Luke 1:26-38 (ESV)

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin's name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

And Mary said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?”

And the angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Explanation:

Luke 1 reminds us of an important truth, that “nothing will be impossible with God.” God’s might, power, creativity, and love are often seen most clearly and undeniably in the “impossible circumstances” of life. Today’s scripture shows that Jesus’s coming was made of the same impossible circumstances. Of all the ways to deliver the news of a coming king, God brought it to a small, insignificant village. He delivered the news to a virgin teenager, a situation made all the more difficult by the fact she was engaged to be married. The impossible was on its way into impossible circumstances.

But it’s exactly there that God alone would receive all the glory. This teenage girl was left with an impossible message, that she would give birth to the Messiah, the One who would save the world. But she was also left with the assurance that the Holy Spirit’s power could accomplish this and much more, just as God’s power had enabled her cousin Elizabeth to bear a son in her old age. Nothing was impossible with God and no one was too low for His use…no one written off, too young, or too old. God could accomplish anything!

Application:

1. Just like Mary (albeit on a different scale), the Lord is with each of us, and through Jesus we have found favor with God. Consider this truth, that the Lord has a mission for each of us to uniquely fulfill. No one is too lowly, “too far gone,” or unusable for the Lord’s plans!

2. Mary was initially scared when she heard the words of the Lord for her life, but she moved from fear to total obedience. How can we respond to God in our daily lives like Mary, “I am the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word”?

3. Is there an “impossible” part of your life where God wants you to invite “the God of the impossible” to step in to?

4. How often do we have the same response as Mary initially did, when God speaks over our lives? But look at what mothering the Savior of the world accomplished! Are there any areas of your life where God is leading, and you can’t clearly see the outcome? Look to the faithfulness of God in this passage and all He accomplished through Mary’s obedience. Put your trust in Him.

Prayer Prompt:

Jesus, we thank You that You don’t show partiality. Thank You that You came to seek the lost right where we are. I thank You that You are not afraid or put off by any of our circumstances or situations, and that Your power and plan can be fulfilled through any of us You choose. Give us a heart that truly believes you are the God of the impossible. And give us willing hearts to obey Your plan and follow where You lead, even if it scary for us. Father, we love You, we trust You, and we thank You. In the powerful name of Jesus. Amen.

Devo Plus:

• Read Luke 1:5-25 to see how the Lord came to Mary’s cousin Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah.

• Read other “impossible” stories of God’s working! God sets His people free (Exodus 14) God’s angel armies (2 Kings 6:8-17) Peter’s imprisonment (Acts 12:1-17)

Matthew 1:18-25 (ESV)

Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means, God with us). When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

Explanation:

The very first and most important claim that the disciples, the church, and even Jesus made about Himself is that He was more than just a man. He was both God and man. More so, He was God become man. In today’s scripture, we see this from the perspective of Joseph as he processed all that was happening. A vision and a message from an angel confirmed to Joseph that Mary’s pregnancy was not adultery, as he feared it was, and he should not break off their engagement, though he had every right to. He should take the boy and name Him Joshua. Yes, Jesus’s name in Hebrew is actually Joshua, meaning “Yahweh saves.” And the angel finishes off the dream with the clearest message of all, that Jesus was to be the prophesied Messiah (verse 23 is from Isaiah 7:14), that He was actually God come down, and He would be the savior of His people.

Joseph’s faith would not be in a resurrected Savior. No, Joseph was called to trust that a baby boy his pregnant fiancée was carrying truly was the promised One of God, the promised Messiah, God in the flesh, coming to rescue and redeem His people.

Application:

1. What is one thing that stands out to you in today’s passage?

2. How would you handle Joseph’s situation?

3. Joseph had every right to walk away from Mary and the baby. He would have been justified in his decision. But Joseph chose to trust God. Have you experienced a moment, like Joseph, when God asked you to give up what you wanted, or even what you deserved, and instead trust Him?

4. Joseph’s step of faith was to stay with Mary and raise Jesus. Can you think of one thing today that God is asking you to trust Him in?

Prayer Prompt:

Ask God to help you trust Him with whatever He is walking you through.

Devo Plus:

Read the rest of Matthew 1, and see how God used Joseph’s line to bring about the promised Messiah.

Daniel 3:8-27 (ESV)

Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews. They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever! You, O king, have made a decree, that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image. And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar in furious rage commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So they brought these men before the king. Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up? Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar was filled with fury, and the expression of his face was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He ordered the furnace heated seven times more than it was usually heated. And he ordered some of the mighty men of his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning fiery furnace. Then these men were bound in their cloaks, their tunics, their hats, and their other garments, and they were thrown into the burning fiery furnace. Because the king's order was urgent and the furnace overheated, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, fell bound into the burning fiery furnace.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished and rose up in haste. He declared to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.” He answered and said, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the door of the burning fiery furnace; he declared, “Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, servants of the Most High God, come out, and come here!” Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego came out from the fire. And the satraps, the prefects, the governors, and the king's counselors gathered together and saw that the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them.

Explanation:

This is a story of three young Jewish men who were taken from their homes in Israel by the king of Babylon. When Nebuchadnezzar conquered Jerusalem, he took some of the best brightest of the Jewish royal family, made them eunuchs, and then trained them in the history and ways of Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar used these men as advisors and scribes in his court. These three men (along with Daniel) did this well.

Despite being in another country, they faithfully served the one true God. But it wasn’t easy. At times, it ran them up against policy from their bosses. It created a moment of tension for them. Would they obey God or their masters? In today’s story, they chose to obey God, but it wasn’t without consequence. Because of their disobedience to their Chaldean masters, they would face death by burning. Their bravery and trust in God would bring them to a literal pit of fire. And yet they still trusted.

It was at the men’s most vulnerable moment that we see God show up. In the midst of the fire, we see a fourth man appear. Many think this fourth man was Jesus Himself, right in the fire with them. These men put their trust in God, and though God did not stop them from being thrown into the fire, He was with them in it and He brought them through it.

Application:

1. What is one thing that stands out to you in today’s passage?

2. Have you ever prayed for God to rescue you from a situation? Did He change the circumstance? Did He leave you to face it? Did He see you through it?

3. Have you had an experience where you know God was with you through a difficult time?

4. Does it change how you approach difficult times, knowing God will be with you in them?

Prayer Prompts:

• If you are in a difficult time, ask God to sustain you in it with His presence.

• Ask God to help you remain faithful and trusting of Him, even when faced with the harder path.

Devo Plus:

• Read Daniel 1-3 to get a bigger picture of this story.

Judges 6:11-24 (ESV)

Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.” And the Lord said to him, “But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man.” And he said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. Please do not depart from here until I come to you and bring out my present and set it before you.” And he said, “I will stay till you return.”

So Gideon went into his house and prepared a young goat and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour. The meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the terebinth and presented them. And the angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour the broth over them.” And he did so. Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes. And fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes. And the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. Then Gideon perceived that he was the angel of the Lord. And Gideon said, “Alas, O Lord God! For now I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face.” But the Lord said to him, “Peace be to you. Do not fear; you shall not die.” Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord and called it, The Lord Is Peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.

Explanation:

Israel had continued to live in sin and disobey God, so God handed them over to the Midianites. The people of Israel were suffering because of it. They were hungry, they were beaten, they were feeling down and as if God had forgotten them. The people of Israel cried out to God, and He responded by calling a man named Gideon to lead the charge, which is where we pick up today.

God sends an angel to call Gideon to lead the people of Israel to a victory. At first Gideon is unsure; he does not recognize that this is an angel sent from God Himself. He gives all sorts of excuses and reasons why he is not the best choice for this task: he is weak and the last one left in his family. God assures Gideon that He will be with him. Gideon then recognizes this is indeed an angel sent from the Lord. He immediately changes his tone and knows that God’s hand is on him. The angel assures Gideon that God indeed wants to use him to save His people. Gideon will not be harmed and will be victorious. Gideon is given a huge task, but God tells him not to fear, because God is going before him and will be with him every step of the way. God will yet again claim the victory over the battle, saving and redeeming His people.

Application:

1. Think about a time when you felt like Gideon…defeated, forsaken, and forgotten.

How did you find hope in that time?

2. Is God calling you to do something that seems scary or is causing you fear?

3. What steps do you need to take to overcome the fear and be obedient to God?

Prayer Prompt:

• Take some time today to ask God to help you overcome your fear. Release whatever it is that is keeping you from being obedient. Lay it at the feet of Jesus. Ask God to give you the courage and strength to do the hard thing He is calling you to do. Then rest in Him and His promises.

Devo Plus:

• To learn more about this story take some time to read Judges 6:1-10.

Genesis 32:22-30 (NLT)

During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River with them. After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions.

This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

“What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.”

“Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.”

“Please tell me your name,” Jacob said.

“Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there. Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.”

Explanation:

Jacob was the grandson of Abraham. Twenty years before this passage, Jacob learned the great lesson of salvation at Bethel (Genesis 28:10). After 20 years of God’s patient dealing with Jacob, he is going to learn about the power of an encounter with the Lord to change his behavior.

Jacob was all alone. His wealth, his wives, and his servants had all been sent away. He may have been alone, but the old, carnal, stubborn, self-sufficient Jacob was very much alive. At first, he thought he was fighting a man. But at some point, he realized he was fighting with Jesus, who had come to confront him with his desperate need for full and unconditional surrender to God. After this long night of fighting, and Jacob’s realization that it was the Lord…instead of fighting, he begins to cling to the Lord. Jesus was the face of God that Jacob saw. Jacob was finally broken of his own way of doing life and surrendered.

Application:

1. In the Bible, when God gives someone a new name, it is because He has made them a new person. He is still doing that.

2. Jacob walked differently after his surrender to God. We will too, and it may feel like limping, but it’s total dependency on God.

3. God breaks us to make us new.

Prayer Prompt:

• Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you. (Romans 12:1-2, The Message)

Devo Plus:

• Since you have heard about Jesus and have learned the truth that comes from him, throw off your old sinful nature and your former way of life, which is corrupted by lust and deception. Instead, let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. (Ephesians 4:21-24, NLT)

Author: Natalie Widener

Have you had any “God” moments? Those moments when there was no other explanation except something spiritual that can only come from God? I can think of so many times when God has made His presence known in my life. You see, the more we talk to God and have that open relationship with Him, the more we’ll notice His work in our lives. I love that! All these years later, God is still moving and working in our lives. Even on our worst days, God’s presence is with us. How blessed are we to have God fighting for us?

I have many stories of His faithful hand pulling me up again and again. He has changed me and restored my life. Isn’t that just what we need? We all need restoration, to feel like we are not alone in all this. We need God’s presence in our lives, and I am so very thankful He blesses us with that gift.

During this busy Christmas season, take time to be still and ask God to meet you in your day and in your situation. He is always faithful to be there! Praying you feel His presence, and can look back over your life and remember those times He was there to help you when you needed it. Remember those times you felt God was there. It will strengthen your faith and get you through any difficult situation!

You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11, ESV)

Genesis 28:10-17; compare John 1:51, 14:6; 1 Timothy 2:5 (ESV)

Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, the Lord stood above it and said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.”

Explanation:

God will meet you in whatever place you find yourself. This unsuspectedly comes true for Jacob. While dreaming, Jacob encounters God in a powerful way, so much that it leads him to a place of humble worship. In Jacob’s dream, God reaffirms a promise He made to Jacob’s father and grandfather, Isaac and Abraham, about blessing them and making them a great nation. God promises Jacob a home (the very land he was sleeping on), a great family, and to be with him and keep him (provide for his needs) throughout his life.

There is so much power in this one encounter, and without looking into it, you can easily miss all that is going on in this moment. First, God opens up the heavens and communicates with man. God uses the imagery of a ladder to communicate that there is now a connection between God in heaven and man on earth. The ladder communicates that the very presence of God is with Jacob. Wherever he goes, whatever he does, he would have access to God. Jacob is overwhelmed with this truth, and you can see it by his response. He could have never imagined this would happen.

This ladder that Jacob witnessed was a foreshadow of the man of God, Jesus, who would come much later. Jesus communicated this very same truth, and became the ladder (or the gate) that connects us with the presence of God and heaven. When we choose to walk with Christ like Jacob, we have the very same promises of God, to be with us and keep us. Be encouraged that no matter where you are, whatever you are doing, through Christ you can say with confidence, as did Jacob, “Surely the Lord is in this place!”

Application:

1. How do you think you would respond if you encountered God like Jacob did?

2. How do you think this encounter both affirmed and sustained Jacob in the days that followed?

3. When was the last time you encountered the presence of God?

4. How did that encounter affirm and sustain you?

5. How can you connect today with God through the gate/ladder Jesus Christ?

Prayer Prompt:

• Jesus, thank You for being my gate and my ladder. I am so grateful that You are in this place with me here and now. Jesus, I need You to keep me this day like You did Jacob.

Devo Plus:

• Read the other two references listed above, and make a list showing how Jesus is the gate/ladder.

Genesis 22:1-18 (NIV)

Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

Then God said, “Take your son, your only son, whom you love—Isaac—and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you.”

Early the next morning Abraham got up and loaded his donkey. He took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. When he had cut enough wood for the burnt offering, he set out for the place God had told him about. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. He said to his servants, “Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.”

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?”

Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together.

When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Here I am,” he replied.

“Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.”

Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.”

The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

Explanation:

The beginning of this passage can be a difficult read, but knowing God’s heart, it was never about human sacrifice. It was all about Abraham’s trust in God’s promise. There are two truths we know about God when we read this: One, God keeps His promises (Abraham’s descendants are as numerous as the sand on the shore), and two, God provides for His people when they trust in His plan (Philippians 4:19; Psalms 81:10, 84:11; Matthew 6:33). The first sentence tells us that God tested Abraham to see if he would sacrifice his most prized possession, his son Isaac. God didn’t want the boy to be killed, He wanted Abraham’s heart. God wanted Abraham’s faith and trust in Him to be unshakable, a healthy fear and reverence in God Almighty.

It’s also important to note, this was an audible command by God that Abraham heard, so he didn’t wavier on his decision to go to the mountain and provide a sacrifice. Abraham knew through other earlier events in his life that God asked and he obeyed, knowing God would make everything right (by providing an acceptable sacrifice or even bringing Isaac back to life).

Genesis 22 also points to the future event of God giving His son Jesus to be our “acceptable sacrifice” on the cross. In a similar way, Jesus trusted His Father like Isaac trusted Abraham.

So, where do we fit in this story? God allows challenges in our lives to give us multiple opportunities to trust in Him. Like Abraham, God wants our obedience and our heart.

Application:

1. How do you trust in God to provide for your needs?

2. Where in your life do you find it difficult to rely on God to provide? (i.e., finances, health, relationships)

3. When has God supernaturally provided for you, when you asked Him?

Prayer Prompt:

• Heavenly Father, thank You for protecting me and providing for my needs. Help me when I don’t fully trust in You, and worry about things that are out of my control. You are my provider, healer, and promise keeper. Amen.

Devo Plus:

• “And without Faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6, ESV)

Genesis 16:1-13 (ESV)

Now Sarai, Abram's wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. And Sarai said to Abram, "Behold now, the LORD has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress. And Sarai said to Abram, "May the wrong done to me be on you! I gave my servant to your embrace, and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked on me with contempt. May the LORD judge between you and me!" But Abram said to Sarai, "Behold, your servant is in your power; do to her as you please." Then Sarai dealt harshly with her, and she fled from her.

The angel of the LORD found her by a spring of water in the wilderness, the spring on the way to Shur. And he said, "Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?" She said, "I am fleeing from my mistress Sarai." The angel of the LORD said to her, "Return to your mistress and submit to her." The angel of the LORD also said to her, "I will surely multiply your offspring so that they cannot be numbered for multitude." And the angel of the LORD said to her, Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael, because the LORD has listened to your affliction. He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen."

So she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, "You are a God of seeing," for she said, "Truly here I have seen him who looks after me."

Explanation:

Have you ever been part of a conversation asking, “If you could have one superpower, what would it be?” A study done by Forbes in 2015 surveyed over 7,000 leaders, and nearly 30% of them said they’d want to be invisible. In today’s scripture, Hagar apparently agreed with the 30%. She was the handmaid of Sarai (whom we will come to know as “Sarah” later in Genesis), a woman who desperately wanted a child, but had been unable to conceive. Sarai chose Hagar to bear a child for Abram so that his lineage could continue. Once Sarai saw that Hagar was able to conceive, Sarai was full of emotion. The scripture specifically says “contempt,” but I cannot imagine the well of feelings and thoughts Sarai must have had. Sarai unleashed her fury on Hagar, and Hagar bolted right out of there.

Hagar thought she could go into the woods and hide. She was trying to be invisible and get far away from Sarai, but God saw her. He spoke to her, while she was trying her best to hide, and told her to return to Sarai and submit to her. God assured her that He knew what she was going through. He saw her where she was, no matter how far she ran, or how much she wanted to hide. In the Hebrew translation, it says she called Him “El Roi,” meaning “the God who sees me.” God told her that He was going to watch over her and her son, Ishmael, and bless them.

No matter where we try to run, God knows where we are. He wants us to experience His way and His blessing. He wants us to grow in the faith that He sees us, and we aren’t alone. Our superpower dreams have nothing on God. Nothing is impossible for Him, and no one is invisible.

Application:

1. Have you ever tried to act as though you were invisible?

2. After hearing Hagar’s story, how does this change your perspective?

Prayer Prompt:

• Thank God for seeing you where you are—even if it’s an “ugly” place right now. He sees the whole story of your life, beginning to end. He wants you to know that even though you can’t see the future, He’s there, and He has a vision for your life.

• Thank Him for what’s to come, and ask Him to help you trust that what He has planned is better than what you can ever imagine.

Devo Plus:

• Want to explore other ways that “God sees” and knows you? Read Matthew 10:30, John 10:3, and Isaiah 49:16.

Isaiah 53:1-12 (ESV)

Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?

For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground;

he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way;

and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth;

like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,

so he opened not his mouth.

By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered

that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people?

And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death,

Although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief;

when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;

the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.

Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied;

by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant,

make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,

because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors;

yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Explanation:

In Isaiah 52, we are given a snapshot of Israel’s captivity under different regimes, and how God’s people were undeservedly but consistently rescued and freed by God. The theme of God’s deliverance reaches its greatest expression in our reading of Isaiah 53 today, through the Messiah who would suffer for His people.

Isaiah is referred to as the “gospel writer of the Old Testament.” He spoke clearly of Jesus’s coming, His life, and His ultimate redemption through His death and resurrection…but he spoke of it 700-800 years before Jesus ever arrived on the earth. Jesus would be “the arm of the Lord,” meaning God’s mighty power would be displayed through Him. But He would not come in the display of power Israel had imagined. He would be like a young plant from dry ground: tender, from lowly beginnings and tough circumstances. He would have no majesty, nothing to draw the eye or gain popularity. He would be a man of many sorrows, not just acquainted with the sorrows we experience, but also carrying the grief of living in the midst of a sin-sick world, in the midst of His creation that would consistently choose to live against God and go their own way. And ultimately, He would unfairly be taken, surrendered to a horrible death, and suffer our excruciating punishment of being forsaken by God…hell itself. Isaiah 53 gives us no doubt that Jesus felt the weight of our sin, the weight of our struggles, and persevered to be our redemption story.

Application:

1. Jesus is our light, our peace, our righteousness, our justice, our freedom, and ultimately, our redemption. Redemption is the action of being saved from sin/error, but also the action of regaining possession of something that belongs to you by payment (the idea of clearing a debt). Take some time to think about how much you have been saved from, all together and day by day. Take some time to think about the entirety of the payment Christ made to buy you back.

2. What are some ideals you have for you own life that may hinder you from seeing how God can use you, just as the Israelites’ ideal of a conquering Messiah hindered them from seeing Jesus as their Savior?

3. How does Jesus’s example as a “suffering servant” change your view of living to honor God?

Prayer Prompt:

• Take some time today to thank God for the ends He went to in order to buy you back. Ask God to speak to your heart about how Christ’s example should encourage you to live the life of a servant.

Devo plus:

• Hebrews 4:5 expresses again how Jesus knew our suffering. Here are some verses for further exploration:

• Jesus knew temptation: “He was in the desert forty days, being tempted by Satan” (Mark 1:13).

• Jesus knew poverty: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head” (Matthew 8:20).

• Jesus knew frustration: “He scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables.… ‘Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!’” (John 2:15-16).

• Jesus knew weariness: “Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well” (John 4:6).

• Jesus knew disappointment: “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem…how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks…but you were not willing” (Luke 13:34).

• Jesus knew rejection: “From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him” (John 6:66).

• Jesus knew sorrow: “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death” (Matthew 26:38).

• Jesus knew ridicule: “Again and again they struck him…and spit on him. Falling on their knees, they paid [mocking] homage to him” (Mark 15:19).

• Jesus knew loneliness: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46).