The root of the Middle East crisis is a matter of family
When Hagar bore the son of Abram, it preempted GOD’s plan: His fulfilment of the promise to the man who would be the Father of many nations (Genesis 15)
Preparing the Bride for GOD’s Story
How do we prepare as the Bride of Christ? One aspect is to learn GOD’S STORY. He created us in His image…. Piece by piece, and peace by peace, we learn to walk as He has walked. And we learn His perspective.
Genesis 16:9-12 “The Angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit yourself under her hand.” Then the Angel of the Lord said to her, “I will multiply your descendants exceedingly, so that they shall not be counted for multitude.” And the Angel of the Lord said to her:“Behold, you are with child,
And you shall bear a son.
You shall call his name Ishmael,
Because the Lord has heard your affliction. He shall be a wild man;
His hand shall be against every man,
And every man’s hand against him.
And he shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.”
GOD’s Plan for Abram and Sarai preempted
GOD promised Abram offspring as many in number as stars in the heavens.
But when Hagar became pregnant with Abram’s son, this was not a part of GOD’s plan but a result of a lack of faith in Sarai, to wait and to allow GOD to bring forth a miraculous birth to an elderly woman. (Genesis 16:2-4)
Nevertheless, GOD loves life and honours Hagar even in her pain and sadness. He sends an angel to her who gives her a promise for her own child and his children.
The character of Ishmael and his descendants
But at the root of this promise, the child will be “wild”, an enemy of others. “Every man’s hand against him.” Sadly, we see this is exactly what is borne out historically, between the Arabs and the Jews, the Arabs and other societies.
The descendants of Ishmael, the Arabs, just can’t seem to coexist with others… and frequently, not even within their own clan.
This is not meant to be a statement of prejudice but what is borne out from history.
GOD turned that which was an error in judgment into a blessing for a woman who bore a child to Abram. But the consequences of that continue to cause strife between nations even to this day.
What shall we do?
We pray.
We pray for all to know Jesus. We pray for Abram’s children to co-exist. The root to that is their salvation. The Prince of Peace is the only one with the authority and power to end this strife. Yeshua is the only way forward. And so we pray.