Is Anything Too Hard for God?

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

IS ANYTHING TOO HARD FOR GOD? 

Gen 18:6-15

6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. "Quick," he said, "get three seahs of fine flour and knead it and bake some bread." 7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree. 9 "Where is your wife Sarah?" they asked him. "There, in the tent," he said. 10 Then the LORD  said, "I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son." Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent behind him. 11 Abraham and Sarah were already old and well advanced in years, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, "After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure?" 13 Then the LORD said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh and say, 'Will I really have a child, now that I am old?' 14 Is anything too hard for the LORD? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son." 15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, "I did not laugh. "But he said, 'Yes, you did laugh."

NIV

This is a famous part of the story of Abraham and Sarah, as the Lord visited them and told them about the son they would have in the future. We are not told how long it took to bake bread, slaughter, cut up the finest portion of a calf, and cook it to perfection so the Lord could eat. That alone is an incredible story for who actually appeared before Abraham. We know it was Yahweh, accompanied by two angels. Yet Yahweh means the self-existing one, so the physical form he appeared in could have been Jesus, or he could have been the Almighty God of Heaven and Earth. That truth is left out for a purpose, so that we do not focus on the form of the LORD, but our focus should be on the LORD. However, our story is about Sarah laughing as she thought about her actually becoming pregnant at her old age, one that was well beyond childbearing; besides, she had been barren her whole life, not once conceiving a child. However, the point is that the LORD knew she laughed, even if she did not laugh out loud, because she laughed to herself. The LORD knew Sarah's thoughts; he knew what was in her heart. This gives us an outstanding truth that should encourage us, but it could also frighten us. Sarah's internal laugh could be seen as doubting the LORD's power, as the LORD responded, “Is anything too hard for the LORD?” This should give us great confidence in God's power. First, he knows our hearts, our thoughts, even our words before we speak them. Even when our thoughts are not pure, that does not disrupt his love for us, as he knows we are flawed; that is why Jesus came to take our place on the cross. Still, we can feel shame and the guilt of impure thoughts. Our minds wander, our hearts can become envious, jealous, bitter, unforgiving, prideful, lustful, greedy, selfish, all of which point to a self-centered heart. We are admonished that if anything is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, or praiseworthy, we are to think about such things. Yet our mind still wanders off to those selfish thoughts. Certainly, Sarah’s thoughts were on herself, her weakness, her inability to conceive, the fact that she was worn out, but the LORD answered, “ Is anything too hard for the Lord?” Let us always be confident in God’s power. 

Bowing Low

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

BOWING LOW

Gen 18:1-5

18:1 The LORD appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground. 3 He said, "If I have found favor in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way — now that you have come to your servant." "Very well," they answered, "do as you say."

NIV

This is just the beginning of another exciting chapter in Abraham's life. Again, the LORD appeared to him, this time near the great trees of Mamre. It is thought these were great oak trees with twisted trunks and great branches reaching out in different directions. There would have been a large encampment, many tents, for all the men and women servants, and any other people in the household of Abraham. It is thought his tent was under one of those great trees of Mamre when three men came standing nearby. Abraham must have known somehow that one of those three was the Lord, for he ran to them and bowed low to the ground and asked that if he had found favor in the eyes of the Lord, he should not pass his servant by. This shows great humility and respect toward the Lord. Interestingly, we are told Yahweh appeared to Abraham, and he called him Adonia, meaning sovereign Lord. Abraham prepared a meal for the Lord, and the two who accompanied him were most likely angels who later went down to Sodom to save Lot and his family. But this appearance of the Lord to Abraham is our story. We might wonder why the Lord does not come and appear to us as he did to those men of old: Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and many more. Yet why are those men, like Abraham, considered righteous because they believed God? Yet we believe by faith, not by sight. We do not need the Lord to physically appear to us to believe him. Of course, Abraham did not have the word of God in written form, as we do. The Holy Spirit had not been poured out upon him, as he has upon us. The great appearance of Jesus had not happened in Abraham's time, as it has in our time. Although Abraham saw the Lord, the Spirit dwells within us. The question before us is how much humility and respect we give the Lord. Do we run to him, bowing low to the ground? Do we even run to him? Surely, Abraham lived his life doing all the daily activities necessary to sustain himself and his household. Still, when the Lord showed up, he ran to him, bowed down, and offered him hospitality. The Lord, as the Holy Spirit has come to us, and we wonder how much hospitality we offer him. Surely, we need to do the daily activities of life, but still, should we not always be reverent, bowing down, if not physically, in our spirit, to the presence of the Lord in our lives? If we are not bowing low in spirit, as Jesus said, blessed are the meek, the poor, the lowly, the humble,  the respectful in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. If we do not bow, we are arrogant and disrespectful to the Lord. Let us always be bowing low. 

I Hear You

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

I HEAR YOU

Gen 17:15-27

15 God also said to Abraham, "As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her." 17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, "Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?" 18 And Abraham said to God, "If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!" 19 Then God said, "Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. 21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year." 22 When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him. 23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, 25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen; 26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that same day. 27 And every male in Abraham's household, including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.

NIV

Just as the LORD God Almighty, whose name is JHHW, put his middle letter in Abram's name, changing it to Abraham, he now adds a letter to Sarai's name, changing it to Sarah. This change was part of the conversation the LORD had with Abraham as he came down to make a covenant with him: the covenant that included circumcision. The LORD told Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son, and that he should name him Isaac. That is a very specific revelation, including instructions. We do not know whether Abraham laughed out loud, but we can be sure the LORD knew he was laughing at both his age and his wife's age. Certainly, in the natural realm, Sarah, who had been barren all her life, now at ninety would conceive a son, seemed outlandish, almost unbelievable. Abraham seems to have struggled to believe, because he asked God whether Ishmael, his son, could be the one blessed. Interestingly, when Abraham asked about Ishmael, the LORD told him, "I have heard you," and blessed Ishmael so that he would father twelve tribes of people, but they would always struggle against the sons of Israel. Could we say it is all Abraham's fault for the everlasting conflict in the Middle East? However, today's lesson is in those words of the LORD: "I have heard you," and in the fact that when God finished speaking with Abraham, he went up from him. This gives us two wonderful truths. First, God visited Abraham; he came down to be present with him, and second, he spoke with him and listened to what Abraham had to say. God hears us also; he hears what we have to say. He loves us and wants to listen to our concerns,  our pains, our requests, what is on our hearts. But he also wants to visit with us, speak into our ears and hearts, and instruct us in his plan, just as he instructed Abraham that he and Sarah would have a son, and that they were to name him Isaac. God wants to speak to us; he wants to reveal truths to us; he wants to instruct us in the way we should go, what we should do, and how we are to do it. Although God heard Abraham, it was more important that Abraham heard God. We should learn to use our ears more than our mouths; we praise him with our lips, but sometimes we need to be still, be quiet, and listen, because God is speaking. That is when we need to say, "I hear you." 

A Sign

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

A SIGN 

Gen 17:9-14

9 Then God said to Abraham, "As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you. 12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner — those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant. 14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant."

NIV

Although this covenant and the sign Abraham was to do were circumcision of himself and every male in his household, family, servants, those born into his household, and those he buys from strangers. In Abraham's time, there was no Israel yet, for that would come through his grandson Jacob. However, Abraham was considered the father of all Israel. In the challenge with Jesus about ideas about the father, the Pharisees proclaimed, "Abraham is our father." The covenant is about the circumcision of the flesh; all Jews should follow that, as it was the covenant between God and their father Abraham. However, is it merely physical, and in our culture it is mostly normal that every male child is circumcised at birth, not when they are eight days old. In this postmodern society, physical circumcision has no spiritual context. Still, in a spiritual sense, it deals only with a sign among males, leaving women to belong to a male family. Yet, we are instructed that circumcision of the flesh is just that, and it defined who Israel was and is, but the true Israel are those who have circumcised their hearts. What does that mean? How can we cut away the cover over our hearts? Considering that circumcision of the flesh is the removal of a covering over the manhood portion of a male, we then would need to remove what covers the tenderest part of our heart, which includes everyone, men and women. That is, we need to expose the fullness of our hearts before the Lord. The question is what would be considered a covering over our hearts that must be circumcised? The other question is, if we do not circumcise our hearts, would we be cut off like those males who never circumcised their flesh? Would self-protection be one of those things that need to be removed? Our Attitudes are a reflection of our hearts, and our words come from what is in our hearts. Jesus made that clear: what goes into our mouths does not defile us, but it is what comes out of our mouths, for that is what is in our hearts. "As a man thinks, so is he." There are many coverings that we are told to rid ourselves of, and that would be the circumcision process of our hearts. Rid our hearts of bitterness, rage, anger, brawling, or arguing, every form of malice, or gossiping, deceit, hypocrisy, unforgiveness, envy, jealousy, and pride, just to name a few. If any of those things cover our hearts, have we actually circumcised our hearts? We are told all of Israel will be saved, but we are also told those who circumcise their hearts are the true Israel. Let us be careful not to allow anything to cover our hearts.  Abraham's circumcision of the flesh was a sign of obedience; the circumcision of our hearts is also a sign. 

The Name Change

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

THE NAME CHANGE

Gen 17:1-8

17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. 2 I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers." 3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you are now an alien, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God."

NIV

Who would not fall face down if God Almighty showed up and appeared to us? And yet, here we are with God Almighty, the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, and we walk around as normal, doing our daily stuff, as if nothing special is happening, even in our religious world. Abram fell face down, and the great I AM, God Almighty, tells him to walk before him and be blameless. We know we are blameless because of the blood of Jesus, but we cannot be sure our daily walk is blameless, for we still struggle with the self and its flaws as we allow various temptations to influence our attitudes and behaviors. The LORD God Almighty confirmed his covenant with Abram and changed his name to Abraham. We know Abraham means father of many nations, but the facts surrounding a covenant are impressive. Historically, when two men made a treaty, or covenant, with each other, especially a blood covenant, they would exchange middle names, the middle letter of their name, cut their palms and bind them with two ropes. Within the language of Abram, God's name would have been spelled JHHW, unpronounceable, unspoken because that name is too holy, too righteous. However, when God Almighty appeared to Abram to confirm the covenant, he placed one of the middle letters of his name into Abram's name, making it AbraHam. That is so awesome, yet God Almighty, the great I AM, through his Son, Jesus, has made a new covenant with us, and the proof is that he poured out His Spirit upon us, filling us with his presence. Now we have the grace of God, his divine influence upon our hearts, and we should be reflecting that in our daily lives. God gave the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession to Abraham and his descendants, and He promised to be their God. We have the promise of Jesus, the promise of the Holy Spirit as an everlasting presence in our lives, but we are His possessions, and He is still our God. He changed our names from self to son, or sinner to saint. 

No Room for Misery

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

NO ROOM FOR MISERY

Gen 16:7-16

7 The angel of the LORD found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 8 And he said, "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?" "I'm running away from my mistress Sarai," she answered. 9 Then the angel of the LORD told her, "Go back to your mistress and submit to her." 10 The angel added, "I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count." 11 The angel of the LORD also said to her:

"You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. 12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers."

13 She gave this name to the LORD who spoke to her: "You are the God who sees me," for she said, "I have now seen the One who sees me." 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadesh and Bered. 15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.

NIV

Although Hagar was Egyptian, the LORD did not withhold from her visiting or speaking the truth into her life. Interestingly, the LORD already knew everything that had happened and was happening in Hagar's life. Yet, his first communication with her was a question: "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?"  The story continues, and the LORD directs her to return to her mistress and submit to her. Does any of this relate to our lives? We should notice the LORD tells her to name him Ishmael, for the LORD has heard of your misery. The Hebrew word Ishmael means "the LORD hears." We should understand that the Lord also hears our hearts' cry. We may not be in the same misery that Hagar experienced, but there are many forms of misery. However, we can be assured that as we go through those times when we feel a sense of misery, the Lord hears our hearts. He already knew Hagar's misery, and he already knows ours, or that we will experience some. That is not to say we must feel misery, for we can live with joy; in fact, we can live full of peace and joy. When Jesus said that he was the vine and we are the branches, and about the Father's love, he told us that he gives us his joy and puts his joy in us, so that our joy will be complete. Hagar knew only misery, not that joy. We should remember when those times come when we might submit to misery, feeling alone, left out, not experiencing or sensing the presence of the Lord, not receiving a healing or some other blessing, that Jesus put his joy within us. We know we are redeemed; our salvation is secure in Jesus; he will come back to take us where he is, so why should we want the pain of misery when we can have the joy of Jesus? We sing that we have the joy, joy, joy down in our hearts, where? Down in my heart, we've got the joy, joy, joy down in our hearts to stay. Because the joy of Jesus is there to stay, there is no room there for misery. 

Own it

 DEVOTION

GENESIS

OWN IT

Gen 16:1-6

16:1 Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, "The LORD has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant; perhaps I can build a family through her." Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress. 5 Then Sarai said to Abram, "You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my servant in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the LORD judge between you and me." 6 "Your servant is in your hands," Abram said. "Do with her whatever you think best." Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.

NIV

Whose idea was it that Abram took Hagar and was intimate with her, so that she conceived? It was Sarai who put that into motion. Hagar was her maidservant, meaning she had no rights and had to do as her mistress desired or ordered. Yet, after Hagar became pregnant, she began to despise Sarai. We don't know exactly why, but we wonder if Hagar was fine with getting to be intimate with her mistress's husband, but she was not counting on getting pregnant, although that was Sarai's purpose for giving her to Abram. The story, or the point that is a lesson for us, is how Sarai responded. Once what she had purposed happened, she blamed Abram because of the way Hagar was acting toward her. He would have nothing to do with it, telling her Hagar was in her hands, not his. This is your own fault; don't blame me. We are right back to Adam blaming Eve, and Eve blaming the serpent. We should understand that if, for any reason, we fall on hard times, it is nobody's fault but our own. All too often, we hear people blame the government for charging us high taxes, for the price of this or that, or for their inability to get ahead. Who is in charge of our lives? Do believers blame the Lord because they are experiencing difficult times? Do we have nothing to do with how our lives play out? We do not think Sarai consulted with the LORD before making her choice that caused her pain. How many choices in life do we make without consulting the Lord? We are not just pawns in his heavenly chess game; he has given us the freedom to choose or to make mistakes all on our own. So then, when we make that mistake, we need to own it, not blame anyone else, including the Lord. There is no excuse good enough; it was our choice; we need to own it.