1 00:00:09,180 --> 00:00:11,980 If you have your copy of God's word, go and make your way to 2 00:00:11,980 --> 00:00:18,540 Genesis chapter 16, Genesis 16 as today we resume our series 3 00:00:18,540 --> 00:00:21,460 answering God's call through the first book of the Bible, 4 00:00:22,140 --> 00:00:25,700 Genesis, where we left off and took a couple three-week hiatus 5 00:00:25,700 --> 00:00:27,740 as we for Palm Sunday and Easter. 6 00:00:27,740 --> 00:00:33,120 We're in Isaiah 52 and 53 and then last Sunday in my absence, 7 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:37,000 man who was with us three years prior, Wayne Nagle with families 8 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:40,600 for families came and was a great blessing, challenging and 9 00:00:40,600 --> 00:00:42,200 calling us to care for the vulnerable. 10 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:44,600 That ministry it really the heart of our church. 11 00:00:44,600 --> 00:00:48,360 It was been going on for quite some time now to care for foster 12 00:00:48,360 --> 00:00:50,240 children. Many foster families in the life 13 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:52,760 of our church and many that support and serve foster 14 00:00:52,760 --> 00:00:54,480 families. And so I pray that you were 15 00:00:54,480 --> 00:00:58,320 encouraged last week is as I was away on mission with three other 16 00:00:58,320 --> 00:01:03,280 church members in Lesotho, Africa, which is a country just 17 00:01:03,280 --> 00:01:07,320 South of South Africa. And we returned this past week 18 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:10,640 and church family. I just want to share just a 19 00:01:10,640 --> 00:01:14,120 little bit about that. And really the, the, the main 20 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:16,040 thing I want to say is is thank you. 21 00:01:16,040 --> 00:01:19,640 Thank you for being a church that is willing to be a Great 22 00:01:19,640 --> 00:01:22,080 Commission, not just right here, but to the ends of the earth 23 00:01:22,080 --> 00:01:23,960 church. Thank you for being a church 24 00:01:23,960 --> 00:01:27,160 willing to serve and support your pastor and willingness for 25 00:01:27,160 --> 00:01:30,040 him to go, to be a part of going to tell others about Christ, 26 00:01:30,040 --> 00:01:32,720 whether it be across the street or around the world. 27 00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:35,560 What we did was we'll show some pictures here in a second, but 28 00:01:35,560 --> 00:01:38,760 we teamed up with one of our IMB partners, right? 29 00:01:38,760 --> 00:01:41,600 So part of what we do at the church is part of your offerings 30 00:01:41,600 --> 00:01:46,080 and tithes go to support the full time salary of people on 31 00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:48,760 the field around the world to tell people about Christ. 32 00:01:48,760 --> 00:01:51,000 They don't have to raise money because we're able to provide 33 00:01:51,000 --> 00:01:54,320 them with that money. So we teamed up with one of 34 00:01:54,320 --> 00:01:57,560 these families there and we were able to multiply their efforts 35 00:01:57,560 --> 00:02:01,680 as they serve in a larger city where they live in Lesotho and 36 00:02:01,680 --> 00:02:03,440 they minister to university students. 37 00:02:03,760 --> 00:02:06,480 But then they disciple them in their homes after evangelizing 38 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:08,240 them. But then there's the rural, 39 00:02:08,240 --> 00:02:11,920 mountainous areas of Lesotho that have villages as far as you 40 00:02:11,920 --> 00:02:13,680 want to hike and walk. All right. 41 00:02:14,080 --> 00:02:16,680 And So what we did was we helped divide into teams with the 42 00:02:16,680 --> 00:02:19,360 missionaries efforts. They go and take the gospel and 43 00:02:19,360 --> 00:02:22,320 do discipleship in these rural areas and what they call the 44 00:02:22,320 --> 00:02:24,880 Highlands or the mountains of Lasutu. 45 00:02:25,120 --> 00:02:29,200 This is actually a picture from the window of the room where I 46 00:02:29,200 --> 00:02:31,600 slept in Lasutu. This is what I woke up to and 47 00:02:31,600 --> 00:02:34,480 watched every morning. That's Mahalay Reservoir right 48 00:02:34,480 --> 00:02:36,880 there. Now the the view is five star. 49 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:39,160 I'm not necessarily saying that the lodging was all right. 50 00:02:39,320 --> 00:02:41,000 It was great. Food was great. 51 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:44,200 I mean, for international it was I wouldn't complain one bit, but 52 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:46,360 the views were absolutely spectacular. 53 00:02:46,520 --> 00:02:49,320 So what we were doing is we were driving a four wheel drive 54 00:02:49,520 --> 00:02:52,360 Toyota Helix with mud tires and everything. 55 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:54,200 It was awesome. All right, crossing rivers and 56 00:02:54,200 --> 00:02:56,960 creeks and mud and climbing up Jeep trails because you don't 57 00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,240 have roads that go to these villages, but you could drive as 58 00:02:59,240 --> 00:03:01,440 far as you could and then you hiked from there. 59 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:04,720 All right, We're at 5 to 7000 feet and so we're walking into 60 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:07,440 villages. The next picture where you can 61 00:03:07,440 --> 00:03:10,000 see what the homes look like. This is one of our translators 62 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:13,560 and our student pastor there. This is what a typical, you 63 00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:15,240 don't need to see the whole village, but you see a couple of 64 00:03:15,240 --> 00:03:18,520 the first houses there. And what we would do is, is we 65 00:03:18,520 --> 00:03:21,880 would in the villages where they had the missionaries had already 66 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:24,760 been, we would follow up and do evangelism and do discipleship 67 00:03:24,760 --> 00:03:26,600 through a translator. As we talk, you'll see a couple 68 00:03:26,600 --> 00:03:29,800 pictures of me teaching. I think along the way we would 69 00:03:29,800 --> 00:03:32,280 also evangelize the shepherds. These are very much a 70 00:03:32,280 --> 00:03:34,840 shepherding culture. They have sheep and goats and 71 00:03:34,840 --> 00:03:37,920 cows that are ranging throughout these mountains, and you would 72 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:39,800 go to them and hike to them to try to share. 73 00:03:39,800 --> 00:03:41,720 So if you want to keep going on the pictures, we can just kind 74 00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:44,520 of walk through those. We cross creeks, had to take off 75 00:03:44,520 --> 00:03:47,560 our shoes, put them back on, and I could have borrowed a horse 76 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:50,960 there, but we didn't do that. Crossed in the vehicle there you 77 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:53,520 can see just the scenery is amazing and people are 78 00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:55,240 throughout. You can't see people right here, 79 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:58,000 but villages are tucked into these mountains and the 80 00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:00,520 shepherds are throughout them. Let's keep going. 81 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:05,680 This lady ran from a village over to memorize the verses on 82 00:04:05,680 --> 00:04:07,360 that white card that we would give them. 83 00:04:07,360 --> 00:04:11,480 So in the language, they would take the Romans Rd. in John 316. 84 00:04:11,600 --> 00:04:14,680 In order to get a Bible, they have to memorize these verses. 85 00:04:14,680 --> 00:04:16,880 And then we would give them a Bible in their own language 86 00:04:16,880 --> 00:04:19,880 which they otherwise had no access to and a little Bible 87 00:04:19,880 --> 00:04:22,160 cover. So this lady ran from 1 village 88 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:23,840 to the next. These were shepherds we shared 89 00:04:23,840 --> 00:04:26,240 with that had never ever heard the gospel. 90 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:29,360 And let me just say this, I think what struck me most about 91 00:04:29,360 --> 00:04:31,880 this trip is we had an opportunity to share with more 92 00:04:31,880 --> 00:04:35,200 people who had never heard the gospel in their life than any 93 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:40,520 other opportunity I've ever had. These three shepherds never 94 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:42,760 heard the gospel. All young guys out there, all 95 00:04:42,760 --> 00:04:45,520 alone in these mountains shepherding their sheep. 96 00:04:46,400 --> 00:04:48,640 Obviously I could look at them and talk about the great 97 00:04:48,640 --> 00:04:50,360 Shepherd. I could look at them and say all 98 00:04:50,360 --> 00:04:52,880 we like sheep have gone astray. They knew exactly what I was 99 00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:56,480 talking about and they realized right when I'm spiritually 100 00:04:56,480 --> 00:04:58,520 speaking about sin and their need of a Savior. 101 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:03,040 And so we were able to lead several shepherds to Christ just 102 00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:04,640 through these conversations. We would hike to them. 103 00:05:04,800 --> 00:05:07,080 Let's go to the last shepherd that we had a chance to share 104 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:08,280 with. You can see some of his sheep 105 00:05:08,280 --> 00:05:10,080 there. That's his little Hut to the 106 00:05:10,080 --> 00:05:12,760 left that he sleeps in. We had hiked down this steep 107 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:15,760 embankment to this guy. His dogs were going crazy. 108 00:05:15,760 --> 00:05:18,800 They keep these dogs to keep sheep thieves away, which those 109 00:05:18,800 --> 00:05:20,240 dogs think we're the sheep thieves. 110 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:23,120 You can imagine how this goes. You pick up a rock and you start 111 00:05:23,120 --> 00:05:24,680 praying. All right, say God, I don't want 112 00:05:24,680 --> 00:05:27,560 to ruin this opportunity with the shepherd with his dogs 113 00:05:27,560 --> 00:05:28,920 before I get a chance to share with him. 114 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:31,320 We walked down. He was very receptive to us 115 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:34,280 through a translator. We just end up, we just 116 00:05:34,280 --> 00:05:36,440 immediately drop in, hey, we've come to share the good news of 117 00:05:36,440 --> 00:05:39,000 God's love with you. And I don't know if you've ever 118 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:42,840 heard this, but God sent his one and only son so that whosoever 119 00:05:42,840 --> 00:05:44,280 would believe in him should not perish. 120 00:05:44,280 --> 00:05:45,440 Why? Because we've strayed like 121 00:05:45,440 --> 00:05:47,320 sheep. The wages of sin is death, but 122 00:05:47,320 --> 00:05:50,440 the free gift of God in Jesus Christ is eternal life, and all 123 00:05:50,440 --> 00:05:52,160 who call on the name of the Lord will be saved. 124 00:05:52,160 --> 00:05:55,480 And have you ever heard this? No, I've never heard this. 125 00:05:56,200 --> 00:05:59,080 See, the look on his face just change as he realizes what we've 126 00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:00,760 just hiked down this mountain to share with him. 127 00:06:00,960 --> 00:06:05,680 He's not talked to anybody in two months all alone by the time 128 00:06:05,680 --> 00:06:08,360 we've shared the gospel. You think about that passage 129 00:06:08,360 --> 00:06:10,240 where I say, this is how beautiful are the feet of those 130 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:11,720 who bring the good news of peace. 131 00:06:12,120 --> 00:06:13,880 And all over him is written this gratitude. 132 00:06:13,880 --> 00:06:17,000 I can't really explain to you the that the look that came over 133 00:06:17,000 --> 00:06:18,600 his demeanor as we shared with him. 134 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:22,040 He didn't know who we were walking down this mountain and 135 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:23,960 yet to hear the story. And he looked at us and then he 136 00:06:23,960 --> 00:06:25,720 says, I'm so thankful for what you've shared with me. 137 00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:28,840 I wish I had a sleep, a sheep slaughtered so I could feed you 138 00:06:28,840 --> 00:06:35,320 before you left this guy. We told the missionary was going 139 00:06:35,320 --> 00:06:38,160 to go back the following Friday after we arrived in the States 140 00:06:38,160 --> 00:06:40,880 on Thursday and the missionary said, I'm going to be back and 141 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:42,760 I'm going to be up this road that's up the mountain. 142 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:46,440 On Friday, the missionary sent me a WhatsApp that said that 143 00:06:46,440 --> 00:06:49,120 shepherd with four others, we're sitting by the road waiting for 144 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:51,360 him on Friday to hear more about what we shared. 145 00:06:51,960 --> 00:06:57,800 I mean, praise God, praise God, church family, that, that that's 146 00:06:57,800 --> 00:07:01,480 what it's all about, whether it's across the street or around 147 00:07:01,480 --> 00:07:04,200 the world. You know, we when I, one of the 148 00:07:04,200 --> 00:07:08,160 reasons I love to go is because it's like a spiritual boot camp. 149 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:11,000 It reminds me what really matters in life. 150 00:07:11,640 --> 00:07:14,360 It reminds me really what I'm supposed to be doing, whether in 151 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:18,160 Cartersville or in Lesotho. It reminds me of the joy of the 152 00:07:18,160 --> 00:07:20,920 privilege of sharing the greatest news on the planet, 153 00:07:21,120 --> 00:07:23,720 right? And it reminds me that the power 154 00:07:23,720 --> 00:07:26,160 of God when we speak the word of God has the power to change a 155 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:27,440 human heart. Whether someone who's never 156 00:07:27,440 --> 00:07:29,600 heard it before, who grew up hearing it, but has never 157 00:07:29,600 --> 00:07:32,720 received it in church family, this is our privilege and 158 00:07:32,720 --> 00:07:35,720 responsibility. And I'm thankful, thankful we're 159 00:07:35,720 --> 00:07:38,360 part of a church family who values getting the gospel around 160 00:07:38,360 --> 00:07:40,440 the world. One of my goals for you, if it's 161 00:07:40,480 --> 00:07:43,400 if it's something that you've not set, is that maybe at least 162 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:46,840 once a year you would think about intentionally going 163 00:07:46,840 --> 00:07:50,280 somewhere that otherwise you would not have gone had you not 164 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:52,480 chosen to go because you were taking the gospel. 165 00:07:53,320 --> 00:07:55,080 I think that should be a rhythm of every Christian. 166 00:07:55,160 --> 00:07:58,000 It doesn't have to be Africa, but it could be just somewhere 167 00:07:58,000 --> 00:08:00,760 further than you would normally go for the sake of telling 168 00:08:00,760 --> 00:08:03,520 someone about Christ. Well, I could keep going on 169 00:08:03,520 --> 00:08:06,240 that, but my duty here this morning is to preach the word of 170 00:08:06,240 --> 00:08:08,400 God. All right, so let me do that. 171 00:08:08,720 --> 00:08:13,760 Out of Genesis chapter 16, there are some texts that just throws 172 00:08:13,760 --> 00:08:16,120 sermon titles at you. I mean, it's like pick one, 173 00:08:16,120 --> 00:08:18,240 right? I thought about several for this 174 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:20,000 text. I didn't choose any of them, but 175 00:08:20,000 --> 00:08:23,160 I could have said the title of this sermon is the autopsy of a 176 00:08:23,160 --> 00:08:25,880 dumb decision. That one would have fit. 177 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:30,160 We could have called this sermon No good and the Bad and the 178 00:08:30,160 --> 00:08:32,799 ugly. We could have called this sermon 179 00:08:32,840 --> 00:08:36,720 how not to do life, marriage and family. 180 00:08:36,720 --> 00:08:38,840 All of that would have been appropriate. 181 00:08:38,840 --> 00:08:41,720 May not capture the whole story, but it's spoken to what we're 182 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:44,120 going to see. I can tell you what we're about 183 00:08:44,120 --> 00:08:49,040 to read is the brokenness and sinfulness of man and the crazy, 184 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:52,440 constant, never ending grace of God in the middle of all our 185 00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:53,560 mess. That's what we're going to read 186 00:08:53,560 --> 00:08:55,040 and that's what we're going to see. 187 00:08:55,040 --> 00:08:57,680 All right, So be watching for that as we go. 188 00:08:57,680 --> 00:08:59,760 Listen to Genesis 16, verses 1 and 2. 189 00:09:00,160 --> 00:09:03,920 Now Sarah, Abraham's wife, had borne him no children. 190 00:09:04,640 --> 00:09:08,160 She had a female Egyptian servant, whose name was Hagar. 191 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:12,920 And Sarah said to Abram, Behold, now the Lord has prevented me 192 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:15,760 from bearing children. Go into my servant. 193 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:18,920 It may be that I shall obtain children by her. 194 00:09:19,200 --> 00:09:23,840 And Abram listened to the voice. Sarai, I warned you. 195 00:09:23,840 --> 00:09:26,600 This one starts in the shade, and it gets, it just gets 196 00:09:26,600 --> 00:09:30,080 shadier before it gets better. So just be patient, all right? 197 00:09:30,680 --> 00:09:36,520 Sarah is 75, Abraham's 85. They left home 10 years ago, 198 00:09:36,800 --> 00:09:39,000 headed toward the land God had promised them. 199 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:43,560 It has been over a decade since they heard God's promise that He 200 00:09:43,560 --> 00:09:46,920 would give them an offspring, and that that offspring would be 201 00:09:46,920 --> 00:09:49,120 as numerous as the stars of the sky. 202 00:09:49,360 --> 00:09:52,120 But guess what? How many offspring do they have 203 00:09:52,120 --> 00:09:56,520 after 10 years? Absolutely zero. 204 00:09:58,440 --> 00:10:01,080 Notice closely what Sarah says to Abram. 205 00:10:01,680 --> 00:10:06,280 The Lord has prevented me from bearing children. 206 00:10:06,640 --> 00:10:10,280 Now just watch this Sarah rightly acknowledges that God is 207 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:14,240 God over her circumstances. She's rightly acknowledging that 208 00:10:14,240 --> 00:10:16,440 God is sovereign. God is the one who's ultimately 209 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:18,400 in control. God is the one who's ultimately 210 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:20,880 the author of life. So she's expressing belief in 211 00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:23,240 God. But this belief in God is not 212 00:10:23,240 --> 00:10:25,080 coming out in a positive way, is it? 213 00:10:25,880 --> 00:10:29,000 It's actually being expressed in a negative way, is actually 214 00:10:29,000 --> 00:10:31,480 being expressed in the form of blame. 215 00:10:32,120 --> 00:10:36,280 She is blaming God for what is happening, or rather really 216 00:10:36,280 --> 00:10:39,160 what's not happening. To be more specific, I think we 217 00:10:39,160 --> 00:10:42,520 could say and admit that her words are words that are soaked 218 00:10:42,520 --> 00:10:46,240 in pain. She's speaking out of the depth 219 00:10:46,240 --> 00:10:51,160 of pain of year after year after year of desiring a child and yet 220 00:10:51,160 --> 00:10:54,080 not having one, hearing the promise of God for a child, but 221 00:10:54,080 --> 00:10:55,440 not having a child. All right. 222 00:10:55,560 --> 00:10:58,760 So word soaked in pain of hope not realized. 223 00:10:59,000 --> 00:11:02,160 Word soaked in the pain of prayers not yet answered. 224 00:11:02,680 --> 00:11:06,880 Word soaked in pain of public shame for decades and pain now 225 00:11:06,880 --> 00:11:09,160 of blaming God for one's problems. 226 00:11:09,160 --> 00:11:12,120 Maybe you could put yourself in Sarah's shoes and I could just 227 00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:16,000 hear say it like this, Abram. Maybe you're supposed to be the 228 00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:19,040 father of many nations, but obviously I'm not the mother. 229 00:11:22,040 --> 00:11:24,760 This is how she feels ready to give up. 230 00:11:24,760 --> 00:11:27,760 Sarah believed in the sovereignty of God over the 231 00:11:27,760 --> 00:11:33,600 womb, but in her pain, she's actually about to act in direct 232 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:37,280 opposition to the sovereignty and power of God. 233 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:42,840 Now watch this. This is what we do when we often 234 00:11:42,840 --> 00:11:46,440 often do when we are in pain or in fear. 235 00:11:47,280 --> 00:11:51,360 It's not that we stop believing in God, but we often start 236 00:11:51,360 --> 00:11:55,480 navigating by our own power rather than waiting and 237 00:11:55,480 --> 00:12:00,120 operating in faith in God. Let me put it like this. 238 00:12:00,440 --> 00:12:04,480 Sarah believes in God. She's just tired of waiting on 239 00:12:04,480 --> 00:12:06,520 God. You ever been there? 240 00:12:07,920 --> 00:12:10,920 I'm not lacking faith in God. I'm just, I'm just tired of 241 00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:12,960 waiting on Him. I'm ready to make something 242 00:12:12,960 --> 00:12:14,520 happen. I'm ready for this to be real. 243 00:12:14,640 --> 00:12:16,800 I'm ready to be over this. I'm ready to experience. 244 00:12:16,800 --> 00:12:18,560 I want this and I've wanted, I prayed for it. 245 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:23,280 And yet pain or fear can cause us to act illogically, 246 00:12:23,280 --> 00:12:26,960 unfaithfully, ungodly even in believing in God, right? 247 00:12:26,960 --> 00:12:30,040 So she's going to take things into her own hands because of 248 00:12:30,040 --> 00:12:31,920 her pain. And that's going to be a big 249 00:12:31,920 --> 00:12:34,000 mistake. No, notice, Sarah's plan is 250 00:12:34,000 --> 00:12:36,200 this. It's an Egyptian, one of their 251 00:12:36,200 --> 00:12:40,040 servants by the name of Hagar. Now, there was a social custom 252 00:12:40,040 --> 00:12:44,120 in this day that if a wife was barren and failed to bear 253 00:12:44,120 --> 00:12:47,680 children, then often times the man would marry another wife in 254 00:12:47,680 --> 00:12:50,280 order to have children. In fact, in Lesotho where I just 255 00:12:50,280 --> 00:12:54,080 was, it was customary, a little different than if the wife 256 00:12:54,080 --> 00:12:56,600 failed to bear the husband a son. 257 00:12:56,840 --> 00:12:59,480 Eventually they can marry another wife in order to try to 258 00:12:59,480 --> 00:13:02,120 have a son. None of that's right. 259 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:05,480 I'm just saying it was reality. None of it was God's design. 260 00:13:05,480 --> 00:13:08,040 But this is the way they operated in their day and in 261 00:13:08,040 --> 00:13:10,760 their custom. All right, So what was Abraham's 262 00:13:10,760 --> 00:13:12,080 response? Here's what he says. 263 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:16,920 And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 264 00:13:17,920 --> 00:13:20,360 Abram listened to the voice of his wife. 265 00:13:20,520 --> 00:13:23,520 Now, if you know your Bible, that ought to give you a Bible 266 00:13:23,520 --> 00:13:26,360 flashback real quick. Do you know where? 267 00:13:26,360 --> 00:13:31,000 And you know with who, where Adam and Eve in the garden in 268 00:13:31,000 --> 00:13:32,480 the beginning. Here's how it went. 269 00:13:32,760 --> 00:13:37,600 Adam, Genesis 317 and to Adam, God said, behold, Adam, you have 270 00:13:37,600 --> 00:13:40,560 listened to the voice of your wife. 271 00:13:40,560 --> 00:13:41,840 I'm going to be real careful right here. 272 00:13:41,840 --> 00:13:47,160 You ready, guys? I can tell you that if God has 273 00:13:47,160 --> 00:13:49,880 given you a good woman, all right, and I'm sure he has. 274 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:54,880 Amen ladies, that 99% of the time you ought to listen to her. 275 00:13:56,120 --> 00:13:58,000 I need an Amen. I only got 1 from 1 man. 276 00:13:58,000 --> 00:14:02,360 Come on ladies, where you at? Right. 99% of the time, if God's 277 00:14:02,360 --> 00:14:04,320 given you a good woman, you ought to listen to her. 278 00:14:04,320 --> 00:14:06,000 Why is that? Well, let's just be honest guys, 279 00:14:06,280 --> 00:14:08,920 because God has given women an intuition and insight of 280 00:14:08,920 --> 00:14:11,240 discernment, often times a wisdom that we as guys don't 281 00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:15,200 have anywhere in our ballpark that she sees, she knows, and 282 00:14:15,200 --> 00:14:18,160 she's getting. She's understanding that we 283 00:14:18,160 --> 00:14:24,480 don't have often times and yet, and yet there's obviously a time 284 00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:28,240 not to listen to the voice of your husband or your wife. 285 00:14:29,480 --> 00:14:33,280 When is that? When the voice of your husband 286 00:14:33,280 --> 00:14:39,160 or wife contradicts the voice of God. 287 00:14:40,040 --> 00:14:41,480 I made sure you were listening right. 288 00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:48,960 Whenever that happens, that is the moment not to listen to the 289 00:14:48,960 --> 00:14:53,000 voice of one that's contradicting the voice of God. 290 00:14:53,360 --> 00:14:55,800 Young people in the room or unmarried people in the room 291 00:14:55,800 --> 00:14:58,120 that are interested in marriage. I want to read a verse of 292 00:14:58,120 --> 00:14:59,880 Scripture that by the way, probably doesn't read 293 00:14:59,880 --> 00:15:03,560 politically correct in our day. It could be applied either way 294 00:15:03,560 --> 00:15:05,960 toward a husband looking for a wife or wife looking for a 295 00:15:05,960 --> 00:15:07,640 husband. It's written in the book of 296 00:15:07,640 --> 00:15:10,760 Proverbs as to a son. So it's under the direction of 297 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:12,760 thinking about a wife and here's what it says. 298 00:15:13,000 --> 00:15:15,080 And so as you think about marriage, please keep this in 299 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:17,800 consideration. Proverbs 12 for an excellent 300 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:19,520 wife or you just thinking for girls in the room. 301 00:15:19,520 --> 00:15:23,320 An excellent husband is the crown of her husband, but she 302 00:15:23,320 --> 00:15:26,680 who brings shame is like rottenness in his bones. 303 00:15:26,920 --> 00:15:30,360 The character of your spouse will either be like a crown on 304 00:15:30,360 --> 00:15:34,280 your head, blessing your life, giving, giving goodness in your 305 00:15:34,280 --> 00:15:37,960 life and God's will in your life, or it can be the opposite, 306 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:40,920 bringing a cancer and a rottenness at the core of your 307 00:15:40,920 --> 00:15:43,360 life. You better marry for character 308 00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:46,760 or you will regret it. Mark it down. 309 00:15:47,760 --> 00:15:50,360 Marry for character. Looks won't last anyway. 310 00:15:50,880 --> 00:15:54,360 All right, You don't have to say me into that. 311 00:15:54,360 --> 00:15:57,840 Especially if you're wives. I'll let you say that about your 312 00:15:57,840 --> 00:15:59,080 husband. But husbands don't say that 313 00:15:59,080 --> 00:16:01,040 about your. All right, let's move. 314 00:16:01,280 --> 00:16:02,240 Let's move on. Here we go. 315 00:16:03,200 --> 00:16:05,520 The first thing I want you to see out of this text is this 316 00:16:05,520 --> 00:16:06,280 truth. You ready? 317 00:16:06,800 --> 00:16:13,880 God's will by our plans is a recipe for disaster. 318 00:16:14,920 --> 00:16:21,280 God's will by our plans is a recipe for disaster. 319 00:16:21,480 --> 00:16:25,360 Have you ever realized it's possible to do the right thing 320 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:29,480 the wrong way? Have you realized it's possible 321 00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:33,280 to have the right destination in mind, but take the wrong route? 322 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:38,120 This is exactly what's going on. God had promised Abram and Sarah 323 00:16:38,120 --> 00:16:41,920 a child, but Sarah decided to go about it her own way, right? 324 00:16:42,200 --> 00:16:45,760 So what should Abram have said in response to Sarah? 325 00:16:48,640 --> 00:16:50,720 No, would be the most simple answer. 326 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:52,880 I don't know. It was going to just, we're 327 00:16:52,880 --> 00:16:54,600 probably going to require more than that, right? 328 00:16:55,360 --> 00:16:59,520 But what, what, what should we do when the voice of our spouse 329 00:16:59,520 --> 00:17:02,840 contradicts the voice of God? Knowing this has happened to us 330 00:17:02,840 --> 00:17:04,599 all? There's been times my voice and 331 00:17:04,599 --> 00:17:06,480 my marriage has contradicted the voice of God. 332 00:17:06,480 --> 00:17:08,160 All right. And I'm a pastor. 333 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:10,560 Let's be honest. This is all of us. 334 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:12,880 What should we do? It's going to be easier said 335 00:17:12,880 --> 00:17:15,280 than done, but let me give you a little example of the way 336 00:17:15,480 --> 00:17:17,480 Abraham might have said it. Are you ready? 337 00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:19,839 I'm not saying this is easy, but here's an example. 338 00:17:19,839 --> 00:17:22,000 I'll just file this away next time you might need it. 339 00:17:22,000 --> 00:17:23,240 You ready? Sarah? 340 00:17:23,440 --> 00:17:28,720 Honey, bless your heart. We're just keeping it Southern. 341 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:32,440 All right? You're my wife, I love you and I 342 00:17:32,440 --> 00:17:35,480 know that you are hurting, but we're in this together and as 343 00:17:35,480 --> 00:17:39,840 hard as it is, let's keep believing God for a miracle. 344 00:17:40,040 --> 00:17:42,800 I don't want to sin against God. I don't want to sin against you. 345 00:17:42,800 --> 00:17:45,640 I don't want to sin against our marriage with another woman. 346 00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:49,360 Let's pray about it and see where God leads. 347 00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:53,680 Now. Whatever four or five sentences 348 00:17:53,680 --> 00:17:55,600 that was would have been a game changer. 349 00:17:57,200 --> 00:18:00,400 Whatever four or five sentences you might need is going to be a, 350 00:18:01,280 --> 00:18:03,640 a game changer. By the way, it's not just what 351 00:18:03,640 --> 00:18:10,160 you say, it's how you say it. We talk about in our 352 00:18:10,160 --> 00:18:13,440 discipleship strategy, gather, grow, give and go. 353 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:17,720 Part of that grow part is this idea of offering biblical 354 00:18:17,720 --> 00:18:21,320 counseling in our body. And I just kind of want to 355 00:18:21,320 --> 00:18:23,920 demystify what that is for a moment because honestly, what 356 00:18:24,120 --> 00:18:26,480 what was needed right here was just some biblical counsel 357 00:18:26,480 --> 00:18:28,080 because you know what biblical counsel is? 358 00:18:29,280 --> 00:18:32,680 It's contradicting unbiblical thinking with biblical truth. 359 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:36,680 And this is what we owe one another as brothers and sisters 360 00:18:36,680 --> 00:18:38,680 in Christ, as friends. Hey, when you come across 361 00:18:38,720 --> 00:18:42,600 unbiblical thinking in your friend, speak up with the voice 362 00:18:42,600 --> 00:18:46,640 of God with what the Word says and confront and correct in 363 00:18:46,640 --> 00:18:50,480 love. But with what the Bible says. 364 00:18:51,720 --> 00:18:54,720 You can do this as a friend, as a spouse, as a parent, as AI 365 00:18:54,720 --> 00:18:56,960 mean as a Co worker. We ought to be doing this. 366 00:18:57,080 --> 00:18:59,760 You can sit down with somebody in our church to for biblical 367 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:03,000 counsel, but all you're all we're seeking to do is line up 368 00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:06,360 our lives with the voice of God and correct unbiblical thinking 369 00:19:06,360 --> 00:19:08,520 with biblical thinking so we can live God's work. 370 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:10,360 That's what that's what biblical counseling is. 371 00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:13,240 It's what Abram and Sarah needed in this moment. 372 00:19:13,400 --> 00:19:15,160 Now follow along beginning in verse 3. 373 00:19:15,960 --> 00:19:19,280 So after Abram had lived 10 years in the land of Canaan, 374 00:19:19,440 --> 00:19:23,480 Sarah Abrams wife took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave 375 00:19:23,480 --> 00:19:25,960 her to Abram her husband as a wife. 376 00:19:26,280 --> 00:19:29,640 And when he went into Hagar and she conceived, and when she saw 377 00:19:29,880 --> 00:19:32,320 that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her 378 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:34,960 mistress. And Sarah said to Abram, May the 379 00:19:34,960 --> 00:19:39,760 wrong done to me be on you. I gave my servant to your 380 00:19:39,760 --> 00:19:42,200 embrace. And when she saw that she had 381 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:44,400 conceived, she looked on me with contempt. 382 00:19:44,400 --> 00:19:46,840 May the Lord judge between you and me. 383 00:19:47,040 --> 00:19:50,160 But Abram said to Sarah, Behold, your servant is in your power, 384 00:19:50,440 --> 00:19:54,520 Do to her her as you please. Then Sarah dealt harshly with 385 00:19:54,520 --> 00:20:00,200 her and she fled from her. Abram marries Hagar as his 386 00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:04,040 second wife, which was never God's design. 387 00:20:04,200 --> 00:20:08,360 Multiple wives is in the Bible because God allows mankind to 388 00:20:08,360 --> 00:20:10,800 have a choice and we choose to do things our way instead of 389 00:20:10,800 --> 00:20:12,840 God's way. But the Bible's design is is 390 00:20:12,840 --> 00:20:15,840 unmistakably clear. Genesis 224 And a man shall 391 00:20:15,840 --> 00:20:19,320 leave his father and his mother and be joined with his wife, and 392 00:20:19,320 --> 00:20:23,480 the two shall become one flesh. God's word isn't unclear. 393 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,240 We do things our way instead of God's, unfortunately. 394 00:20:26,840 --> 00:20:30,160 But practically speaking, let's state the obvious. 395 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:36,080 The plan does what the plan works, right? 396 00:20:37,120 --> 00:20:43,200 They have a child. How often do we justify a 397 00:20:43,200 --> 00:20:53,040 decision, a direction, a choice, because it because it what it 398 00:20:53,040 --> 00:20:59,320 works? But there can be a wrong way to 399 00:20:59,320 --> 00:21:03,680 do a right thing. There can be a right destination 400 00:21:03,680 --> 00:21:08,840 with the wrong route. So what they've done is not 401 00:21:08,840 --> 00:21:09,440 honored. God. 402 00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:11,600 Yeah, it's it's it's worked in one way. 403 00:21:12,560 --> 00:21:15,080 It's actually going to produce a lot more of what they didn't 404 00:21:15,080 --> 00:21:19,160 want to work. And so we don't operate our 405 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:22,600 lives, we don't do church, we don't live the Christian life 406 00:21:22,600 --> 00:21:25,640 based on what works. We live the Christian life 407 00:21:25,640 --> 00:21:28,120 according to what God's Word says. 408 00:21:28,560 --> 00:21:31,880 By the way, that means we may not always do the easiest thing. 409 00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:35,760 We may not always live in a way that makes the most common 410 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:38,360 sense. But if you're living according 411 00:21:38,360 --> 00:21:40,160 to God's Word, it's not about what works. 412 00:21:40,160 --> 00:21:43,880 It's about what God has said and our willingness to submit to 413 00:21:43,880 --> 00:21:50,560 that or not. So one wrong doesn't make a 414 00:21:50,560 --> 00:21:52,920 right, it just leads to more wrong. 415 00:21:53,760 --> 00:21:57,640 In this case, more wrong than Sarah saw coming in the form of 416 00:21:57,640 --> 00:21:59,960 this. Hagar is pregnant, but her it's 417 00:21:59,960 --> 00:22:02,160 not just her tummy that's getting big, it's her head 418 00:22:02,160 --> 00:22:06,160 that's gotten big first. And she starts prancing and 419 00:22:06,160 --> 00:22:09,480 dancing and bragging in front of Sarah, her mistress, and saying 420 00:22:09,480 --> 00:22:12,520 look at me, I'm better than than. 421 00:22:12,520 --> 00:22:18,920 You can imagine how that went. Sarah blows A gasket but notice 422 00:22:18,920 --> 00:22:23,480 who she blows it on. She blaming herself for blaming 423 00:22:23,480 --> 00:22:26,080 who? Blaming Abram. 424 00:22:26,920 --> 00:22:29,760 It was her idea she came up with and guess who she blames? 425 00:22:30,880 --> 00:22:33,400 Now Don't say anything husbands because this is true of all of 426 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:35,680 us. This is default to our sin 427 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:37,640 nature. When we make a bad decision 428 00:22:37,960 --> 00:22:42,280 guess what we look around for someone to what someone to 429 00:22:42,280 --> 00:22:44,600 blame. This is this is what we do. 430 00:22:44,880 --> 00:22:48,640 Remember Adam in the garden after God came to him. 431 00:22:48,640 --> 00:22:51,680 Where are you Adam? Adam says what to God after he 432 00:22:51,680 --> 00:22:54,200 knows God is known, he's disobeyed. 433 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:59,000 Adam says what a double whammy of isn't everybody but me. 434 00:22:59,000 --> 00:23:03,360 In fact, God, it was the woman that you gave me, right? 435 00:23:03,360 --> 00:23:05,880 I'm looking at the other gender. I'm looking at God, but Adam's 436 00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:09,280 not looking at you know who, because we default into blame 437 00:23:09,280 --> 00:23:10,880 shifting. This is what we do. 438 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:14,200 We don't want to take responsibility for our own sin. 439 00:23:15,240 --> 00:23:19,120 And so Abram's not innocent here either though even though he's 440 00:23:19,120 --> 00:23:20,920 being blamed. All he had to do was look at 441 00:23:20,920 --> 00:23:23,400 Sarah and say honey, that's not a good idea. 442 00:23:23,760 --> 00:23:27,880 OK, but that's not what he did. Furthermore, Abram and Sarah 443 00:23:27,880 --> 00:23:30,120 sink even lower. You could say when Abram 444 00:23:30,120 --> 00:23:34,400 passively responds to Sarah and says not my problem, do what you 445 00:23:34,400 --> 00:23:37,120 want with her. And Sarah goes from temper 446 00:23:37,120 --> 00:23:42,000 tantrum to straight up Cruella Deville on Hagar, so much so she 447 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:44,760 got to flee for her life in the life of her unborn son. 448 00:23:44,760 --> 00:23:47,600 All right, so guys, this is this is where I want to just stop and 449 00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:51,080 speak to us as husbands and his father's for a minute, because 450 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:56,000 here with Abram, we see y'all one of our most consistent 451 00:23:56,160 --> 00:23:59,960 failures as men. I'm speaking to myself as much 452 00:23:59,960 --> 00:24:02,360 as anyone else in the room. But we as men, you can look at 453 00:24:02,360 --> 00:24:05,200 the pattern of men in the Bible. You can look at at our own 454 00:24:05,200 --> 00:24:06,720 lives. I can look at my own life. 455 00:24:06,960 --> 00:24:10,200 And I can tell you there are potholes in the call to be a 456 00:24:10,200 --> 00:24:12,920 biblical man that we as men tend to fall into. 457 00:24:12,920 --> 00:24:15,960 And Abraham's falling flat face into one right here. 458 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:19,240 You say, Kyle, what is that? All right, it is a failure to 459 00:24:19,240 --> 00:24:25,400 lovingly and sacrificially lead to say we're going to go God's 460 00:24:25,400 --> 00:24:28,480 way. All right, And let me explain. 461 00:24:28,720 --> 00:24:32,440 A crisis comes to Abram and he responds cowardly, with 462 00:24:32,440 --> 00:24:36,120 avoidance. He responds selfishly, not my 463 00:24:36,120 --> 00:24:38,520 problem. Passively does nothing. 464 00:24:38,640 --> 00:24:41,720 What's so ironic, though, if you know the story of Genesis has to 465 00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:43,160 be what we've been walking through this. 466 00:24:43,880 --> 00:24:48,960 When Abraham's nephew Lot is abducted by armies of thousands, 467 00:24:49,680 --> 00:24:53,080 you know what Abram does? He goes into hero mode. 468 00:24:53,720 --> 00:24:58,720 He wore kits out with his M4A1 silenced assault rifle helmet 469 00:24:58,720 --> 00:25:02,120 and body armor and night vision and a Glock 19 and goes out and 470 00:25:02,120 --> 00:25:06,960 kicks tail and takes names and comes on a what a hero. 471 00:25:08,520 --> 00:25:13,520 But the first bullet at home, the first shots fired at home, 472 00:25:14,640 --> 00:25:20,320 and Abram goes yellow belly. He runs for the hills, he 473 00:25:20,320 --> 00:25:24,920 deserts, he does nothing. Man, let me modernize this is 474 00:25:24,920 --> 00:25:29,440 this is this is a thing where the devil gets us so often, OK, 475 00:25:29,680 --> 00:25:33,800 And I'm talking to me, too. But listen, Abram is a hero at 476 00:25:33,800 --> 00:25:39,760 work, but he's a coward at home. Abram's a leader in his office, 477 00:25:39,960 --> 00:25:44,440 but he's a bum at the house. Abraham is selfless on the job 478 00:25:44,440 --> 00:25:47,720 site, but he's selfish at home. He gives it all at work. 479 00:25:47,720 --> 00:25:51,120 People think wonderful of him at work, but he's got nothing left 480 00:25:51,120 --> 00:25:54,280 to give those most important to him at home. 481 00:25:55,440 --> 00:26:00,400 Men, may it never be. I'm convinced the devil is fine 482 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:04,040 if you win all your away games. Just don't win the ones at home. 483 00:26:06,280 --> 00:26:09,040 Men, let me tell you 3 things. You will never do anything more 484 00:26:09,040 --> 00:26:10,240 important than these three things. 485 00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:12,720 Are you ready? And none of them involve a 486 00:26:12,720 --> 00:26:21,200 dollar number one, Walk personally with God #1 #2 build 487 00:26:21,480 --> 00:26:27,040 a godly marriage. As far as it depends on you #3 488 00:26:27,040 --> 00:26:31,880 parent God's way. You show me a man who does those 489 00:26:31,880 --> 00:26:34,200 three things. I don't care if he's got no cent 490 00:26:34,200 --> 00:26:36,600 to his name. That man is a hero in the 491 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:40,480 Kingdom of God. Walk personally with God. 492 00:26:41,560 --> 00:26:44,560 Build a godly marriage. Love your wife sacrificially 493 00:26:44,640 --> 00:26:46,880 more than any other person on the planet. 494 00:26:46,960 --> 00:26:49,760 If your job gets more than she does, you need adjustments to be 495 00:26:49,760 --> 00:26:52,320 made. If your coworkers get more than 496 00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:54,280 your kids, you need to make adjustments. 497 00:26:55,080 --> 00:26:57,400 The most important things in your life do not involve a 498 00:26:57,400 --> 00:27:01,520 dollar. They involve God's will for your 499 00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:03,800 family, your home, and your life. 500 00:27:04,240 --> 00:27:08,560 God's will by our plans is a recipe for disaster. 501 00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:11,080 But #2 let me show you this out of this text in verse 3 through 502 00:27:11,080 --> 00:27:13,960 6. God's will requires patience and 503 00:27:13,960 --> 00:27:16,960 prayer. God's will requires patience and 504 00:27:16,960 --> 00:27:19,560 prayer. If you think about it, God has 505 00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:22,640 Abram and Sarah in a spiritual waiting room. 506 00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:24,200 Who likes to sit in a waiting room? 507 00:27:25,600 --> 00:27:28,360 Are the magazines that great? But we don't look at those 508 00:27:28,360 --> 00:27:29,360 anymore. It's our phone. 509 00:27:30,440 --> 00:27:31,960 Nobody likes to sit in a waiting room. 510 00:27:31,960 --> 00:27:34,480 We don't like to wait for somebody to respond to the text 511 00:27:34,480 --> 00:27:38,600 message, right? Nobody likes to wait. 512 00:27:38,600 --> 00:27:43,480 And yet God puts us in spiritual waiting rooms. 513 00:27:43,480 --> 00:27:45,760 Why? Let me give you 2 reasons in 514 00:27:45,760 --> 00:27:48,920 your It's number one to grow your faith. 515 00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:55,040 Forcing a human solution is not faith. 516 00:27:57,360 --> 00:28:02,160 But that's what we do, isn't it? But that's not faith, that's 517 00:28:02,160 --> 00:28:05,360 unbiblical behavior based on unbiblical thinking, right? 518 00:28:05,560 --> 00:28:08,520 Every moment we have to wait on God, we are exercising and 519 00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:10,480 growing our faith. I've said this before and I 520 00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:12,600 repeat it again. Better words than I could come 521 00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:14,920 up with from somebody else. The only thing that's harder 522 00:28:14,920 --> 00:28:19,000 than waiting on God is wishing that you that you had this one's 523 00:28:19,000 --> 00:28:20,000 even better. Watch this. 524 00:28:20,680 --> 00:28:25,680 Whatever a man or woman attempts on their own without God will be 525 00:28:25,680 --> 00:28:31,040 a miserable failure, or even more, a miserable success. 526 00:28:35,440 --> 00:28:38,400 The second reason why God often asks us to wait and puts us in a 527 00:28:38,400 --> 00:28:41,760 spiritual waiting room is to give God the glory. 528 00:28:44,920 --> 00:28:51,120 If you think about it, God is eliminating every means but 529 00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:54,280 miracle to fulfill His promise to Abram and Sarah. 530 00:28:55,560 --> 00:28:58,800 God said, Hey, y'all, you're not going to be to do it your way. 531 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:02,000 I'm going to make sure y'all so old, ain't nobody going to know, 532 00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:03,640 right? They're all going to know this 533 00:29:03,640 --> 00:29:06,560 was God, not y'all it. You're going to be so past the 534 00:29:06,560 --> 00:29:09,760 point of any biological possibility that I'm going to 535 00:29:09,760 --> 00:29:12,040 get all the credit. So just keep waiting. 536 00:29:13,040 --> 00:29:18,200 God loves to do things in ways that only he can get the credit. 537 00:29:19,120 --> 00:29:22,280 So faith requires waiting on God. 538 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:25,240 Let me read the rest of the chapter. 539 00:29:26,080 --> 00:29:28,560 The Angel of the Lord found her by a spring of water. 540 00:29:28,600 --> 00:29:32,080 That's Hagar in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. 541 00:29:32,080 --> 00:29:35,480 And he said, Hagar, servant of Sarah, where have you come from 542 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:38,320 and where are you going? And she said, I'm fleeing from 543 00:29:38,320 --> 00:29:40,400 my mistress, Sarah. And the Angel of the Lord said 544 00:29:40,400 --> 00:29:43,240 to her, return to your mistress and submit to her. 545 00:29:43,520 --> 00:29:46,440 The Angel of the Lord also said to her, I will surely multiply 546 00:29:46,440 --> 00:29:49,360 your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for 547 00:29:49,360 --> 00:29:51,440 multitude. And the Angel of the Lord said 548 00:29:51,440 --> 00:29:54,040 to her, Behold, you are pregnant, and you shall bear a 549 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:56,840 son. He shall call his name Ishmael, 550 00:29:57,120 --> 00:29:59,080 because the Lord has listened to your reflection. 551 00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:02,760 He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone, 552 00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:06,160 and everyone's hand against him. He shall dwell over against all 553 00:30:06,160 --> 00:30:08,920 his kinsmen. So she called the name of the 554 00:30:08,920 --> 00:30:13,120 Lord, who spoke to her. You are a God of seeing. 555 00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:17,640 For she said truly here I have seen him who looks after me. 556 00:30:17,840 --> 00:30:20,480 Therefore the well was called Beer Lehi Roy. 557 00:30:20,600 --> 00:30:22,880 It lies between Kadesh and Beret. 558 00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:26,920 And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram called the name of his son 559 00:30:27,080 --> 00:30:30,680 whom Hagar bore Ishmael. Abram was 86 years old when 560 00:30:30,680 --> 00:30:35,400 Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram the first time. 561 00:30:35,720 --> 00:30:38,520 The phrase the Angel of the Lord appears in the Bible is right 562 00:30:38,520 --> 00:30:40,400 here. You might be tempted to think, 563 00:30:40,400 --> 00:30:42,600 well, maybe this is just a normal Angel like we think of 564 00:30:42,600 --> 00:30:45,280 angels, and yet that's clearly not the case. 565 00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:49,840 Clearly the one speaking here is the very Lord himself. 566 00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,840 And this again, as we've seen through Genesis, is another, 567 00:30:52,840 --> 00:30:57,640 what we could call Christophany, A literal physical appearance of 568 00:30:57,640 --> 00:31:01,640 the second person of the Trinity long before he takes on human 569 00:31:01,640 --> 00:31:05,680 flesh and was called Jesus, born to the Virgin Mary, as God 570 00:31:05,680 --> 00:31:11,160 promised would happen here, Hagar has hit the road somewhere 571 00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:14,040 between Abram and Egypt, probably fearful she couldn't 572 00:31:14,040 --> 00:31:16,840 make it all the way. She's by the only spring there 573 00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:20,680 was to be had. And there the Lord finds her and 574 00:31:20,680 --> 00:31:23,200 calls her Hagar, servant of Seraph. 575 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:25,200 God calls your name and gives you a description. 576 00:31:25,200 --> 00:31:28,400 It's time to listen up. When God starts asking you 577 00:31:28,400 --> 00:31:31,200 questions, it's really time to pay attention because let me 578 00:31:31,200 --> 00:31:33,920 remind you, God doesn't ask questions because he doesn't 579 00:31:33,920 --> 00:31:37,280 know the answer. He asked questions because you 580 00:31:37,280 --> 00:31:40,000 need to think about the answer and I need to think about the 581 00:31:40,000 --> 00:31:43,000 answer. So here's the questions he asked 582 00:31:43,000 --> 00:31:44,480 Hagar to answer. Are you ready? 583 00:31:45,400 --> 00:31:48,760 Hagar, where have you come from? Let me translate. 584 00:31:49,960 --> 00:31:52,720 Hagar, are you running away from the place you belong? 585 00:31:54,280 --> 00:31:56,840 Hagar, are you running from the place that I put you? 586 00:31:58,080 --> 00:32:00,560 Second question, Hagar, where are you going? 587 00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:04,560 Let me translate. Hagar, are you going to a place 588 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:07,920 I haven't called you? Hagar, are you striking out on 589 00:32:07,920 --> 00:32:10,640 your own power, on your own will, your own way? 590 00:32:10,880 --> 00:32:14,760 Hagar, are you headed to a place I'm not leading you? 591 00:32:15,320 --> 00:32:17,480 She responds by saying what God already knows. 592 00:32:17,720 --> 00:32:20,400 I'm fleeing from my mistress Sarai, she says. 593 00:32:20,400 --> 00:32:23,320 But God says go back and submit to her. 594 00:32:23,320 --> 00:32:26,680 Go back to the place I have for you, my will for you, my purpose 595 00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:28,560 for you. Submit yourself to my plan. 596 00:32:29,440 --> 00:32:32,000 Abram and Sarah obviously didn't care for you. 597 00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:34,640 God says, but I care for you. I'm going to bless you. 598 00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:35,960 I'm going to be with you. Go back. 599 00:32:36,360 --> 00:32:38,400 As I was reading and setting this, I just couldn't help but 600 00:32:39,160 --> 00:32:42,160 believe with all my heart that this is a word from the Lord 601 00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:45,640 that somebody needs to hear in the room today or maybe watching 602 00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:46,840 online. You say, Kyle, what word is 603 00:32:46,840 --> 00:32:48,640 that? That word is to go, to go back, 604 00:32:49,840 --> 00:32:51,880 maybe to hear that question, where are you going? 605 00:32:52,560 --> 00:32:54,800 Where are you leaving? Are you leaving the place I put 606 00:32:54,800 --> 00:32:57,120 you? Are you abandoning the plan I 607 00:32:57,120 --> 00:33:03,360 have for you? Are you leaving my my will where 608 00:33:03,360 --> 00:33:06,680 I placed you? I said, Kyle, what might we need 609 00:33:06,680 --> 00:33:09,400 to go back to the deal is maybe you're in the room and you're 610 00:33:09,400 --> 00:33:13,800 fleeing a person, place or thing or situation where God LED you. 611 00:33:13,800 --> 00:33:16,000 God put you. But if you're being honest, it 612 00:33:16,000 --> 00:33:18,440 got hard and you wanted to run. You wanted out. 613 00:33:18,440 --> 00:33:23,880 So you fled and you struck out on your own and God's calling 614 00:33:23,880 --> 00:33:25,680 you to go back. You say, Kyle, go back to what? 615 00:33:26,360 --> 00:33:27,680 Well, let me give you some ideas. 616 00:33:28,360 --> 00:33:33,520 Maybe a family relationship that you ended, Someone that you've 617 00:33:33,520 --> 00:33:35,440 chosen not to speak to for years. 618 00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:40,800 God's calling you to go back. What about the spouse that you 619 00:33:40,800 --> 00:33:44,360 might have abandoned? What about the parents or 620 00:33:44,360 --> 00:33:47,000 grandparents you may have cut off and ceased a relationship 621 00:33:47,000 --> 00:33:52,920 with over some disagreement? What about a job or a boss or a 622 00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:55,520 Co worker that you dropped because you got offended? 623 00:33:56,880 --> 00:34:01,160 What about a school or a degree or a trajectory for a career you 624 00:34:01,160 --> 00:34:02,840 felt God calling you to that you quit? 625 00:34:04,640 --> 00:34:07,400 What about the church you walked away from because you got hurt? 626 00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:12,000 Is God calling you to go back anywhere you've run from? 627 00:34:14,199 --> 00:34:17,400 Hagar thought her circumstances needed changing, but actually it 628 00:34:17,400 --> 00:34:20,159 was Hagar that needed changing. And if you think about it, most 629 00:34:20,159 --> 00:34:22,440 of the time it's not our circumstances that need 630 00:34:22,440 --> 00:34:24,040 changing, it's us that need changing. 631 00:34:26,560 --> 00:34:29,040 The flesh just wants to run away, but God wants to 632 00:34:29,040 --> 00:34:31,520 demonstrate his power. He says to her, I will multiply 633 00:34:31,520 --> 00:34:35,239 your offspring. I you will bear a son, Ishmael. 634 00:34:35,239 --> 00:34:38,320 And Ishmael's name means God has heard. 635 00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:43,360 The question is, will she say yes to God's call and allow God 636 00:34:43,360 --> 00:34:46,520 to pick up the pieces of her life that are now shattered as 637 00:34:46,520 --> 00:34:50,199 she's chosen to run away from God's place and God's plan and 638 00:34:50,199 --> 00:34:53,199 God's purpose. Verse 13 says this. 639 00:34:53,199 --> 00:34:57,520 So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her. 640 00:34:57,520 --> 00:35:04,640 You are a God of seeing that in the Hebrew is you are El Roy. 641 00:35:04,640 --> 00:35:12,560 That is the God who sees, which means God is a God who cares. 642 00:35:13,760 --> 00:35:19,160 He is not a God up there, unaware of your situation, of 643 00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:24,520 the details of your life. He sees, he knows, and he cares. 644 00:35:24,520 --> 00:35:27,600 Parents, if you teach your kids the names of God, one you ought 645 00:35:27,600 --> 00:35:29,960 to teach them is that God is Elroy. 646 00:35:30,040 --> 00:35:32,960 He is the God who sees. He knows them. 647 00:35:33,080 --> 00:35:35,480 He watches over them. He has a plan for them. 648 00:35:35,760 --> 00:35:38,640 No matter where they go, whether it might make stray, even if 649 00:35:38,640 --> 00:35:40,880 they run away, God sees. God knows. 650 00:35:40,880 --> 00:35:43,040 God cares. She's seeing now. 651 00:35:43,200 --> 00:35:45,600 She's feeling now. She's experiencing now the 652 00:35:45,600 --> 00:35:49,560 personal love of God for her. Even when life is shattered. 653 00:35:52,000 --> 00:35:56,560 She's run away. She's got nowhere to go, and yet 654 00:35:56,560 --> 00:35:58,200 she notices. God has noticed her. 655 00:35:59,320 --> 00:36:02,720 God, you're a God who sees me. You're God who cares for me. 656 00:36:03,320 --> 00:36:06,560 She names the well beer Laha Roy, the well of the living one 657 00:36:06,560 --> 00:36:10,480 who sees me. Remember this chapter is a 658 00:36:10,480 --> 00:36:13,600 testimony to the fact as we as human beings as broken as we 659 00:36:13,600 --> 00:36:20,160 are, but God is always so good. Number three, let me put it to 660 00:36:20,160 --> 00:36:23,720 you like this as practically as I know how God will pick up the 661 00:36:23,720 --> 00:36:26,320 pieces, but there's a big keyword. 662 00:36:27,160 --> 00:36:36,760 It's 2 letters IF if you let him, God and only God can pick 663 00:36:36,760 --> 00:36:44,760 up the pieces if you let him. Hagar said yes to the call of 664 00:36:44,760 --> 00:36:48,000 God and she returned. I'm sure she told Abram and 665 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:49,640 Sarah all that she had experienced. 666 00:36:50,640 --> 00:36:53,640 Abram claims the boy is his own son. 667 00:36:54,680 --> 00:36:56,920 Why? Why should you? 668 00:36:56,920 --> 00:36:59,200 The name of this series is Answering the Call of God. 669 00:37:00,520 --> 00:37:02,880 Why should you say yes to God's call on your life? 670 00:37:03,680 --> 00:37:07,120 What if you say Kyle, listen, I've run so far, I've, I've left 671 00:37:07,240 --> 00:37:09,880 what I feel like is God's will. It's got to be too late for me. 672 00:37:10,960 --> 00:37:13,080 God is a God who sees you right where you are. 673 00:37:13,280 --> 00:37:16,280 You can't outrun his gaze. You can't outrun his care or his 674 00:37:16,280 --> 00:37:18,600 sight. Why should you say yes to God no 675 00:37:18,600 --> 00:37:20,640 matter where you are, like Hagar did? 676 00:37:20,640 --> 00:37:24,560 Because God is a God who sees you, who cares for you. 677 00:37:25,520 --> 00:37:28,640 If you've got breath in your lungs, His plan for you is not 678 00:37:28,640 --> 00:37:30,840 over. And He can pick up whatever 679 00:37:30,840 --> 00:37:37,560 pieces are broken if if you give all the pieces to him, but if 680 00:37:37,560 --> 00:37:40,720 you hang on to them, they'll stay broken. 681 00:37:41,760 --> 00:37:44,680 But God can pick up the pieces. Let me finish like this. 682 00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:47,720 Ishmael told you means God has heard. 683 00:37:48,840 --> 00:37:51,600 I want you to just imagine Abram and Sarah every time they heard 684 00:37:51,600 --> 00:37:53,080 the name Ishmael in their household. 685 00:37:53,520 --> 00:37:57,760 That means God has heard, no doubt. 686 00:37:58,000 --> 00:38:02,040 I think it probably was a reminder #1 never to attempt 687 00:38:02,240 --> 00:38:06,520 God's will their way again, right? 688 00:38:07,600 --> 00:38:10,760 I bet it was a reminder to never forget that God's will requires 689 00:38:10,760 --> 00:38:13,240 patience and prayer. And I bet it was a reminder that 690 00:38:13,240 --> 00:38:17,440 despite their mistakes, God was faithful to pick up the pieces 691 00:38:17,440 --> 00:38:22,120 and even give His blessing when they chose to do it their way 692 00:38:22,320 --> 00:38:24,800 instead of God's way. Is it God good? 693 00:38:25,800 --> 00:38:29,240 Is it God good despite all our mess? 694 00:38:30,160 --> 00:38:33,240 Only He and only He can pick up the pieces. 695 00:38:33,400 --> 00:38:34,840 Let me finish with the words of another. 696 00:38:35,640 --> 00:38:38,920 One writer makes the following observation about this chapter, 697 00:38:39,080 --> 00:38:41,680 and it's helpful. He says the thing that shouts 698 00:38:41,680 --> 00:38:45,320 the loudest here in this chapter is not is that there's not an 699 00:38:45,320 --> 00:38:49,280 honorable character in the whole cast of Genesis 16. 700 00:38:50,960 --> 00:38:53,760 They're all imperfect. So are we. 701 00:38:54,720 --> 00:38:57,720 Abram was the worst. He was pathetic, passive, 702 00:38:57,720 --> 00:39:00,640 impotent, uncaring about either his wife or Hagar. 703 00:39:00,760 --> 00:39:02,840 Neither woman had any compassion for the other. 704 00:39:02,960 --> 00:39:06,080 Sarah was worse, but you get the impression that if Hagar had the 705 00:39:06,080 --> 00:39:08,520 chance, she'd have just been just as bad. 706 00:39:10,320 --> 00:39:13,080 Now let's to be real honest, every single one of us have had 707 00:39:13,080 --> 00:39:17,120 chapters in our life that could be titled The Autopsy of a Dumb 708 00:39:17,120 --> 00:39:26,120 Decision, the No Good, the Bad and the Ugly, How not to do XY 709 00:39:26,120 --> 00:39:33,320 or Z. But God is the God who sees, the 710 00:39:33,320 --> 00:39:35,200 God who knows and the God who cares. 711 00:39:36,160 --> 00:39:39,160 So much so that He sent his one and only Son to die in your 712 00:39:39,160 --> 00:39:44,640 place despite all our sin and the fact that no matter, no 713 00:39:44,640 --> 00:39:47,880 matter where we've run, no matter what we've done, that if 714 00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:52,200 we're willing to put the pieces at the feet of Jesus, he'll pick 715 00:39:52,200 --> 00:39:55,720 him up. And so therefore, hurry up and 716 00:39:55,720 --> 00:39:59,440 wait on God. Hurry up and wait on God. 717 00:40:01,520 --> 00:40:04,960 Maybe today, as John and Praise team come out, you need to hurry 718 00:40:04,960 --> 00:40:07,840 up and wait on God by placing your faith in Jesus Christ for 719 00:40:07,840 --> 00:40:10,440 salvation. Maybe you've delayed. 720 00:40:10,440 --> 00:40:12,560 Maybe you've thought about it. Maybe you've heard about it. 721 00:40:13,680 --> 00:40:16,280 But today is the day. Maybe maybe you're thinking I'll 722 00:40:16,280 --> 00:40:18,160 have other time or I need more time to process. 723 00:40:18,160 --> 00:40:21,000 But listen, every time you feel that tug, that conviction of the 724 00:40:21,000 --> 00:40:24,120 Holy Spirit that he's calling you and you say no, it's a 725 00:40:24,120 --> 00:40:26,720 little more of a stepping back from the will of God rather than 726 00:40:26,720 --> 00:40:29,080 a step toward it. Would you be willing to come out 727 00:40:29,080 --> 00:40:31,840 and tell me, say, Kyle, I need to trust Christ? 728 00:40:34,400 --> 00:40:38,400 Maybe maybe you're in a situation where you're tempted 729 00:40:38,400 --> 00:40:43,240 to get a hedagon and to force a human solution in a situation 730 00:40:43,280 --> 00:40:46,200 where you need to wait on God. Maybe you want to come pray 731 00:40:46,200 --> 00:40:48,480 about that to get on your knees or come stand or come talk to 732 00:40:48,480 --> 00:40:50,200 one of our encouragers or me to pray for you. 733 00:40:51,160 --> 00:40:54,600 Maybe finally you've got pieces that you know only God could put 734 00:40:54,600 --> 00:40:58,360 back together, and the question is, will you let him? 735 00:40:59,240 --> 00:41:02,320 Will you give them to him? We say, God, if I need to go 736 00:41:02,320 --> 00:41:03,920 back, I'll go. God. 737 00:41:03,920 --> 00:41:06,400 If I need to repent, if I need to restore, if I need to say I'm 738 00:41:06,400 --> 00:41:11,320 sorry, if I need to return God, I'll go if you'll go with me and 739 00:41:11,320 --> 00:41:13,080 only God will put back the pieces if you'll let him. 740 00:41:13,120 --> 00:41:16,120 Heavenly Father, I pray that whatever you want to do in our 741 00:41:16,120 --> 00:41:19,200 lives right now and in the moments that followed that you 742 00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:20,800 would have your way. We'd say yes to you. 743 00:41:21,120 --> 00:41:23,680 In Jesus name I pray, Amen. Would you stand with me? 744 00:41:23,840 --> 00:41:25,600 We're going to sing, we're going to wait on you. 745 00:41:25,600 --> 00:41:28,280 We're going to worship and let's respond in faith to what you've 746 00:41:28,280 --> 00:41:29,160 heard today. You come.