Scripture: Gen.21:8-21; Gal.4:22-31
Allegorical Meaning
An allegory can be defined as, a story in which the characters can be interpreted to reveal a hidden moral meaning. Consequently, by use of the allegory of Hagar and Sarah, in the book of Genesis 21:10 the Apostle Paul in Galatians 4:22-31 illustrates in his teaching to the Galatians, the two distinct and opposing covenants of law and of grace.
The Two Covenants
In the Bible, a covenant is a "contract" that sets the rules for our relationship with God. Paul brought it right down to the issues confronting the Galatian Christians. The legalists wanted them to relate to God under one set of rules, and Paul wanted them to relate to God under the "rules" presented by the truth of the gospel. Also, in earlier Bible days, Jerusalem was the city where God had set His name, the place of His dwelling in the midst of His people (Psa.78:68-69). However, the reality of God’s dwelling with mankind, was accomplished in Jesus Christ, who is the True Temple (John 2:19). Consequently, the true Jerusalem is in heaven, where Jesus Christ, our Great High Priest, after His resurrection from the dead, has been exalted, to sit at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession on behalf of His people (Acts 2:33; Heb.7:25, 12:22; 1 Pet.3:22; Rev.21:2).
The one from Mount Sinai
Persecuting
Greetings “Fan”-tastic Passengers,
The Apostle Paul, in writing to the Churches in the district of Galatia, Asia minor, indignantly protest and refute the arguments of the Judaizing teachers, who trusted in the law for salvation. The Apostle, therefore, wrote to contend for the doctrine of justification by faith in Jesus Christ, apart from the works of the law, as well as to warn the born-again believers against any possible reversion to Judaism. To those believers who may surrender their faith and relapse into Judaism, the Apostle expresses his fear of the danger of them becoming the children of Abraham according to the flesh, instead of the children of promise (Gal.4:19-31). Consequently, by becoming children of Abraham, according to the flesh, they not only lose their spiritual liberty but make Christ’s sacrifice of no avail for them (Gal.5:1-6). Ultimately, the Apostle Paul, encourages the believers, to take swift action against the false teachings of the Judaizers, in order to stand fast in their liberty in Jesus Christ, who has made them free, by casting: “…out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman” (Gen.21:10; Gal.4:30).
Therefore, he asks them this question: “Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?” (Gen.16:1-16, 21:1-34; Gal.4:21)
Therefore, he asks them this question: “Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law?” (Gen.16:1-16, 21:1-34; Gal.4:21)
- There are many advantages to being as your principle of relating to God. First, while being under the law, one always have the outward certainty of a list of rules to obey and adhere to
- Secondly, you can give yourself compliment because you keep the rules better than others do
- Finally, you can take the credit for obtaining your own salvation because you have earned it by keeping the list of rules
- Under the law, speaks of what you do for God that makes you right before Him
- On the contrary, under the grace of God, denotes what that justifies him/her before God. the focus is on “.” While find fig leaves to cover his/her nakedness. Under the grace of God, however, human beings receive the covering of the precious blood of Jesus Christ, through sacrifice which God provides (Rom.5)
- Therefore, we conclude that the born-again believer, who is the child of promise, has no business living under the law
For it is written that Abraham had two sons
- The legalists who troubled the Galatians protested that they were children of Abraham, and therefore, blessed. Paul will admit, that indeed, they are children of Abraham, but they somehow, seem to forget
- Abraham, in his impatience concerning God’s promise, tried to “help God” when his wife was not able to conceive and fathered a son, Ishmael, by a bond-woman, who was his wife's servant (Gen.16; 21:1-6)
A Work done by the flesh
- Indeed, Ishmael was Abraham's son, as much as Isaac was, however, he was the son
- The birth of Ishmael, then, helps us to understand that, legalism is living . It is a lifestyle which denies God's promise and where one tries to make their own way to God through the law. In once aspect, this is living like a descendant of Abraham - but only that it is living like all that
A work done by God’s promised miracle
- Every birth which occurs under the covenant of grace, is as a result of a miracle from God.Consequently, Abraham's second son, Isaac, was born, miraculously, through Abraham's wife Sarah (). Isaac was Abraham's son, and he was the son of God's and and
- In this, God showed to Sarah and Abraham, as well as, to all mankind, His faithfulness, in keeping His Word, in that none of His promises to us are empty. Glory to God! Furthermore, in this, we see Sarah, who, despite her initial skepticism regarding God’s promise, grew in faith, to believe the promise along with her husband Abraham (Rom.4:13-25; Heb.11:11).Subsequently, the writer of the gospel of Luke encourages our hearts to trust in God’s faithfulness to bring His promises to pass, as he says:“For with God nothing shall be impossible” (Gen.18:14; Luke 1:37)
| The Two Sons of Abraham | |
| The Different State and Condition of the two Sons (Gal.4:22-23) | |
| Ishmael-Slavery and Bondage-Legalism | Isaac-Freedom-Christianity |
| Son of Hagar, Sarah’s bond-woman (slave) | Son of Sarah, Abraham’s wife, a “free-woman” |
| Relationship to God based on keeping the law | Relationship based on trusting God by faith |
| His blessing speaks of many children | His blessing speaks of many more children |
| Persecuting and inheriting nothing | Persecuted and inheriting everything |
| Ishmael was born after the flesh-by the ordinary course of nature. God’s covenant was not to be established with Ishmael. However, He said to Abraham, concerning him that: “And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly; twelve princes shall he beget, and I will make him a great nation” (Gen.17:20) | Isaac was born by promise, God’s miracle-when in the course of nature, there was no reason to expect that Sarah should have a son, God promised and delivered to her a son. It was also promised that: “But my covenant will I establish with Isaac…” (Gen.17:21a) |
Allegorical Meaning
An allegory can be defined as, a story in which the characters can be interpreted to reveal a hidden moral meaning. Consequently, by use of the allegory of Hagar and Sarah, in the book of Genesis 21:10 the Apostle Paul in Galatians 4:22-31 illustrates in his teaching to the Galatians, the two distinct and opposing covenants of law and of grace.
The Two Covenants
In the Bible, a covenant is a "contract" that sets the rules for our relationship with God. Paul brought it right down to the issues confronting the Galatian Christians. The legalists wanted them to relate to God under one set of rules, and Paul wanted them to relate to God under the "rules" presented by the truth of the gospel. Also, in earlier Bible days, Jerusalem was the city where God had set His name, the place of His dwelling in the midst of His people (Psa.78:68-69). However, the reality of God’s dwelling with mankind, was accomplished in Jesus Christ, who is the True Temple (John 2:19). Consequently, the true Jerusalem is in heaven, where Jesus Christ, our Great High Priest, after His resurrection from the dead, has been exalted, to sit at the right hand of God the Father, making intercession on behalf of His people (Acts 2:33; Heb.7:25, 12:22; 1 Pet.3:22; Rev.21:2).
The one from Mount Sinai
- The old covenant or the law, is associated with , the place where Moses received the Law (Exodus 19-20). This covenant . Since it is all about what we must do for God to be accepted by Him, it does not set humanity free from the bondage of sin.Rather, it puts us on a perpetual treadmill, so to speak, of having to prove ourselves and earn our way before God
- This is the covenant which is associated with , the "surrogate mother" who gave birth to Ishmael. It is therefore, in this sense, a covenant (Gal.4:23)
- This covenant , that is, earthly Jerusalem which was the capital of religious Judaism
The Jerusalem above
- The new covenant of grace, is associated with Jerusalem, with Mount Zion - but not the Mount Zion of this earth.Rather, it is associated with the – this is God's own which is in heaven (Rev.21:21)
- The Jerusalem above is free –Hence, this new covenant of grace, brings freedom - it is free. It is free because it recognizes that Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, paid the price for our sins, and we do not, by any means, have to pay it ourselves because we would not be able to afford it
- The mother of us all-This covenant of grace, as represented by Sarah, is said to have many more children, than the covenant of works, therefore, it is the mother of us all. Every born-again believer, all through the centuries, belongs to this new covenant, the covenant of the heavenly Jerusalem
- Amazingly, as outlined in Isaiah’s prophecy, every birth, beginning with Isaac, which has been delivered under this covenant is as a result of a miracle of God:“Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child: for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith the Lord” (Isa.54:1; Gal.4:27)
- Consequently, everyone under this covenant of grace, is born-again because of a miracle of grace performed by God in the heart (John 3:1-21).Please see the analysis chart below:
| The Two Covenants | |
| Hagar-The Old Covenant of Works (Law) | Sarah-The New Covenant of Grace |
| Hagar, represents the covenant which was given from mount Sinai, and which gendereth to bondage, which, though it was a dispensation of grace, yet, in comparison of the gospel state, was a dispensation of bondage, and became more so to the Jews, through their mistake of the design of it, and expecting to be justified by the works of it | Sarah, represents the covenant of grace, which has been established between God the Father and His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, on behalf of all humanity |
| Scripture says: “For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia (mount Sinai was then called Agar by the Arabians), and it answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children; that is, it justly represents the present state of the Jews, who, continuing in their infidelity and adhering to that covenant, are still in bondage with their children. She is symbolic of the earthly Jerusalem. | She also prefigures Jerusalem which is above, or the state of born-again believers, who are under the new and better dispensation of the covenant, which is free both from the curse of the moral and the bondage of the ceremonial law |
| She is the mother of us all-this refers to a state into which all humanity, that is, both Jews and Gentiles, are admitted, into this new covenant, upon their believing in Jesus Christ (Eph.2). she is symbolic of the heavenly Jerusalem | |
| | And to this greater freedom and enlargement of the Church, under the gospel dispensation, which was typified by Sarah, the mother of the promised seed, the Apostle Paul refers to the well-known prophecy of Isaiah, which says: “Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; break forth and cry, thou that travailest not; for the desolate hath many more children than she who hath a husband” (Isa.54:1) |
Persecuting
- From Sarah’s experience with Hagar, she perceived the significance of Ishmael’s disdain for Isaac and his threat to her son’s inheritance (Gen.16).Therefore, on the feast day of Isaac’s weaning, when she saw the son of the “bond-woman,” “mocking” or persecuting Isaac, son of the “free woman” she was adamant that they both must be cast out (Gen.21:9-11; Gal.4:29)
Persecuted
- For this reason, being children of promise, born-again believers, do not identify with Ishmael.Instead, our identity is with , as a that was received by faith
- Ishmael and his descendants persecuted Isaac and his descendants then. Therefore, we should not be surprised that, at present, people who follow God in the flesh, persecute those who follow God in faith through the promise of His Son Jesus Christ
Cast out the bondwoman and her son
The answer to the problem of legalism and Christianity is clear, even though it is not an easy thing to do. For we see in Abraham’s case, when Sarah told him to, “cast out” Hagar and Ishmael, the Scripture says: “And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son” (Gen.21:11), Notwithstanding, in the following verse, God Himself intervened in the family’s situation and set the record straight, as the Scripture says: “And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called” (Gen.21:12). Ultimately, believers, no matter how painful it may be, you must “cast out the bondwoman and her son” because law and grace cannot co-exist as principles for the life of the born-again believer. Some may even attempt to challenge God’s decision in the matter, by asking:
The answer to the problem of legalism and Christianity is clear, even though it is not an easy thing to do. For we see in Abraham’s case, when Sarah told him to, “cast out” Hagar and Ishmael, the Scripture says: “And the thing was very grievous in Abraham's sight because of his son” (Gen.21:11), Notwithstanding, in the following verse, God Himself intervened in the family’s situation and set the record straight, as the Scripture says: “And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called” (Gen.21:12). Ultimately, believers, no matter how painful it may be, you must “cast out the bondwoman and her son” because law and grace cannot co-exist as principles for the life of the born-again believer. Some may even attempt to challenge God’s decision in the matter, by asking:
- Why could not Hagar and Sarah continue to live together in the same house and have Abraham and Hagar speak to Ishmael about him being kind and sweet to his brother Isaac, instead of “mocking” him? (Genesis 21:8-14). It does not matter how us human beings may twist and turn the situation, in order to find an answer, the final decision in the matter, however, belongs to God.God knows His plans and purpose which He has for the life of Abraham, therefore, in the will of God and in Abraham’s best interest, it was imperative for him to send Hagar and Ishmael away.
- In addition, it is important to note that, Sarah was able to live in the same dwelling with Hagar and Ishmael, only up until the son of promise was born. Once Isaac was born, then Hagar and Ishmael had to go. In a similar manner, a person could relate to the law one way, before the promise of the gospel of Jesus Christ and the covenant of grace was born in their heart.However, once the miracle of Jesus Christ has been born in the person’s heart and they have received justification by faith in Jesus Christ, they must: “cast out the bondwoman and her son.” Consequently, the Apostle Paul says in Galatians 3:24:“Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.”
Therefore, every born-again believer must send away the idea of relating to God on the principle of law, the principle of what we do for Him. Instead, they must rest their faith in what God has accomplished for them through His Son Jesus Christ, under the covenant of grace (Rom.5).
For the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman:
For the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman:
- While Ishmael was not necessarily a bad nor cursed man, neither was he blessed with the promise of inheriting the covenant of God given to Abraham and his descendants. That blessing, however, was the inheritance of him who was the heir, that is, Isaac, who was the son of the “freewoman”
- Therefore, in this
- Furthermore, the Scripture says of the born-again believer, that:“And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Rom.8:17). Therefore, we are heirs of God through the principle of grace and not works
Circumcision of the Heart
For the Apostle Paul, one of the great issues concerning the Church on a whole, is the believer’s mark of “freedom” in Jesus Christ-circumcision of the heart. Saul, as his name was, before his conversion and while living as an, “Ishmaelite” for decades, experienced first-hand, the bondage of trying to earn his own way before God. While living under the law, Saul became so zealous of the law, that he even, “persecuted the Church” (Phil.3:6). Notwithstanding, now, as, “God’s chosen vessel” he is able to, “count all of those things dung” as, his transformed testimony and that of all born-again believer’s true identity in Christ, emerges, saying that: “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh” (Phil.3:3). By this testimony, Paul is expressing that, as God’s children of promise, the heart has been turned to Him, so that the Holy Spirit of God, through the work of the Great Physician, can operate to remove the veil of flesh. Now that the veil of flesh from the heart, has been done away with, in Jesus Christ, God’s children of promise can rejoice in Jesus’ sacrifice for their sins and confidently worship Him, with a clean heart, in Spirit and in truth (Deut.30:6; Jer.4:4; Rom.2:28; 2 Cor.13:14-16; Phil.3:3). Subsequently, as a son of God, the Apostle Paul has come to know the freedom of living, as one who has been justified by grace through faith and not by the works of the law (Acts 9:1-19; Rom.5; Phil.3:3-11).
Therefore, as children of Sarah, the “free woman” even as Isaac was, born-again believers are no longer slaves to sin, under the curse of the law (Rom.6:1-7). In addition, as Isaac inherited God’s promises to Abraham, even so we, repentant sinners in Jesus Christ, also inherit the promises of God, in the everlasting covenant of grace. Therefore, we are the free “children of promise” who are miraculously born of the Spirit of God, and washed in the precious: “…blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (John 3:1-16; Heb.9:14).
Consequently, it is imperative that the born-again believer stand fast in their liberty in Jesus Christ, which they have received as a result of being justified by faith and not by the works of the law. They must therefore, guard their faith against becoming conformed to the false teaching of the Judaizers because they are no longer slaves to sin, living under the curse of the law. Rather, they must be transformed by the renewing of their minds, as they obey the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is, according to the everlasting covenant of grace. For the Apostle Paul, after he became a born-again believer, and in order to enjoy his freedom in Jesus Christ, he says he had to: “count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: …and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death” (Phil.3:8-10). In a similar manner, in order for every born-again believer, to enjoy their liberty in Jesus Christ, they too must obey God’s direct order, as it is written in the Scripture and: “Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman,” (Gen.21:10; Rom.8:29, 12:1-3; Gal.4:22-31).
Stay strong! Stay encouraged!
Many thanks for your continued support, in purchasing my music. If you have already purchased yours, you may also wish to consider purchasing music to bless the life of someone else. Joy Creed album/s or track/s, may be purchased at any of the following:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/joycreed
www.joycreed.com/audiocd
https://www.reverbnation.com/joycreed
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/yadah-single/id52179152
Your Conductor,
Joy
©Creed's Melody
'Positive Message: Diverse Cultures'
Website: http://www.joycreed.com
Blog: (http://joycreed.blogspot.ca/)
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For the Apostle Paul, one of the great issues concerning the Church on a whole, is the believer’s mark of “freedom” in Jesus Christ-circumcision of the heart. Saul, as his name was, before his conversion and while living as an, “Ishmaelite” for decades, experienced first-hand, the bondage of trying to earn his own way before God. While living under the law, Saul became so zealous of the law, that he even, “persecuted the Church” (Phil.3:6). Notwithstanding, now, as, “God’s chosen vessel” he is able to, “count all of those things dung” as, his transformed testimony and that of all born-again believer’s true identity in Christ, emerges, saying that: “For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh” (Phil.3:3). By this testimony, Paul is expressing that, as God’s children of promise, the heart has been turned to Him, so that the Holy Spirit of God, through the work of the Great Physician, can operate to remove the veil of flesh. Now that the veil of flesh from the heart, has been done away with, in Jesus Christ, God’s children of promise can rejoice in Jesus’ sacrifice for their sins and confidently worship Him, with a clean heart, in Spirit and in truth (Deut.30:6; Jer.4:4; Rom.2:28; 2 Cor.13:14-16; Phil.3:3). Subsequently, as a son of God, the Apostle Paul has come to know the freedom of living, as one who has been justified by grace through faith and not by the works of the law (Acts 9:1-19; Rom.5; Phil.3:3-11).
Therefore, as children of Sarah, the “free woman” even as Isaac was, born-again believers are no longer slaves to sin, under the curse of the law (Rom.6:1-7). In addition, as Isaac inherited God’s promises to Abraham, even so we, repentant sinners in Jesus Christ, also inherit the promises of God, in the everlasting covenant of grace. Therefore, we are the free “children of promise” who are miraculously born of the Spirit of God, and washed in the precious: “…blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (John 3:1-16; Heb.9:14).
Consequently, it is imperative that the born-again believer stand fast in their liberty in Jesus Christ, which they have received as a result of being justified by faith and not by the works of the law. They must therefore, guard their faith against becoming conformed to the false teaching of the Judaizers because they are no longer slaves to sin, living under the curse of the law. Rather, they must be transformed by the renewing of their minds, as they obey the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is, according to the everlasting covenant of grace. For the Apostle Paul, after he became a born-again believer, and in order to enjoy his freedom in Jesus Christ, he says he had to: “count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: …and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death” (Phil.3:8-10). In a similar manner, in order for every born-again believer, to enjoy their liberty in Jesus Christ, they too must obey God’s direct order, as it is written in the Scripture and: “Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman,” (Gen.21:10; Rom.8:29, 12:1-3; Gal.4:22-31).
Stay strong! Stay encouraged!
Many thanks for your continued support, in purchasing my music. If you have already purchased yours, you may also wish to consider purchasing music to bless the life of someone else. Joy Creed album/s or track/s, may be purchased at any of the following:
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/joycreed
www.joycreed.com/audiocd
https://www.reverbnation.com/joycreed
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/yadah-single/id52179152
Your Conductor,
Joy
©Creed's Melody
'Positive Message: Diverse Cultures'
Website: http://www.joycreed.com
Blog: (http://joycreed.blogspot.ca/)
Facebook: http://facebook.com/joy.creed
Twitter: http://twitter.com/joycreedmusic
Youtube:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiN68R6Qo5g
ReverbNation: http://reverbnation.com/joycreed