Introduction
Video
In isaiah chapter 5, verse number 1.
Now I will sing isaiah 5 1 now, will I sing to my well, beloved a song of my beloved, touching his vineyard, my well, beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill.
He fenced it and gathered out the stones thereof and planted it with the choicest vines 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.
And now oh inhabitants of jerusalem and men of judah.
Judge I pray.
You betwixt me and my vineyard, what could I what could have been done more? Remember that phrase what 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.
And 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, and 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 for the vineyard of the lord of hosts is the house of israel and the men of judah his pleasant plan.
And he looked for ju, looked for judgment, but behold, oppression for righteousness.
But behold, a cry I want to speak to you on this subject tonight of don't straddle, the fence, don't straddle, the fence.
There are a lot of people that I mean, their lives are just almost right there brother pittman where they could really do great things for god, but they're, not quite all the way in they're, just not quite quite all the way in you remember the story of of uticus in the bible and paul was preaching a long time, and he was sitting up in the window in the upper loft.
And the bible says that he fell asleep, and he fell out.
Do you know why he fell out you said, yeah, he fell asleep.
No.
He was more out than in.
Do you get that he was more out than in.
There are some folks that's in the window tonight, amen, you're, you're in church, you're hearing.
The preaching just like uticas did but you're in a very comfortable place in your life it's easy to get too comfortable and fall asleep.
Isn't.
It it's easy to get too comfortable and just not make the right decisions, it's too easy to get comfortable and just go through the motions easy to get too comfortable and have part in and part out part in the spiritual life of serving the lord, but still got one foot over in the world.
Still hadn't made that choice to get all the way in there's, a lot of people like that.
They're, good people, they're, faithful people.
They come every service, but they just hadn't got all the way in yet there's decisions that need to be made isn't.
There there's, a decision that needs to be made like.
Dr, green used to always sin say, he said, we used to we need to give in give over and give up to god.
He said, we need to cut the shoreline.
He said, we need to have a day of consecration in our life you ever had that day.
I mean, there's a lot of people that come forward calling themselves rededicating their life.
Well, they need to get dedicated before they can get rededicated.
They need to get saved before they can before they can, uh, uh, commit, uh, uh to coming and uh, repenting of their backsliding.
A lot of folks just need to get saved to get born.
Again.
Don't fool yourself folks, right on into hell.
If you're that way don't fool yourself, either your life changed.
I mean, I was talking to brother, chuck before the service, well, what a testimony he has, then I listen to him and I'm thinking, wow, man, that guy got it didn't.
He when he got born again, I mean, his life changed.
Did it not? I mean change now look here you might not have been a drug addict.
You might not have been immoral.
You might not have been wicked like that.
And he he admits, he admits his life before he got saved and god changed his life like the maniac of gadara like paul on the road to damascus.
I mean, like the philippian jailer and the woman at the well, I mean, his life was changed when you got born again, did anything change anything? Can you go back and say that anything changed in your life, your direction, your choices, your desires did anything change in your life.
I mean, when you get born again, things change folks, I mean, it's definitely shown throughout the bible.
And yet folks get saved and well they just get saved.
I put it this way.
A lot of times people hear the good word of salvation.
You say, what do you mean? Well, they hear the preacher preach.
They hear somebody tell them about how to get saved how to get born again, right? I mean tells them what jesus did for them on the cross.
They hear the good word of the gospel.
Am I right? They hear it.
They hear the good word of the gospel.
They come forward.
They don't want to go to hell.
They come forward now, stay with me, I'm, not preaching.
Another gospel, the same one, and they come forward a soul winner gets them.
Right there on the front row shows them.
The scriptures romans.
Road shows them how to be saved and tells them look here.
This is how you need to pray and ask the lord to save you.
They bow their head, and they pray and the fbi couldn't find them next week.
So what happened in their life? Did they get saved? Well, here's the way I put it.
They tasted the good word of salvation, but they never experienced the power of salvation.
So they never got born again.
They went through all the motions.
They went through step by step by step by step, but nothing ever happened in their lives.
And we've got many folks in our churches today that have been just that way.
I mean, they're told what to do step by step they follow that, and you say, well, preacher isn't that disciple, yeah, but we leave out the spirit of god.
Folks, it's the spirit of god, that's supposed to teach them and the spirit of god, that's supposed to illuminate their mind and open their heart and change their direction and do for them that what they couldn't do for their self.
And if that never happens, folks, don't just go through the motions thinking, you're saved.
There has to be something within his spirit will bear witness with our spirit that we are the children of god.
There has to be that in our lives.
This is not hard to understand that needs to happen in your life, that's, right or else, you're going to battle with this thing.
Every time you hear a preacher, come and get up and preach the gospel and hear your preacher, preach you're going to walk out under conviction and you're going to think.
Well, I did all of that.
I did all that I did all that and you'll die and go to hell without ever knowing him, really as your personal savior, yourself I'm, not saying that to confuse you to get you to doubt your salvation, only, you know, if you're a born-again christian or not that's, right? Only you know that I don't know that I can't see your heart, but you have to make that decision.
And if the holy spirit of god is convicting you tonight, you need to get things right? You need to be obedient to him tonight.
You need to make that decision amen make that decision.
I want you to see jesus tonight so that you will see yourself, you know, when job saw the god look over in job, chapter 42., the book of job chapter 42.
This is what happens when you see yourself in the light of god in job 42 look at verse 5.
I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear.
Now jobs went all the way through he's he's went all the way through all of his trials and struggles and heartache.
And now he's coming to the end of the book of job here he's coming to he's back on track again.
But look what he says he says, I have heard of thee by the hearing of the ear.
But now mine, I see it thee wherefore.
I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes isn't that amazing.
This is what will happen when you see him for yourself.
This is what this is what will happen when god visits you, you will abhor yourself.
You will see yourself for what you really are and that's, just a wretched sinner lost and undone without there's.
Nothing good in us.
That's the way you'll see yourself there's, nothing good in us.
We are only what we are saved by the grace of god.
We are only what we are by the mercy of god.
That's.
All we are you understand.
I am nothing I'm a sinner, just like the worst sinner on the face of the earth.
I am nothing, but a saved born-again sinner you understand.
And there is nothing good in me, and I know, and if I let my flesh rule myself, I will be right back in the same shape.
I was before I got saved doing the same things I did before I got saved look over in luke chapter 13.
Luke chapter 13.
These are important scriptures.
I hope that you'll take note of them seriously in your life in luke chapter 13 and verse number 6., luke, 13 and verse number 6.
He spake also this parable a certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard.
And he came through and sought fruit thereon found none then said, he unto the dresser of his vineyard.
Behold.
These three years I came seeking fruit on this fig tree noticed three years and had had none cut.
And it had none cut it down.
Why cumbereth hit the ground.
And he answering said unto him, lord let it alone this year also till I dig about it and dung it.
And if it bear fruit well, and if not then after thou, he told them to cut it down first.
And then this the the dresser of the vineyard said that thou shalt cut it down, are you listening? God, merciful.
I mean, three years he already passed by there, wasn't, none on it.
I mean, most of us would have cut it down the first year, three years, long, suffering, god's, long, suffering.
Look here.
Folks, god's long suffering.
I mean, he he's not going to cut us off at the beginning, and he goes on and on and on.
But there will come a time that he says, cut it down.
And then he even gave him another year are you listening? Be careful be careful, but there will come a time in our life that if we don't bear fruit, he will cut it down.
There will come a time.
So we cannot continue this route if we're not serving god with all of our heart.
We cannot continue this route now stay with me I'm going somewhere here.
The prophet isaiah shows the people of god, their transgressions and the judgments to be brought because of them.
He shows them this by using a parable about an unfruitful vineyard.
First, he says there in isaiah that there was a fruitful hill.
This means he put them in a place where they ate the fat of the land and drank the sweet, a place that where they could grow are you listening, just like this place where you're sitting tonight.
He put you here, there's, no mistake that you're here just like esther.
He put you here for such a time as this.
This is your time that was paul's time that was isaiah's time.
This is your time.
He put you in a fruitful hill.
He put you in a place where you could grow and eat the fat and drink the sweet.
He put you here.
He put you in a place like this and gave you a man of god that will stand strong on the word of god and preach the word of god.
He placed you here for such a time as this right here, just like this place, just like god has placed you in a place just like that a good christian school, a great church, a great, a great christian home, good christian friends.
This is a good place wouldn't.
You agree with that wouldn't.
You agree with that.
This is a good place.
Good people.
Good.
Look.
Good, christian.
Friends, hard workers want to do something for god soul winners going out on visitation.
Your pastor is a soul-winning preacher.
I mean, I mean, look here, god, put you in a fruitful hill, a place just like this place.
And god has surely placed you here in this place.
It says, he fenced it.
If you don't, if you don't tear down the fences, the enemy can't get in.
I remember a time when we had a uh our little chihuahua and uh, I bought my wife this little chihuahua.
So that when I'm gone from, you know, chihuahua's bark any y'all got a chihuahua.
Does it bark chihuahuas bark, they're ankle, biters.
I mean, they're they're just bark and everything they bark at everything.
Well, my wife taught this chihuahua, not to bark it didn't bark at nothing.
Nobody.
No kids, no strangers.
No, not anything.
She taught it.
Not to bark.
I said, you have made a bible dog out of this dog.
She said, what do you mean? I said, a dumb dog that won't bark.
I said, you've made that kind of dog, but we'd let her out when we were in different places that had a fence.
Well, we had her out there.
Now she just didn't bark and all of a sudden I put her out here in this fence, and I heard her barking and barking, and I thought what in the world, where is my dog at this is not my dog.
But here comes this big old bulldog down the side of the fence, and she runs up there, and she acts like she wants to tear this fence down to get to this bulldog.
Now let me ask you a question folks, where was the safest place for that chihuahua inside that fence or outside that fence? But you know, we got a lot of christians like that don't.
We they just think that it's better outside the fence than it is inside the fence.
And you have no clue that this world's going to devour you it's going to devour.
You young people this world is going to devour you.
I mean, you look out there and you say, well, but it looks so much fun.
It looks like it's so exciting, it looks like we're missing out on stuff we're, not having near the fun that they're having you young adults.
You get to thinking about all this stuff.
And you start looking at all these young adults and what they're doing and where they're going and how they're dressing how they're acting, you say, boy, you know, we look like a bunch of holy rollers that's, a compliment, amen.
We just, you know, we must be missing something.
They will devour you as a child of god.
They will devour you it's safer inside defense.
You know what we need to make a commitment about not tearing down.
The fence, you tear down the fence by breaking the rules and compromising your convictions and rebelling against authority and and doing wrong.
Instead of doing, right? You know, what happened a lot I'll? Tell you what happened to him? He tore down the fences.
You know, what happened to samson? He tore down the fences.
You know, what happened to solomon? He tore down the fences.
You know, what happened to eli? He tore down the fences.
Now what happened to them I'll? Tell you, in the case you didn't know, they were destroyed.
They were devoured because they tore down the fences.
And we got people today that are out there trying to tear the fence down.
Look here, it's, safer, it's, safer, inside of the fence that god has you tonight than it is in the world.
You need to be told that because that's what's going to happen to you.
If you get out there, then it says, he gathered the stones out.
I think he I think of brother chuck's life.
He was sitting there.
I just can't get over his testimony wonderful, testimony how god saved him.
You know, what he did I'll tell you what he did to brother chuck.
He took the stones out of his life.
He gathered out the stones out of his life.
God ever done that to you he ever done that for you.
I know what I was for.
I got saved, you know what he did.
He gathered the stones out of my life that's.
What he did.
He gathered them out of your life.
If you're a child of god, why in the world you're trying to put them back in, he gathered them out.
He made it a fruitful feel for you.
He made it where you could plant and grow why in the world would we want to put them back in like the woman at the well, the philippian jailer and the maniac of gadaran like you, he gathered the stones out of your life.
He took your stony heart away from you.
And when he saved you and gave you a heart, so you could love trust and obey him psalms, 40, verse 2.
He brought me up also out of a horrible pit out of the miry clay and set my feet upon a rock and established my goings that's.
What he did for me that's.
What he did for you if you're a child of god, he took me up out of not just a pit a horrible pit a horrible pit you get that.
Oh folks we need to take a look and see where god brought us from.
We need to see what he done.
He put he took those don't.
He fenced us about.
He took the stones out of our life.
I mean, he put us in a place for a fruitful feel where we could grow and eat the fat and drink the sweet.
He planted it with the choice.
His vine.
The bible says he gave you a pure religion, a pure christianity, that has the power of god, pure.
Christianity, this sets you apart from all other religions.
Bible says, you're a choice.
Vine a choice, find not just any vine.
But a choice vine amen sets us apart from everybody else.
All these other religions that are just religions it's that mess that nailed him to the cross you understand.
This is more than just a religion, it's a pure religion.
We need to understand this tonight.
You have just exactly what god has for you tonight.
Just exactly what he's got for you tonight.
He built a tower in the midst of it for a defense this tower.
What do you think that tower is I'll, tell you what it is it's, the church that's the tower, the church god's placed you in a fruitful hill.
God has fenced.
It god has gathered out your stony heart.
God has built you a tower of protection.
God has put you in a hedge, what more could he do than he's already done what more think about what he's done for you? What more could he do than what he's already done? Well, I mean that ought to cause some of us to just jump up and go to shouting amen, look what he's done for us that ought to get us excited.
And it would have there wouldn't be a pentecostal religion.
If we hadn't lost our shout that's, right? But we let the world steal it away didn't.
We we here, preaching, you don't, hear the shouting anymore, I'm, not talking about wildfire.
They sing songs like this young man got up and sing tonight people be shouting, her out that's, right? They'd be shouting around the ladies will be waving their hankies I'm talking about the tears that be running down the face.
How come we don't see any of that anymore, where's all that at where's god, stirring and moving in our services, where is it at how come god's people's hearts, not touched.
How come we don't? See, god, move in look here.
If we miss this, what do you think they're going to get if we don't see revival? What about the next generation? I mean, look, what it's already done to us in our lives? We need to make a decision don't.
We we need to get back where we need to be for god.
You ought to come to an altar today and just give up to god.
I think the writer this song knew what he was talking about when he wrote this, how firm a foundation you saints of the lord is laid for your faith in his excellent word, listen to the next next phrase? What more can he say than to you? He has said, what more can he say he's done said, it all folks right here.
What more can he say, he's already given us his word, he's already explained it to us.
He gave it a.
He gave us a holy spirit to write it on the doorpost of our hearts.
You understand.
I mean, this is it what more could he say than to you.
He has said, there's, nothing else that can be said, we just need to come to the place of obedience to it come to that place of making the right decisions in our life for god.
No matter what the cost.
This is the way it should be to you who for refuge to jesus has fled.
This is the way our life ought to be the most important time of your life.
As I said in the beginning is under the preaching of god's word, there's, no more important day of your life than right.
Now, the decisions you make today, the things that you do the things you say, the places you go the decisions, you make there's, no more important place than right now tonight where you sit in your life, you can't, go back, and you can't, go forward yet.
So this is it tonight right now, as you hear the preaching of god's word, then we see the disappointment.
He looked that it should bring forth grapes.
God, expects fruit from those that are his amen.
If you don't believe that read, john chapter, 15 and you'll see that we're engrafted into the vine amen so we're supposed to bear fruit.
And if you don't bear fruit, he takes it away.
If we bear fruit, he purges it that it may what bring forth more fruit now, you're clean through what the word which I've spoken unto.
You are you listening? He said now, abide, in me my words, abide in you.
You shall bring forth what more fruit and then you'll bring much fruit.
In other words, you're supposed to be bearing fruit.
According to the scriptures ask yourself tonight, each individual sitting here tonight.
Am, I bringing forth fruit in my life.
Am I a soul winner? Am I concerned about people dying and going to hell? Do I bring forth fruit in my life? The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life.
And he that what witness souls is what wise it's.
What the bible says where's our fruit.
I mean, look here, the lord's passing by tonight he's here in this place tonight he's under the preaching of god's word tonight.
He hears it.
I mean, he's here, he's stirring hearts, he's, moving he's, using your intellect that's.
Why he gave you a bible that's? Why he gave you the word of god to read? We have a brain.
He gave it to us and he's saying, you ought to listen to it he's passing by tonight.
You know, what I'm doing tonight as a preacher brother, pittman, I'm dung in it amen.
You know, what that means that means fertilizing it in case, you don't know, right? He said, let us dig around it and dung it.
Then next year, when you come by this way, if there's no fruit on it, cut it down, that's, right, that's.
What the scripture says so there's decisions that need to be made right? We all need to make the decision in our life, what we're going to do how we're going to live? Are we going to serve god? Are we just going to keep playing around? Are we going to keep straddling? The fence either get in or get out hot or cold, right? But because you're lukewarm, you know what that is that's straddling the fence we need not straddle.
The fence.
God expects fruit, there must be fruit spiritual fruit, but it brought forth wild grapes.
Wild grapes are the fruits of the carnal christian of the corrupt nature.
The flesh, you know, laziness bitterness, holding grudges lying cheating, contemporary music, other versions of the bible listening to liberals instead of coming to church.
I mean, these are the things that draw us away it's it's.
It sucks the life right out of us as christians.
We ought to be obedient to him while grapes are hypocritical performances in religion that looks like grapes doing things because you have to instead of because you want to look here.
I don't want to be no half two christians.
Look here.
I'm, not out here running these traveling these roads, putting up with all the crazies out there breaking down on the highways, sitting on the side, the highway, having flat tires on a motor home motor home, tearing up.
I ain't doing all that because I like it I'm doing it because I want to do it that's, right? I want to live for god.
I want to be obedient to him is satan going to fight me tooth and toenail.
You just cannot imagine you think satan likes these meetings.
I mean, he'll do everything from setting the sound system on fire to bring tornadoes in.
I mean, he'll do everything he can to disrupt a meeting he'll do everything he can and that's in every meeting.
I go to something happens like this every meeting, you know, why satan hates it, but I love it because I'm in the center of his wheel and I'm doing exactly what he wants me to do and I'm, loving it I'm.
Not out here doing it.
I'm begrudgingly are you listening? We ought to come because we love it.
We ought to witness because we love folks.
We don't want to see them die and go to hell ought to break our hearts.
We ought to have compassion upon them amen ii.
Timothy 3, verse 5.
I read it to you this week already we need more than just a form of godliness, denying the power thereof.
You know that form of god and it's just putting on the show you're, what you're saying out loud when you do that what you're saying out loud is you just don't believe that god has the power to change your life and give you that unction and give you what you need to desire to see souls saved and to change your life and to get in the word of god and study it and go into your prayer closet and shut the door and spend time with god.
You don't think god has the power to do that for you.
So you just have a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof don't do that don't live your life like that.
Then god says what more could I do than I have done.
Let me ask you a question tonight.
Listen, did he suffer enough for you? Did he die enough for you? Did he humble himself enough for you? Did he give up enough for you? Did he heal enough for you? Did he raise enough for you from the dead? Did he provide enough for you? Did he pray enough for you? Did he promise enough for you? Did he love you enough? Then what more can he do than he's already done for you? Are you listening? Then why should his vineyard bring forth wild grapes? Why why won't you serve him give in give over and give up to god? You know, I preach a message brother pittman, I think I preached it in harrison.
I've never preached it here on orders from headquarters that message is simply the whole gist of the message is this.
When god speaks all we have to do is just stand to attention and say, yes, sir any of you ever been in the military.
Raise your hand.
Did you ever argue with your drill sergeant that was a foolish thing to do wasn't it you don't ever what do you? Do you just say, yes, sir, if he tells you to deal, you've got a six by six hole, six foot deep and bury a cigarette butt.
And I seen them do that when we visited my brother in fort benning georgia, when he was in boot camp, I seen two drill sergeants, make one of the men do that because he thumped the cigarette butt on the ground instead of keeping it and putting it where it's supposed to be, and it was storming raining.
And that that we were sitting out there in the car watching waiting.
I don't tell you the whole story, but we seen this this boy walking by.
And he had one of these rain ponchos on, you know and so forth.
And these two drill sergeants walked by and the guy, finished smoking a cigarette.
And he thunked it on the ground, and that drill, sergeant hollered at that guy.
And he turned around and snapped two.
And he told him he said, I know you did this didn't, throw that cigarette butt on the ground.
He said, get you a shovel and dig you a hole and bury that cigarette butt.
And they stood out there in the rain and watched him dig it.
And you know what he never opened his mouth.
He never talked back to him.
He ran got him.
A shovel went back start digging.
And you say, wow, that was awful cruel of him might have been.
I don't know, but you know what when god says something we all just snap to attention and say, yes, sir whatever it is whenever it is wherever it is, we ought to just say, yes, sir, you know what this is I'll, tell you what this is.
This is orders from headquarters right here.
I mean, you don't get any higher than god.
And when god speaks to us, we just need to say, yes, sir.
And we need to quit arguing with god and arguing with the holy spirit, and we need to quit rebelling against the spirit of god and against god.
And we just need to get to the place in our life that we say, yes, sir, we have some decisions to make don't.
We what kind of field are you in tonight? Why won't you serve him give up to god? Get your eyes off this world.
Get them on jesus.
God is saying because you won't bear fruit.
This is what I'm going to do.
I will take away the hedge.
Now.
Look here.
Folks, listen, very carefully to this look here.
You do not want god to take away the hedge that hedge is for protection.
You understand that if you don't believe that you go back to the book of job and god satan told god, he said, I can't touch him because you've got a hedge about him.
Am I right isn't that what it says? But what I want you to notice is what happened when god took down the hedge everybody.
Okay with that.
Yes, when god took down the hedge, he took everything job had except his life.
Everything listen to me carefully tonight.
Now, this is vitally important, are you willing to lose your children? Your wife, your husband, your family for this world about that are you willing to lose everything that you have everything everything that you hold here? God allowed satan to take everything from job that mattered and all to man job.
You know why? Because god dropped a hedge that's right? And if you think for a second that the devil's going to have mercy on you you're, sadly, mistaken, that's, right? You don't want him to drop the hedge folks.
He says here to israel, he said, I'll take away the hedge I'll.
Take it away.
My my my what a time god is saying I will take away all your defenses and you'll become an easy prey for the enemy.
That's.
What I'll do this is what is happening to our country today to our churches to our homes and even to our own very lives.
This is what is happening today.
Brother, pittman, look around us.
Just look what's happening.
Look what's happening to our churches, they're getting cold and indifferent they're moving away from the word of god, they're taking badness off their name.
And they should if they're not going to believe the word of god you understand that, but look what's happening.
Look at all these no-name, churches, that's popping up all over america.
I mean, on every corner, almost you got some new no-name church popping up here.
So they can get out there and got some hireling in there.
They call a preacher that's out there to get money and make, uh money off their people and so forth, they're dumb dogs that won't bark.
You got guys out there that were once good preachers.
And now they're they're t-toting with the liberals and they're out there lowering the standard and moving the ancient landmarks and they're lowering their convictions, and their people are dying on the vine.
This is what israel did.
And god said that he'd take away the hedge because of it, the cruelty of the oppressors will come.
And then instead of we will hear the cry of the oppressed we're hearing it today are we not? We are hearing it.
So let where we're planted and let us bring forth.
Good fruit pleasing in his sight, that's, what we're supposed to do.
Now, the decision's yours, my message is over, but the decision is yours, what's your decision tonight.
Do you need to make one for god tonight? Are you looking at your life tonight? Are you sizing up yourself as a christian tonight in the sight of god? No look.
Look.
Look.
Look.
Look.
Look.
Don't.
Compare yourself among yourself for this is unwise your life, your life as you see god in your life tonight, what's, your decision, you need to make tonight heads are bowed and eyes are closed every head.
Bowed every eye closed.