Genesis 18 (Pt. 1) - Where God makes Sarah Laugh and Burns Stuff

Last night I got to go to a concert with my wife, without the children. The concert involved some musicians we had listened to in college so we went, without the children. We had a wonderful time together, without the children, listening to music and enjoying ourselves without the children. I love good music and it was a real treat to have some quality time with my wife, you know...without those people.

Speaking of Abraham and Genesis 18, (segue), we last left Abraham cutting parts off his hoo-ha. What's going on now you ask? I am glad you asked.

Genesis 18 begins a story about Sodom and Gomorrah, which continues into Genesis 19 and 20. The Sodom and Gomorrah story is pretty interesting, (fire and brimstone, literally). To be honest with you, I'd rather just skip to that story, because it's much more exciting. The problem is that the first part of Genesis 18, while pretty innocuous, (my fancy word for the day), is still very important. Why? Because it shows God fulfilling his promise to Abraham, the promises made earlier in chapter 12, 15, and 17.

So what (patent pending) happens? "And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre, as he sat at the door of his tent in the heat of the day.," (18:1). So God shows up. Abraham recognizes it is God and like any good host he rushes about to get the Lord and his angels some hors d'oeurves, (v2-8). God and the angels eat the tasty snacks. The lesson to be learned here is: if you want God to bless you, make sure you have good chips and salsa, (I'm totally kidding, please do not take me seriously).

God then says to Abram, "Where is Sarah your wife?' And he said, 'She is in the tent.' The Lord said, 'I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife shall have a son," (v9-10). God promises Abraham, who is about 99 years old at this point, that he is going to bear a child. Even more so, he is going to bear a son. God had been promising Abraham for the last 25 years that he was going to be the father of a great nation and the nation was going to come from he and his wife. Abraham had tried to make God's promise work in his own time and ways, but that didn't work out too well, (see also Ishmael). Now God comes to him and tells Abraham that within a year he is going to have the son of promise. Think about it. Abraham had been waiting for 25 years and is told now, when he's about to pass the century mark, he's about to have a boy.

Now you're probably thinking it might be hard for Sarah and Abraham to see how this is going to happen because they're both Very Old People and Very Old People usually don't bear children, nor do they want to. Sarah is thinking the same way. "And Sarah was listening at the tent door behind him. Now Abraham and Sarah were old, (I told you so), advanced in years. The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah. So Sarah laughed to herself, saying, 'After I am worn out, and my lord is old, shall I have pleasure," (v10-12). There comes a time in a woman's life when...um...there are no more...they don't have any...um...they can't have children. As Forrest Gump would say, "That's all I have to say about that."


Anyways, Sarah's barren. She can't have kids. It's physically impossible. So when she hears God say that Sarah will bear a son she laughs out loud, literally. Well the problem of laughing around God is no matter how quietly you laugh, God hears. It's like making a face at your mom behind her back. She just always knows. Same thing with God. So he calls Sarah out on her unbelief.

"The Lord said to Abraham, 'Why did Sarah laugh and say, 'Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?' Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, about this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.' But Sarah denied it, saying, 'I did not laugh.' for she was afraid. He said, 'No, but you did laugh," (13-15). Sarah gets caught red handed, so to speak, for her unbelief. In human terms you can hardly blame her.

Most Very Old People who are 99 years old or so live in tiny little communities with nurses like this and can't go to the bathroom on their own. However, in divine terms, there is nothing impossible for God. So God tells Sarah, I heard you, you're busted. Sarah tries to deny it, just like the children who live in my house, but it's too late.

Some important SoWhat lessons here:
1. God is faithful to fulfill his promises and his covenants, no matter what it takes. Human limitations are not limitations for God. God will ALWAYS be faithful to his WORD and to his promises. This is the basis for faith by the people of God: He is faithful to what he says. He can be trusted. Man will not limit the promise of God. We need to remember this as we read the rest of the Bible. God has made certain promises to Abraham and his descendants, i.e. the Jews. They may do really, really stupid things in the future, but God will not forsake them and will not forsake his promises. Keep that in mind.
2. God does not require people of perfect faith in order to do great things. Abraham and Sarah have had their share of doubts and mistakes throughout their lives. Sarah, even after 25 years of seeing God at work, still has trouble believing God's Word. That's okay. God is still going to work and do miracles in their lives. The Lord doesn't necessarily require people of pure faith, just some faith.
3. It's never a good idea to laugh at God. I'm just saying.
4. Menopause is an uncomfortable topic for a man to write about. Nuff said.

God is going to fulfill his promise of giving Abraham a son. He is going to use people who have trouble believing, but he is going to work out his plan no matter what. We're about to see the beginnings of the fulfillment of God's unconditional promises to Abraham and his kin. Cool stuff.

Next time: God blows stuff up. In the meantime: