Genesis 17:15 – 17 - Then God said
to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but
Sarah shall be her name. And I will
bless her and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall
be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed,
and said in his heart, “Shall a child be born to a man who is
one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a
child?”
We are not told just how God manifested himself to Abraham
to have the talk that would change not just his name…but make him the father of
two great nations….but it was a talk that made Abraham fall to his knees once
again in awe of God’s mercy and love for his family. His heart was so overjoyed
at how God was going to use an impossible situation to bring about his version
of possible….his heart laughed with joy.
I have to admit that for all these years I had thought of
Abraham’s laughter as one of incredulity….even disbelief… but Matthew Henry...and
several other commentators agreed that his laughter was that of a giddy child…opening
a present on Christmas day that they thought could never be theirs. I am once
again reminded just how much I let my logic and short-sided mind interpret what
I see and read. To think that I have read so quickly through these passages and
missed the true meaning in this passage makes me wonder just how many other
things I have gotten wrong from my lack of in depth study of God’s word.
Abraham was a man of faith…he fell to his knees in thankful praise
and awe …believing instantly in God’s words of truth that would overcome the logical
facts of his situation. I needed a
reminder to believe…that God can do anything…even if my mind and experience
fight the thought of it ever becoming a reality. This kind of faith is what
healed the blind man with Jesus’ spit…just read John 9 for that amazing story. This kind of faith is what healed the woman
with an issue of blood for 12 years with a simple touch…that story is in Luke
8. This kind of faith is what held Christ to that cross to complete God’s
wonderful plan of salvation.
Father…thank you for the reminder that you can do anything.
Forgive me for my short sightedness…that keeps my faith from developing into
the pure faith that Abraham … the blind man and the woman who touched Jesus’
robe had. Help me to deepen my faith so
that I too can envision your plans that seem impossible….and fall to my knees
in joyous laughter and awe as I hear your words. Amen.
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