Today, the liturgy leads us to John 15, by introducing us into another one of the large images of the fourth Gospel: the wine (and the vine). The three great gifts of the Earth —bread, wine and olive oil— have become, along with water, the basic elements of the Church’s sacraments, in which the fruits of creation are transformed into bearers (sacraments) of God’s historical action (bestowing of grace)

Each of these three gifts has a special character, so that each one functions as a sign in his own way. The wine represents Feasting. It gives man a taste of the glory of creation. And the vine as an Christological attribute signifies Jesus’ inseparable oneness with His own, who through Him and with Him, are all "Vine", and whose calling is to "remain" in the vine.

—The words about the vine indicate the irrevocability of the gift God has given: in becoming incarnate. God has bounded himself. But, at the same time, these very words are calling for our response.