In the NT, the church is compared to a building, a family, a body, a bride - all these different pictures speak of being relationally connected to God, to Christ, and to each other. In John 15 Jesus uses the metaphor of the vine and the branch to illustrate the Christian's vital connection to Jesus. Like a branch draws its life from the vine, so do we draw our life, our salvation, and our ability to bear fruit from our relationship with Christ, from our connection with him.