Fruit Inspection
4/15/26 Bible Thought (Isaiah 5)
Main Idea: God desires good fruit from His people.
A Look at the Text:
After promises of judgment and redemption, Isaiah 5 begins with a song. A song about God’s vineyard—Israel. They were His planting, planted in a good place. God prepared the ground, clearing it of stones. He prepared a winepress, eager for good grapes from His vineyard.
Yet, when the time came for harvest, they were wild or bitter grapes. They weren’t what the Owner of the vineyard was looking for. As a result, the vineyard was going to be destroyed. He had done all that He could to make it prosper (Isa. 5:4), and it disappointed Him again and again.
The Lord then recounts how He came to Israel looking for good grapes, that is, justice and righteousness. Yet, instead, He found bloodshed and cries of distress (Isa. 5:7).
Israel was to be God’s holy, separate, distinct people. They were to reflect Him and His values. They were to bear good fruit that resembled His character. Yet they failed Him again and again. Instead of bearing good fruit, they bore bad fruit. They reflected the world around them more than the God who had called them.
Bringing it Home:
In the New Testament, we see very similar ideas regarding fruitfulness. The Word of God, that is, the gospel, is likened to a seed (see Matt. 13:1-23). When cast upon various kinds of soil, some bore no fruit, but the good soil, those who heard the message and accepted it, bore good fruit (Matt. 13:23).
The apostle Paul once wrote:
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires (Gal. 5:22-24).
These things are proof that the Holy Spirit has taken up residence in the believer. God is still looking for fruit in the lives of His people, but the good news is that those who are the good soil, those who have the Holy Spirit within, do bear good fruit.
Let us then always be diligent to cultivate good fruit on our end. Fruits are by definition not the root, or the source of our salvation; however, they are a necessary evidence that one is a genuine believer. While not saved by works, we are saved for good works (see Eph. 2:8-10).
When God comes looking for these things, will He find what He is looking for? Or will those whom He has called to be holy and distinct look like everyone else?
Challenge:
What fruit is growing on my tree?
Love these thought/devotions, thank you!
I had a pastor once give me a “job review” by writing the fruits of the spirit on a white board and asking me to grade myself on each. Best self-job review I ever had.