Sarah

Sarah’s story is told in Genesis 11-23

  • Who is Sarah?
    • Sarah, originally named Sarai, is a significant figure in the Bible. She’s the wife of Abraham and the mother of Isaac, playing a crucial role in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Her story is largely narrated in the book of Genesis.
    • Background: Sarah is first introduced in Genesis 11:29. She was the half-sister and wife of Abraham, a major patriarch in the Bible.
    • Name Change: In Genesis 17:15, God changed her name from Sarai, which means “my princess,” to Sarah, meaning “mother of nations,” signaling her crucial role in God’s plans.
  • Sarah’s Strengths and Accomplishments
    • Faithfulness: Sarah displayed immense faith in God’s promises, even when they seemed impossible. Despite her old age, she believed God’s promise of bearing a child, and became the mother of Isaac.
    • Loyalty: She displayed unwavering loyalty and commitment to her husband Abraham, following him through their long journey from Haran to Canaan, trusting in God’s guidance.
    • Mother of Nations: Sarah’s most significant accomplishment is arguably becoming the “mother of nations” through her son Isaac, fulfilling God’s promise to her and Abraham.
  • Sarah’s Weaknesses and Mistakes
    • Impatience: Despite God’s promise, Sarah sometimes displayed impatience. She convinced Abraham to conceive a child with her servant Hagar when she believed she couldn’t have children, leading to a complex situation with her maid and her son, Ishmael.
    • Doubt: Even though she showed faith in God’s promises, there were moments of doubt. When first told she would have a son in her old age, Sarah laughed in disbelief.
  • Lessons from Sarah’s Life
    • Patience and Trust in God’s Timing: Sarah’s story teaches us the importance of patience and trusting in God’s timing, despite our human tendency to want things to happen quickly.
    • God’s Promises are True: Despite her age and circumstances, Sarah eventually bore a son, Isaac. This teaches us that no matter how impossible God’s promises may seem, they will come to pass.
  • Key Verses about Sarah
    • Genesis 17:15 (NIV): “God also said to Abraham, ‘As for Sarai your wife, you are no longer to call her Sarai; her name will be Sarah.'”
    • Genesis 18:12 (NIV): “So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, ‘After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?'”
    • Genesis 21:1-2 (NIV): “Now the LORD was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the LORD did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him.”