03/07/2018 THE LAUGHTER OF FAITH
Genesis: 17:15-17 And GOD said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I will give you a son by her; I will bless her and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, and said to himself, “Shall a child be born of a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child? [Revised Standard translation]
Genesis: 18:10, 12-14 Then the LORD said, “Next year I will give you and Sarah a son!”(Sarah was listening from the tent door behind him.)…So Sarah laughed silently. “A woman my age have a baby?” she scoffed to herself. “And with a husband as old as mine?” Then GOD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh? Why did she say ‘Can an old woman like me have a baby? Is anything too hard for GOD? [Living Bible translation]
Genesis 21:1 Then GOD did as HE had promised, and Sarah became pregnant and gave Abraham a baby son in his old age, at the time GOD had said; and Abraham named him Isaac (meaning “Laughter!”) [Living Bible translation]
Faith: The complete confidence in someone or something. Dictionary.com
Faith: Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. [Revised Standard translation]
The Laughter of Faith:
Abraham is called “The Father of Faith.” Why? Because Abraham had complete confidence in what GOD told him was true time after time, in some extraordinary situations. Although, like every other human being, Abraham was not perfect, he was strong in his faith. Just consider a few examples:
- When GOD told Abraham to pack up and leave his homeland for a place GOD would show him, Abraham did exactly what GOD told him to do. Genesis 12:1. Unlike many of us, Abraham didn’t ask “Where?” “How long will I be gone?” “What am I going to find work?” “How am I going to pay for this?” “Why can’t I stay here?” “Give me a map?” No, Abraham did not ask any of these questions or other questions we might have asked.
- When Abraham was told to sacrifice his unique son, Abraham, once again, trusted and believed GOD. Abraham didn’t say “That doesn’t make sense, didn’t you just give me this son and tell me that this son was going to be a great nation?” Abraham didn’t say, “I need to think about all this before I do something this drastic?” Abraham didn’t say, “Let me talk it over with some other people first and get back to you.” Abraham just trusted GOD.
- And when GOD told Abraham that GOD would bless him and his wife, Sarah, with a child, Abraham could “already” envision it and laughed in wonder. Abraham’s laughter was the laughter of “WOW! “SUPER WOW!!!” This is going to be something else!!! It was also the laughter of joy! Abraham could already “see” it, even though it hadn’t even happen. It was as if the doctor had already left the birthing room and had given Abraham the news that: “You and your wife are the proud parents of a new baby.” It was that real for Abraham. Abraham couldn’t help himself from laughing. The laughter just rolled out of Abraham because Abraham believed GOD.
While we may commend Sarah for many things, such as following Abraham when they left Haran, Sarah was not as consistent or strong in her faith as Abraham. One instant of her lack of faith was her scornful laughter when she heard that GOD intended to make her, a nonagenarian (a person who is from 90 to 99 years old), a parent. Instead of “WOW!!!” Sarah’s inner response was “Right! Like, that’s going to happen…” It was the laughter of disbelief. It is also the laughter of fear, of believing the impossible can really happen.
But, Sarah did not remain an unbeliever. She too found the laughter and the joy in the LORD. In Genesis 21:6 Sarah gives her testimony and says, “GOD has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” Sarah became a laughing believer too, which is why she is counted in Hebrews 11:11, when the writer takes the roll call of the great “Old Testament” men and women of faith.