PENTECOST 18 – October 8, 2017 – Isaiah 5:1-7 “FRUIT OF THE KINGDOM”

Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Old Testament Lesson just read, from Isaiah 5. We begin with prayer.

Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:

One could make a very compelling and powerful argument that the world is filled with all kinds of good works and good things being done by human beings. Just read about all the good work being done by disaster responders in Houston, Florida, and now Puerto Rico.
One could also cite a myriad of good things that human beings are involved in – medicine, economic development, technological advancement, production of food and other goods, education. The list could go on and on!
Many people are tempted to argue that everything is basically going well and that no one, including God, should be all that concerned about basic human nature and how well we are doing.
However, such an argument would have to ignore or downplay all of the difficulties and evils that human beings also bring into the world. Likewise, one would have to discount the fact that most of this good is being done for a wage, a living, and usually much more, a very good living.
It is rather remarkable that evil continues to make the news – as if this is shocking and fascinating, while so much good is simply taken for granted. This is actually the way that things should be – if we consider God’s good and loving will in creating the earth and human beings.
Unfortunately, there is a huge amount of evil in the world and it is apparently intractable; and this is the problem with sin, and the way in which it has infected human nature, that of every human being.
Whereas good should flow profusely and naturally and uniformly from every human being – this is what God created and intended for us, the reality is that the semblance of good usually has to be bribed from us by promise of reward and evil has to be impeded in us by threat of punishment.
This is the point that God makes in our text, and also the point that Jesus makes in His parable. In addition, Jesus’ parable points out that even when God makes provision to address this problem in mankind the reaction is rejection and evil, even violent evil. After all, the gift of “redemption” and “salvation” through God’s gracious mercy and forgiveness, challenges and destroys our argument that we are doing good enough as is and really need no help, and certainly not “saving.”
So this is the challenge we have in considering the logic of our text, and of all of Scripture, and also of the good news of God’s salvation in Christ Jesus. But first we should understand that:

I. God Created Us And This World – Planted Us And Blessed Us Abundantly – So That We Would Produce Good Fruits Of Genuine And Blessed Love

Text: “My beloved had a vineyard on a very fertile hill. 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; and He looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes. . . . The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are His pleasant planting.”

Statement: This observation of God pertains not simply to “the world” in general, but particularly to God’s chosen people. The people of Israel – in Old Testament times – were the “choice vines” planted in a fertile place, blessed with the assurance of God’s redemption. Today, the warning is also addressed particularly to His people in the world, the church. We are the choice vines today, blessed with the knowledge of His salvation in Christ Jesus.

Application: We know how the Old Testament people of God squandered the blessings of His vineyard. We know how they rejected the gift of God’s Son. We also know that there have been times when the church has been overcome by sin – yielding the “wild grapes” of greed, the desire for power, the rebellion of “chrading” a righteousness of its own and rejecting God’s grace, or even “cheapening” God’s grace by using it as a pretext to live in immorality.

In our own lives these same temptations and dynamics live themselves out, and if we are to survive and ultimately thrive in bearing “FRUIT OF THE KINGDOM” [which is what God is looking for!], then we must persist in repentance, and cling to God’s gracious love. This is the path – having Christ’s righteousness through faith. This is the “upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” For:

II. The Fruit Of The Kingdom Must Flow From God’s Love Or It Is Really Bad Fruit, Quite Bad Fruit

A. For Some Who Ignore Of God’s Love The Fruit Is Outcry And Bloodshed

Text: “He looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, an outcry!”

B. For Others Who Reject God’s Love, The Bad Fruit Is The Hypocrisy Of Pharisaic Righteousness – Which Is Worthless Rubbish

Epistle: “I was circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness, under the law blameless. But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish.”

Statement: You can see the effects of ignorance of God’s love. Certainly, Pharisaic “righteousness” appears better than “bloodshed and outcry.” But it is just as dark and sinister – and you know what it did to Jesus! It is no less capable of horrific harm and violence today. And it still occurs among people who pride themselves on how “good” they are, as they reject and abuse those they deem “less and beneath” them.

Application: For some within the church today – where God seeks good fruit – the temptations are to succumb to the evils and violence of our day – sexual sin, divorce, abortion, selfishness, self-indulgence, greed, and hypocrisy. For others within the church today, the temptations are to self-righteousness, to farcical “piety,” to elevating themselves above the need for God’s gracious forgiveness and mercy. Regardless, God sees and knows such fruit for what it is!

So again, let us repent – whether our sins are those of wantonness and freedom from good, or whether our sins are those of establishing our own goodness and righteousness. Let us repent and return to Jesus, the Beloved of God, the Son of God, our dear Savior and Lord. For it is certain that:

III. God Wants All Of Us To Rejoice In His Salvation And To Trust The Gift Of His Righteousness, As The Apostle Paul Did, For Only Such Believers Produce The Fruit Of The Kingdom

Epistle: “I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith – that I may know Him and the power of the resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death. . . . Not that I have already obtain this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me His own.” . . . I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

Statement: We must hear clearly the Word of Jesus: “I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits.” This Word was spoken to “the chief priests and the Pharisees” – to the churchly people! We are “churchly people” today – but more importantly, God wants us to be people of the kingdom – who neither squander away their lives in selfish, sinful and worldly pleasures, NOR who reject and waste His gracious love and forgiveness in establishing their own “goodness” and righteousness based in the law.

Application: So let us repent and return to God Who loves us dearly, and who has provided all that we need to produce “choice” fruit – true and genuine love and goodness that is selfless, sacrificial, and utterly humble. In repentance and faith in His love, His gift of forgiveness, cleansing, and righteousness in Christ, we will learn to truly love – as His love produces its natural fruit within us.

Conclusion: Our sinful nature remains – which wants to stake claim to some innate goodness, and argue against our need for God’s forgiveness and salvation. Let us beware. Likewise, our sinful nature remains – which craves self-indulgence, and license to continue in our poor miserable sinning.

In repentance and faith, by the power of Christ’s resurrection, God will bring forth from us the “FRUIT OF THE KINGDOM.” God grant it to each of us, Amen.