Reader:
What name would you attribute to God?
How you answer depends on what you see.
Sarai saw her barrenness. She saw no children. She saw a slave girl she could use to get what she wanted. She saw God as One-Who-Holds-Back.
Abram heard the voice of God. He chose to obey the voice of his wife. He saw God as One-Who-Needs-Help.
Hagar saw those who owned her. She saw an opportunity to be elevated. She saw humiliation.
Hagar also saw the Angel of the LORD who found her, called her by name, directed her, and gave her a promise.
As an “expression of her personal discovery at God’s self-manifestation” she gave God a name: You-Are-the-God-Who-Sees.
What you see can cause you to attribute false names to God – “assuming God is other that He is.”
“In Christ and by Christ, God effects complete self-disclosure” – “by revelation [He has] declared certain things to be true of Himself.”
See the Truth.
(Heb 6:12, 10:35-36; Gen 11:30, 13:14-17, 15:2, 3:17; Ex 15:22; Gen 29:32; Ex 4:31, 3:7; D t 26:7; Gen 24:62, 25:11)