2002-10-27 - Passages about Inspirational Women

Part 9- Sarah

Up to this point, we have learned from women whose behavior was exemplary. But God can teach us from other people's mistakes (in addition to our own, of course), as well. Like Sarah, we sometimes jump ahead of God, instead of waiting and trusting His provision. God did eventually form a nation through Hagar's son Ishmael. But in the meantime, there was pain from jealousy, as well as the wilderness destitution of Hagar and Ishmael.

Sarah's mistake had far-ranging consequences - not only for her own immediate family but also ultimately leading to Middle Eastern wars that have killed many parents, children and friends over the years. And though my behavior has never cost any lives, I personally have found that I can get in a lot of trouble when I try to "jump the gun" and move ahead of God. Today we will read about Sarah's story.

Genesis 4:1-5 (NASB) Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bore him no children. She had an Egyptian slave-girl whose name was Hagar, and Sarai said to Abram, "You see that the Lord has prevented me from bearing children; go in to my slave-girl; it may be that I shall obtain children by her." And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her slave-girl, and gave her to her husband Abram as a wife. He went in to Hagar, and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.

Genesis 21:9-14 (NASB) But Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, whom she had borne to Abraham, playing with her son Isaac. So she said to Abraham, "Cast out this slave woman with her son; for the son of this slave woman shall not inherit along with my son Isaac." The matter was very distressing to Abraham on account of his son. But God said to Abraham, "Do not be distressed because of the boy and because of your slave woman; whatever Sarah says to you, do as she tells you, for it is through Isaac that offspring shall be named for you. As for the son of the slave woman, I will make a nation of him also, because he is your offspring." So Abraham rose early in the morning, and took bread and a skin of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, along with the child, and sent her away. And she departed, and wandered about in the wilderness of Beer-sheba.

Jan

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