Sermon # 18 - Safe In The Shadow Of The Almighty God Series

We read in Genesis 21:17, “God heard the boy crying, and from heaven the angel of God spoke to Hagar, "What are you troubled about, Hagar? Don't be afraid. God has heard the boy crying.”(GNB)

Hagar and her son wandered through the wilderness, and when the little water she carried got over, Hagar was in desperation. Not wanting to see her young son die, she left him beneath a bush, and began to cry. When the boy began to cry too, God heard the cry of the boy and the angel of the Lord called out to Hagar in her distress. As Hagar went through those lonely and desperate times, the Lord was mindful and asked her, what the matter was. The angel of the Lord encouraged Hagar to not be afraid, for the Lord was mindful of her state, and that of her son.

In order to understand what brought Hagar to this place in her life, we will study all that transpired earlier on in her life.

Sarai was without child

We read in Genesis 16:1, “Abram's wife Sarai had not borne him any children. But she had an Egyptian slave woman named Hagar,” (GNB)

Abram’s wife Sarai had no children. Hagar was an Egyptian slave, who served Sarai, who was a Jewish mistress. The fact that Hagar was a slave from Egypt meant that she did not have the support or security from her own countrymen or her king. She was either sold away as a slave or had been forced into slavery, which would have made things really hard for Hagar. Generally when someone from one nation is captured by another nation, then their home country will do their best to get their citizen back. However, this was not the case for Hagar who was now at the mercy of a mistress from a foreign land.

Oftentimes, when pressed by untold hardships, there are many who wonder as to why they are the targets of these constant calamities. The situations that surround us sometimes, give us this sense that everyone else around is doing fine, and that we are the only ones going through countless difficulties and injustice. This often creates a sense of loneliness in us. Let us be reminded that there is a God who sees, and perfectly understands all the hardships that we are going through.

Sarai’s plan

We read in Genesis 16:3, So she gave Hagar to him to be his concubine. (This happened after Abram had lived in Canaan for ten years.) (GNB)

Sarai was getting along in years, and it appeared that the hope of her having a child of her own was now becoming an impossibility. It was at this point that Sarai in her desperation to have a child, decided to give Hagar as a concubine to her husband Abram. In those days when Abram and Sarai lived, this was an acceptable culture among the people. One can imagine the tumultuous thoughts that must have filled Hagar’s mind. There was no question of whether or not Hagar approved of it, for she was just a slave, who had to do as she was bidden by her mistress.

The feelings in Hagar’s heart is similar to the ones that people have, when they are being used by others for their own benefit. These are times when we may not be able to share these hardships with anyone, but we can be sure that God is aware of everything we are going through, and nothing will happen without His knowledge. As children of God everything is permitted by God, and He will work all things out for our own good in the end. We live in times when things are happening that we have never heard of, many of them difficult to even comprehend, but we can be certain from God’s word based on Romans 8:28, “that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose.” (GNB) As long as we live on this earth, we may not fully understand all the paths that God is taking us through, but in eternity we will most certainly capture it all from God’s divine perspective.

Hagar despised Sarai

When Hagar conceived she began to despise her mistress, and this brought unimaginable pain to Sarai. What seemed like a solution to Sarai was now a huge problem, which she decided she would bring to her husband’s notice, so that he would handle it with justice. Hagar might have imagined that since she now bore Abram’s seed that he would speak favorably on her behalf.

These are the words of Abram to his wife Sarai in Genesis 16:6, Abram answered, "Very well, she is your slave and under your control; do whatever you want with her." (GNB)