How to Avoid the Mistakes of Giving Into Pressures From People - Gen 16:1-16
We all need to know how to avoid giving in to the pressures from well meaning people who may think they know God’s will for our lives. Only the Lord knows the best time and way to accomplish His will. His leading comes from His word, His Spirit and godly counselors. How do we discern God’s will when we are being pressured by family members, friends or individuals who may present a seemingly convincing arguments to us about God’s will for our life. The following are a few guidelines for helping us learn how to avoid being pressured in to doing something that is out of God’s will for our lives.
1. Let us not only trust in the Lord with all our hearts, but not rely on our own insights or the insights of others, but acknowledge Him in all our ways and He will direct our paths. (Proverbs 3:5,6) Notice there is no acknowledging of God or indication that Abraham, Sarai or Hagar sought God for direction in Genesis 16:1-7. Whenever we try to make decisions without first seeking God’s will in the matter we will always fail.
2. We are to be pro-actively pursing the expansion of His kingdom and righteousness instead of plotting our own cunning ways to get God’s work done. Sarai was well intentioned in seeking to have a son, but she went about her through the power of the flesh instead of allowing the Lord to bring about His will for her in His own time, way and methods. The Lord knew that eventually Sarai would miraculously give birth to Isaac, but it would be a demonstration of His power instead of her own crafty scheming that would accomplish His purposes in her life. Do not try to craft clever programs that are not engineered out of a Spirit led design.
3. We are to work when God has clearly given us the responsibility and the authority to do so. God had never placed the responsibility for producing a child on Sarai, or Abram. God had promised to provide the child (cf. Genesis 12:1-3; 17:6,16, 19). Just as God had prevented Sarai from conceiving (16:2), so He would provide an heir.
4. Do not think you can succeed in any activity for which God has not given you the power to produce spiritual fruit. As Paul has shown (Galatians 4:21ff.) Ishmael was a result of the work of the flesh, not the spirit. Isaac was the result of divine activity in Abram and Sarai. No work of faith is the work of the flesh. God’s work is that accomplished through His enabling Spirit (cf. Galatians 5:16-26).
5. We should move ahead only when our motivation to do so is that of faith. Sarai seems to have felt compelled to act because God had prevented her from having children (cf. 16:2). Despite the efforts of a number of commentators to prove otherwise, Sarai’s actions (and Abram’s) betray a motive of fear, not faith. Paul has spoken clearly when he wrote, “… whatever is not from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23).
6. We should be reluctant to ‘work’ when it appears that God has been preventing what we have been seeking. At times barriers are put up to change our direction (cf. Acts 16:6,7). Knowing the difference between problems and prohibitions requires the wisdom which God freely gives as we ask for it in faith (James 1:5-6).
7. Know that the Lord allows some doors to close so that He can open up better ones in the days to come. Jesus tells us He opens doors that no man can open and He closes doors that no man can open. Jesus said to the church of Philadelphia, “He holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut and what he shuts no one can open. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.” (Rev. 3:7,8) Ask the Lord for the wisdom to know the best door that God has opened for you in your personal life, relationships and ministry activities.
8. Do not underestimate His power to accomplish great things through you. You can do all things THROUGH Christ who strengthens you. (Phil. 4:13)
9. Do not think that God needs your crafting scheme to accomplish His purposes in and through you. Realize that you may miss God’s plan if you are not patient to wait on His timing and provisions.
10. You may miss God’s plan if you allow someone else to talk you into doing something that is not God’s will.
11. You may miss God’s will if you go ahead with something without considering all of the consequences of that decision.
12. You may miss God’s will when you have to blame someone else when things do not work out. Sarai blamed herself and Hagar and consequently pressured Abram to do something that was ill advised. They thought that blaming others would free them from the mistakes they had made or for failure to fulfill their responsibilities.
13. Do not think that your problem is bigger than God or that the Lord needs your brilliant plan to accomplish His will for your life. (Jer 32:17) Behold , I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is anything to do difficult for me?”
14. They forgot that God was there available to help them correct the sin and get things right, As a result we still have about 280 Arabs who are offspring of Ishmael fighting against 20 millions Jews, who are descendants of Issac. Sin has severe consequences.
15. Do not try to run ahead of God as Sarai did or give in to the pressures of those who try to push you ahead of God’s plan for your life.
16. God only honors that fruit that He produces.
17. We should be very cautious about undertaking a work that appeals to fleshly appetites. Abram was a man who thought of his fleshly appetite when he thought of sleeping with Hagar. Undoubtedly she was both young and attractive. Do you think Pharaoh would have given Abram a slave girl as part of a dowry if she were unappealing to look upon? Seemingly noble acts can have very carnal motives. Question any work that appeals to our carnal appetites.
18. May God help wives not to pressure their husbands into doing what seems right. May God help those of us who are husbands not to relinquish our responsibility, but to lead in our homes. Many problems occur in families because the husband gives in to the pressures of his wife, his children or his circumstances. The husband is to be obedient to the Lord, first and foremost. (Eph. 5:18-25) May the Lord delivers us all from the problems of passivity and presumption in discerning God’s will for our lives.
19. We should hesitate to undertake any work when our primary reason for doing so is to relieve pressure, rather than to practice some principle. So far as I can tell the only reason Abram took Hagar was to appease, and perhaps silence his wife. Pressure from others is usually a poor reason for taking on any task.
20. We should never work when our methods are inappropriate to our goals and to our God. While the goal of Abram and Sarai’s efforts was the birth of a son, an heir, the means were not such as to bring glory to God. We must grant that these means were legal and culturally acceptable. But they appear to fall short of the divine ideal. Union with Hagar attempts to accomplish God’s work with the world’s methodology.
21. Abram, as a result of this failure of faith, learned the painful consequences of trying to help God. In this sense, God does not need and cannot use our help. God wants to work through us. God purposed to give Abram and Sarai a child. Their efforts at producing a child on their own has resulted in the conflict between the Jews and the Arabs through the centuries.
22. Faith means trusting God and His promises regardless of our problems, pressure or predicaments. Unbelief focuses upon the problems and supposes that if God does not act within our time frame and within our expectations, we must give Him a hand. Faith believes not only that God will give us what He has promised, but that He will provide us the means to do so, and if not, that He alone will do it. God spoke to Hagar in this chapter, but not to Abram or Sarai. In fact Moses tells us that (at least so far as recorded history is concerned) God did not speak to Abram for 13 years (cf. 17:1). When we choose to act upon circumstances, God may speak to us only through circumstances—loudly and clearly and painfully.
23. Do not try to get God’s will from your wife but from the Lord. It would seem that Abram chose to get his leading from God through his wife for he never questioned her thinking or sought divine guidance (in our passage at least). Isn’t it interesting that the only way Abram knew what to name his son was by what God told Hagar (16:11; cf. verse 15)? When we choose to be led by others rather than by God, God may let us have our way, for a time. But, oh, how lonely those times will be! What fellowship and intimacy we miss.
24. May God help wives not to pressure their husbands into doing what seems right. May God help those of us who are husbands not to relinquish our responsibility, but to lead in our homes. Many problems occur in families because the husband gives in to the pressures of his wife, his children or his circumstances. The husband is to be obedient to the Lord, first and foremost. (Eph. 5:18-25) May the Lord delivers us all from the problems of passivity and presumption in discerning God’s will for our lives.
Conclusion:"Unbelief puts our circumstance between us and God, but faith puts God
between us and our circumstances."
F.B. Meyer
