Sunday's Message - The Patriarchs: Encountering the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph (Abraham Sends Hagar and Ishmael Away)

We're going to spend the summer of 2023 with the Patriarchs. During eleven worship services, beginning on Father's Day, we'll use passages from the book of Genesis to look at Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, focusing on how the Lord was consistently and actively involved in their lives. And by the end of the summer, we should have a better understanding of the one whom they followed and on how that same God can lead us. During this series, we'll look at the stories and passages below:

• June 18 - The Lord Chooses Abram (Genesis 12:1-9)
• June 25 - The Lord Promises Abraham a Son (Genesis 18:1-15)
• July 2 - Abraham Sends Hagar and Ishmael Away (Genesis 21:8-21)
• July 9 - The Lord Tests Abraham (Genesis 22:1-14)
• July 16 - Abrahams Finds Isaac a Wife (Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49)
• July 23 - Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25:19-34)
• July 30 - Jacob's Dream at Bethel (Genesis 28:10-19a)
• August 6 - Jacob with Leah and Rachel (Genesis 29:15-28)
• August 13 - Jacob Becomes Israel (Genesis 32:22-31)
• August 20 - Joseph and His Brothers (Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28)
• August 27 - Joseph Tells His Brothers Who He Is (Genesis 45:1-15)

On Sunday, the message focused on what we can learn from Abraham sending Hagar and Ishmael away, Genesis 21:8-21. A recording and copy of the sermon are below. You can stream the service by going to the Sligo Presbyterian Church YouTube Channel at 10:00 a.m.

Well, in a couple of days, we’ll be celebrating Independence Day, although, to be completely honest, the Declaration was officially approved by Congress on July 2 and only signed on July 4. But be that as it may, it’s the fourth that sort of stuck as “the day.” And even though it may have drifted away from the kind of solemn ceremony our founders might have  envisioned; it’s still a day to celebrate not only our national past but also what it means to be an American right now. In other words, it’s still a big deal. And so I’m glad y’all have decided to spend a little of your long weekend to come here this morning.

And I’ll tell you, based on what we’re going to be talking about, I think it’ll be worth it, especially if you’ve ever been frustrated or worried by something that’s come up in your life or if you’ve ever been looking down the barrel of some real disappointment that you’ve had to face or some difficult decision that you’ll have to make. You see, that’s what we’ll be talking about this morning, as we continue to focus on the Patriarchs in Genesis. Of course, to this point, we’ve already looked at how the Lord chose Abram to carry the promise and on how God called and Abram responded. And then last week, we looked at a story in which the Lord promised both Abraham and Sarah a son, and we focused on what the promise was and why Abraham could trust it. Now that’s what we’ve already done. And in each one of our discussions, we’ve taken what happened in the passage and applied it to ourselves. 

And this morning, we’re going to do the same sort of thing with another story about Abraham and Sarah, one about how Abraham sent Hagar and his own son Ishmael away.  You see, we’re going to take that story and we’re going to talk about what happened and how God responded to Abraham and ultimately why Abraham could trust God. And then we’re going to take it and apply it to our own stories. And hopefully, by the end of the message, we’ll understand something that I think Abraham understood; that when we face difficulties in our lives, we can trust that God will take care of us.

And like I said, I think this was exactly what happened in our story from Genesis 21. You see, right at the beginning, there was a problem. According to Genesis,

The time came when Sarah no longer had to nurse Isaac, and on that day Abraham gave a big feast.

One day, Sarah noticed Hagar’s son Ishmael playing, and she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that Egyptian slave woman and her son! I don’t want him to inherit anything. It should all go to my son.” 

Abraham was worried about Ishmael. [Genesis 21:8-11, CEV]

Now that’s what happened. And although it would be really easy to dump on Sarah and to view her as jealous and petty, the situation was actually a whole lot more complicated. You see, as we talked about last week, the promise God made to Abraham, man, it was going to involve Sarah’s son. And even though Ishmael was the result of her trying to make Abraham a daddy by having him hook up with her Egyptian maid, Hagar, it was Isaac, the son of Sarah, who would be the next Patriarch, the father of many descendants and the founder of this great nation promised by God. And you know, right there was the problem. Sarah knew it was God’s will that Isaac receive her husband’s inheritance, but as long as Ishmael was around, he was entitled to a share, especially given the fact that he was the older of the two. And so, for Isaac to get everything he was entitled to get, Ishmael had to go. And I’ll tell you, Abraham must have known this too, because God had done almost all his talking with him. You see, for the promise to be fulfilled, Abraham knew that Sarah was right. And yet, Ishmael was still his son, and so he worried about what would happen to the boy and to his mother. Now, in a nutshell, that was the problem. 

And I’ll tell you, how God responded, well, I think that was really important. You see, in the face of this harsh reality, God offered Abraham comfort, comfort he could trust. Just listen to what it says in Genesis:

But God said, “Abraham, don’t worry about your slave woman and the boy. Just do what Sarah tells you. Isaac will inherit your family name, but the son of the slave woman is also your son, and I will make his descendants into a great nation.” [Genesis 21:12-13, CEV]

Now that’s what the Lord said. In other words, he offered Abraham two things. First, God gave him a command that was incredibly simple and straightforward but which was nearly impossible for Abraham to actually do; “...God said, ‘Abraham, don’t worry about your slave woman and the boy.’” [Genesis 21:12a, CEV] I’ll tell you, God could have just as well have told Abraham not to think about a purple monkey. Nobody can turn off worry like water from a spigot. But right here, God did something more that made not worrying a possibility. After giving the command and telling Abraham to do what Sarah wanted because Isaac had to be the sole heir, God made Abraham a promise. And that’s the second thing God did. You see, because Ishmael was also his son, God was also going to make him the father of a great nation too. And even though it wasn’t going to be the one that God promised when he first chose Abraham back in chapter twelve, it was still going to be important. Now that’s how God responded to this worried father. God offered Abraham comfort, didn’t he?  

But of course, none of this would be worth a hill of beans, if God didn’t give Abraham a good reason to trust, you know, to believe what God had said. You see, to be seen as trustworthy, God would need to keep his word, wouldn’t he? And as a spoiler alert, let me tell you, that was exactly what he did. Just listen to the rest of the story:

Early the next morning Abraham gave Hagar an animal skin full of water and some bread. Then he put the boy on her shoulder and sent them away.

They wandered around in the desert near Beersheba, and after they had run out of water, Hagar put her son under a bush. Then she sat down a long way off, because she could not bear to watch him die. And she cried bitterly.

When God heard the boy crying, the angel of God called out to Hagar from heaven and said, “Hagar, why are you worried? Don’t be afraid. I have heard your son crying. Help him up and hold his hand, because I will make him the father of a great nation.” Then God let her see a well. So she went to the well and filled the skin with water, then gave some to her son.

God blessed Ishmael, and as the boy grew older, he became an expert at hunting with his bow and arrows. He lived in the Paran Desert, and his mother chose an Egyptian woman for him to marry. [Genesis 21:14-21, CEV]

Now that’s what it says. You see, in the short run, God saved Hagar and Ishmael. And in the long run, God made Ishmael a great nation. As a matter of fact, according to what it says a little later in Genesis, Ishmael will have twelve sons, each of whom will be a tribal chief. And I’ll tell you, when Abraham died, both Isaac and Ishmael buried him east of Hebron, in a cave Abraham had bought from the Hittites after Sarah passed. You see, in the face of this problem, God offered comfort and he kept his word. Now that’s what he did for Abraham in this story.

And I’ll tell you, I think he does the same thing for us. I mean, just think about what happens in our stories. Man, whether we like it or not, we all face problems. Like I said a few minutes ago, from time to time, we’re all going to face real disappointments and to be forced to make difficult decisions. And I think we all know that, just because it may be unavoidable or even the result of doing what’s right, that doesn’t make it easy. You see, when you get right down to it, life is tough and living can be hard. But that really shouldn’t be a surprise. My goodness, remember Peter wrote this in his first letter:

Dear friends, don’t be surprised or shocked that you are going through testing that is like walking through fire. Be glad for the chance to suffer as Christ suffered. It will prepare you for even greater happiness when he makes his glorious return. [1 Peter 4:12-13, CEV]

In fact, Jesus was very clear that following him would actually make life even harder. Before his crucifixion, this was what he told his disciples:

If the people of this world hate you, just remember that they hated me first. If you belonged to the world, its people would love you. But you don’t belong to the world. I have chosen you to leave the world behind, and this is why its people hate you. Remember how I told you that servants are not greater than their master. So if people mistreat me, they will mistreat you. If they do what I say, they will do what you say. [John 15:18-20, CEV]

Now that’s what Jesus Christ himself said; therefore, I think we can expect to face this kind of stuff ourselves. In other words, just like Abraham, we all face problems every now-and-then.

But I’ll tell you, also like him, God comforts us. You see, that’s how he responds to our frustrations and worries, our real disappointments and difficult decisions. I mean, as he did with Abraham, he also tells us not to worry, something Jesus taught when he said this:

I tell you not to worry about your life. Don’t worry about having something to eat, drink, or wear. Isn’t life more than food or clothing? Look at the birds in the sky! They don’t plant or harvest. They don’t even store grain in barns. Yet your Father in heaven takes care of them. Aren’t you worth much more than birds?

Can worry make you live longer? Why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow. They don’t work hard to make their clothes. But I tell you that Solomon with all his wealth wasn’t as well clothed as one of them. God gives such beauty to everything that grows in the fields, even though it is here today and thrown into a fire tomorrow. God will surely do even more for you! Why do you have such little faith? [Matthew 5:25-30, CEV]

You see, according to Jesus worry is just a waste of time and energy. And as the Apostle Paul wrote to the Philippians:

Don’t worry about anything, but pray about everything. With thankful hearts offer up your prayers and requests to God. Then, because you belong to Christ Jesus, God will bless you with peace that no one can completely understand. And this peace will control the way you think and feel. [Philippians 4:6-7, CEV]

You see, in the face of our problems, this is how God responds. Just like he did with Abraham, he offers us comfort. 

And I’ll tell you, this is something that we can believe; because we can trust that God keeps his word. Man, he kept it when Abraham was worried about the future of his son and, brothers and sisters, he keeps it with us. For example, we can trust that God is with us right this minute, something that we’re going to remember and celebrate when we gather around the Lord’s Table and share with one another the bread and the cup. And when we roll up our sleeves and get to work, he’s also with us, something Jesus promised his disciples when he said this:

I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth! Go to the people of all nations and make them my disciples. Baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and teach them to do everything I have told you. I will be with you always, even until the end of the world. [Matthew 28:18b-20, CEV]

Now this is what Jesus said, and this we can believe. But maybe even more than just that, we can also trust that this presence and this acceptance and this love is greater than ourselves. In other words, it’s not something that we can screw up. It’s like what Paul wrote to the Romans:

All of us have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. But God treats us much better than we deserve, and because of Christ Jesus, he freely accepts us and sets us free from our sins. God sent Christ to be our sacrifice. Christ offered his life’s blood, so by faith in him we could come to God. And God did this to show that in the past he was right to be patient and forgive sinners. This also shows that God is right when he accepts people who have faith in Jesus. [Romans 3:23-26, CEV]

You see, in the face of the problems, this is why we can trust the comfort we’ve been offered. It’s because, just like he did for Abraham, God keeps his word.

Now in a couple of days, we’re going to celebrate the Fourth of July. But I’ll tell you, regardless of what we actually do, I think we all know that, every now-and-then, we’re all going to be frustrated and worried by some of the stuff that comes up in our own lives. And from time to time, we’ll all have to face some real disappointments and to make some difficult decisions. These are some of the problems involved in just plain living. But I’ll tell you, when they do, let’s remember this story from Genesis. I mean, let’s remember what happened and how God responded and why Abraham could trust. And then, let’s remember that, when we face difficulties in our lives, we can trust that God will take care of us, because that’s exactly what God did, when Abraham sent Hagar and Ishmael away.