God is Always Working Study Scripture: Genesis 18:9-15; 21:1-7

Transcription

1 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People God is Always Working Study Scripture: Genesis 18:9-15; 21:1-7 Lesson 8, October 20th, Key Verse The Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. Genesis 21:1 INTRODUCTION It is often a problem for believing Christians to look at Old Testament passages as history and miss the point that these passages have spiritual and theological significance. Our Study Text is. not just a passage with moral or historical ideas, but it is one that points to the Messiah as well as Messiah appearing before His incarnation to ensure that the line from which He would come physicality would be protected, and maintained in proper fashion Note that Abraham and Sarah had been told to wait the arrival of the long anticipated son of promise. The promise from God had been clear. Abraham and Sarah had waited for a long time and during that time Abraham and Sarah had plotted that Abram have a son which would not be her son but in fact it be a son born of their fleshly impulses. So they both had a son of the flesh called Ishmael. When we can understand the moral failures of Abraham and Sarah, failure which are very similar to ours, we should note the seriousness of the threat that is posed to the covenant promises of God. In chapter 20 we again read that Abraham journeyed in the land of Canaan and Abimelech King of Gerar sent and took Sarah because Abraham had told the lie for the second time that Sarah his 1

2 God Destroys and Creates wife was his sister. God had to appear immediately and tell Abimelech that he was a dead man because he had taken Sarah a woman married to /Abraham. Abimelech was frightened and begged God not to do anything drastic to him or his nation for neither he nor his kingdom had deliberately done anything wrong for they thought that Sarah was free and single. Abraham and Sarah therefore had acted on occasion to threaten the paternity of the promised son for our chapter 18 Study Text tells us that Isaac was about to be born and so while the couple traveled around Canaan any attempt by Abimelech or any other to cohabit with Sarah would have cast doubt on whether Isaac was really Abraham's son. The devil would have been able to create doubt about God's promise and as one writer noted doubt about the lineage of the Messiah. It is instructive for us therefore to note the importance of Abraham acknowledging that Sarah was his only wife and that Isaac was certainly his son, the son promised to both of them. This was what God had promised them. Abraham and Sarah had had patterns of sin, old habits, responses to pressure or temptations. These pressures surfaced time after time and so it was very important for God to act in the way He did in our first Study Text. But even then chapter 20 would tell us of the strength of sin and old habits and man s failures and the failures of this couple and the necessity for God to intervene drastically to protect them and the line of the Messiah. As we therefore look at high point of the story, the long awaited birth of Isaac the son of promise, let us never forget the role that God has to play in human affairs so that His aim of salvation for men would occur. In this passage therefore let us look at Sarah's amazingly limited understanding of the covenant that God had with her and Abraham. Let us examine our understanding of the covenant God has with us who are believers We also note that when the promise of a child was once again made by the Lord her focus was on the impossibility of her having pleasure, sexual pleasure, and the pleasure of childbirth since also her Lord was old. Let us not fool ourselves for human beings tend to focus on human things. Let us not hold the unbiblical view that the Old Testament frowns on sexual pleasure. What it does it piints us to the married relationship and that bed being undefiled But notice also that Sarah's response to the angelic beings in her particular reference to Abraham as Lord, which of course modern women do not like. Unfortunately for modern thinking though the Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 3:5 holds up that kind of relationship between husband-and-wife as being the preferred relationship established by God. That passage in the New Testament refers to what Sarah said and Sarah is held up as an example of the behavior of: holy woman. We can say what we like but that is Scripture. But before we criticize Sarah too much we also should note that her behavior in this passage is very important for the response to her attitude drew from the Lord an important statement. It introduces us to the greatest of ideas that nothing is too difficult, or literally in Hebrew wonderful for the Lord.

3 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People But then she also is an example of the tendency to try to deceive, a tendency that is a part of our human nature which we all share. She would try to deceive that she did not laugh but when confronted by divine certainty of what she had done in her mind, she was silent. May we follow her example is that respect. Note therefore we are looking at a very crucial passage for we are really studying the lineage of Messiah our Savior and what Messiah did to protect the purity of His lineage so that we would be truly saved for He being holy and sinless would be able to bear all our sins. It is also important to note other factors from the story. Friendship and trust are often forged through shared experiences, interactions and dependency over long periods. Abraham is called the friend of God and despite some notably acts of faith towards God on his part, it was God who befriended Abraham. God first called Abraham to the life of faith while he lived in Ur of the Chaldeans; a city rife with idol worship and Abraham and his family were full participants (Joshua 24:2). The relationship between God and Abraham would continue over his lifetime, dotted by extremely important and supportive and memory jogging visits from the Lord. On these occasions God made and reiterated promises to Abraham which were eventually formalized into a covenant and centered on an heir, posterity, land and blessings. Working against these outcomes, however, was the fact that Abram and Sarai were not able to have children (Genesis 11:30). Abram may have assumed that God would correct this problem sooner rather than later. God told Abram on more than one occasion that his descendants would possess the land of Canaan, which at that time was occupied by other tribes (Gen.12:6, 7; 13:14 17; 15:18 21). Yet despite all these promises, nothing happened. Abram and Sarai prospered financially (Gen. 13:2), and their clan was feared for its military power (Genesis 14), but no son was born. How could God s plan be fulfilled if His promise remained unfulfilled? Abram raised this point with God explicitly in Genesis 15:1 3. Abram observed that it would be impossible for God s plan to work since he had no male heir and at death all his assets would go to his oldest male servant, Eliezer, who was not related to him by blood (15:2). In response, God reaffirmed the promise (15:4, 5). Yet more time passed, and the couple remained childless. In desperation, elderly Abram and Sarai decided to take matters into their own hands. They attempted to produce what God had promised through human effort. A child was born through Sarai s maid, Hagar, but not the child of promise. Only grief resulted for Abram, Sarai, and Hagar because of this sin. This was another low point in Abraham s life and so far as the Bible informs us, it would be thirteen years until God again spoke to him. As we approach our Text it is some thirteen years later, with Abram nearing the century mark in years and God broke the silence and made His intentions clear (Genesis 17). Abram (meaning exalted father ) would be known as Abraham ( father of many ; 17:4, 5). Abraham and Sarah 3

4 God Destroys and Creates (renamed from Sarai) would have many descendants, who would indeed conquer and possess the land (17:6 8). Having heard this same story many times before, Abraham could only laugh (17:17). It is clear when we look at the life of Abraham that we see several failures and Christian history demonstrates that when we look at ourselves we will see the same failures. On the other hand we see that Abram was very successful when he trusted God and that should teach us an important lesson. Abram s faith clearly grew over time and when it did he was a source of blessing for the people around him and for all of us who have lived after him. Despite Abraham's less than stellar obedience. God's unconditional promise would be fulfilled, not because of Abraham s actions but on account of God s faithfulness to His promises. In contrast to chapter 16, chapter 18 is a high point in Abraham s life. While his faith was not flawless, it had grown. His attitudes and actions serve as an example of maturing faith. THE TEXT Chapter 18 Verses 1-8. Abraham was now a circumcised man in a formal covenant with Yahweh and his behavior in this episode is consistent with his status. And the LORD appeared unto him while this was not the first appearance of the Lord to Abraham, it was certainly unique. Previously, God spoke directly (12:1-3; 13:14-17), through a spokesman (14:19-20), by a vision (15:1), and in an appearance, one which may have been accompanied with glory and splendor (17:1). Now, God came to Abraham appearing as an ordinary man, accompanied by two others who eventually are identified as angelic beings (18:2,22; 19:1). We are told nothing which would distinguish these three travelers from any other passer-by. Abraham in typical eastern Bedouin fashion, sat by the door of his tent in the heat of the day. The time of day made the need for hospitality even greater, for these guests would be thirsty and weary from the heat. Abraham s hospitality would be put to the test, for his siesta must come to a halt in order to serve his guests. Note, Abraham is ready to minister to those in need. He just saw three men in the desert who he probably will never see again, but he still treated them royally. Abraham did this because he had a circumcised heart and he truly belonged to Christ. He looked for opportunities to do good and was always ready to respond. These tests come to us every day. We must ask ourselves the question of what to do about the needs that confront us daily. Jesus will ask us one day what have we been doing with the sick, the hungry, the thirsty, the dying and the strangers who need spiritual and physical help.

5 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People.. he ran to meet them while such hospitality is still a part of the culture of the east, Abraham s zeal for his task was obvious. Any of us would gladly have prepared such a feast if we knew the identity of the guests, but it would seem almost certain that Abraham was, as yet, in the dark. Verse 9.. they refers to the three men of verse 2. Their identity is often proposed to be the Lord and two angels, who disguised themselves in human form. They stopped by the home of Abraham and Sarah to again confirm God s promise regarding a child. This was a strengthening visit. At this point in the narrative, Abraham was hosting the three men by providing a meal and rest (Genesis 18:1 8). These are standard gestures of hospitality offered to traveling guests; however Abraham s hospitality seems to go beyond the ordinary. Abraham said he was only providing a little. Bread for his guests but it turned out that this was a sumptuous meal. The Lord apparently did not disclose His identity to Abraham until later, so Abraham may not have realized at this point that he was talking to the Lord and His angelic messengers. The author of Hebrews seems to allude to this story when he urged, Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares (Hebrews 13:2). Where is Sarah thy wife? the question likely aroused some curiosity in Abraham s mind. Sarah had assisted in the preparation of the food (Gen. 18:6), but had not shared in the meal. Instead, she remained in the tent while the men dined outside. In that time, as in some cultures today, it is considered inappropriate for a married woman even to talk with men outside her family, much less dine with them. The mysterious strangers inquiry about Sarah was doubtless unsettling, since it appears they had no way of knowing the name of Abraham s wife. Note now that we are looking at a challenge to Sarah's faith. Maybe God will challenge our faith in a similar fashion though for different reasons How do you react when you're relaxing and the phone rings and a call for help or even a demand for help comes? When you're overwhelmed by housework and other problems and your child comes to ask you a question that is not really very important to you how do you react? These are tests. That is why the Apostle Paul says in Romans 12 you are to present your body a living sacrifice. Try therefore to follow the example of Abraham and Sarah as the obeyed God. Try to remember that hospitality is true religion. Work to meet the true needs of others that you see. Verse 10. I will the plural they of the previous verse changes to singular he, which further changes to the Lord in verse 13. The substance of this promise differed little from that revealed previously in chapter 17:19, 21 and likely pointed to the identity of the guests in Abraham s mind. There was a key difference to the promise this time. The earlier promises about Abraham s descendants were oriented toward a distant future (Genesis 12:1 3, 7; 13:14 17; 15:1 21; 17:1 21. This one was specific: according to the time of life; that is, about this same time next year, the 5

6 God Destroys and Creates promised son will come (2 Kings 4:13-16). The importance of this prediction is acknowledged in Romans 9:9. Sarah heard it... we might wonder if Sarah was intentionally eavesdropping, or if the message was intentionally spoken loudly enough to ensure it reached her ears. Verse 11. This verse underscores the human impossibility of what the stranger was saying. It has already been stated numerous times that Sarah was unable to become pregnant (Genesis 11:30; 16:1; 17:17). The physical challenge clearly lay with her, because Abraham was able to father a child with Hagar (16:1 4). Even if Sarah had already borne a dozen children, she is now ninety years old (17:17) and well past menopause. Verse 12. Sarah laughed within herself whether Sarah realized this was God talking or simply thought their guest was offering a blessing on Abraham s household for the hospitality, this verse reveals the state of her own faith. Compounding the problem, she thought, was the fact of Abraham s advanced age. The whole scenario had devolved, for her, into grim humor; all she can do was laugh in God s face, as Abraham himself had done a few months earlier. Then Abraham fell upon his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is an hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? (Gen.17:17). Note that Sarah's response was probably a mix of doubt and delight but her response was in a purely sensual way, Shall I have pleasure?. Be reminded that the Scriptures do not promote a puritanical way of life. But note also how she termed Abraham Nowadays wives do not call their husbands Lord neither do they often show the greater respect that comes from that title. But the Apostle Peter warns that holy women should pay attention to Sarah's behavior. It is important for us to pay attention to the relationship between man and woman which was described in the book of Genesis for that book pictures an extremely close relationship between a man and his wife and for that matter between male and female brethren based on the mutual and caring and affection in the family of God pictured by the phrase just as Christ loved the church. Verse 13. And the Lord said unto Abraham notice that a gentle rebuke is directed, at first, toward Abraham, not Sarah. Abraham, as the circumcised man, the head of his house was the one responsible to God. So the question was quite rightly posed to him. Somehow he must give account for his wife s response which raises the question; had Abraham deliberately kept God s promise from her? Or was his faith so weak that he could not convince his wife? The reality is that Sarah s response mirrored Abraham s. He had provided the example for her. On the other hand, some believe Abraham s laughter at this promise (Gen 17:17) was the joyous outburst of astonishment and the reason he was not rebuked for his laughing.

7 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People God s intent was to replace doubt with delight and cultivate their faith. Faith indeed is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. We may note that when all human logic and intellect have been exhausted, when natural means are depleted and all our efforts fail, then we are forced to look to the supernatural and seek divine intervention. Having gotten their attention they were forced to contemplate the matter at hand, namely, the fulfillment of certain promise of the promised heir; the one who will be born of the will of God and not man. Verse 14. too hard means "extraordinary," "wonderful act of God." Note its usage in Exod. 15:11; Ps. 77:14; 88:10; 119:129; 139:6; Dan. 12:6. This rhetorical question states a premise of the Bible in a way that demands faith. The God who created the universe can do anything He wants and has proven so time and again. The question, then, is not whether God does what He says but whether Abraham and Sarah believe that He can and will. I will return this restatement of the promise is not worded in such a way as to imply contingency on faith. The unconditional I will return asserts that this will be an occasion when God s will cannot be negated by lack of faith. One writer notes: The words of our Lord speak as loudly to Christians today as they did to Abraham, Is anything too difficult for the Lord? (Genesis 18:14a). Here is the bedrock issue. The only reason for such unbelief is a failure to comprehend the extent of God s ability to work in and through us. The other side of the coin is this: were the matter of having a son not impossible, the glory for such a miracle would not have been given to God. The delay in the birth of Isaac was intended both to necessitate and to nurture the faith of Abraham and Sarah. Thankfully this is not all the story for Sarah. Hebrews 11:11 informs us: By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, even when she was past the age, since she consider him faithful who had promised. Eventually Sarah looked beyond the facts of her life and her feelings and admitted to herself that nothing was too hard for the Lord. What He had promised would be done. And by faith she conceived even though she was old. Why? Because she counted God faithful to His promise. So Sarah came to understand that she should look beyond the impossible circumstances and to rest on the character of God who had promised. Faith must have a promise to rest on. The word of God is the only thing that can be trusted no matter what the circumstances, no matter what our feelings, or no matter who is fighting against us. 7

8 God Destroys and Creates Beyond reassuring Abraham and Sarah of the promised child s birth, the words of the Lord in verses 10 and 14 served to confirm the identity of the third guest as the Lord Himself. In chapter 17 the Lord promised Abraham a child through Sarah in the first person (17:15-16,19,21). In chapter 18 the promise is again stated in the first person (verses 10, 14). In addition, this visitor was able to know the inner thoughts of Sarah as she laughed to herself in the tent (verse 13). No question now remained concerning the identity of the One and His two fellow travelers. Verse 15. Sarah seems to have come out of the tent when Abraham was questioned concerning her unbelief. In her fear, she denied laughing. Realizing that she has been caught red-handed, perhaps offending their guests and embarrassing her husband, Sarah whips up a quick lie to get off the hook. Her fear may simply reflect the social awkwardness of the situation. But she reflects our human tendency to try to deceive when we are caught in our own sin. So let us be careful about what we say and what we do for we do not always know to whom we are speaking. The men leave (Genesis 18:16) with the prophecy un-retracted. Sarah will have a son within about a year, whether she believes it or not. Genesis 21:1-7 Two interventions by the Lord are recorded between the two segments of today s study text. First, God destroyed the evil cities of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19:1 29). Then God intervened to rescue Abraham from a terrible situation brought on by his lack of faith (Genesis 20). Chapters 19 and 20 record the story of the deliverance of Lot from Sodom and Abraham s encounter with King Abimelech; Abraham having for the second time lied that Sarah was just his sister. The judgment of God came on Abimelech s household, as God revealed to him in a dream. In a peculiar turn of events, God told Abimelech to allow Abraham to pray for him, for he was a prophet and through his intercession the judgment would be lifted. These events are not isolated stories, but through them God would develop the faith of Abraham. Abraham would come to understand that God not only provides for but also protects his people. God had promised and reconfirmed his intention to give them their own child, so Abraham should have no reason to fear for their lives, for this promise was yet future. So when we contemplate the life of Abraham and the creation of the people of God, we must realize that he did not become the father of the faithful overnight and similarly God also works with us to develop and grow our faith.

9 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People Our Study Text shows that Abraham and Sarah were overwhelmed with joy when the son of promise was born. There was joy and victory, gladness and triumph. They had struggled for many years and now came victory. This reminds us of what happens when we find Christ and we go through a period of elation. We have found our Savior and there is genuine gladness in our soul. But then we are faced with a part of our life which retards our spiritual progress and we have a real problem. It is a struggle to bring our natural inclinations under control and to break away from the habits of our former lifestyle. Believers can take comfort that when we have our natural reactions to troubles that all the great saints of God have had, we know that when we stand in the strength of God which he supplies daily, He will keep before us the fact that He is with us and will give us what He has promised. So since God is with us, who can prevail against us! God reminded Abram that He was his shield and his great reward and in that time of fear and anxiety Abraham received comfort. God will make it absolutely clear that the promise recorded in Genesis 12:2 and 13: would come to fruition, as will all His promises to His people. THE TEXT Verses 1-2. So after that sad debacle in Gerar, we now move from the low point to the high, the long-awaited birth of Isaac. Abraham and Sarah s joy multiplied tremendously when they realized how gracious God had been and that God had taken them through that danger with Abimelech and now had fulfilled His promise the Lord visited the Lord did YHWH is repeated twice for emphasis. This child was by His enabling! "as He had promised" There is a distinct emphasis on the aspect of fulfillment in these verses. Four times in these two short verses the element of fulfillment is stressed ( as He had said, as He had promised, verse 1; at the appointed time, which God had spoken, verse 2). It was God who promised the child; it was God who accomplished His word and this was done right on schedule. God s purposes are never delayed, nor are they ever defeated by man s sin. God s purposes are certain. What God has promised, He will accomplish. Sarah became pregnant and gave birth at the age of ninety years (Gen. 17:17). This fact answers the rhetorical question of Genesis 18:14 Is any thing too hard for the Lord?. Clearly, nothing is impossible with God! After decades of Abraham and Sarah s childlessness, God acts miraculously within the exact time frame specified. The promise was now fulfilled according to the precise time and at the advanced age of ninety God gave Sarah strength, and Sarah bore Abraham a son. What a gracious God! What a God who forgives sin and keeps His promise! When we are faithless, He remains faithful! 9

10 God Destroys and Creates Verse 3. Abraham called the name of his son both Abraham and Sarah laughed when promised a child, reflecting their doubt (Genesis 17:17; 18:12). In response to Abraham s laughter, God directed that the child s name be Isaac (17:19), which means he laughs. Thus the child s name serves as an enduring reminder of God s faithfulness in the face of human doubt. Isaac s name thus speaks volumes. It would be a source of joy to his parents as the fulfillment of God's promised seed. Both Abraham and Sarah had laughed in amazement and unbelief respectively when told that God had chosen to bless them by giving them a son so late in life (17:17; 18:12). To his parents, the name condemned their we know better impatience with God s timetable. At the same time, the name symbolizes the great joy their son was bringing them. For Isaac himself, it served as a lifelong reminder of his status as the promised child of the covenant (Genesis 17:19) and of his obligation to remain faithful to the God who had given him life. Verse 4. A year before Isaac s birth, God directed Abraham to seal the covenant by circumcising the male members of his household (Genesis 17:9 14). In accordance to what God had established as the sign of the covenant on the eighth day Abraham circumcised baby Isaac. The covenant was to be with Isaac and his seed an everlasting covenant; they would become a great nation, they would inherit the land of Canaan and through his family lines the Messiah would come, and through Jesus a covenantal relationship with the true and living God would be the blessing that would be extended to all nations of the world. Circumcision was to serve as a powerful symbol of the passing of the blessings of the true God from one generation to the next. Verse 5. This verse is significant to Abraham s story for two reasons. First, it again stresses the miraculous nature of Isaac s birth, which occurred far beyond the time when his parents would naturally be able to have children. Second, it stresses the patience that God required of Abraham and Sarah. The two were age 75 and 65, respectively, when they departed Haran for Canaan, (Genesis 12:4; 17:17) with expectation of being made into a great nation (12:2). But the two had to wait another twentyfive years to see the promise fulfilled. Their story is usually a model of persistent faithfulness; on a few occasions, however, they model the opposite. Verse 6. Though Sarah had earlier laughed at God s promise, to her credit she praises Him when she sees it finally fulfilled. Here again, the word laugh has more than one implication. God s prediction of the humanly impossible had previously provoked Sarah s laughter as an expression of doubt. Now she laughs with joy at God s fulfilling His promise. Sarah clearly intends to share her testimony with others, who will laugh with her as they share her joy and marvel with her at God s power.

11 Abraham and Sarah Birth God s People Verse 7. Who would have said unto Abraham Sarah now indicates the reason people will laugh in amazement with her. Clearly she had given up, coming to a point where she did not believe it possible for God s promise to be fulfilled. Her words also reflect the social pressure she had been under for decades, living in a world where a woman s primary responsibility was providing male heirs for her husband. Whereas people had previously whispered about her shame, they can now rejoice with her for God s provision. While Abraham s response to the birth of Isaac might be described as dutiful, Sarah s was outright ecstatic. Note that Sarah s words of thanksgiving are reflected in Mary s Magnificat as she spoke of God s graciousness to her, says one writer. CONCLUSION Never forget that there are godly ups and downs in the life of faith and the Lord God fulfills His promises without any help from us. One writer speaks of God's quiet precision in His control of events. God fulfills His promises without help from us and therefore we should do what He requires to have as fulfills according to His will. So do not follow your flesh and make decisions and forget what God has promised. He's is always on time. He comes at the precise time. All of God's promises are fulfilled in His time. As we consider today s lesson we will note the importance of faith and the family unit in God s plan of creating a people for Himself. Through this family God would bless all the families and nations of the earth. One writer speaks of the importance of family and of the spiritual leadership of father and mother. He looks at the life of Abraham and Sarah and says: I doubt that there was any child that was ever loved more deeply than Isaac. Now I know that that is partially true from the teaching of the word of God because God said that he chose Abraham in order that he may command his children and his household after him to keep the way of the Lord by doing righteousness and justice. That is what he said in chapter 18, and so Abraham was a man who was chosen specifically in the light of the fact that he would be the kind of father who would train his children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. And so Abraham took Isaac upon his lap and trained him in spiritual things. He was loved and loved deeply. No child could ever be more blessed than to have a father and a mother who love them in the Lord and treat them as children given by God, instructing them in the things of the word of God. So he was loved What a tremendous good fortune to be born into a family of believing Christians who will have the courage to train their children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. So our Study Text teach us many things. We should laugh in joy with God when we have our children so that they will grow in wisdom and stature before men and before God. Abraham and Sarah experienced growth in their walk with God and all Christians are called to maturity. By the end of our Study Text Abraham and Sarah had a clear grasp of two eternal truths: 11

12 God Destroys and Creates the greatness of God, and the goodness of God. These truths undergird the eighteenth chapter of Genesis. The first is found in the question of our Lord in verse 14, Is anything too difficult for the Lord? The second is the basis for Abraham s intercession in verse 25, Shall not the Judge of all the Earth deal justly?. The first truth rebukes all worry and lack of prayer, for with God, nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37). Every time we worry about the future we reject the truth that God is all-powerful. The second truth provides an answer for life s most distressing and perplexing problems. The God who is all-powerful is also loving, kind, just, merciful, and so on. Infinite power is joined with infinite purity People seem to have a natural tendency to take things for granted. Please is easy to remember because we use that word to help us get something we want. Thank you takes more thought because we already have what we want and are ready to move on. Many believers find the same scenario to be true of their relationship with God. We know how to ask with please, but don t invest much time in saying thank You. Sarah can serve as a good model for doing better on our thank-yous to God. Once her desire for a child was honored, she remembered to give God the credit, a special kind of thank You. This told the whole world how grateful she was for what the Lord had done for her. Genuine faith always expresses itself in gratitude. Does yours?