A Child Received and Cheered, a Child Expelled and Saved

Speaking of, childbirth, let me have you turn in your Bibles to Genesis 21. Genesis 21, where there is another birth that we are told about in this passage. And if Chris and Candace had named their child Isaac, it would have fit perfectly with the sermon for today. But we're gonna be looking at verses 1 through 21 this morning and if you wanna give a title to the message today, it would be A Child Received and cheered.

A child expelled and saved. I did a little research, this past week, because of what we find in our passage today and found that according to a British newspaper called The Telegraph, on August 20th, 1997, a British woman named Dawn Brooke became the oldest woman. To naturally conceive and give birth when she gave birth to a son. At the age of 59.

There are a few other women from the research that I did who have had children at various points in their 60s, but all Known cases of those were situations where the mother had received in vitro fertility treatments. But best I could find, the oldest woman in history to conceive naturally and give birth was this woman at the age of 59. Except for Sarah, Abraham's wife, according to our passage, today, based on what we're going to see here today in Genesis 21, Sarah evidently had blown past the age of 59.

had blown past the age of 65 and 70 and 75 and 80 and 85.

And at the age of 90, she conceives and gives birth to her son, Isaac. There is no explanation for what we see in our passage today, except that it is a miracle of God. Had Sarah maybe had Isaac at the age of 61, we would have thought, wow, that's amazing, that's a world record. I don't know that we would have thought it was a miracle.

At the age of 90. That's a total miracle. We met Sarah back in Genesis chapter 11, at the very end of that chapter for the first time when she was much younger, and the very first thing that we're told about her, as soon as she's introduced to us by name, The first thing we're told about her in Genesis 11:30 is Sarah was barren. She had no child.

On top of that, decades go by and in Genesis chapter 18, verse 11, we find Sarah at the age of 89 and Abraham at the age of 99 and the text literally in the Hebrew says, now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in age. And there ceased to be for Sarah, the way of women. And that expression as we saw back some time ago when we were in this chapter is used elsewhere in the Old Testament to speak of a woman's monthly cycle. So this is the narrator's way of telling us that Sarah's cycle had ceased.

In other words, she was a postmenopausal woman. What makes Sarah's barrenness all the more painful over the many decades of her married life is the fact that God has been promising for years to make of Abraham a great nation and that he would make Abraham's descendants as the dust of the earth and as the stars of heaven. But after years went by, after God first gave that promise, those, those promises began to feel like empty promises. To Sarah.

And in one moment of frustration, when she was about 75 years old, Sarah comes to Abraham and in Genesis chapter 16 verse 2, She says to Abraham, now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go into my maid, perhaps I shall obtain children through her. And we're told in that passage that Abraham listened to the voice of Sarah. He went into Hagar and she conceived and a whole host of problems.

Developed from that. Hagar began as soon as she conceived to despise Sarah. Sarah complains to Abraham and said, it's all your fault, Abraham. And Abraham says, handle it however you think best.

And so Sarah begans treating Hagar harshly. Until Hagar runs away. But we saw while Hagar was on the run, the angel of the Lord appears to her and counsels her to come back home and so she obeys and she returns back to Abraham's household and gives birth to Ishmael and all seems quiet on the home front for now. After about 13 years.

More go by. When Abraham was 99 years of age, God comes to Abraham and he speaks specifically for the first time about Sarah in particular, and God says to Abraham in Genesis 17:16, indeed, I will give you a son by her, speaking of Sarah. And how does Abraham respond? Verse 17, Abraham fell on his face and literally the Hebrew is he fell on his face and he Isaaced.

In his heart, he laughed. In his heart, saying, will a child be born to a man 100 years old and will Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child? Then Abraham responds to God. By saying, oh, that Ishmael might live before you.

And God refuses, saying, no, he's not gonna be the son of Promise. Verse 19, God says no, but Sarah, your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Laughter or Isaac. My covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this season next year. In the next chapter, Genesis 18, the Lord shows up at Abraham's house and once the Lord gets Sarah's attention, he says to Abraham, I will surely return to you at this time next year, and behold, Sarah, your wife, shall have a son.

He's making that same promise again. Well, Sarah here's that promise being made, and how does she respond? Look at verse 12, Sarah Isaac to herself, she laughed to herself, saying, after I have become old, shall I have pleasure, my Lord being old also? And God responds, hearing that and knowing her thoughts, he responds in verse 13 by saying to Abraham, He says, why did Sarah Isaac Or laugh, saying, shall I indeed bear a child when I am so old?

Is anything too difficult for the Lord? At the appointed time, I will return to you at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son. Well, Sarah hears that and suddenly she's embarrassed and afraid. Verse 15, she said, I did not, Isaac.

I did not laugh. The Lord responds by saying, no, but you did, Isaac. You did laugh Last week, we came to Genesis 20 we saw Abraham and Sarah almost at the finish line of receiving the promise of God and they trip and they fall right before the finish line. Because of their deception of King Abimelech, Sarah gets taken away from Abraham and the promise of God is now in jeopardy, but we saw last Sunday how God intervenes and God saves their marriage and preserves Sarah's womb for the miracle that will now take place in our passage today.

Our passage today tells the story of the conception and the birth of Isaac. which is something that, brings incredible joy to Abraham and Sarah. But then to our surprise, as the story unfolds, we will see this joy. Becoming commingled with pain and heartache and anger.

With regard to Hagar and Ishmael. Our story today essentially comes in two halves. The first half is the story of the child, a promise being received and being celebrated by Abraham and Sarah and by others, and the second half is the story. Of the child of the flesh.

Being expelled and then rescued by God. The story does not end up going the way I think any of us would have written it or expected it to go, which makes it all the more interesting and compelling, for us. So here's how we'll break down our study of this passage, 5 developments that we'll observe in this account of the birth of Isaac and the separation. And the preservation of Ishmael.

That ended up resulting The first development is that God keeps His promise and He provides Sarah. A son. Look at what happens in verse one. Then the Lord took note of Sarah as he had said, And the Lord did for Sarah as he had promised.

The expression took note means to visit. This is a miraculous visitation of mercy in which God is doing a miracle in Sarah's womb. And as a result of this visitation of mercy, look at verse 2. So Sarah conceived and bore a son to Abraham in his old age at the appointed time of which God had spoken.

To him. Notice the emphasis on what God had spoken. In verse one, we see that God took note of Sarah as he had said. We're also told that he did for Sarah as he had promised.

In verse two, we see that she bore a son at the appointed time which God had spoken. To him. 3 times in these 2 verses, Moses is emphasizing that God ended up being absolutely true to his word. And doing what he had promised.

Teaching us that God is not just a promise making God, He is a promise keeping God. When he gives promises, they're not empty promises. Look at what Abraham does once. Sarah's son is born.

We're all dying the way we think in our culture today. We're thinking, what was Abraham and Sarah feeling at this point? And we want to know what he's feeling, but Moses, who's writing this, doesn't tell us that just yet. He just tells us what Abraham did.

And he behaved with obedience. Look at verse 3, Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him. You get the amazement here in the tone of the writer. Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.

Back in chapter 17, God had told Abraham that the name of his son would be Isaac, which means laughter. And here in naming his son Isaac. Abraham is officially recognizing this is the son that God had promised last year. This is the son about whom all of the covenant promises of God were spoken.

And I will obey God in naming my son what God told me to name him. I will name him Isaac. Look at what else Abraham does. Verse 4, then Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was 8 days old as God had commanded him.

Abraham along with every man in his household was circumcised back in Genesis 17, about a year prior to this moment, and here Isaac is being circumcised on exactly the 8th day as God had commanded. This tells us that Abraham is in obedience mode. It means that he's very much mindful of the covenant promises that God had spoken to him about Isaac and Isaac's descendants and all that would emanate from him in the generations to come. And Abraham is thinking about that covenant and the destiny that awaits his descendants through Isaac and Abraham wants on the 8th day in obedience to God, the mark of that covenant to be on his son.

What we're told here is really good for us to know, but we all want to know what Abraham and Sarah are feeling. And we get some idea of that in the following verses, and this leads to the second development in the story of the birth of Isaac and the expulsion and preservation of Ishmael that follows, and that is that Sarah and Abraham rejoice over their son. We already could do the math and figure this out, but Moses wants to make doubly sure that we remember this. so look at what he says in verse 5.

He says, now Abraham was 100 years old when his son Isaac was born. To him You might want to write this reference down in Genesis 17:17, Abraham said, will a child be born to a man 100 years old? And Moses wants to make doubly sure that we know that God's answer to Abraham's question is a resounding yes. As for how Sarah responds to the birth of Isaac, look at verse 6.

Sarah said, God has made Isaac, for me. God has made laughter for me. And everyone who hears will laugh with me. Literally, we could read it this way, God has made Isaac for me and everyone who hears will Isaac with me.

It seems that Sarah found herself constantly laughing with amazement and gratitude. I don't think any of us can really begin to imagine Sarah's joy at this moment. All the years of pent up frustration of waiting on the Lord, the scorn that she must have experienced at times from others, including Hagar. After Hagar conceived so easily.

The pain of going 70 some odd years of being unable to provide for her husband, a child, and all of that now turns to joy. how deep her frustration and her pain was, that's exactly how deep her joy now is. In Genesis 17. Abraham laughed with disbelief at God's promise of a son.

In chapter 18, Sarah laughed with disbelief at God's promise of a son. Both Abraham and Sarah laughed at God's joke at the wrong time. Before the punch line. See, they thought the punch line was the promise, and they laughed.

But Sarah now realizes that the punch line. is the fulfillment. And she can't stop laughing. She says, God has made laughter for me.

And she also imagines what people will think when they hear the news of the birth of Isaac, and she imagines that they will laugh with her. Her own joy over the birth of Isaac is enhanced at the thought that all the people who hear the news of this are going to join her in her laughter in the Lord. Sarah can't wipe the smile off of her face and she's overcome with wonder. Look at verse 7, and she said, who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children?

Yet I have borne him a son. In his old age. Sarah here is not just amazed that she has had a child at the age of 90, she's also amazed that she's able to nurse her child at the age that she is now. The fact that her body is lactating and she's able to nurse her son at the age of 90 is just as amazing to Sarah as being able to conceive and give birth to Isaac.

We also see here that Sarah's joy is not a selfish joy. She says, I have borne him. Speaking of Abraham, I've borne my husband. A son in his old age.

Speaking of her husband. She's overjoyed, not just that she has a child for herself, but that she, through God's help and through this miracle of God, is able to do this for her husband and give this to her husband. When he, her husband, is at the age of 100. And I love this, she's asking the question, who would have predicted this?

Who would have said this would happen? And we all know the answer to that question, right? She asked who would have said to Abraham that such things would happen? The answer is God said.

That it would happen And what he has promised has now come true. We get some idea of Abraham's joy in verse 8, observe what happens. In verse 8, says the child grew and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. Typically, and we even get some idea of this from scripture.

Typically, mothers in this day nurse their children until roughly the age of 3. sometimes less than that, sometimes more than that. So, commentators suggest that Isaac was likely around 3 years old on this occasion when he is weaned from his mother, and here we're told in verse 8 that Abraham made a great feast on the day that Isaac was weaned. Abraham threw a party, and this would have been the party of parties.

In fact, ancient Jewish interpretation in some of the rabbinic traditions held that part of what made this feast great, and I caution you, we don't know this for sure, all right? But ancient tradition suggests that part of what made this feast great was the fact that among those who attended the feast, Was King Abimelech. And what happens later in the chapter might give some indication of that. but also in attendance, according to Jewish tradition was Eber, who was Abraham's great, great, great, great grandfather in the genealogy of Genesis 11.

And also Jewish tradition holds that in attendance at this party was Noah's son, Shem. Who was in attendance at this feast. Believe it or not, in the chrono genealogy that we find in Genesis 11, Shem, the son of Noah is still alive and still has about 50 more years, 50 more years of life. We don't know for sure if Shem and Eber and Abimelech were actually at this party, but given the absolutely miraculous nature of Isaac's birth and all of the promises attached to him, why would they not be there?

So far, this is, this is a wonderful, if the narrative stopped right here and we closed our service with prayer, this would just be a totally happy passage. Everything is wonderful and happy. But it's here to our surprise that the narrative turns. It turns out that Abraham and Sarah's past foolishness raises its ugly head.

And tarnishes this momentous and happy occasion. There is brokenness in Abraham's family, just as there's brokenness in many of our families. And this brokenness will now manifest itself on this most joyous of occasions. This brings us to the next development.

And the story of the birth of Isaac and the expulsion. And preservation of Ishmael that follows. Number 3, Sarah demands that Abraham expel Hagar. And Ishmael from their household.

Look at what happens in verse 9. Now Sarah Saul, the son of Hagar, the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, mocking. Keep in mind, Ishmael was born when Abraham was 86, which means that Ishmael would have been 14 years of age when Isaac was born, and if Isaac was weaned at the age of 3, that would put Ishmael right around the age of 17 right now. And we're told here.

That Ishmael was mocking. That's the way the New American Standard translators translate this. Ironically, the word that is translated mocking is the same root word for laughter that makes up the name Isaac. Literally, Ishmael was Isaac King.

Here in verse 9. And if all we did was just looked at this word alone, it could simply mean that he was playing innocently with Isaac as children are want to play, or it could mean that he was mocking and teasing Isaac in a hurtful way. We would not really know what to go on other than to assume that it's something probably bad because it really ticks Sarah off. But fortunately, we actually have New Testament commentary on what was happening in this moment.

In Galatians chapter 4, verse 29, and I'll put this verse on the screen. In Galatians 4:29, Paul is speaking about how Ishmael treated Isaac. And he says, he who was born according to the flesh, that's Ishmael, persecuted him who was born according to the spirit. That's Isaac.

And Paul uses the word persecuted. However, a 17 year old boy might persecute a 3-year-old boy, Ishmael, was doing that to Isaac. And the sequence of events in the text gives the impression that this persecution was happening at the great feast. In which everyone was gathered and celebrating Isaac and his weaning.

Imagine how jarring this would have been for everyone. They're all gathered at this party celebrating. Isaac And during that wonderful, happy occasion, Ishmael starts acting up and mocking and teasing Isaac in a persecuting way. Imagine the awkwardness as people are beholding this display on this otherwise happy occasion.

Sarah All we're told is what Sarah thought about what she saw. Sarah sees Ishmael doing this to Isaac, and she's not only offended by what she sees in the moment, but As one commentator says, she also looks into the future and she imagines the ominous trajectory and the proportions of what such behavior will lead to in the years to come. If this is what it looks like now with my son at the age of 3, on this happy occasion, What will this look like 5 years from now, 10 years from now, 20 years from now?

And so Sarah decides that drastic action is called for.

So look at what happens next. Verse 10, therefore, she, Sarah, said to Abraham, drive out this maid and her son, for the son of this maid shall not be an heir with my son, Isaac. Now we don't know, Sarah might have said this to Abraham at the party. She might have said it afterwards.

Regardless, Sarah gives this order to Abraham for two reasons. number 1, because she saw Ishmael mocking Isaac, and number 2, because she does not want Ishmael to share in Isaac's inheritance. She wanted Isaac alone to inherit Abraham's fortune. She didn't want Ishmael.

who's a persecutor of her son to inherit her father's wealth to any degree that he might then use Abraham's own wealth. And harsh treatment in the years to come against Isaac. It's interesting, human emotions are so complex just as Hagar. Disdained Sarah after she had conceived.

Sarah now disdains Hagar and her son, and her disdain for Hagar and Ishmael was so strong, she won't even call them by their names. Did you notice that? She just says, drive out this maid and her son, for the son of this maid shall not be an heir with my son, Isaac. She says her own son's name.

But she won't say Ishmael's name. Nor Hagar's. Well, imagine being Abraham. Imagine how this impacted Abraham.

Abraham loved Ishmael. For many years, Abraham figured that Ishmael very well might be the son of Promise that they had helped God to obtain. A year earlier, he had even asked God in Genesis 17, 0, that Ishmael might live before you, like, God, can't Ishmael just be the son of Promise, and we'll settle for that. He loved Ishmael But now Sarah is demanding that Ishmael be driven out of the house.

Along with his mom, Hagar. Look at Abraham's response, verse 11, the matter distressed Abraham greatly. Because of his son, speaking of Ishmael. Sarah only referred to Ishmael as the son of this maid, but the truth is that Ishmael is Abraham's son also.

So we're told that this matter distressed Abraham greatly. Literally, the sentence could read, the matter was very miserable in the eyes of Abraham because of his son Ishmael. I don't think any of us can imagine the misery and the vexation of spirit that Abraham is feeling at this point. He had no doubt thought that everyone would be able to coexist happily, but he's realizing now that that's not gonna happen.

He sees that Sarah is upset and Sarah, his wife, finds the presence of Hagar and Ishmael intolerable. Abraham knows if I let Hagar and Ishmael stay, Sarah is gonna be miserable and if Sarah's gonna be miserable, I know I'm gonna be miserable. Yet the thought of losing Ishmael is intolerable for Abraham. And Abraham knows that sending away Hagar and Ishmael will be emotionally painful for them, not to speak of jeopardizing their well-being.

What will happen to them if I let them go? So Abraham is between a rock and a hard place and he's clearly resistant to follow Sarah's counsel. It's interesting, this is actually the most emotional that we see Abraham in this chapter and That's telling us about the birth of Isaac and he's vexed and distressed by this very bad situation. I'm sure on the day that Abraham threw this party to celebrate Isaac's weaning, he had no idea that by the end of the day, he would be miserable.

And perplexed and not sure what to do. Talk about an old sin coming home to roost. Because of Abraham and Sarah's past foolishness, what now should be a time of pure joy is now tainted by anger and distress and uncertainty over what they possibly should do about this. Whatever the way forward is, there is no option for Abraham that will be pain-free.

Do you guys see that? Abraham is at a loss as to what to do and he's probably confused thinking, should I listen to the voice of my wife here? I listened to the voice of my wife 17 years ago, and that's why we're in the mess that we're in right now. Yet here is my wife who is demanding that I expel Ishmael and Hagar.

Should I say no, I'm not gonna listen to your voice in this instance. Is that what he should say? He's probably also thinking Hagar ran away when Sarah was mistreating her 17 years ago, and the angel of the Lord 17 years ago told Hagar to come back home. And live with us, and she's been here the last 17 years.

What do I do? That's what Abraham is thinking. Imagine Abraham and Sarah coming to you for counseling. In this situation What would you say To Abraham And to Sarah.

If they came to me. I would refer them to Pastor Carlos. And I'm sure that when they went to Pastor Carlos and explained their dilemma, he would say, let's go talk to Pastor Milton. This is a complicated situation.

That's genuinely confusing. And the choice is between painful option A. And painful option B. And it is here that God intervenes and helps Abraham.

That leads to the 4th development in this story of the birth of Isaac and the expulsion of Ishmael and Hagar that result, that is that God convinces Abraham to expel Hagar. And Ishmael I don't know that we would have necessarily predicted that based on what God's counsel was back in verse chapter 16. We don't know how much time elapsed here. This all could have happened in one day, it could have taken longer.

Regardless, look at what happens in verse 12. But God said to Abraham, do not be distressed. In other words, do not be miserable. Because of the lad and your maid, whatever Sarah tells you, listen to or literally obey her.

God gives to Abraham two pieces of counsel. Number 1, don't be distressed. And number 2, do whatever your wife tells you to do. In this situation Ladies, imagine Having God Speak to your husband in the middle of an argument that you and your husband are having.

And saying to your husband, whatever your wife says, do. Imagine that, that's what God is doing here. Then God gives two reasons why Abraham should let Hagar and Sarah go. And why he should not be distressed.

First of all, he says in verse 12, for through Isaac your descendants shall be named. Abraham needs this reminder from God. Isaac is going to be the Son of Promise, not Ishmael, and Abraham does not need a backup plan. Hanging around in his home.

Abraham also needs more than this from God. He loves Ishmael. He needs some assurances about Ishmael. And God is good to provide it.

Look at what God says to Abraham in verse 13. God says to Abraham, and of the son of the maid, I will make a nation also because he is your descendant. God wants Abraham to know that in letting his 17 year old son go. He's not banishing Ishmael to death.

God will actually prosper Ishmael and make of him. A nation God wants Abraham to know that his son's, Ishmael's future well-being is not dependent upon him remaining in Abraham, Abraham's home. God's gonna take care of Ishmael. And in the end, Ishmael will prosper more if Abraham lets him go than he would prosper if Abraham held on to him.

I don't think God would have given Abraham this counsel if Ishmael was 4 years old. Or 8 years old, but Ishmael is now 17. Years old at least. And, and it's time.

And so this is God's counsel to Abraham. And he speaks clearly, and so the, the feeling you get is that Abraham didn't know what to do with his wife's counsel, but then once the Lord spoke to him and made it clear, then Abraham acted on that. Now that he has clear direction from the Lord, Abraham acts immediately. That's what he wanted to know at the end of the day is, Lord, what do you want me to do?

And now that God's made that clear, look at what happens in verse 14. So Abraham rose early in the morning and took bread and a skin of water and gave them to Hagar, putting them on her shoulder. And gave her the boy. And sent her away.

You see something of Abraham's care for Hagar and Ishmael here. He gets up early in the morning obviously because he wants to get them off to an early start when the day is still cool. He's also acting immediately in obedience at the beginning of the day. He himself takes bread and a skin of water.

He doesn't leave it to someone else to do that. And by the way, the skin of water was basically a, a thermos and that day made of animal skins that generally contained about 3 gallons of water, about 24 pounds of water. and he, he doesn't just give that to Hagar, he himself puts it on her shoulder. And then he would have taken Ishmael and officially brought Ishmael.

To Hagar, and in this act, Abraham is disinheriting. Ishmael and giving him to Hagar. And then, He sends Hagar and Ishmael away, giving them their freedom. Some of us parents in this room have had to bid farewell to our children for a few months as they have headed off.

To college And we've cried This farewell is permanent, and you can bet that Abraham's heart is being ripped in two. At this farewell In the next chapter, Genesis 22, Abraham is gonna be asked by God to lay his son Isaac on the altar. Here, in this chapter, he's being asked by God to lay Ishmael on the altar, and Abraham obeys and lets his son Ishmael go. It turns out that the coming of the Son of Promise.

Ended up Resulting in the expulsion. Of what Abraham had been leaning on for a backup plan. And that's the way it is in God's economy. When God gives to us, for example, the gift of His Son Jesus Christ and all the blessings that come to us in Christ, we rejoice over the receiving of those blessings, the receiving of God's gospel gifts, but the arrival of those gifts in our lives end up requiring the expulsion of other things.

The expulsion of those fleshly dependencies that were once so precious to us. That we must now expel and get rid of for The greater good of God's gospel purposes in us. That's what's happening here, amongst other things. We're led to believe that Abraham, he's obviously being careful and giving them sufficient water and bread, and we're led to believe that Abraham gave them what he thought they needed for their journey wherever it was that they were specifically heading to.

We don't know, that's not recorded for us. But the language that follows indicates that in all likelihood, Hagar and Ishmael got lost. In the wilderness. Look at what happens verse 14, says, and she departed and wandered about in the wilderness of Beersheba.

We don't know again where she was intending to go, but wherever she was intending to go, she loses her way and the word here, she just wandered about, she's lost. Wasting steps in the desert, in the wilderness of Beersheba. And one might think that, all right, yeah, this is not the ending we would have wanted, but the story should stop here. But it doesn't.

In Sarah's mind, problem is solved. Hagar and Ishmael are out of sight, out of mind, and Sarah's ready to move on with her life and all is well, and she doesn't have to give another thought about Ishmael, but God doesn't want us to stop thinking about Ishmael. It turns out that God cares for Hagar and Ishmael, and he wants us to know something about the dire straits that they encountered and how God looked after them and how God cared for them and saw to it that Ishmael was rescued and made able to thrive.

And this brings us to the final development in the story of the birth of Isaac and the expulsion and preservation of Ishmael that follows.

And that is that God looks after Hagar and Ishmael and preserves their life. God looks after Hagar and Ishmael and preserves their life. Look at what happens in verse 15. says when the water in the skin was used up, she left the boy under one of the bushes.

There's a whole lot that's not said there. But apparently they reached a point where they were too famished to travel any further. And as far as Hagar Hagar knew, there was no water anywhere nearby. And no one nearby to help them.

Perhaps Ishmael had fallen sick with fever and was left in a weakened state. So thinking that he was on the verge of death and having no other resources to help. Ishmael Hagar, literally, you could translate this, she abandoned the boy under one of the bushes. The bush would shield him from the hot sun and serve as Ishmael's final comfort.

As he died. That's the way Hagar is thinking in the dire straits that she's in. Look at what she does in verse 16. Then she went and sat down opposite him about a bow shot away, for she said, do not let me see the boy die.

In her mind, Ishmael is going to die. She will probably die, and Hagar cannot bear to watch her son die. She gets about a bowshot away because she didn't want to see him dying. And it seems she didn't want to hear him crying either.

Some commentators say that this was selfish of Hagar and maybe it was. Regardless, Ishmael is now doubly abandoned. Expelled by Abraham and by Sarah, and now abandoned by his own mother who can't bear to look upon him and watch him die. Just get that image in your head of him and his dying throes, the abandonment that he has experienced from Abraham and Sarah.

And then seeing his mom, her kissing his forehead, and then leaving cause she can't, she can't look at him. As he dies. At the end of verse 16, the text says, and she sat opposite him and lifted up her voice. And wept like only a mom could weep.

But look at what happens while she's crying, verse 17. And God heard the lad crying. And the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, what is the matter with you, Hagar? Do not fear, for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.

It's interesting to me that the text tells us that God heard the lad crying and that he tells Hagar that God has heard the voice of the lad where he is. Hagar had moved herself far enough away so that she could not see or hear Ishmael. But God here is telling her that what she could not see or hear anymore, he could see. And he could hear.

Those awful situations in our lives sometimes that are too painful for us to look squarely at. Guys, God looks squarely at them. And he sees and he hears everything. By the way, you'll notice that In this whole story and in these verses, the name Ishmael.

Which is literally Ishmael. does not show up at all. It does not, the name Ishmael does not show up in English, in the English translation of verse 17, but in the Hebrew text, the name Ishmael essentially shows up twice. For example, at the beginning of verse 17, the new American Standard says, God heard.

The Hebrew reads Ishmael Lohim. The name Ishmael, you will recall, literally means God hears, and twice we are told in verse 17 that God has heard Ishmael's cry. We're told that at the beginning of the verse and at the end of verse 17. So his name is there.

When no one else is willing to speak his name. God is So God speaks to Hagar and says to her, arise, essentially go to your son, lift up the lad and hold him by the hand, for I will make a great nation of him. In this one promise, that's all he needs to say. God is assuring Hagar that Ishmael will live, that he will have descendants, and that he will prosper to such an extent that God will not just make a nation, but a great nation of Ishmael.

This is an incredible promise of destiny. But don't forget, Hagar and Ishmael actually can just use some water right now. So look at what happens in verse 19. Then God opened her eyes and she saw a well of water and she went and filled the skin with water and gave the lad a drink.

This probably doesn't mean that God miraculously provided a well or created a well of water for Hagar. The likelihood is that this well had been there all along. Hagar didn't see it, but God is now opening her eyes to see the well that had been there all along. And in helping her to see that, so that both she and Ishmael could have something to drink, one commentator says that in these two verses, God has given to Hagar and Ishmael two great gifts.

A destiny and a drink. Beyond that moment, God took care of Ishmael in the years that followed. Look at verse 20. God was with the lad.

And he grew and he lived in the wilderness and became an archer. Sarah did not want to be anywhere near Ishmael. She didn't want to be with Ishmael. Abraham.

could not be with Ishmael, though he wanted to. And would have loved to have been with him, but we're told here that God was with Ishmael. God was with the one that others did not want to be with. And how was it evident that God was with Ishmael?

Look at what the text says, God was with the lad, and he grew and became A missionary Is that what it says? No, he became a what? An archer. This one statement alone serves.

As a wonderful exaltation of the gaining of practical skills to sustain one's livelihood. Moses is specifically attaching God being with Ishmael. To Ishmael's growing up and becoming skilled at archery. A skill that will help him to hunt animals and provide for himself and his mom.

And his family in the days to come. It is through this skill that Ishmael will begin to thrive and provide and prosper in the wilderness. Ishmael, it seems here is discovering a skill within himself. That he might never have discovered under Abraham's roof.

Being thrust. Out from the nest. Of Abraham's household. Turned out to be good.

For Ishmael. Finally, we're told that Ishmael lived in the wilderness of Peran, which is in the north. Eastern part of the Sinai Peninsula. And his mother took a wife for him from the land.

Of Egypt. This is where Hagar was from originally, so it would only make sense that she would get for Ishmael, a wife from there. And there the story ends, and these details are given to us to leave us with a sense of perspective about how a very complicated situation got worked out with the Lord's help. Just a few quick thoughts as we close this morning.

This is a fascinating story. to me, it takes us from the miracle of Isaac's birth. And the laughter of Sarah, the festive feast in Isaac's honor to from there to the mocking laughter of Ishmael, the anger of Sarah, the distress of Abraham. And then to the depths of despair experienced by Hagar and Ishmael.

If we had never read this story before, we'd be surprised at the twists and the turns of the narrative. But I think we're left appreciating how true to human experience this is. It's what I love about God's word, it's real and it's raw. In a broken, fallen world, most, all of our joys end up somehow becoming commingled with pain.

And often because of our own brokenness, right? We see in the story that yes, God is a promise-keeping God. We see that he doesn't make empty promises to us. He keeps the promises that he makes.

The fulfillment of his promises may not come in the time of our preference, but they will come at his appointed time and God's appointed time is always better than what our appointed times are. Do you believe that? We also see in this story the truth that sin complicates. Sin is the great complicator.

causing our genuinely joyful moments in life to be commingled with pain and leaving us sometimes with exceedingly thorny problems that have no pain-free solutions. Sometimes, because of our own sins, we're left with choices and it's like I got two choices and the pain meter on both is equally high. And it's complicated. Sometimes we have to live with the painful consequences of our sin and make the best decisions available and choose between a C+.

Option and a minus option. And there's no A or B anymore in some areas. We make the best decisions available knowing that there won't be full resolution until glory that happens. But I call upon you, especially you young people, sin is the great complicator.

It always brings complications to our lives. I've literally witnessed on one occasion in my office several years ago, a dear brother sobbing in my office, grabbing fistfuls of his hair and pulling at his hair and literally repeatedly beating his head against the wall of my office, grieving and mourning over sinful choices that he made that could never be undone. And I know if that brother were here, he would join me in telling you. That when God in His word speaks prohibitions and says, do not do this, and when he gives you commands in his word, God is fighting for your pleasure.

He's fighting for your joy. Read your Bible, read God's word, read it daily, and obey what a God who loves you is telling you. To do And hate sin. We also see in this story, the wonderful truth.

That God gets involved in our mess. I love how God moves into Abraham and Sarah's mess and helps them. In one sense, when Abraham was in the state of misery and confusion, God could have said, Abraham, don't ask me what to do. You got yourself into this mess.

You figure it out. But God doesn't do that. Instead, he gets in the middle of this mess and he counsels Abraham and says, here's what you need to do in this case, do what your wife is telling you to do. And he gives Abraham promises and assurances.

That he needs to do the right thing in this situation, even though it's going to be heart wrenching. God is not overwhelmed by their mess, and neither is God ever overwhelmed by your mess or my mess. Yes, our situations may be difficult and require the wisdom of Solomon, but God is a God who enters our mess. And walks with us through them and counsels us and speaks his promises.

To us Guiding us in the tough choices that we have to make. Also, I love how God in this story chased down Hagar in the wilderness and helped her, speaking vision into her and then helping her to a drink of water that she could then Give to Ishmael. I love how God was with Ishmael and helped Ishmael to grow and become an archer so that he could prosper, providing for himself and for his mom and his family in the days to come. I'm sure it was hard for Abraham to let Ishmael go thinking this is gonna ruin him if I let him go, but God was with.

The young man that Abraham had let go. For those of you who are having trouble letting go of a relationship that is sinful, Please know that God is perfectly capable of taking good care of that person that he's calling you to let go. In fact, God can take care of them far better than you can. And it may very well be that your refusal up to this point to let that person go is what's holding them back from God's very best for them.

On another note I love God's care for Ishmael. Sarah might have viewed Ishmael as simply a problem that she wanted to just go away, but Ishmael was never just a problem to solve to God. God loved Ishmael. He blessed him, and we know that God will see to it that the descendants of Ishmael are among the families of the earth who are going to be blessed through Isaac.

God is going to bless all the nations of the world through Abraham and through Isaac and the descendants of Ishmael are among those families who will be blessed. We talked about this a couple of months ago, but the day will come when people of every tongue and tribe and nation will be gathered around the throne of God, singing the praises of God and of the Lamb, and the descendants of Ishmael will be In that multitude. This means that we owe the descendants of Ishmael to this very day, not our disdain.

But we owe them our love, and we owe them the gospel of Jesus Christ.

When Jesus speaks to us and says, go into all the world and make disciples of all the nations. He includes The nations of Ishmael. In that call, and we should hear that. We should also note that the same God who told Abraham to banish his own son here in Genesis 21 is one day gonna banish his own son.

God will through the Holy Spirit drive Jesus Christ, his son into the wilderness. Without food for 40 days to be tempted by the devil. He's going to allow his son to be rejected and, and banished and cast out of Jerusalem and hung up on a cross. And while on the cross, Jesus is gonna say, I thirst, and he's gonna say, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

And God won't rescue Jesus from death at the last minute like he did Ishmael. Jesus will die. So that through his shed blood God could rescue. Broken sinners like us from a certain death.

I wonder if you walked in here today weighed down with the guilt of your sins. I wonder what wilderness. You are walking, walking around in aimlessly. What bush have you been abandoned under?

I pray that God will open your eyes to see Jesus just as he opened Hagar's eyes to see the well. That had been there all along. And guys, that well that has been there all along, that is perfectly within reach is Jesus. You don't have to die of thirst.

He's there And I pray God will open your eyes to see him and that you would cry out to him and call upon his name for salvation if you've never done so. If God can hear Ishmael crying under a bush in the middle of a wilderness and save his life, God can hear you wherever you are. And I know he'd be a pleasured to save you. Let's pray together Lord, I do pray that if there are any here who have sins to repent of, that you would Move them into this beautiful thing called repentance.

Repentance is not something we have to do. It's something we get to do, and it's a beautiful, delicious thing. I pray if there's any here, Lord, who have never put their trust in Christ that You would help them to see Jesus who's Within their reach. Help them to behold him like never before and that they would realize it would be an intolerable suffering to live one more minute without him.

And may they drink deeply of Jesus today. And be converted to him. We thank you, Lord, that you are a God. Who gives us clear direction in your word to keep us from making the messes we would otherwise make.

But all of us in this room have also disobeyed you and we have made choices that have brought brokenness and pain into our lives, and that brokenness and pain often just gets attached to and commingled with even the joys that we have. And we thank you that you are a God for broken people. You get into that mess with us, you forgive us for where we fall short, you forgive us of our sins, you give us atonement through the shed blood of Jesus, and then you walk with us, and you're with us, and you counsel us and you speak assurances and promises to us to help us.

On the difficult roads we often find ourselves on.

You're a good God, and we just say to you this morning, we love you for the God that you are. We thank you for this opportunity to give of our offerings to you, Lord, receive these funds, do much. With every penny that is given in this offering for the glory of Jesus and the spread of the good news about him. And we ask these things in the name of Jesus, and all God's people said, Amen.