00:00:01 There is a battle that has lasted for centuries
00:00:04 and continues down to our day.
00:00:07 It’s a battle of wills
00:00:09 —the will of disobedient humans
00:00:11 who fight against Jehovah’s will.
00:00:14 Rather than submitting or surrendering their will
00:00:17 to do Jehovah’s will, most humans refuse
00:00:20 to make peace with him, becoming peacebreakers.
00:00:24 On the other hand,
00:00:26 millions throughout the centuries
00:00:28 have humbly submitted to Jehovah’s will,
00:00:31 making his will their will.
00:00:34 They are known as peacemakers.
00:00:37 By sowing peace with Jehovah,
00:00:40 they have reaped the benefits of having a close, personal friendship with him
00:00:45 and the wonderful hope of living forever in a peaceful new world.
00:00:50 Even so, we must admit
00:00:52 that it can be difficult at times to accept
00:00:55 and then follow Jehovah’s direction
00:00:58 or direction that we may receive from his organization,
00:01:02 especially if we don’t understand the reasons behind the direction
00:01:06 or it’s not what we might prefer.
00:01:10 What is needed to sow and reap peace?
00:01:13 Humility.
00:01:15 Humility is defined as a “lowliness of mind,
00:01:19 freedom from pride or arrogance.”
00:01:22 A humble person is not self-willed,
00:01:25 but they actively look for ways to sow peace
00:01:28 with Jehovah and others.
00:01:31 He’s known as a peacemaker.
00:01:34 What is the result of humility and sowing peace?
00:01:39 Notice what Proverbs 22:4 says:
00:01:43 “The result of humility and the fear of Jehovah
00:01:46 “is [reaping, notice] riches
00:01:49 and glory and life.”
00:01:52 Yes, everlasting life.
00:01:56 The Bible contains many fine examples
00:01:58 of those who sowed and reaped peace
00:02:00 by humbly submitting to Jehovah’s will.
00:02:04 Let’s consider the example of the Gibeonites.
00:02:08 The Gibeonites —weren’t they enemies of the Israelites?
00:02:12 Yes.
00:02:13 So how did they humbly sow and reap peace
00:02:16 with Jehovah and with his people?
00:02:19 As you recall, after Joshua led the Israelites
00:02:23 across the Jordan River into the Promised Land,
00:02:26 Jehovah directed them to remove
00:02:28 the pagan Canaanite nations who dwelled there.
00:02:31 This included the Gibeonites.
00:02:34 The account at Joshua chapter 9
00:02:37 informs us that the Gibeonites were plainly told
00:02:40 that it was Jehovah’s will that the Canaanites be annihilated.
00:02:45 Israel’s stunning victories over Jericho and Ai
00:02:49 made it very clear that Jehovah was fighting for his people,
00:02:54 and the Gibeonites did not want to be next.
00:02:57 But what could they do if this was Jehovah’s will?
00:03:02 Well, they devised an interesting plan.
00:03:04 They sent representatives to seek peace
00:03:07 with the Israelites and thereby with Jehovah.
00:03:11 According to verse 11, they were instructed:
00:03:16 “We will be your servants;
00:03:18 now make a covenant with us.”
00:03:21 So this is what they were to say as representatives.
00:03:24 Verse 4 says that the Gibeonites “acted shrewdly”
00:03:28 by trying to trick the Israelites
00:03:30 with their worn-out clothing and provisions,
00:03:33 pretending that they had traveled from a very distant land
00:03:37 but were actually just 20 miles (30 km) away.
00:03:40 Did their plan work?
00:03:42 Despite their deception, yes, their plan was successful.
00:03:47 In fact, in verse 15,
00:03:49 Joshua made a covenant of peace with the Gibeonites.
00:03:53 Evidently, this was in harmony with Jehovah’s will
00:03:57 and reflected their humility
00:03:59 and desire to seek peace with Him and his people.
00:04:03 They demonstrated their humility and submission
00:04:06 to Jehovah’s will and his representative, Joshua,
00:04:10 by following whatever direction they received.
00:04:13 In fact, notice the direction at verse 27;
00:04:16 it says: “Joshua made them gatherers of wood
00:04:20 and drawers of water for the assembly and for Jehovah’s altar.”
00:04:26 Although the Gibeonite men were likely skilled warriors,
00:04:30 they were happy and content to do whatever work
00:04:33 they were given to support pure worship.
00:04:37 Humbly following direction
00:04:39 saved their lives and brought them peace.
00:04:44 How can we imitate the Gibeonites?
00:04:48 By bringing our lives into harmony with Jehovah’s will.
00:04:52 For some, this may require making big changes,
00:04:56 adjusting their thinking, giving up harmful practices,
00:04:59 and avoiding bad associates.
00:05:02 We can also imitate the Gibeonites by being willing
00:05:06 to perform whatever assignments we are given
00:05:09 to humbly support pure worship.
00:05:13 So the lesson is clear.
00:05:14 Sowing and reaping peace
00:05:17 requires humbly following direction.
00:05:20 This lesson is highlighted in the following dramatization.
00:05:24 Notice the benefits of submitting to Jehovah’s direction.
00:05:35 You see,
00:05:37 the pandemic lasted longer than any of us expected,
00:05:43 and all the conflicting news reports just added to the stress.
00:05:48 Then my sister lost her job and had to move in with us.
00:05:53 So, yeah, it was me
00:05:55 and Kelly, Nicole, and Dad.
00:06:01 Twenty seconds, Son
00:06:03 —twenty seconds.
00:06:13 I’ll see you later.
00:06:14 Yeah.
00:06:15 Uh, where’s your mask?
00:06:17 Don’t worry.
00:06:18 Here, you can use this one.
00:06:20 I won’t get near anyone.
00:06:22 Gary.
00:06:23 Listen!
00:06:25 Nobody at the warehouse is wearing masks.
00:06:28 And do you know how many people have actually gotten sick?
00:06:31 Zero.
00:06:32 So far.
00:06:34 You saw the last Governing Body update.
00:06:37 We can’t let down our guard.
00:06:39 Not now.
00:06:40 Dad, I get it.
00:06:41 OK?
00:06:44 Look, I think it’s great that the brothers are trying to keep us safe.
00:06:49 But . . .
00:06:50 But what?
00:06:52 Don’t you think that they’re, you know, overreacting?
00:07:12 But, of course, it wasn’t the brothers who had the problem.
00:07:19 It was me.
00:07:23 A week later, I found out that a friend in our service group
00:07:27 was in the hospital with COVID-19.
00:07:30 He was young, and he had been taking all the right precautions.
00:07:36 I had really let my guard down.
00:07:43 Now is not the time
00:07:46 to slacken our hand when it comes to safety.
00:07:51 Don’t let your guard down.
00:07:54 Don’t think the virus can’t affect you or your family.
00:08:00 I saw how the organization was really trying to protect us
00:08:04 and how much my decisions were affecting others,
00:08:10 including the people I love the most.
00:08:15 As the pandemic dragged on,
00:08:18 I learned the importance of being humble and obedient.
00:08:27 Following Jehovah’s direction didn’t just help us stay safe,
00:08:35 it brought us peace.
00:08:43 What timely lessons,
00:08:45 especially with all that we are facing today!
00:08:49 Like Gary, there are times
00:08:51 that we may need to adjust our thinking on matters
00:08:54 and put aside our personal opinions and preferences
00:08:57 so we can loyally and humbly follow Jehovah’s direction
00:09:01 or whatever direction we receive from his representatives,
00:09:06 “the faithful and discreet slave.”
00:09:09 Gary learned an important lesson:
00:09:11 Humbly following direction
00:09:13 doesn’t just help our family stay safe,
00:09:16 it brings us happiness and peace
00:09:19 —a vital lesson for us today.
00:09:23 What can help us to humbly follow direction now
00:09:27 as well as in the future?
00:09:29 Note what the apostle Paul said
00:09:31 at Ephesians 5:17;
00:09:36 he says: “Stop being unreasonable,
00:09:38 “but keep perceiving
00:09:42 what the will of Jehovah is.”
00:09:45 The Bible clearly shows God’s thinking on matters.
00:09:49 But what if it’s not so clear to us
00:09:52 or we struggle to fully grasp how it applies to us personally
00:09:56 or in a given situation?
00:09:59 What did Paul advise?
00:10:01 He said: “Keep perceiving what the will of Jehovah is.”
00:10:06 How can we do that?
00:10:08 Well, just as a miner keeps digging deep below the surface of the ground
00:10:11 to find precious gems,
00:10:13 we must look beyond the surface of what we read in the Bible.
00:10:18 This requires that we keep digging deep,
00:10:21 carefully searching for gems in the form of Bible principles.
00:10:26 Then we must prayerfully meditate on what we find.
00:10:31 Then Jehovah’s precious thoughts
00:10:34 will become our thoughts.
00:10:37 Perceiving Jehovah’s thinking on matters
00:10:39 will help us to avoid getting into a battle of wills,
00:10:43 so we can follow His direction
00:10:45 or whatever direction we receive from the Governing Body.
00:10:50 Like the Gibeonites, may we be peacemakers
00:10:53 by continuing to sow peace with Jehovah and his people.
00:10:58 As we humbly make Jehovah’s will our will,
00:11:01 we will joyfully reap abundant peace forever.
00:11:06 Brother Kenneth Flodin, a helper to the Teaching Committee,
00:11:09 will now consider the next talk of this symposium,
00:11:13 “How They Sowed and Reaped Peace —Gideon.”
