What God can do
Then the Lord 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 the Lord? I will return about this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.” Genesis 18:13-14
I love laughter and I am sure you do too. It’s a pleasure to see people really letting rip and having a good laugh. Laughter can be sparked off by any number of things, but it is often sparked by absurdity. We laugh at clowns because everything they do is ridiculous and turns our normal expectations of life upside down. Sarah’s laughter was for precisely this reason.
She was about 100 years old, decades beyond child-bearing age. Although she had wanted to have children, she had long since got used to the idea that it wasn’t going to happen. Then three mysterious visitors arrived at Abraham and Sarah’s tent in the desert and informed them that she would give birth. The very thought was hilarious because it was so completely absurd.
But Sarah was going to have a baby. And the explanation takes us to the heart of the nature of God. Nothing is too hard for him. For us, such a thing would stay on the list of impossibilities, but God is the creator of heaven and earth. For him, such things are entirely possible. Mary found herself in exactly the same place when she was told she would give birth to Jesus. She had never slept with a man, and she knew that meant conception was impossible. But the angel informed her that, with God, nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37) – and that’s how it proved to be, praise God!
When Sarah gave birth to her son there was only one possible name for him – Isaac, which means ‘he laughs’. Sarah and all those around her learned a vital lesson, and it’s one that we need to remember. As we live for God day by day, we need to remember not to put limits on what he can do. God is the God of the impossible.
QUESTION
When have you seen God move in seemingly impossible ways?
PRAYER
Great God of creation, help me to learn from this story and not put limits on what you can do. Amen