Tuesday 6th May 2025.
7 The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. 8 And he said, “Hagar, slave of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered.9 Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” 10 The angel added, “I will increase your descendants so much that they will be too numerous to count.” 11 The angel of the Lord also said to her:
“You are now pregnant and you will give birth to a son. You shall name him Ishmael,
for the Lord has heard of your misery. 12 He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyoneand everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility
toward all his brothers.” 13 She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” 14 That is why the well was called Beer Lahai Roi; it is still there, between Kadeshand Bered. 15 So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. 16 Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.
Hagar fled from her mistress and home with Abram and Sarai. The angel of the Lord would have known the answer to the questions posed before Hagar answered. We are not told what the angel of the Lord looked like or how the angel was perceived by Hagar. However, this was a significant meeting. God was reaching out. Hagar answered this stranger honestly – there must have been a reason for this. A positive impression. An ability to trust. A similar promise/prophecy was given to Hagar as that given to Abram himself regarding descendants – they would be too numerous to count. There is also a similarity between the announcement of the birth of Ishmael and the births of other key biblical characters – not to mention that of Jesus himself. In those days, there were no scans to show the baby’s sex before birth. Hagar had a level of discernment in her response, ‘You are the God who sees me’. ‘I have now seen the one who sees me.’ This is an expression of faith. It happened as she had been told. She returned and bore a son called Ishmael. Prophecy fulfilled. God turning man’s plan into his own.
Monday 5th May 2025. Hagar and Ishmael
16 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; 2 so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.”
Abram agreed to what Sarai said. 3 So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife took her Egyptian slave Hagar and gave her to her husband to be his wife. 4 He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When she knew she was pregnant, she began to despise her mistress.5 Then Sarai said to Abram, “You are responsible for the wrong I am suffering. I put my slave in your arms, and now that she knows she is pregnant, she despises me. May the Lord judge between you and me.” 6 “Your slave is in your hands,” Abram said. “Do with her whatever you think best.” Then Sarai mistreated Hagar; so she fled from her.
This is where things began to go wrong for Abram. Sarai and Abram took things into their own hands. God had made it very clear that Abram would have descendants, despite there having been no evidence of that happening to this point. It was more acceptable in their culture for the master of a household to have a servant bear a child if the first wife was unable to do so. However, this would never have been God’s intention. Note it was Sarai’s suggestion for Abram to have a child with Hagar. Abram went along with his wife’s suggestion– reminiscent of Adam and Eve. This resulted in animosity not only between Hagar and Sarai, but also introduced disunity between Sarai and Abram. The blame game began. Sarai blamed Abram, despite it having been her idea and Abram understandably defended himself – but both were really in the wrong. The next thing was Sarai being unkind to Hagar – what a mess! No wonder Hagar fled. Here is an excellent example of consequences of wrong actions. However, we will see that despite this, God still manages to turn things around. Perhaps we have situations where things have gone wrong. God can turn things around for us too.
Wednesday 7th May 2025. The Covenant of Circumcision
17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless.2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”
3 Abram fell facedown, and God said to him, 4 “As for me, this is my covenant with you: You will be the father of many nations. 5 No longer will you be called Abram; your name will be Abraham, for I have made you a father of many nations. 6 I will make you very fruitful; I will make nations of you, and kings will come from you. 7 I will establish my covenant as an everlasting covenant between me and you and your descendants after you for the generations to come, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. 8 The whole land of Canaan, where you now reside as a foreigner, I will give as an everlasting possession to you and your descendants after you; and I will be their God.” 9 Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. 10 This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you.12 For the generations to come every male among you who is eight days old must be circumcised, including those born in your household or bought with money from a foreigner—those who are not your offspring. 13 Whether born in your household or bought with your money, they must be circumcised. My covenant in your flesh is to be an everlasting covenant.14 Any uncircumcised male, who has not been circumcised in the flesh, will be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
If Abram was ninety-nine, Ishmael would now be 13 years old. God meets again with Abram. He is to be the father of many nations, and we now read of his new more familiar to us name of Abraham. God’s promise to Abraham was to be everlasting, and God is giving him a promise of fruitfulness both as the Father of nations, but also as the owner of much land. Abraham would no longer be a foreigner. As a mark of the covenant, the rite of circumcision was introduced. At this point, it involved all males. Over time, it was something that took place when the child was eight days old. Anyone associated with Abraham had to undergo this physical act as a sign of belonging and of being part of the covenant. It was to be a constant reminder to them of what God had done and would continue to do. A solemn expression of God’s involvement with them as a people and all who would follow. It was a big ask, but something that God required of them. Note the commitment and the timescale. God was working out his purpose, and the evidence is still there today – practised by the Jewish people. The covenant between God and us is still there today, but beyond the Jewish people because of Jesus. Circumcision is no longer needed, Jesus has dealt with all that is needed once and for all. All we need is to believe in him and call on him.
Thursday 8th May 2025. Genesis 17: 15-27
15 God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. 16 I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.” 17 Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” 18 And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” 19 Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. 20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. 21 But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.” 22 When he had finished speaking with Abraham, God went up from him.
23 On that very day Abraham took his son Ishmael and all those born in his household or bought with his money, every male in his household, and circumcised them, as God told him. 24 Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised, 25 and his son Ishmael was thirteen; 26 Abraham and his son Ishmael were both circumcised on that very day. 27 And every male in Abraham’s household, including those born in his household or bought from a foreigner, was circumcised with him.
Names were very significant in Biblical times. They still have some significance today – some names feature strongly in individual families, and many names have an acknowledged meaning, as in the case of the change from Abram to Abraham and from Sarai to Sarah. The change from an old life to a new one – it seems Abraham and Sarah have been given a new identity, very much as takes place when someone becomes a Christian and moves from the old way of life into the new. God’s intention is for Abraham and Sarah to have a son of their own. We have another prophecy, which is again very specific, of a son to be born and to be called Isaac. God’s covenant would apply to him and his descendants. Both would be ancestors of ‘twelve’ (tribes and kingdoms). The pattern of the younger son over the older was established. The sign of circumcision was enacted as instructed. We have here an account of a very special interaction between one human being and God, the Almightly. We see God setting a foundation for the future of those who are faithful to him. Blessing and covenant. Hope and a future.
Friday 9th May 2025. Genesis 18: 1-15. The Three Visitors
18 The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. 2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.3 He said, “If I have found favour in your eyes, my lord, do not pass your servant by. 4 Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. 5 Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on your way—now that you have come to your servant.” “Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.” 6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.” 7 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. 8 He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree. 9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him. “There, in the tent,” he said. 10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him.11 Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. 12 So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?” 13 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ 14 Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” 15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.” But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Saturday 10th May 2025 Genesis 18: 16-33 Abraham Pleads for Sodom
16 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the Lord said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do? 18 Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him. 19 For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing what is right and just, so that the Lord will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.” 20 Then the Lord said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.” 22 The men turned away and went toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing before the Lord. 23 Then Abraham approached him and said: “Will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? 24 What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it? 25 Far be it from you to do such a thing—to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”26 The Lord said, “If I find fifty righteous people in the city of Sodom, I will spare the whole place for their sake.”
27 Then Abraham spoke up again: “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, though I am nothing but dust and ashes, 28 what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty? Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”
“If I find forty-five there,” he said, “I will not destroy it.” 29 Once again he spoke to him, “What if only forty are found there?” He said, “For the sake of forty, I will not do it.”
30 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak. What if only thirty can be found there?” He answered, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.”31 Abraham said, “Now that I have been so bold as to speak to the Lord, what if only twenty can be found there?” He said, “For the sake of twenty, I will not destroy it.”32 Then he said, “May the Lord not be angry, but let me speak just once more. What if only ten can be found there?” He answered, “For the sake of ten, I will not destroy it.” 33 When the Lord had finished speaking with Abraham, he left, and Abraham returned home.
This is another example of a Biblical account where we have the privilege of hindsight. We know what is going to happen. I found it amusing really when God asked the men (who were they?) whether or not to reveal to Abraham what he was planning to do – and then straight away going and doing it anyway! Of course, it was his privilege to do that. The fact God spoke so much to Abraham and revealed so much to Abraham shows more than ever what a unique human being Abraham was. God speaks of more destruction, which made me think of the flood. In that case, there appeared to be only Noah and his family considered righteous. Certainly only Noah and his family survived. Abraham quite reasonably was aggrieved that God might destroy people who were righteous. He was also very brave and persistent. Would that more of us were like that when things need to be challenged! This does show us that it is ok to challenge God. We just need to accept the outcome. Abraham progresses from 50 righteous people down to ten. God acquiesced. Prayer (which is essentially what Abraham was doing) does make a difference.
Sunday 11th May 2025. Genesis 19: 1-8 Sodom and Gomorrah Destroyed
19 The two angels arrived at Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of the city. When he saw them, he got up to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 “My lords,” he said, “please turn aside to your servant’s house. You can wash your feet and spend the night and then go on your way early in the morning.” “No,” they answered, “we will spend the night in the square.”
3 But he insisted so strongly that they did go with him and entered his house. He prepared a meal for them, baking bread without yeast, and they ate. 4 Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.”
6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.”
This is one of the more shocking stories in the Bible. We know there is a lot of evil and disobedience in our world. However, I don’t think that I have ever had experience of anywhere which is portrayed as quite as heinous as Sodom. I wonder if Abraham had sent ahead to Lot that the men were coming? If not, I question why he was sitting at the gateway of the city? He certainly seemed to be expecting them, and to have some foreknowledge of their importance. Lot too welcomes them, like his uncle Abraham before him and offers them hospitality. Knowing what Sodom was like, why did the men say that they would stay in the square? Interesting questions. Then the shocker – ALL of the men from every part of the city (think of your own local city) turned up demanding to have sex with these men. Shocker number two – Lot offering them his virgin daughters (who were engaged to be married)! I find the whole thing incredible (in a not good way). Yes, their culture was different – but it is still shocking. However, Lot behaved with utter propriety towards the men visiting him. They in turn were went on to see that no harm came to him and his family.
Monday 12th May 2025. Genesis 19:9-17
9 “Get out of our way,” they replied. “This fellow came here as a foreigner and now he wants to play the judge! We’ll treat you worse than them.” They kept bringing pressure on Lot and moved forward to break down the door. 10 But the men inside reached out and pulled Lot back into the house and shut the door. 11 Then they struck the men who were at the door of the house, young and old, with blindness so that they could not find the door. 12 The two men said to Lot, “Do you have anyone else here—sons-in-law, sons or daughters, or anyone else in the city who belongs to you? Get them out of here, 13 because we are going to destroy this place. The outcry to the Lord against its people is so great that he has sent us to destroy it.”
14 So Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were pledged to marry his daughters. He said, “Hurry and get out of this place, because the Lord is about to destroy the city!” But his sons-in-law thought he was joking. 15 With the coming of dawn, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away when the city is punished.” 16 When he hesitated, the men grasped his hand and the hands of his wife and of his two daughters and led them safely out of the city, for the Lord was merciful to them. 17 As soon as they had brought them out, one of them said, “Flee for your lives! Don’t look back, and don’t stop anywhere in the plain! Flee to the mountains or you will be swept away!”
The depraved behaviour of the men in Sodom continued as they wouldn’t give up with their demands, despite Lot’s reasoning. The whole scene is scandalous and illustrates the level of iniquity which had been reached in that place. Lot was thankfully protected by the visitors and the men outside blinded. Up to that point the men of Sodom were able to do whatever they wanted, but now they were unable to carry out their intent. For the second time in the account of Genesis, God was about to wipe out those who were bent on evil, but in a specific locality. As with Noah, Lot was warned and given an opportunity to be saved, along with his immediate family. It doesn’t appear that the sons in law went with them. They didn’t believe what they were told. Lot, his wife and his two daughters (who were thankfully unharmed) all fled. Even then, Lot hesitated. The men of God took charge and led them safely out of the city. This is an example of the mercy of God. Lot and his family were given clear instructions – flee (so don’t hang around). They were not to look back or to stop. Lot was set free from inevitable destruction. He did need some encouragement to respond. No doubt he was settled in this town. However, God wanted to save him. Despite Lot’s misgivings, God still acted out of mercy. God does not give up on his plans. We too need to be able to trust, and to be obedient. Know that God will lead and guide each one of us.
Tuesday 13th May 2025. Genesis 19:18-26
18 But Lot said to them, “No, my lords, please! 19 Your servant has found favour in your eyes, and you have shown great kindness to me in sparing my life. But I can’t flee to the mountains; this disaster will overtake me, and I’ll die. 20 Look, here is a town near enough to run to, and it is small. Let me flee to it—it is very small, isn’t it? Then my life will be spared.” 21 He said to him, “Very well, I will grant this request too; I will not overthrow the town you speak of. 22 But flee there quickly, because I cannot do anything until you reach it.” (That is why the town was called Zoar. 23 By the time Lot reached Zoar, the sun had risen over the land. 24 Then the Lord rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the Lord out of the heavens. 25 Thus he overthrew those cities and the entire plain, destroying all those living in the cities—and also the vegetation in the land. 26 But Lot’s wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.27 Early the next morning Abraham got up and returned to the place where he had stood before the Lord. 28 He looked down toward Sodom and Gomorrah, toward all the land of the plain, and he saw dense smoke rising from the land, like smoke from a furnace. 29 So when God destroyed the cities of the plain, he remembered Abraham, and he brought Lot out of the catastrophe that overthrew the cities where Lot had lived.
Lot went through a process here, one which I think is relevant for us today. He was presented with a situation – the place where he lives is going to be destroyed. He had a choice of whether to believe what he was told or to ignore it. He had already witnessed the depravity of those around him and been protected by the visitors. He was given a way out – to flee to the mountains so he and his family could be saved. He responded. We all have the opportunity to be saved. The situation for us is that eventually everything that is not godly will come to an end. We too are given a way out. We too have to make a response and to choose whether or not to believe. Even Lot had some doubts and pleaded for some clemency. He still had to flee. He still had to leave all that was familiar and to enter something new. What Lot was told would happen then took place. We are told of the consequence of Lot’s wife looking back. However, God had a plan to continue using Abraham and rescue Lot. God has a plan for us too. We need to be single-minded and seek God and follow his lead. We may question, but a response from us is required.
Wednesday 14th May 2025. Lot and His Daughters
30 Lot and his two daughters left Zoar and settled in the mountains, for he was afraid to stay in Zoar. He and his two daughters lived in a cave. 31 One day the older daughter said to the younger, “Our father is old, and there is no man around here to give us children—as is the custom all over the earth.32 Let’s get our father to drink wine and then sleep with him and preserve our family line through our father.”
33 That night they got their father to drink wine, and the older daughter went in and slept with him. He was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up.
34 The next day the older daughter said to the younger, “Last night I slept with my father. Let’s get him to drink wine again tonight, and you go in and sleep with him so we can preserve our family line through our father.” 35 So they got their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger daughter went in and slept with him. Again he was not aware of it when she lay down or when she got up. 36 So both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their father. 37 The older daughter had a son, and she named him Moab; he is the father of the Moabites of today. 38 The younger daughter also had a son, and she named him Ben-Ammi; he is the father of the Ammonites of today.
We discover that Lot was living in fear. This led to him settling in the mountains as originally directed, rather than in Zoar. Here, in conflict with our own culture, we have another fairly shocking story. It is also another example of people taking things into their own hands. A story involving incest between Lot and his daughters – but the daughters were the instigators and the account seems to suggest that Lot had no say in it all. Amazingly, both of them got pregnant. Both of them had sons. The sons would be both Lot’s children and grandchildren. Nothing is said about whether Lot became aware of this. They would also be half-brothers and cousins to each other, but more than that, as their mothers were sisters. What do we draw from this? It seems that people can have a tendency to make important decisions with each other before coming to God for his leading. Also, some will stop at nothing to get what they want – yet there may be another better solution even if it isn’t as obvious or as easy to achieve. This is not an example for anyone to follow, but it is an example of how not to behave. Our ways are not God’s ways and they are often not the best. God always has our best in mind. That is what we should seek.
Barlestone Baptist Church 