The need for reconciliation ranks among the most crucial necessities in our lives and the world. Reconciliation brings joy. But its roots often lie in the past. God told Abraham he and Sarah would have the son of the promise. After years with no child, they grew impatient. Sarah proposed having a child with Hagar, their servant, and Abraham agreed to the proposal. Hagar soon gave birth to Ishmael, but God clarified he was not the child of the promise. Despite their heartache, God’s faithfulness never wavered.
Later, God blessed Sarah and Abraham with Isaac, the son of the promise. Abraham celebrated when Isaac was weaned. But Ishmael’s teasing added a bitter twist to their family story. Genesis 21:10 So Sarah turned to Abraham and demanded, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son. He is not going to share the inheritance with my son, Isaac. I won’t have it!” [1] You can only imagine the heartache as Ishmael left his father’s presence and the gulf this created.
Ishmael and Isaac Reconcile Their Differences
Ishmael left his father, Abraham, as a teenager and isn’t mentioned again until Abraham died, about seventy years later. The Scriptures don’t tell us how this family breakup affected Ishmael, but we do know that when Abraham died, both sons came together to bury their father. Genesis 25:9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, near Mamre, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite.[2]
Although both sons came together, unfortunately, this would not be the end of the conflict between the two brothers’ families. Before Ishamel’s birth, God gave a prophecy to his mother, Hagar, about her son. Genesis 16:12 This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.” [3]
The prophecy concerning Ishmael’s hostility toward his brothers foreshadowed the ongoing tensions and conflicts between his descendants and those of Isaac (the Israelites) throughout the Old Testament, and these tensions persist to this day.
Jesus Reconciles Us
Paul tells us about God’s plan. Ephesians 1:4Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. [4] Even before Adam and Eve fell into sin, God had a design to bring about reconciliation. When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, He created a way to bridge the gap between sinful man and His heavenly Father.
When we respond to the Holy Spirit and place our faith in Jesus, we are reconciled to God. No longer are we separated and destined for hell but have become children of God who will someday go to heaven. This is the miracle of the most significant reconciliation the world will ever know. This is the miracle you can experience when you place your faith in Jesus as your Savior!
To learn more about the need for reconciliation, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/abraham-faithful-to-the-end
[1-4] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation. Tyndale House Publishers.