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11 And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. ~ Hebrews 11:11-12
Today, we continue our study of the book of Hebrews wherein faith in the God of the Bible is the paramount subject. As we have pointed out before "faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." These two elements make up the belief and trust in the God of the Bible that provides the assurance of the fulfillment of God’s promises. This faith is bolstered by the many promises that God has given and has already fulfilled.
After giving us the definition for biblical faith at the beginning of this chapter, the writer of Hebrews then commences to highlight the lives of Old Testament saints who lived by faith in the God of the Bible. Having considered Abel, Enoch and Noah, the writer of Hebrews has turned our attention toward Abraham. And, today, we return to the example of Abraham whom we considered a little in our last study.
In v.11 of today's passage we read, "And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise."
Abraham and Sarah were 90 and 100 years of age, yet they conceived and gave birth to a son. A total impossibility, humanly speaking, but God masters the impossible. And, this life of faith that God calls His people to demands a break with everything that is familiar in our lives. It also demands a break from everything that is old, as well. It starts with a willingness to separate from everything that is familiar and visible. This is where every Christian’s pilgrimage begins, when we choose to separate ourselves from our dependence upon everything in this world that we have always been defined by.
Biblical faith is transformative, and, the more we exercise it, the greater the transformation we will realize in our yielded lives. We see this transformation here with Abraham and Sarah as it became evident that Sarah was with child. Abraham is a man of faith who separated himself from the world to go toward an inheritance which God promised but which Abraham would not see or inherit until a future that was at that point unknown to him.
We can also see this great transformation in Abraham when he offered up his son Isaac to God on Mount Moriah. His reason could see no solution to his predicament. God had promised, "Through your son, Isaac, your descendants will be named." And now, God was telling him to sacrifice Isaac. Reason could never figure that out, but Abraham was not walking by reason, he was learning to walk by faith. He believed that God's promise would prevail. He believed God would raise Isaac from the dead, if need be, to fulfill His promise. As a result we have this amazing account of how Abraham, as it were, received Isaac back from the dead, for in Abraham's mind he was as good as dead. Abraham's faith triumphed and God gave him back his son, Isaac.
In v.12 of today's passage we read, "And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. "
When God gave to Abraham this promise, God turned his attention to the stars of the sky and the sands of the sea and reiterated the promise to Abraham. God had to do this because Abraham was 75 years old when he first received the promise. And, when God used the stars of the sky and the sands of the sea to illustrate His promise to Abraham, Abraham was 86 years old. So, for 11 years Abraham and Sarah waited, sometimes patiently.
Interestingly, at the age of 99, God changed Abrams name to Abraham. Abram means "exalted father" while Abraham means "father of a multitude." In addition, God changed Sarai's name to Sarah. Sarai means "my princess," while Sarah means "mother of a ruler of nations." God added "ha" to Abram and He added "ah" to Sarai. God gave to both Abram and Sarai a portion of His name. Their name change signified a new birth experience for both Abram and Sari. Their previous behavior of lying, deceitfulness and cowardice as revealed in the birth of Ishmael is not the behavior of one following God. The addition of God's name signifies new life.
Take a breath and breathe it out. In sadness, we breathe heavy sighs. In joy, our lungs feel almost like they will burst. In fear we hold our breath and have to be told to breathe slowly to help us calm down. When we’re about to do something hard, we take a deep breath to find our courage. When a baby is born, he takes his first breath. In so doing, the baby speaks the name of God. Breathing, therefore, is akin to praying. When Moses asked God His name, God said, "YHWH," which represents breathing sounds. The name of God is the sound of breathing. How generous of God to choose to give Himself a name that we can’t help but speak every moment of our lives.
The point of giving Sarai and Abram a part of His name was a subtle reminder that YHWH was the secret behind their success. The same is true for you and me. Biblical faith is the ignition switch to spiritual power that makes us useful and allows God through us to do His work in this world. The emphasis in the Scriptures in not on what man does for God in this world, the emphasis is on what God does for man and through the man of faith. God releases power to do what seems to be impossible.
