Fruits of the Spirit: LESSON 4 PART 1 – Kindness (Romans 12:13)
LESSON: KINDNESS is caring for the needs of others.
Memory Verse: “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” – Romans 12:13
Bible Story: Rebekah’s kind heart (Genesis 24)
God promised Abraham that he would be the father of many nations. When Abraham was 100 years old and his wife Sarah was 90, God blessed them with a son whom they named “Isaac.”
When Isaac was all grown up, Abraham decided to send one of his servants back to his homeland to search for a bride for his son. This was because he wanted a wife for him that came from his own people because the women where they now lived did not worship the one true God. So, he sent his servant away to make a long journey to the country where he came from to find Isaac a suitable bride.
The servant left, taking with him ten of his master’s camels loaded with all kinds of good things from his master. When he got to the place, he was very tired and thirsty and he was also wondering how to find Isaac a bride. So he PRAYED to God to give him a sign, and he prayed that the woman who will give him water to drink and offer to get water for his camels too would be the right wife for his master’s son.
Sure enough, even before he finished praying, a beautiful woman named Rebekah, who was from the family of Abraham, came with a jar on her shoulder. When the servant requested for water, Rebekah offered to get water for the camels too.
Now getting some water for a thirsty man by drawing it out of a well is not that hard, but getting water for thirsty camels is a whole different thing. Big, thirsty camels drink a LOT of water; one camel can drink around 30 gallons of water – that’s as much water as would fill a bathtub more than half full (standard bathtub sizes hold up to 50 gallons of water)! Now the servant had 10 camels with him, so this meant that Rebekah actually volunteered to go back and forth the well, drawing up water one jug at a time to fill at least 5 bathtubs full (250 gallons). If her jug holds 2 gallons, that meant Rebekah had to make 125 trips to draw water from the well and bring it back to the camels! That’s definitely a lot of work! And it also meant she had to give up a lot of her time as well!
So, what can we say about this woman Rebekah? Well, for one, the bible tells us she was “VERY BEAUTIFUL.” She may well have had a pretty face, but her actions tell us that she did not only possess outside beauty, but more importantly, she was also beautiful inside. Rebekah practiced HOSPITALITY and was willing to SHARE her time, energy and resources to PROVIDE directly for a stranger’s needs. She had a KIND HEART; one that was compassionate and willing to serve others even if it meant some sacrifice or discomfort on her part.
Rebekah was indeed God’s chosen woman to be Isaac’s wife. The servant told her about his purpose in coming there, and then he told his family about it. They accepted the gifts that the servant gave them and they all agreed (even Rebekah herself) that she would go back with the servant to marry Isaac. The servant praise God and said, “The Lord has granted success to my journey.”
So Rebekah left her home to find Isaac who was patiently waiting for his lovely bride. They got married and loved each other. In this story, God took care of Abraham, Isaac, Rebekah and the servant. He answered their prayers and took care of their needs. Praise be to our God!
