DON’T CLOG THE WELLS WITH RUBBISH.   Genesis 26

In a generation from Abraham to Isaac, hostile Philistines opposed God‘s people.    The enemies deprived the second generation of much spiritual strength, generated and accumulated by Abraham.    Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold, and the Lord blessed him. ‘v12    ‘The man began to prosper, and continued prospering, and he became very prosperous; for he had possessions of herds, and a great number of servants.’   This enraged his neighbors.   ‘So the Philistines envied him'; and they took revenge on him. ‘Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells which his father’s servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they filled or ( clogged up ) them with earth.’

Wells are our God-given heritage: life-sustaining water.   Also are the streams of parental or grandparental wisdom, godly traits such as preserving the Lord’s Day for worship of our beloved Lord and enjoying warm, family exchanges; recognizing younger members of each family; filling the family pew in the village church which has been replaced by seats at the football stadium; frequenting the family library where great truths are treasured for each generation.   Old-fashioned courtesies, gratitude for each prepared meal, and finding all the laundry ironed and folded in the cupboard, are recognized and practised.

When we teach our little children the things of the Lord Jesus and His dying on the cross for our sins and His glorious rising again from the dead, we carve a family well.   From this well we teach them to think purely, as God’s Word states, ‘What ever things are pure or lovely, think on these things.’ We show how they must not be angry when others speak   rude words, or want to fight with them., ’Love one another as I have loved you.’   From the well, we show the truth, ‘Our children must obey their father and mother, that their days may be long in the land which the Lord your God gives you.   ‘Each day we would teach them to memorize a verse of God’s precious word; children grasp truth by repeating it several times, whereas we adults need more effort.

Each well shows how the Lord provides for our family and dear children a continual stream of living water.   The original well was scooped out spade full after spadeful; the sides were evened until we reached the bubbly spring of living water.   The children would realize that when Daddy or Mummy taught from the Word of God they were drawing from the refreshing spring of life-giving water.   Before we had a servant to draw our water in Indonesia, I let down the bucket suspended on the long bamboo, drew it into the cistern,   providing enough for each of our family.    I sweated furiously, while drawing water for washing cooking, drinking ( after being boiled ) and laundry.   The height of the well water indicated the strength of the nearby River Brantas.    A father must contribute for His family’s spiritual need: and he does so gladly.   

Garbage may easily clog our wells.   How is your well?   Whoever would block wells that are life-giving to God’s people?   Yes, some opposed God’s work ; and in this case, the culprits were Philistine immigrants.    Why should new arrivals stand against godly principles.   ‘Now the Philistines had stopped up all the wells ( not some or the majority - but all ).   Satan resolved to undermine the hidden foundations and the secluded springs of eternal life: which his father's servants had dug in the days of Abraham his father, and they had filled them with dirt (old soil, contaminated, corrupt.’)   Substance abuse of marihuana,  ice, alcohol, toxic regardless of its percentage,   binge drinking as accepted in university halls, stifle the well of pure, uninhibited life.

Gwenda’s father oversaw the bill for ‘Religious Instruction, passed in our state parliament under powerful leadership by premier Sir Thomas Playford.    Years of negotiation plus daily earnest prayer culminated in this break through.   Many, including my dear Gwenda, and me devoted two hours Wednesday morning to this bible teaching.   My prayer, ’Lord, please free my practice from emergencies and the delivery of expectant mothers’ which He marvelously honored over years.   Yet the present Philistines complained of teaching ‘those kids who disliked the session’, decreed they would rather be on the golf course than teaching the life-imparting word of God in the class room, tossing dirt into the well each Wednesday morning.     They clogged the well of religious instruction with   garbage.    The state-wide privilege was withdrawn.    Well blockers deprived an entire generation  of valuable bible teaching in that weekly session.    Today we reap the whirlwind.     Heaven’s great white throne judgment will declare the enormity of this.   I shudder for the well cloggers‘ judgment.

We grieved.   This heightened our teaching our children bible truth each night at home.

  Youth for Christ and Campaigners for Christ opened Adelaide’s wells of evangelism.    1000 young people filled the Adelaide town Hall Saturday nights.    Australia and NZ’s finest bible teachers and evangelists came monthly: namely   John Ridley, Jungle doctor Paul White, child specialist A H Brown,   legal and missionary leader Oswald Sanders.   Bible exposition preceded an open invitation to repent and receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour and supreme Lord. 

Combined planning, prayer, expectation, accomplished pipe-organists and a celebrated cornet player accompanied robust, joyful singing.     Later partisanship dispersed excited crowds   and individual group promotion programs substituted.   Holy Spirit drive evaporated.   We lost spiritual initiative as the thunderous flow of life-giving water ceased.

Wells of evangelism, urgent prayer, counseling , when 100 young people nightly professed faith in our Lord Jesus, were counseled with bible-schooled young people:   these were clogged with garbage.   Out of His inward self will flow rivers of living water, speaking of the flow of our all-sufficient Lord Jesus.   I have been privileged to follow lives and ministries of some who came to the Lord during those unique days; who have distinguished their Lord in their faithful life-style, families, professions and Christian ministry.

‘Isaac’s servants dug in the valley, and found a well of running water there.’ v19     Hidden in the fold of the valley was this spring of life-giving water.’     Then the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac’s herdsmen, claiming the water was their’s. They gave it the Hebrew n ame of Ezek as they quarreled with him. V20    Ungodly elements will always dispute their right to the work of God, so challenging God’s people.    What garbage may fill our individual lives?    Love of money or accumulating resources being the root of evil’,  loving the things of this world,   may block the wells of our individual lives,  even our corporate church existence.

Lustful looks will fan the blaze burning in our hearts, so that strong winds will fan the fires and obstruct the secret channels of the concealed well of our purity or chastity.   Guard lest anger or desire for revenge should fill our entire vision, thus staunching the flow of running water of his undying love and compassionate concern for each other.    Don’t silt up the wells. 
 
When my dear Gwenda’s angiogram showed how her coronary arteries were occluded, I realized that urgent surgery bypass alone would preserve her life.     Years later, we praise our Lord that life-giving blood, oxygen and nutrition have flowed unhindered; a million heart beats every eight days: courtesy of our great Creator.   Mercifully, her heart muscle was intact. Your Lord preserves your spiritual well-being, much more significant than the efficient natural heart .

Our Lord Jesus must go through Samaria, where Jacob’s well lay.   While the disciples foraged in the nearby city, our dear Lord engaged a desperately degenerate woman in conversation.    After discussing ’living water’ she realized that the Giver of life,  holiness and chastity in marriage relationships had challenged her immoral life.   Leaving her water pot at Jacob’s well, she hurried back to the city, speaking of One, ’Who told me all things that ever I did.’   Such comment would have scorched many lives, especially the equally-lustful men who had associated with her.   Christ stayed on in the city because many were deeply, spiritually hungry.   Centuries later, Jacob’s well still flowed; yet more importantly, she had received Christ, the water of life, as her resident Savior.    No one had obstructed the flow of water in that well over the centuries since it was dug: everything  climaxed in her personal communion with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  

M en and women are desperately searching for the living water which flows only from our Lord.

Keep the well of witnessing and personal account of the Lord’s actions open for destitute men and women, who try to hide their bankrupt lives, even God‘s people.    Witnessing for a loving Lord dries up when we stay the flow of life with timid fear, hesitancy, lack of love. John 4    Jacob’s well is still intact, although our insensitive guide to our WW11 hospital unit was more interested in the cricket with UK than the historic truth of the preserved well.    Priorities demand a free flow of well water.    What wells should you sensitively clean out, or free-home work, sport?

 ‘The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son cleanses us from all sin.’   The powerful, purifying purge.

                                                Christ’s Life must flow again!