I was reading Isaiah 5 this morning before bed and was immensely blessed by the first 7 verses. It tells an allegory of a planter planting a "beloved vineyard" and making all the necessary preparations to assure a quality and bountiful reaping of grapes. To the planter's dismay, all the vineyard produced was wild grapes. It was as if the planter had done nothing to the vineyard at all. Had he done nothing, the end would have been the same. Nothing but wild, useless grapes. God compares this story to His interaction with Israel. Though God dealt wisely with His beloved nation and blessed them beyond measure, Israel still lived as though God had no part with them - as though He never had existed. They claimed their own lives. Back to the allegory: God, acting as the planter, upon realizing the outcome of the crop, decided to let the field be "devoured" or "grazed over." He tore down the walls to the field for it to be trampled down by whatever fealt like coming through. The planter would no longer weed or till it. Comparing it to Israel, it was as if God said "If you wish to live as though I don't exist, then I will grant your wish. I will leave you to yourselves that you might see what will become of you apart from Me." The vinedresser in the allegory left the field to itself and it was destroyed by natural events. In like manner would Israel be destroyed when left to it's weak self. What's this mean to me? Many times I play the part of Israel in this story. I live as though He doesn't exist, though I make my pious claims that my circles expect. My heart doesn't really acknowledge Him, though my mind might. I have no feelings for Him at all, and true love will always come complete with feelings of some sort to some degree. Through all of this, I lose sight of reality; I find myself strong, and God unneccessary. So, God lets me see what I am when left to myself, and it is the most depressing experience imaginable. However, the point of His tactic is to bring me back to Himself, as it realines my perceptions with reality. Too bad I don't always recognize reality right away when it layed out right in front of my face. I'm way too stubborn. Dumb pride.

I've been thinking a lot about Christian liberty lately. Most would apply the discussion to personal standards, but I'm not so sure the idea keys in on standards. It may impact standards practically, but only indirectly. Galatians 5:1 tells us to stand in the liberty of Christ, not the yoke of bondage. This yoke is what the false teachers, probably Jews, were trying to give new Christians, saying they had to keep the law of Moses with Christianity. I have fallen into this belief personally, but the yoke is not the law of Moses. Rather I convince myself that unless I can comprehend Scriptural ideas as much as I can apply practically, I am not right with God. I have been learning that the Christian life is lived by the same grace that saved me, and my salvation is based on the mystery of God's love and providence. Both of which factors I cannot comprehend. How then is my life to be based upon rational ability instead of faith? Is not faith the evidence of things not seen? So I have replaced faith with self-effort, similar to the yoke of Moses' law. I am commanded to live in liberty. Liberty lets one live free because of the expense of another. I've nothing to contribute - not even my mind or heart. Rather, those are effected by the one who is sovereign over them, and wisdom is gained only because God chooses to impart it to the one who has already known God by His grace through faith.