Ishmael and Jacob . . . The New and the Old

So, before you start reading, let me give you a forewarning. This post is more of a writing just to get down a bunch of stuff that is in my head. I've recently read about Hagar giving birth to Ishmael, Sarah's birth of Isaac, and the consequent kicking out of Hagar and Ishmael. However, as the Old Testament is stuffed with symbolism tighter than my dad's belt after Thanksgiving dinner, we see that Ishmael and Isaac represent the old and new nature of the believer. Hagar symbolizes the working out of our salvation through works (Abram thought He could "help" God with His promise by having a son with Hagar) while Sarah symbolizes our salvation through faith in Jesus. All this is great, but leads to much theologicalizing (ya, that's a word now) when we see Hagar and Ishmael getting the boot after the birth of Isaac.

First, we see that the old self cannot live with the new. Genesis 21:9 states, "And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian . . . mocking [Jacob]." Galatians 4:29 tells us that Ishmael actually persecuted Jacob, which could mean that Ishmael may have wanted to even kill Jacob. We further see this when Sarah asks Abraham to "cast out this bondwoman and her son" - Genesis 21:10. Simply put, we must "cast out" our old nature and put all of our faith in Jesus and the Cross, not in what we can do ourselves.

However, I am not some high and mighty Christian just telling you to do this because Bible says so. The Bible itself tells us this is difficult to do: "And the thing was very grievous to Abraham's sight because of his son" - Gen. 21:11. The casting out of this bondage, that is salvation by works, can be very difficult, but God can never accept that which is the fruit of our own planning.

Finally, it is no wonder how, after Abraham casts out that was the fruit of his own efforts, (salvation through works) that Abimelech (the worldly/earthly/secular king of the region) came to Abraham. Abraham then settled a dispute over the ownership of a well, a major possession in those days. His dispute with the king was settled as Abimelech acknowledged Abraham's ownership of the well, he no longer needed to fear the king, and, in fact, 21:34 says, "And Abraham sojourned in the Philistine's land many days [in fact, until he died]. When we cast out our flesh, our personal abilities, strength, and effort, we need not fear whatever Abimelech may symbolize for us. We can then live in that land, in peace, for "many days."

FUN FACT!!!! Isaac is a type of the Christ. Isaac's name means "laughter:" that is, blessing, life, well-being, increase, healing. And since Isaac was a picture of Christ, we can see a name for Him as "laughter" as well.

OTHER FUN FACT! Genesis 21:21 - "And he [Ishmael] dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Egypt." This is the beginning of the Arab people, that is, the nation that was promised by God to come from Ishmael. These people compose much of the Muslim population of the world today.

Sharing - Our 2nd Greatest Weapon

When we have questions, problems, or struggles, our greatest strength and hope come from God's great love for us. After all, we can cast all our anxiety on God because He cares for us (I Peter 5:7) and we can cast our burden on God, knowing His promises that He will sustain us and that He will not allow a righteous man (a man who finds his righteousness in God) to be moved.

However, one of Satan's tactics against us is convincing us that we can not, or should not, tell others about what we are dealing with. This is ridiculous. As Christians, we have a family of believers that are ready to talk to and pray for us whenever we need it. Everyone deals with questions, problems, and struggles in their life and in their faith, but so few seem willing to talk about them. God is our greatest source of help, but at times His source of help is those around us. So don't be shy, embarrassed, or concerned about what others think. When you open up, you may find yourself surprised at who has gone through similar situations and is ready and willing to impart a little knowledge to you.

So my challenge is to be open about your struggles. Ask the hard questions. Find someone; a parent, friend, teacher, or pastor to talk to. Heck, email, call, text, or talk to me - I would LOVE to help you out! Don't let Satan fool you into thinking you have to put on a fake front or everyone will think you're a horrible Christian. I can't speak for all, but I, personally, have respect for those who are willing to stop attempting to put on a fake bravado and be open and honest about what they deal with. No problem is too big or too "personal." "The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective" (James 5:16). The prayer of many righteous men can't hurt. Please share, you don't have to do it alone!

Pride

It is interesting to me that you can't spell the word "pride" without the letters D, I, and E. Pride can lead to death, both in a physical and spiritual sense. But pride is also something that needs to be killed in us. That little (or big) part of us that wants to do things, not because it is what God would have us do, but rather because we think someone will notice us (even a cute girl/guy if we're lucky). But pride is also something I have been thinking about lately and was even more confirmed when brought up to me by a co-worker. Pride is something I realize I need to work on. Far too often I find myself wanting to do the right thing, but for the completely wrong reasons. Maybe you can connect; if so, great! Maybe we can talk about it sometime :) If not, that's awesome too; I'm glad you do not struggle with it. One of the biggest challenges I have had is during a morning devotional here at camp. Our chaplain for the week read from the beginning of I Corinthians 13, where Paul writes about how our actions, and even faith, are meaningless if we do not have love. Everything we do needs to be done out of love. And doing everything out of love means sacrificing any selfish reasons we may have for doing said action in the first place. And the crucifying of this selfish nature is the eliminating of pride. I need to make some changes. But you know what? When God asks us to make changes, we can be confident it is out of love. Because even if I can't do a single thing out of love for God, everything He does is out of His love for me and others. What a wonderful thing!!!!