Scripture Story Sketch Notes · John 14–17; John 15:1–11
The Vine and the Branches
“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit” John 15:5
A troubled evening, a promise of peace, a vine heavy with grapes, and a prayer for you. Walk His last teachings, and learn what it means to abide in Him.
On His last evening, after the supper, Jesus spoke to His Apostles about what was coming. “Let not your heart be troubled,” He told them. He was going to prepare a place for them, and He would not leave them alone: the Father would send “another Comforter,” the Holy Ghost. “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.”
Then He gave them a picture to hold onto: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.” They were the branches. A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it has to stay connected to the vine. “Abide in me, and I in you,” He said, “for without me ye can do nothing.” He called them friends, and then He lifted His eyes to heaven and prayed for them, and for everyone who would ever believe on Him through their word.
Who’s who
The vine: Jesus Christ
The husbandman: Heavenly Father, who tends the vine
The branches: His disciples, then and now
The fruit: the good that grows in a life connected to Him
Where and when
The upper room in Jerusalem and the road toward the Mount of Olives, on the last night before Gethsemane.
Watch for the Savior
Watch how often He says “abide.” Watch who He prays for at the end.
Eight stops from “Let not your heart be troubled” to His great prayer. Scroll, or tap a number on the map.
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The story, plainly
Four scenes: the troubled hearts, the vine, the branch that abides, and the prayer. Look for the Savior in each one.
Read it plainly
The words that trip people up
Tap any dotted word for its meaning. The scripture stays exactly as written.1
John 14:2 “In my Father’s house are many Meaning: dwelling places, rooms. There is a place for each one.”
John 14:16 “he shall give you another Meaning: the Holy Ghost, who comforts, teaches and stays with us.”
John 15:1 “my Father is the Meaning: the farmer who plants and cares for the vine.”
John 15:2 “he Meaning: prunes, trims away what is not needed. it, that it may bring forth more fruit”
John 15:4 “Meaning: stay, remain, live in. Stay connected, and keep staying. in me, and I in you”
John 15:6 “he is cast forth as a branch, and is Meaning: dried up, without life.”
John 15:9 “Meaning: stay, keep on living. ye in my love”
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Look closer
Small details tell the story. Some cards are details in the text; others share insights from prophets. Each card says which.
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All nine. The vine, the pruning, the branch, the fruit, the withered branch, the many mansions, the Comforter, His friends and His joy. John 15:1–11
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Where are you today?
Some of us feel cut off, some feel pruned, some are trying to do it all alone, and some have troubled hearts. Which feels most like you right now?
A next step for you
Your choice is saved only on this device.
Try it
Abide in me
A branch stays green only while it stays connected. Press and hold to abide in the vine. If you let go, the branch begins to fade, but the vine is still there. Hold on again.
“As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.” John 15:4
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Their world, their words
A little background helps us see what the Apostles pictured. Outside sources are labeled.
Apostle · Christofferson
What it means to abide
Elder Christofferson: “To abide in God’s love in this sense means to submit fully to His will.”6
The Father tends the vine, and the vine feeds the branches.
Scripture
Life flows through the vine
A branch has no life of its own. Jesus says it plainly: “As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.”1
The fruit is not ours alone. It comes from Him.
Apostle · Talmage
Teaching on the way
Elder Talmage: “it is possible that the latter portion was spoken and the prayer offered (John 15, 16, 17) outdoors as Jesus and the Eleven wended their way toward the Mount of Olives”.5
His last words came on the road to Gethsemane.
Apostle · Holland
Stay, and stay forever
Elder Holland noticed that Spanish renders “abide in me” as permaneced en mí, with the sense of permanence. His invitation: “Come, but come to remain.”4
Abiding is not a visit. It is a home.
Word study · Greek
menō μένω · “abide” (John 15:4)
Bible Hub: “to stay (in a given place, state, relation or expectancy).”8Outside · lexicon
The same word runs all through John 15. He asks us to stay, and He promises to stay too: “Abide in me, and I in you.”1
Word study · Greek
kathairō καθαίρω · “purgeth” (John 15:2)
Bible Hub: “to cleanse, i.e. (specially) to prune.”9Outside · lexicon
Pruning is for fruitful branches: “every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit”. The very next verse uses a related word: “Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.”1
What the text does not say
The text does not say pruning means the husbandman is angry with the branch. He prunes the branch that is already bearing fruit, “that it may bring forth more fruit”. Nor does it ask a branch to make fruit by trying harder on its own: “without me ye can do nothing”. The branch’s work is to stay connected.
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Look to Him
He is the true Vine, the source of every good thing that grows in us, and the Friend who prayed for us before He went to Gethsemane.
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland: “He is the vine that is our true source of strength and the only source of eternal life.”
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “Abide in Me,” April 20044
“For the fruit of the gospel to blossom and bless our lives, we must be firmly attached to Him”
What is one thing that keeps you connected to Him every day? What is one thing that pulls you away?
Try it today
One way to stay connected to the Vine each day. It saves on this device, one day at a time.
0 of 7 today
This week:0 of 7 days
Seven days abiding in the Vine. Come again tomorrow.
A quiet moment
“As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.”
Read John 15:1–11 slowly. Then ask Heavenly Father what one small thing would help you stay close to His Son this week. Listen, and write down what comes. John 15:1–11
A verse to hold
Talk about it
What does a branch need from the vine? What do we need from the Savior?
Why do you think the husbandman prunes branches that are already bearing fruit?
Jesus said, “Henceforth I call you not servants … but I have called you friends.” What does it mean to be His friend?
In John 17:20 He prayed for people who would believe later. How does it feel to know He prayed for you?
Open
For adults and deeper study
Go deeper
Longer readings, harder questions, and where to study next. Each one says what it is before you click.
Apostle
Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “Abide in Me” (2004)
What “abide” really means, why the Lord asks us to come and stay, and why we must be firmly attached to the Vine.4
Paul names the fruit that grows in a life connected to the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.3
Everything on this page as an 11-page letter-size PDF: the map, scenes, cards, activity, word studies, tracker, Go deeper and sources. For home, class or a quiet Sunday.
The Vine and the Branches is part of the Scripture Story Sketch Notes for the New Testament, set alongside Come, Follow Me for May 31–June 6, 2027 (John 14–17).
Independent study notes from Weak Things, not an official publication of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Scripture quotations are from the King James Version. These teachings are in the Savior’s own words as recorded by John; the insights in “Look closer” are labeled by source.
