Why did Jesus refer to the vine as "branches" and not the "trunk"? — Reflections on John chapter 15

 

Why did Jesus refer to the vine as "branches" and not the "trunk"? — Reflections on John chapter 15

I. The Scriptural Basis

John 15:1, 5:  "I am the true vine... I am the vine, you are the branches."

Here the Lord Jesus mentions only two elements — the vine (including the root and stem) and the branches. He never introduces a separate "trunk," distinct from Himself, to which the branches would be attached.

II. A Botanical Look at the Grapevine

Aspect	An Ordinary Tree (e.g., an oak)	A Grapevine
Main trunk	Thick, woody, exists independently of the branches	The main stem is slender, often needing a trellis for support
Relationship of branch to trunk	The branch is a "subordinate part" of the trunk	The branch and the stem are, in essence, one continuous living organism
Character of life	The trunk can stand alone; branches can be pruned and replaced	Apart from the branches, the "vine" itself has no meaning — the entire value of the vine lies in the fruit-bearing branches

The unique feature of a grapevine is that it is almost "all branches" — there is no thick, self-sustaining trunk portion. This botanical characteristic is exactly what the Lord uses to illustrate a spiritual reality.

III. The Spiritual Significance: No "Trunk" Means No Intermediate Structure

1. It excludes an "attached" kind of relationship

If there were a "trunk," the branches would become something added on afterward — the trunk existing first, with the branches attached to it later. But the Lord Jesus says, "you are the branches," directly counting believers as the very continuation of His own life, not as something appended to it.

2. It emphasizes an organic union, not an organizational one

The reality of the church is not an organization but an organism. If the vine had a "trunk," people could easily mistake it as implying that some kind of "structure" or "institution" stands between believers and Christ as an intermediary — as when a denomination or hierarchy requires some institutional arrangement in order for members to be joined to the Head. But what John 15 depicts is that the branch and the vine are directly one — the same life, with the same life-sap (the Spirit) flowing through both.

3. It echoes Ephesians' concept that "Christ and the church are one"

The branch does not "belong to" the vine as something separate; the branch and the stem are different expressions of the very same life. This corresponds to "Christ is the Head, the church is the Body" (Eph. 1:22–23), and to the idea that "Christ is Himself all the members of this Body" (1 Cor. 12:12 — "so also is Christ"). Christ and the believers together constitute one organic entity, rather than a three-tiered structure of "Head plus an intermediate structure plus members."

IV. Summary

If There Were a "Trunk"	Since There Is No "Trunk" (as actually depicted in John 15)
Implies an independent, intermediary structure existing between Christ and believers	Christ Himself is the entire vine, and believers are the living continuation of that vine
Easily develops into an organizational, hierarchical concept of union	Emphasizes an organic, direct union of life — "Abide in Me" (John 15:4)
A "distance" exists between believers and Christ	Believers and Christ are one, with no intermediary and no distance

This is precisely the deeper intention behind the Lord Jesus choosing the image of "the vine" rather than simply "a tree" — what He wants to reveal is not a layered structure made up of trunk and branches, but rather that He Himself and believers are two ways of describing one and the same living organism: spoken of from the standpoint of the Head, it is "the vine"; spoken of from the standpoint of the members, it is "the branches" — in reality, the two are one.

 

*Please refer to the April 2026 Summer Training General Topic: Believers, Chapter Seven: Vessels, Grains of Wheat, and Branches of the Vine that Receive Mercy and Honor.