Based on a sermon by Derren Liang—Irvine, California, USA

And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” (Gen 26:22)

When Isacc’s conflict with the herdsmen of Gerar finally ended, he said, “We shall be fruitful in the land.” This utterance was not only a statement of intent, but one that came to define his whole life.

Isaac was immensely blessed by God, but God’s favor did not land on him by accident, or simply because he was the son of Abraham. Why, then, did Isaac gain God’s favor?

Same Family, Different Paths: Isaac and Lot

It is interesting, at this juncture, to compare the lives of Isaac and Lot.  They both spent a significant portion of their lives with Abraham, who would have been a major influence on each of them as they were growing up. Lot travelled great distances with his uncle after they left their home country, and they shared the same faith. Similarly, Isaac was raised in his father’s faith, and witnessed firsthand how that faith was lived out.

However, Lot’s story ended in tragedy. Even though he escaped from Sodom, he had lost everything: his wife had been turned into a pillar of salt, and his two daughters engaged in incest with him. Isaac’s life was different. After his father died, he continued to be blessed by  God. His desire to be “fruitful in the land” indeed came to pass.

For two persons who had shared the same mentor, Lot and Isaac could not have had more different lives. Why was Abraham’s influence on each of them so different? If we look closely, we can see that the important distinction between the two is whether their choices were God-centered or self-centered.

When Lot and Abraham parted ways, Lot chose where to go by what looked pleasing to his eyes. He “saw all the plain of Jordan, that it was well watered everywhere…like the garden of the LORD, like the land of Egypt as you go toward Zoar” (Gen 13:10). Abraham, on the other hand, trusted in God’s direction and providence, walking the land given to him by the Lord (Gen 13:14–18). Away from Abraham’s guidance, Lot chose to live among the cities of the plain (Gen 13:12). Even worse, he eventually settled in Sodom, despite its reputation as an extraordinarily wicked city (Gen 14:12; 13:13). Although the Bible describes Lot as a righteous man (2 Pet 2:7–8), he clearly did not prioritize his relationship with God when he settled in such a spiritually corrupt environment. The effects of this decision on Lot’s family are well known (Gen 19).

In contrast, Isaac always put God’s will above his own, even when Abraham had passed away and could no longer influence his decision-making. In Isaac’s heart, the Lord would always be his Master, and so God blessed him.

So how was Isaac’s life blessed by God, and how can we also be fruitful in the land?

Isaac’s Submissiveness

In every decision that Isaac made, he always considered God as the priority. Because his choices were pleasing to God, God would bless them. We can see that, by the way he lived his life, Isaac had a submissive faith.

Genesis 26:1 records that famine struck the land twice—once during Abraham’s time, and another during Isaac’s. The need to find food was a recurring and severe problem that had to be resolved. If our most basic needs—food, water, shelter—are not met, it can be difficult to believe that God loves us.

When Abraham was faced with famine in the land, he moved south to Egypt. This was an immediate solution to his problem but, clearly, this was not how God wanted him to deal with it. Likewise, the Book of Ruth records how, when there was a famine, the family of Elimelech and Naomi moved from Bethlehem to the land of Moab. This improved their situation, but God was not pleased—they had left Canaan, the promised land. Because of this, God withheld His blessings, and the three men in the family died. While the decision to move solved the immediate problem of lack of food, the decision itself resulted in an even greater problem.

When it was Isaac’s turn to face famine, he wanted to do as his father did and move to Egypt. However, God instructed him not to:

Then the LORD appeared to him 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 I will perform the oath which I swore to Abraham your father.” (Gen 26:2–3)

The Lord told Isaac: “Live in the land of which I shall tell you.” He promised that, if Isaac did so, He would be with him and bless him. But could Isaac believe this? If Isaac remained in the land, he would be under daily pressure to find food for his household. If he moved, the pressure would be lifted. If he submitted to God, a long path of suffering laid ahead of him. Despite all this, Isaac submitted, with faith, and was indeed rewarded by God:

Then Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year a hundredfold; and the LORD blessed him. The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous. (Gen 26:12–13)

This was a miracle that could only have come about through God’s blessing. In dire circumstances, it is important to make decisions that please God, because then we can be sure that God will take care of us.

What kind of famine might we face today? It goes without saying that we need to work to earn money in order to live. If we cannot find employment, then it is as if we are facing a famine. It is a problem that we must resolve. But the question is: where does God want me to find a job? We must put this in our hearts. When circumstances dictate that we need to relocate to find a job, then it is more important to consider where God wants us to go, rather than where we want to go. If we follow God’s direction and do things according to His will, then He will take care of us. He will abide with us and bless us. But if we go somewhere He does not want us to go, we may find a good job, but we will experience a spiritual famine.

If we do all things according to God’s principles, then God will abide with us and bless us. If we choose to follow our own choices at the expense of God’s principles, then what we do will not be pleasing to the Lord. We may experience success in the short term but, without the presence of God, we will suffer in the long run.

Isaac’s Sufficiency

Isaac’s submissiveness and trust in God can also be seen in the incident of the wells. Genesis 26:18–22 records how they searched for water for themselves and their sheep, digging three wells in total.

And Isaac dug again the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. He called them by the names which his father had called them. (Gen 26:18)

These wells had been passed down to Isaac by his father, but they had been stopped by the Philistines. After he had dug the first well, Isaac met with a challenge:

But the herdsmen of Gerar quarreled with Isaac's herdsmen, saying, “The water is ours.” So he called the name of the well Esek, because they quarreled with him. (Gen 26:20)

How would Isaac respond? How a person responds to such a trial would depend on whether he has God in his life. He who does not have God will react based on his own desires. In contrast, he who has God will consider what God would find pleasing, and do it. This is why Isaac conceded not only one well to the herdsmen, but two (Gen 26:21).

Why did Isaac do this, at the risk of appearing cowardly? He did it for peace and harmony. God does not want us to quarrel and make enemies, because God is love (1 Jn 4:8). Where God is, there is peace and joy.

In verse 22, we read that Isaac’s third attempt at digging a well did not cause a dispute with the herdsmen:

And he moved from there and dug another well, and they did not quarrel over it. So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the LORD has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” (Gen 26:22)

Rehoboth means “the Lord has made room for us.” Indeed, this was a well from which water continuously flowed; a single well was sufficient for Isaac’s household.

Today, some of us work two or three jobs, laboring day and night. We crave for the security of knowing that if we lose one of our jobs, we will have another to fall back on. We do not realize that, in fact, one well is sufficient. If we have the blessing of God, then having one job is enough to support us. Working several jobs may give us more income and a greater sense of accomplishment, but will we have any time left for God? Abraham and Isaac understood the need to spend more time loving God and loving men. When we leave this world, if we have not done anything for God and for man, what legacy will we leave behind? If we have not left behind any good deeds, then our lives would have been wasted. Will anyone remember us, and most importantly, will God?

Isaac felt that Rehoboth would be sufficient, and would help them to be fruitful. We do not need many wells to be fruitful. If God is with us, then our well will be a living well, and we will have more time to do what is pleasing to God.

Issac’s Life Balance

In order to maintain a good life balance, Isaac had to maintain a good relationship with God. We see this played out in Genesis 26:24–25.

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.” So he built an altar there and called on the name of the LORD, and he pitched his tent there; and there Isaac's servants dug a well.

We can often deduce the health of a marriage by looking at how the couple respond to each other. If a husband loves and cherishes his wife, she will respond positively and reciprocate in kind; in this way, the relationship gradually improves. But if the couple respond negatively to each other, for example, reacting to a complaint with yet another complaint, then the marriage will gradually deteriorate.

Our relationship with God is the same. How do we respond to God’s blessing? And if we do not react positively, what will God’s response be in turn? In Isaac’s case, he had been blessed with a harvest that was a hundredfold of what he sowed (Gen 26:12), and a living well. How did Isaac respond?

Firstly, he built an altar. Secondly, he pitched his tent there. And thirdly, he dug a well. These three actions represent the three main aspects of a balanced life: to build an altar is to call on the name of the Lord, that is, our life of worship; to pitch a tent represents our family life; and to dig a well, which is to supply water for the sheep, signifies our livelihood.

-Build an Altar

If we look at the three stages of Isaac’s response, we will notice a very particular order. The first thing Isaac did was build an altar; this means that he put God first. For us, we can put God first by reserving some time for Him, and not allowing anything, or anyone, to take it away. The prime example is Sabbath day, which is a whole day dedicated to God. But aside from the Sabbath, we should keep some time to spend with God every day. When we wake up, we can pray to God to thank and praise Him, to ask for His guidance so that everything we do in the coming day may be pleasing to Him and according to His will. This time should also include reading the Bible and meditating on the word of God.

Spiritually, we have a father-child relationship with God. As with any relationship, if we want to build and maintain a close bond, we must spend time with our heavenly Father. This is how we put God, and the worship of God, before everything else in our lives.

-Pitch a Tent

The second step in responding to God’s blessing is to pitch our tent—to establish and care for our family. In some households, one of the parents—either the father or the mother—is the breadwinner, while the other is the primary carer for the family. But when circumstances, or preferences, dictate that both parents have to work, much planning and effort is needed to make sure the children are cared for, and can grow up in a stable and loving environment.

When children grow up without parental love and warmth at home, then problems arise. Such individuals will often feel that their hearts are empty, and will seek the warmth and love they lack in other places—sometimes in pre-marital relationships, or other risky or inappropriate activities. It is hard to change family dynamics once they are established, and even harder to reverse the emotional effects of childhood neglect. This is why our second priority is to focus on pitching our tent.

-Dig a Well

Finally, after we have fulfilled our duties towards God and our family, we need to dig our well. As mentioned above, if we have the grace and blessings of God, then one well—one job—is enough. This is why it is the least important of the three tasks. When we have the grace of God, we will undoubtedly be able to find a good job that can sustain our family. Isaac, having this faith, gave away the first two wells he dug, and, sure enough, found a third well. If we believe that God is with us, we need not worry if we lose our job, or get passed over for a role we applied for. We will eventually find another well—one that is sufficient for our needs.

Conclusion

So, what is the secret to being fruitful in our lives? Is it simply a combination of hard work and good luck? Isaac’s story tells us that the first and foremost thing is to have God abiding with us and blessing us. With God by our side, no matter how hard our work is, or how great the pressure, we will be able to bear the burden. If we lose sight of God and His blessings, when challenges and competition appear at work, we will find it hard to cope. But if we have the blessing of God, we will not worry if we lose the first well, or even the second well, because we know that God has a third well prepared for us.

Isaac’s faith shone through his actions—he put God’s will above his own judgment when making decisions, responded positively to God’s blessings, and believed that God’s grace would be sufficient for his needs. He ensured his life was balanced by having the correct priorities—God first, family second, and livelihood third. If we emulate Isaac’s faith and actions, then we can also live a fruitful and blessed life in the land God has given us.