Walking With Christ

Let’s talk about blessings from God and His perfect timing. Any blessing from God is wonderful and something to celebrate. How can such a wonderful thing become a curse?

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.(ESV)

In Genesis 15 we see God making the covenant with Abram, who would become Abraham, and the father of the nation of Israel. Take note that He said “your son”. There was no mention of Abram’s wife Sarai. In chapter sixteen, we are introduced to Hagar, the Egyptian servant. Abram and Sarai were both pretty old. Conventional wisdom said that both of them were well beyond the age to have children. Sarai reasoned that the promise must not have included her. She still believed that the promise was true and knew that Abram would, indeed, have a son. She figured that the promise meant that Abram was meant to use Hagar, the servant (slave), as a wife to fulfill this promise. Abram was eighty-six when Hagar had Ishmael.

The moment Hagar knew that she was pregnant she began to treat Sarai with contempt. Traditionally, in those days, if a wife could not produce a male heir then she was looked down upon. Yes, we know it has more to do with the male than the female. The messed up logic still, kind of, stands to reason since it is the first born male who will be the heir. Whoever is the mother of that male child becomes the favored wife. Sarai did not want to become a subordinate wife to Hagar so she complained to Abram. He flaked out and washed his hands of the situation. He told Sarai to deal with Hagar however she wanted.

Sarai became kind of cruel to Hagar after that so Hagar ran away. While they were on the run, the Angel of the Lord (Jesus) found her and blessed her with a nearly identical blessing and promise that was intended for Isaac. He told her to go back and be submissive to Sarai. Hagar obeyed and went back despite the way she was treated.

Thirteen years later, God appeared to Abram once more to promise him a son. Another son. By Sarai who would now be called Sarah while he would be called Abraham. God repeated the promise from before that Abraham’s son through Sarah would be the beginning of a nation that would not be countable.

This story leaves a lot of questions. God knew what was going to happen so, why did He make the promise to make a nation out of Ishmael when that nation would forever be a thorn in the side of His chosen people? Why would He set these two nations against each other for all time?

The simple answer is free will. When Adam and Eve fell in the garden, they essentially made a deal with the devil and let him rule over earth. They gave up their right to earthly sovereignty. They didn’t know what they had, and so could not give it the proper value or treat it with the proper care.

How does this tie into the Abraham covenant and blessing that become curses?

Sarai and Abram had been promised a son. Because of the very human flaws we all have, they tried to rush the will of God because they did not understand His will. God knew this was going to happen and planned to use this from the very beginning. A blessing will come when the time is right, but if we rush the blessing then we can ruin the fruit that would have been. The resulting fruit can not be fully ripe or it can even be poisonous. When we rush a blessing from God it can become a curse. Like the fig tree that bloomed out of season, a blessing that comes out of season will be a curse.

It was because Sarai and Abram rushed the promise of God through the use of their own free will that the intended blessing became a curse or thorn in the side of the nation of Israel. The only reason the nation of Islam exists is because human nature is impatient. The two nations and the struggles between them truly describe the nature of all life here on earth. The nation of Islam represents the human side or the flesh and the desires of the flesh. The nation of Israel represents the spirit. Both sides have pretty obvious flaws. God’s grace is obvious in how He has dealt with both. This isn’t to insult either nation, but rather to show that God had a divine purpose for both and has used them to His will from the very beginning. Through them we see even more evidence of His love, goodness, and grace. History has shown us how He has used both nations to reveal His nature, love, mercy, and grace.

The lesson is this: patiently wait for His blessings. The promises made will be kept at the right time. The seeds for these blessings were planted long before you were even born, but the fruit will be the sweetest at the appointed time. Seek His will to know the proper time to reach out and accept the blessing He has to give because we still have to receive what is offered. Receiving blessings does require action on our part and if we jump too soon or wait too long then the blessings could become a curse.

Father,
Your name is holy above all. Your plan is far beyond our understanding. Your timing is perfect. We thank You for Your grace, knowing that we will fail to grasp Your will or fail to act upon that will at times. We pray, Lord, that You open our hearts to Your will, our ears to Your voice, and our eyes to Your path when the time is right. We pray, Father, that You continue to grow us in the shade of that grace and mercy all of our days. Help us to recognize Your will and timing. Make us more sensitive to Your voice. Bring us closer to You in every way possible. We thank You for the work You are doing in us and through us.

In Jesus name we pray, amen.