The God Who Sees

Unfortunately, this question is still raised today: “Do I really need to read the Old Testament?” George Muller explained a few reasons for reading the Old Testament: “An orderly reading of the Word honors the glory of God. The leaving out of some chapters here and there is practically saying that certain portions are better than others, or that there are certain parts of revealed truth that are unprofitable or unnecessary. The Scriptures contain the whole revealed will of God; therefore, we ought to seek to read from time to time through the whole of that revealed will.” We should not be so arrogant to say there are portions of the Bible that we need not read. One of the things we will learn in the Old Testament are various attributes of God, expressed through actions and names. God is given at least 14 different names in the Old Testament, one of which is El-Roi, the God who sees.

“The angel of the Lord found Hagar beside a spring of water in the wilderness, along the road to Shur. The angel said to her, ‘Hagar, Sarai’s servant, where have you come from, and where are you going?’
‘I’m running away from my mistress, Sarai,’ she replied.
The angel of the Lord said to her, ‘Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority.’ Then he added, ‘I will give you more descendants than you can count.’ And the angel also said, ‘You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son. You are to name him Ishmael (which means “God hears”), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress. 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.’ Thereafter, Hagar used another name to refer to the Lord, who had spoken to her. She said, ‘You are the God who sees me.’” (Genesis 16:7-13)

Hagar had been treated poorly by Sarai after doing what she had been told. Sarai was impatient and she turned her regret to anger toward Hagar, so Hagar ran away. Unfortunately, this behavior hasn’t changed much in the tens of thousands of years since this story. There are countless people who have run away because of treatment they have received from God’s followers. If you have run away from the church or from others because of how you were treated by someone who followed God, remember what Hagar learned: our God is the God who sees, El-Roi. He sees you in your pain and sorrow and rejection. God works through the mistakes and errors and bad choices of others. The actions of others need not hinder God. When someone plays Beethoven poorly, you don’t blame Beethoven—you blame the person at the piano. Don’t blame God for how some people have poorly played Him. He is El-Roi, the God who sees, and He loves you more than you can ever know.

To the glory of the Lord God, whose I am, and whom I serve.