Dear Members and friends of IBCZ,
These last few weeks we heard in the sermons how Abraham came to Canaan. In the beginning of his walk with God he had ups and downs trusting God. We may experience the same feelings he had those days also now, thousands of years later. He got the promise of God to be the father of many nations. Being without a child he waited to get an heir. But the years passed and nothing happened. Already in his seventies after waiting for an heir many years, he and his wife Sarah decided to take matters in their own hands. They probably thought they must help God to fulfil his promise using the servant Hagar for a baby. Their strategy succeeded, they got their heir Ishmael, but it was not what God had in mind.
Only years later, when Abrahams body was “as good as dead”, and Sarah was also way beyond child bearing, the promised boy arrived, fulfilling God’s promise. And the boy came at a time when God wanted it, not when Abraham and Sarah thought, now they better hurry before it is too late from a human perspective to get an heir.
In Abraham’s case God also intervenes when with Ishmael and Hagar family problems started. Again, Abraham and Sarah solved the problem the human way, sending Hagar and Ishmael into the desert, facing death. But God showed mercy to them, interfered, saved them in the desert, even blessed them and gave them a future.
It is so encouraging to see that God can sort out the mess we human beings create, not following His commands. We prefer to take matters into our own hands, not ask God and wait. Only when the problems we created are above our capability, we turn to God. He will take over when we give up and brings blessing where we do not deserve it.
We see that God has His own timetable, He makes things happen when He wants it. He only expects us to trust Him, be patient and do not give up. We also see that nothing stops God from carrying out his plans. He does not need help from our side, only faith that He will do what He has promised.
Fritz Bodmer