Title: God Who Cares for the Poor
Contents
A God who cares for the oppressed (Genesis 16:6-14)
There is an old saying that goes like this. "Into each life some rain must fall"
We only want the bright sun, but if the sun continues, life becomes a desert. In order for our life to be moist and green, we need rain. Sometimes our souls need tears to be refreshed.
We sow seeds in bad weather to reap in good weather. If sorrow is our seed, joy can be our harvest. There is no labor without pain, no harvest without cultivation. If you don't sow with tears, you don't reap with joy. Because there is bitter sorrow in our hearts, there is also holy joy.
Among our traditional musical instruments, there is a ‘Haegeum’. It is an instrument brought from the Tang Dynasty during the Goryeo Dynasty. The haegeum consists of two strings, and the pitch of the note is made according to the position of the hand holding the string and the strength of pulling the string. Professor Eun-il Kang (a haegeum player), a master of Korean traditional music, said, “One of the two lines of the haegeum is for laughter and the other for crying. Between those two lines, there is a heartfelt sound.” Life is like a haegeum that goes back and forth between these lines of laughter and tears, creating deep and beautiful songs. Sometimes in the line of laughter, sometimes in the line of crying, it makes us happy and sad. Like Haegeum, we live life between two lines: sadness and joy, crying and laughter.
This is the harmony of laughter and crying that God has given to our lives. Sun and moon, day and night, light and shadow, mountains and valleys, rivers and deserts, sunny and cloudy days, roses and thorns, joy and sorrow, darkness and loss, good and evil, good and evil, and health and pain. So we play life sandwiched between those two lines. Sometimes I play life with laughter, sometimes with crying. But in the end, what made us cry eventually makes us laugh. 20th-century prophetic literary writer Kahlil Gibran praises the charm of tears: “The gift of God is before your tears.”
God wipes away our tears. He relieves us of our sorrows. He washes away our pain. In particular, He heals our sorrows.
This is one of the things I find comforting through the Bible. We have something to appeal to. That you can appeal to God.
This is the story of today's text. A woman named Hagar was very unfair and lived a long life. He is an Egyptian woman who was sold to Abraham. It was sold as seed for Abraham, who was barren. So he gave birth to a child when Abraham was 85 years old. He seems to have been a handsome son. At first, everyone in the family was happy. However, within a few days, the headquarters Sarah began to abuse the vanishing Hagar. Hagar couldn't take it any longer and ran away from the house. When I left home, I had nowhere to go. Hagar was too far away to return home because her hometown was Egypt. So he stayed in the fields and fell into endless sorrow. Although she was still young, the more she looked back, the more regretful she became. However, the structure of Middle Eastern society was governed by the laws of Hammurabi, so women had no rights. God did not turn away from Hagar, who was in such an unfair situation.
God does not turn away from my pain and suffering today. It relieves me of my sorrow. Then, how will God, who relieved Hagar's injustice, who had no strength, help and relieve my injustice and sorrow today?
1. God comes to those who suffer.
The God we believe in is the Lord of love who visits people in pain. In today's text, the scene of God's visit to Hagar, who is in loneliness and desperate loneliness, is emphasized four times (verses 7, 9, 10, 11). The “Angel of the Lord” comes to Hagar and keeps whispering to her. It is sometimes interpreted as Jesus before the incarnation, which appears for the first time in the Old Testament. So the one who came to Hagar is translated as the messenger. It means that he is the one sent by God. If you look closely at the Bible, you can see that God the Father came to Abraham as the Lord of power, and to Hagar, the Son Jesus came as the Lord of comfort. The Lord of Love came to Hagar when she was sitting alone, unable to bear the unfair pain. So the Lord comforts Hagar, who is crying in the midst of injustice. (Verse 8) “Hagar, where did you come from and where are you going?” The essence of these words is that the Lord will accompany Hagar on her lonely and lonely life. . Please believe in Jesus who comes to me today and walks with me.
Nobel Prize-winning author Jew Eli Wiesel saw a Jewish boy who was caught trying to escape while imprisoned in a Nazi Jewish concentration camp and died horribly. Then he cried out from the depths of his heart. “God, where are you? Where are you now?”
Then he heard a strange voice. “I am hanging on the cross with the boy.” Eli Wiesel later realized the protagonist of the voice. He is Jesus who took up the cross to be with us who are living in suffering. Jesus is often best seen in the dark and most powerfully felt when we are in our deepest sorrow. Today, Jesus on the cross comes to me in my suffering. Jesus always comes to the scene of suffering. He comes to you in pain. I hope you will meet that Jesus today. “Lord, take this hand and go.”
2. God hears the cry of the afflicted.
God hears all our cries and sorrows. He listens attentively to our groans, who weep softly in this land. God visits Hagar and announces an unexpected blessing to Hagar. First, he blesses Hagar's son that he will become a great person (verse 10). Then, he even names his son (verse 11). He calls him “Ishmael.” It means "God hears". Even today, God hears our sighs and groans. He listens carefully to our cries and prayers of sorrow. As I pray, there is a word of God's voice that I hear deep in my heart.【I listen】(Dear son, dear daughter, I am listening. I am listening to your heart.) So David testifies like this. (Psalms) 34:6) “This wretched man cried out, and the Lord heard him and saved him from all his troubles.”
Even today, God hears the prayers of those who cry out in pain. “Call me in the day of trouble. I will rescue you.”
3. God cares for those who suffer.
Hagar had an unexpected and mysterious experience in a barren field. I experienced God who came to seek an unfair life like myself, and I also experienced a God who listens to the sorrows of those who are injustice like myself. So he sings a song of thanks to God. This is the content of verse 13. “God who takes care of me” He praises twice. Then he called the name of the spring where he was staying, Beer-lahai-roi. It means “the fountain of the living One who cares for me.”
God takes care of those who are weak and weak today. In particular, he takes care of those in need with love. The prophet Jeremiah sings this (Lamentations 3:59): “O Lord, you have seen my injustice; forgive me for my grievance.”
Since the economy is difficult these days, there are a lot of people who suffer from injustice through various bankruptcies. In 2007, there were 154,039 bankruptcy filings, and as of July 31, 2008, there were 71,654 cases. The tip of the iceberg. Personally, there are a lot of people who take their money unfairly.
But we want you to believe in God's help and intervention. God is not a bystander. David was pursued by Saul and suffered unjustly, but he had this kind of conviction. (Psalm 11:4) “God’s eyes see through life, and his eyes pay attention to those who are injustice.” He doesn't take his eyes off him, and always pays attention to him with love.
'When I shed painful tears and when I groan with a bitter heart, the Lord is with me and always helps me. love me always giving You always give me new life. You are always with me until the promise of glory comes.’
Even today, God directs the steps of my life and pays attention to me with the eyes of mercy.
Dear friends, what kind of resentment and pain in your heart are you experiencing these days? God listens to your groan and comes to you. He hears your sorrows and takes care of your grievances. Feel His touch this morning. He caresses and caresses your aching heart. He is with me on the cross when I am struggling and in pain, and every time I cry and groan, He says, “I listen, I hear the voice of your heart.” The Lord of love never takes my eyes off of my life's steps and keeps me in touch and pays attention.