Isaiah 5
1. I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.
2. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a wine-press as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit.
Make no mistake. Isaiah sings a ballad to Israel. It is a message from God’s prophet to His people Israel. Those guys. Way over there. A long, long time ago. It is a parable with a terribly sad ending. You see, Israel had failed God again. And we shrug our shoulders and sigh. We shake our heads. Why? Why would Israel reject God and His call to Holiness again and again. If only we had the signs and wonders they had, why we’d never fall away!
We just celebrated our 65th anniversary as a church. I assembled historical notes to make a historical overview of the church in those 65 years. But think about Israel’s history! The entire Old Testament! Can you imagine being able to include things like "In 1706 BC our pastor parted the Red Sea…or, our Church Board prayed for direction and God led them as great cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night…Or, our church needed some property to expand so God told our pastor to have us to march around the Grand Casino 7 times and blow some trumpets real loud. So we did it and do you know the whole building collapsed! The owners gave us the property for free provided that we promised never to set foot on any more of their properties!" Israel had those kind of supernatural manifestations all throughout their history. But they failed God…again.
"1. I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.
2. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a wine-press as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit."
God’s message to Israel.
One thing I’ve noticed about siblings…Brothers and sisters…is that younger brothers and sisters never learn from the mistakes of the older ones. You’d think they would. You’d think they would learn not to do the things that got big brother or sister in trouble. Instead, they try to learn from brother or sisters mistakes so that maybe they’ll get away with it when they try it….
You’d think that they would hear Mom or Dad’s yelling…see their finger waving in the air…watch as privilege after privilege after privilege is taken away…punishment after punishment is given out…and get the message.
Israel –God’ s chosen people has a spiritual younger sister.
Her name is…The Church.
And I’m sad to report this morning, that even as we watch as God’s man Isaiah spells it out for Israel, "You’re Father God and I are very disappointed. We give you a home, we get you all the best things, we make sure you have the best opportunities for success – and you just throw it back in our face!"
The Church listens… but she doesn’t learn.
Pride was Israel’s downfall. Israel thought that because they were "God’s chosen" they couldn’t fall…They failed to maintain God’s holy standards because they thought that being God’s elect meant that the most moral gentile was hopelessly lost and the most immoral Jew was ever yet redeemable. Pride. It was a bad seed that grew and grew until it choked out all that God had done for them; until the beautiful vineyard was nothing more than rows and rows of wild vines, bitter grapes…weeds.
A recent survey uncovered the greatest spiritual challenges and failures among Christians. What do you think was number one? Lust? Anger?
#1. Materialism…
2. Pride… 3. self-centeredness… and 4) Laziness round out the top 4
Surprised? We shouldn’t be. Wild grapes look an awful lot like good grapes. Any weed that looks like a weed gets pulled up. But the more it looks like the money crop, the less likely we are to disturb it.
For Israel the destructive pride that led them into compromise in serving false gods and not fulfilling their religious duties looked a lot like national pride…it looked a lot like trust in God who had made them so many promises of prosperity. It was a false pride that caused them to act without regard to God’s instruction or warnings. It gave them a false security.
Materialism looks a lot like a prosperity blessing from God.
Besides, we want to do our best for God, don’t we? We’re not chasing our false god "The Dollar" … we’re working so we can give more tithe to the church…or, we’re working to have more so we have something to give to those in need. It’s not Materialism…It’s good work ethic that robs us of time with our families, time spent with God in deep, personal meditation and Bible study… It’s not materialism…It’s our dedication to our work that keeps us so busy we can’t call a brother or sister in Christ to say "hey, we missed you in Sunday School" or visit someone in the hospital who doesn’t know Christ, just to let them know Jesus loves them and God’s people are praying for them…It’s not materialism that keeps us from giving a cup of cold water in His name…It’s just that we work hard for our money, we have a right to spend it on ourselves. We earned it. It can’t be materialism. Not in this sanctified garden.
It can’t be self-centeredness.. Not in this garden. It must be those vines of personal rights…like the right to the pursuit of happiness.. the right to liberty—the freedom to do what I want to do when I want to do it…
It can’t be Laziness…Not in this garden… You know I’d be a servant to my fellow man like Christ would be, I just don’t know where to start or what to do. I’m sure God will let me know what He needs me to do. He knows I’m available. All He has to do is ask…
I’d pray and study my Bible—but I’m waiting on God to speak to me. I’m sure if He’s got something important for me to know, He’ll call.
The trouble is, wild grapes look a lot like good grapes.
So the weeds in the Vineyard of the Church grow….and grow…
"1. I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.
2. He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a wine-press as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit."
When God plants a vineyard, he plants with expectation.
Verse:
3. "Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard.
4. What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad?
After all I have done – for Israel: Didn’t I bring them out of bondage in Egypt? Didn’t I give them the most fertile ground – The Promised Land? Didn’t I give them my expectations in writing – The Ten Commandments? Didn’t I give them the best leader – Moses— trained in Pharaoh’s court in Egypt, the super-power of its day? Was I wrong to expect a crop of the finest grapes – the most excellent grapes in the world?
After all I have done – for the Church in America: Didn’t I bring them out of bondage and into a land of religious freedom to serve and worship me according to my Word? Didn’t I give them a fresh new continent – a Promised Land –full of every resource needed by man? Didn’t I give them the Holy Scriptures –preserved through the centuries and written in their own language so every man could know the Word of God for Himself—so God could reveal Himself and His plan to each and every one? Didn’t I give them religious and spiritual leaders to guide them on their way? Was I wrong to expect a crop of the finest grapes—the most excellent grapes in the world?
After all I have done – for you: Didn’t I free you from the bondage of sin and death? Didn’t I give you new life? Didn’t I make you a new creature in Christ Jesus? Didn’t I give my Word and the Holy Spirit to lead you into all truth? Didn’t I give you a pastor to lead you and to speak for me when you’ve taken your own spiritual phone off the hook and I can’t get through? Didn’t I give you a church house where you are free to worship and pray and praise me without persecution or fear? Was I wrong to expect a crop of the finest grapes? Was I wrong to expect an increase in faith…and sincere godly love… of righteous living and true holiness? Was it too much to expect – after all I have done – to see a surplus bounty of the fruit of the Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Long Suffering, Meekness, Gentleness, Fidelity, Goodness, Temperance? And that, overflowing in every family, every person, in the church?
Was it too much to expect that, by now, they would be excited to worship, praising me in everything they do, everyday? By now, they ought to be living like glorious angels on earth, in constant conversation with me. I thought, by now, I could look down to my vineyard and see a chosen, consecrated, generation that understood what it means for every believer to be part of a royal priesthood. By now, as harvest draws near, I should see a Holy Nation.
But all I see are wild grapes.
I see pride and prejudice, back-biting and back-stabbing. Wild, absurd false teachings and wicked doctrines that pollute the Truth of the Word of God. I see poison fruit -- full of the love of the world and love for things and possessions -- robbing me of every good gift of honor that should be mine. Where did this bad fruit come from? Every vine full of anger, hatred, malice, and revenge?
Folks, there are only two ways bad seeds get into cultivated soil. It was never removed or it was introduced later.
Look around. Be honest – to yourself and to God. What do you see? Is our vineyard full of healthy, strong vines bursting with the Fruit of the Spirit?
Is it a vineyard full of weeds strangling out everything God had planned for His church—for His people?
If, in your honest reckoning, you see a struggling church choking on bitter fruit, we must honestly, personally, inspect our vines.
For some, the weeds were never extracted from the soil. They struggle every day because that original sin, that sin nature we inherited from Adam, has never been removed. You see, they accepted God’s grace and found salvation in the Savior, and they were forgiven for the bad things they did. You can be forgiven for the things you do. But what about something you never did? How can you be forgiven for something you didn’t do? You can’t! That sin nature – that natural tendency to serve yourself instead of God – that natural desire to please yourself instead of God – or to do what seems right according to your own ethical standards instead of following God’s moral code set down in Scripture—that wild grape vine is called Original Sin and you were born with it. Nothing except the complete work of Grace can kill it off. In the Nazarene church we call it the second work of Grace. And that’s a terrible name. Because it’s not that Grace isn’t full and complete. Grace hasn’t failed. It is we that have failed. It isn’t Grace that’s imperfect, we are. And, in truth, most of us just are not ready to receive everything Grace can do when we first accept it. You see, when we first accepted Grace; when we asked God to forgive our sins and make us His own --- all we were concerned about was being forgiven for the stuff we did and getting to heaven. In time, we begin to realize that God has built a watchtower inside us—His new vineyard – and filled it with the Holy Spirit. And suddenly, that sentry in the watchtower is sounding the alarm all the time, every little bit…And you notice that God has cut out a wine-press in you as well…He’s expecting some choice vintage from his new vineyard…but, as you look on your life, you notice rows and rows of wild vines, bitter grapes…weeds… When you come to that point of realization…When you come to know that need in your life for the full work of Grace, then you’re heart is ready to be sanctified fully. Now, you are prepared to be fully cleansed, not just forgiven, but, as the scripture says, cleansed from all unrighteousness.
Galatians 5: 22 -26
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature [notice it says "crucified" the sinful nature—not suppressed –not beaten back daily—not appeased or white-washed or covered up, but put to death—crucified. It is ruined, destroyed, no more] [They] have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking, and envying each other."
The power of Grace through the work of the Holy Spirit pulls up the wild grape vines of that sin nature by the root and tosses it aside where it shrivels up and dies in the light of the Son—the Son of God.
And now you’re ready to bear good fruit—the most excellent grapes in the world!
But then, there is the ever present danger of bad seeds being introduced to good soil.
For the Christian, those look-alike weeds can creep in. That is why it is important to listen the Holy Spirit standing sentry in the watchtower….
Phillipians 4:7-8:
7. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
8. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.
We must be on guard. We must be careful what influences we subject ourselves to. It is not a call to run and hide from the world or to shut the world out. But, the church has become lax in how it guards itself from the immorality and evil influences of the world. Things that ought to make us blush don’t even raise our eyebrows anymore. Things we ought to be ashamed of seem innocent and normative. When we soak up so much acid rain of worldliness, we can’t help but produce fruit of the world. When we allow the seeds of worldliness to be sown in God’s vineyard, we get wild grapes. You can’t submit yourself unthinkingly to the messages of the world without it affecting you. In time, it penetrates to your very way of thinking. Like a hypnotist, the world adds wicked suggestion, to selfish thought, to self-indulgent philosophy until finally you are a sounding board for things that are Anti-Christ instead of a being a bold witness for Jesus. As the proverb says, "As a man thinketh, so is he."
We must constantly be on guard for the weeds that look like good grapes.
Some peddlers will try to sell you Permissiveness or Tolerance, calling it love. But true love is tough. True love requires accountability. True love hurts if hurting means cutting open the wound and sucking the poison out. True love does not allow sin to continue to avoid confrontation or to safeguard a reputation. True love is love like God coming to earth as a man; serving His servants, allowing them to slander Him, spit on Him, punish Him and put Him to death just so He could forgive them and walk with them forever again in Paradise.
True love produces a sweet fruit of the Spirit. Watch out for look-alikes in your vineyard. Be on the look out for sin that comes from wild grape vines introduced to God’s beautiful vineyard. They look like grapes, smell like grapes, but in the end, they are hard and full of bitterness.
Look again. Look with honesty into your heart. What grows in your garden? What more could He do than He has already done? I hope you see the importance of the question. Do not take it lightly. For God will not continue to let His vineyard grow wild.
Verse:
4. What more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad?
5. Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled.
6. I will make it a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it."
God has said to His people Israel, "You thought that because you were my chosen people, you could live anyway you wanted; ignore me and my commands, worship other gods, hate each other, refuse to forgive one another, take advantage of the innocent, ignore the suffering…and I would always protect you and preserve you. But I’ve got news for you, You were my vineyard –made from the choicest vines – but you only yielded bitter, wild fruit. So I’m tearing down the hedge that protected you. The stones of the wall that surrounded you are going to be torn down and strewn over the same field that I dug up and cleared all that time ago…
I’m not going to waste my time pruning or weeding, and I’ll dry up the shower of blessings you used to get."
You would think that Little Sister - The Church…would learn something from Israel’s punishment. But, I suppose, like all younger siblings, being the baby of the family makes you feel privileged or somehow extra-special. Above the Law.
I hear people in the Church today, who sound a lot like Israel…
…There is a message in this Old Testament passage for the New Testament Church today, specifically, for today’s believer.
God will not strive with a man forever. What more could He have done for His vineyard? What more can He do for the man or woman under Grace today? Didn’t he build the watchtower? Aren’t we given the Spirit that leads us into all truth? Didn’t he plant a hedge for protection and take out the stones to build up the wall of Grace? Didn’t He choose the best location, the choicest vines, work the soil…? He even cut out a wine-press in expectation of a superior crop that would produce a fine, holy vintage.
"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of an angry God." That’s not an Old Testament scripture Church, it’s a New Testament one. Surrounded by passages of love and grace that lull us into spiritual indifference, God is still a God of judgment – A God of justice – Frankly, we would do well to remember simply that He Is God. He is a God that expects obedience. He is a God that requires Holiness of His people. And if you’re grapes are sour, if you’re weeds are wild don’t be surprised when God’s wrecking crew shows up to trample down that Hedge of Mercy, that wall of Grace.
And if it applies to one believer, it applies to the body of Christ. Look around Church. Be painfully honest. Is this fellowship of believers all that God intended His vineyard to be? Are we thriving in the Spirit? Are we growing in Grace? Does our reputation as a congregation sound anything at all like the Fruit of the Spirit? Have we been deceived by look-alikes…weeds in disguise…Do we just look like a healthy church, or are we a healthy church? Do we just look like a beautiful vineyard of the Lord, but really just full of wild grapes that look like grapes, smell like grapes but are really hard and full of bitterness?
Verse
7. The vineyard of the LORD Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of his delight. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.
How do we respond to our brothers and sisters in Christ? Do we shut our ears and eyes to the needs of those who sit in the pew behind or in front of us? I don’t just mean food and water. I mean the sounds of discord that ought to tell us one of our families are falling apart … The regular absence of one of our spiritual family from the fellowship on Sunday that should scream to us that some member of the body of Christ no longer feels their worth…no longer sees value or worth in what they bring into the fullness of the Church of God…The resignation of gifted, spirit-filled people that should make us stand up and question how we have failed to minister back to those who serve and minister to us…. It ought to drive us to our knees at home, at the office, and especially to that altar every Sunday – I don’t care what the Bulletin says!
Church it’s time to clear out the weeds. Let’s make a pile at this altar this morning and burn up all the wild grapes that are choking God’s vineyard. We are the garden of His delight! And He looks for Justice, but He watches as the church, time and again, shoots it’s wounded. He looks for righteousness, but He hears cries of distress that go unanswered…He hears spiritual flatlines and sees no one moving to shock the heart of the church and its believers back into rhythm.
Honesty. It is a mile marker on the road to repentance. How honest will you be this morning, in the presence of God, gathered in His house?
Listen to the words of one honest, God-fearing, God-seeking man who is clearing out the weeds and thorns of the vineyard God planted in his heart:
"I am the lay pastor of a small, not -growing church. I am not ordained. I am not seminary trained. I was asked to leave both Bible Colleges I attended. I am divorced and remarried. On any given day, I am capable of being a jerk with my wife and family. I am terminally insecure, which causes me to compensate with bouts of arrogance. At times, people irritate me, and I hide from them. I am impulsive, which causes me to say things I shouldn’t and make promises I cannot keep. I am inconsistent. My walk with Christ is a stuttering, stumbling, bumbling attempt to follow Him. I have been a Christian 45 years. I am familiar with the vocabulary of faith, and I am often asked to give advice about matters of faith. But I am still a mess. I am 56 years old and still a struggling, flawed, clumsy, unstable, follower of Jesus. A bono fide failure. That bothers a lot of people. Over the years they have expressed their displeasure with my failings. Some have abandoned me, writing me out of the Kingdom. But not Jesus. He refuses to give up. You see, Jesus can’t stay away from people who fail…"
It’s ok to fail. But it’s not ok to remain in that failure. There is always the hope we have in Jesus. There is always the fullness of Grace. We spend too much time trying to redeem our failures. We all make mistakes. But we don’t have to let the failures…or the hurts…or the wrongs…the thorns, the thistles…the wild grapes destroy us like they did in the story of the Vineyard. We can let our failures pin us down and trample us, or we can learn from them…grow from them….When you identify a weed in the Garden of God’s delight - what do you do with it? Do you call on the power of the Holy Spirit to help you uproot it? Do you pray for power to forgive the unforgivable? Do you pray for courage to encourage? Do you pray for selfishness to be transformed into selflessness?
"1. I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.
He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a wine-press as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes… How does your song end? The altars are open—Let’s do some gardening this morning…
