Jesus Our Isaac Within Series

Jesus our Isaac within

Galatians 4: 21-31 Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons: the one by a bondwoman, the other by a freewoman. But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the freewoman through promise, which things are symbolic.

For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar— for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children— but the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all.

For it is written: “Rejoice, O barren, You who do not bear! Break forth and shout, You who are not in labour! For the desolate has many more children than she who has a husband”

Two sons, two women, two births, two covenants, and two Jerusalem’s

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are children of promise. But, as he who was born according to the flesh then persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, even so it is now.

Nevertheless what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman.” So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free. Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made you free and do not be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

In Genesis 16 we read about the birth of Ishmael who was the son of Abram from Ur and Hagar the Egyptian because Sarai was old and barren and they thought this must be what God meant when he promised that Abram would have children “as the stars of the sky for number”

Sarai gave her maidservant (Hagar) to Abram in order to bring forth a son who could be the heir of God's promises…but “the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman”

Ishmael was born before God had changed Abram's name to Abraham and before Sarai had become Sarah.

Their names were changed when God added the Hebrew letter “hey” to their names. “Hey” is the breath of God, and it indicates to us the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. “Hey” also represents God’s creative power as in…

Psalm 33:6 “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath (“Hey”) of His mouth.”

So reading on in Genesis Ch. 17:5 God said… “No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.

Vs. 15 Then God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.”

Only after God had placed his breath and power into their names to Abraham and Sarah was it possible to conceive and bring forth the promised seed, Isaac.

Hebrews 11:11-12 “By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised.

Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.”

Ishmael then was born from “fleshly” Abram and Hagar; his birth was "of the flesh". Isaac was born from “spiritual” Abraham and Sarah, by faith and his birth was "by promise," that is, "according to the Spirit" confirming what Jesus said to Nicodemus;

John 3:6 “That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Born naturally and born again spiritually.

This shows us that God's promise of new life, an abundant life is only brought forth only by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by keeping laws to the natural, but becoming a “child of God, by believing in His name and being born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God”

So Ishmael was the son of Abram; (of the flesh) Isaac was the son of Abraham. (Of the promise) These two boys represent to us in that our old Adamic nature (or flesh) corresponds to Abram and Hagar and it can only bring forth that which is its nature.

Paul described our Ishmael flesh in Ephesians 2:3 “…we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath…”