PEACE CHILD
This post is taken from my newest book, The Perfect Savior, an Easter devotional. Order from Our Daily Bread or BarneyCargile.com
Don and Carol Richardson served as missionaries in New Guinea among the Sawi people. The couple labored to share Christ’s love with this tribe, but the Sawis resisted the mercy of God. Their culture didn’t value this quality. Missionary historian Ruth A. Tucker wrote, “As [Don] learned the language and lived with the people, he became more aware of the gulf that separated his Christian worldview from the worldview of the Sawi: In their eyes, Judas, not Jesus, was the hero of the Gospels, Jesus was just the dupe to be laughed at.” Then Don discovered the concept of the Peace Child, which opened their hearts to the gospel.
Two tribal villages constantly warred, with much bloodshed. Unable to convince them to abandon their violent practices, Don and Carol informed the Sawis they were leaving. This news devastated the tribe, because the Richardsons provided critical medical aid. The Sawi chief took drastic action. He summoned the enemy tribe for a sacred ceremony. As the tribes faced each other, the Sawi chief snatched his infant son from the baby’s mother. He placed the child in the arms of the enemy chief. The enemy tribe vanished into the jungle, and the child was never returned.
When the Richardsons asked about the ceremony, the chief explained, “I offered my son as the Peace Child for our tribes. As long as my son lives, there will be peace between us. If he dies, war will resume. Anyone who kills a Peace Child will himself be killed.” The practice enabled Don to contextualize the gospel, sharing how God offered his Son as the Peace Child for us. For the first time, the Sawi people grasped the gospel. Hundreds of them gave their lives to Jesus.
We recognize Jesus Christ as God’s Peace Child. By accepting him as our Savior, he restores our peace with God. The apostle Paul described it this way, “Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ… While we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him” (Romans 5:1, 10).
Consider the impact on our lives. Almighty God, our Creator, willingly gave up his Son, so we, his enemies, could live forever in spiritual peace. Jesus is God’s one and only Peace Child.
Principle: Jesus is our Peace Child, the only one who can restore our peace with God.
Ponder:
If you were Don Richardson, what would you have thought during this ceremony?
When have you experienced Jesus as your Peace Child?
Pursue: For a deeper dive, study Romans 5:1-11.
Father, thank you for your willingness to sacrifice your only Son as the Peace Child. May I forever live in gratitude for this great sacrifice you made for me.
“THE PERFECT SAVIOR” IS AVAILABLE ON BARNEYCARGILE.COM OR ON AMAZON. TO ORDER ON AMAZON, CLICK HERE: