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I’m going to invite you to Genesis chapter 21. We are in an interesting section of Genesis 21, and if I’m being transparent with you on this passage, this is one of those passages where I almost just blew past. I’m like, no way. This is not as exciting as the rest of the passages, right? Because when you look at Genesis, you look at things like, I don’t know, creating everything out of nothing, uh, flooding the entire world, Tower of Babel, destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. Those are big events. And when you read Genesis chapter 21, verse 22 to 34, you kind of look at this and you’re like, I don’t even this is just two people talking and that’s it. There’s nothing, nothing really eventful that happens. And you get to the end of it and you’re like, what am I supposed to grab from this? But but as you really deal with this text, you start to realize there’s a lot more here than what I what I began to realize, and it really represents more of the Christian life than probably all of the rest of the passages and how you live for the Lord, because we’re looking at a passage where where Abraham is dealing with a, a moment of, of difficulty in his life, and he’s teaching us how to navigate the future and moments of complexity, like God wants us to learn how to follow him in every season of life.
And and he doesn’t hit the pause button just because you’re going through difficult times. Now that God wants to work through you in every season, and Abraham in this story, he’s showing us how to do that by by demonstrating it in his own life. In fact, the very beginning of Genesis chapter, chapter 21, verse 22, it starts this that way. It says to you at that time Abimelech and Fecal, the commander of his army, said to Abraham, God is with you in all that you do. Now you look at that. You might think, uh, what is what does this have to do with tension or difficulty? I’m not understanding why verse 21 even is talking about difficulty. But. But what? It’s what it’s beginning to to lay out for you is some complexity Abraham is experiencing in his relationship with the King of the land where he just moved. Right? Abimelech is the ruler of this area. Abraham has come in as the outsider and and as Abraham enters into this, this area, the guy wants to know. Abraham’s got a lot of people with him. Are you for me or against me? And Abraham’s going to discover that same thing with Abimelech. But but at the same time, we’re also remembering in this verse everything Abraham has just gone through, and his relationship with Hagar and Ishmael in, in verse 22, at the very beginning it says at this time, at this time is saying, during the same time, Abraham is dealing with the tension of his relationship with Ishmael and and Hagar.
Abraham is also dealing with the tension of his relationship with with Abimelech. So it’s painting this picture of for you that Abraham has difficulty in his home life and beyond his home. It doesn’t. Whatever world Abraham dips his toe in right now, he’s facing hardship, adversity, struggle, uh, conflict in relationship. And so the question is how? How do you live for the Lord in this? How do you move forward in the midst of, of of difficulty, of adversity? And this is this is what Abraham is demonstrating. If you remember, at the very beginning of Genesis 21, we covered last week, we we read the story Isaac’s birth. But right after Isaac’s born, a couple years into his birth, they recognize Ishmael as treating Isaac with contempt, to the point that he may even be looking and plotting at ways to kill Isaac. And at this point, Ishmael is somewhere around the age of 16. Isaac is somewhere around the age of two. There’s there’s complexity in that relationship, and Abraham has to figure out how to deal with it. And not only that, now he’s coming into this area and he’s reading. We’re reading about this idea of Abimelech. And when when it comes to Abimelech, there’s a few interesting things that says to us here, um, it says to us, Abimelech acknowledges in verse 22 that God is with Abraham.
Abimalek sees something unique about his relationship with the Lord. Abraham’s relationship with the Lord. And so Abimalek even acknowledges it. There’s something about him, right, that that God is honoring. So that’s what intrigued Abimalek to approach Abraham the way that he is now. But but what also is happening here is that Abimalek doesn’t come by himself. All right. And Abimelech doesn’t just bring his best buddy along or, you know, here’s all the nice people in the community. Abimelech is like, oh, here’s the guy that leads my entire army, by the way. He’s killed a thousand people. Hey, let’s have a conversation. Abraham. Right. Like that’s that’s the kind of conversation Abraham’s having as he comes into this land. This this is a very tense conversation that you you would expect if you’re a foreigner in the land. People might might look at that and think, okay, what is this guy about? What are his intentions? He’s come here with hundreds of people, you know? Does he is he going to overthrow us? Is he for us? So they’re they’re in a place of uncertainty. And so they approach it, but they don’t just approach it in a position of humility. They approach it in a really a position that could be seen as aggression by bringing the commander of the army. And the king wants to know, Abraham, where are you in this? And so for Abraham, this is a very tense moment, but this is for believers.
This is a picture of really what life can be a lot like and following after the Lord. Because we know in chapter 21, this was also a chapter of blessing that God had promised Abraham he would have a child if if he would follow after the Lord and through his lineage, he would bless all nations, all people, groups. And Abraham sees that blessing come to fruition with the birth of Isaac. And so here’s Abraham living in this blessing. But while he’s also experiencing the blessing of the Lord, he’s got conflict in his relationships. And that’s much like what the Christian life is, is, is about as believers in Christ. The Bible tells you you’re already blessed in the Lord. You have position in Christ, you’re adopted, you belong. You’re in relationship, all wonderful things. But then how does that look? And navigating the complexity of relationships in this world? And what is it God desires to do in you and through you? He doesn’t just bless you for no reason. And Abraham knows that. I mean, God told him, through you I will bless all people, groups. And so as as Abraham engages this, you start to see the the heart of Abraham unfolding. We aren’t called to wait till things are perfect, to act that God desires for us to learn, to walk with him and honor him in every season of life.
After all, the Bible says to you that you’re more than conquerors in Christ. In Romans chapter eight, verse 28, more than conquerors. Um, you know, I think in our society today, we like to complain about a problem, claim to be a victim and expect someone else to do something for us. And I know there’s adversity that we go through in life and there’s seasons that we need for healing. But the Bible calls you as to be more than conquerors. The Bible already knows there’s there’s conflict in the world. That’s what this word conqueror means. Uh, in Matthew chapter five, in a sermon on the Mount, Jesus says to to you and to me that you are in verse 13 and 14. He says, you are the salt of the earth, the light of the world, that God doesn’t cause people to sit on their hands, but but to find places in this world to to make a difference where, where God has you. And so how do we do that when things look difficult or complicated or there’s complexity or tension in relationship? Well, as the story goes on, we start to see Abraham’s heart in this. In verse 23 it says, now therefore Abimalek says, swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me, or with my descendants, or with my posterity. But as I have dealt kindly with you, so you will deal with me and with the land where you have sojourned.
And Abraham said, I will swear Abraham is looking at this situation. He realizes, if I’m going to live out the promise. God said to me, God said, through me all nations would be blessed. After God delivers his promise in Isaac to me. I’ve got to be able to work through this with at least the first nation that I’m dealing with. Right? And so Abraham has has no problem moving around. We’ve already seen that. We’ve already seen Abraham has moved multiple times, but now here he is in a land. And he’s he’s seeing God’s divine hand working through Isaac as he’s lived here in the land of Abimalek. And he wants to see how this plays out. And he understands in order to do that, what you need is a place of peace. And so Abraham, with with his relationship with Abimalek, is looking for that opportunity of peace. Uh, a peace doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. Peace doesn’t mean that you just simply keep the peace that you got to sweep problems under the rug. That’s not what biblical peace looks like in the midst of a fallen world. That God rather calls us to be people that seek peace and make peace. It doesn’t mean that you compromise in your position in the Lord. In fact, you’re not called to do that at all, but rather you want to establish yourself in the truth of God’s Word and find places where peace is made known.
And in fact, in First Peter chapter three, it says this whoever desires to love life and to see good days, which I think Abraham probably does, let him keep his tongue. From evil and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from every, every from evil. Excuse me and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. In fact, in Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount, in Regarding peace, Jesus said this in verse nine, chapter five verse nine, he says this blessed are the peacemakers. He’s not saying peace keepers. He’s not saying to the bulldozers, right. We have we have a typical tendency. We like to respond in conflict as people. One is we run from it, and the other is we try to flex our muscles in it. We either run from it flight, or we turn and face it and we fight. But that’s not God’s desire for us at all. And there is a time to stand, to root yourself. But God’s desire is, rather than fight and flight, to be a people of faith. And what does it look like for us to be a people of of faith? To seek peace, not to just keep peace, but to make peace, to understand that the world is opposed to God, but God has created people in his image and desires to know him.
And so we are called to walk in this world as Abraham is, for the blessing of other people. And when we say as a church, we exist to give ourselves away for the glory of God to the benefit of others. But we have to expect in the midst of that, there’s going to be some complexity as we as we navigate it, that everything doesn’t come to you on a silver platter, that in order to to live the way that God calls us to live, that there there is sacrifice and there is adversity. I mean, look at the life of Jesus. And if you follow Jesus, we should expect in our lives there would be challenges too. And so for for Abraham, he he’s engaging this this relationship for the purpose of finding a place of peace, to establish what it is that God desires to do in his life and through his life. And so Abimalek comes to him and says, this is where I am positionally in relationship to you. Abraham promised me that your intentions are the same. And Abraham says, I swear it not here for your destruction. I’m here to see what God desires. I want to find a place where I can live out God’s will in my life freely, in order to bless those around me.
And when Abraham hears Abimalek say what he says and Abraham affirms it, Abraham then steps into verse 25 and he says, okay, now, now we’re going to prove it, because I actually do have a conflict. This isn’t just words that I’m sharing with you, but there actually is conflict in our relationship. Verse 25, When Abraham reproved Abimelech about a well of water that Abimelech’s servants had seized, Abimelech said, I do not know who has done this thing. You did not tell me, and I have not heard of it until today. So Abraham is saying, look, Abimalek, I know what you said, but now I just want to see if it’s actually tangible. Will you live out the words that you promised to me? And here comes the proving ground for us. We actually have some conflict in our relationship, not necessarily me and you directly, but my people and your people. They’ve come to this well, that I built and your people stole it from my people. Now, what are you going to do about it? And so Abraham uses this, this idea of a, of a well in order to find that place that God wants him to make, make the Lord known through Abraham’s life. I Abimelech, I heard what you said, but but is this really the place, the opportunity that I have to do what God has called me to do? I want to see, as we deal with the tension of our relationship, what kind of what kind of place am I in and and what kind of freedom I do have to live out what God has called me to do.
And so in your notes this morning, you’re going to see this four things you can discover through conflict. Not only does Abraham learn about his relationship with with Abimalek, but he he learns more than than just about his relationship with Abimelech. He learns about himself and and the Lord and all of that. So point number one in your notes is this. When you experience conflict in your life, number one, you learn about your spiritual condition out of the four things you discover through conflict. The first thing is this you learn about your spiritual condition. And so once Abraham brings up the complexity, the tension, the conflict in their relationship, verse 27 starts to show you how Abraham responds to it. So Abraham took sheep and oxen and gave them to Abimelech, and the two two men made a covenant. Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock apart. Here’s what it’s saying. Any time you experience adversity, it provides an opportunity for you to demonstrate your servant heart towards others because of your heart for the Lord. Anytime you experience adversity, it really gives you. It gives you a platform to demonstrate that. Let me give you a small one this morning. Rather than stay home. You dealt with the difficulty of the snow, right? And I know that’s a small thing, but.
But it says that you care enough about the Lord to make sure that you’re here to worship with God’s people. So it speaks something about your relationship with the Lord. We won’t say what it speaks to those that stay at home. Okay, I’m just kidding. I’m teasing. We love we love them too. And then some of them are watching online right now. So I’m sorry, but but but but but you see the importance of encouraging God’s community, right? And and loving God’s people. We had some people actually show up about 6:00 in the morning this morning and shovel snow for several hours, and then I know that they are watching online right now, but but so I think thankful for them. I don’t want them to not do that again. But but any time you experience conflict, it’s also an opportunity. And some of us that might have that tendency to run from conflict rather than run from it, I think it’s important to see it for the way that the Lord can use it. I mean, God’s glory has shown so much brighter in the midst of darkness than in any other time. And you learn about your spiritual condition and how you respond to the adversity you face. And what I mean by that is when you engage conflict, um, it’s not only important to understand what what God wants, but it’s also important to understand the way God wants it so you can stand on your moral authority because you’re right and be an absolute jerk about it.
But to be right in the in the wrong way is to still be wrong. And Abraham is demonstrating not only not only does he know what God wants, but he’s also carrying an attitude in the way in which God would want it. And the way that you see it in this passage is Abraham is the one that’s been wronged. His well has been stolen. But after Abraham’s brought up the conflict, you know, the first thing Abraham does is like he gives a gift to the guy that stole from him. And that’s what he’s doing in this passage is like, yeah, we got this tension here. I’m going to give you this lamb, right? Like, you see a heart in Abraham that’s just not simply there to get what he wants. What he’s interested in is what is it that God wants, not just what God says, but also the way God wants to demonstrate it, because he’s thinking more from an eternal perspective that God wants to do something through him. And it’s become evident through the birth of Isaac, and that God wants to bless all nations through Abraham. And part of that includes how you work with those nations. And the same thing is true for you. God wants to work through your life, and the way that God works through your life is demonstrated in how you navigate those relationships.
Doesn’t mean every relationship is going to be perfect. I mean, you can’t control what people do, but you can control whether or not you keep the door of opportunity open. Abimalek could completely responded here with all sorts of hatefulness to Abraham, and that would have been a sign to Abraham to say, oh, this is not the time in which God wants to work in this relationship, right? But maybe God might in the future. But at least Abraham knows. So. So Abraham and the story, he’s he’s learning about his his spiritual condition before the Lord, by the way, he’s engaging this, this conflict and how he’s approaching the situation. Point number two in your notes is this. The condition. You’re learning about the condition of your relationship with God. Not just not just your own spiritual condition, but but how you’re viewing that in light of your relationship with God. I’m going to skip ahead just a few verses, but in verse 33 you see how Abraham is is viewing this situation with Abimalek. It’s not just about the frustration they’re facing in the moment. Abraham is seeing this from an eternal perspective. God, how are you going to work all of this out? And how can I be here in this land in a way that that honors you and the way that you see that is how Abraham calls on the name of the Lord.
Look at this. Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God. So the way Abraham is engaging God, he’s not just saying God my protector, God my provider, that’s that is a a form of which if you read the psalmist, a lot of times they’ll see God as their their shelter, their shield. And in the midst of a battle, they want God’s protection in the immediate. And that can be godly. But sometimes people just pray for that because, well, they want God to hurry up and deliver them so they can get back to doing whatever it is they want to do. But that’s not the way Abraham is acknowledging God. He’s thinking about all that God desires to accomplish in this world, this the eternal God. And so Abraham’s pursuit in the midst of this conflict is thinking about the the good picture. He’s thinking about the faithful hand of God as God has revealed himself through Isaac, and how God continues to want to to work that way, because God has promised Abraham that he would step that way. And so Abraham knows in order to see that he needs to be a person of truth and grace, a person that acknowledges the truthfulness of who God is, but gives people a place to experience that that grace of God. And in order to step that way, he knows he needs a position of peace in someone else’s life.
And for us as God’s people. It’s important for us to be both a people of truth and grace. I mean, when you read this story of of the gospels, Jesus did that masterfully. He did not compromise on the truth, but yet he was a friend of sinners. He met people where they were loved and where they were. And Jesus met some of the most difficult people in life, and they were able to discover new life and identity in him. And so you learn about your spiritual condition. You learn about the condition of your relationship with God. Third, in your notes, you learn about the condition of your relationship with others. Um. You see this play out in Abraham and Abimelech? Through the difficulty, the complexity of a relationship over a well. Right? In fact, you know, it’s interesting when you study the life of Abraham, there are a decent amount of archaeological sites still connected to Abraham that you can see today, one of which is likely the bear, the well from from Beersheba. Um, this well, archaeologists actually argue over which, well, is the well that Abraham built. This argument is taking place over. Um, there are two most likely possibilities, and one is more of a tourist site than the other. But there’s two sites that you can go see today that they say this is likely one of the two sites that Abraham might have built.
Um, that that is the well that they argued over. But more important than that, whether or not this these wells are the actual well that Abraham would have built. More important than that is what this well symbolizes, because when you look at these pictures, these pictures of either one of these wells, it doesn’t matter what you notice about the ground around it is this is not the most fertile land. And and you think when you’re living in a desert, a pretty valuable commodity to have is a. Well, right. And so this this argument over that’s my well no, that’s my well is much deeper than just simply a well for for Abraham, this is a source of life. And and for him it’s an opportunity to for the well being of of not just him but the, the, the people that he or he is supporting. I mean, if you remember all the way back in Genesis 13 and 14, when Abraham went to battle, he fought against five kings. It tells you that Abraham took 318 able bodied men. And this was decades ago in order to go into battle. Abraham, years later, may even be bigger and able bodied. That doesn’t even include all the men in his in his home. And out of those 318, they were going to have women and children involved. I mean, Abraham would have been a that would have been a large group of people.
And so this, well, doesn’t just represent his well being, but but also people around him. So this this well is a is a is a place of life, well being, a place of opportunity. And for Abimalek who has taken possession of this well, to allow someone else to use your well or to have a well, it’s communicating back that you desire life for the other person, that you’re not just simply saying words, but you’re actually demonstrating it. And so it could be seen as really giving a source of life to someone else and ultimately be seen be seen as giving a your own life source away in order for them to experience life. And so when Abraham brings this up, he’s really going to find out how Abimalek truly feels about him. And in verse 29 it says this. And Abimelech said to Abraham, what is the meaning of these seven ulam’s that you have set apart? Abraham said, these seven Ulam’s you will take from my hand that this may be a witness for me, that I dug this well. Therefore that place has been called Beersheba, because there both of them swore an oath. Beersheba literally means Be’er means well, Shiva means oath or seven. But in this case, Abraham is acknowledging the oath. It’s a well of oath. So they made a covenant at Beersheba. Then Abimelech and Pickle, the commander of his army, rose up and returned to the land of the Philistines.
So this well is communicating to to Abraham really an opportunity. A place where life could be made known not only in him, but through him. He’s found a place of peace, a place where God has given him position to continue to navigate in the relationships around him. This well for for Abraham is certainly a picture of how God has laid out a path for him to be where he is. But but it also becomes a picture for us and how we navigate relationships in this world. You know, when we live for the Lord, we certainly want to have a place of peace. And one of the ways that we find a place of peace is to find a place of a well, a place of opportunity, a place where people give you freedom to experience life with them. And when you come, become a a Christian, a follower, after, after the Lord, people may look at you strange. You know, you declare that you’re following after Jesus. They may wonder what that means in terms of their relationship with you, right? I mean, does that mean you’re going to treat me different? Does that make you totally different? Are you going to alienate me? I mean, this is what Abimalek wants to find out with Abraham. Well, who is this guy? What is he about? He’s got this foreign belief in our land that no one else has.
I got to discover this. Is this something that’s for us, against us? I want to find that as he engages with Abraham and he sees a spirit of generosity continuing to be with with Abraham in the way that not only he built this well, but he’s also handing over these lambs to, uh, to to the leader of this land. Uh, Abimalek responds, and he provides this well, and Abraham sees it as a place of opportunity. That’s what we’re called to discover in this world. God, where are you working? And how can I be a part of it? I don’t need to make this more difficult than this is. The world already has challenges. And and as I navigate this world, there’s some people that might open a door of opportunity and there are others that may not. And just because someone doesn’t, doesn’t mean I write them off. Doesn’t say, well, you’re finished with me. I’m finished with you. It says to me, look, I can always keep the door of opportunity open, but but while I keep the door of opportunity open, I want to go in the directions where God has has made his hand clear. And how I can work with with people around me and what God wants to do. I don’t have to make this more difficult than it is, right? Where? Where is God evidencing his hand? And how can I join him in what God has called me to in this world? And so then point number four in your notes is this opportunities where you can make a lasting impact? Four things conflict can teach us.
And one of those things is discovering opportunities where you can make a lasting impact. And so Abraham and seeing this, here’s how he responds in verse 33, in the most anti-climatic ending of a story that you read in Genesis, Abraham planted a tree. And that’s his response. That is bizarre, isn’t it? Why you ever read that? Well, he doesn’t just plant the tree. Let me just say he plants a tamarisk tree. It is a pretty tree. You think some of the most iconic photos in deserts or tamarisk trees sort of growing out of nothing? It’s pretty incredible that life could exist. You look at that picture, it’s like this is the middle of a desert, and yet this tree is flourishing. How does that happen? That’s a pretty incredible tree. Kind of an iconic picture to, to look at. And so and that’s nice, but but why, out of all the things the Bible can tell you about Abraham’s life, I mean, you, it encapsulates this important figure, his life between chapter 12 and chapter 25. Right. And all the stories you could tell is this really the most notable thing? Like, who cares? You know, like tree huggers and Greta Thunberg, that’s like, this is like her favorite verse.
That’s it. Like, I don’t know, I don’t know beyond that, who’s going to read this verse and be like, oh yeah, I’m in my devotion today. Abraham planted a tree. It was just exhilarating for me. Right? Like and until until you realize what this tree represents. The tree carries the idea of of longevity. Sustainability, a future. I hope it’s a symbol of hope. And this says something about what Abraham’s intentions are. And this land with Abimelech and the Philistines. And you don’t plant a tree when you’re moving tomorrow. You don’t plant a tree if it’s just for a season. You plant like a flower or a garden for that. A tree speaks to the durability of your willingness to be there, to bless the people. I mean, for for Abraham to plant this, Abraham’s going to have to nurture this tree to a place of maturity before it’s even able to produce. I mean, some trees take five, six olive trees take seven years before you even get a fruit off of it. Right. And the tamarisk tree can produce shade for for the animals in the middle of the day. It also produces food to eat. I mean, this is an important tree, but in order to have this tree, it’s going to have to take time and order to nurture it. And and so in our lives, this, this picture for of Abraham and what Abraham is doing in the midst of finding peace and finding a well of opportunity, then speaks to this level of of what Abraham has committed to for the benefit of the people around him.
And guys, I think it’s the same thing. The same thing is true for God’s people. This is a very mundane passage, right? This is a very simplistic story. Two guys show up, they have a little bit of tension. They talk about it. One goes home with a few lambs, and the other guy plants a tree. And that’s the end. You’re right. You’re supposed to glean all this spiritual wisdom for from it. But but here’s here’s what it’s important to note this. This is the typical experience of the Christian life. You don’t want every day to be a Sodom and Gomorrah kind of day, right? Sometimes you just want boring, because in the boring this, this is how God moves and just the the day to day interaction of life. And so if you find a place of peace, you experience the opportunity of a well, then it’s saying to you, you’re in a situation where you can lay down roots. You can plant an order to make a difference. And that that difference can endure. I mean, we know in the story at this point, Abraham is over 100 years old. That says to us, Abraham is not planting this tree for himself. Abraham is going to be dead before this tree is, you know, anything noteworthy? What Abraham is planting this tree for is the future.
For the benefit of others. How can God use me where I am? To seek the peace, to find an opportunity of a well, to plant a tree in order to be a blessing. Not to me. But for generations to come. The kind of thing that God wants to do in your life is make generational impacts. And the way that it happens is not just a temporary, seasonal, you know, doing something nice and moving on and feeling good about yourself. It’s rooting yourself for a purpose, a cause for the glory of God to the benefit of others. That makes a lasting impact, that goes out lives well beyond you, to the point that people may even forget about you. But the evidence of you is still there. This happens in the midst of conflict. Not working around it, but working through it. There’s an ancient Chinese proverb that says the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. But the second best time is right now. Saying, look, we all have regrets. Sometimes we wish we had done things differently. But you can choose to take that step right now. Where is it in your life that God has opened up a well of opportunity? And how can you enter in that to to plant a tree. Um. There’s a man by the name of Don Richardson. He was a he’s from Canada.
Died in 2018. His wife died in 2006. He was a missionary to Western New Guinea in 1962. He, his wife, and at that time he only had one child, jumped into a canoe. They had some people paddle them up river and and they were taken to the Sawi tribe. And, and Don records. When he first got to the Sawi tribe that they were jumping up and down and shouting. But Don was a little bit nervous because he didn’t know if they were jumping up and down and shouting because they were excited to see him, or if they wanted to kill him. He could have gone either way because. Because this tribe was known, um, to be headhunters and cannibalistic. And so he was a little bit concerned for his well-being about what might happen. But he he stepped into the tension. He stepped into the conflict. And when he got there, he was delighted to discover they were excited to see him. And so Don spent time living among them, and he started to share with them the gospel. And he got a little disheartened because when he got to the end of the gospel story of Jesus life, the tribe actually thought Judas was the hero and not Jesus. And the reason they thought Judas was the hero is because they were a tribe that saw betrayal as virtuous. And Don was scratching his head thinking, how can you possibly share the goodness of Christ with people that think betrayal is virtuous? And they see Judas as the hero? And Don went on to share that this tribe was always at war.
They all because of the idea of treachery and betrayal being such a virtue among them. They were always fighting with other tribes. In fact, one day he was sitting in the living room of his own home and in his front lawn. Two tribes. This tribe that he’s working with and the neighboring tribe were fighting each other to the death on his lawn. And he finally got so frustrated by this, all this conflict that he went to the tribal leaders and he said, look, I’m leaving. I’ve had enough of this. I can’t figure out how to minister with you, with you guys because of this. And and the tribe did something very interesting when they knew that Don was serious and he was going to pack up and leave, one member of the tribe took their new brand new child, and they ran to the other tribe, and they offered their child as a gift. And Don thought that was interesting. And and apparently this tribe had a custom referred to as as a peace child. Whenever one tribe that was warring with another tribe wanted to have peace, they would offer one of their children to the other tribe as if to say, we’re never going to attack you again, because in order for us to attack you, we would have to fight and kill our own.
And we don’t want to do that. And when Don saw that, he realized this is a well of opportunity, because this is exactly a the kind of picture you need in order to share the gospel. Because this is exactly what God did with his own son. He offered a son in our conflict. That we could have peace with him. And Don used that in order to plant a tree. And in so doing, the tribe was completely transformed in the gospel. In fact, in 2012, six years before Don died, he took his sons back to this tribe that he had worked with for a few decades in order to to reminisce and then see how God had continued to move. At his funeral in 2018, they played a clip from Don’s visit, and I want you to see it here. Normally you wouldn’t hear someone say, it’s great to see so many old people. Disease took its toll. Death from warfare took its toll. But now, to come back and see that there are just throngs among the crowds of people, throngs of people with gray hair and old enough that they had trouble walking along the trail. That’s a special joy. We’d been told we’d be helping to baptize 50 new believers. And so the first two groups came down about 25 each. That that must be it.
And make up. Coming. Filing down into the water. 25 at a time, and I personally baptized 15 out of these 25 groups. Cermait was 15 at each time. That’s 325. This was our yard around here. My dad made this bridge that I’m standing on. More than 40 years ago. Probably 45 years ago. Um, my world just revolved around this area. Just swimming in this river. His name is Moses. And he was just saying that he used to really enjoy jumping off the tree here with me into the river. And. He said when my parents came years ago that they were still living in darkness. Indeed. God’s word has been planted here. The gospel has been received. The place is full of peace. It’s a safe place to live. We’re very blessed. I want to give thanks to God. Because the gospel came here. And I want you to know that when you leave on the airplane tomorrow, that we’re going to stay faithful to the gospel as long as we live. It’s everything to us. Goodbye, and God bless you. He says thank you. There is certainly times in life to have to apologize, have to move on, especially if you know you’re walking in error, not in truth. But then there are other times where it’s important to stand. I see a story like that and I think, man, Don almost quit. But he didn’t. And he stood in the conflict looking for a well of opportunity that allowed him to plant a tree.
Does the same thing for us. We all face adversity in this world. But adversity is not something God’s people are called to run from. May have to put something off to the side for a minute to let healing take place. But God calls us to be peacemakers in this world. To look for wells of opportunity to make a difference. And the reason we’re called to do that is that is the exactly a reflection of the gospel that we follow in Christ. Jesus didn’t give up on you. He pursued you in the midst of conflict. He gave of himself so that you could find freedom in him. And in that freedom live for something far greater than you. You know, one of the most beautiful things I think I saw in that story is how Don said, um. He’s just acknowledging when he got there, there weren’t any older people really among the tribes. They were dying in warfare or disease. But now he sees generations of older people among the tribes, and it made a generational impact, something that endures beyond him because he was willing to stand in the midst of that conflict, to see the Lord route him there for his glory to the benefit of others.