All verses in NKJV
Context/history:
- Here in Genesis we have Isaac (son of Abraham). There was a famine in the land, so Isaac and his wife were going to flee to Egypt, but God stopped them.
- Then the Lord appeared to Isaac and said: “Do not go down to Egypt; live in the land of which I shall tell you. Dwell in this land, and I will be with you and bless you; for to you and your descendants I give all these lands… and through them all the nations of the earth shall be blessed… because Abraham obeyed My voice and kept My commandments.”
- Blessings follow obedience. “Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the Lord blessed him. Isaac began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous.”
- There were still obstacles he had to overcome:
- Isaac got in an argument with Abimelech king of the Philistines, over his wife, Rebekah.
- The Philistines envied him, and they had stopped up all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham.
- So, Isaac moved to a couple different areas in the land, dug a couple wells, but the herdsman of the land kept arguing with him, saying it was their water….
- Isaac finally found an area to live at peace, dig a well, and set up shop. And the Lord appeared to him the same night and said, “I am the God of your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you and multiply your descendants for My servant Abraham’s sake.”
Genesis 26:26-33
26 Then Abimelech came to him from Gerar with one of his friends, and with the commander of his army. 27 And Isaac said to them, “Why have you come to me, since you hate me and have sent me away from you?” 28 But they said, “We have certainly seen that the Lord is with you. So we said, ‘Let there now be an oath between us, between you and us; and let us make a covenant (treaty) with you, 29 that you will do us no harm, since we have not touched you, and since we have done nothing to you but good and have sent you away in peace. You are now the blessed of the Lord.’ ” 30 So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 Then they arose early in the morning and swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace. 32 It came to pass the same day that Isaac’s servants came and told him about the well which they had dug, and said to him, “We have found water.” 33 So he called it Shebah (Oath). Therefore the name of the city is Beersheba (Well of the Oath) to this day.
- Last week we saw in Pastor Kevin’s sermon that Isaac was blessed because he was obedient. Blessings follow obedience.
- Isaac is the blessed of the Lord. Because he trusts in the Lord, he has found peace in his life, and peace with others.
- Let’s look at Isaac’s journey and see how we can find peace in our own lives: (2 points)
1. In crisis, Isaac trusted the Lord, and that gave him personal peace.
- Isaac is in crisis:
- First, a famine threats their existence in the land, but God tells him to stay, and the Lord would bless him. (against logical judgement)
- The King is mad at him because of his wife (lie), and his neighbors are jealous of his success.
- Every time he tries to settle somewhere in the area, he gets pushed out by well disputes…
- He could have responded with anger back. He could have flexed his power. He could have demanded his rights… “THOSE ARE MY FATHER’S WELLS!!!” but he didn’t do that…
- He didn’t have to fight the world, because he knew the Lord was going to take care of him. He conceded the wells and the area, he didn’t demand his own way, and found a non-disputed place in that land to live, and the Lord blessed it.
- Often we use crisis and stress in our lives to justify acting out. We trust the Lord when times are good, but when they turn bad, we take it into our own hands… and say things like, “You wouldn’t understand.” Or, “Don’t I have the right?!”
- Media and politicians are using fear and stress to try to get you to do all kinds of things…. Look at how angry everybody is! The more you watch, the more stress and fear, the more anger and outrage!
- Don’t be swayed to act against your faith and your values. God is in control, and you acting like the world, returning evil for evil, is not God glorifying. The “ends” do NOT justify the “means.”
- Sometimes it can sneak up on us. You think you are walking in faith through crisis, but you don’t have peace… I think it’s time to reevaluate.
- Ex: Shelly’s cancer, I often reflected, “How am I supposed to feel?” Fear, worry, etc… but I didn’t. God is good and in control. We just took it one step at a time.
- BUT, after a year and many tests and treatments, I was becoming a little angry and anxious about the process… I had unconsciously created benchmarks and expectations… and was actually expecting the worst to happen…. I had lost my peace.
- In the grind of life, it is easy to get distracted and forget where your hope comes from!
Isaiah 26:3
You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.
Romans 15:13
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
2. Isaac’s life showed the Lord was with him, and that was a path to peace with others.
Genesis 26:30-31
30 So he made them a feast, and they ate and drank. 31 Then they arose early in the morning and swore an oath with one another; and Isaac sent them away, and they departed from him in peace.
- Isaac’s decision to make a covenant reflects the biblical principle that peace is often a deliberate, God-honoring choice.
Matthew 5:9
Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God.
- What does it mean to be a peacemaker? There is a lot in the NT about living at peace with the brethren and being of one accord, but I think the principle holds true for our place in society also. A few simple ways to bring peace to conflict:
- Be humble, don’t think you are better than others, approach the conflict with grace assuming that you may not be right and show willingness to listen… Apologize FIRST! This is very disarming, and when the other person sees you do this, it deescalates things…
- Don’t always have to have it YOUR way: look for the outcome you want, more than the process. What is the true intent of what you want/need? Look past the offense, don’t need the credit, outcome is your goal… (Ex: CPO, fitness equipment, “crossfit” vs “functional fitness”)
- Example of making peace: my neighbor mowing my other neighbors yard… instead of complaining, or “going to the city” or shaming, or being demanding or angry, etc… he made a deal with him to get paid to care for the yard. BOTH get what they want and the relationship is preserved!
- This will solve 90% of your personal conflicts. (You need to have boundaries though, and there are evil people and abusers out there, some people should be avoided…)
- Bonus tip: Find a close, trustworthy friend to vent all your frustration and anger to BEFORE trying to make peace… get it all off your chest in a safe, non-judgmental place, then have your important conversation…
- You are an example to others that will either draw them to Christ, or push them from him!
- We need to stop being a “Christian version” of what the world does, and start being true examples of the love and grace found in Jesus Christ… the grace Jesus has shown us!
Romans 12:9-21
9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion. 17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
3. Conclusion…
- Isaac was blessed of the Lord. He trusted God with his life, family, and future.
- The outcome was that he had peace through troubled times.
- The question to the Christian believer tonight is, Do you have peace?
- Spend time this week in prayer. Repent of where you have been wrong, and return to trust and faith in Jesus alone.
- alter call –
- – prayer –
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