Sermon #70 Series: Isaiah

Title: The Keeper Of the Vineyard

Text: Isaiah 27:2-3

Subject: God’s Care Of His Church

Date: Tuesday Evening - February 5, 1991

Tape #

Introduction:

In our text the church of God is compared to a vineyard, as it frequently is throughout the Scriptures. It is a vineyard of God’s planting, a vineyard of God’s tending, a vineyard of God’s care - (Ps. 80:8-15; Isa. 5:1, 2, 7). In Matthew 20:1-16, the Lord Jesus gave us a parable in which he describes his church as a vineyard into which the Lord God sends his laborers. And in John 15 he tells us that he is the vine of which you and I are the branches.

Here it is called “a vineyard of red wine,” because the red grape was the best grown grape in Palestine. And God’s church to him is the best of the best, the most excellent of all the earth. He has made it so. His delight is in her. I have no doubt that the church is called “a vineyard of red wine” because it is the fruit of Christ’s blood, symbolized to us in the red wine of the communion cup. All the plants of this vineyard spring from and live in, and bear fruit from one Vine, the Lord Jesus Christ. And the “red wine” represents the fruit of the believer’s trials. As the wine is squeezed from the grape in the wine-press, so the believer brings forth fruit into God as he is pressed and squeezed by the well-ordered afflictions of Divine providence.

1. A vineyard is a piece of ground chosen and separated from the rest of a man’s property - So the church is chosen and separated from the rest of the world to be God’s vineyard.

2. A vineyard is fenced in to keep out the wild animals that would destroy it - Isaiah tells us, of this vineyard of God’s, that “He fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it” (5:2).

3. A vineyard is deliberately planted - It does not spring up by nature - And the church of God is deliberately planted by God. This vine is not the product of nature.

4. And a vineyard requires constant care - It must be pruned. Stones must be gathered out of it. It must be watered with care. And it must be constantly guarded. In our text, the Lord God declares that this is his work - “I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.”

Tonight, I want to talk to you for a few minutes about The Keeper Of the Vineyard. Without question, the whole church and kingdom of God is his vineyard. But every local assembly of his saints is also his vineyard. Grace Baptist Church of Danville is the vineyard of God. He chose us, separated us, planted us and fenced us. We are his vineyard. And all that is promised to the church as a whole extends to and is true of every individual believer. The Lord God who keeps the whole vineyard keeps every individual vine. His care extends even to the small branches and to every leaf. So the promise of our text, while it includes the whole vineyard, the whole church of God, extends to every vine of our Father’s planted, every believer, every member of the body of Christ. The Lord God is the keeper of his vineyard. And we are his vineyard! He says, “I the Lord do keep it, I will water it every moment: lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day.”

Upon my leaf, when parched with heat,

Refreshing dew shall drop;

The plant which Thy right hand hath set,

Shall ne’er be rooted up.

Each moment watered by Thy care,

And fenced with power divine,

Fruit to eternal life shall bear

The feeblest branch of thine -

Augustus Toplady.

Proposition: The vine which God has planted God will keep.

Division: The text will divide itself into four parts. This is what God promised to his church and to every member of it.

1. “I the Lord do keep it.”

2. I will water it every moment.”

3. “Lest any hurt it.”

4. “I will keep it night and day.”

I. “I THE LORD DO KEEP IT.”

This is what God promised to his vineyard, to his whole church, to this local assembly, and to everyone of us who are vines of his planting. We are kept, tended, protected and guarded by God himself - (Ps. 91:1-15). We are kept by the power of God. The Lord himself is our Keeper. And he neither slumbers nor sleeps.

Now, let me see if I can handle this subject in a practical way, that will benefit our hearts.

A. I know that I need keeping!

I trust that I am one of God’s children, chosen by grace, redeemed by the blood of Christ and called by the Holy Spirit. But I know that I need keeping. My foes are many. And like a tender vine, I have no strength, or ability to prevent them from destroying me. What can a vine do? Nothing! If I am kept, God must keep me. Like a vine planted in the midst of the field, we are exposed to all sorts of perils and dangers. We need keeping.

1. Satan, the arch enemy of our souls, wants with all his power to uproot the vine God has planted.

If he had his way, you and I would not possess a grain of grace, or a spark of faith. He is a roaring lion, ever seeking to devour us (I Pet. 5:8; Rev. 12:13). He desires not only to sift us as wheat, but to burn us as chaff.

· Well did our Savior teach us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” from the evil one! (Matt. 6:13).

· If we really knew satan’s power and his malice toward us, we would never cease to give thanks to know that Christ is praying that we might be kept from the evil one (John 17:15).

How we need keeping. If we had no other adversary than the devil, we could not stand even for a moment, but by God’s keeping. But we do have other adversaries!

2. A vine planted in the wilderness is also exposed to the wild boar, that would dig it up and devour its roots - The wild boar I am talking about is unbelief!

I have often said, “God’s people ought never to doubt.” And that is true. We should not doubt. But I also know that we do. I delight to sing,

“When I can read my title clear

To mansions in the sky,

I’ll bid farewell to every fear,

And wipe my weeping eye.”

But there are many times when I cannot read my title clear! I do not doubt my Lord. But I often doubt my interest in him! Like Thomas, I sometimes will not believe because I cannot see. Like Peter, I often take my eyes off my Savior and start looking at the sea around me. Were it not for God who keeps his vineyard, the wild boar of unbelief would destroy this vine.

3. There are many small insects, unseen pests, and quiet worms that can as easily destroy a vine as the wild boar or the raging lion.

In fact, it is far easier to detect the large dangers than the small ones. So the small ones can be far more dangerous.

· The aphid of indifference!

· The canker-worm of pride!

· The caterpillar of conceit!

· The grub-worm of self-sufficiency!

Nothing will more quickly destroy one vine or an entire vineyard than these subterraneous devils that dwells in everyone of us by nature! And they would destroy us, but for one thing. God says, “I the Lord do keep it!”

4. Besides these things, the vine of God’s planting is often attacked by nibbling little foxes, who do their work in the secrecy of darkness - (Song 2:15).

· False Doctrine is a subtle, sneaky little fox.

· Neglect of God’s Ordinances is a subtle little fox.

· Gossip is a sneaky little fox.

· A Contentious, Critical Spirit is a sneaky little fox.

God’s vines put forth tender grapes, which these little foxes would devour (Gal. 5:22-23). But, blessed by God, he will not allow these little foxes to have their way. He says, “I will keep it night and day!”

5. Then there are those foul blackbirds that always arrive in droves, just as the grapes are ripening on the vine.

· Worldliness - Worldliness is materialism, the love of this world.

· Selfishness.

· Ambition.

· Self-satisfaction.

When we begin to say to ourselves, “well done,” you can mark it down that it is always ill done! Let us not be numbered with those whom Habakkuk describes, who “sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag” (1:16).

Never was there a vine that needed keeping like this vine does. I must be kept. We must be kept. Otherwise, this vine will soon be destroyed!

B. And we cannot keep ourselves.

Thank God, our text does not say, “I the Lord have planted it, now I will leave it to grow, and flourish, and bring forth fruit, and keep itself. I know that we must be watchful. But our watchfulness of ourselves is the result of God’s watchfulness of us!

The fact is, in spiritual matters, you and I are our own worst enemies. Augustine used to pray, “Lord, save me from that evil man, myself!” We might quickly destroy ourselves. But not one of us can save ourselves, or keep ourselves! There is not a word of truth in Wesley’s hymn -

A charge to keep I have, a God to glorify,

A never dying soul to save, and fit it for the sky.

Only God can save my soul and fit it for the sky. And he has done it in Christ (Col. 2:10; 1:12).

Note: We are never so weak as when we think we are strong. We are never so poor as when we think we are rich - Let us learn to live in Christ, having nothing and yet possessing all things. He is our Strength and our Salvation.

Read the next line…

II. “I the Lord do keep it; I WIL WATER IT EVERY MOMENT.”

Watering is the essential part of the gardener’s business. The corn and beans will not bear fruit without water. The flowers cannot be kept in bloom without watering.

A. As this vine must be kept by God, it must be watered by him as well.

1. There is not a single grace that we possess that can live without God’s watering.

· His Word - (Eph. 5:26; I John 5:8).

· His Spirit.

2. The soil in which this vine is planted is very dry.

Tell me, you who are born of God, have you ever found anything in this world that was beneficial to your soul? You may think, “Well if I could just change my position, I would be better off.” It is not so. When you change your place, you only move from one set of troubles to another set of troubles.

Mr. Spurgeon said, “The God who gave you your present set of trials knew that they were the best for you. If all the crosses in the world could be laid in a heap, and I were told to take my pick of them, I would choose those that I have now, for I know what they are, and God fits my back to them; but I do not know what the others are, and I have no proof that I could bear them. You had better not take my troubles, for they might crush you, while I can bear them through the divine grace that is given to me; but if I had yours, they might crush me, while you can patiently endure them through God’s grace.” But there is nothing in this world that will help you. We need to draw the life-giving water from God alone.

3. Frequently, even those things that are given to help us, yield no water to us.

*There is no grace in the means of grace unless God gives grace!

B. The beauty of this promise is in the last two words - “I WILL WATER IT EVERY MOMENT.”

Illus: The Believer compared to a gas-light!

God waters his vineyard every moment. Sometimes he floods it. But he waters it every moment.

Note: You and I need the ordinances of public worship. But we cannot survive on that alone. We need the constant watering of grace.

It was said of Isaac Ambrose, that he ate, and drank, and slept Jesus Christ. How I wish that were true of me! As we are commanded to “pray without ceasing,” God promises to water us with his grace without ceasing - *Grant, oh my God, that I may experience that promise - Let my heart always be wrapped up in, baptized in, and draw life from Christ - Let him ever be in my heart and on my heart - Let me have my life full of Christ, watered every moment!

Illus: Shelby’s Dad and His Puzzle.

Mary the Servant Girl.

When I get dressed, I pray that I may be robed in the righteousness of Christ - When I light the fire…When I set the table…When I wash the dishes…When I sweep the floor…When I go to bed.

III. “I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment: LEST ANY HURT IT.”

Nothing shall hurt God’s vine (Pro. 12:21). No weapon that is formed against it shall prosper!

IV. “I the Lord do keep it; I will water it every moment; lest any hurt it, I WILL KEEP IT NIGHT AND DAY.”

In the night of adversity and in the day of prosperity. In the night of trouble and in the day of peace. In the night of sorrow and in the day of rejoicing. In the night of temptation and in the day of deliverance. In the night of indifference and in the day of devotion. Blessed be his name - “He that keepeth Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps!”