“The vineyard of the Lord Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of His delight.” Isaiah 5:7
In the context of this verse, God is comparing Israel and Judah to a vineyard (this is also meant to be applicable to all believers). For a vineyard to bear fruit, the gardener must take incredible daily care of the vines. In this chapter, God is asking the Jews why they are not bearing “good” fruit after all the pain-stacking care He took of them.
God pours out His care, provision, love, protection, forgiveness, healing, and power upon us. Thus, He asks us the same question: What is the fruit in our lives? Do we have “good grapes” or “bad grapes?” “Have I not done all that I could to care for you” (Isaiah 5:4)? He calls us the garden of His delight. He truly wants us to understand that He is not only a Perfect Father pouring out His love to His child; but also a masterful gardener watching over His vineyard. If we understand that our Gardener is lovingly, tenderly, and carefully tending to us, we will want to follow Him closely and bear righteous fruit.
But if we believe the lies that we are failures, unforgiven, shameful, worthless, unloved, or rejected, then we will display ungodly behaviors (“bad fruit”). We produce “bad fruit” when we walk in lies related to the character of God, our relationship with Him, and our own identity.
We invite you to take an inventory of your “produce” today, dear sister. Ask the Holy Spirit to lead you into the facets of your heart and search out if there are any areas where you are trying to have control or keep from Him. You may think that every area is fully surrendered, but just as the psalmist does in Psalm 139:23-24, it is important that we often ask the Spirit to search out what’s within our hearts. The truth is that our hearts of deceptive and wicked (Jeremiah 17:9) and only God Himself can know fully what lays within and expose any areas in which we need to confess, repent, and receive forgiveness and transformation, so that God might bear good fruits in us for our good and His glory.
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