Isaiah Chapter 5:11-12: The Six Sins of Stinky Fruit Part 2. Debauchery
The second “stinky fruit” Isaiah sees in the sinful society of Judah, that we still see today, is debauchery. “Woe to those who rise early in the morning to pursue strong drink!”
Those wealthy people that had accumulated land and mansion, spent all of their time in indulgence and drunkenness, music, entertainment, and feasts. Once again, pleasure in and of itself is not bad in balance. However, for these people pleasure had become the all-consuming purpose and pursuit of life.
And again, this is something we find mirrored in our culture today. Happiness and the pursuit of happiness are all that matter today. Everyone must “find their own truth” “find what makes them happy.” It is the ultimate trump that cancels out any other demand in life. Forget responsibility, care for others, or any higher cause. Even when people appeal to these sorts of things, it is not because responsibility, sacrifice, or duty are aims in themselves, but are a declared source of happiness. There is no “cause bigger than oneself” to devote one’s life to. Self is the behemoth that everyone bows to. Pleasure and diversion are the idol we worship.
Even in Christian culture, this is a problem. The very nature of “worship” today is a matter of pleasure, festivity, personal preference, and hard to distinguish from other secular entertainments today. We worship our own pleasure!
Those wealthy people that had accumulated land and mansion, spent all of their time in indulgence and drunkenness, music, entertainment, and feasts. Once again, pleasure in and of itself is not bad in balance. However, for these people pleasure had become the all-consuming purpose and pursuit of life.
And again, this is something we find mirrored in our culture today. Happiness and the pursuit of happiness are all that matter today. Everyone must “find their own truth” “find what makes them happy.” It is the ultimate trump that cancels out any other demand in life. Forget responsibility, care for others, or any higher cause. Even when people appeal to these sorts of things, it is not because responsibility, sacrifice, or duty are aims in themselves, but are a declared source of happiness. There is no “cause bigger than oneself” to devote one’s life to. Self is the behemoth that everyone bows to. Pleasure and diversion are the idol we worship.
Even in Christian culture, this is a problem. The very nature of “worship” today is a matter of pleasure, festivity, personal preference, and hard to distinguish from other secular entertainments today. We worship our own pleasure!
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