Genesis 21:16-21

Hagar lifted her voice and wept.  It seems as though she was captive to her circumstances and the cruel reality was that she and her boy were done for.  She was completely desperate and crying out, and who shows up…Jesus.  Who is the angel of God, or the angel of the Lord?  It’s the preincarnate Christ…its Jesus.  That’s the way it is, when we in desperation cry out to God, when we lift our voices, when we passionately make known our case before the Lord, no matter your background or past, He hears and responds. 

How do I know?

Take a look at a guy named Jeremiah.  He was what some might consider a model of failure and futility.  He was God’s prophet for over forty years, yet not one convert, not even a re-dedication, all he got from the people he tried to help was mockery and beatings.  He was put in prison, thrown into a well, and taken captive to Egypt against his will.  He was no stranger to crying out to God; in fact his nickname is the “weeping prophet” for penning the book of Lamentations.  But even a guy like Jeremiah heard from God, in some of his hardest most troubling moments God spoke to Jeremiah and said:

“…I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.  For I know the thoughts I have toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.  Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.  And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.  I will be found by you, says the Lord, and I will bring you back from your captivity…”

Jeremiah 29:10-14

You see, it doesn’t matter if you’re the head of a seemingly failing ministry, or the cast away that is hopelessly bound for death.  Jesus is there, He hears your cry, and He’s responded.  He desires that all would be saved and none would perish.  He says He desires to bring good towards you, that when you seek Him with all your heart…then you will find Him and He’ll bring you out of your gnarly situation.

Where are you today? 

Do you feel as though you’re wandering through the wilderness of life, things are dry and you’re getting nowhere fast? 

Perhaps you’re like Jeremiah who thought you were called and anointed but all you seem to receive is boos and hiss’ from your friends and your ministry has no apparent fruit?

Cry out to Jesus!  Call to Him!  Seek Him with all your heart, and God will “Open your eyes” to find the  hope, peace, and joy that will never go dry, leave you hanging, or forsake you.

Count on it!

Genesis 21:14-15

I love survival information; stories of survival in less than welcoming conditions have always caught my interest.  When reading this passage it struck me that in the conditions of the wilderness of Beersheba, a sunspot of sorts with arid and hot climates, two people wandering with only a small ration of food and water wouldn’t stand much chance for survival.  As I looked for information on how long the average healthy human being could survive while in conditions like the wilderness of Beersheba, I came to find the average survival rule of thumb is: 3 hours without shelter, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without food.

After Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael off in the early morning with some food and water the situation dried up rather quickly.  Conditions were more than likely pretty rough and as we see in the verses that follow it wasn’t just dehydration that ailed Hagar and Ishmael…it was loss of Hope as well.

In the Bible water often represents the Word of God (John 4, John 15:3, Ephesians 5:26) and the Spirit of God (Isaiah 44:3, Zechariah 14:8, John 7:37-39).  Just as Hagar and Ishmael didn’t stand much chance for survival in the heat of the day while wandering through the wilderness without water, when “the water in the skin” or the living water of our hearts dries up, we too are bound for dehydration and gradual death both physically and spiritually.  The common mistake that we as believers often make is that because we have a Bible in hand and are reading the scriptures we are okay, the truth is that’s only part of the equation. 

Have you ever made the mistake of putting a bottle of some type of beverage to your lips and didn’t realize that the cap was still on the bottle?  The satisfaction of the beverage is there but it’s not accessible unless the cover is removed.   The Bible is like that bottle of water, and the only way that the cap comes off and we are filled with the living water of the Word and the refreshing Spirit of God is through intimate relationship and faith in Jesus Christ.  We can read all we want but when the Spirit of God isn’t present things get pretty dry and our time in the Word isn’t fully satisfying.

“But their minds were blinded.  For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.  But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.  Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.”

2 Corinthians 3:14-16

When times get hot and arid in life and it seems as though all hope is lost we often find ourselves looking for shelter in the most insufficient places, Ishmael wasn’t the only guy that found himself under a shrub, Elijah went under a broom tree, and Jonah tried to find some shade under some leaves as well.  All these guys were in a hopeless state in their respective “hot” situations…perhaps you’re looking to duck under some shade from the heat of your circumstances?  King David tells us that safety is found in abiding in the presence of God.

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.”

Psalm 91:1-2

Where are you today?

Are you looking for refuge from the heat of the day?

Are you dry and thirsty when in the Word of God?

Turn to Jesus, get back to intimacy with Him, He’ll take the cap off your bottle and pour you a fresh glass of satisfaction.

Genesis 21:12-13

God isn’t a liar.  He holds strong and true to His word.  He told Abraham that He would make a nation of His seed.  Now Abraham was put into a position where he just needed to trust the Lord.  Why was Abraham able to just let go and send Hagar and Ishmael off into the desert with no provision?  Because Abraham was beginning to understand that God is faithful. 

“Every crooked place shall be made straight and the rough places plain.” (Isaiah 40:4)

“And I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten…and you shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the Lord your God, that has dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.”  (Joel 2:25-26)

Today you might be faced with the decision to trust God and let go of a certain situation.  It may be hard, you might wish there was another way, but God reassures us to “not let it be displeasing”. 

She might want a divorce.

He is making bad choices and going down the wrong road.

Don’t give up, don’t be displeased… “Listen to the voice” of the Lord as He says, “I will also make a nation”.

God will care for your situation.  As you let it go into God’s hands, he’ll deal with it properly.  We see here the father of the faith maturing in his faith.  He’s letting go, giving matters over to God, and trusting Him to redeem the mistakes he was responsible for.  Sure it’s hard, but God will do just as He has said He would. 

Genesis 21:9-11

The story of Sarah, Isaac, Hagar, and Ishmael gives us an in depth illustration of the conflict within every man between the flesh and the Spirit, and the Law versus Grace (Galatians 3:19-4:31).  We’re told by Paul in the book of Galatians that Ishmael is a picture of the flesh and Isaac a picture of the Spirit, as well as Hagar a picture of the Law (or Mt.Sinai, where the Law was given) while Sarah is an illustration of the new covenant, also referred to as Jerusalem where Jesus shed his blood and sealed the deal for salvation.

“For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman.  But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, which things are symbolic.  For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar—for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children—but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.

For it is written:

“Rejoice, O barren, You who do not bear!  Break forth and shout, You who are not in labor!  For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband.”

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise.  But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.  Nevertheless what does the Scripture say?  “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.”  So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free.”

Galatians 4:22-31

Abraham was in a hard spot.  On one hand he had the love of his youth, his first wife Sarah, with whom he’d trekked for so long, waiting for the day when the desire of their hearts, Isaac, would arrive.  On the other hand he had this relationship with Hagar that should have never happened, the path that should have never been taken, and the responsibility that he couldn’t put off due to the results of pursuing what he thought was best. 

Sound familiar? 

It’s exactly like us, when we choose to pursue our own desires instead of the way, God (the love of our lives), has called us to walk. 

Now the time arrived for Abraham to choose which will be nurtured and which will be cast off.  Will it be his first love and God given son, or will he choose the path which he tried to establish, the woman which wasn’t his wife, and the son which was birthed from disobedience and disbelief?

The option to raise and nurture both boys wasn’t available.  Enmity was present between Ishmael and Isaac.  That’s the way it is with the flesh and the Spirit.  The fleshy sinful desires will always look to overcome, smother, and destroy the God given spirit-filled promises for your life.  If Abraham didn’t choose, more than likely Ishmael would have killed Isaac, this might seem like speculation, but it wasn’t uncommon that a surrogate son who was old enough to realize all that he had coming to him as heir would do everything within his power to secure his inheritance, even if it meant killing the biological son.  And so it is with the Spirit and the flesh, if we don’t choose which to nurture and which to cast away we’ll see that the flesh will grow, the things that were birthed from our own desires will seek to dictate over the Spiritual things of God, moving ever so slightly into the position to smother, destroy, and dispose of the promises of God for our lives.

This story seems kind of odd and a bit harsh, but in reality it’s a stark contrast to the human condition of sin and sanctification.

When confronted with the failures of the flesh we’re tempted to embrace the Law (Hagar) to control the flesh (Ishmael).  We think, “If I crack down on the flesh, if I show it who the boss is and lay down the law, then I’ll be okay.  A couple practical rules here and there and this will all be under control.” 

The problem with that answer is the control never lasts, you’ll do fine for a day, a week, or even a couple months…but just when you think you’ve gotten things sorted and you let down your guard the flesh rises up and overcomes you.  That’s why the Law can’t bring salvation.  It will always condemn mankind, the Law isn’t bad, it simply shows us for who we are…fleshy and sinful.  Hagar and Ishmael needed to go.

The answer is Grace, God’s promise of salvation through the greater-than-Isaac, Jesus Christ the Son and the deliverance of God’s desired outcome (Sanctification).  We must embrace our Sarah and Isaac if we desire to see life and the best that God has in store for us, otherwise we will be living with conflict, strife, and under the oppression of the Law instead of the Liberty and Love of our Savior.

“So Abram said to Sarai, “Indeed your maid is in our hand; do to her as you please.”  And when Sarai dealt harshly with her, she fled from her presence.”

Genesis 16:6

This is so like us, we foolishly make decisions apart from God, and then we start lashing out on everyone around us when we start to reap what we have sown.  Here we see that neither Abram nor Sarai showed conduct becoming of those who were faithful to God; the Bible is so honest like that, showing both the good and the ugly in every particular story. 

The great thing is that God comes to the rescue and redeems the gnarly actions of Abram and Sarai.  I like that, because I too have behaved foolishly, I have gone out of God’s will and lashed out on people when I had to pay the piper for my stupidity. 

God is so faithful to us even when we blow it and turn people off to God like Sarai and Abram did here with Hagar.  Praise God that He faithfully “sees” and intervenes in each of our lives, not only redeeming our mistakes but at the same time reconciling everyone to Him.

Genesis 16:1-4

Abram had heard God’s voice tell him he would father many nations, have many descendants, and have an heir. It doesn’t get much clearer than that when hearing a promise about having children.

What is it that made Abram stop waiting for God to fulfill His promise and take matters into his own hands?

Some would say it was waiting thirteen years, which did play a part I’m sure, but I believe it had more to do with what voice Abram was listening to, the presumptuous voice of Sarai instead of the Lord’s voice of provision.

In the Ancient Middle East it was a huge embarrassment to not have an heir to carry on the family name. Sarai felt as though she was a failure and shaming her husband and family. Abram I’m sure wasn’t necessarily voicing God’s promises in faith seeing that He so willingly took Hagar as a surrogate mother. So what we have here is an important lesson on what to do when waiting on the Lord.

Zuwd is the Hebrew verb meaning to act presumptuously; it implies arrogance, pride, rebellion, and insolence. Throughout the Bible we see many different characters actually sinning when acting presumptuously… Korah, Miriam, Aaron, Saul, some kings and prophets, to name a few. We see that to presume our own ideas instead of proclaiming God’s promises is a big mistake. When Sarai tried to save face in the embarrassing situation of not being able to have kids, she actually acted in rebellion to God’s promise by urging Abram to make things happen with Hagar. Abram in turn sinned by ignoring God’s voice and listening instead to Sarai’s presumptuous advice, which only lead to division, heartache, and strife.

When we choose not to believe God’s promises we sin and bring hurt, heartache, and division to our lives and the lives of the ones we love. Abram would later learn that God always intended to do just as He said, and would receive the blessings that only God could bring.

I suggest if you also want to be one who experiences God’s power and blessing at work in the promises meant for you, you too will believe, proclaim, and wait upon the Lord’s promises until God sees fit to establish them.

Save everyone a whole heap of hurt and simply trust God, you’ll find it to be more rewarding than you think.