WEBVTT 00:00:01.120 --> 00:00:16.160 We are in a summer preaching series in the book of Genesis, learning how to live by faith, learning from a man named Abraham, how he survived, how he learned to thrive by faith. 00:00:16.559 --> 00:00:17.839 Let's look at this text. 00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:21.280 Genesis chapter 16, the first 16 verses. 00:00:33.359 --> 00:00:36.960 She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. 00:00:37.359 --> 00:00:42.719 And Sarah said to Abram, Behold, now the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. 00:00:42.960 --> 00:00:44.240 Go into my servant. 00:00:44.399 --> 00:00:47.200 It may be that I shall obtain children by her. 00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:50.399 And Abram listened to the voice of Sarah. 00:00:50.719 --> 00:01:01.359 So after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarah, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. 00:01:01.759 --> 00:01:04.879 And he went into Hagar, and she conceived. 00:01:05.040 --> 00:01:09.599 And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:14.719 And Sarah said to Abram, May the wrong done to me be on you. 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:20.799 I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. 00:01:21.040 --> 00:01:23.439 May the Lord judge between you and me. 00:01:24.560 --> 00:01:28.560 But Abram said to Sarah, Behold, your servant is in your power. 00:01:28.799 --> 00:01:30.640 Do to her as you please. 00:01:30.959 --> 00:01:35.040 And Sarah dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her. 00:01:35.599 --> 00:01:41.280 The angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 00:01:41.760 --> 00:01:46.959 And he said, Hagar, servant of Sarah, where have you come from and where are you going? 00:01:47.599 --> 00:01:50.719 She said, I'm fleeing from my mistress Sarah. 00:01:51.040 --> 00:01:56.319 The angel of the Lord said to her, Return to your mistress and submit to her. 00:01:56.640 --> 00:02:04.640 The angel of the Lord also said to her, I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude. 00:02:04.879 --> 00:02:16.800 And the angel of the Lord said to her, Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son, and you shall call his name Ishmael, because the Lord has listened to your affliction. 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:28.400 He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone, and everyone's hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all of his kinsmen. 00:02:29.280 --> 00:02:36.159 So she called the name of the Lord, who spoke to her, You are a God of seeing. 00:02:36.639 --> 00:02:41.919 For she said, Truly, here I have seen him who looks after me. 00:02:42.319 --> 00:02:46.560 Therefore the well was called Beer Lahiroi. 00:02:47.039 --> 00:02:50.000 It lies between Kadesh and Bared. 00:02:50.639 --> 00:02:58.800 And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son whom Hagar bore Ishmael. 00:02:59.360 --> 00:03:04.319 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram. 00:03:05.199 --> 00:03:09.199 This is the reading of God's beautiful word. 00:03:10.000 --> 00:03:12.000 Let's ask the Spirit's help. 00:03:13.840 --> 00:03:15.280 Father, thank you. 00:03:15.599 --> 00:03:20.719 Thank you for giving us unvarnished pictures of the saints in the Bible. 00:03:21.280 --> 00:03:23.120 So we can really relate. 00:03:24.080 --> 00:03:27.360 Thank you, Lord, for not holding back the truth. 00:03:27.680 --> 00:03:31.039 But Lord, we also thank you for not holding back your grace. 00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:32.879 And that's what we need today. 00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:34.000 We need truth. 00:03:34.240 --> 00:03:35.520 We need grace. 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:37.439 Holy Spirit, give. 00:03:37.680 --> 00:03:39.840 Give what comes from you alone. 00:03:40.159 --> 00:03:41.439 In Jesus' name. 00:03:41.759 --> 00:03:42.400 Amen. 00:03:49.439 --> 00:03:53.039 We left Abram last week as Pastor Josh preached. 00:03:53.120 --> 00:03:55.039 We left Abram living by faith. 00:03:55.360 --> 00:03:56.960 It was a good day. 00:03:57.759 --> 00:04:02.400 Abram, we've seen some really good days in Abram's life. 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:06.800 And we've seen some not so good days in Abram's life. 00:04:07.439 --> 00:04:09.680 And this is one of those days. 00:04:10.000 --> 00:04:14.159 This is one of those days where he was struggling. 00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:23.600 After he rescued Lot, his nephew, and all of his possessions, God is making incredible promises to Abram, which we looked at last week. 00:04:23.839 --> 00:04:26.560 Yes, that verse, chapter 15, verse 6. 00:04:26.800 --> 00:04:32.800 Abram believed the Lord, and it was credited to him as righteousness. 00:04:33.040 --> 00:04:34.879 It was credited. 00:04:36.079 --> 00:04:36.959 Credit. 00:04:39.040 --> 00:04:46.240 Credit that was not from him, by him, through him, credit that came from the Lord. 00:04:46.639 --> 00:04:50.000 The same kind of credit that the Lord still gives today. 00:04:50.079 --> 00:04:52.480 This is one of the most famous verses in the Bible. 00:04:52.639 --> 00:04:54.800 We see it again in the New Testament. 00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:55.600 Why? 00:04:55.759 --> 00:04:58.800 It's so foundational to the Christian life. 00:04:59.279 --> 00:05:02.639 What does it mean if you're here for the first time and you don't understand this? 00:05:02.800 --> 00:05:07.600 Let me just take another minute after Ben spoke to it earlier as well. 00:05:08.160 --> 00:05:21.920 You see, if you understand that you're a sinner and you understand that you cannot save yourself, but you also understand that Jesus Christ came to this earth to do everything you could not do for salvation. 00:05:22.399 --> 00:05:26.399 And you understand that Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross for your sin. 00:05:27.199 --> 00:05:29.680 And he was raised from the dead on the third day. 00:05:29.839 --> 00:05:31.759 And he ascended into heaven. 00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:39.439 And from there he reigns and he rules and he steeps down for people like us. 00:05:40.240 --> 00:05:49.519 And you believe that, and you exercise that faith and you trust and you put your trust in him, he will save you. 00:05:49.839 --> 00:05:52.000 He will save you from all of your sin. 00:05:52.720 --> 00:05:55.279 He will save you from the penalty of your sin. 00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:02.800 You see, this is why it's such a precious verse. 00:06:03.279 --> 00:06:05.040 But we have to believe. 00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:25.199 Chapter 15 that we looked at last week is all about the promises that God makes. 00:06:25.519 --> 00:06:31.600 Chapter 16 is about the pressure, the pressures of life. 00:06:31.839 --> 00:06:36.720 I think we'll all identify, if we're listening, pressures. 00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:39.439 And that's the first point of the message. 00:06:40.240 --> 00:06:43.199 We all deal with pressures in life. 00:06:43.439 --> 00:06:55.279 We all deal with situations that we try to find a way around or bulldoze through, depending on our resources, perhaps. 00:06:56.000 --> 00:06:58.160 We all know pressure. 00:06:59.680 --> 00:07:02.480 I don't think I need to spend a lot of time on this first point. 00:07:05.519 --> 00:07:08.639 Sarah and Abram had no children. 00:07:08.959 --> 00:07:18.160 Ten years after God promised to give them a child, not just any child, a seed through whom all the nations on the earth would be blessed. 00:07:18.720 --> 00:07:21.120 This was going to be a special child. 00:07:22.000 --> 00:07:24.319 Okay, Lord, this sounds great. 00:07:24.560 --> 00:07:25.759 Bring it on. 00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:31.040 And so put yourself in their shoes just a little bit. 00:07:31.519 --> 00:07:33.519 Okay, it's been a few weeks. 00:07:33.839 --> 00:07:36.000 Lord, when's this gonna happen? 00:07:36.319 --> 00:07:38.800 Sarah says, I'm not getting any younger. 00:07:40.079 --> 00:07:44.560 And then a few months, and then a few years. 00:07:45.600 --> 00:07:48.079 And then they start counting the years. 00:07:48.639 --> 00:07:50.879 Wow, it's been like five years. 00:07:51.600 --> 00:07:52.160 Six? 00:07:52.480 --> 00:07:53.120 Seven? 00:07:53.600 --> 00:07:54.240 Eight? 00:07:55.279 --> 00:07:55.920 Nine? 00:07:57.519 --> 00:07:57.839 Ten? 00:08:00.079 --> 00:08:00.399 God. 00:08:01.759 --> 00:08:03.680 Are you gonna come through for us? 00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:06.720 This is where they were. 00:08:08.079 --> 00:08:09.279 Emotionally. 00:08:09.920 --> 00:08:14.000 This is where they were at this time. 00:08:14.959 --> 00:08:21.439 God, you promised us a child, a child through whom the nations would be blessed. 00:08:21.680 --> 00:08:25.120 And it's been a long time, and there's no child. 00:08:25.439 --> 00:08:29.759 It's time, God, for you to do something about this. 00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:34.080 If you can, if you will. 00:08:35.440 --> 00:08:40.639 And if you can't, or you won't, I will. 00:08:41.919 --> 00:08:43.120 Are you with me? 00:08:45.039 --> 00:08:46.720 Haven't we all done that? 00:08:47.919 --> 00:08:49.519 God, we're waiting. 00:08:49.919 --> 00:08:51.360 And we're waiting. 00:08:51.679 --> 00:08:53.360 And we're still waiting. 00:08:55.440 --> 00:08:59.440 And if you can't, I'll find a way. 00:09:01.759 --> 00:09:04.000 So Sarah comes up with a plan. 00:09:04.159 --> 00:09:05.519 That's the second point. 00:09:05.840 --> 00:09:06.960 Point two is. 00:09:07.440 --> 00:09:09.679 There's point one is there's pressure. 00:09:09.919 --> 00:09:11.120 There are pressures in life. 00:09:11.360 --> 00:09:16.399 Point two is there are plans that we concoct, that we come up with. 00:09:17.440 --> 00:09:18.799 Sarah comes up with a plan. 00:09:18.960 --> 00:09:28.399 Abram, take my servant, Egyptian, handmaid, slave girl from Egypt and sleep with her. 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:32.159 That had to be hard. 00:09:32.960 --> 00:09:39.679 That had to be hard for the wife Sarah to say that to her husband. 00:09:40.399 --> 00:09:42.480 And she'll give us a child. 00:09:43.039 --> 00:09:48.080 And it's very clear from the text that Sarah is blaming God. 00:09:48.720 --> 00:09:52.080 The Lord has prevented me, which is true. 00:09:52.320 --> 00:09:55.919 But you just get this undertone of resentment. 00:09:56.320 --> 00:09:59.759 You get this undertone of disappointment with God. 00:10:00.159 --> 00:10:02.320 See, that's why we can relate to this. 00:10:03.440 --> 00:10:08.799 Most of us have been disappointed with God at some time in our life, more than once. 00:10:09.120 --> 00:10:10.960 God, what are you doing? 00:10:12.399 --> 00:10:15.440 She blames God, and then she blames her husband. 00:10:15.600 --> 00:10:16.080 Verse 5. 00:10:16.240 --> 00:10:20.159 She said to Abram, May the wrong done to me be on you. 00:10:20.960 --> 00:10:24.240 May the Lord judge between you and me. 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:25.679 And what's Abram thinking? 00:10:25.840 --> 00:10:27.679 Hey, this was your idea. 00:10:28.799 --> 00:10:29.120 Okay? 00:10:29.919 --> 00:10:31.279 This was your idea. 00:10:31.440 --> 00:10:32.559 Don't blame me. 00:10:32.879 --> 00:10:33.919 Well, she is. 00:10:34.559 --> 00:10:36.799 Because the frustration was so deep. 00:10:37.039 --> 00:10:39.039 The pain was so great. 00:10:39.919 --> 00:10:42.960 Sometimes we like to share the blame, don't we? 00:10:45.679 --> 00:10:49.679 Abram did what many men do when they don't know what to do. 00:10:50.080 --> 00:10:50.960 Nothing. 00:10:53.679 --> 00:10:56.399 And let that sink in for a moment, guys. 00:10:58.240 --> 00:10:59.279 What do men do? 00:10:59.440 --> 00:11:01.200 I'm not talking about at work. 00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:03.679 You know what to do at work. 00:11:05.279 --> 00:11:10.960 You were trained, you were schooled, prepared. 00:11:11.360 --> 00:11:13.600 I'm talking about at home. 00:11:14.720 --> 00:11:25.600 When things are hard and there are family issues and challenges and problems, and you don't know what to do. 00:11:27.360 --> 00:11:34.399 Oftentimes we do nothing because we want to be right if we're going to do something. 00:11:34.799 --> 00:11:38.080 And oftentimes there's no guarantee that we're going to be right. 00:11:39.279 --> 00:11:40.960 And so we get passive. 00:11:43.200 --> 00:11:44.720 And that's not good. 00:11:45.679 --> 00:11:47.919 Abram should have done something more. 00:11:48.480 --> 00:11:53.440 Abram should have mustered up his courage and said something like, No, honey. 00:11:54.720 --> 00:11:55.039 No. 00:11:56.559 --> 00:11:58.000 God made a promise. 00:11:58.240 --> 00:12:03.279 And we're going to wait and we're going to continue to pray for God to fulfill his promise. 00:12:04.480 --> 00:12:06.320 But he didn't. 00:12:10.000 --> 00:12:11.519 He just really folded. 00:12:17.200 --> 00:12:27.759 My friend from seminary, who went on to be a Hebrew scholar, Professor RTS Richard Belcher, said this about the contrast in the book of Genesis as he studied it. 00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:37.919 It seems that the author of Genesis is drawing a comparison between Genesis chapter 3, Adam and Eve, and Abram and Sarah in chapter 16. 00:12:38.240 --> 00:12:52.320 Like Eve, Sarah took and gave to her husband, except Sarah is not giving fruit from the tree, but she's giving her servant Hagar as a wife to bear fruit, to raise up a family. 00:12:52.960 --> 00:12:58.559 Like Adam, Abram listened to the voice of his wife and was complicit. 00:12:59.600 --> 00:13:01.759 This plan did not require faith. 00:13:01.919 --> 00:13:04.960 It was purely a human response to the problem. 00:13:05.440 --> 00:13:08.960 Trying to solve this problem through our own ability. 00:13:10.720 --> 00:13:12.879 That sounds very familiar, doesn't it? 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:14.480 If you're thinking. 00:13:18.000 --> 00:13:19.360 If you're with me. 00:13:20.399 --> 00:13:22.480 It sounds familiar, doesn't it? 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:25.840 Taking things into our own hands. 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:30.399 Because we're not sure God's going to come through. 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:32.559 The plan. 00:13:34.480 --> 00:13:37.679 This plan did not require faith. 00:13:38.480 --> 00:13:42.159 It was purely a human response to the problem. 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:54.000 They were trying to solve this problem through their own ability, which is why, if you don't do it now, but maybe this afternoon would be a great time to do it, to go back and read Galatians chapter 4 in the New Testament. 00:13:54.960 --> 00:14:03.200 Go back and see what the Apostle Paul has to say about how Hagar and Sarah represent the two different covenants, the old and the new covenant. 00:14:03.759 --> 00:14:05.600 This plan did not require faith. 00:14:05.759 --> 00:14:09.919 In other words, Abram and Sarah tried to solve this problem through their own ability. 00:14:10.480 --> 00:14:20.399 In Galatians chapter 4, the Apostle Paul bases his argument for justification by faith on the same principles inherent in this Genesis narrative. 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:32.879 The response of belief and the promise of God to produce an heir corresponds to justification by faith and produces children who are free, not slaves. 00:14:33.919 --> 00:14:42.080 In the book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul is trying to impress upon us that God has not called the Christian to live in slavery. 00:14:42.480 --> 00:14:43.919 We've been freed. 00:14:44.240 --> 00:14:45.679 Now don't go back. 00:14:46.000 --> 00:14:50.080 Don't go back to that spiritual slavery in your life. 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:55.759 Whereas the old covenant, Hagar seems to obtain the promise through human effort. 00:14:57.279 --> 00:14:59.120 This is what we're learning. 00:14:59.519 --> 00:15:00.960 This is what we're learning. 00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:05.279 Now the man now, the man of faith, is not living by faith. 00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:08.159 Do you live by faith every day? 00:15:09.200 --> 00:15:10.399 Of course not. 00:15:10.799 --> 00:15:11.759 Do I? 00:15:12.240 --> 00:15:12.559 No. 00:15:13.600 --> 00:15:17.519 Sometimes we take our eyes off of the promises. 00:15:19.200 --> 00:15:20.639 And that's never good. 00:15:21.039 --> 00:15:25.120 And sometimes we take our eyes off of the God who makes these promises. 00:15:25.919 --> 00:15:27.600 And that's never helpful. 00:15:28.720 --> 00:15:41.519 Friends, we are not the first ones to feel the pressures of life, the frustration of unfulfilled desires, to come up with our own strategies to try to control the things that we can't control. 00:15:41.919 --> 00:15:46.559 We're not the first generation to do this, nor will we be the last. 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:56.399 And so let me ask you this morning: are you feeling the pressure today to take something into your own hands? 00:15:57.519 --> 00:16:01.919 Things into your own hands when God is saying it seems to be wait. 00:16:02.399 --> 00:16:06.399 Trust me to provide what you need. 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:09.039 Keep praying. 00:16:09.759 --> 00:16:11.360 Keep trusting. 00:16:12.399 --> 00:16:14.480 I will come through. 00:16:15.759 --> 00:16:17.360 That's the second point. 00:16:18.159 --> 00:16:20.000 The first point, the pressures. 00:16:20.320 --> 00:16:26.000 And it may not be immediately present evident to you right now what the pressures of your life are right now. 00:16:26.080 --> 00:16:28.320 You may, in all fairness to you. 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:32.399 Sometimes it takes time to think. 00:16:33.440 --> 00:16:36.159 Sometimes it takes time to pray. 00:16:36.559 --> 00:16:37.840 And that's a good discipline. 00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:39.840 That's a very good spiritual discipline. 00:16:40.080 --> 00:16:45.679 Lord, would you show me how this might apply to my life? 00:16:47.120 --> 00:16:48.720 That's a good prayer. 00:16:49.360 --> 00:16:50.879 Would you show me? 00:16:51.600 --> 00:16:54.480 Because I don't always see it immediately. 00:16:54.879 --> 00:16:57.519 Sometimes other people have to point it out to me. 00:16:57.679 --> 00:17:02.559 Sometimes, Lord, you directly by your Holy Spirit, you get my attention sometimes. 00:17:02.639 --> 00:17:08.799 And it's oftentimes when the trouble is bubbling up, and I realize I need God. 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:15.599 That's a good exercise for all of us. 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:18.640 Thirdly, lastly, the provision. 00:17:18.799 --> 00:17:27.200 We read in the text, beginning in verse 7, the angel of the Lord, the angel of the Lord, not an angel. 00:17:27.759 --> 00:17:31.920 Many believe, and I concur, I think this is a pre-incarnate Christ. 00:17:32.079 --> 00:17:34.799 This is Jesus showing up in the Old Testament. 00:17:35.119 --> 00:17:45.599 The angel of the Lord appears to Hagar by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 00:17:45.759 --> 00:17:47.039 She's going back to Egypt. 00:17:49.119 --> 00:17:50.720 Sarah's mistreating her. 00:17:50.960 --> 00:17:51.839 She's had enough. 00:17:52.000 --> 00:17:53.759 She's going back to Egypt. 00:17:54.160 --> 00:17:59.680 And he said, Hagar, servant of Sarah, where have you come from and where are you going? 00:18:00.240 --> 00:18:02.799 I'm fleeing from my mistress, Sarah. 00:18:04.079 --> 00:18:09.599 Then the angel of the Lord said to her, Return to your mistress and submit to her. 00:18:10.079 --> 00:18:17.680 The angel of the Lord also said to her, I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude. 00:18:18.799 --> 00:18:26.160 And the angel of the Lord said to her, Behold, you are pregnant and you shall bear a son, and you shall call his name Ishmael. 00:18:27.519 --> 00:18:30.720 You know what the word, the name Ishmael means? 00:18:31.119 --> 00:18:32.480 You don't have to take Hebrew. 00:18:32.720 --> 00:18:35.279 Al is the word for God, Ishmael. 00:18:36.319 --> 00:18:37.839 God hears. 00:18:39.359 --> 00:18:40.640 God hears. 00:18:42.079 --> 00:18:45.599 That was a good name for God to give. 00:18:47.039 --> 00:18:48.000 Ishmael. 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:51.200 She wasn't sure. 00:18:53.119 --> 00:18:54.319 God hears. 00:18:55.440 --> 00:19:00.240 And so God provided for Hagar, the Egyptian slave woman. 00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:03.279 He provided. 00:19:04.160 --> 00:19:06.319 Return to Sarah and submit to her. 00:19:06.400 --> 00:19:07.920 And you know what she's thinking? 00:19:08.079 --> 00:19:09.920 That's the last thing I want to do. 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:12.079 No. 00:19:13.599 --> 00:19:18.640 But God was working in this Egyptian slave woman's heart. 00:19:19.680 --> 00:19:25.039 Isn't it beautiful how God reaches our hearts like nobody else? 00:19:26.720 --> 00:19:31.519 She heard the voice of God and she responded to the voice of God. 00:19:32.319 --> 00:19:34.319 And you know that's part of worship. 00:19:35.279 --> 00:19:36.400 Like today. 00:19:36.960 --> 00:19:41.200 To hear the voice of God and to submit to the voice of God. 00:19:43.039 --> 00:19:45.279 That's the last thing she wanted to do. 00:19:45.599 --> 00:19:48.000 And yet that's exactly what she did. 00:19:48.720 --> 00:19:51.519 And here's the thing I want you to hear me to say today. 00:19:51.759 --> 00:19:54.160 The Lord reaches outsiders. 00:19:55.839 --> 00:20:01.759 The Lord knows how to reach people who feel overlooked, unseen, unheard. 00:20:02.000 --> 00:20:04.799 This was not a woman in the line of the covenant directly. 00:20:04.960 --> 00:20:05.759 This was not a woman. 00:20:05.920 --> 00:20:07.839 This was not a Jewish woman. 00:20:08.079 --> 00:20:10.400 This was a woman who thought she had no rights. 00:20:10.559 --> 00:20:16.000 This is a woman that had felt that she had no voice with God, no hearing with God. 00:20:16.319 --> 00:20:21.279 This is a woman who would have easily thought, I'm outside the circle. 00:20:22.799 --> 00:20:26.720 And you may feel this morning right now that you're outside the circle. 00:20:28.079 --> 00:20:33.039 You may look around in this room and you might think to yourself, you know, there's a lot of godly people in this room. 00:20:33.200 --> 00:20:34.160 And there are. 00:20:35.920 --> 00:20:38.640 But that doesn't put you outside the circle. 00:20:41.839 --> 00:20:47.920 We see this portrayed so beautifully by our Savior Jesus through all the gospel accounts. 00:20:48.720 --> 00:20:52.240 Jesus looks outside the circle. 00:20:52.960 --> 00:20:56.640 Jesus looks to the ones who feel like they're excluded. 00:20:56.880 --> 00:21:00.799 Jesus looks at the ones who feel like they are marginalized. 00:21:01.039 --> 00:21:05.359 Jesus looks at the ones that feel like they're all on their own. 00:21:06.640 --> 00:21:08.319 And that's why I love him. 00:21:10.960 --> 00:21:12.720 And that's why I want to trust him. 00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:15.519 Is that you? 00:21:19.759 --> 00:21:24.319 The Lord was providing what Hagar most needed. 00:21:25.279 --> 00:21:27.920 And just two points of application, what that was. 00:21:28.079 --> 00:21:31.440 First of all, a refreshing spring in the wilderness. 00:21:31.680 --> 00:21:33.759 This was the desert where she was. 00:21:34.880 --> 00:21:36.640 This was rough travel. 00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:38.799 Alright? 00:21:40.480 --> 00:21:44.240 Sharon and I are gonna get in a car tomorrow, and we're gonna drive to Lake George. 00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:46.319 That's not rough travel. 00:21:47.279 --> 00:21:49.359 Our car is air conditioned. 00:21:50.400 --> 00:21:54.160 It usually operates like it should. 00:21:54.799 --> 00:21:57.519 There's a gazillion rest stops on the way. 00:21:58.480 --> 00:22:00.799 We're going right through Jersey and New York. 00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:03.039 There's lots of people. 00:22:04.240 --> 00:22:04.559 No. 00:22:05.920 --> 00:22:07.519 Now this was a desert. 00:22:08.319 --> 00:22:10.400 And she was all by herself. 00:22:10.960 --> 00:22:17.359 And she was scared and felt vulnerable and felt threatened. 00:22:19.119 --> 00:22:28.799 And oftentimes when I think about this in my mind, I um the Lord really touches my heart. 00:22:29.519 --> 00:22:31.440 Because this is your story. 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:32.799 Not you. 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:34.960 I mean not a lot of you, but some of you. 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:40.720 Oh, I'm so blessed to be able to pastor this congregation. 00:22:42.880 --> 00:22:46.079 God has brought some of you from all over the world. 00:22:47.279 --> 00:22:49.519 And God has delivered some of you. 00:22:50.720 --> 00:22:54.000 Rescues that only He could have provided. 00:22:55.279 --> 00:22:56.960 And you've persevered. 00:22:57.920 --> 00:23:02.319 And you've held on to Jesus when you had nothing else to hold on to. 00:23:03.599 --> 00:23:05.440 I think about you a lot. 00:23:06.480 --> 00:23:08.000 I'm grateful for you. 00:23:09.119 --> 00:23:18.160 Those of you who have taken this journey, you've made our church a stronger, more godly, unified body. 00:23:19.119 --> 00:23:23.359 That's just a personal note of thanks for those of you who have taken this journey. 00:23:23.599 --> 00:23:27.759 It's not a journey I've taken, but it's a journey I've seen. 00:23:29.119 --> 00:23:31.839 And it's a journey that has strengthened my faith. 00:23:35.519 --> 00:23:40.319 God provided Hagar a refreshing spring in the wilderness. 00:23:40.559 --> 00:23:48.640 Friends, as we trust God in the deserts of our life, he will provide refreshing springs when it feels like we can't go on. 00:23:49.039 --> 00:23:50.640 He has a way of finding us. 00:23:50.720 --> 00:23:52.319 That's the verb in the Hebrew. 00:23:52.559 --> 00:23:54.640 The angel of the Lord found her. 00:23:54.880 --> 00:23:57.440 Aren't you glad that you don't have to find him? 00:23:59.519 --> 00:24:05.519 He found her and refreshes us to stay on the journey. 00:24:05.759 --> 00:24:09.440 He has a way of finding us and refreshing us to stay on the journey. 00:24:09.759 --> 00:24:12.559 I wonder where you will find that spring today. 00:24:13.519 --> 00:24:16.640 I wonder what the pressure is that you're dealing with today in your life. 00:24:16.880 --> 00:24:18.880 I wonder what desert you're in today. 00:24:20.799 --> 00:24:24.880 I wonder where you're going to find that spring today. 00:24:25.440 --> 00:24:30.240 Is it going to be directly through the preaching of the gospel this morning, right now, through the Word of God? 00:24:30.960 --> 00:24:35.119 Is it going to be through the encouragement from a friend before you leave today? 00:24:35.599 --> 00:24:39.519 Is it going to be a clear answer to prayer that God is going to bring into your life? 00:24:39.759 --> 00:24:52.480 Whether you feel mistreated, misunderstood, or overlooked like a Hagar, therefore, the well that she found, God provided a well right in the middle of the desert. 00:24:54.960 --> 00:24:56.559 He didn't provide this. 00:24:58.960 --> 00:25:03.519 I'm sure she would have been grateful for a cup of water. 00:25:04.000 --> 00:25:05.759 I'm sure she would have. 00:25:11.599 --> 00:25:14.160 And wells that keep giving water. 00:25:15.039 --> 00:25:16.799 I want you to remember that. 00:25:17.440 --> 00:25:19.839 God doesn't give you just a little sip. 00:25:20.079 --> 00:25:25.039 God says, I'm going to show you a well that you can come back to and you can drink from whenever you need it. 00:25:25.119 --> 00:25:30.400 Whenever you feel like your soul is parched, whenever you feel like you can't go on, I'm going to give you a well. 00:25:32.160 --> 00:25:34.000 This is who He is, our God. 00:25:39.599 --> 00:25:48.880 And secondly, God provided by multiplying Hagar's offspring so many children so that they cannot be numbered for multitude. 00:25:49.039 --> 00:25:50.720 You can't count that high. 00:25:51.519 --> 00:25:54.160 Ishmael, the God who hears. 00:25:54.559 --> 00:25:57.119 God hears the cries of the afflicted. 00:25:57.359 --> 00:25:59.279 God hears your cry. 00:25:59.519 --> 00:26:05.440 Abram called the name of the boy Ishmael, confirming that that was the right name. 00:26:07.839 --> 00:26:12.559 Abram had the last rights to name the boy. 00:26:13.759 --> 00:26:18.640 I suppose he could have given him another name, but Abram said, no, no, that's the right name. 00:26:18.880 --> 00:26:20.000 That's the right name. 00:26:20.240 --> 00:26:21.200 God hears. 00:26:23.279 --> 00:26:30.319 God saw what, excuse me, Abram saw what God had done for Hagar and confirmed it by the naming. 00:26:30.559 --> 00:26:44.319 Verse 13, Hagar says, You are a God of seeing, not only hearing, you are a God of seeing truly here, here, at this well, in this desert, I have seen him who sees me. 00:26:44.559 --> 00:26:46.160 Can you relate to Hagar? 00:26:46.799 --> 00:26:55.200 Today in your worship, as the glory of God burst forth in some new way to you, is the Holy Spirit giving you faith right now to believe these promises? 00:26:59.200 --> 00:27:04.559 Can you say right now, I see a God who sees me? 00:27:07.599 --> 00:27:10.000 Do you feel that you've gone unnoticed? 00:27:10.319 --> 00:27:11.039 Unheard? 00:27:11.680 --> 00:27:12.000 No. 00:27:13.039 --> 00:27:14.319 He sees you. 00:27:15.599 --> 00:27:20.720 Do you feel like an outsider that he answers other people's prayers but not yours? 00:27:20.960 --> 00:27:22.240 Do you feel that way? 00:27:22.480 --> 00:27:24.000 You ever feel that way? 00:27:24.240 --> 00:27:27.519 It seems like he answers everybody else's prayer but mine. 00:27:28.640 --> 00:27:29.279 Wow. 00:27:29.680 --> 00:27:32.079 Pass me not, O gentle Savior. 00:27:33.759 --> 00:27:35.519 Pass me not, O gentle Savior. 00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:37.920 Hear my humble cry. 00:27:38.160 --> 00:27:42.640 While on others thou art calling, do not pass me by. 00:27:46.160 --> 00:27:48.240 Cry out from your heart today. 00:27:49.440 --> 00:27:50.960 As an act of your worship. 00:27:51.200 --> 00:27:55.839 Don't go home and yeah, go home and think about it more, but don't wait to go home. 00:27:56.160 --> 00:27:57.599 That's not worship. 00:27:57.839 --> 00:28:01.440 Worship is responding as the Holy Spirit is working on your heart right now. 00:28:01.599 --> 00:28:11.359 Worship is responding to what the Holy Spirit is showing you right now about your wilderness, your parched soul, your lack of faith. 00:28:12.000 --> 00:28:21.839 You ask the Spirit to give you that faith right now, to believe that God sees you, that God hears you, and that God will provide for you. 00:28:25.920 --> 00:28:27.200 He sees you. 00:28:43.200 --> 00:28:51.839 Yet this seed, this seed, the seed, experienced the total darkness. 00:28:52.240 --> 00:29:00.240 He experienced a desert not like Hagar experienced on the day that he was crucified on the cross at Calvary. 00:29:02.160 --> 00:29:03.759 God didn't see him. 00:29:05.680 --> 00:29:07.359 God didn't hear him. 00:29:08.079 --> 00:29:13.680 And he cried out with all of his energy, My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? 00:29:17.519 --> 00:29:19.359 And God didn't answer him. 00:29:22.960 --> 00:29:25.519 He said, Son, you must be abandoned. 00:29:27.680 --> 00:29:29.680 So that I will not abandon these. 00:29:31.440 --> 00:29:32.880 This is the gospel. 00:29:37.200 --> 00:29:40.880 There was no refreshing spring for him that day on the cross. 00:29:41.759 --> 00:29:45.440 So that one day there would be refreshing springs for you and for me. 00:29:45.759 --> 00:29:53.279 Wells, wells of springs of water to refresh, to renew, to renew my hope in yours. 00:29:56.480 --> 00:29:59.599 Jesus is strong and kind. 00:30:00.480 --> 00:30:01.920 I should come to him. 00:30:02.960 --> 00:30:05.039 No one else can satisfy. 00:30:05.680 --> 00:30:07.680 I should come to him. 00:30:08.160 --> 00:30:11.039 Jesus said if I'm weak, I should come to him. 00:30:11.680 --> 00:30:14.480 No one else can be my strength, I should come to him. 00:30:15.839 --> 00:30:20.079 Jesus said that if I'm lost, he will come to me. 00:30:20.400 --> 00:30:24.880 And he showed me on that cross, he will come to me. 00:30:26.960 --> 00:30:29.440