God had made a wonderful promise to Abram. He told him that his seed would be as the stars of heaven, and that He would give them the land of Canaan for their possession. But as yet Abram did not have a son to be the heir of all these promises, and he became impatient. He wanted to see God’s promise fulfilled at once and could not wait God’s time. His wife Sarai was not a true helpmeet in this either, and she gave him bad advice. Instead of turning to the Lord, Abram listened to her, and took things into his own hands. How often we, too, are impatient, and because we do not get the answer to our prayers all at once, we think we must act ourselves, instead of waiting on the Lord. We will always find that the result is the same as it was with Abram — we only hinder the blessing God has for us.
Responsibility and Restoration
When Sarai began to see the results of her sin, and was despised by Hagar, she places the blame on her husband. She says, “My wrong be upon thee.” Then she tried to get out of the difficulty by dealing unkindly with Hagar, so that she left her and went into the wilderness. Did you ever try to get out of a difficulty by acting proudly and putting the blame on someone else? When we act in that way, without owning our failure to the Lord, He has to lay His hand upon us still further, until there is true restoration to Him. So here, the Lord sent Hagar back to Abram and Sarai, thus allowing them to feel the full result of what they had done. He did not bring deliverance until many years later, when there had been full restoration of soul.
Thus God allowed Abram and Sarai to reap what they had sown. His Word solemnly declares, “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap” (Galatians 6:7). If we walk in disobedience to the Word of God, we are sowing to the flesh, and the reaping time is not pleasant. May the Lord help you, dear children, to be careful how you sow, for the “sowing” is done mostly in your young days. If you sow good seed, setting out with purpose of heart to follow the Lord, you will have His blessing on your life. If you follow after this poor, empty world, and sow your “wild oats,” be assured that you will reap the same.
Thou God Seest Me
There was one thing that Hagar learned when she was in the wilderness, after she had run away from Sarai. It is summed up in four little words, “Thou God seest me.” I hope everyone who reads these lines has memorized this little text. The eye of God rests upon us no matter where we go. He sees and knows all we have ever done, and yet in spite of it all He loves us. He has undertaken the whole of the sinner’s case, and at Calvary’s cross, the Lord Jesus “bare our sins in His own body on the tree” (1 Peter 2:24). What rest of conscience it gives to the one who believes, to know that although God knows all about us, yet the work of His Son has made it possible for Him to say, “Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more” (Hebrews 10:17).
Further Meditation
1. What did Sarai do when she began to see the results of her sin?
2. Impatience can cause huge problems in our lives. In 1 Samuel 15, King Saul runs into serious problems when he fails to wait patiently for the Lord. How long did he wait? Who did he think he was waiting for? What was his attitude about his failure?
3. You might find the simple booklet Power in Patience: Leaning Upon Our Beloved by F. C. Blount to be a real encouragement to your soul as you study the subject of patience.