One Life Flowing Through All the Branches

Christ's declaration 'I am the True Vine' presents not a poetic emblem but metaphysical reality. The material vine one might observe by the wayside becomes merely shadow; the truth resides in Him alone. Maclaren invites us to imagine those great vines in royal conservatories, where branches stretch for hundreds of yards along espaliers, yet one undivided life pervades the entire structure—from root through the crooked stem to the farthest leaf, reddening and mellowing every cluster.…