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Grafted into Christ
Christ is the root and the vine, and we are grafted into him through faith.
By Peter Riedemann
April 19, 2026
A reading from Bread and Wine: Readings for Lent and Easter (Revised and Expanded Edition, 2026) excerpted from Peter Riedemann’s Hutterite Confession of Faith (Plough, 2019), a translation of the original 1565 German edition.
God draws near to those whose hearts are fearful, who are sorry for their sin, and who do not know where to turn in their distress. The world itself is too restricted for them, and they lift up their hearts to God alone. God will show himself to them, provide comfort in their sorrow, and point to his Son, who says, “Come to me, all you who are heavily burdened, and I will give you renewed strength. Put on my yoke, for it is easy, and my burden is light” (Matt. 11:28–30). Such a call the Lord extends to us through his servants whom he has chosen from the world to be his witnesses. Those who hear his voice and come to him will never be rejected.
We teach further that Christ came into the world to bring salvation to sinners. As it is written, “This is the Father’s will, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him shall not be lost, but shall have everlasting life” (John 6:39–40). We teach also that a person may be planted and grafted into Christ through faith. This is how it takes place. As soon as people hear the gospel of Christ and believe it from their hearts, they receive the seal of the Holy Spirit. As Paul says, “After you believed, you were sealed with the Spirit of the promise. That is the Holy Spirit, who is the pledge of our inheritance, the promise that we who belong to God shall be redeemed, to the praise of his glory” (Eph. 1: 10–14).
William Morris, Vine pattern, 1873. Photograph by Bill Waterson / Alamy Stock.
This Spirit of Christ, promised and given to all believers, makes them free from the law or power of sin and grafts them into Christ. He makes them one with him in mind, in his very character and nature, so that they become one plant and organism with him. Christ is the root or stem; we are the branches. As he himself says, “I am the true vine, and you are the branches” (John 15:1–6). Thus we are one substance and essence with him, truly one bread and body. He is the head, and we are all members, belonging one to another.
Christ is the root and the vine, and we are grafted into him through faith. Just as the sap rises from the root and makes the branches fruitful, so the Spirit of Christ rises from the root, Christ, into the branches and twigs, to make them all fruitful. The twigs are of the same nature as the root and bear its kind of fruit. Christ shows this in a parable: “No one gathers figs from thistles or grapes from thorns. No good tree can yield bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bring forth good fruit, but each tree is known by its own fruit” (Matt. 7:16–20).
Christ is a good tree, a true vine; hence, only good can flourish and be fruitful in him. Thus each person becomes one with God and God one with that person, as a father is one with his son. Each person is gathered and brought into the church of Christ, so that each may remain in God with the church and serve him in one Spirit. In that way, each one may be a child and inheritor of the covenant of grace confirmed by Christ.
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Emmanuel O Afolabi
The central message of this write-up—that believers are “grafted into Christ” through faith—is deeply rooted in biblical truth and reflects a powerful picture of spiritual union. Jesus Himself uses this imagery in John 15:5, saying, “I am the vine; you are the branches,” emphasizing that true life and fruitfulness come only from abiding in Him. This aligns with the broader teaching of salvation by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8–9), where a person is brought into relationship with Christ not by works, but by yrust in Him. The emphasis on God drawing near to the broken and burdened also echoes Psalm 34:18, showing that divine grace begins with God’s initiative toward those who humbly seek Him. The explanation of the Holy Spirit as the seal that grafts believers into Christ is also scripturally sound and significant. Ephesians 1:13–14 clearly teaches that those who believe are “sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,” marking them as belonging to God. However, the idea that believers become “one substance and essence” with Christ should be understood carefully. Scripture teaches unity with Christ in relationship and purpose (1 Corinthians 6:17), but it does not mean believers become divine in essence. Rather, we share in His life and are transformed into His likeness (2 Corinthians 3:18), while God remains distinct as Creator. This distinction helps maintain a balanced and biblical understanding of union with Christ. Finally, the emphasis on fruit-bearing as evidence of being truly grafted into Christ is both practical and biblical. Jesus taught that a tree is known by its fruit (Matthew 7:16–20), and the life of a believer should visibly reflect the character of Christ through the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23). This reinforces that genuine faith produces transformation, not just confession. At the same time, it is important to remember that fruit grows over time through abiding, not human effort alone (John 15:4). The write-up rightly calls believers into a shared life within the body of Christ, reminding us that being grafted into Him also means living in unity, love, and service within His church (Romans 12:4–5).