Young Adults - “The God Who Sees” - Genesis 16

“The God Who Sees”

Good evening, Young Adults! I’m so excited and grateful to worship with you all tonight - and I’m praying that God meets with you tonight.

This summer we are walking through a sermon series called, “The Names of God.” So without too much explanation, we are going to look at the names of God in Scripture and lean into Who God is based on His name.

I believe this can be a transformational series in your life. Why?

The names of God always reveal the nature of God.

God’s names are not just labels, they are revelations.

When God reveals His name, He is revealing something true about His eternal, unchanging character.

Exodus 3:14 - I AM WHO I AM - reminder that God is self-existent, constant, and sovereign.

His names don’t just describe a fragment of Him they declare who He is in full.

Holy - God is wholly holy.

Love - God is completely loving.

Just - God is completely just.

There is no compartmentalizing of God’s character.

His names aren’t just for knowledge, they are for relationship.

Psalm 9:10 ESV

10 And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.

David knew the names of God in his relationsihp with God.

This is how he could write a psalm like Psalm 23 - “The Lord (Jehovah) is my shepherd, I have all that I need (Jireh - provide)

Psalm 23:2 “2 He makes me lie down in green pastures (Jehovah Shalom). He leads me beside still waters.”

Psalm 23:3 “3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” (

Psalm 23:4 “4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” (Jehovah-Nissi)

The names of God always reveal the nature of God.

The

Tonight we will be in Genesis 16.

As you turn there we are going to unpack the name of God found in this text: El Roi.

El Roi means, “the God who sees.”

This isn’t just a quick glance. This is always seeing

Genesis 16:1-13

Imagine scrolling through your social media feed. You see friends posting about promotions, perfect family moments, exotic vacations, and gourmet meals. It's a highlight reel of life's best moments. But behind these curated snapshots, there's often a different story—struggles, doubts, and imperfections that remain unseen. Studies show that this curated self-presentation is driven by our deep-seated need for approval and belonging. We filter our lives to present the best version of ourselves, often hiding the messier parts.

We do this for several reasons:

1. The need for social approval and belonging.

2. Manage other people’s impression of us by giving off an idealized self-presentation.

3. To get feedback.

4. To control anxiety in the social media environment.

But in Genesis 16, we encounter a different narrative. The Bible doesn't filter out the flaws of its characters. Instead, it presents their struggles and failures unflinchingly. Sarai and Abram's story isn't curated—it's raw and real. And it's not just that you and I see their dysfunction. The point of the passage is that El Roi, the God who sees, sees their actions, faithlessness, brokenness, pain, and everything else.

So tonight as we jump into our passage, I want to invite you all to stand with me as we read the holy, inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word of God.

1. The Failure of Human Effort

When we stop trusting God, we turn to the flesh. Only pain and brokenness follow.

Failure to recognize the tension of this. There must be a self awareness here.

It’s kind of like the guy at the gym who is extremely self-disciplined but not self-aware at all.

Y’all probably know what I’m talking about. The dude that goes to the bench, loads a little weight, goes to lift it and then screams like a toddler who just found out Chick-fil-A is closed on Sunday.

Like a dad stepping on a Lego at 3 am.

like a middle-schooler whose WIFI went out mid-Fortnite.”

The gym rat, powerlifter is an example of a tension: he’s fully comfortable and disciplined in the gym, all the while not knowing how much his self-awareness lacks on the other side.

If believers aren’t careful, we can begin to walk in the flesh… slowly drifting from the God who sees, and

The tension here includes:

Pain has a way of skewing our own self-awareness.

What are some signs that I’m walking in the flesh?

a. Attempting Sovereignty

This should stand out to you, they had a proper confession. Sarai understood in some sense the sovereignty of God, and even confessed that.

Let’s pause here for a moment. Sarai is speaking to her husband Abram in a moment of soul-wrenching pain.

Pain of not holding the baby boy she was promised.

Pain of prayers not yet answered.

The pain of public shame.

The pain of maybe hoping that it was Abrams fault.

The pain of blaming God and unbelief.

Genesis 16:2 ESV

2 And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai.

Sarai says, “The LORD has _________.”

Don’t miss this:

Sarai believed God was sovereign, but she still acted like she needed to take over.

One pastor said, “Faith is living without scheming.”

How often do we affirm and worship and sing about and amen the truth that our God is good? He is for us? He is in control? He is the promise maker and keeper?

b. Behaving Impatiently

You can never stir God to impatience.

Patience is a fruit of the Spirit but it takes practice. It doesn’t just come to you. Your natural instinct is not to wait.

It’s God’s nature, on the other hand, to be patient.

Impatience often masquerades as productivity.

Rushing it usually ruins it.

c. Choosing Passivity

Reference the covenant that God set up with Abram in Genesis 15.

God actually was the sole party involved in establishing this covenant.

God sent a flaming torch and a smoking fire pot through the animals.

What should Abram have done in this moment?

“Sarai, I hear your pain. I hurt with you and for you. But babe… the same God that called us out here is the same God that will fulfill the promise.”

We must walk in faith not in the flesh or unbelief.

it would be another 13 years until Isaac would be born.

d. Deflecting Responsibility

The flesh can produce results, but it won’t produce righteousness.

God sees it all.

The Angel of the LORD sees her by a spring in the desert.

As a matter of fact, He saw the other things that went down.

His sight brings both comfort and conviction.

Where have you stopped trusting God in your life?

In what way are you acting impatient?

2. The Faithfulness of the God Who Sees

God sees us in our mess, meets us in our wilderness, and invites us into a better way.

 if God physically appeared and spoke as one Person to another in the Old Testament, we understand this as an appearance of the eternal Son, the Second Person of the Trinity, before His incarnation in Bethlehem.

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Abraham (Genesis 22).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Moses (Exodus 3).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Balaam (Numbers 22).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Israel collectively (Judges 2).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Gideon (Judges 6).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Samson's parents (Judges 13).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to David (2 Samuel 24).

The Angel of the LORD would later appear to Elijah (1 Kings 19).

iii. This is the first appearance of the Angel of the LORD in the Bible. He didn't first appear to Noah or Enoch or Abram. The Angel of the LORD first appeared to a single mother-to-be who had a pride problem and was mistreated by the woman who put her into the whole mess.

iv. All this makes us amazed at God's love for the unlikely, and we should never forget that He often delights in doing this.

a. God Sees

b. God Pursues

God initiates the conversation: “Where have you come from and where are you going?” (v.8)

He doesn’t shame her—He engages her.

Luke 15 – Like the shepherd going after the one lost sheep.

Quote: “We may give up on God, but God never gives up on us.”

c. God Calls

God tells her to return and submit (v.9) — not because it’s easy, but because it's where His promise will unfold.

This is not a call to return to abuse but a specific call tied to His redemptive plan for her and her son.

Application: Sometimes God calls us away from isolation, self-pity, or rebellion—and toward trust and obedience.

Closing questions:

Do you live your life actually believing that God sees?

“Just like Hagar, Jesus finds us in our wilderness. And He didn’t just speak promises—He became the promise. He saw us, pursued us through the cross, and now calls us into new life.”

Story of the fighter pilot.

How is this Name of God relevant for today?

Reminder that He knows.

Reminder that He pursues.

How should our perspective change of God because of this aspect today?

Holy fear.