Genesis 16:5-6. 5And Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and…she…looked on me with contempt. May the Lord judge between you and me!” 6But Abram said to Sarai, “Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please.” Then Sarai dealt harshly with [Hagar], and she fled from her.
Have you ever been mean to someone? Maybe even so mean that the other person stopped being around you, stopped being your friend. Maybe you and your sibling have been so mean to each other that mom and dad tell you to stay away from each other, at least for a while. In this story, Sarah is so angry at her husband, Abraham, and so mean (harsh) to Hagar that she decides to run away and go back to Egypt. Sarah is destroying all of her relationships. But why?
The answer to this question is not an easy one. Why is Sarah trying to control the people in her life? The answer is because she is not trusting God. Why are we mean to each other? Because we aren’t trusting God to give us what we need and want.
To be fair to Sarah, her husband Abraham hasn’t helped her very much. Do you remember Abraham’s amazing conversation with God back in Genesis 15? God told Abraham that he is his shield and that Abraham will have a great reward. Then Abraham asked God, “What will you give me?” This is where God told Abraham that he would have his own son, not Lot, and not his servant Eliezer. But there is someone who is never mentioned in this conversation. Do you know who?
That’s right, Sarah.
Sarah is left out. And Abraham doesn’t even ask God, “What about Sarah? Will Sarah be a mom?” Over the next ten years, Abraham is living with a promise from God, but Sarah has no promise. And just like Eve in the Garden of Eden, you can bet that Satan is reminding Sarah of that every day.
You’re left out.
God doesn’t want you.
Abraham doesn’t need you.
What did God say? Nothing to you, Sarah.
And so what does Sarah do? She tries to control her own life, her husband, and her servant, Hagar. Sarah tells Abraham to marry Hagar and together they make a baby. A baby that Sarah thinks should be hers since she is the master of Hagar. But Hagar doesn’t think so. Hagar looked on Sarah with contempt. That means that Hagar didn’t want to be Sarah’s servant anymore – stop telling me what to do, I’m better than you. So what did Sarah do? She started being mean to Hagar until Hagar ran away.
What does this story teach us? It teaches us that when we don’t have a promise from God we will stop trusting God.
The good news is that with Jesus we do have a promise from God. We aren’t like Sarah waiting to hear God’s plan for us. We know God’s plan for us. God’s plan is to give us Jesus so that we become like him. And that’s why we don’t ever have to be mean. Why are we mean to each other? Because we think we are being left out (like Sarah), or we think we are better than everyone else (like Hagar). But Jesus shows us that neither of these is true. With Jesus we are never left out of his love. Jesus IS God’s greatest blessing and reward given to us forever. And with Jesus we are never better than anyone. If we were, then we wouldn’t need Jesus, right? And trust me, we all need Jesus.
You: Have you been mean to anyone lately? Why were you mean?
You with Jesus: How does Jesus’ love for you and his promises to you help you to be kind to others instead of being mean?
Prayer: Father, I know sometimes I feel left out and I want to get mean. Help me to know that I am never left out of your love and your plan. Let my friendship with Jesus help me to always be kind and never mean. Amen.
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