Discussion Jumpstarter
Study leader reference - not a definitive answer
Question 6
In West Lala, Pablo says their main thrust was becoming the people’s friends, then responding to robberies with non-resistance—feeding robbers and serving them coffee—and he claims “after the robberies came, the converts came”; what does this suggest about God’s strategy for witness, and what would it cost a church to practice this kind of enemy-love today?
Another way to ask: Pablo says they chose friendship and didn’t fight back against robbers—they fed them and served them coffee—and then people began to convert. What might this say about how God wants Christians to be a witness, and what would it cost a church to love enemies like that today?
Discussion Jumpstarter
Direct Answer
The transcript suggests God used relational presence and surprising enemy-love as the main apologetic for the gospel; practicing that today would cost safety, reputation, emotional comfort, and the willingness to absorb loss without retaliation.
- He says their “burning” goal was “to become the people's friends,” not expecting “converts right away.”
- Their witness was ordinary life, not a program: “we didn't have a big program of evangelism… we were there and they were learning to know us.”
- The turning point was their response to crime: “robberies came left and right, and we responded with non-resistance.”
- He gives a vivid example: “turn around and feed your robber and give him coffee… I served a group coffee three times.”
- He summarizes the pattern: “after the robberies came, the converts came.”