Focal Passage: Isaiah 5:1-13
In a not so previous life, many Biblical Recorder readers knew me mainly for my technical acumen. From the voice behind and content creator of the “Cyber Tip of the Month” on UpClose, to a “church technology coach” many got to know me in that “more geek than I want to admit” role. Well, as hard as I try to shed the computer guy mantra, it seems to stick with me like flies on honey.
I must concede that occasionally knowing that techno-lingo pays off. In computer programming jargon there is a term known as JIJO which means literally “junk in/junk out.” It is used by programmers to describe the actions of a computer when the underlying code on which it acts is bad. If the programming is bad then the computerís actions will be also. If you put junk in (by way of bad code) you’ll get junk out (in the resulting malfunctioning computer.)
As much as I try to move on, it just may be that old computer programming jargon has a place here. The prophet Isaiah speaks in the focal passage of a disappointing vineyard. In verse four of chapter five he asks why a vineyard produced the wrong kind of grapes. The answer is the old computer programmer mantra; junk in, junk out.
In the next two verses, Isaiah speaks of a field laid waste, burned and trampled. The prophet goes on to list various things from intoxicating drink to staying out all night as possible junk which causes the judgment to be harsh. Each of us would have our own take on what is and isn’t junk here, but the truth is it varies from person to person. Of course there are some obvious things we might all agree on, but there are just as many we would argue. The point is to know what actions your intake are going to produce.
God is watching our actions, all of our actions; every single one. He is aware of everything we do. He alone stands worthy to judge us, and He in fact will. We need not to try and avoid God’s judgment, for it is unavoidable. Rather we need to be living lives that make the judgment of God a positive one. We must limit the amount of (all) junk which goes into our lives and bodies, so we can keep (any) junk from coming out.