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In this chapter we will consider the absoluteness of grace. In order to know grace, we must first know that in the accomplishment of God’s will there is no need for what man possesses in himself. Beginning in Genesis 15 God led Abraham to learn a deeper lesson and to pass through a deeper experience, because the fulfillment of God’s purpose in Abraham did not require what Abraham was in himself, it did not rely on what Abraham had done in himself, and it did not depend on what Abraham could do in himself. The fulfillment of God’s purpose in Abraham could be accomplished only by God. This is grace.
Living by faith refers to the living of one who has been called to live for God. In such a living, a called one does not depend on tricks or diplomatic maneuverings to obtain the things he needs in matters such as housing, food, clothing, or education. A person who depends on tricks or diplomatic maneuverings is not living the life of a called one, because he has not yet learned the lesson of living by faith. A person who has learned to live by faith knows that God will take care of all his needs and bear all his responsibilities. A brother may be called by God to preach the gospel or to help the saints. However, God wants him to know that in fulfilling this calling, he should not use what he has, rely on what he does, or depend on what he is capable of doing. Instead, he needs God to visit him and fill him inwardly. Then he can accomplish God’s purpose in calling him. For the accomplishment of God’s purpose God visits him and fills him within. Thus, God’s will and purpose are fulfilled through him. This is grace. The things in our environment and circumstances are the work of God’s hand. God needs to move only His little finger, and we could immediately live in abundance and be in a favorable environment. However, this would be the work of God’s hand and should not be counted as grace. It is regrettable that as people under God’s care, we often consider such things to be God’s great and wonderful grace to us. In Matthew 6 the Lord Jesus said, “Do not be anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, With what shall we be clothed? For all these things the Gentiles are anxiously seeking. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things” (vv. 31-32). God’s provision for our material needs cannot be counted as grace.
What then can be counted as grace? In order for God’s eternal plan to be accomplished and for His will to be done on earth, He must gain man. Hence, for someone to be called to preach the gospel and save sinners is a great matter, just as Abraham’s begetting a son was very important. God promised Abraham that in him and in his seed all the families of the earth would be blessed (Gen. 12:2-3; 18:18; 22:18). Abraham’s begetting a son signifies the saints’ going forth to preach the gospel and save sinners, because Abraham’s begetting a son was for the purpose of bringing forth Christ, that is, spreading Christ. Our preaching the gospel is in the principle of bringing forth Christ. God has called us to work together with Him. In this great commission, however, He does not use what we have, rely on what we do, or depend on what we can do for the accomplishment of this work. Instead, He rejects what we have, what we do, and what we can do. God desires to visit us personally and enter into us in order to accomplish this work. This is grace. In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul says, “By the grace of God I am what I am; and His grace unto me did not turn out to be in vain, but, on the contrary, I labored more abundantly than all of them, yet not I but the grace of God which is with me” (v. 10). Paul did not say this because he was well-fed and well-clothed. No, he said this because the grace of God, which was with him, enabled him to be an apostle who served God on the earth for the accomplishment of God’s will, to run the race for the kingdom of God, and to labor more abundantly than the other apostles. Only the presence of God is genuine grace.
I believe that now we can distinguish between living by faith and knowing grace. However, most of us may have only had the experience of living by faith without properly learning the lesson of knowing grace. As called ones, we should know that God is responsible for our living and that His hand will care for us. We do not need to play tricks for our living or be like Abraham, who went down to Egypt because of a famine and who also told his wife to lie (Gen. 12:10-13). If we use tricks and tell lies, we will surely become a disgrace. Instead, we should believe in God’s hand. We do not have to be anxious if we encounter a famine, because God will be responsible for us. This is the first lesson that a person who has been called to serve God must learn.
We serve the living and true God. He will bear responsibility and take care of us. However, a called one should not remain in the lesson of living by faith. Many saints have been saved for a long time, and they should have graduated from the lesson of living by faith to the lesson of knowing grace. However, they see no distinction between these two matters. When I was first raised up by the Lord, no one told me anything concerning these two matters. Hence, for a period of time I was not able to distinguish between living by faith and knowing grace, and it was difficult to answer a question such as, “Why does the Bible teach us to thank God for His grace in everything?” (cf. 1 Thes. 5:18, Chinese Union Version). According to the original text, the literal translation of this verse should be, “In everything give thanks.” This refers to God’s taking care of us in our environment, for which we need to give thanks.
Grace is God filling us and being our life and our strength. Hence, the first step in knowing grace is to know that God does not need what we have for the accomplishment of His will. In Genesis 15 the word of God came to Abraham in a vision, saying, “I am your shield and your exceedingly great reward” (v. 1). However, Abraham said, “O Lord Jehovah, what will You give me, for I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” (v. 2). Abraham’s reply conveyed his feeling. When God called Abraham in Haran, He promised to make of Abraham a great nation and to make his name great (12:2). After living in Canaan for several years, Abraham still had not brought forth a son, and he was getting older. Therefore, he began to plan for Eliezer to become his son (15:3). But God said to him, “This man shall not be your heir, but he who will come out from your own body shall be your heir” (v. 4). God seemed to be saying, “Eliezer is someone you already have; I cannot use him. At a certain time I will cause you to bring forth a son. I will give that one to you. He will be what I have done and what I have fulfilled. Only this one will be considered your seed. Eliezer is what you already have; hence, he cannot be considered your seed.”
The lesson that God gave Abraham to learn in chapter 15 reveals that what we already have cannot replace the grace of God in the fulfillment of His promise. What we have, such as our wisdom, intelligence, ability, education, and status, cannot replace the grace of God. These things have no place in the accomplishment of God’s will. What we have is not needed for the fulfillment of God’s will, promise, and purpose. This is a matter of God’s work on us. This is grace. Grace is God’s life and strength. In other words, grace is God Himself coming to bear all our responsibilities for the accomplishing of His will.
God called Abraham and promised to make of him a great nation. This promise was to be fulfilled by God, that is, by the grace of God. There was no need for Abraham to fulfill this promise with what he had. Abraham had Eliezer, and he was considering making Eliezer his seed, that is, using Eliezer to fulfill God’s promise and achieve God’s purpose. But God seemed to say to Abraham, “This will not do. What you have will not do. Only what is accomplished by grace will do. Eliezer is what you have, not what has been accomplished by grace; he did not come out of grace. He will not become your seed.”
Eliezer was of Damascus (v. 2). This indicates that when Abraham went forth from Ur and journeyed toward Canaan, he was dragging his feet. When he passed through Damascus, he picked up some “muddy water” from Damascus, that is, Eliezer. This is Eliezer’s origin. Abraham then went down to Egypt. When he came out from Egypt, he picked up some Egyptian “muddy water,” that is, Hagar, a female servant. In other words, when Abraham passed through Damascus, he picked up Eliezer, a man of Damascus, and when he passed through Egypt, he picked up Hagar, an Egyptian.
We should ask ourselves whether we have some “Eliezers.” Our higher education might be our Eliezer. We think that such things enable us to accomplish God’s will and His purpose. However, we must remember that the things we obtain in the world, the things we pick up in our journey, and the things we bring along in our human history are either “Eliezers” or “Hagars.” Many saints rely on such things in their desire to serve God. However, one day God will show them that only He can fulfill His promise and that His purpose can be attained only by Him. It is true that God’s will and His purpose are with us and are to be attained through us. However, God will not use anything that is ours. He will not use the “Eliezers” we bring from Damascus or the “Hagars” we bring from Egypt. He will not use anything that we have. Only Isaac, whom God brings forth through us, is of worth.
After speaking to Abraham concerning the seed (v. 4), God promised to give Abraham the land, saying, “I am Jehovah who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to inherit it” (v. 7). Abraham said to Jehovah, “How will I know that I will inherit it?” (v. 8). Because Abraham doubted, God gave him proof. God charged Abraham to bring a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon. Abraham cut the heifer, female goat, and the ram in two in the middle and laid the half of each opposite the other, but he did not cut the birds (vv. 9-10). God seemed to be saying, “Abraham, you must be in union with what you have offered. You and all that you have must be put to death. To accomplish My will, you cannot use what you have. If you want proof from Me, this is it: you shall be put to death.”
In verses 11 through 17 two things happened with the slain offerings. First, the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses (v. 11). The birds here signify Satan (Matt. 13:4, 19). This indicates that Satan would come to interfere with God’s promise. As a result of Satan’s coming, a terror and great darkness descended (Gen. 15:12). This is to pass through a period of darkness, to pass through a trial (v. 13). Second, a smoking furnace and a torch of fire passed through between the pieces (v. 17). A torch is for enlightening and is brought in by God to dispel darkness. A furnace is for refining. Hence, a smoking furnace signifies trials in the midst of refining. When Abraham was willing to place all that he had before God and offer it to God, God split the sacrifices, put them in the place of death, and passed through them. After God passed through the sacrifices, His promise would be fulfilled.
This signifies that what we acquired from Damascus, such as our intelligence and ability, is useful in man’s eyes but useless in accomplishing God’s will. Many dear saints rely on their worldly attainments in their service to the Lord. A person’s strong points, education, and ability are useful if he wants to start an enterprise or do things in the world. However, if we intend to serve God and accomplish His will so that His eternal purpose may be fulfilled in us, these things are of no use. God demands that such things be split and put in the place of death so that He may pass through them.
Genesis 15 reveals that God desires to fulfill His purpose in His called ones. Our Eliezers, that is, all that we have, cannot fulfill God’s purpose in us. Whatever we have must be split and put to death so that God may pass through them. What we have invites Satan and brings in darkness. But when we allow God to pass through what we have, light comes. God will not use the things that we pick up on our journey. If God uses our Eliezers, there is no need for grace; that is, there is no need for God’s life and strength.
We need to ask ourselves, “Do I allow God to serve, or am I serving? Do I depend on God’s life and strength, or do I depend on what I am and what I have obtained from the world?” We all need the light of God in order to see that what we have cannot replace grace. If we see what grace is, we will realize that there is no need for what we have. Whatever we have must be split and put to death for God to pass through. If we are willing to offer what we have to God, we will have proof and assurance to know and believe that He will fulfill His will; God’s grace will fulfill His will for us.
The record in Genesis 18 concerning God’s promise that Sarah would give birth to Isaac is very particular. God spoke to Abraham in his tent, saying, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and then Sarah your wife shall have a son” (v. 10). Why was God so wordy? He could have been brief and to the point, saying, “Sarah shall have a son.” But God did not say this. In His brief conversation with Abraham He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life,” and “I will return to you, according to the time of life” (v. 14). This indicates that God had to come in order for Isaac to be brought forth. God seemed to be saying to Abraham, “My coming is Isaac’s coming. My coming is the coming of grace.”
We should not consider God’s material supply in our daily living, such as a house or a job, as God’s coming. These are but God’s care for us in the environment. However, the birth of Isaac was not God’s working in the environment; it was God’s coming. Isaac’s birth was a marvelous matter. Although we cannot say that Isaac was God becoming flesh, we can say that according to the Bible, Isaac is a type of Jesus Christ, who is God becoming a man, God Himself.
Did Jehovah actually come on the day that Isaac was born? The beginning of Genesis 21:1 says, “Jehovah visited Sarah as He had said.” Visited may also be rendered as “came to.” Verse 1 continues, “And Jehovah did to Sarah as He had promised.” Hence, Sarah’s giving birth to Isaac was the issue of Jehovah’s coming to Sarah according to His promise. Jehovah came to Sarah, and then Isaac was brought forth. This particular word in the Bible shows that Abraham was able to accomplish God’s will and achieve God’s purpose not by what he had but by God Himself coming to accomplish His will and purpose. This is the grace of God.
The second step in knowing grace is to know that grace does not need what man does in himself. This is seen in Genesis 16. Chapter 15 concerns God’s not needing what Abraham had. This is portrayed with Eliezer. God wanted Abraham to have a seed, but since Abraham did not have a son, he considered making Eliezer his heir. Abraham wanted to accomplish God’s will through Eliezer. Eliezer was what Abraham had; he was picked up by Abraham from Damascus while Abraham was journeying. In other words, Eliezer represents everything we have obtained from the world while journeying through it. Those whom God calls for His purpose often try to accomplish God’s purpose with what they have.
Everything we have is our Eliezer, including our education and experience. In the church some brothers are experienced in the ways of the world. They may think that their old Eliezer is useful and that they can administrate the church because they are experienced. Anyone with such a concept is an Abraham in chapter 15, trying to use what he picked up in Damascus while dragging his feet on his journey to accomplish God’s purpose in calling him. Some people rely on their education, status, or fame when preaching the gospel. They think that their reputation can influence people to believe in the Lord. This is an Eliezer in disguise. We must remember that such things cannot lead people to salvation, cannot produce spiritual descendants, cannot fulfill God’s will on the earth, and cannot accomplish God’s purpose in calling man. God cannot be expressed, nor can His dominion be exercised over man through our Eliezers.
We must put our Eliezers aside. Our learning, status, ability, expertise, fame, and any other thing that we have brought from Damascus must be put aside. We need to say, “O God, You will accomplish Your glorious purpose. Your seed can be obtained only by Your coming. When You come, Isaac will be brought forth, because the seed that You desire is Yourself.” If we want to preach the gospel to produce offspring, we must be clear that God is the power for preaching the gospel. God desires that we preach the gospel, but He is the means for the gospel to be preached; God is grace. In the same principle, we cannot rely on the maneuvering we learned in human society to administrate the church. People can maneuver when managing things in society, but we cannot administrate the church by maneuvering. Every maneuver is an Eliezer from Damascus; it is not from the heavens, and it is not God. We must learn to administrate the church without human maneuvering. Every aspect of the administration in the church must be God Himself.
We are short of God if the administration of the church is poor, lacks the Lord’s presence, and is not in a revival. This is not a matter of lacking skill in politics. When God comes, the church will be revived and will be on the right track. The administration of the church is poor because we depend on our Eliezers. In 18:10 God said to Abraham, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and then Sarah your wife shall have a son.” This indicates that when God comes, the person who will accomplish His purpose also comes. The purpose is of God, and the person who accomplishes the purpose is God. It is God who calls, and it is also God who accomplishes the purpose of His calling. God does not need what we have, what we do, or what we are capable of doing, that is, our capabilities. He wants us to be a channel for Him to pass through. He does not need us to do something for Him. He needs us to let Him work. Blessed is he who lets God pass through him! It is sad that many people want to do something for God but do not let God pass through them. God’s work can be done only by God. Besides God, no one can accomplish His work. Therefore, we should put all that we have under our feet and say, “Lord, this is Your work. You do it! You have called me for Your work, but I know that You do not want me to work. Rather, You want to work through me, so I am here to let You work.”
In chapter 15 God said to Abraham, “This man shall not be your heir, but he who will come out from your own body shall be your heir” (v. 4). This man refers to Eliezer. This indicates that for the accomplishment of God’s purpose a called one does not need what he has. Both Abraham and Sarah understood this. Sarah held on to the words he who will come out from your own body shall be your heir and proposed that Abraham take Hagar as a wife (16:2). Like many sisters, Sarah was seemingly good at interpreting the Bible and grasping the word of God. She realized that only one who came out from Abraham’s body could be considered his heir, but she was already old. Hence, she gave Hagar, her female servant, to Abraham so that she would be able to have children through Hagar. Sarah’s proposal seemed reasonable. Hence, it is no wonder that Abraham listened to her (vv. 2-3).
We must note that the first man fell because he listened to his wife, and the first called one made a big mistake because he listened to his wife. Because Abraham took Hagar as his wife and brought forth Ishmael, he did not have God’s appearing for thirteen years (v. 16; 17:1). Abraham failed by taking Hagar as his wife, and the origin of this failure was his listening to Sarah’s proposal. Whenever a husband listens to his wife’s proposal, the outcome is almost always terrible, because this is the woman’s assuming the headship. The first fall of man was the result of the woman’s assuming the headship, which is in the principle of man’s assuming the headship. Abraham’s taking Hagar as his wife was man’s assuming the headship. God did not come forth, because it was man’s assuming the headship. Hence, in chapter 18 the covenanting God said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life” (v. 10). This meant that Abraham should no longer depend on himself. Now we can understand why God said twice, “I will certainly return to you” two times (vv. 10, 14). God seemed to be telling Abraham that He did not come when Ishmael was brought forth, because that was Abraham’s doing. This was not God being the head but man assuming the headship.
The principle of the fall, both of the created man and of the called one, was man’s assuming the headship. Whenever we overstep God, we will have a serious failure. When Sarah assumed the headship, Abraham took Hagar as his wife and brought forth Ishmael by his own ability. The principle of Ishmael is that man does things by his own strength for the accomplishment of God’s will. This means that man uses his strength to do something to fulfill God’s purpose. Some people’s preaching of the gospel may be likened to marrying Hagar, the outcome of which is the bringing forth of Ishmael as the fruit. Likewise, some people administrate the church and serve in the church in the principle of marrying Hagar and bringing forth Ishmael. We must remember that for the accomplishing of God’s will and purpose, we do not need to do anything in ourselves. What we do in ourselves is not grace but the ability of the flesh, and it issues in the fruit of the flesh.
In Galatians 4 the apostle Paul says that Hagar signifies the law (v. 24) but that Sarah symbolizes grace (vv. 23, 26; cf. Rom. 6:14). Therefore, Abraham’s taking Hagar signifies man’s depending on the law. The begetting of Ishmael signifies the issue of man’s depending on the law to accomplish something. Man’s depending on the law requires the using of man’s strength. Whenever someone wants to keep the law and walk according to the law, his flesh endeavors and struggles. Hence, Romans 7 says the flesh and the law are inseparable. Abraham’s taking Hagar signifies the marriage of the flesh and the law. Abraham thought that in taking Hagar, he could accomplish God’s will and achieve God’s purpose, but instead he brought forth Ishmael. I am concerned that the brothers who preach the gospel, help the saints, and administrate the church are also depending on their own strength to fulfill God’s purpose and will eventually bring forth Ishmaels.
Abraham did not intend to sin when he took Hagar. His intention was to accomplish God’s purpose. He did not intend to do something that would destroy God’s purpose; his intention was to do something to fulfill God’s purpose. God does not ask us whether we are doing something good or something bad or whether we are doing something to fulfill His purpose or to destroy His will. Rather, He will ask us whether we are fulfilling His purpose by ourselves or by allowing Him to work through us and whether we are assuming the headship or allowing Him to have the headship. God does not pay attention only to what His called ones are doing but also to who is doing it. He asks about the nature of what we are doing and also about the source of what we are doing. Is man the source, or is God the source? Regrettably, many sacred and good works in Christianity are in the principle of taking Hagar as a wife. Such works are initiated by men assuming the headship and attempting to use their strength to fulfill God’s will and achieve His purpose. Hence, the issue is the bringing forth of Ishmael. In Genesis 21 Ishmael became an adversary to Isaac (vv. 9-10). Similarly, such so-called sacred and good works are often in opposition to God’s will. People think that their works are fulfilling God’s will, but they do not know that their works are opposing God’s will.
When Abraham assumed the headship and overstepped God by using his own method to fulfill God’s promise, he seriously offended God. Some may think that in going down to Egypt, Abraham committed a serious sin. However, he did not lose God’s presence. But when he relied on his strength to accomplish God’s will, God stopped communing with him for thirteen years. By using his flesh to accomplish God’s will, Abraham offended God instead of pleasing Him. As a result, he did not have God’s appearing for thirteen years. God could not appear to him, because he still had the strength of his flesh. God could not do anything with him, because he could do something by himself. After thirteen years, however, Abraham considered himself to be old and advanced in age, and Sarah’s womb was deadened. Hence, they had lost the begetting ability. This signifies that the ability of the flesh was deadened. Romans 4:19 says that Abraham “considered his own body as already dead...as well as the deadening of Sarah’s womb.”
It was at this time that Jehovah appeared to Abraham and required him to be circumcised (Gen. 17:1, 10-13). What is circumcision? Colossians 2:11 says that circumcision is the putting off of the body of the flesh, that is, our human strength. Abraham begot Ishmael by the ability of his flesh. When his fleshly strength was feeble and deadened, God came in to do something, that is, to cut off Abraham’s fleshly ability. God said to Abraham, “I will bless her [Sarah], and I will also give you a son by her” (Gen. 17:16). But Abraham said to God, “Oh that Ishmael might live before You!” (v. 18). In chapter 15 Abraham relied on what he had, highly regarding Eliezer (vv. 2-3). In chapter 17 he relied on what he produced, that is, Ishmael, whom he brought forth by his fleshly ability. Nevertheless, God said, “No, but Sarah your wife will bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac; and I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant for his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard you; indeed, I have blessed him” (vv. 19-20). God pointed out that what Abraham brought forth through Hagar was not acceptable and that only what he brought forth through Sarah was acceptable. This means that only what was brought forth through Sarah would be acceptable in accomplishing God’s will. There was no need for what Abraham had or did.
The third step in knowing grace is seeing that there is no need for what we are capable of doing. God wanted Abraham and every male in his house to be circumcised (vv. 10-14). This means that in accomplishing God’s purpose and will, there is no need for human ability, for what man can do. In chapter 15 Abraham had Eliezer; this was what he had. In chapter 16 he begot Ishmael; this was what he did. Chapter 17 concerns the ability of the flesh; this refers to what Abraham could do. For the accomplishment of His will and purpose, God rejects what man has, what man does, and what man can do.
Everything related to man is a matter of these three aspects: what we have, what we do, and what we can do. A person displays either what he has, what he does, or what he can do. Hence, the Bible reveals that God dealt with Abraham concerning these three aspects. Do we have an Eliezer? God does not want him. Do we have an Ishmael? God does not want him. Do we have fleshly ability? It must be cut off. These are unnecessary in the accomplishing of God’s will. When God comes, grace comes. What man has, what he does, and what he can do are not grace. When God comes to us, He enters into us, passes through us, and brings forth Isaac out of us. God’s coming to accomplish His will is grace.
Grace is not the outward environment, outward things, or outward strength for our living. Grace is God Himself (John 1:17). Knowing grace is knowing the God who enters into us. After Abraham experienced being called and living by faith, the next lesson that he learned was knowing grace. While we are serving the Lord and doing His work, we must learn to put aside everything we have obtained from the world and cast away the things we have done in ourselves. In addition, our ability must be dealt with, cut off. We must learn to rely on the One who said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and then Sarah your wife shall have a son” (Gen. 18:10). We thank and praise God that He is already in us; He has already come. When He comes, Isaac comes. He comes as the seed of God’s desire. His will can be accomplished only by His coming. When God comes, He has a way to go forward on the earth. This is grace.
The fourth step in knowing grace is to get rid of what man does in himself. This point is very deep. After passing though the three preceding steps, Abraham realized that what he had, what he did, and what he could do were worthless. Casting out what we have done is a great problem. When facing this problem, many people think in their heart, “I have been doing this work for a long time. I have established churches, I am doing the Lord’s work, and my gospel preaching is effective.” Nonetheless, these things may be merely Ishmaels. We must understand that the fulfillment of God’s plan does not need what we have, what we do, or what we can do. What then should we do with what we did in the past? Can we keep what we did in the past? If we want Isaac, we cannot allow Ishmael to remain; we must cast him out. Genesis 21 says that as soon as Isaac was weaned, he suffered Ishmael’s mocking (vv. 8-9). This means that what we do in ourselves despises what we do by grace. If we know grace, we must cast out Ishmael (v. 10). It is not only a matter of not needing Ishmael; we must also get rid of him. We must cast him out. Therefore, the fourth step in knowing grace is to get rid of what we did in ourselves.
Many people keep their Ishmaels. God does not care for what man does, and He also charges man to get rid of, to cast out, what he has done. The achievements and fruit of man’s work oppose grace. Isaac’s growth was frustrated by Ishmael. God’s grace cannot be fully expressed, because man is reluctant to cast out Ishmael.
Where are the Ishmaels? Our not working by the flesh proves that we know grace. However, casting out the work of the flesh is stronger proof of knowing grace. Some people have learned the first three steps but do not have the fourth step, because they are not willing to deal with their Ishmaels. Therefore, there is still a great problem that prevents grace from being sufficiently expressed through them. The Isaacs in them are continually bullied by the Ishmaels. This means that grace is constantly being frustrated by the fruit of the flesh, because man preserves the fruit of the flesh.
After casting out Ishmael, Abraham came to know grace. He was not happy to cast out Ishmael. Verse 11 says, “The matter displeased Abraham greatly on account of his son.” This is the experience of many brothers and sisters. They are sorrowful, not joyful, to get rid of the fruit of their flesh. However, if we want God’s grace to grow and be formed in us, the fruit of the flesh must be dealt with. After Ishmael has been cast out, it is not easy to have another Ishmael. When the work of the flesh is broken into pieces, it will not be easy for us to rely on our flesh again.
Knowing that God does not need what we have, knowing that God rejects what we do, knowing that God does not want what we can do, and casting out Ishmael are the four steps of learning the lesson of grace. Abraham not only knew God’s hand in his life and thus lived by faith before God; he also knew the grace of God, that is, God Himself, in the fulfilling of God’s will. He learned to put aside all that he had and to cast out all that he did. He was a person who allowed God to work. May the Lord be gracious to us and lead us to know that grace is absolute. We must not use what we have, rely on what we do, or depend on what we can do. We must also cast out what we have done. If God comes, Isaac will come forth. When God comes, His promise is fulfilled and His glorious purpose is accomplished, because He is grace.
