A Woman Special to God

A Woman Special to God—Hagar

I have taught the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar more times that I can count. Yet all of those times my focus was on Abraham and Sarah. Hagar received the status of a villain and certainly not that of a heroine. In a recent study of the book of Isaiah, in a commentary, I found a list of people in the Old Testament who experienced epiphanies. This was in connection with Isaiah 6 where Isaiah had his encounter with God. But something in the list surprised me. I came across the fact that Hagar experienced two epiphanies with God, something that very few people in the Bible can claim. So what does that say to us about Hagar? My contention is simple: Hagar was special to God. Her story is related in Genesis 16 and 21:9-21.

When we use the term special we usually mean special treatment. My dog is special to me, so he gets special privileges. He gets to sit in my chair either with me or when I am gone. I make sure that he is fed twice a day and take him on regular walks. My wife would tell you that Alexander is spoiled. He isn't spoiled, just special. Special people enjoy privileges, the good life, needs and wants being met, and are comfortable. So if Hagar was special to God, then why did she have such a rough time?

Chapter 11 of the book of Hebrews gives us a list of people who were special to God. Just a few of them are:

• Abel, who died at the hands of his brother Cain because Abel was special to God.
  
• Noah, suffered humiliation and ridicule for 100 years while he built the ark because God told him he was special.
  
• Abraham, who left the security of Ur to go to a place he didn't know, led by a God he couldn't see on the promise that "someday" he would be special.
  
• Sarah, given by her husband to kings to be in their harems, but never complained because she was special.
  
• Paul was told he was a special messenger for God who would learn what it means to suffer because he was special.
  
• Jesus was by far the most special person to God, and his special privilege was dying an excruciating death on the cross.
  

The list goes on. The point that Hebrews 11 makes is this: being special to God may cost you a great deal in this life.

Hagar's Story

We do not officially know how Hagar came into the picture, but since she was an Egyptian we can assume she was part of the deal Pharaoh made with Abraham in Egypt. Famine was in the land of Canaan when Abram (later changed to Abraham) arrived for the first time. As it would be in the days of Joseph, Egypt had grain for sale. Abram was afraid that the Egyptians would see his beautiful wife and kill Abram for her. So he told the story that Sarai was his sister. Actually it was a half-truth as she was his half-sister. They had the same father and different mothers. Sarai was taken into Pharaoh's harem. What is noteworthy is the fact that she was 65 years of age at the time.

Pharaoh's household came under a curse. Somehow Pharaoh discovered that Sarai was already married to Abram. God's protection of Abraham is apparent because Pharaoh could have easily put him to death and then taken Sarah. Instead Pharaoh chose to give Sarah back to her husband and also richly reward him. He gave him gifts which included male and female servants. It is quite likely that Hagar was one of them.

Regardless of where Abram and Sarai acquired Hagar the fact remains that she was a slave. As a person she had no rights and could never be free unless her master chose to free her. She could be called upon to do anything the master desired. The evidence of Hagar's lack of freedom is seen when Sarai decides that Abram can have a child by her. A woman of the same rank as Sarai could not be expected to do such a thing, but a slave was a slave and could be used as her owners saw fit.

Hagar accepted the role of surrogate mother for Sarai. The concept, still very much alive today, was that Hagar would have a child but the child would belong to Sarai. Such a practice was legal in Abraham's society. Once Hagar knew she was pregnant things became very tense between Hagar and Sarai. Sarai could not abuse the slave now at the risk of harming the unborn child. Hagar may have flaunted her expanding waistline. "You can't do this." Finally the antagonism between the two women became so intense Hagar chose to flee.

This was not a very rational decision on Hagar's part. It was an act of desperation. It would be better to be dead than to live in such circumstances. Hagar really had nowhere to go. No cities were nearby and it was a long ways between waterholes. In fact, Hagar had no idea where the waterholes or wells even were.

But God met her in the wilderness, the first of two meetings they would have. He told Hagar to go back to Sarai and Abram and submit herself to her mistress.

God's presence at this point said to Hagar, "You are special to me. And I have an assignment for you." The assignment was to bear the child of Abraham who would become famous in the world. Hagar heard the words, but did not have any idea of the significance of them. God promised Hagar the following: (Genesis 16:10-12)

10     Moreover, the angel of the Lord said to her, "I will greatly multiply your descendants so that they will be too many to count."

     11     The angel of the Lord said to her further,

"Behold, you are with child,

And you will bear a son;

And you shall call his name Ishmael,

Because the Lord has given heed to your affliction.

     12     "He will be a wild donkey of a man,

His hand will be against everyone,

And everyone's hand will be against him;

And he will live to the east of all his brothers."

Hagar then names the place Beer lahai roi, "the well of the God who sees." Afterwards she returned to the camp and there submitted to Sarai. 

Abraham is 86 years old when Ishmael is born. He loved Ishmael very much and wanted him to be the heir of promise. 

When Abraham reached 100 and Sarah 90, God chose to allow them to have a child. The child was named Isaac ("Laughter") because both Abraham and Sarah laughed when they heard they would have a child in their old age. When it came time to wean Isaac, Ishmael mocked him. This offended Sarah and she demanded that Hagar and her son be driven away.

Here we see the value of the individual. Abraham is told by God to listen to his wife. He gives Hagar a bag of water and some bread and sends them out into the wilderness. Did Abraham believe God would take care of Hagar? We don't know. But when Hagar was at the point of death along with Ishmael, now an 18 year old boy, God appeared to her again. He showed her water and she survived. 

God appeared to Hagar because she was special to him. God chose to care for her and to honor her in ways she would never understand. 

Lesson: God can use anyone he chooses. In Hagar's case he used a slave. Later God would use a slave named Joseph to save a nation. 

 

“Lawrence of Arabia”

Friday, December 26, 2008 was a beautiful day in Kansas. Before the day ended the temperature had reached a record 70 degrees. But the wind changed and by midnight we had rain and the temperature dropped to 30. I walked the dog and took the car in for its regular lube job. When supper was over my wife told me that "Lawrence of Arabia" would be on TCM. I checked the schedule and discovered this was a four-hour movie. I'm always interested in history especially of the Middle East. I also wanted to know more about this legendary figure of World War I.

The film belongs to a genre of movies that are epic in nature. What the director wants to do takes four hours to accomplish and none of the time is wasted. David Lean, who directed "Lawrence of Arabia," produced a number of these epics. They are powerful in their message presented in a powerful fashion. David Lean directed several other movies that have become classics: "Dr. Zhivago," "The Bridge Over the River Kwai," and "Passage to India." Each of these films is epic in nature. I have seen Dr. Zhivago several times. It is a great historical document of what communism did to the intellectual establishment in Russia. Dr. Zhivago is cut off from his life and left at loose ends until he finally disappears.

Both "Lawrence of Arabia" and "Dr. Zhivago" begin with a lengthy overture that speaks musically of everything that is to come. The theme songs will be replayed throughout the entire movie.

So when you have a little time on your hands and are tired of the garbage on commercial television, watch these two fine movies.

Bankers Rip Off American Taxpayers

The News that is the News on December 19, 2008

News in KC Star for December 19, 2008

 

In a study of corrupt states, Kansas is rated as one of the three least corrupt states in USA. Florida has the highest rate of convictions for public officials while Illinois is 7th in the country. Louisiana has the highest conviction rates per capita and Illinois is 6th. Kansas is unranked.

 

The William J. Clinton foundation has raised $492,000,000 to build the Clinton library and other projects the Clintons are involved. Foreign governments including Saudi Arabia, Norway and India gave $46,000,000. Other high profile givers include Bill Gates and a whole host of the Hollywood crowd. Saudi Arabia alone gave $10,000,000. Other government donors include Kuwait, Qatar, Brunei, Oman, Italy, Jamaica, and Tenerife. The Dutch national lottery gave between 5 and 10 million dollars.

 

Also of interest in the article is the note that Hillary Clinton served on Wal-Mart's board of directors. Wal Mart gave between one and five million dollars to the Clinton foundation.

 

It is foolish to assume that Hillary Clinton will not be influenced in her decisions as Secretary of State by those whom support her husband's library. (WP)

 

On the more serious side Burger King has launched a new men's body spray called "Flame." It is described as having the scent of seduction with a hint of flame-broiled meat." (Guys using this should be careful that their dates are not hungry! WP)

 

In Rogers, Arkansas Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar had their 18th child, a little girl, delivered by C-section. Jim Bob is 43 and Michelle 42. Their oldest child is 20.

 

 

That's all the news that is the news for today.

 

Il Divo and Amazing Grace

This is one of the finest renditions of Amazing Grace I have heard.   

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtrnB4FZ-yc

“This Little Light of Mine”

"This little light of mine"

Years ago small children were taught a popular song—"This little light of mine." Not really heavy on theology, but actually loaded with meaning. Especially in the area of light.

At Zeandale we are going through Max Lucado's 3:16 in the morning Bible study. Today's lesson dealt with Hosea and Gomer. The focus was on Hosea's love for Gomer which was descriptive of the love God had for his people Israel. One of the greatest lessons we got from the lesson was the fact that God loves regardless of how people respond.

God's love is not exclusively for believers. We become believers by responding to God's love, but that doesn't change the fact that God loves unconditionally. Everything we have is a gift from God. Everything that the Muslim, Hindu, atheist, or evolutionist has is a gift from God. Whether or not people do not recognize the source of the gift does not change the fact about it's source.

There are believers who brag about their accomplishments. Sometimes they will include God up to the point that they must be very special in the sight of God because of all that God's for them. I used to have a good friend that no matter what I accomplished he did something either faster or better or he was obviously better blessed. Once I wrote him about some of medical experiences and his answer was to let me know that his medical experiences were worse than mine. The guy never changed!

Charles Chaffin led in the devotional time for the offering this morning and he focused on the fact that we have received light from God. Everyone receives light from God. Paul talks about this in Romans 1. So just like everyone receives everything they have from God, so also do they receive God's light as well. Charles suggested that the light could be seen in the fact that everyone has a conscience.

Again, it is a gift from God. If one studies anthropology he/she discovers that there is no culture without a moral system regardless of how "primitive" they may be. Where did they get their information? The earliest culture systems which began to use writing also developed legal codes. How did that happen? And how is that there are so many parallels found among the various legal systems? Some would suggest they just copied from one another. Even if they did copy they still recognized the value of a controlled value system.

A Socialist America takes another step forward

When Joseph rescued the Egyptians from the upcoming famine he took 20% of the grain grown and then sold it back to the Egyptians. The Egyptians first used up their money to buy food, then they sold their livestock, and finally their land to the Egyptian government. When the famine ended all the money, livestock, and land belonged to the government. After the famine the government let the people use the land and taxed them 20% of their produce. In essence, Joseph set up a socialist government. 

Our government is spending over a trillion dollars to bail out banks and industries who mismanaged their funds and businesses. But the one item that no one may have noticed is the placement of "czars" to oversee the industries that the government is helping. This is a giant step toward socialism in which the government takes control of industry and banking. Someone might say, "Never in America." But it is happening.  The republic the founders of this nation produced is long gone. It is also noteworthy that anything the government manages becomes notorious for waste.  

The Year of the Jubilee

When Moses received the Law, part of it included both environmental and economic sanctions placed by God upon his people. The environmental part was called the Sabbatical year. That law stated the Israelites were to let the land lay fallow (unplowed) every seven years so that it could renew itself. Back in the 1960s I lived in southern Illinois. While there I was given the chance to learn how to farm. A godly man, one of the elders in the church where I preached, took the time to train me how to farm. I learned how to harvest, plow, and cultivate. For some reason Frank Shepard never let me plant. That part he always handled. 

Farmers in that era practiced crop rotation. Part of the rotation was to leave a section of the land fallow every seven years. They would plant alfalfa on it and the next fall plow the alfalfa under. They were using artificial fertilizers by that time, but they still practiced crop rotation.  I'm not sure if this practice is observed anymore. 

The next part of the Law of Moses we want to consider is the year of Jubilee. This law stated that every 50 years all debts were to be forgiven and the land was to be restored to its original owners. This meant ever person had the opportunity to start over with a clean slate every fifty years. Certainly such a practice would not be popular with bankers, but it was the law of God. 

It is my own unhumble opinion that the Israelites never observed the year of Jubilee and it is possible that they were also careless about the sabbatical year as well. 

But, Praise the Lord, we are observing the year of Jubilee in 2008. Billions of dollars are being given to bankers and automobile manufacturers who are going broke. This is all being done on the premise that the little guy about to lose his home will be able to save it. So far I have yet to hear of one little guy getting so much as a nickel of the $700 billion. But the bankers and industrialists are all standing in line for their handout. It is almost a comedy to watch the auto makers pleading with Congress for billions. 

Here is my concern. I have debts--mortgage on my house, a credit card or two, an automobile.  Is there some way that I could get a small portion of that $700 billion? Now if I were making $22 million a year or more I would have a better chance. But my income is a bit less than that. I have friends that deserve a portion of that money since it is the year of Jubilee, but I doubt that they will get any either. I work for a non-profit institution that could use a bit of this bailout money and we work across from a major university that needs a minimum of $56 million to simply do the maintenance needed that has been delayed for years. Let me know if I am wrong, but I bet neither we nor the university will see a red cent from the big bailout. We have done nothing dishonest nor have we taken advantage of the foolishness of people. But that's not the way the bailout will work. Those who made financial fools of others will receive the reward. 

I'm sure that Moses would see this as an odd way to observe the Jubilee. 

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas

One of my colleagues called this afternoon and invited me to go with him and his wife to see "The Boy In the Striped Pajamas." My wife and I went with them to this powerful statement about the most tragic part of World War II. You can look up movie reviews to get a sense of the direction of the movie. But you will have to see it to fully appreciate the way it ends. It is, to say the least, a moving experience. It is not a film to enjoy, but it one from which we can be reminded of lessons from the past. Every adult needs to see it. It is not a movie for children. 

A question that must accompany such a movie and the events it points to is, "How in the world could such a situation develop?" 

We need to realize that after World War I Germany experienced a horrendous depression. People needed wheel barrows to take their money to the grocery market. The Allies had punished Germany severely for World War I and this added to the depression. In the midst of this economic circumstance a messiah arose. Adolf Hitler promised to lead the nation to the heights to which Germany belonged. People would have to put their trust in him and follow the direction of Hitler and his henchmen. Although there was some protest, Hitler's government quickly evolved and Hitler soon declared himself the dictator of Germany.  

In order to make people feel better, Hitler led them to believe that the Jews were the real problem in the nation. To get rid of this pox on the nation, the Jews needed to be annihilated. This would solve another problem--bring a great of wealth into the hands of the government. 

In Hitler's case, Nazism became the religion of Germany with Adolf himself being the high priest of the religion. 

Such messianic scheme dot the landscape since World War II. One that started much earlier in 1917 was the Communist party in Russia. Vladimir Lenin, Trotsky, and Josef Stalin were involved in this political experiment that promised to correct the financial abuses in Russia and the wealth of the rich would be distributed among the poor. 

The Pol Pot regime in Cambodia that massacred a million people. Fidel Castro and Che Chevera led people in South America and Cuba on the basis that each man was a messiah who was going to deliver his people. Such individuals are scattered all over Africa. The results of the work of these messiahs has been horrific. 

Some wise acre once said, "Those who refuse to learn the lessons of history are doomed to repeat them."

Zeandale Makes the news for Community Good Will

Community Good Will

Recently the local newspaper, the Manhattan Mercury, has made mention of the community service provided by Zeandale Community Church. The first was in an article about the Angel Food Program. Zeandale was instrumental in helping bring the program to the Manhattan area. For the time being our people as well as the rest of the churches involved in the Manhattan area, go to Topeka to pick up the items to be distributed. An hour after they leave Topeka a crew of busy people get the boxes ready and usually by 12:00 noon on Saturday the food is all gone, much of it to needy people who were wondering where their next meal was coming from.

The Angel Food program is unique in that it is open to anyone who wants to participate. One box of food, which is loaded with high protein products, costs $30.00. There is enough food in the box for one person for a month and for a family of four for a week. Purchases can be made either by cash or food stamps and the orders have to be placed and paid for three weeks before delivery. Last month we gave away 18 boxes of food to needy people.

Zeandale was again mentioned by Gary LaGrange who set out to raise school supplies for children in Iraq as an act of good will from our country to theirs. Gary noted that they had raised 38,000 pounds of goods—school supplies and backpacks—and $20,000 to help ship the supplies. Zeandale was mentioned as one of the contributing churches.

When this project started I asked one of new member if he and his wife would take this project on. They did gladly. In a short period the couple reported they wanted the stuff moved because they had one bedroom in their home fully packed with school supplies. Gary LaGrange was impressed. He was impressed enough that he remembered the little stone church in Zeandale that helped out in a big way.