"Hear another parable. There was a master of a house who planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a winepress in it and built a tower and leased it to tenants, and went into another country."

There was a master who planted a vineyard. And when He planted it, He didn't just throw seed in the ground and walk away. He put a fence around it. He dug a winepress in it. He built a tower over it. He set it up so that everything needed in order to produce fruit was already in place before the tenants ever set foot on the property.

Now here's what I see, Jesus is painting a picture that the first century listener would have understood immediately. Vineyards in that day weren't just a nice piece of land. They were an essential income. They were a source of food. They were the safest and most flavorful source of drinking water available to a family. And for Israel, a vineyard carried an even deeper meaning, because Israel itself was called God's vineyard in Isaiah 5. So when Jesus opens this parable, He's not just telling a story about agriculture. He's telling a story about identity, provision, and purpose.

Now the master didn't hand the tenants an empty field and say, "Good luck." He gave them a vineyard that was already equipped. The fence was already up. The winepress was already dug. The tower was already built. Everything they needed in order to produce was already provided before they were ever asked to produce anything.

And that's exactly how God works with you and me.

The hymn says it and I believe it... "All I have needed, thy hands have provided." Nothing we possess, not power, nor potential, nor promise, nor profit, nor personality and whatever else they produce, has come by our own hand. Psalm 24:1 reminds us, "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein." So what I'm seeing is this... the vineyard was never ours to begin with, and neither was the ability to work it. Both came from the same Hand.

Just like the master equipped the vineyard for the tenants, Jesus has done all that is needed through His life, death, and resurrection in order for us to produce fruit in the Kingdom. He tells us in John 15:7 to abide in Him and ask whatever we need so that we can bear much fruit. That's incredible. He's not asking you to produce from nothing. He's asking you to produce from what He's already given.

But here's where it gets personal. The fruit of the Kingdom is righteousness... a lifestyle pleasing unto God. And this fruit is meant to bless God and bless you. To praise Him and profit you. That's the purpose of the vineyard. It was never planted so you could just live in it. It was planted so you could produce from it.

So before we go any further in this series, I need you to stop and look around your life. Look at the relationships, the abilities, the resources, the faith, the time. All of it was given. All of it was equipped. All of it has purpose.

Tomorrow we're going to look at the difference between producing and rendering, because understanding that distinction will change the way you see everything God has placed in your hands.

Make a list of five things God has given you... skills, relationships, resources, time, or faith. Next to each one, write down whether you've been using it for its intended purpose or simply enjoying it for yourself.