God Sees

God Sees

by David Brenneman 

We read in Genesis of Hagar. Abraham's concubine. Of Sarah's impatience at waiting on the Lord, insisting that she can get done what evidently God wasn't going to be doing.  That's not how it's written but that's how it's easily understood. Sarah's mainly responsible for the whole second line of people in Abraham's lineage.  She knew the promise of the Lord and wasn't willing to wait.  

After God's promise came as promised, she had utter disregard for any reminder of her bad choice.  

But the point of understanding is with Hagar. "Then she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God who sees me”; for she said, “Have I even seen Him here and lived after He saw me?”" Genesis 16:13 NASB

Sarah surely was a pill as we might say today in regards to being difficult to live with. Indeed this is sarcasm but it's almost amazing to not read in the New Testament concerning Abraham's faith that it would include dealing with such a wife as Sarah apparently was like. 

We often go through life feeding emotions that aren't real or relevant. Indeed we feed emotions that only burn up our mental energy.  Going on for minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, even years of people living rent-free in our heads.  Hypothetical and theoretical discussions that have either happened or are imagined. 

In our lives, though, we indeed have a God who sees.  He sees and knows even. As the Scriptures say in James 1:5 NASB "gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow."  No shifting shadow...nothing to hide.

Jesus knows us in ways that nobody else ever will.

Jesus sees us in our ugliest times and still holds onto us and still says "Doesn't matter. I still love you.".

Jesus sees those who are in Christ Jesus as growing up into the holiness they weren't physically born into nor were able to achieve outside of salvation in Him. 

Jesus sees our needs before we are aware of them.

Jesus sees.

He sees what is right and true about us that the world doesn't understand. 

He sees what we are becoming in Christ. 

He sees how far we have come that we cannot. 

He knew us from before the foundation of the world. 

He knows the plans He has for us. 

We are the ones who aren't seeing what He sees.

We don't see His understanding. 

We don't see His adjustments in our lives to change us to be more like Christ. 

We don't see why He allows some things and doesn't allow others.

Indeed life wasn't going well for Hagar.  Yet the Lord told her to return to Sarah. It certainly would be a daily reminder to Sarah that her sin needed confessed. Would be a reminder to wait on the Lord. 

Would probably be many other things...to Abraham as well.  Abraham certainly also gave into fear a lot.  Fears on more than one occasion while traveling to where God was leading him that he lied about his relationship with his own Wife. Seems at least in part he was afraid of his Wife's behavior more than waiting on the Lord here as well. 

Jeremiah 17:10 NASB "I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, To give to each person according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds."

Jeremiah 1:5 NASB "“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

We often don't consider our actions as being selfish or anything. Yet here we are, killing it.  We often over think life.  We give into whole trains of thought that do nothing towards our sanctification in Christ Jesus.  We easily live in a time where knowledge has increased...as the Bible says would be an indication of living in the end times. We waste so much time not looking for God's hand in our lives. We are easily very busy doing all kinds of other things. 

Indeed we waste time in even ministry if that ministry wasn't God's intent for our lives. We also can be a person or people that runs from that ministry God intended for us to be doing.  Remember we read in Romans that we are placed in the body of Christ as the Spirit sees fit.  Noting that we are to trust and obey in where we are placed in the body of Christ. 

If we're honest we don't want to think about the truth that God sees. 

We want to indeed do as the Scriptures mention...every man doing what is right in their own eyes. We want to craft a life free of what our minds don't approve of. We want a life that doesn't have conflict. We want a life that is only prosperous. We want what we want when we want it.

"You are the God who sees" - Hagar. 

In all eternity she will be remembered for saying that. 

God knows our pains and doesn't necessarily want us dwelling on them.

God knows what breaks our hearts and doesn't want us living in that moment. 

God knows.

God knows what He has in mind for you if only you would let go of the pen and let Him do the writing of the story of your life.

Live your life trusting in God's promises and not your own understanding.  

Live your life honoring Him and not you. 

Live your life in such a way that people see your good works and glorify your Father who is in Heaven. 

God sees. God knows. God loves you more than you can possibly imagine.