by The Rev. Barbara Dyke, UMC
Reading: Genesis 21:8-21
We read in today’s scripture that Sarah was jealous of the son of Hagar the Egyptian. Even though it was Sarah’s idea for Abraham to sleep with her so that Abraham might have a son. Abraham and Sarah did not trust that God could do what God had promised. They took matters into their own hands to fulfill God’s promise to make Abraham a great nation.
How many times have we done the same thing? We pray to God and through discernment believe we know God’s will for us and then try to achieve what God wants for us, all the while leaving God out of the picture to accomplish our hopes and dreams. Every time we do this we end up creating a great mess. Sarah acts out of guilt for not trusting God, jealousy of Hagar’s son, fear of Isaac losing his inheritance demands that the boy and his mother be sent into the wilderness to die.
Yet, we see God step in and offer mercy to Hagar and her son. God has another solution in mind. Even though God told Abraham that he was going to have to accommodate the jealousy of Sarah, it is clear that God loved both Isaac and Ishmael. As the story unfolds we see that Ishmael, the child of his parents' unfaith, has a place in the love of God. God wants there to be a place for him in the world.
God demonstrates his love for both of Abraham’s sons. God loves both the chosen and the outcast. We can celebrate that God’s ways are not our ways. In God's eyes, everyone, every group, every nation, is a chosen people. We humans draw lines in the sand and find ways to hate or judge others because they are different, they somehow do not seem to be acceptable. Yet God once again demonstrates his love for all people. His love is not bound by our short-sightedness and jealousies.
As Christian we too are called to demonstrate that same kind of love. We are to treat all people as who they really are, children of God. May we see a glimpse of Christ in everyone we meet. May we call on the power of the Holy Spirit to help us stop looking for differences in people and see them as they really are, chosen children of God. Let us live the great commandment to love God and love our neighbor, whoever they may be. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
The Rev. Barbara Dyke, of San Angelo, Texas, is affiliated ecumenically with the AOCC and is an ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church. She is currently the pastor of First United Methodist Church of Mertzon.
Reading: Genesis 21:8-21
We read in today’s scripture that Sarah was jealous of the son of Hagar the Egyptian. Even though it was Sarah’s idea for Abraham to sleep with her so that Abraham might have a son. Abraham and Sarah did not trust that God could do what God had promised. They took matters into their own hands to fulfill God’s promise to make Abraham a great nation.
How many times have we done the same thing? We pray to God and through discernment believe we know God’s will for us and then try to achieve what God wants for us, all the while leaving God out of the picture to accomplish our hopes and dreams. Every time we do this we end up creating a great mess. Sarah acts out of guilt for not trusting God, jealousy of Hagar’s son, fear of Isaac losing his inheritance demands that the boy and his mother be sent into the wilderness to die.
Yet, we see God step in and offer mercy to Hagar and her son. God has another solution in mind. Even though God told Abraham that he was going to have to accommodate the jealousy of Sarah, it is clear that God loved both Isaac and Ishmael. As the story unfolds we see that Ishmael, the child of his parents' unfaith, has a place in the love of God. God wants there to be a place for him in the world.
God demonstrates his love for both of Abraham’s sons. God loves both the chosen and the outcast. We can celebrate that God’s ways are not our ways. In God's eyes, everyone, every group, every nation, is a chosen people. We humans draw lines in the sand and find ways to hate or judge others because they are different, they somehow do not seem to be acceptable. Yet God once again demonstrates his love for all people. His love is not bound by our short-sightedness and jealousies.
As Christian we too are called to demonstrate that same kind of love. We are to treat all people as who they really are, children of God. May we see a glimpse of Christ in everyone we meet. May we call on the power of the Holy Spirit to help us stop looking for differences in people and see them as they really are, chosen children of God. Let us live the great commandment to love God and love our neighbor, whoever they may be. In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen.
The Rev. Barbara Dyke, of San Angelo, Texas, is affiliated ecumenically with the AOCC and is an ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church. She is currently the pastor of First United Methodist Church of Mertzon.
