Title [Genesis 16:1-6] Sarah's Mistake
It is unbelievable and immoral for a man of faith to have a concubine. However, the text mentions the fact that Abraham, the father of faith, had a concubine. We are looking for important lessons from this incident and trying to share grace.
1. It shows that we must believe in God's promises and persevere to the end.
Abraham and Sarah left their hometown and lived in the land of Canaan for 10 years, but there was no production. He couldn't wait any longer and, as Sarah requested, took Hagar, Sarah's maidservant, as his concubine. This caused great stripe in the family. Those who firmly believe in God's promises must be patient and wait until the end. James gave two examples of this point. One is the case of the farmer (James 5:7-8). He said, “The farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, and is patient with the way, waiting for the early and the latter rain. The other is the case of Job's patience (James 5:10-11). “Brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord as an example of suffering and long-suffering. Behold, we say blessed are those who persevere. You have heard of Job's patience and have seen the end of the Lord, who is most merciful and merciful. said Believers need to believe in the promises of the Lord and live a life of waiting. For them, the day of fulfillment, the day of fruition, will come.
2. It shows that we should not try to fulfill God's promises by artificial means.
3. It shows that there is great suffering when we do not do God's will.
Abraham sleep with Hagar. I have conceived a child. Although it was supposed to be a great joy to Abraham or Sarah, discord and conflict arose in the family. Not to mention happiness, unhappiness came.
① I was betrayed by Hagar. When Hagar realized she was pregnant, she despiced Sarah. Sarah's pain was unbearable. In the end, she forced her husband to consent and even abused Hagar. The pain of being betrayed is great. We must not betray our grace even if we cannot reciprocate it. A person who lacks in faith or personality behaves like Hagar.
②Hagar was despised. When Hagar saw that she was pregnant and Sarah was barren, she despiced her master. If I have strengths that others do not have, I must first thank God for giving it to me, and then I must become a saint who knows how to serve those who do not have it. If you look deeply, you can see that everyone has their own strengths (gifts). God did this so that we could serve one another and help each other out. You must know that you can never despise it. Sarah suffered this great pain while artificially raising Hagar.
③ He abused Hagar. I did it with my husband's permission. In the end, Hagar ran away, but at the command of God to “return to your mistress and submit to her subordinates”, Hagar returned and gave birth to Ishmael. Being abused is painful, but being abused is even more painful. How unfortunate is it that the family has come this far? All of this is the result of artificially trying to fulfill God's promises. Let's do God's work according to God's way to the end.