For you today, whether in a painful reality that doesn’t look like changing or maybe you have failed God and others, Sarah is your hope. This is the Bible story throughout. This is the gospel. Do not be deceived into thinking by your own efforts you can change a thing. It is all of Him and all because of Him and His promises for your life.
“For it is written: “Be glad, barren woman, you who never bore a child; shout for joy and cry aloud, you who were never in labour; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband.” 28 Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise.” (Galatians 4 v 27-28)
But how do you live in such a circumstance?
I am pausing for a few days to meditate on Isaiah 54 before we continue in Galatians 4 to try and answer that one question. For there are many in exile, whether as a victim or because of their own sin. There are many in situations where they have done nothing wrong to equal their predicament. How do you live? Paul is using this story to say to the Galatians that the gospel is for the barren, the failed, those who have been put down or made to feel like they’re not good enough for God. The gospel is for those who cannot change their situation. Those who have made it, those who are fertile like Hagar, those who are spiritually entrepreneurial are actually those who are the slaves. So back to the question, how do you live?
• We need to find a different perspective so that we can dig out hope in the contradictions of our life.
• Make the right choice
And also …
• Have confidence in the grace of God to see what cannot be seen
“shout for joy, you who were never in labour; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband.” Can you see the reality of the invisible?
Hebrews 11: 27 “By faith Moses left Egypt, not fearing the Kings anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.” The king and Egypt were the seen. But Moses had his hope in the One who is unseen and as a result confidence rose within him.
An intriguing painting was once displayed at the Louvre art museum in France called “Checkmate”, painted by Friedrich Moritz August Retzsch. It is now said to be in private hands after being sold at Christie’s in 1999. This painting depicts 2 chess players, one is Satan whom appears arrogantly confident, and the other player is a man who looks forlorn. If Satan wins, he gets the man’s soul. According to legend, a chess champion visited the museum once and after studying the painting, noticed that the arrangement of the chess pieces were incorrect. According to him, the devil who thought he was winning, was in fact not winning. The man, who thought he was losing, was winning, because according to the pieces left on the chessboard, his king had one more move left, which would make him the winner of the game! He called the curator and they determined that the title didn’t fit the scene because the forlorn-looking player actually has the ability to defeat his opponent, though he obviously doesn’t realize it. The painting is a lie. His king can still make another move!
Those who live with confidence in the grace of God know that their king always has one more move.
A 17 year old called Joseph was set on by his own brothers and threw both into a disused well. He was then sold into slavery. Its check mate. But the KING still has one more move.
The widow of a man from the Elisha school of prophets has lost everything and the creditors are not satisfied. They took everything apart from one small bottle ofoil and now want the sons as slaves. Its checkmate. But the KING has one more move.
Thousands of people have walked miles and miles from home just following the Jesus’ team. They are now in danger of suffering through hunger. No one has enough money. There is only 5 loaves and 2 fish. But the KING has one more move.
On some people today checkmate has been declared. The person who wrote that is a thief, liar and a killer. But the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords has one more move.
Those who hope in the Lord will not be disappointed.
There is still a move the King can make. It’s not over.
It is possible to thrive in your painful reality. There will be some things that you just will not be able to fix. You may not be free of that physical pain. That situation just may not change. You may be a Gentile and not be circumcised or follow Jewish practices. But the Apostle uses this story to demonstrate that it is often those who have it all together (or it seems so), it is those who haven’t sinned (or they would like to demonstrate that) and it is those who appear free and pure and everything else that you are not who are actually Hagar people, they are the slaves, they are not free.
You can find a different perspective so that you can dig out hope in the contradictions of your life. You can make the right choice and you can have the confidence in the grace of God to see what cannot be seen.
Missions Paul 