Mothers of Messiah-Sarah
(Based on a message preached Sunday morning, May 11, 2025 at New Hope Baptist Church near Fulton, MO. This is not an exact transcription.
(Full disclosure: Sermon Central previously accepeted a message based on this passage, titled “Abraham: Good News and Good Laughs?” but this message focuses more on Sarah. It is definitely not a copy and paste of the previous message)
Introduction: Today is Mother’s Day Sunday, and I believe one of the best ways to honor every mother is to mention one of them who was in the direct line of Messiah Jesus! That mother was Sarah, the wife of Abraham, and she was one of the few truly mothers of miracle babies!
Sarah is known for something else, too, but that’s something we’ll see later in this message.
The text comes from Genesis chapter 18, verses 1 through 15.
Preface: Ministering to the Three Visitors
Text: Genesis 18:1-8, KJV: 1 And the LORD appeared unto him in the plains of Mamre: and he sat in the tent door in the heat of the day; 2 And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him: and when he saw them, he ran to meet them from the tent door, and bowed himself toward the ground, 3 And said, My Lord, if now I have found favour in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy servant: 4 Let a little water, I pray you, be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree: 5 And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your hearts; after that ye shall pass on: for therefore are ye come to your servant. And they said, So do, as thou hast said. 6 And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth. 7 And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetcht a calf tender and good, and gave it unto a young man; and he hasted to dress it. 8 And he took butter, and milk, and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them; and he stood by them under the tree, and they did eat.
We need to begin at verse 1 because that verse sort of or pretty much sets the stage for the rest of this story. Chapters 12-17 of Genesis contain several episodes or encounters in the life of Abraham and Sarah (then known as Abram and Sarai). Now, Abraham is 99 years of age and Sarah, ten years younger at 89. It goes without saying that neither one of them would be physically able to become parents, even though Sarah had basically engineered a “Plan B”, which God never blessed nor approved. Hagar was Sarah’s slave girl but she was promoted, we might say, to become Abraham’s second wife.
The result? Ishmael, then; plus thousands of years of strife between Ishmael’s descendants and Abraham’s, through Isaac. But God wasn’t done with Abraham and Sarah, and when God promised a child with Sarah, God was going to fulfill that promise.
Eventually, the LORD Himself and two other Visitors (their identities remain concealed) paid a visit to Abraham. Mamre was near Hebron, in the southern part of Canaan, and Abraham had more or less settled there. These three Visitors arrived “in the heat of the day” which would probably between 12 and 3 p.m. Moses wrote that when Abraham saw the Visitors, he promptly arranged some first-class hospitality as described in the text (verses 1-8). Sarah had a part in this, kneading “three measures of fine meal (“measure” comes from the Hebrew word “seah”, according to https://biblehub.com/hebrew/5429.htm)”, which seems to be a fairly large amount of grain or flour. Ellicott’s commentary on this verse contains a recipe, of sorts, as to how Sarah might prepare the bread (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/genesis/18.htm). Abraham didn’t ask Sarah to prepare and bake just, say, a pan of biscuits or rolls but enough for a feast!
Now the meal is over and the Three Visitors have something important to say.
And now, the focus begins to be on Sarah.
1 Sarah listened to the Visitors
Text, Genesis 18:9-10, KJV: 9 And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent. 10 And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life; and, lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son. And Sarah heard it in the tent door, which was behind him.
One of the Three Visitors asked Abraham, “Where’s Sarah, your wife?” and he replied, “She’s in the tent.” It’s not mentioned here, but some tents in Bible days seemed to be rather large. Some of the commentators and study aids describe how some tents had a more or less “women’s only” section or “apartment”, as was the custom of those days. Or, as Ellicott observed, Sarah may have been in her own tent (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/judges/4.htm).
May I share a few thoughts about tents? I’ve slept in a two-man or “pup” tent a few times while in the Boy Scouts, and in the “medium general-purpose tent” a few times during my active duty military days. These “medium” tents could hold around 12 people, more or less comfortably, but if I never see the inside of one of those again, I won’t shed a tear!
Further, I remember the difference between the Christmas season and, say, spring at a large community department store. Of course, during Christmas, there were more toys, games, and so forth than the North Pole could hold and, you guessed it, my Christmas wish list was long as you could imagine! Then came spring, and where there had been toys, all kinds of toys, there was nothing but sporting goods! What grade-school boy wants an adult sized tent or a metal canoe or anything like that? I sure didn’t! So again, no tents, no tears, and that’s okay by me!
But let’s get back to the message. By now, Abraham and the Visitors are outside the tent, having a conversation, and Sarah is listening, while she’s still inside the tent! Remember, the tent, or at least the tent door, is behind either Abraham or one of the Visitors; as a result, neither one of them could see Sarah! She’s observing what seemed to be the protocol or custom of the day, by staying away, if not out of sight, while the Visitors ate the meal and Abraham stood near them.
And it’s at this time when the Visitors are speaking with Abraham, and he is standing ready to meet any need or request they may have, and while Sarah is inside the tent, listening to the men speak, the Visitors make a promise to both Abraham and Sarah: “You’re going to have a son!”
I can only imagine Sarah (and, maybe, Abraham) expressing something like, “Say what?”
US?! Having a child?
Abraham’s reaction isn’t recorded, but Sarah’s sure was. What happened next?
2 Sarah laughed at what the Visitors had to say
Text, Genesis 18:11-14, KJV: 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken in age; and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. 12 Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also? 13 And the LORD said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child, which am old? 14 Is any thing too hard for the LORD? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.
Here in this passage, we can observe a few things. First, the reality; Abraham was 99 years of age and Sarah 89 at this time. Moses, maybe politely, calls them “old and well stricken in age” which is, well, about all anybody _could_ say about them at this time!
Second, there’s the response: Sarah laughed! I mean, she knew it was biologically impossible for her to conceive and bear a child at this age. Paul would later emphasize this in Romans 4:19 when he mentioned “the deadness of Sarah’s womb” as he discussed Abraham and his faith in the One True God.
To go a little further, we’re not told if Sarah “laughed” out loud, like when someone hears a good joke; or whether she “snickered”, maybe laughing more or less quietly; or maybe there was something even deeper. Take a look at the various definitions or shades of meaning for the Hebrew word translated “laugh” at https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6711.htm. How did Sarah really feel when she laughed at the words of the Visitors?
Well, she may have thought nobody heard her laugh, but One of the Visitors sure did, and He asked Abraham (I’ve never understood why), “Why did Sarah laugh?” Remember, this was the LORD Himself speaking to Abraham! The LORD then asked a pointed question, “Is anything too hard for the LORD (and the answer of course is No, even when we don’t see it)?”
The LORD wasn’t done, either. He went on to remind Abraham of the promise given years before, saying, “You’ll have a son at the time appointed (paraphrased)”.
This part of the visit, the meal and the message, was just about over, but not quite. Sarah still had to answer for her laughter. Of note, some reference/study Bibles have mention of various forms of laughter from various points of view. Sarah’s laughter, I think, was based on something she thought was impossible—but with God, all things are possible! Even so, as mentioned, it was time for Sarah to give an account of her attitude and laughter!
But guess what she did when it was time?
3 Sarah lied to the LORD face to face!
Text, Genesis 18:15, KJV: 15 Then Sarah denied, saying, I laughed not; for she was afraid. And he said, Nay; but thou didst laugh.
It’s hard for us to understand why anyone, least of all a woman of faith and believer in the One True God would tell a lie, even though every one of us has done this any number of times! And it would be impossible for us to grasp Sarah’s state of mind when she was “called on the carpet” about this. Unbelief in God is bad; rebellion against God is worse (just ask Adam and Eve!); but to lie to God—and face to face, Sarah is talking directly to the LORD!—is the worst. Sure, the text says “she was afraid”, and for good reason: she had sinned, and she knew it!
But now look at how the LORD basically forgave her. True, He pointed out the lie (I didn’t laugh; yes, you did) but didn’t punish her for it; at least, there’s no mention of this in the text. My opinion, and it’s only that, is her embarrassment at being face to face with the LORD and realizing He knew, and knows, everything was punishment or discipline enough. I mean, the LORD could have taken her life for lying, or other things, and yet there’s another reason that maybe Sarah, and even Abraham, may not have guessed at that point.
Think of it: had Sarah lost her life before the promised child was born, there wouldn’t have been a genuine son to carry on Abraham’s line. In Isaac, when he was born, there was the promise that the Messiah would come someday. From Isaac came Jacob, and from Jacob came the Twelve Tribes, and from one of these tribes would come the Messiah, Jesus, Himself!
Again, how much they knew, we may never know. But one thing’s for certain: Sarah, even though she laughed at God’s promise, received restoration and, about a year later, a son.
And the rest, they say, is history!
Scripture quotations taken from the King James Version of the Bible (KJV)
