Genesis 11:30 But Sarai was barren; she had no child.
A lot of times we have a nickname for someone or something that pretty much encompasses the entire perception of that person or thing. For instance, I think about horses on a ranch. Many times on big ranches, where they don’t have time to make a pet of a horse, a horse may end up with a name like Red, Blue, Bucky, or Old Paint. All these are just different ways of designating the color or type of horse. We do the same thing with people whether it has to do with their height, family, or a trait. Maybe we call someone Shorty, Junior, or Lucky. These names may be fair or unfair, but the bottom line is we are encompassing a person’s entire persona in that nickname.
In the Bible, you often learn much about a person in just a one-verse biography. Much of what is known about that person, even if the Bible expands upon them, is summarized in one verse. For instance, Genesis 5:22 says, “And Enoch walked with God.” Verse 24 says, “And he was not; for God took him.” If you look in the New Testament you learn a little bit more about Enoch. But, what you learn in Hebrews 11:5 just expands upon what God told us about Enoch in that one verse in Genesis.
Genesis 5:29 talks about Noah, whose name means “rest,” saying, “This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.” Noah was going to provide some sort of rest, and God used Noah to shepherd the animals onto the Ark and to preserve them and his family from the destruction to come. Later, you read about Noah in Hebrews 11:7.
There are many such examples, but let’s notice Genesis 11:30 which says, “But Sarai was barren; she had no child.” This is the first mention of Sarai, and right off the bat you find she had no child nor could she have children. This is extremely relevant, especially for a story that is all about God’s promise to make of Abraham and Sarah a great nation through which all the nations of the world would be blessed. How can you have a great nation when you don’t even have a son, and how can you have a son if you don’t have a couple that can produce a son. She was barren!
The story that unfolds is nothing short of miraculous. God’s power is exhibited through people, like us, who are frail and have limitations. Sarah is not defined by a child. Sarah is defined by faith. We can learn something from Sarah. We will either be defined by our weakness or by God’s grace. Faith is what makes the difference.
When you get to Hebrews 11:13, the Bible says, “These all died in faith.” People see what you do, but God knows whom you trust. When you read in Hebrews 11 of all these mighty people of faith, why are they here? They accomplished a variety of amazing things, but they are not in Hebrews 11 because of what they accomplished. They are in Hebrews 11 because of Whom they trusted.
Hebrews 11:11 says, “Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.” It wasn’t just that she was past age, she was past age and she couldn’t bear children in the first place. Yet, God sent His Messiah to the family of Abraham and Sarah.
Genesis 12:1 says, “Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing.” How did this happen? It wasn’t because of the strength of Abraham or the might of Sarah but because of the grace of God. And what unleashed that grace in their lives was not their virtue. It was their faith.