15:1
Up until chapter 13 the teaching has been directed to the whole of Israel, since that point Jesus had been focusing on His disciples, both the original disciples and the millions of us who have come afterwards. The Father sent the Son to influence the world, now He sends us and through the Holy Spirit will bring His salvation to many. Just consider what a privilege it is to be part of God’s plan, and how amazing it is that God includes us as integral parts of His plan.
The vine analogy has two references, one is to Scripture and the other is to the temple. Scripturally the vine is often used when talking about Israel, Isaiah 5 is perhaps the best example, see also Psalm 80:8,9. The other reference is to the temple, where there was a vine.
15:2
We see here, and in this whole section, the importance of fruit bearing. What is the fruit? We should not look at too narrowly. Ie it is not just “soul winning” and it is not just living a righteous life. Rather it is the totality of our lives lived under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Israel had not produced good fruit, but now the true Israel would. Now this must not be taken as saying Israel no longer has any part of God’s plan. It does, but it is only in Christ that Israel will find her destiny, and it was always God’s plan that salvation would go out to all the world.
These words are a severe warning that relying on ancestry or anything else is futile. If we do not produce kingdom fruit we will be cut off. It is also a warning against “once saved always saved” teaching that says we can live how we like and it makes no difference to our salvation. There is no support for that in Scripture.
It also teaches us how God will work in our lives. If we are part of the true vine we will be pruned so that we produce even more fruit.
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