The Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7)

The owner comes looking for fruit in the Song of the Vineyard in Isaiah 5:1-7. He didn't send servants too early when the tenants were not ready. God is not expecting us to produce fruit that we are not ready to produce yet. But because of all God has done for his vineyard, whether Israel in the Old Testament or the church in the New Testament, he still expects fruit.

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00:00 The Song of the Vineyard
06:50 Lesson One: We shouldn’t take God’s grace for granted.
16:02 Lesson Two: We should examine our fruit.
22:51 Lesson Three: God only needs to remove his protection to discipline us.
38:52 Lesson Four: God expects fruit.

God had a vineyard that produced the wrong kind of fruit, and it is described in the Song of the Vineyard in Isaiah 5:1-7:

Isaiah 5:1 Let me sing for my beloved my love song concerning his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. 2a He dug it and cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; he built a watchtower in the midst of it, and hewed out a wine vat in it;

Isaiah speaks in the first person and refers to God as “My beloved.” Notice the wonderful advantages the vineyard enjoyed:

It belonged to a loving person: my beloved.
It was planted in a great place: a very fruitful hill.
The ground was carefully prepared: dug and cleared it of stones.
Good plants were used to get it started: choice vines.
It was protected: a watchtower [was] in the midst of it.
Provision was made for the fruit to be processed: a wine vat [was] in it.

My dad would’ve been proud!

1 Corinthians 10:11 These things [in the Old Testament] happened to [Israel] as an example [for us, and], they were written down for our instruction.

So, this account with Israel is an example for us. It’s not a question of whether we should learn from it. It’s a question of what we should learn from it. And there’s much we should learn from it!

Don't Take God’s Grace for Granted

I was challenged by this passage because God showed great care and concern for his vineyard or Israel, and he has shown great care and concern for me. The vineyard enjoyed many wonderful advantages, and I have enjoyed many wonderful advantages.

Because of all this, if the vineyard did not produce good fruit, it reflects the vineyard and not the ground, the owner, or the work that went into it. Similarly, if I do not produce good fruit, it is a reflection of me and not – let’s say – the ground, the owner, or the work that God has done in my life. F.B. Meyer wrote, “It will be seen then…that every soul of man had the chance of becoming a fruitful vineyard; and if it became the reverse, it was due to no failure in either the wisdom or grace of God.”

I was conversing with Rick DeVos, and he shared something that stuck with me and caused me to appreciate God’s grace in my life even more. He was reflecting on his salvation and how blessed he was to be born where and when he was: in the United States, where the gospel is so prevalent, and during this time when there are so many Christian resources available to us. It made me think that I have taken this for granted because so many people today haven’t heard the gospel and don’t even have Bibles available to them.

I think about my conversion and how I was surrounded by Christians, like Elwyn Ordway, at the school where I was teaching. They invited me to their church when my brother passed away. Then, the pastor and his family spiritually adopted me as a son in the faith, like Paul did with Timothy. I look back over every season of my Christian life, and one of God’s other graces is he has always surrounded me with godly men I could look up to and who invested in me.

God's Grace in My Life

Ed Simmons was the pastor of the church I was saved in, and Barry Branaman was the father of some girls I was good friends with. Few people know these names, and both passed away at young ages, but they spent lots of time investing in me, so I will always be very grateful to them. I wish they would have lived long enough to see me become a pastor and hopefully recognize the fruit of their investment. The verse that comes to mind as I...

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