Scripture Reference: 1 Kings 21:1 – 3
Naboth’s Vineyard: Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel, close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.” But Naboth replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.”
In this story, we have a man by the name of Naboth who owns a vineyard, and we have a king who desires to buy or to swap out this vineyard. He wants to turn this vineyard into a vegetable garden. It seems innocent, right? What’s the big deal about this? But I want you to know something about this story. It’s more than just the attempt to purchase a piece of property. There are spiritual implications in this story that are applicable to you and me today. So, let’s establish the significance of the vineyard, let’s establish what it represents, and let’s establish what it means to us. There is symbolism to the vineyard as it pertains to our life.
The vineyard is symbolic of the Kingdom of God.
In Matthew Chapter 20, Jesus tells a parable about hiring workers to go labor in his vineyard. Those workers that he references are you and me. He talks about different hours of the day in which those workers were hired and brought to labor in the vineyard. He is the owner; we are the workers. We are the sons and daughters who serve in His vineyard, so it represents the Kingdom of God.
Wine is symbolic of the Holy Spirit.
A vineyard obviously is the place where grapes are grown. Grapes are a source of wine which is symbolic of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who empowers us to serve in the vineyard of God. Grapes are also symbolic of God’s promises and blessings. Do you recall when Joshua and the eleven spies went into the Promised Land? When they came back, they were carrying a cluster of grapes. This was proof positive of the blessing God had said was waiting for them in the Promised Land.
The vineyard symbolizes our spiritual inheritance.
An inheritance is what’s been passed down to each and every one of us from generation to generation. It’s the legacy that we leave to our children. Let me set this up for you. Naboth is from the tribe of Manasseh. Manasseh was one of the sons of Joseph. After Joseph was imprisoned, falsely accused, and sold into slavery, he had a son named Manasseh – “the God who causes me to forget the pain of my past.” Isn’t that the kind of God that we serve? He doesn’t let the pain of our past hinder us from what He has for us in the future.
Also, Manasseh was the grandson of Jacob. Jacob had twelve sons, one being Joseph. And when Jacob was dying and his deathbed, he called his twelve sons and began to pronounce blessings over them. When he gets to Joseph in Genesis 49, he speaks over Joseph’s life. Jacob was the father, and he says Joseph will be a fruitful vine. He will be a fruitful vine near a spring whose branches spread over the wall. He means that his influence and his impact will go far beyond him to many generations. The walls are symbolic of hindrances and obstacles that would try to keep us from extending and enlarging our territory. Because whenever you begin to branch out, whenever you begin to move out and do great things for God, there will always be walls of resistance to try to hinder you from doing what God has called you to do. This is why you must have perseverance. This is why you must be able to fight in certain seasons of your life. Nothing comes without a fight in the kingdom of God. But this lets us know that Joseph, and the generations that follow him, would have a persevering spirit. They would be able to reach far beyond themselves and reach multiple generations.
The number five (5) represents God’s grace towards us.
So, Joseph receives this prophetic word from his father. Then he goes out, and he buys a piece of land to plant a vineyard. And he passes this vineyard on to his son, who then passes this on from generation to generation. This is where Naboth comes into play. Naboth is the fifth generation who is now part of this vineyard. He has inherited this fruitful vineyard. It’s interesting to me that he’s the fifth one to receive this inheritance. The number five is symbolic of the grace of God. Every blessing, every promise, everything that you and I have inherited spiritually in our lives is based on the grace of God. We do what we do by His grace. We receive what we receive by His grace. God gives His generous love to each and every one of us, even though we are unworthy, even though we don’t deserve it, and even though we can’t earn it. God says, “This is based upon my favor. It has nothing to do with you, but it has everything to do with me.”
We have an adversary.
Enter King Ahab into this story. Ahab was Naboth’s adversary. Ahab wants the vineyard, but the king knows that he cannot inherit this vineyard. He desires it. He wants it, but he can’t have it. And the reason that he wants the vineyard is because he wants to change the purpose of the vineyard. Legally though, in this story, by law, King Ahab knew that he could not take Naboth’s vineyard.
When God brought the children of Israel into the Promised Land, He made it very clear to them that the land was a gift to them from Him. It was to remain within families from generation to generation. But ultimately, the land belongs to God. That’s why it doesn’t make a difference what armies assemble themselves against Israel. It’s God’s land. And they’re fighting God. And God was, is, and will always be undefeated.
The enemy wants us to sell out and settle for less.
So, the enemy knows he has no right to our vineyard, no right to our blessings, and no right to our promises. He has no right to the Holy Spirit who operates within us or the giftings that come from the Holy Spirit in our lives. He has no legal right to take the inheritance that God has given us. So, what he tries to do then is bargain with us. And this is what Ahab does with Naboth. He says, “I’ll either buy the vineyard from you or I’ll trade. We can exchange different pieces of property, one vineyard for the other.” And thus, what we see here is the subtle plot and the plan of our enemy. He tries to get us to settle and exchange God’s best for good. You see, he’s trying to get us to settle for less than God’s best for our lives. And he does this by trying to get us to negotiate with him.
He wants us to settle for ordinary instead of the extraordinary so that we just live an ordinary life. He tries to get us to settle for things like a good idea instead of a great or a God idea. He tries to get us to settle for things like “just enough” rather than “more than enough.” He tries to get us to settle for a barren life instead of a bountiful life. He tries to get us to settle for natural rather than the spiritual. He tries to get us to settle for things that are temporal as opposed to things that are eternal. He’s constantly trying to get us to settle.
Don’t sell out your vineyard.
How many of you know that those before us who have labored in vineyards have paid a high price? They sacrificed too much for us to get to this place and this time for us to sell out so that we can fit in to today’s culture. And that’s what the enemy wants us to do. Just blend in. Just lower your standards and lower your beliefs. Just go ahead and settle. And I want you to know that people have paid way too high of a price, especially our King Jesus who gave His life for us, to settle right now.
Pastor’s Prayer
Father, I pray for those who may have relinquished, who may have settled and who may have gone backwards. I remind them that You own the vineyard, and You can redeem it again and again and again. It will never leave the family inheritance. Lord, I pray if there are those who have gone back, I pray that they would just come home. Come home and receive Your inheritance. Just like the prodigal son who left his inheritance, took it and wasted it, he came back and was restored. I’m asking You to do it, Lord, in the hearts of Your people today.
Decree and Declare
We decree and declare that we are not selling out. We are not exchanging the vineyard for the vegetable garden. We make a stand here today as Life Point Church. We make a stand that we’re going to represent You, Your Kingdom, Your righteousness and Your holiness. God is going to continue to grow the vine in this house, and that vine will go far beyond the walls that are around us. We are going to reach multitudes and impact many for the Kingdom of God.