Genesis 21:8-12 (NLT)
“When Isaac grew up and was about to be weaned, Abraham prepared a huge feast to celebrate the occasion. But Sarah saw Ishmael—the son of Abraham and her Egyptian servant Hagar—making fun of her son, Isaac. So she 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!” This upset Abraham very much because Ishmael was his son. But God told Abraham, “Do not be upset over the boy and your servant. Do whatever Sarah tells you, for Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.”
Let’s jump to what Paul says in Galatians chapter 4. The scripture says, “And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac. But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.” (Galatians 4:28-29)
Paul makes it clear that Ishmael represents the believer’s first birth (the flesh) and Isaac represents the New Birth (the Spirit). Ishmael was “born of the flesh” because Abraham had not yet “died” and was still able to beget a son (Genesis 16). Isaac was “born of the Spirit” because by that time his parents were both “dead” and only God’s power could have brought this miracle birth. Ishmael was born first, because the natural comes before the spiritual.
1 Corinthians 15:46 (NLT)
“What comes first is the natural body, then the spiritual body comes later.”
When we fully surrender and trust in Jesus Christ, we experience a miracle birth from God, we call it being born again! John tells us, “He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.” (John 1:10-13)
This is a work of the Holy Spirit as we see below in the conversation Jesus has with Nicodemus in John chapter 3.
John 3:1-8 (NLT)
“There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.” Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
By revelation we can also see that Abraham represents faith, scripture says, “In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God.” (Galatians 3:6-7) Sarah represents grace, scripture says, “These two women serve as an illustration of God’s two covenants. The first woman, Hagar, represents Mount Sinai where people received the law that enslaved them. And now Jerusalem is just like Mount Sinai in Arabia, because she and her children live in slavery to the law. But the other woman, Sarah, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. She is the free woman, and she is our mother.” (Galatians 4:24-26).
So Isaac was born “by grace … through faith”, sound familiar? “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9) This is the only way someone who is lost can enter the Kingdom of God!
Something seen throughout the scripture is that God often rejected the firstborn and accepted the second born. He rejected Cain and chose Abel (Genesis 4). He rejected Ishmael (firstborn), and chose Isaac (second born). He bypassed Esau (firstborn) and chose Jacob (second born) (Romans 9:8-13), and He chose Ephraim (second born) instead of Manasseh (firstborn) (Genesis 48). In Egypt, the Lord condemned all the firstborn (Exodus 11-12) and spared only those who were protected by faith in the blood of the Passover lamb upon their doorpost. This is a prophetic picture of those who are born again by the Blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God!
Isaac pictures the child of God not only in his birth but also in the joy that he brought. Isaac means “laughter, one who laughs or rejoices” and this time it was not the laughter of unbelief (Genesis 18:9-15). In Luke chapter 15 we see three parables about the lost sheep, lost coin, and lost son. Jesus' words in these parables reveal the joy that results when a lost soul repents and comes to the Lord. The shepherd rejoiced when he found the lost sheep, and the woman rejoiced when she found the lost coin, and they both asked their friends to rejoice with them. The father rejoiced when his prodigal son came home, and he invited the neighbors to a feast so they could share in his joy. Luke 15:7 says, “In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!”
I have not seen anywhere in scripture that Ishmael caused great joy in Abraham’s home. Abraham loved his son and wanted the best for him, as we see in Genesis 17:18, “So Abraham said to God, “May Ishmael live under your special blessing!”. From before his birth, Ishmael was a source of painful trouble (Genesis 16), and after he matured, he caused conflict in the family. “But Sarah saw Ishmael—the son of Abraham and her Egyptian servant Hagar—making fun of her son, Isaac.” (Genesis 21:9) Friends, the old nature is not able to produce the Fruit of the Spirit, no matter how hard it tries. Scripture says, “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.” (Galatians 5:17) Fruit forced from the flesh fails!
Let's look at another way scripture compares Isaac to the born again child of God:
Genesis 21:8 (NLT)
“When Isaac grew up and was about to be weaned, Abraham prepared a huge feast to celebrate the occasion.”
The New Birth is not the end, but simply the beginning, and as a child of God we must feed on His Word and grow spiritually.
Matthew 4:4 (NLT)
“But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say, ‘People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
1 Corinthians 3:1-3 (NLT)
“Dear brothers and sisters, when I was with you I couldn’t talk to you as I would to spiritual people. I had to talk as though you belonged to this world or as though you were infants in Christ. I had to feed you with milk, not with solid food, because you weren’t ready for anything stronger. And you still aren’t ready, for you are still controlled by your sinful nature. You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world?”
Hebrews 5:12-14 (NLT)
“You have been believers so long now that you ought to be teaching others. Instead, you need someone to teach you again the basic things about God’s word. You are like babies who need milk and cannot eat solid food. For someone who lives on milk is still an infant and doesn’t know how to do what is right. Solid food is for those who are mature, who through training have the skill to recognize the difference between right and wrong.”
As we mature in the Lord, we must do as Paul says, “When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things.” (1 Corinthians 13:11) and allow God to “wean us” (Psalms 131) from spiritually childish mindsets that can become permanent hindrances.
Just like a mother weans the child because she loves it and wants it to be free to grow up and not be dependent on her. However, some children may interpret her actions as an expression of rejection. So the child will look to just cling to the comforts of the past as the mother tries to encourage the child to grow and mature. The time comes in every believer's life when they must rid themselves of toys, and obtain tools. They must turn from self centered security to become unselfish in their service
John 12:23-26 (NLT)
“Jesus replied, “Now the time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory. I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honor anyone who serves me.”
Like Jesus promises every child of God, Isaac experienced persecution, Galatians 4:29 says, “But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.” Ishmael appears to have been an obedient son until Isaac entered the family, and then the “flesh” began to oppose “the Spirit.” Someone once said that the old nature knows no law but the new nature needs no law, and this is clearly seen in Abraham’s two sons.
In Jewish tradition children are usually weaned at about age three, so Ishmael was probably seventeen years old at the time Isaac was being weaned. This is based on what scripture tells us of the age of Abraham when each was born. Genesis 16:16 says, “Abram was eighty-six years old when Ishmael was born.” Then we see in Genesis 21:5, “Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born.” So there are fourteen years between Ishmael and Isaac. What arrogance that a boy of seventeen should torment a little boy of only three!
However, look at what God said that Ishmael would become:
Genesis 16:12 (NLT)
“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.”
The flesh and the Spirit are in conflict with each other and so we must starve the flesh, and that only comes by feeding our spirit, and being led by the Holy Spirit!
Galatians 5:16-25 (NLT)
“So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses. When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things! Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.”
Friends, just like Isaac, when we are born of the Spirit, we are born rich. Genesis 21:10 says, “So she 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!” Isaac was the heir of all that his father owned, and scripture tells us, “And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.” (Romans 8:17). So we see just as Isaac was the heir of all his father had, those who are in Christ are heirs of all our Heavenly Father has! Genesis 25:5 says, “And Abraham gave all that he had to Isaac.”
Finally, Isaac was born free, while Ishmael was the son of a slave (Galatians 4:22). So just as we have seen that Isaac is a picture of the miracle of the New Birth, those who have been born again have true freedom!
2 Corinthians 3:17 (NLT)
“For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”
Galatians 4:31 (NLT)
“So, dear brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman; we are children of the free woman.”
Galatians 5:1 (NLT)
“So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don’t get tied up again in slavery to the law.”
This does not mean the freedom we have in Jesus is to be used to continue in a life of sin, as that is the worst kind of bondage. Galatians 5:13 says. “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” This means our freedom is to be used to walk upon the path Jesus has set before us. To partner with the Holy Spirit to fulfill what Jesus has destined for us to do. No one is more free than the child of God who delights in His will and does it from a pure heart!
Psalms 24:3-5 (NLT)“Who may climb the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? Only those whose hands and hearts are pure, who do not worship idols and never tell lies. They will receive the Lord’s blessing and have a right relationship with God their savior.”