The story of Abraham and Sarah can be read in Genesis, starting in chapter 12 and going through to chapter 23.
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
“I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 12:1-3 (NIV)
It started with an invitation to leave what they knew and head towards an unknown destination. It’s a grand promise, but how does one person become a great nation? We are told that Abram is already 75 years old. We learn later that Sarah is 10 years younger than Abram (Genesis 17:17), so she is already 65. They have already gone well past the point where they would have hope for being able to have a child together. Even though this is the starting point for the story, there’s a long and unknown story that precedes it.
The natural desire for a family was part of that untold story. Children were seen as a blessing from God. So if it wasn’t possible then there would be the questions. Why is this being withheld? Can you please bless us with a child? Why is this not possible for us? Years of conversations with God were part of this untold story. Then perhaps years of not asking anymore, because it’s clearly impossible. The time for that was over. Now this.
Take some time to think about how you might respond to this new situation.
What would you think about God’s timing?
Do you have any thoughts on why God is doing this now?
Is it clear how God will do this from what’s been said?
It gets clearer over the coming years:
The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” Genesis 13:14-17 (NIV)
So it becomes clear that Abram has been promised offspring, but the question remains, how and when?
Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. Genesis 15:4-6 (NIV)
Sarah comes up with a solution to her side of the impossible.
Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar; so she said to Abram, “The Lord has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my slave; perhaps I can build a family through her.” Genesis 16:1-2
The tension at this point comes not so much from believing that the promise will become a reality, but from not being able to see how it is possible for her to be the mother. In hindsight, we might think that it would have been less complicated if this plan had not been put into motion. Understandably, Sarah certainly had regrets later on, both during Hagar’s pregnancy (Gen 16:5) and after Isaac’s birth (Gen 21:8-10).
- In what ways is Sarah’s proposal a good idea?
- In what ways is it a bad idea?
- How does God react?
- Towards Abram?
- Towards Sarah?
- Towards Hagar?
- Towards Ishmael?
God continues to promise a son, and now specifically includes Sarah in that promise. Both Abraham and Sarah find the impossibility of the promise to Sarah cause for laughter:
God also said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah. I will bless her and will surely give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she will be the mother of nations; kings of peoples will come from her.”
Abraham fell facedown; he laughed and said to himself, “Will a son be born to a man a hundred years old? Will Sarah bear a child at the age of ninety?” And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!”
Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. Genesis 17:15-19
Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
But he said, “Yes, you did laugh.” Genesis 18:10-15
The challenge to believe the impossible is more likely to be found in the ‘how’ and ‘why’ rather than in the ‘what’. It is encouraging to see that multiple mis-steps from Abraham and Sarah and their unintended consequences do nothing to prevent God from fulfilling his promise. Your conversations with God over the years may have provided some glimpses from God about his promises for you. They may also be filled with your recurring hopes and dreams that are yet to find a way into reality.
What are some of your as yet unfulfilled promises or hopes?
When we see an obstacle to our dream becoming reality, how can we approach the question of whether to move it ourselves or wait for God to move it?
What can we learn about God’s character from Abraham and Sarah’s experience? How might that help us today?
Final Question: How does Jesus encourage us when it comes to believing the impossible?