Vineyard Days – Outside the Canopy, Part Two

“The fig tree forms its early fruit; the blossoming vines spread their fragrance.
Arise, come, my darling; my beautiful one, come with me.”
Song of Songs 2:13 NIV

Cheap wine versus fine wine. There is a reason you can buy one for five bucks a bottle and spend the better part of a paycheck on the other, largely governed by how many zeroes follow those first digits.

I think our Shulamite in the Song of Songs struggled with that reason: being drawn to the affordable price tag of the cheap wine while the Bridegroom was intent on turning her into a vessel of fine wine.

To possess fine wine in her vessel would mean paying a much higher price. Considering the cost of continued cultivation was enough to leave her weak in the knees without aid and benefit of any bubbly. Reluctance had served her well, for time passes with every sunrise and sunset. Calling it waiting (with or without patience) did not change the fact that the Vinedresser was standing in front of her with pruning shears in hand asking, “May I?” Whether she “mayn’t” or not, life went – and does go – on.

But so does the Bridegroom’s preparing work of His Bride, those who will answer His call to go with Him. The how of preparation is unique to each person, but the where of preparation – outside the canopy – is of vital, unchanging importance. It is there that, year after year, He labors to bring forth strong new life even as the aging and rooting into Him takes place. He is not a complacent cultivator. He works miracles.

Jesus’ launch into public ministry as recorded at the wedding in Cana is a beautiful portrayal of His miracle-working power then and a similar miracle He is preparing for again, this time in His Bride.

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.” They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.” What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him. (John 2:6-11)

He began his ministry with choice wine. He’ll bring the Ages to their conclusion with choice wine.*

In John 15, Jesus’ final discourse to His disciples before He entered into the events of His Passion, was focused on teaching them – in none other than a vineyard – how to bear fruit that will last.

Let’s return to the vineyard and the lesson of the canopy, for wine-making and for Bride-making.

***
The development of fine wine in the emerging Bride today comes about similarly as the vinedresser’s ministrations to the grapevines bring forth the finest and best production of grapes.

Simply put, it takes time. It takes pruning and cultivation. It takes refining year after year. But oh, the difference between the choice wine and the cheap!

That difference is largely dependent on the practice of canopy management in the vineyard.

Entwined within the pruning message are the distinctions of covering and uncovering, sunlight and shading, the productive and the unproductive. It is all part and parcel of good canopy management.

Grape vines can be vigorous, meaning shoots and leaves can be prolific in the vineyard. Through early thinning of unproductive shoots or those spaced too closely, the vinedresser aims to balance the productivity of the vine and the amount of leaf and shoot growth. Remember His selective eye.

The canopy is the leaf growth on each shoot that provides the layer of leaves that protect the cluster of developing fruit. Therein lies the problem, which leads to the need for the pruning process.

Ultimately, it’s all about the light.

For a properly ripened grape cluster, each grape shoot needs 14 to 16 leaves that are well-exposed to the sunlight. If too many shoots are crowded together, the leaves suffer. Prolific leaves massed together result in a choked canopy, and the leaves do not get enough light for effective photosynthesis.**

Every leaf needs good sun exposure. Otherwise, those that are shaded only function at about 6% of their capacity and may not be contributing at all to ripening the grape cluster.

This is why the vinedresser thins the shoots in the early stages, eliminating the ones that are unproductive (have no fruit clusters). The thinning enhances the grape vine’s environment, providing light and space for the productive shoots (the ones with fruit clusters).

The essential ingredient of exposure to the sunlight (and with us, to the Sonlight) cannot be overstated.

The vinedresser avoids the canes that have developed in the shade for they are not as fruitful. For even the canes that produce the shoots that produce the leaves that shelter the fruit, are chosen for their exposure to sunlight, that is, having developed outside the canopy.

“My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit,
and so prove to be My disciples.”
(John 15:8 NASB)

~ Gracefully Free

* Matthew 14:25
**a process used by plants and other organisms to convert light energy, normally from the Sun, into chemical energy that can be later released to fuel the organisms’ activities

Outside the Canopy, Part One

photo credit: dancing goose via photopin cc

Shammahs Field LLC/Shammah Ministries is the biblical counseling, life coaching, and spiritual growth ministry entrusted to Wayne & Nancy Bentz. You can learn more about the resources they have to offer at shammahsfield.com and nancybentz.com.