THE child of God must always behave honestly in the world to the glory of God. In spite of the actions of the world around us, we must remain faithful to God, and show this faithfulness in giving a good witness to God in abiding by our promises and living in holiness. Abraham did this and it was clear to Abimelech when he said in verse 22 of Abraham that God was with him, and that he showed a life which always lived honestly in accordance with the holy mind of God. Abimelech traded on this when he came to Abraham and made a treaty with him for his own safety. We must follow this way whatever the cost.

Abraham dealt with Abimelech honestly and openly, but Abimelech behaved deviously. Abimelech did not bind his people with the treaty he had made with Abraham, and seemed to turn a blind eye towards their actions. Because of this his people claimed ownership of a well which belonged to Abraham by right of creating it. Abraham did not try to steal the water belonging to Abimelech, but rather dug his own well to obtain water for himself and his live-stock. This is an example to us in our living in this world today.

The way of the world, illustrated in the action of Abimelech and his servants, took and opposite way. The servants of Abimelech felt it was alright to claim the well Abraham had dug, and seized it, that is stole it, from Abraham's servants. The servants of Abimelech took the easy way. Instead of the hard labour of digging their own well for water, they stole the water belonging to Abraham. Not content with this when Abraham complained of this violation of the treaty between him and Abimelech, Abimelech pretended to have not been aware of the behaviour of his servants, and denied any knowledge of it. He behaved in the way all who do wrong in the world tend to behave; he denied all knowledge of it, and claimed he had no responsibility for it. This was the way of Adam and Eve when God challenged them after they had eaten the forbidden fruit. They did not admit their fault or repent, but made excuses.

We have examples of this in world affairs, where a country behaves maliciously against another, and even though it is plain they are responsible for the act, deny all knowledge of it, and deny that they have behaved wrongfully. In personal dealings in society the world way is to show little if any repentance for a wrong act, and deny it if they can.

Abraham's example in this affair with Abimelech is revealing and gives a sound way forward for believers in this sinful world. First of all Abraham did not sit down under this injustice. Although he remained calm and acted peacefully, he did not allow the sin of Abimelech's servant's to go by without challenge. As believers we have here a good example. Abraham remained courteous with the one who had wronged him, but made clear the wrong of his opponents, and sought a just resolution of the problem. Although we must always act in a Christ-like way in dealing with wrong, we are not meant to overlook such injustice. This example is not altered by the words of Jesus of turning the other cheek. We are allowed to act according to the laws of society and challenge every violation of that law.

Abraham was willing and does go further with the courteous way he dealt with Abimelech. He first sought to reaffirm the treaty previously made, but also went the second mile, by reaffirming the truth that he had dug the well, and made this clear in the ceremony of setting aside seven ewe lambs as a gift to Abimelech. Abraham called on Abimelech to accept these lambs as a token that the well belonged to him by right of creating it, and calling Abimelech to approve his right to ownership of the well. This tells us that it is not wrong in some circumstances for a Christian to go to law to obtain justice.

In this way, without seeking to humiliate Abimelech in anyway, Abraham acted to reaffirm and strengthen the treaty of non-aggression between their two societies, and so settling the matter as peacefully as possible.

Even though, like the world, Abimelech confessed no wrong in the matter, we find the matter was resolved as his people withdrew from closeness to Abraham and his people. So by courageous, polite and just dealing with the world, represented by Abimelech, Abraham gained a peaceful resolution. The outcome here was good, but it may not always be so. Even then the Christ-like behaviour of Abraham must be our guide, even when the world continues to deal sinfully and unreasonably.