“Put him in the grave with his dead father.”
Little Pedro heard these terrifying words said about him as he stood at the edge of his father’s grave. Even Pedro’s mother, whose husband had just died, agreed.
Pedro and his family are members of the Kulina Indian tribe in the jungles of Peru. At the time Pedro’s father died, the people of his tribe had never heard about the Lord Jesus or how to be saved from their sins and to be sure of going to heaven. Pedro was afraid to die.
In the Kulina tribe in those dark days, parents could ask to have a living child buried with a parent who had died. Since Pedro was young and his mother already had more children than she thought she could possibly feed by herself, Pedro was just moments away from being buried alive!
Pedro was terrified! Without waiting another second, he ran as fast as he could into the jungle. He climbed a tree and sat there, sobbing. When an animal started climbing up the tree where Pedro was sitting, his crying scared the animal away.
Pedro was afraid the men of the village would come looking for him to take him back and bury him. So he came down out of the tree and headed farther into the jungle.
Then, he spotted a jaguar! Now he knew that everyone in his village was in danger. Pedro didn’t think of his own danger, but he did think about the fact that everyone in his village was in danger. He ran back to the village and screamed, “JAGUAR! JAGUAR!”
His mother and a few others followed him back into the jungle. They didn’t find the jaguar, but they did find a deer. One of the men shot the deer with his bow and arrow and took it back to the village for food.
Pedro’s relatives said, “This is a good son. He will help us have lots of meat.” Since they agreed that Pedro was a good little hunter who would help them find meat, they decided not to bury him, and his life was saved.
Pedro and the rest of the Kulina tribe traveled from place to place most of the year. Sometimes they raided settlements to steal machetes and other tools. A measles epidemic broke out after one of these raids, and many people of the Kulina tribe died.
Only 75 people were still alive in Pedro’s village when two young missionaries came to live with them. The missionaries began to study the Kulina language. After they had learned enough, they began to translate the Bible into the Kulina language. For the first time in their lives, Pedro and other Kulinas could learn about God’s love. They heard that God’s Son, the Lord Jesus, came into this world and became a man and died on Calvary’s cross so that anyone who believes in Him can be saved.
Then, Pedro got sick and was once again near death. One of the missionaries read some Bible verses to him that they had just translated. Pedro believed what he heard and said, “I will follow God.” He also said, “I want to hear more from God’s Book so I’ll know it better.”
Another missionary sent medicine, and Pedro soon got over his sickness. After that, Pedro helped the missionaries translate more and more of the Bible into the Kulina language. He wanted all of the Kulina people to understand God’s message and be saved.
God watched over Pedro his whole life and gave him the opportunity to hear the good news of God’s wonderful love. And God has watched over you until this very moment, and He is giving you the opportunity to hear and believe the good news that God sent His Son Jesus into this world to save sinners.
Perhaps you have heard this good news many times. But have you ever believed in the Lord Jesus as your own Savior? If you haven’t, I hope you will not wait another minute to do that.
Messages of God’s Love 11/10/2024