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The Unfolding Promise of God.

Abraham and Sarah have had to wait so long for the fulfilment of God's promise concerning the birth of their son. They had experienced trials and delays as they waited and as they had tried to take things into their own hands to "help" God along. But now the trials are over – their son Isaac has been safely brought into the world bringing them great joy.

And that is where we left them last week. But life does not stand still. And life continued happily for them for anything between 2-5 years as Isaac makes good progress.

And as we reach v.8 we come to a milestone in little Isaac's life. He has survived infancy and is weaned. Now in ancient times infant mortality was high – 1 in 5 died and around 1 in 3 did not make it through to their 5^th birthday. Even today in some parts of the world the numbers are not much better. So for Isaac to have got this far, to being weaned, was a cause for rejoicing and that is just what we find Abraham doing. Abraham organises a feast to celebrate.

So life seems to moving along very smoothly for Abraham and Sarah now. Surely their trails are all behind them now! What a happy household they now were as they joyously celebrated Isaac's progress!

But no!! Something was about to happen that would quickly trouble their peace once again.

And how easy it is for something unexpected to trouble our peace when all seems to be going well! How easily we become disrupted, disoriented and discouraged.

All seems calm and then some expected event hits us out of the blue. How do you react at such times? What do you do? I guess we all have different strategies: sometimes we just stew things over ourselves, sometimes we run to tell others, sometimes we simply lose heart and imagine the worst.

Well let's examine together the nature of the event that introduced the discordant note into Abraham and Sarah's life and see what this passage has to teach us.

Amidst all the joy and festivity of celebrating Isaac being weaned we are confronted with another type of laughter. Hagar's son is laughing at young Isaac and his laughter is not that of innocent play. The verb form used suggests something sinister, this laughter is the laughter of mockery and of scorn. Basically Ishmael – who incidentally is not named in this chapter – is treating Isaac with contempt.

In all probability he was boasting of his own claims to being Abraham's first born and declaring that he was Abraham true heir and he would inherit when Abraham passed away. That this is the case seems to be confirmed by Sarah's words to Abraham in v.10

“Cast out this slave woman with her son, for the son of this slave woman shall not be heir with my son Isaac.”

When Sarah witnessed the way in which Ishmael was treating Isaac she was insensed. She knew that Isaac was the true child of God's promise. Yes, for a time it would appear that Abraham did view Ishmael as the fulfilment of God's promise but it had been made abundantly clear both to Abraham and to Sarah that the true child of the promise would be the fruit of their union.

And now here is Ishmael mocking and scorning the rights of this child! Sarah reacts sternly and in a way that perhaps shocks us almost as much as it shocked Abraham.  She urges Abraham to send both the boy and his mother away!!

Perhaps years of pent up frustration are involved in her outburst – after all Hagar had not reacted well towards her mistress and the presence of Ishmael was a constant reminder to her of her own inability of giving her husband a son. Ishmael's presence too was a stark reminder of how she had encouraged Abraham to adopt a worldly solution to their problem of childlessness.

However we would be barking up the wrong tree if we were to understand all this as nothing more than Sarah's spiteful revenge. Loses makes it very clear that the LORD did not condemn Sarah's reaction but rather told Abraham to heed the words of his wife in this instance!

Ishmael at this time is not a little boy who can't be expected to know any better. He had been circumcised when 13 years old and was 14 when Isaac was born. The age for a child to be weaned was probably somewhere between 2 + 5. So at the time of this event Ishmael was at least 16 and quite possibly somewhat older. He knew what he was doing. In mocking Isaac he was rejecting and despising God's plans. In all that follows it becomes very clear that this passage is once more all about God and is not simply another interesting story in the life of a hero of faith.

Abraham is understandably distraught by Sarah's request to get rid of Hagar and her son. For a number of years he had thought that Ishmael was the one through whom God was going to keep His promises and a real bond of affection had grown between him and Ishmael – even if Sarah had never shared the same warmth of affection. Even when told by the LORD that Sarah would bear him a child Abraham quickly and fervently interceded in favour of Ishmael:

Gen.17:18 "Oh that Ishmael might live before you!"

And now we learn that as Sarah urges this boy to be sent away Abraham is distressed. His peace has gone and his world that was so happy just a short time before now seems to be falling apart at the seams!

And naturally we would like to know just how Abraham handled it all. Did he stew it over? Did he talk it over with others, What did he do?

Do you know that Moses doesn't satisfy this curiosity of ours at all? What he does do is something that will be of far more help to us though in the long run. We aren't presented with a nice little pattern of behaviour that we can imitate when we're in a quandary but we are presented with a God who sovereignly reigns over all.

And so we are brought to see that the whole point of this episode is NOT to learn some more interesting information about Abraham and Sarah but it is all about God and His plans and His purposes. It is all about falling into line with God, with humbly accepting what God has decided upon and not contesting it. Indeed the passage shows us is stark terms how serious it is to contest God and His choices.

In the midst of his turmoil the LORD speaks to Abraham – there is no hint in the passage that Abraham went to God about the matter but God in His mercy spoke to Abraham!

The first thing is to give Abraham the reason as to why he should heed Sarah. It is not to ensure marital harmony or anything like that but it is because Isaac is the one through whom Abraham's offspring are to be named – ultimately it means that blessing to the entire world will come from the line that passes through Isaac – the Messiah will come from this line and no other.

This line then must be protected and this line is to be respected.

Ishmael may not like that fact – too bad for Ishmael. It is not what Ishmael wants that counts. Abraham cannot fudge the issue either – distinctions can't be blurred – there will be one line that brings forth the seed of the woman and only one. In the NT we read:

Acts 4:12 "And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Ishmael is cast out because he rejects the plan and purpose of God.

Do you see how serious the matter is for Ishmael to go against God's revealed plan and purpose? Stop and think how seriously the LORD takes this! What will He do to those who reject Great David's Greater Son the Lord Jesus Christ? Those who mock Him openly and those who reject Him as the One and only Name whereby we must be saved will not be treated more sympathetically than was Ishmael.

You see the LORD does not negotiate with us the terms of our salvation. He doesn't listen to our preferences and take on board our suggestions. He doesn't do any of that. No, He says "Kiss the Son lest he be angry, and you perish in the way." He freely offers you His own dear Son, the Lord Jesus Christ to be the Saviour who alone is capable of saving your never-dying soul and pleads with you "Why will you die? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God, so turn and live." (Eze.18:31-32).

How serious it is to neglect so great a salvation by preferring some alternative scheme of human making!

I must urge you not to fall into the sin of Ishmael of mocking the child of promise – that child of promise for you is not Isaac but the Lord of Glory the Lord Jesus Christ. You can mock him openly by rejecting His claims – you can mock Him more surreptitiously by being religious but without placing your trust in Him and continuing to prefer some other way of salvation than "by grace alone through faith".

Secondly, the LORD deals kindly with Ishmael despite the latter's rejection of the LORD's plan and purpose. The Lord God is good to all and evidences love to all even when that love does not include the benefits of salvation. In our day God is good to all – He continues to send the rain on the just and the unjust and there are many joys and blessings that He showers upon all whether or not they respond positively to Him or not.

Abraham is concerned for his son Ishmael and the Lord God promises to provide for him and to bless him by making him into a great nation.

When Abraham does send Ishmael away and Hagar despairs of life itself the LORD intervenes declaring that He has heard the voice of her boy. There is a play on words here too – Ishmael literally means "God hears". Not only does God hear but He acts – a well is revealed and this enables Hagar and her boy to survive. The section moves on quickly and Ishmael is a grown man entering into marriage.

Let us never imagine that our God is a spiteful vindictive God. Those who reject Him are not led into extraordinarily difficult paths for the rest of their existence – He blesses with many ordinary blessings. May these blessings which are enjoyed be rightly understood – they fall short of soul salvation – yet a right and thoughtful consideration of how God is good to us should lead us to understand His patience as an invitation and an opportunity for us to change our ways and return to Him in faith and trust.

Beware though – many do not arrive at such a conclusion but conclude rather that all is well with them and they need give no further thought to the matter of spiritual blessing with God.

Finally, a concluding word about Abraham. He obeys the LORD in sending Hagar and her boy away from the child of promise who is and must remain central and protected. Yet the way in which he acts is kind and compassionate. He has to send them away – but he doesn't so in some indifferent manner. He is warm and as thoughtful as he might be. It is he who gets up early and accomplishes the painful task of separation himself – this is not left to a servant or another. He also makes provision for the journey – he it is that takes bread and draws water. Let us learn too from this to continue to be kind and considerate even to those who continue to reject the true child of promise our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Who knows but such kindness will be used of the LORD to convict and convert the sinner?!  

To God be the glory.