. And it led to the foundation of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award: awarded for outstanding contributions to humanitarian causes. The impressive list hold names like Samuel Goldwyn, Bob Hope, Gregory Peck, Frank Sinatra, Danny Kaye, Audrey Hepburn, Elisabeth Taylor, Paul Newman, Quincy Jones, Oprah Winfrey, Harry Belafonte, Debbie Reynolds and this year Tyler Perry.
I mention this award because it truly recognizes the fruit of a life, the seeds planted, the compassion given, and the humanity shown.
As I watched the Oscars last Sunday, I listened to Tyler Perry’s acceptance speech for the Jean Hersholt Award. We might disagree on the quality of Tyler Perry’s body of movie work, but what he was praised for was his personal contributions to social causes and assistance. When not providing Meghan and Harry a refuge of freedom, flowers and sunshine in Montecito, he has among other things paid for senior’s groceries, financially assisted the families of Black people filled by police and created Camp Quarantine at his production studio, allowing artist to continue to work safely during quarantine.
Upon receiving the honorable award, Tyler Perry gave a rousing speech only fitting for the award as he spoke about withholding judgment: “In this time, …. It is my hope that all of us will teach our kids, and not only to remember, but just refuse hate. Do not hate anybody. I refuse to hate someone because they are Mexican or because they are Black or white or LGBTQ. I refuse to hate someone because they are a police officer, I refuse to hate someone because they are Asian. I would hope we would refuse hate. I want to take this Jean Hersholt Humanitarian a ward and dedicate it to anyone who wants to stand in the middle…. because that were healing happens, that where conversations happen, that’s where change happens. It happens in the middle. So, anyone who wants to meet me I the middle, to refuse hate, to refuse blanket judgment, and help lift someone’s feet of the ground, this one is for you, too.”
That is the seed he wants to plant. That is the fruit he hopes for – and honestly, that is the fruit Jesus asked for when he asked us to bear fruit and abide in his words.
1 John says:
“Let us love one another, because love is from God: everyone who loves is born of God and know God.
Those who say, “I love God” and hate their brothers and sisters, are liars: for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from his is this: Those who love God must love their brothers and sisters too.”
So, refuse hate. Instill that in your kids and grandkids. Teach them kindness, compassion and love. Teach them Christian values of love, compassion, humility and humanity.
That is the fruit we should aim to bear. That is the fruit Jesus ask us to bear. That is the fruit the Winegrower and the Creator is glorified by.
Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower.
Living is not enough, we must love, we must teach our kids to love, we must have compassion, we must show humanity in a world that needs that kind of fruit on the branches.
So let us love one another because love is from God.
Amen.