DATE: 4th October, 2020
THEME: PRODUCING FRUITS
SCRIPTURE READINGS
Isaiah 5:1-7
Philippians 3:4-14
Matthew 21:33-46
Psalter: Psalm 80:7-15
INTRODUCTION
Not getting the right results after cultivation, can be very discouraging and frustrating. We are a CULTIVATING PEOPLE. We Cultivate young minds in education, by our own study… INVESTING, LABOURING, to produce something that is desired for the community.
What is it to work, to cultivate on a more profound level, not in mere snippets or portions of a life, but giving all of who you are to something, and it ends up FRUITLESS, or worst still producing the opposite of what is healthy and good?
It is heartbreaking and life altering. That is just what the opening indictments of Isaiah have proven – and here it is revealed in a song.
BACKGROUND
In Isaiah 5 God is the vineyard owner and the children of Israel and men of Judah are the garden of His delight. God has cared for them through the centuries, from Egypt to the Promised land. EVERYTHING WAS DONE WITH GREAT CARE AND LOVE.
In Isaiah, God was the CARETAKER of this vineyard. Despite careful attention from the vinedresser (cf. Isaiah 5:4), the vineyard produced only “wild grapes.” The vineyard’s failure to produce better fruit forced the owner to remove his attentiveness (cf. Isaiah 5:5-6).
NOTHING WAS SPARED TO MAKE IT FRUITFUL. As many vineyards were planted in rocky and hilly soil, the exertion to gather up the stones and to terrace the vineyard with them demonstrated how hard God had worked with Israel. The Isaiah passage tells us that after God had done the toil of establishing the vineyard, He hired labourers to care for his vineyard. The labors were the teachers of the faith.
BODY
A. WHAT DOES FRUITFULNESS MEAN?
In Scripture, fruit is a metaphor used to describe the outward demonstration of one’s inward disposition. This Describes the produce of our lives, something useful and right in response to what God does. And for our purpose I am using the word fruitfulness to describe the production of good fruit, usable, healthy. The positive things expected after cultivation.
“FRUIT IS THE DIRECT RESULT OF WHATEVER CONTROLS OUR HEARTS. An internal reality that has external effects, translates into action.
“The question is, “Are we bearing the sweet fruit consistent with the beauty of grace, and are we yielding an abundant harvest that commensurate with the abundant grace God has invested in us?” For all the abundance of God’s grace, it is amazing how little fruit is being produced. We are well watered, and well fed. We are intended for fruitfulness.
B. THE SONG IS ABOUT THE LOVE OF GOD
The landowner in this parable is a reference to GOD, the vineyard to ISRAEL, the tenants to the JEWS and their RELIGIOUS LEADERS, the landowner’s servants to the PROPHETS, the son to JESUS CHRIST and the other tenants to the GENTILES. The Jews and their religious leaders were unfaithful to God and refused to listen to God’s faithful prophets who proclaimed the Word of God.
God chose Israel to point the world to God. They were to demonstrate the nature and character of God by producing the fruits of the Kingdom, the fruit of LOVE, HOLINESS, JUSTICE and RIGHTEOUSNESS. Israel, instead of good grapes, bore sour grapes.
They produced the fruit of hate, injustice, oppression and idolatry because they did things their way instead of God’s way.
Today the Church has been chosen to point the world to God but are they doing things their way or God’s Way’. Is the Church bearing the right fruit?
C. GOD’S CULTIVATION REJECTED
“Let me sing… my love song concerning the vineyard…”
Here is poetry, prophetic singing, telling the story of God’s relationship to those he claimed as his own people. Isaiah sings of the labor, the love, the grace extended to the “Vineyard” to Judah this nation set apart for God.
Setting them in a good place, a fertile hill. Removing the stones and planting choice vine.
A melodic picture of how God has claimed them as a people. How he has rescued them, protected them and given them a place of flourishing, a land. This is God gracing his people. His care, provision, and preference on them. And he looked for fruitfulness, but it yielded wild grapes… sour, stinking grapes. Worthless fruit, which is no fruit at all.
The vineyard that was God’s delight, his pleasant planting, was ruined by fruitlessness.
He looked for justice and saw bloodshed, for righteousness and instead an outcry of rage. It was Israel missing the point…God made it abundantly clear through generations of prophets. And still a rejection of the cultivation. Pride where humility was meant, greed where generosity was desired, immorality where faithfulness was supposed to be.
“God delighted in them, but they did not delight in him. And when delight dies, despising takes over, and judgment descends.” Ortlund
D. THE REJECTION OF GOD’S LOVE
The desire to be in control of our own lives is the main reason behind the rejection of God’s love. The rejection of God’s love however brings us under the control of the world and the flesh.
This is the worst thing that can ever happen to anyone. It leads to a mindset that is contrary to the Word of God and leads to unrighteous acts that show no regard for God.
Paul before his conversion was ruled by this mindset. In spite of all his religious knowledge and training he persecuted and killed the followers of Christ. When Christ appeared to him on the road to Damascus he came under the control of Christ with a new mindset that made him behave and act in accordance with the Word of God.
A MINDSET THAT AGREES WITH THE WORD OF GOD LEADS TO A LIFE OF LOVE AND RIGHTEOUSNESS. Paul’s new life reflected the mindset of Christ. He “counted everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus as Lord”. (Phil.3:8) With the mindset of Christ he finally understood that his righteousness could never come from obeying the Law but only by the grace of God.
E) CULTIVATION ACTIVATED
The vineyard has been given to new tenants. The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. The hope for Judah, the hope for us is JESUS.
Jesus, the true vine. His tending of the vineyard produces the fruit and we are made part of it. Abiding in Jesus is how we bear fruit!
“Being a fruitful Christian is not accomplished by checking off a “to do” list but by having our essential being and character CHANGED, RENEWED, and PROGRESSIVELY CONFORMED TO THE IMAGE AND LIKENESS OF CHRIST.
To be fruitful means to follow Christ. To love what He loves. To do what He commands from a loving motive and with a joyful spirit.”
Jesus is the faithful remnant of Israel—the true Vine and fruitful Vineyard. By the Spirit’s presence in our lives, we have entered into an organic union with him—a union of branches to Vine.
Our response is to “simply abide—to dwell, to marinate, to go “deeper still” into Jesus. For apart from Jesus, we can do nothing and will bear no fruit.” “UNITED TO HIM AND CLEANSED IN HIM, WE BEAR FRUIT.”
APPLICATION
How do we respond to the song of the vineyard, or better yet the song of the true vine?
▪SING BACK- Believe in him, that his life, death, and resurrection were for you. Keep believing it. Delight in Christ as he delights in you. Don’t miss his grace, and be passionate about finding sources, reminders of this grace. Stay there in his grace. Remain right there in his arms of care, provision, purpose, and pruning.
▪YIELD TO JESUS – Submit to God’s pruning, surrender the things that have stopped producing fruit and trust his process. Be obedient to the way of Jesus, His way of love. Know that it is Christ bearing fruit in you, yield to him and run with it. Live it out in community. Be part of the new vineyard, the new family.
CONCLUSION
Precious One! Our calling is to produce fruits that are healthy and have the same nature as the original plant. This is our calling as Disciples. Enjoy the service. Stay BLESSED.
PREPARED BY
VERY REV DR. SAMUEL DUA DODD
CALVARY METHODIST CHURCH
ADABRAKA-ACCRA
