(Genesis) Genesis 16:6-10
The sermon highlights the importance of understanding our relationship with Christ and the danger of taking on the law, which brings bondage.
In this sermon, the preacher discusses the story of Hagar and Sarah from the Bible. Hagar, who was Sarah's maid, fled from her mistress and encountered the angel of the Lord by a fountain in the wilderness. The angel instructed Hagar to return to Sarah and promised to multiply her descendants. The preacher then connects this story to the allegory used by Paul in the Epistle to the Galatians, where Hagar represents the law and Sarah represents freedom. The preacher emphasizes the importance of not taking on the law and instead remaining joined to Christ.
Full Transcript
And we read in verse 6, But Abram said unto Sarah, Behold, thy maid is in thy hand. Do to her as it pleaseth thee. And when Sarah dealt hardly with her, she fled from her face.
Now she took off, she ran away. And it would probably have meant death to her and certainly to the child. And so the angel of the Lord, and again, I'm inclined to believe the angel of the Lord here is none other than the pre-incarnate Christ.
And it's the picture of him. He's always out looking for the lost. And the angel of the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness, by the fountain in the way of Shur.
She had gotten a pretty good ways from home here. And he said, Hagar, Sarah's maid, whence camest thou? And whither wilt thou go? And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarah. And the angel of the Lord said unto her, Return to thy mistress.
Submit thyself under her hands. And the angel of the Lord said unto her, I will multiply thy seed exceedingly that it shall not be numbered for multitude. Now you find when you get to the fourth chapter of the epistle to the Galatians that Paul uses this as an allegory as he tells us.
That's what it is. And he speaks of Hagar and her offspring as being Mount Sinai where the law was given and the legality of it. And the bondage of it.
And he speaks of Sarah, the one that is free. The thing is that the one that belonged to Abraham actually was Sarah. That was his wife.
And a great many today want to take on something different. They want to get under the law. Well, my friend, we've been joined to Christ.
The church has been espoused to Christ. Paul says there's a chaste virgin and will someday be the bride of Christ. Now, may I say to you, you don't want to take on the law.
That's another one that you and I just don't need. That's like Hagar. That's the point that Paul's making over in Galatians here.
Now this is going to be a great sorrow not only to Sarah, it's already that to her, but it's going to be a greater sorrow even to Abraham later on.
Sermon Outline
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I
- The Situation with Hagar
- Abram's Response to Hagar's Situation
- The Angel of the Lord's Intervention
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II
- The Significance of the Angel of the Lord
- The Pre-Incarnate Christ's Character
- The Angel's Message to Hagar
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III
- The Allegory of Hagar and Sarah
- The Law and Its Bondage
- The Church's Relationship with Christ
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IV
- The Danger of Taking on the Law
- The Church's Freedom in Christ
- The Importance of Understanding Our Relationship with Christ
Key Quotes
“And it's the picture of him. He's always out looking for the lost.” — J. Vernon McGee
“Submit thyself under her hands.” — J. Vernon McGee
“I will multiply thy seed exceedingly that it shall not be numbered for multitude.” — J. Vernon McGee
Application Points
- We should not try to take on the law, but instead submit to Christ and His freedom.
- Our relationship with Christ brings us freedom and not bondage.
- We should understand our relationship with Christ and not try to add to it with the law.