Is God Disappointed?

I am always afraid to disappoint my friends. Something in me disturbs my spirit when I do not live up to what I have promised or what my friends expect of me. It is even more when it comes to my parents. My father has always worked very hard to provide for my family. As a father today, I can understand his struggles and difficulties. I must have disappointed Him many times. Though he may have been unhappy, even angry, he always continued to have my best interest at heart.

I believe the LORD has the same feelings for us. He is love, and He loves us unconditionally. Unfortunately we disappoint him all the time. At the level of the body of believers (the church), God is very disappointed in those who call themselves Christians today. Why?

It is because we have not produced the fruit that He wants us to produce.

• The fruit of the spirit on the personal level are: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance Gal 5:22

• At the level of the organized body of believers, I believe the church should be a fruitful vineyard, in that it should be a place of discipleship (for believers) and evangelism (reaching out – the Great Commission).

The church today is like the vineyard of Isaiah 5.

Isaiah 5: 1Now will I sing to
my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a
vineyard in a very fruitful hill:

2And 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, and
also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes,
and it brought forth wild grapes.

3And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I
pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

4What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not
done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought
it forth wild grapes?

5And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take
away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall
thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

6And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there
shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain
no rain upon it.

7For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men
of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression;
for righteousness, but behold a cry.

The vineyard today (v.7) is the house of the Lord, the church. It applies to an organized local body or to “denominations” as we have today. There is something that God demands of these vineyards.

(v4) wherefore, when I looked that it should
bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

God’s Disappointment

Many churches today produce wild grapes. “Wild grapevines are often considered a nuisance weed, as they cover other plants with their usually rather aggressive growth” (Wikipedia)*

Is this not a picure of today’s mainline churches that have gone off focus? They have had agressive but untidy growth. Masquerading as Christians at the top, they have diluted the pure doctrines and introduced all kinds of errors into church life. Pluralism and syncretism are the order of the day. In the name of “tolerance”, many mainline churches have strayed from the path that produces good fruit.

In both the areas that matter, the church has emasculated itself of God’s power.

Discipleship has become subservient to social activities. While fellowship activities are good, they cannot replace good discipleship and teaching programs.
Evangelism becomes moot when the church sunbscribes to pluralism. That leads to grave consequences for the lost souls who need to hear the pure gospel.

How does God’s power diminish and disappear in such churches? God removes the hedge of protection:

v5And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my
vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and
break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down

This is a warning to those of us who are in spiritual leadership in our homes (the smallest church group) or the local church. Are we producing good fruit or wild fruit?

God is love, but He is also just. He will give us all the opportunity to turn from ways that disappoint Him and back to the true paths. But we have to respond. At some point, He will take away the protection, and allow all manner of difficulty and destruction to come.

And this happening in all the mainline churches - which were built on the blood and sweat of godly men centuries ago. And it appears that He has removed the protective hedge in the traditional Christian lands. Churches are losing membership and property at alarming rates. Hindu temples and mosques are springing up in former church property. Crime rates are soaring. Fear is gripping the hearts of men. Depression and psychosomatic sickness has become an epidemic.

The hearts of men needs to be addressed. This can only be by preaching the true gospel. This is the responsibilty of a good vineyard.

It is a warning to us all. It is a warning to me.

Gal 1: 8 if any man preach any other gospel unto you
than that ye have received, let him be accursed.

Amen.
+Dr. Joshua Raj

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grape