GENESIS
April 29, 2017
By Pastor Kim Hickcox
(All Scripture taken from One New Man Bible unless otherwise noted)
Genesis 21:1-3 “And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said and the LORD did for Sarah what He had spoken. 2For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him. 3And Abraham called the name of his son that was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.” Which means laughter, due to her reaction as noted in Genesis 18:12-15, “Therefore Sarah laughed within herself saying, ‘After I have grown old, will I have pleasure, my lord being so old?’13And the LORD said to Abraham, ‘Why did Sarah laugh saying, “Will I, who am old, of a surety bear a child?” Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I shall return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.’ 15Then Sarah denied it saying, ‘I did not laugh,’ for she was afraid. And He said, ‘No, but you did laugh.’” But I believe He spoke this gently and lovingly to reassure her that her fear would not affect His plan.
In Genesis 21:1 we see the faithfulness of the Lord to Abraham and Sarah as He fulfills His word given to them in Genesis 18:10, “And He said, ‘I shall certainly return to you at this time next year and, see, Sarah your wife will have a son.’ And Sarah listened in the tent door, which was behind him.”
Hebrews 11:11 also speaks of this phenomenon and how Sarah took it when first spoken a year earlier, “By trusting also Sarah, herself barren took power for conception from Abraham’s seed even past the normal age. Because of trust, she considered what was promised.”
Genesis 21:4-7 “And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God commanded him. 5And Abraham was one hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6And Sarah said, ‘God made me laugh, so that all who hear will laugh with me.’ 7And she said, ‘Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah should be given a child to nurse? For I have borne him a son in his old age.’” I guess Sarah was ok with her initial reaction of laughing when the Lord told them that she would have a son in a year. She probably relaxed as soon as she figured out she was pregnant. The Lord is truly merciful and truly is not only slow to anger (as first told us in Nehemiah 9:17), but He totally sees and understands our heart! You will note that Genesis 18:12 says that she “laughed within herself”, so it wasn’t even out loud! And He knew that she was just unbelievably delirious at the very thought! (At least that’s my take on it.)
Genesis 21:8-11 “And the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast the day that Isaac was weaned.” (This would have been at the age of three years old.) “9And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, scornful. 10So she said to Abraham, ‘Cast out this bondwoman and her son, for the son of this bondwoman will not be heir with my son, with Isaac.’ 11And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son.”
Now at first, this may sound like a heartless and even petty thing for Sarah to do, until we understand what was really meant by the English word we read as simply scornful. What first went through my mind was: ok so Ishmael was resentful, and rightly so in his mind, and would probably pick on Isaac or even make his life a bit miserable when on one was looking, but kick him out – really?
However, the meaning of scornful is much, much worse – it is 100% negative and can/will eventually erupt into behavior ranging from brutal teasing to abuse to even murder. So given that the Lord upheld Sarah’s decision, we have to conclude that it was the right one. And even more than that, we again see the Lord’s mercy:
Genesis 21:12-14 “And God said to Abraham, ‘Do not be distressed in your sight because of the lad and because of the bondwoman. In all that Sarah has said to you, listen to her voice because your seed will be called in Isaac. 13And of the son of the bondwoman I shall also make a nation, because he is your seed.’ 14And Abraham rose up early in the morning and took bread and a skin-bottle of water and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder and the child, and sent her away. And she left and wandered in the wilderness of Beer-Sheba.”
It is now time for the Lord to reveal Himself to Hagar again, and to reassure her that she and her son (now 17) will not die in the wilderness:
Genesis 21:15-21 “And the water was spent in the bottle and she put the child under one of the shrubs. 16And she went and sat down opposite, a good way off, about a bowshot, for she said, ‘Let me now see the death of the child.’ And she was sitting opposite of him and lifted up her voice and wept. 17And God heard the voice of the lad, and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven and said to her, ‘What troubles you, Hagar? Do not be in awe! God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. 18Arise, lift up the lad and hold him in your hand, for I shall make a nation of him.’ 19And God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water, and she went and filled the bottle with water and gave the lad a drink.
“20And God was with the lad and he grew and lived in the wilderness and became an archer. 21And he lived in the wilderness of Paran and his mother took a wife for him out of the land of Egypt.”
[I have read biographies of Mohammed, the founder of the Muslim religion, one of Ishmael’s descendants, that said when he found Allah (the generic Arabic name for God, or god) he was on a quest for the One True God. This makes sense considering Hagar and Ishmael certainly knew Him. Somehow he (Mohammed) got spiritually side tracked, and we don’t know why or how the devil got hold of him, but the Allah Muslim’s worship now, is the ancient war god of the Canaanites. And why they hate Israel so much is because Ishmael was Abraham’s eldest son and, by all tradition, should have received the inheritance and promise that the Lord God gave to Isaac.]
Had she remembered the Lord’s first visit to her the first time Sarah kicked her out because she was so snotty, her faith could have reassured her that this was not the end, even though it looked like it. But then, we too often need reassurances of His faithfulness, don’t we? (Silly as that sounds when said out loud.)
Genesis 16:9-13 “And the angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Return to your mistress and submit yourself to her.’ 10And the angel of the LORD said to her, ‘I shall multiply your seed exceedingly, that it will not be numbered for multitude.’11And the angel of the LORD said to her, ‘Behold, you are with child and will bear a son, and will call his name Ishmael because the LORD has heard your affliction. 12And Ishmael will be a wild man. His hand will be against every man and every man’s hand against him, and he will dwell in the presence if all his brothers.’ 13And she called the name of the LORD that spoke to her, ‘You are El-Ro’i,’ for she said, ‘Have I also here looked after Him Who sees me?’”
We wrap up this chapter with a bit of a conflict between Abraham’s people and Abimelech and his military captain, Fikhol. Seems that someone violently took a well that Abraham’s people dug and when they found out about it, they hurried over to make amends. They made covenant swearing to live in peace with Abraham as well as allowing him to reclaiming his well.
This was the same Abimelech who gave Sarah back after the Lord told him who she really was, so you can imagine his horror when he heard that one of his soldiers had taken Abraham’s well! The segment starts with, “And it happened at that time that Abimelech and Fikhol the chief captain of his army spoke to Abraham saying, ‘God is with you in all that you do. 23Now therefore swear to me here by God that you will not deal falsely with me or with my son or with my son’s son…24And Abraham said, ‘I shall swear.’” Genesis 21:22-24
And it ends with “And Abraham planted a grove in Beer-Sheba, and there he called on the name of the LORD, Eternal God. 32And Abraham stayed in the Philistines’ land many days.” Genesis 21:31-32.
This chapter not only again outlines the Lord’s faithfulness, but through a little study, also tells us how it is secured in our lives:
Hebrews 11:11-12, “By trusting, also Sarah, herself barren took power for conception from Abraham’s seed even past the normal age. 12Because of trust, she considered what was promised.” Notice the bold print. It plainly tells us that FAITH = POWER: GOD’S POWER!
In the One New Man Bible that I now use most often, Hebrews 11 uses the word trustfor faith throughout the chapter, which I think, makes it easier to grasp and to explain to others. Most everyone understands what faith means, but I think by interchanging it with the word trust periodically just brings it closer to home, especially when you’re sharing your faith with an unbeliever.
See, there’s that word again. It sends an instant religious connotation to heathens and to some, it instantly puts up their philosophic armor to block or slant whatever else you may have to say. But the word trust, now that can be handled. Trust can be seen in friendship, family, heck even the stock market if you’re prone to that much optimism! It’s a worldly, yet friendly and recognizable word we can use to show people Who we trust in without closing them off right away. Isn’t God good?
HEBREWS 11
Vs 1 “And trust is being confident of things being hoped for, proof of things not seen.” PROOF, not just hope but proof!
Vs 3 “By trusting we understand that the worlds were created by a spoken Word of God, so that what is seen has not come out of things which are visible.”
Vs 4 “By trusting, Abel, contrary to Cain, bore a better offering to God…”
Vs 5 “By trusting, Enoch was transferred so he did not see death…”
Vs 7 “By trusting, Noah, when he was warned about things not yet seen, in reverence, built a box (ark) for the salvation of his household.”
Vs 8 “By trusting, Abraham, when he was called, obeyed to come out of a place which he was going to take for an inheritance…”
Vs 9 “By trusting, he sojourned in the land of the promise…”
Vs 11a “By trusting, also Sarah, herself barren, took power for conception…” (I LOVE this verse!)
Vs 11b “Because of trust, she considered what was promised.”
Vs 17 “By trusting, Abraham, when he was tested, brought Isaac and he was offering his only son, he who had received the promises…”
Vs 20 “By trusting, then Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning what was coming.”
Vs 21 “By trusting, Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph…”
Vs 22 “By trusting, Joseph, when he was dying, remembered about the exodus of the children of Israel…”
Vs 23 “By trusting, after Moses was born he was hidden three months by his parents…”
Vs 24 “By trusting, after Moses became great, he denied to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter.”
Vs 27 “By trusting, he left Egypt although he did not fear the wrath of the king…”
Vs 28 “By trusting, he had instituted the Passover and the sprinkling of the blood…”
Vs 29 “By trusting, they passed through the Red Sea as though dry ground…”
Vs 30 “By trusting, the walls of Jericho fell after they were encircled for seven days.”
Vs 31 “By trusting, Rahab the idolatress…was not destroyed…”
And the best verse of all in the entire chapter, in my humble opinion, is verse 6, “and without trusting it is impossible to please God: for it is necessary for the one who comes to God to believe that He is, that He does exist, then He becomes a rewarder to those who seek Him out.”
I love the [accurate] translation of this verse because it sets the record straight. I have met many “religious” people over the years who have lorded this statement over others (myself included) as a sort of threat or reprimand. Implying that their/my faith wasn’t strong enough for whatever it was that was being expected. Or that they weren’t or I wasn’t seeking Him diligently enough (you know, just about every other translation says that “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”) to activate our faith.
And that is not what He meant at all! He wants us to realize the He exists because when we do, it’s not long before we realize what He’s done and Who He really is! And then we can then trust Him with not only our eternal salvation, but everything else too! And come into a loving relationship, get adopted, receive all the blessings He yearns to give us and of course that leads to telling others about Him too. Because “The Lord does not tarry with His promise, as some consider slowness, but He is patient with you, not wanting any to be destroyed but all to come to repentance.” (2ndPeter 3:9) Repentance meaning of course, to change one’s mind – from not having faith and not believing the He exists, to having faith and believing that He exists.
The world is dying all around us, and we (believers in Y’shua) are the only ones who really know (as Paul Harvey would say) the rest of the story. SO SHARE! Share Who you put your trust in! Live and act in a way that people just know that there is something different about you. My first pastor, Pastor Lloyd used to say that we shouldn’t try to tear done someone else’s house, be it religious, philosophical or spiritual, but that we should make ours so beautiful that others are drawn to it and invite themselves to come and look!
We have the Truth, brothers and sisters; let us not make it the best kept secret we have. We can shine His glory without being what the world calls religious, because weknow that we aren’t about religion, we are all about relationship and trust. And what better Person to put your trust in, than the One Who holds the entire universe in His hands?
“You are the light of the world. A city laid out on a mountain is not able to be hidden:15and they do not light a lamp and place it under a peck measure but upon the lamp stand, and it gives light to all those in the house. 16Your light must now shine like this before all mankind, so that they would see your good deeds and they would glorify your Father, the One in the heavens.” Matthew 5:14-16
“24Now to the One Who is able to keep you without stumbling and to stand before His glory blameless in extreme joy, 25to the only God, our Savior through our Lord Y’shua Messiah, be glory, majesty, strength, and power before every age, both now and forever, amen.” (Jude, a bit before 68 AD.)
SHALOM!!
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