PENTECOST
20
October
21-23, 2017
Pastor
Timothy J. Spaude
Text:
Isaiah 5:1-7
“LISTEN TO A SAD SONG!”
1.
Old
Testament Israel made it that way.
2.
It
didn’t have to be that way.
3.
We
can change the tune!
Isaiah 5:1-7
(NIV 1984) “I will sing for
the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a
fertile hillside. 2He dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted
it with the choicest vines. He built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress
as well. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad
fruit. 3“Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge
between me and my vineyard. 4What more could have been done for my
vineyard than I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it
yield only bad? 5Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my
vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I will break
down its wall, and it will be trampled. 6I will make it a wasteland,
neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will
command the clouds not to rain on it.” 7The vineyard of the Lord
Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of his
delight. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but
heard cries of distress.”
Many of those who grew up in Wisconsin
are familiar with the Gordon Lightfoot ballad, “The Wreck of the Edmund
Fitzgerald.” Are you? It’s a sad song with a mournful melody that recounts the
loss at sea of the iron ore freighter the Edmund Fitgerald. Twenty nine men
died in the cold waters of Lake Superior or “gitche gumee” on a fateful night
in November of 1975. It’s one of those songs that I find hard to get out of my
head and my heart. It’s such a sad song. Kind of like the song Isaiah sings in
God’s Word today. It too is a sad song.
Listen again to some of the sad
lyrics. “I will sing for the one I love a
song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. 2He
dug it up and cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He
built a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Isaiah sings a
song for the one he loves. It’s a song to God. It’s a song about a vineyard.
The vineyard owner obviously loves his vineyard. He placed it on a fertile
hillside. He removed all the stones and if you have ever studied the topography
and geology of Israel you know what a mammoth task that would be, so much hard
work. The vines planted were not the leftovers from Menards at the end of the
season sale. He puts in the choicest of vines. He puts a watchtower in it to
watch over it and joyfully put in a winepress anticipating all the grapes that
would be produced by a vineyard that had been given everything with no expenses
spared. So far the song sounds good. But then it turns sad. “Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
but it yielded only bad fruit. 5Now I will tell you what I am going
to do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I
will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. 6I will make it a
wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow
there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it” How sad and
disappointing. The vineyard that received so much love and care yielded only
bad fruit. It would have to be destroyed.
Now I know we are used to parables in
the Bible being told by Jesus but here is one in the Old Testament too. We
don’t have to guess at its meaning. “The
vineyard of the Lord Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are
the garden of his delight. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for
righteousness, but heard cries of distress.” God has Isaiah talking about
Old Testament Israel, the nation, the people. God was expecting Christian
living from them, fruits of faith. He expected to see people that protected the
innocent and punished the guilty, people that cared for each other’s needs. He
was looking for love, gentleness, humility, reverence for God. What he saw was
selfishness, perversion, greed, gluttony and mocking of God. Because of their
rejection of God. They too were rejected. God took away their protection. He
took away the rain of His Word. Those who deserted the Lord became a desert.
It’s a sad song.
It’s even more sad because it could have
been prevented. That’s the definition of a tragedy, a great loss that didn’t
have to happen. In the middle of the song God asks, “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge between me and
my vineyard. 4What more could have been done for my vineyard than I
have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only bad?”
Two questions. First God asks, “What more could I have done?” That has an
obvious answer. Nothing. God graciously gave those people everything they
needed. His word. Prophets to point them to truth. Special protection.
Everything they needed and more. Question two. Why? Why did it yield bad fruit?
This didn’t have to happen. Why did it? Why did those who had been given
everything reject?
Now that’s an important question for the
people gathered here today. Think about it. Could a wreck like that of the
Edmund Fitzgerald happen again? Today radar is so much better, storm prediction
so much better. Anyone who would go out on Lake Superior when the gales of
November come early would be foolish today. So would Christians who give up
their faith in Jesus. Honestly haven’t we been given more by God than Old
Testament Israel? We have the whole Bible. We have the dots connected to Jesus.
We have more history to learn from. Why would we yield bad fruit? Are we taking
God’s word for granted? Are we letting it get crowded out of our lives? I watch
trends. I’m a watchman for you the people of God. It seems that for those
Christians who grew up in the Silent or Mature generation and most of those
called baby boomers weekly worship was and is a given. Only the hospital will
you keep you away. Generation X, mine, as well as Y (millennials) and Z have a
different approach. Once a month, twice a month is good enough. Worship must
fit into my schedule and be convenient for me. Says who? The Lord or sinful
man. Satan’s most successful attacks on the saved do not come through head on
assaults but subtly through apathy. Maybe I’m preaching to the choir. But you
can take this message to your children or your children’s children. When God
does everything for you and your bear no fruit you will be deserted and left to
yourself in the desolate wasteland of Hell. A sad song.
Brothers, sisters, we can change the
tune! The opposite of apathy is caring and we can do that. We are God’s
vineyard today. Look at all He’s done for us. He gave His Son Jesus into death
for us. He has made us his own in Baptism. He puts a hedge around us gathering
us into his church. He gives us pastors as watchtowers to guard and warn. He
puts us in the fertile soil of having his word and sacrament readily available
in print, multiple worship service times, in digital format, literally at our
fingertips every day. He comes every day to us and looks for fruit. We can
respond to God’s grace and write a happy song with a happy tune. Imagine. I
will sing a song for the Lord, that I love. He planted a vineyard called St.
Jacobi and blessed the people there with word and Sacrament, wisdom and
knowledge, a church and school, pastors and teachers. When I looked for good
fruit I found holy reverence. These people love my word. They wouldn’t miss
worship for the world. They are kind to each other and care. They appreciate
how much I have forgiven them and they forgive each other too. They have
adopted my priorities. They pray to me daily. They work together to spread my
word. They have not turned to the false gods of entertainment or sports or
things or sleep. They have hearts only for me. When they sin the feel shame and
they run to me with sorrow and remorse. I forgive them gladly. They go around
with happy hearts because they feel so blessed by me. Husbands and wives work
at showing love for each other. Parents are teaching their children about me.
They have integrity in their workplaces and do their work with me as their
boss. Therefore I will bless and protect them and their children. Though the
rest of their country turn against me these are my delight. I will bring them
safely to me in heaven. That’s a beautiful song, a happy song.
Brothers and
sisters I am certain that if Earnest Michael McSorely was given another chance
he would have kept the Edmund Fitzgerald in port. I am certain that the people
of Judah and Israel now suffering in Hell would have taken the blessing of
God’s words seriously. But you get no second chances when you are dead. But you
do when you are living. This word of God calls us to examine our ways. To
repent of sins that we’ve allowed into our lives, to rejoice that we have
forgiveness in Jesus to dedicate ourselves to faithful use of word and
sacrament and to write for God a happy song with lives that are filled with the
fruit He is looking for. Amen.
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