Lesson 3: Sarah and Hagar

Lesson 3: Sarah and Hagar-

Conflict between the Flesh and the Holy Spirit

Based on Genesis 15, 16,17 and 21:9-21

    Sarah was Abraham’s wife, which God had made a covenant with Abraham, declaring that Abraham’s seed would inherit all of the promised land.  In Genesis chapter 17:1-3 we see where God confirmed to Abraham at age ninety-nine that he will be the father of many nations.
    Now Abraham’s wife Sarah, was past the age of childbearing, she couldn’t understand how she could bear an heir. Instead of allowing God to bring about His will in His way, she chose the way of self will, the flesh and gave her Egyptian handmaid to Abraham so that she might bear him a child. This resulted in the birth of Ishmael a descendant in continuing conflict with Issac, the promised child later born to Abraham at age one-hundred and Sarah age ninety. ( Genesis 21:5)

* Instead of Sarah acting under the will of God, and waiting on what He had promised her; she allowed her flesh to take over and gave her maid to her husband. Due to her disobedience, the child the Hagar gave birth to named Ishmael, became a father of a great nation also, but his descendants were against Issac’s descendants.

*Sometimes we can be like Sarah, and try to “help” God by doing things with our own strength and our own judgement. Many times in result of doing that, things end up worst than what they were. We as Christian women need to learn, how to live in the Spirit and not in the flesh. In Philippians 3:3, it says, “We are to have no confidence in the flesh.” Because the flesh is our enemy!!  

I really like this quote, “As long as Self is on the throne, God’s Spirit can’t rule!”
 

Which is so true, as long as we are putting our confidence in ourselves, we won’t allow for God to guide us. We have to in all situations no matter how big or how small it may be, we must let the Holy Spirit guide us. If  we do like Sarah, and let the flesh rule over God’s Spirit, we are number 1 being disobedient to God’s word and 2 we are letting satan make our decisions instead of letting the One who knows all truth guide us, which is the Holy Spirit.

Lesson 3: Sarah and Hagar

Discussion Questions

1. Have you ever done something out of the will of God? If yes, what was the outcome?





2. How can you submit the flesh onto the Holy Spirit?




3. If you were in Sarah’s position do you think you would’ve done things differently? How?