1. The Vine - #3 - Planting The Vine John 15: 1 *1. See
photo/video credits at end of article. Beautiful Crimson seedless
grapes, still on the Vine. Great dappled sunlight... Excellent
husbandry... Nicely Done! Planting The Vine We discovered in
session #2 ['The Husbandman'] that the husbandmen of the earthly
vineyard has a great deal to do prior to the day when he plants the
vineyard. Just the planning and the preparation of the soil can be
a very involved process, depending heavily upon the characteristics
of the land (Israel) being developed. Fortunately we have our
earthly husbandman Michael J. Neal to rely on for a wealth of
information & tips on everything that needs to take place, from
start to finish, throughout the process of planting a vine to the
actual harvest, and beyond. This gives us insights into some of the
things that were taking place when God carried out the plan for our
salvation.
2. Once all of those details are taken care of, the next detail
that begs the attention is what vine will be planted and where will
it come from. God, The True Husbandman had a distinct advantage
over His earthy counterparts. He already knew all of that from the
beginning of time. Let's take a look in this short (4:43) video at
what the earthy husbandman must consider when selecting the vine
and planting it. Please scroll to the bottom of the article to
click the live link #2. What Did We Learn? *3 Drawing credits at
end of article. 1. Root stock grafted with a one bud scion Mary was
the root stock, and God grafted a single Bud into her to grow
branches that bare fruit. In the drawing above you see the One Bud
grafting onto the root stock. I'm sure you've heard people,
especially guys refer to their best friend as their 'Bud' or buddy.
Jesus should be our 'Bud', our BFFE [best friend for ever]! He is
our Brother, The Legitimate Son of Our Heavenly Father, The True
Vine of the True Husbandman, and best of all, the Savior of the
whole world! What A Bud! Who wouldn't be excited that He is coming
back soon to take His Brothers and Sisters Home? He's coming to get
His friends.
3. 2. The tender young plants grow in a green house for a
period of time. Mary, Jesus Mother was His 'greenhouse', and as you
can imagine, she was a very nice greenhouse. She hid and protected
the tender shoot until it was strong enough to survive outside in a
harsh land. 3. A large hole is dug to plant, in so that the roots
can be surrounded with a lot of loose soil to encourage the roots
to grow outward. God surrounded His Son with a large group of
people who believed in the only True God, the True Husbandman.
4.The planting area is watered a couple of days before planting to
be certain that the conditions are perfect for planting. God set up
the 'perfect' conditions for the accomplishment of His Plan of
Salvation for us. When we look at the conditions in which Jesus was
raised, we could easily come to the conclusion that the situation
was NOT perfect. Rome was in control, the promised land was under
subjection to the emperor, and the Israelite's were being heavily
taxed. But all these situations were actually perfectly set up by
'the watering' that God did. If Rome hadn't been in control there
wouldn't have been a census that required Joseph to go to Bethlehem
where prophesies foretold Jesus would be born. Jesus wouldn't have
been crucified, but most likely would have been stone for blasphemy
like the Jews used to do. 5. Now the earthly husbandman takes the
vine out of the tube, which was a little difficult (the birthing
process). Just like the vine can not remain in the 'growing tube'
if it is to reach it's full potential, The Son of God had to be
born into this world for the world to gain the benefits of His Life
here, and for His willing sacrifice to made for us all. 6. Spread
out the roots at the Bottom. (went to Egypt for a year or two?)
Mary (the root) was taken with Jesus to escape Herod's attempt to
kill Jesus. Then a year or two later, after Herod died the angel of
The Lord told Joseph it was safe to take them back. 7. A 'Tea Bag'
of plant food called 'Micro Riser' is placed into the bottom of the
hole to give extra nourishment to help the young plant establish
itself in it's new environment. (nourishment = the Spirit of
God)
4. 8. The 'spaghetti tubes' supplying the water, (can be moved
around as needed to encourage root growth) remind us that God is
always right near by with everything we need to grow into a healthy
branch that bares excellent fruit. 9. The 'Milk Carton' placed
around the tender young plant that protects it from the cold &
from rabbits, reminds us of God protecting Jesus from Herod, (the
cold/evil rabbit trying to eat/kill the tender shoot) and that God
will always be there to protect us. Now that 'The True Vine' has
been safely planted the next job for the Husbandman is to nurture
it and train it up to be strong enough to support branches. Ah yes!
Much is told about The Branches! *1. Credits for the first photo:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1V7h_I8YVU #2. This link is live
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TMT2FZDu5M Michael Neal offers a
few practical tips when Planting A New Vineyard. *3. Credits
http://www.pots2plots.com/images/Tree%20-%20Scion%20Rootstock.jpg