By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised. (Hebrews 11:11 NKJV).
As far as I know, Sarah is the only woman mentioned in the Bible for whom an age at death is given. I find this significant.
She was the faithful, beautiful, and respectful wife of Abraham who, like Eve before her, became the progenitor of a nation that has played, and will continue to play, a remarkable role in redemptive history.
To be so singled out, here and elsewhere in the New Testament (Ro 4:19; 9:9; Heb 11:11; 1Pe 3:6), says something notable about this woman who walked he earth some 4000 years ago, whose tomb is still spoken of today, and who modeled what it is to live a life of faith.
Unlike other ancient texts, women in Scripture are viewed as equal with men in terms of sin, redemption and standing before God. Yes, the differing roles and responsibilities of men and women in the household and the church are spelled out in ways that infuriate or perplex many today, but the truth is that the Bible uniquely accords women the same treatment as men, existentially and ontologically, and declares the sexes equivalent before the Throne of Grace. For:
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28, NKJV).
The curse of the Fall brought aging and death, and with these the gradual deterioration of the mental and physical capabilities human youth take largely for granted. Among the degrading faculties is the ability for a woman to conceive children.
Prior to the Flood, in ecological conditions much different than now, the human life span was naturally longer. This enabled a staggering number of offspring to be born from even a single couple, and child-bearing years stretched for centuries. But the Global Flood and its aftermath changed all that, and essentially limited human fertility to a few mere decades.
(Why we find this so hard to believe in modern times is puzzling. As a whole, we have no problem in accepting as indisputable facts countless things we have neither heard nor seen nor personally experienced and for which there is often precious little hard evidence, like evolution and the Big Bang and Global Warming, provided these unlikely suppositions are given the imprimatur of the Church of Theoretical Science. But a more benevolent ecosphere in the not-so-distant past enabling extended lifetimes - well that's just silly.)
So Sarah, we are told, had reached that point in life where, being advanced in days, as the Old King James so delicately puts it, was past the age of fecundity. When she heard the Lord's promise to Abraham that she would bear him a son, she laughed, not derisively, but in wonder, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?” (Genesis 18:12, NKJV).
She did not doubt this was possible, but only that it would happen to her. In response, the Lord Himself graciously assured her by saying, “Is anything too hard for the LORD? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” (Genesis 18:14, NKJV).
Does that happen in your life - you have no doubt that the Lord is capable, but doubt that He would do something miraculous or gracious in your life? If so, you are in good fallen company.
Yet Sarah did come to believe, not only in the Lord's power, but in His willingness to manifest that power in her life, personally, undeniably and gloriously.
She judged Him faithful who had promised.
Note that description, please. It is important, and one of the many reasons I believe Sarah figures so prominently in Scripture.
Her belief was not merely emotional, though emotion may have played a part, especially joy and Isaac (laughter). No, her belief was founded on critical thinking, on discernment. She surveyed and evaluated the facts and evidence of the Lord working in hers and Abraham's life, and she judged Him faithful who had promised.
Don't miss that.
Saving faith is not a blind leap in the dark, like belief in evolution or human decency.
Saving faith is evidentiary. Come let us reason together, the Lord invites us in Isaiah. And by many infallible proofs, Jesus showed Himself to have been raised from the dead.
Saving faith is the God-given human response to God-given revelation about real events in time and space.
Is it as tangible as that chair you are seated upon? No, and thank God for that, because one day it will be - these profound truths about man and God - and then there will be no opportunity to exercise faith. The facts will be undeniable. It will be too late to believe and be saved. The time for faith will have tragically, but justifiably, passed.
[For] without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6, NKJV).
Sarah believed and received strength.
Sarah believed and conceived.
Sarah believed and she bore a child when she was passed the age…
…because she judged Him faithful who had promised.
Sarah's radiant example shines brightly down through the ages, illuminating yet another gracious example of God working in the life of a softened heart.
Follow her as she followed the Lord and be saved.
