The Vineyard Song Part 2

 

Isa 5:3 "And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge, please, between Me and My vineyard.  4 What more could have been done to My vineyard That I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, Did it bring forth wild grapes?

Welcome to the courtroom of God! He is the Judge in this case and the defendants are the caretakers of His church (the vineyard)  The Judge, in His opening remarks, begs for the caretakers to come up with some shred of evidence to excuse the lack of fruit from His vineyard. Name something more He could’ve done to produce a tasty, bountiful crop.

The defendants are dumbfounded. They have no answer. God had given them the Torah, (the Law) the prophets, miraculous deliverance from their enemies, grace, mercy, truth, forbearance, material blessings, a land of milk and honey, He has even given them time to repent! He is as the Psalmist wrote in Ps 103:8-13, “The LORD is merciful and gracious, Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy. 9 He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. 10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. 11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; 12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. 13 As a father pities his children, So the LORD pities those who fear Him.

If these people in the days of Isaiah are without excuse, what about us. What more could’ve God done for us? He gave us His only begotten Son to die on the cross for our sins, and then sent us the Holy Spirit to equip us to bear fruit in His vineyard.

God pleads with us just as HE pled with His Old Testament church! Please judge between God and His vineyard. He has given us all we need, but we must ask ourselves, “Where’s the fruit?”