Sarah: Daughter of Faith

Genesis 23
Gregory Broderick | Sunday, August 07, 2022
Copyright © 2022, Gregory Broderick

The title is “Sarah: Daughter of Faith.”  Our expository study of Genesis 12–22 has largely focused on the life of Abraham—his trials, his tests, his triumphs, and his failures.  It is right to do so.  He was God’s man in his time, and he remains one of the greatest men and men of faith to have ever lived.  But right next to Abraham the whole time is Sarah.  Like her husband Abraham, she too had her ups and her downs.  And like Abraham, she too is now in glory with God, an example to all of us of life with God and life with God’s people.  Here in Genesis 23, she dies at the age of 127.  So we will examine her life and her example this morning before we leave her in the field at Machpelah at Mamre.

1. Sarah Trusted in the Lord

Sarah’s life shows her faith.  We must always look beyond our mere profession to what it is that we do.  We may say a lot of things, but our actions demonstrate what we truly believe.  James 2:18 reminds us, “I will show you my faith by what I do.”  So it is important to have a good confession, but it is also important to have a good life that proves that confession.  James 2:22 says that your faith and your actions must work together to be made complete.

Many make a good confession, but far fewer live it out.  Think about Judas.  He made a good confession, but he did not live a good confession.  Sarah’s life is full of evidence that she trusted in God.  She went with Abraham up from Ur and Haran (Gen. 12:5).  She walked with him the whole way and arrived in the land (Gen. 12:5–6).  She went down to Egypt with him and obeyed him there (Gen. 12:13).  She stood with him when Lot departed.  She obeyed him in the matter of Abimelech.  She bore Isaac and gave glory to God upon doing so (Gen. 21).  She lived with Abraham and under Abraham, raising Isaac to love and fear God for some thirty-seven years before she died.

She was, of course, not perfect.  We recall her impatience and self-help scheme in the “Hagar solution” of Genesis 16.  Tired of waiting for the promised son, the son that God had promised, she takes matters into her own hands.  She takes charge, bossing her husband and her maidservant into a form of adultery to produce a result that God did not intend; to produce a child that God did not promise.

This was all out of order, and we preached about it.  We see her in Genesis 16 blaming God:  “The Lord has kept me from having children”; commanding  her husband when it is not her duty to do so (Gen. 16:3):  “Go, sleep with my maidservant.”  Leaning on her own understanding (Gen. 16:3):  “Perhaps I can build for myself a family through my maidservant.”  This is all out of order.  And in typical fashion it made a giant mess.  She was despised by Hagar, she mistreated Hagar, they had the Ishmael problem as a result, and they had the Hagar problem as a result.  It messed up their lives for a long time.  She also lied (Gen. 18).  When God visits to announce the birth of Isaac and the judgment on Sodom, she laughed:  “Will I now have this pleasure?”  Then she lied to cover it up (Gen. 18:15).  So she is not perfect.  She is a sinner.  But, praise God, He loves imperfect people, and He saves sinners.  He works in imperfect people, and He saves imperfect people.

We, of course, must always strive to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect (Matt. 5:48).  But we must recognize that we will never be perfect in this life.  So we are to aim for perfection but recognize that we will not achieve it in this life.  Instead, we must wait to be perfected by God when we die, and He ushers us into glory.  Until then, we labor and strive by God’s Holy Spirit power, recognizing that as sinners we will fall from time to time.  Our duty when we fall is not to say, “That is just the way I am.”  Rather, it is to repent and get up and do the next right thing.

Despite Sarah’s imperfections, she lived a life of faith.  She was chosen by God before all time.  She was the helpmeet of God’s man Abraham.  She went everywhere with him and helped him.  She rejoiced and praised God at the birth of Isaac, at the promise of the Messiah that would come through Isaac and the reckoning that would come through Isaac’s offspring.  She said, “God has brought me laughter and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.”  It was an occasion for great joy.  Not just that she had a son but at what that son represented; at who would come through that son—in due time, the promised Messiah who would be the Savior of the world and the Savior of Sarah.  So she rejoiced and she had faith in this Messiah to come.  She demonstrates even a humility in this.  She says, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone will laugh with me.”  It is a not-so-subtle nod to her lies about the laughter in Genesis 18.

The New Testament testifies to Sarah’s great faith.  Hebrews 11:11 is translated differently in the NIV, but an alternative translation is, “By faith even Sarah, who was past age, was enabled to bear children because she considered Him faithful who had made the promise.”  First Peter 3:5–6 refers to Sarah as one of the holy women of the past who put their hope in God.  First Peter 3:4 notes that while remarkably beautiful outwardly, Sarah was more beautiful inwardly.  She had “the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in the sight of God.”  And despite her Hagar mess, she is held up as an example of proper submission to her husband, whom she obeyed and called her “master” or her “lord.”  And women of all ages are called to emulate her as her daughters, doing what is right and not giving way to fear (1 Pet. 3).  This is, of course, with particular emphasis on submission to her husband in obedience to God’s holy order.  So Sarah was not perfect, but she was pretty good.

I want to be clear that Sarah was not saved by her actions.  She was not saved because she was “good enough.”  None of us are good enough.  All of us are sinners, including Sarah, including Abraham, including every mere man who ever lived.  Only one came and lived without sin—the God-man Jesus Christ, and He died on the cross to pay for our sins.  As a perfect man, He could take our place and be our representative on the cross.  As perfect God, He could pay the infinite price.  So do not get confused and think that Sarah was good enough to get into heaven.  None of us are good enough to get into heaven.  It is by faith alone—faith in this Jesus Christ, this God-man, God-become-man—who came and who died for us on the cross—it is by faith in Him that we are saved.  But her actions proved her faith.

Let us examine Sarah as a New Testament example.  You see, the Bible is the very word of God.  It tells us how to be saved by faith alone in Jesus Christ, but it also tells us how to live for Christ, how to live for Him who died for us.  So we go to the Bible as our touchstone, as our plumbline, as our pattern for how we must live.  We are overjoyed at the salvation that God has given us sinners, who deserved judgment but are saved and destined for glory with God.  We are overjoyed at this, and we want to live in a new way that glorifies this God who saved us and honors Him.  His Scriptures tell us how to do it.

Let us look at what Sarah and her life in the Scriptures tell us how to do.

2. Sarah’s Submission

Sarah submitted to her husband.  The general character of her married life is one of submission.  There were obvious moments when she did not do that.  But there are obvious moments when she did.  She came out of Ur and Haran with him.  This could not have been easy to do.  She left an advanced place, a civilized city, for a tent in a backwater.  She went on a long, arduous, and somewhat dangerous journey that probably spanned more than a year, maybe even a few years.  She traveled with Abraham throughout the land that God gave, and she obeys Abraham’s command in Genesis 18 to get and bake bread for their visitors.  So these are all obvious examples of where she obeyed her husband and submitted to her husband.

I want to stop and examine this bread-baking for a moment.  It might not sound like a big deal but think about it.  She was a mistress over the household.  She was an important woman.  There were perhaps 1,000 people in their household.  It is really more of a small city or a clan than what we would think of in our little three-bedroom, two-bathroom house.  She was a big shot.  She was the matriarch of that group.  Abraham was the patriarch, but she was the wife of the patriarch.  And yet she baked a large amount of bread for these visitors.  She takes it and she kneads it and she bakes it.  It is not a menial task for her to do.  She is not too great to do it.  It is a low task to bake bread.  It is a labor-intensive task for the mistress of the house to do it.  But it not a low task because it is her God-given assignment from her God-given head, Abraham.  It is a high task—whatever the job, it is a high task when you are obeying God in doing it.

So she obeys God by submitting to her husband’s command to do it.  Surely she could have said, “One of the other women of the household can do this.  Baking bread is a low task.  I should come and entertain the guests.”  But she does not say any of that.  Abraham tells her what to do, and she does it.  She obeys Abraham in speaking to Abimelech and to Pharaoh.  So these are obvious moments where her submission is expressed.

But there are also moments of implied or inactive submission.  The dog that does not bark.  Often, we notice in the account from Genesis 12 to 23, Sarah is simply absent from the scene.  She is not in the center of things, running the show.  When Abraham and Lot separated in Genesis 13, Sarah is not recorded as part of that discussion.  You do not see her “standing up” for Abraham or acting as his advocate:  “Hold on, honey.  Why let Lot choose?  Lot is lower than you.  He is your nephew.  We brought him out of this faraway place.  We brought him here.  Why should he take the best?  Stand up for yourself, Abraham.  Stand up for our family.”   You don’t see any of that.  She is simply not a part of the discussion, even though it probably greatly affected her as well.

When Abraham later risks his life and the lives of the 318 men born in his household to go and rescue Lot, Sarah is also not in the picture.  She is not there nagging Abraham, “Why risk your life to save that ingrate?  I bet the best of the land is not looking so best now.”  You don’t hear her saying any of that.  Or, “Look out for our family first.  You could be harmed.  What about our family?  What about us?”  You don’t hear any of that.  She does not say, “Take care of us first and let him suffer what he surely deserves.”  There is none of it.  So also in the matter of Melchizedek.  There is none of it.

When God tells Abraham to circumcise himself and his household, Sarah is not a part of that discussion.  In fact, there is no discussion to be had.  God has come.  God has made His will clear.  So there is nothing to talk about.  It is no longer time to talk it over.  It is time to obey.  She is not a part of the Abimelech treaty.  She is not an advisor in that.  She does not even seem to be a part of the great test of faith:  “Take your son, your only son, your son Isaac, the son you love, and offer him as a burnt offering and sacrifice to me” (Gen. 22).  She is not a part of that story at all.  Now, either she did not oppose it or she was not aware of it, and Matthew Henry’s position is that she was not aware of it.  There is good logic to that, that God gave the command so there is nothing to do, nothing to talk about.  But either she was aware of it and did not oppose it or she was not aware of it at all.  God said it, and Abraham must do it.

The point that I am making is not that Christian wives should be absent from the scene, that they have nothing to say or that they should never open their mouths.  That is not the point and that is not the teaching of the Bible.  Think of the godly women of the Bible:   Jochabed, Abigail, Mary, Lydia, Priscilla, and godly women after that, such as Pandita Ramabai and Selina Hastings—many godly women of the past.  The point here is not that godly women have no role to play.  They do have an important role to play.  The point here is that Sarah stayed in her God-appointed lane as a helpmeet to Abraham.  You see, when he does not need help to determine or execute the will of God, she does not insert herself.  When God said, “Go and sacrifice your only son,” what does she have to contribute to that?  What does anyone have to contribute to that discussion?  She doesn’t say, “Wait a minute.  This is my son too, and God didn’t say anything to me.”  Yes, God went and dealt with the head and told the head what to do.  It is now time to go and implement.

How many Christian wives fall in this regard, thinking that the way of helping your husband in leading your household is to help him by leading your household; by taking the initiative; by making sure he knows what to do; by reducing him to a figurehead; by telling him what to do and getting his rubber stamp of approval, a mere formality that he dare not test.

But God said that the husband must lead the household.  I said at the beginning that we measure our actions and our lives by the Holy Scriptures.  What does God say?  God says the husband must be the head (1 Cor. 11:3; Eph. 5:23).  God said that the wife must submit (Eph. 5:22; 1 Pet. 3:1 and so on).  You may think, “My husband needs me to tell him how to be the head.”  That is just you as the head.  Or you may say, “He is not a natural head.”  Maybe not.  But let him be the head anyway, because God said so.  You are not an exception to God’s declared family order.  You will not do better as the head.  If God did not appoint you to be the head, you cannot be better at it.  It will not work.  It is a violation of God’s order.  God will not bless it.  When we live out of order to God’s commands, we are under curse and not under blessing.  If God wants you to be the head of your household, He will take your husband away and give you the job.  But I doubt that is what you want.  If you live in violation of God’s order, you will simply find yourself tearing down your house with both hands.  And at the end, you will find yourself dissatisfied with the disastrous pile of bricks all around you.  Don’t try to live a different way than God commands because that is what the culture says, or because “I think that my situation is different.”  We must trust in God and live according to His order.

We remember again here our sister Sarah.  She took charge in Genesis 16:  “Go to my maidservant; sleep with her; and I will build a family.”  She took headship at that point.  Abraham was not doing anything.  How did it go?  Our Pastor often asks the diagnostic question, “How is your life?”  It was a mess.  Fifteen years of strife and no peace in the home, because she took charge and Abraham failed to lead.  Fifteen years of problems for them, and millennia of enmity between the sons of Isaac and the sons of Ishmael.

Or remember our sister Eve, taking center stage in the garden.  It seemed right to her.  It is good for food.  It is pleasing to the eye.  It is desirable for gaining wisdom.  It seemed right to her to take the fruit and eat of it when God said not to do it.  It always seems right.  You wouldn’t do the wrong thing if it seemed wrong.  It seemed right.  But it was not right.  God said it was not right, and it led to a mess.

Don’t repeat these mistakes by doing what seems right in your eyes.  Now, of course, there is a time—frequently, there is a time and a place for godly Christian wives to speak up, and even to refuse to submit to the husband when he commands you to sin.  You as a Christian wife are to be a helpmeet and not a dumb donkey sitting by while your husband does not do the job.  I gave some examples, and we have many examples here of godly Christian wives who submit to their husbands but who also help them by speaking up at the right time.  I personally benefit all the time from my godly helpmeet.  My mother-in-law is the same.  My sister-in-law is the same.  Many sisters here are the same.  A Proverbs 31 wife is of inestimable value, of great worth, far more than rubies.  She speaks with wisdom.  She faithfully instructs those under her (Prov. 31:26).  A woman who fears the Lord is greatly to be praised (Prov. 31:30).

But the emphasis this morning is on the other ditch.  The prevailing problem of our age is not wallflower wives who are afraid to speak up at the right time, who meep along in misery.  There are a few of those, but that is not the main problem of our time.  So we address the main problem.  The problem of our culture, the problem of the church, generally, is domineering wives who refuse to submit, who live in rebellion against God’s order, and failing, passive husbands who refuse to step up and lead according to God’s order.  And so they are ground into submission, into dust, and families are destroyed.

This is a reminder not to guard against the ditch that you are not inclined to fall into.  You want to guard against the danger that you are likely to fall into.  Examine yourself and ask, “Is the ditch I am likely to fall into as a husband the ditch of domineering, the ditch of abusing my authority as a husband?  Or is the ditch I am likely to fall into the ditch of passivity, silence, and nothingness?”  I will bet for most of us it is the latter.   “Is the ditch I am more likely to fall into as a wife the ditch of not speaking up in time?  Or is the ditch I am likely to fall into trying to wrest control of my household from my husband and to tell him what to do because I know best?”  For most of us, it is the latter.

Now, Sarah’s submission was not perfect.  As we have already discussed, she is held up as an example of submission in 1 Peter 3.  And she is an example.  It is not like Peter messed up and got it wrong.  So what do we make of this?  Her submission was not perfect.  In fact, she made a grievous error in this regard.  She made a big mess.  And yet she is held up as an example of submission.

Well, first, as we have already noticed, Sarah is a sinner saved by grace who was being progressively sanctified.  You would not want to judge her by the standard you do not want to be judged by.  Her major error, the Hagar solution, came at the midpoint of her life.  But she apparently improved between Genesis 16 and Genesis 23.  Let us remember that, like her, we are also being progressively sanctified, if we are in Christ.  And we will continue to be so until we are made perfect by God at death and ushered into His presence.

Second, it is a reminder not to let the perfect be the enemy of the good, or at least the better.  We often use the excuse of not being perfect to avoid the effort required to be better.  “Well, I cannot be perfect, so I am not even going to try.”  Or when someone confronts me in my sin, I say, “Hey, no one is perfect.”  That is true, as far as it goes.  But that does not mean that God does not have work for you to do.  It does not mean that God does not have improvement for you to make.  It does not mean that you do not have to try.  We are called to be more and more conformed to the likeness of Christ.  We are called to strive and labor for perfection.

Now, Sarah totally blew it, and in a major way, with the Hagar solution.  “Go and sleep with my maidservant.”  Which of you wives would say that? Have children with my rival wife.  Do so while I am barren and unable to have children.  It will all work out great.  She will gladly give her baby to me.  What a good idea!  I can identify no potential problems of any kind with this scheme.  It is an obviously stupid plan from the outset.  In retrospect, it could only have resulted in disaster, and so it was.

But even though she made a mistake, even though she sinned, even though she made a  disaster, Sarah does not give up.  She seems to have repented and turned to God.  Indeed, she seems to have submitted to Abraham in all other things except for this glaring error.  Now, you can argue also from Genesis 21:10, if you want.  So I will grant that there are two times recorded in Scripture when she did not submit to her husband.  Two times in 127 years is a pretty good track record.  (GTB)  There may have been other times; they are not recorded in the Scriptures.  In our day, twice in a week would probably be better than average.  But she has twice in 127 years.  The point is, whether it was two times or ten times or whatever it was, she did not stay down in her sin.  She fell, but she got up and she seems to have repented and done the next right thing.

The application for us is:   Don’t quit because it is hard.  Don’t  give up because you messed up.  Don’t throw in the towel after one blunder, even a giant blunder, even a giant blunder that is going to have years’ long consequences.  Don’t give up because you have failed.  Instead, ask, “What does God want me to do today?”  Then get up and do the next right  thing.

I want to underscore that Sarah’s submission was not “natural.”  Maybe you are thinking, “Good for her, but I am not Sarah.”  That may be.  But it is not an excuse.  Sarah’s job was no easier than yours as a Christian wife, and it was probably harder.  She was not “naturally” submissive any more than anyone else.  Remember Genesis 16.  Look at all the commands:  “Go.  Sleep with.  I will build and take charge.”  Then, later on, when it makes a mess, she says, “It is all your fault, Abraham.”  And she is such a bully that Abraham basically clears out and says, “Do whatever you want.”  And Sarai abuses Hagar.  It was both strategic and mean to do so.  In Genesis 21, “Get rid of that slave woman and her son.  He will never share in the inheritance with my son!” Does this sound like a naturally meek and submissive person?  No.  Notice that this is not even subtle manipulation.  This is straight-up bossing Abraham around.  I bet not even one of the 318 men born in Abraham’s household would have dared to boss Abraham around like this, but she did.  And in Genesis 18, she laughed to herself when the son was promised:  “This time next year when I return a son will be born to you.”  She laughed.  That is essentially saying, “Yeah, right.”

Sarah is smart and she is tough and she is confident.  She is no shrinking nothing.  And that means that she was no better at submission, naturally speaking, than anyone else.  This is, of course, a result of the curse of Genesis 3.  As a result of the fall of man and as a result of man’s sin, God said to Eve, “Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”  The English does not quite capture it, but what is being described here is a power struggle.  Man is prone to abuse his authority as husband and head and to be unduly harsh.  But woman’s desire to dominate the man is the same desire that sin has to dominate us.  It is the same word that is used in Genesis 4:7.  So man is prone to dominate and misuse his authority, and woman is prone to rise up and desire to dominate him.

All people, male or female, are naturally inclined to rebel against God due to our corrupt nature, resulting from the fall.  The shorthand term for this is total depravity.  But, of course, we express it in different ways.  Different people have different inclinations toward different sins.  Some men abuse their authority and are harsh.  Others refuse to rule.  Others refuse to provide for their families as God commands, and so on.  Children refuse to obey their parents, even though God commands us to do so.  And wives refuse to submit to their husbands and try to rule.

We are all inclined to do it, so just take that excuse off the table right now.  Don’t excuse your failure or refusal by saying, “It is hard for me to do.”  Here is the news flash:  It is hard for everyone.  Instead, say, “I will do it, God and my godly husband helping me.”  “I will do it, God and my godly pastor helping me.”  “I will do it, God and my godly wife or my godly parents or my godly brothers and sisters helping me.”  And when you fall, don’t give up and stay down.  You are going to fall.  We are all going to fall.  We are a mix of new and old.  We are all going to fall.  Don’t quit.  Don’t give up.  Don’t wallow in the Slough of Despond.  Remember godly Sarah, and then get up and do the next right thing.  Sure, she fell, and she fell bad, and her fall gets recorded in the Bible for everyone to read forever.  She fell, and she fell bad, but it was not her defining feature.  Her defining feature was as a holy woman who did submit to her husband.  First Peter 3:5–6 says, “For this is the way the holy women of the past who put their hope in God used to make themselves beautiful.  They were submissive to their own husbands, like Sarah, who obeyed Abraham and called him her master.  You are her daughters if you do what is right and do not give way to fear.”  God will help you and he will keep you from falling again.

And men, you help that godly woman, that godly wife, by getting her up, dusting her off, and leading her away from the ditch and into the middle of the narrow way that leads to life.  Help her by leading.  Give her something to submit too.  Help her by bringing her correction and bring her back to the middle of the road when she starts to fade towards that ditch on one side or the other.

I also want to point out that Sarah’s submission was not contingent.  It was not contingent on Abraham being perfect.  He had a series of triumphs, but he also had his own series of failures.  There was the Egyptian mess where Sarah ends up as a wife in Pharaoh’s harem.  There was the Abimelech mess where he did the same thing again, and various others.  It was his failure in the Hagar mess.  Even though it was her bad idea, he should have said, “No, God did not say to do this.”  Abraham made his own errors, but, note, none of this disqualified him from being the head.  His headship was never based on his perfection.  His headship was never based on his inherent superiority over her.  In fact, as recorded in the Scriptures, he failed more times than she did.  Yet she does not seize power:  “Sorry, Abraham.  You had your chance, but you screwed up one too many times.  I am taking charge.”  She does not scorn or reject his authority due to his errors, some of which were pretty bad.  Abraham was a great man, but his errors are recorded in the Scriptures—some of them are pretty bad and some of them are against her personally as his wife.  But none of it disqualifies him from being the head.

Now, you want to ask why that is.  It is because his authority was never earned and never based on his skill set or merit.  His authority was because God said he is the head (1 Cor. 11:3).  His authority is an office assigned by God as husband, and to every husband.  Like Sarah, do not reject your husband’s authority due to his errors, his failures, or his natural weaknesses.  Men, do not resign your office due to your failures, your natural weaknesses, or your errors.  Those things were not the basis of Abraham’s authority, and they are not the basis of your authority.  Therefore, when you screw them up, they are not disqualifiers.  They did not qualify you, so they cannot disqualify you if you are lacking them.

Do not submit to your husband because he is a good leader or because you think that he is smarter or more experienced or bigger or whatever else.  Submit to him because God said so.  God said, “Wives, submit to your husbands.”  God said, “The husband is the head of the wife.”  You are not truly submitting to your husband when you submit to your husband anyway.  You are submitting to God who said to do so.

So Sarah’s submission was not contingent on Abraham’s qualifications or his track record, but we will go a step further.  Her submission was not even contingent on him being right.  At least two times he was wrong, and dead wrong—the matter of Pharaoh and the matter of Abimelech.  In fear, Abraham deceived Pharaoh and Abimelech by telling the half-truth that Sarah was his sister.  It was true, but it was not the whole truth.  She was also his wife.  He did not tell the whole truth.  Now, surely Sarah and Abraham discussed this matter.  There is some indication of that from Abraham:  “I told her wherever we go to say that you are my sister.”  Surely they discussed the matter.  This involved her personal security.  He made her complicit in the deception, and I am willing to bet that she objected to this plan.  But whether she objected or not, in the end, Abraham said, “Say you are my sister,” to preserve his own life and to gain an advantage (Gen. 13 and Gen. 20).  So whether she voiced objections and was overruled, or whether she kept her qualms to herself, she submitted to his direction.  And we know she did not tell.  Pharaoh found out by severe disease in their household:  something was wrong.  Abimelech found out by barrenness and God’s threatening visitation to him in the night.

Now, consider Sarah’s position here.  She is put in a tough, tough spot.  She is asked to deceive.  It is a matter of life or death, if you hear the argument from Abraham.  Her husband is hiding behind her instead of exercising sacrificial, Titanic love by stepping forward.  Her personal virtue and safety were put at risk.  Yet she submits to it, and look at what happened.  God protected her and God vindicated her.  In the case of Pharaoh, God inflicted serious disease because of Sarah, for her sake (Gen. 13:17).  It says that God personally and directly intervened on her behalf.

In the case of Abimelech, God did even more.  He came to Abimelech in a dream and said, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken.  Not because you did a bad thing to Abraham, but you are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken.”  For Sarah’s sake and for our sake, God intervened (Gen. 20:3).  God protected her purity.  In verse 6, God says to Abimelech, “I did not let you touch her.”  God intervened.  It is not that Abimelech did not get around to it yet.  It is not a coincidence.  It is not that someone else intervened.  God says, “I did not let you touch her.”  It was God’s direct action.  God said, “If you do not return her, you can be sure that you and all yours will die.”  You see, God protects His people.

And Sarah was completely and publicly vindicated.  Abimelech and Pharaoh, in fact, both gave livestock and so on.  But Abimelech especially gave one thousand shekels of silver to cover the offense.  And he says to her, “You are completely vindicated.”  This is not to excuse Abraham.  Abraham screwed this part up bad.  It is not even to say that she would have been wrong in refusing or saying, “You are asking me to lie.”  There is biblical argument for it.  Rather, the point is that God is able and God is active in protecting His people when they strive to obey Him.  God is the one who said, “Submit to your husband.”  God is the one who will take care of you when you do so.  He will not punish you for trying to do what is right.  He will not punish you for trusting in Him.

As a wife, you have the rare opportunity of almost always being able to know 100% that you did the will of God.  That is by submitting to your husband as to the Lord in everything (Eph. 5:22 et seq.).  Your husband is not so fortunate.  He rarely has the opportunity to know 100% that he is doing the will of God.  Should we buy this house, or should we not buy this house?   Should we have another baby, or should we not have  another baby?  Should I switch jobs?  Should we give this, or should we give that?   He has to figure it out, and he may well get it wrong.  But you can know for sure that you did the will of God by speaking up and then submitting to what your husband decides (Eph. 5:22).  You help him and then you submit to the decision and then you are covered.  If ever you are called to answer for that before God, and God says, “Why did you do this?”  you can say, “I submitted to my husband.”  And God will say some version of, “Thank you.  You are excused.  Mr. Husband, please step forward.  I have a few questions for you.”

The point that we are emphasizing is this: Sarah submitted to the Lord by submitting to her husband as to the Lord, because God said he was the head.  She submitted to her own husband whom God placed over her and gave her; to the office of husband.  It was not dependent on his perfection.  It was not dependent on his superior qualifications.  It was not dependent on his superior track record.  It was not even dependent on his being right or wrong on a particular issue.  It was dependent instead on the will of God and the word of God.  And when she trusted in God by submitting to her husband, God covered her even when her husband got it wrong.

Application

Sarah was a great woman, a holy woman of faith, so let us appreciate and learn from her, and put it into practice in our own lives.

Ladies, be a Sarah.  Trust in God.  Live pure and reverent lives.  Submit to your husband and help him, as God commands.  Do what is right and do not give way to fear.  Do not rebel against your husband in fear.  Do not make an Ishmael in fear.  Trust in God and love God, for perfect love drives out fear.  God can and will take care of you, even when your husband fails.  He did it for Sarah and He will do it for you.  If you trust in Him and obey Him, you have nothing to worry about.  For you are not only a daughter of Sarah if you do this, but you are also a daughter of God.  He takes care of His precious children, His precious sons and daughters.  Strive to be a Sarah and to become a Sarah from an early age.

Young  men, the application for you is:  Marry a Sarah.  Look for a holy woman of godly character.  That is the helpmeet that you need, and the helpmeet whom God has for you.  Do not be distracted by outward adornment—by braided hair or clothes or other outward things.  Yes, man looks at the outside, but God looks at the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).  Look for what God looks for—the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, the inner self.  Godly character is what counts.  Outward beauty is not disqualifying, so don’t turn away all the beautiful women.  But look for inward beauty.  Look for character.  Look for godliness.  Find your Sarah and marry her.  In other words, grow up.  Lead her.  Build a family, support the family, and produce a future generation for God.  Grow up!  Find that Sarah.  It is good to find her, but then marry her.  Don’t just “hang out,” or whatever the kids say these days.  Lead her into green pastures and love her as Christ loved the church: with sacrificial love.

And for all of us, may we all appreciate and care for our Sarahs as Abraham did, whatever name they may go by.  We appreciate the holy women of the past—Sarah, Jochabed, Abigail, Mary the mother of Jesus, Hannah, Ruth, Esther, Lois, and so on.  We appreciate them and we try to emulate their lives of faith.  And if we appreciate the holy women of the past, how much more should we appreciate the holy women of the present.  These Sarahs of faith live in our homes and our classrooms and our Church and in all other parts of our lives.  Let us not take them for granted as they glorify God and enjoy Him forever, mostly serving quietly and faithfully.  You see, they are God’s gift to the church.  Proverbs 19:14 says they are God’s gift to you husbands.  They are our necessary helpmeets.  After all, God said, “It is not good for man to live alone.”  We need them.  They are of high value.  They are worth far more than rubies and greatly to be praised.

So appreciate your Sarah and produce future Sarahs by raising up daughters in the fear and instruction of the Lord.  And may God grant us more daughters of Sarah, that we may serve Him and glorify Him in our time.  Amen.