And
she said to Abraham, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son, for that woman’s
son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac.” The matter distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned his son. But God said to him, "Do not be so distressed about the boy and your slave woman. Listen to whatever Sarah tells you, because it is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned." - Genesis 21:10-12
God has promised Abraham that he will
be father of many nations. Also God promised Abraham that He will make him
exceedingly fruitful. Abraham had no child when God gave him so many promises
concerning his future.
Sarah, wife of Abraham had a slave
named Hagar. One day she asked Abraham to sleep with her so that she can get a
child through her. Abraham agreed to what Sarah said and Hagar conceived.
Sarah was the one who brought the
relationship of Hagar into Abraham’s life. Abraham had no personal desires upon
Hagar. Sarah said and Abraham agreed. He might have thought that his wife had
approved that relationship and so he started to love Hagar and her son.
But when Hagar came to know that she
was pregnant she despised Sarah and so Sarah came to Abraham and told him that
he is responsible for all her suffering. Though Abraham was not responsible in
a direct way, Sarah thought he was the one who should be blamed for all that
happened. She actually had forgotten that she was the one who brought Hagar into
Abraham’s life.
Abraham asked Sarah to do whatever
pleases her and so she began to treat Hagar badly. One day Hagar ran away from
Sarah but the angel of the Lord appeared and asked her to go back to Sarah.
Even the name of the child was given by God.
Hagar obeyed to the voice of God and
she bore Abraham a son. Abraham named him Ishmael as directed by God.
Things were going smooth in everyone’s
life and God graciously blessed Abraham and Sarah with a son named Isaac. One
day Sarah saw that Ishmael was mocking and so again she went to Abraham and
asked him to cast away Hagar and Ishmael.
Bible says that the matter
distressed Abraham greatly because it concerned it son. Abraham’s heart would
have broken when he heard the plea of Sarah. He loved Ishmael and so he was
filled with distress and sorrow.
Sarah was the one who made Abraham
to have relationship with Hagar. Even at one point of time, God asked Hagar to
return back to Sarah. Abraham loved Ishmael and Isaac. But yet Sarah asked him
to make a choice between Ishmael and Isaac. Abraham was broken.
He took that matter to God and now
God told Abraham to listen to Sarah’s word. Then Abraham obeyed and sent off
Hagar and her son. It was a tough decision to make but yet Abraham obeyed God’s
word and because of that his marriage life was protected and God’s promise got fulfilled
through Abraham.
One best thing Sarah did is she
spoke with Abraham openly about the relationship and the suffering she endures.
That helped Abraham to take that matter to God and obey Him though he was not
personally happy with that decision.
Your spouse might be in a friendly
relationship with someone. You might not have liked that. Do not hold the
grudge in your heart. Do not act before your spouse that you are happy about
that relationship. If you don’t like, speak openly to your spouse and tell your
problem so that he can understand that you are not interested in that.
Similarly you have to understand
that when your spouse brings such problem to you, though you might not be happy
about what he/she says, take the matter to God and obey what He says. Do not
put your personal desires before your spouse desires and also God’s advice. It’s
not that you have to do immediately what your spouse says. You should take it
to God and He will guide you.
At the same time you should not hate
your spouse who actually ended that relationship. The marital relationship that
you have with your wife is far more important than any other relationship. And
only when that relationship stays intact, God can use you for His glory.
At any cost, you have to protect
your marriage life. God will give you His grace to obey and do His will.
No comments:
Post a Comment