Success in the eyes of the world: is that a worthy goal? No, it is not, and those who preoccupy themselves with it are walking the path of vainglory. Better, rather, to seek success in the eyes of God. But what if you could obtain success both in the eyes of God and in the eyes of the world? Does it have to be an either/or? Couldn’t it be a both/and? Be careful, friend, with this line of questioning. Remember: you cannot serve both God and Mammon.
There is a song of the prophet Isaiah. Once upon a time, God planted a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He spaded it, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines. He built a watchtower for it, too, and a wine press. So far, so good. When the harvest came, though, the vines did not yield a crop of good grapes, but only wild grapes. What a disappointment! God, the divine planter, did everything for his vineyard, but it failed. So, what will he do? He will give it over to grazing and let it be trampled underfoot. He will make it a ruin. “The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel” (Isaiah 5:7).
The wild grapes are the things that may happen to please the world at this moment. The good grapes, on the other hand, are the Christian virtues. Produce good grapes only. Do not strive to produce any wild grapes, not even to attain a pseudo-balance of good grapes and wild grapes. Rather, let the wild grapes be trampled underfoot.