Today’s devotion comes from Hebrews 11:11-12.
“By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised. Therefore there was born even of one man, and him as good as dead at that, as many descendants as the stars of heaven in number, and innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.” Hebrews 11:11-12.
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Sarah “considered Him faithful who had promised”.
Do we consider God faithful to perform His promises?
Or, do we really consider God arbitrary, subject to change, that God will do different than what He declares that He will do?
Are we eager to discover and declare God’s promises?
Or, do we shrink back not wanting either ourselves to look bad if we misinterpret God’s promises nor wanting God to look bad if He does not fulfill His promises?
Do we patiently wait for God to perform His own promises?
Or, do we want to take things into our own hands?
“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight.” Genesis 16:1-4.
In addition, it is possible (although we don’t have Scripture to inform us one way or the other) that Sarah may have had fleeting thoughts that they would only have spiritual children, children of faith. We may want to “spiritualize” every promise of God, so that every promise of God will “only” have a spiritual fulfillment such as heaven.
It is not clear to me all the thoughts that Sarah had. As one example, compare the bookends of Genesis 16 in which we read of Sarah’s suggestion of Hagar. Nothing is mention of what Sarah knew of the promises of God to Abraham in Genesis 15. Whereas, later in Genesis 18, the promise is directly revealed to Sarah. However, I think that we can infer that Sarah knew of these promises of God at the time she took things into her own hands.
Here is Calvin’s Commentary on these verses.
Most importantly, today’s Scripture informs us that Sarah did have faith and did receive the ability to conceive and did eventually have “as many descendants as the stars of heaven in number, and innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.”
There is hope that even if we experience lack of faith at some point of our lives, we may gain faith and rest on that faith and be viewed by God simply as having faith. We may not be faithful at every point of our lives. But, God is entirely faithful.
The lesson for today is not that we should focus on Sarah and think how great she is. But, rather, the lesson for us today is that we should focus on God and think how great He is. Like Sarah, we should consider God “faithful who had promised”.
God has made all these “precious and magnificent promises” to us. God is entirely faithful to fulfill all of them.
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord; seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust.” 2 Peter 1:2-4.
Reformed Doctrine Daily Devotions 