Photo Credit: Joe More
Creative Commons
In Genesis chapter sixteen we find an amazing story of God’s incredible grace in the life of Hagar, Sarah’s maid. As this story begins, we know that Abraham and Sarah were promised: ‘and in you, and in your seed, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’ (See Gen.12:3, 15:1-6)
That promise we know it to be true was to come through the ‘promised child’ Isaac, (that was not yet born and talked about more fully in Genesis 17,&18, and in the N.T. later to be Christ a fulfillment of Abraham seed Gal.3:8,16) and not through Ishmael that was to come through this story, in Hagar’s life as recorded in Genesis chapter sixteen. (Even in God’s mercy, He blessed Hagar with Ishmael and a promise that a multitude of descendants and twelve kings would come from him. See Gen.16:10-12,17:20)
Having reached a point of social humiliation, because Sarah had not yet bore Abraham a child, (she knew God had promised a child but had not yet come) that Sarah encouraged Abraham to have relations with Hagar her maid, thinking that the Lord would carry out His promise for Abraham to have a child another way. And for some strange reason Abraham agreed. (See Gen.16:2) And has time went on, sure enough Hagar becomes pregnant. Sarah gets even more angry when she finds out and she forces Hagar to leave. Therefore, being forced to leave Hagar flees her mistress and the angel of the Lord finds her seated by a well. (See Gen.16:7)
Through this dialogue the angel of the Lord confirms that she was indeed pregnant, and she is instructed to go back to her masters household and was told to submit to Sarah’s authority once more. (See Gen.16:9-10) And out of appreciation for the mercy she had been shown, Hagar uses another name to refer to the Lord who had spoken to her and she said: “You are the God who sees me.” She also said: “Have I truly seen the one who sees me?” (See Gen.16:13) She now knows that the Lord is watching!
Beloved, as we start 2018 I want to encourage you – that the Lord is the God who sees you! He knows where you’ve come from, He knows where you are going, and he knows exactly where you are!
~ Dan Ecker
