DAILY MANNA DAILY DEVOTIONAL
THE PAIN OF UNREQUITED LOVE
24TH JANUARY, 2022
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Acts 22-23
TEXT: Isaiah 5:1-7
1
Now let me sing to my Well-beloved, A song of my Beloved regarding
His vineyard: My Well-beloved has a vineyard, On a very fruitful
hill.
2 He dug it up and cleared out its stones, And planted
it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, And also
made a winepress in it; So He expected it to bring
forth good grapes, But it brought forth wild grapes.
3 “And
now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge, please,
between Me and My vineyard.
4 What more could have been done
to My vineyard That I have not done in it? Why then, when I
expected it to bring forth good grapes, Did it
bring forth wild grapes?
5 And now, please let Me tell you
what I will do to My vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it
shall be burned; And break down its wall, and it shall be
trampled down.
6 I will lay it waste; It shall not be pruned or dug, But there shall come up briers and thorns.
I will also command the clouds That they rain no rain on it.”
7 For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, And the men of Judah are His pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; For righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.
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KEY VERSE: (Isaiah 5:4
“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?.”
THOUGHT
FOR THE DAY:
A
two-way love produces the best traffic.
THE MESSAGE:
An author, Iva-Marie Palmer, acknowledged the reality of unrequited love when she wrote, “Love may have the longest arms, but it can still fall short of an embrace.” Yes, your outstretched arms of love are sometimes greeted with indifference, ingratitude or even hostility. Such negative treatment often inflicts pain in the heart of the love-giver.
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If you have ever been a recipient of such cold treatment, you will be in a position to appreciate, to some extent, how God felt in His dealings with the backslidden Israelites. God regarded Israel as His vineyard. He pampered them with loving-kindness and favour. They were separated from other nations for His glory and as an object of His peculiar care. God granted them all the means of fruitfulness and yet they yielded wild grapes of corruption. He, in turn, declared that He would bring desolation and judgment upon them.
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Today, it is not just Israel. We are all recipients of God’s favour and providence. This is specially so for the Church. The Lord has been gracious to His church for which there are adequate provision, protection, preservation and power. The Church is God’s cherished vineyard. He has planted it with the choicest vine, built a tower in its midst and made a winepress therein. There is therefore a justified expectation of pleasant fruitfulness from her.
All believers who have benefited from the riches of the gospel are expected to bear fruits of righteousness that glorify God. This is the, most important way to please Him and requite His love.
DO HAVE A BLESSED DAY
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©2022 DAILY MANNA IS a daily devotional by PASTOR W.F KUMUYI (General Overseer, DEEPER LIFE CHRISTIAN MINISTRY ) |