A Heart of Hope

And it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.

A special welcome if you are new or visiting with us.

! We're glad that you're here.

And we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,

but because we're following Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow Jesus together, we become convinced that there's no one so good.

They don't need God's grace.

And no one so bad that they can't have it.

Which is why we come back week after week to hear what God has to say to us.

In his word.

This week we're continuing our series in the book of Genesis.

You'll remember the book of Genesis is a book of origins.

In chapters 1 through 11, we're told the origin of the world.

And then in chapters 11 through 50, we find the origin of God's people, Israel, starting with Abraham.

In fact, that's our focus.

We're only in chapters 11 through 25 in Abraham's story.

And we're there for two reasons.

First, to prepare us to go back in our series in Romans,

where we'll pick up in chapter 4, which is about Abraham.

And two, because it allows us to answer this question,

what does it look like to follow God in faith?

You remember last week, chapter 17, we asked the question,

what does it mean to be in a relationship with God?

How does it change us?

And we found two answers, that it gives us a new identity,

and it gives us new responsibilities.

Here in chapter 18, God is going to reiterate his promise specifically to Sarah.

In the past, he's spoken only to Abraham.

And here, she struggles to believe.

And so we ask this question,

how does faith overcome bitterness and cynicism?

How does faith face overcome bitterness and cynicism?

It's with that that I invite you to turn with me to Genesis chapter 18.

Genesis 18 · chapter mention

You can turn in your Bible.

You can turn on your phone.

You can turn in your worship guide.

No matter where you turn, remember that this is God's word.

Proverbs chapter 30, verse 5 tells us,

Proverbs 30:5

every word of God proves true.

He's a shield to those who take refuge in him.

So that's why we read now chapter 18, starting at verse 1.

Do not pass by your servant.

Let a little water be brought, and wash your feet,

and rest yourselves under the tree,

while I bring a morsel of bread,

that you may refresh yourselves.

And after that, you may pass on,

since you have come to your servant.

So they said,

Do as you have said.

And Abraham went quickly into the tent to Sarah,

and said, Quick, three sillas of fine flour.

Knead it and make cakes.

And Abraham ran to the herd and took a calf,

tender and good,

and gave it to a young man who prepared it quickly.

Then he took curds and milk and the calf that he had prepared

and set it before them.

And he stood by them under the tree while they ate.

They said to him,

Where is Sarah, your wife?

And he said,

She is in the tent.

The Lord said,

I will surely return to you about this time next year,

and Sarah, your wife, shall have a son.

And Sarah was listening at the tent tour behind him.

Now Abraham and Sarah were old, advanced in years.

The way of women had ceased to be with Sarah.

So Sarah laughed to herself, saying,

After I am worn out and my Lord is old,

shall I have pleasure.

The Lord said to Abraham,

Why did Sarah laugh and say,

Shall I indeed bear a child, now that I am old?

Is anything too hard for the Lord?

At the appointed time I will return to you

about this time next year,

and Sarah shall have a son.

But Sarah denied it, saying,

I did not laugh, for she was afraid.

He said,

No, but you did laugh.

I invite you to pray with me

as we come to this portion of God's word.

Our Father in heaven,

we do praise you

and thank you for what you show us in Genesis,

that as your people fail again and again,

you pursue them again and again,

show them grace over and over.

We ask that you would remind us of that this morning,

that you would open our eyes,

you'd unstop our ears,

you would clear our minds,

you'd soften our hearts,

that we would be able to see and hear

and understand and believe

everything that's written in your word.

And we ask these things in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Many years ago,

over a decade ago,

I spoke with a woman

who desperately

wanted to be married.

And she told me

that she had recently

started praying about this.

She'd recently started praying

for a spouse.

But only recently,

because for a long time,

she did not want to pray about it,

which I thought was interesting.

So I said,

why?

Why did you not want to pray about it?

She said,

well,

what if I prayed

and I still didn't get married?

It's bad enough

not to have it.

It's even worse

to pray

and not have it.

That would be

an even greater

disappointment.

I tell you that

because the point is this.

Hope

is really vulnerable.

It is incredibly vulnerable

to hope.

It's scary.

And it's scary

and vulnerable

because it opens you up

to disappointment.

And so I'm going to share

a little life hack with you.

If you want

to never be disappointed,

make sure you never hope

for anything.

It's easy.

Don't desire anything.

you can be safe.

If you don't long

for anything,

your heart

will never be broken.

So it's a lot easier

to make it through

this life

as a cynic.

That's where we're at

in this story

with Abraham and Sarah.

They have been hoping

for a long time.

You may remember

the opening

of chapter 17.

Last week,

we're told

that Abraham

is now

99 years old,

which means

that it has been

24 years

since God

first appeared

to him

in Genesis chapter 12.

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

It was in Genesis chapter 12

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

that God said to him,

look,

you are going to be

the father of a nation.

Later,

he tells him

not just a great nation,

but many nations.

Chapter 16,

Abraham and Sarah

try to speed things up.

This isn't happening

fast enough.

Maybe we can get Hagar

to have the promised son

for us.

That's Sarah's idea.

Chapter 17,

remember,

God comes to Abraham

and says,

I'm going to give you a son.

And Abraham says,

yeah,

but what about Ishmael?

Isn't he good enough?

Can't he be the solution

to the problem?

Proverbs chapter 13,

Proverbs 13:12

verse 12,

tells us,

hope deferred

makes the heart sick.

Sarah's hope

has been deferred

and her heart

is very sick.

I'm jumping ahead of us,

though.

At the very beginning

of this passage,

verses 1 and 2,

we have three unexpected visitors

who show up

to see Abraham.

Verses 3 through 5,

he gives them

this offer of hospitality.

Verses 6 through 8,

we have a frantic scene

of preparation.

And we know it's frantic

because of the words

that are used.

Verse 6,

Abraham goes quickly

and he says,

quick.

Verse 7,

they ran.

In the Hebrew,

there's actually a verb

or two that is dropped

to show how fast

Abraham is talking

because he's trying

to get it done

as soon as possible.

Now,

the point is this.

Abraham is a great host.

Abraham is a great host

who is really good

at hospitality.

This plays a larger role

in the narrative

of Genesis

because we're being set up

for what's going to happen

in the next chapter.

Remember,

Abraham and Lot

sort of serve as contrast

to each other.

Abraham often

the positive example.

Lot always

the negative example.

Abraham shows

great hospitality

so we can understand

how bad Lot's hospitality

is later on.

Okay?

That's for a future sermon,

though.

We still need to get down

to business.

And in fact,

that's what they do.

So they have this meal

and then it is time

for the four men,

Abraham and the three visitors,

to sit down

and figure out

what this is all about.

We don't have to wait long

because they tell us

the topic,

verse 9.

Where is Sarah,

your wife?

Now this is kind of

a rhetorical question.

They're not actually wondering

where Sarah is.

This is a men's meeting

for man talk.

And so really what they're saying is,

hey, the reason we're here

is for Sarah.

We know she's behind the tent

and we find out quickly

these are not just

random human visitors.

No, something is going on.

And we know something

is going on for many reasons,

one of which is

they know Sarah's name.

And they don't just know

Sarah's name,

they know her new name.

Right?

Remember chapter 17,

after most of her life

being called Sarai,

she is now,

God's given her

this new name of Sarah.

And so we are not

dealing here

with some average,

regular travelers.

No, and we find out quickly

we are dealing

with God himself.

In fact, that's what we see

in verse 10.

You may have noticed

in verse 3,

Abraham addresses him,

O Lord.

Lord there is lowercase,

meaning he's just using

the general term.

And we find out verse 10,

Lord uppercase,

meaning God's personal name,

Yahweh.

This is not just

three random men.

No, God himself

has come to visit Abraham.

That commentators point out

that until Jesus' incarnation

in the New Testament,

this is the only

and first time

that God has a meal

with a man.

So it's significant.

It's a good thing

that Sarah is listening in

because they, in fact,

do have a word for her.

Verse 10,

Sarah, your wife,

shall have a son.

And what's Sarah's response?

Does she say,

wow, that's so exciting.

I wonder how that's

going to happen.

Oh, the thing I've been

longing for

for so many years

is finally coming to pass.

No.

Verse 12,

Sarah laughed

to herself.

Her laugh here,

it's not a joyful laugh.

It's not a silly laugh.

It is a bitter laugh.

It is a laugh

filled

with Sarah's

shame.

And we know that

because of what we found out

the verse before,

verse 11.

Abraham and Sarah

were old,

advanced in years.

The way of women

had ceased

to be

with Sarah.

It's a bitter laugh

of how.

How is this

going to happen

now that I'm weak?

How is this going

to happen

now that I'm not enough?

How is it going

to happen

now that my sex life

is over?

We're not here

to throw Sarah

under the bus.

In many ways,

her response

makes complete sense.

From a human perspective,

this is a joke.

Verse 11

is telling us

that for Sarah,

menopause

is finished.

And whatever hope

that she had

of one day

having a child

is fully

and finally

gone.

Her options

are set.

Her greatest

dream,

the thing

that would be

most important

to a woman

in the ancient

Near East

has not happened

and it will

not happen.

And so it's

safe

and easy

for her to laugh.

In fact,

cynicism

makes complete

sense

in a world

without God.

Cynicism

makes complete

sense

in a world

without God.

A man named

Cary Newhoff

tells us

that cynicism

and hope

are actually

opposites.

If you hope,

you cannot be

cynical.

And if you are

cynical,

you have given

up on hope.

Those things

cannot travel

on the same

track.

Hope tells us

that the future

and other people

are innocent

until proven

guilty.

Cynicism

tells us

that the future

and other people

are guilty

until proven

innocent.

I'll say

that again.

Hope

tells us

that the future

and other people

are innocent

until proven

guilty.

Cynicism

tells us

the future

and other people

are guilty

until proven

innocent.

Cynicism assumes the worst so that we never get disappointed.

Assumes the worst so we never have to hurt.

Where do you laugh at God's promises?

Where are you tempted to let bitterness and unbelief set in?

Do you believe that the very best things are not in front of you, but are behind you?

If you do, you don't believe God's promise in Psalm 23.

That goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life.

Do you believe that God cannot use you anymore?

If you do, you've given up on God's promise in Ephesians 2.

That you were created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand.

That we should walk in them.

Christian, if you're still alive, God still has good works for you.

Are you convinced that you or other people cannot and will not change?

If you do, you've forgotten God's promise in Ephesians 3.

That he is able to do far more abundantly than all we can ask or think.

Remember, we're asking this question in Genesis.

What does it look like to follow God in faith?

One of the answers, the answer of this passage is,

following God in faith means believing that what is ahead is better than what is behind.

It's hard to be cynical if you believe that.

Charles Spurgeon was a Baptist pastor in London in the 19th century.

It's well known that Spurgeon struggled with pretty severe depression throughout most of his adult life.

It was so bad at times that he wanted to die.

Spurgeon spoke about this in multiple sermons.

In fact, a man named Zach Eswine wrote a book about it called Spurgeon's Sorrows.

And he tells us in one of Spurgeon's sermons that he points out that despair is arrogant.

And he said, despair is arrogant because it is confident that it knows the future.

It's arrogant to believe that you know what's going to come next.

And so Spurgeon goes on to say the Christian needs to hide themselves under this promise.

And he quotes 1 Corinthians 2, verse 9.

1 Corinthians 2:9

But as it is written,

What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined,

what God has prepared for those who love him.

Christian, you cannot imagine what God has prepared for you.

Faith means believing that what is to come is better than what has passed.

Spurgeon preaches a sermon on the prophet Elijah,

and he riffs off the Psalms and says this,

Do you believe that God can and will still do great things for you?

Do you believe that God can and will still do great things for you?

Or do you laugh with bitterness?

Hope and cynicism cannot coexist.

Hope and despair never go together.

Thankfully, God doesn't leave Sarah here.

He doesn't leave us there either.

As we've been going through this story of Abraham,

one of the major themes, maybe the major theme,

is this, that God shows mercy and grace to his people

despite their failure.

That God shows mercy and grace to his people through their failure.

Genesis chapter 12,

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

right after God's made this great promise to Abraham,

what does he do?

He goes and lies to Pharaoh and puts his wife in danger.

What does God do?

God delivers him.

Genesis 14,

Lot makes a foolish choice

and ends up being the collateral damage

in a big war between lots of kings.

What does God do with Lot's foolish choice?

God shows grace to his people through his people.

And Abraham shows up to rescue.

Genesis chapter 15,

Genesis 15 · chapter mention

God makes a covenant

and says,

I'll pay the price if you break it.

Genesis 16,

Hagar is thrown out

because of Abraham and Sarah's selfishness.

What does God do?

He goes and finds Hagar in the desert

and rescues her.

Genesis chapter 18,

Genesis 18 · chapter mention

God comes to a bitter and cynical old woman

and shows her his grace.

God comes to someone who's very disappointed

with how their story is ending

and he calls her by name.

She laughs.

God doesn't punish her for that.

No, he doubles down on his promise.

He says it not once, but twice.

First time, verse 10,

Sarah, your wife shall have a son.

Verse 12, she laughs.

So it's time to repeat the promise again.

Verse 14,

Is anything too hard for the Lord?

I will return to you

about this time next year

and Sarah will have a son.

God is still going to use Sarah for his mission.

His grace is more powerful

than her unbelief.

Christian,

as you falter and fail

in following God,

he is still going to use you

in his mission.

He has still prepared works beforehand

for you to do in Christ Jesus.

His grace is greater

greater than your unbelief.

I'm going to fast forward a little bit

and steal a little bit of thunder

for chapter 21.

Because in chapter 21,

Isaac is born.

You know what Isaac's name means?

Isaac is Hebrew for he laughs.

God gets the last word.

Genesis chapter 21,

Genesis 21 · chapter mention

Sarah says,

God has made laughter for me.

Everyone who hears

will laugh over me.

Her laugh of bitterness,

her laugh of shame,

God takes that.

He makes it into a laugh

of joy.

He does that for us as well.

And so there's a foundational question

that we must get straight

as Christians,

and it is this.

Is anything too hard

for the Lord?

Is anything too hard

for the Lord?

The answer is no.

And we know that

even more than Sarah did.

We know that more than Sarah did

because we have seen

more than Sarah saw.

What Sarah looked forward to,

we look back on,

which is Jesus' life

and death

and resurrection.

If there was anything

that would show

that there was nothing

too hard for God,

it was not

everything that God

sent up to this point

in Genesis.

No.

It's God sending

his son,

his only son,

to die for us.

if Jesus has risen

from the dead

and he has,

there is nothing

too hard

for the Lord.

That's what Paul tells us

in 1 Corinthians 15.

He says,

if Christ has not

been raised,

then our preaching

is in vain

and your faith

is in vain.

In other words,

if Jesus has not risen

from the dead,

you really need

to be cynical.

You need to stop hoping.

In fact,

he goes on,

verse 19,

he says,

if in Christ

we have hope

in this life only,

we are of all people

most to be pitied.

If Jesus didn't rise

from the dead,

you should laugh

at Christians

more than you laugh

at anyone else

because we believe

the future is better

than the past

even though it's not.

The problem is this.

Jesus has risen

from the dead.

so we can trust him

and follow him

and believe him.

He'll take our laughs

of bitterness,

our laughs of shame,

he turns them

to laughs of joy.

Is anything

too hard

for the Lord?

No.

Let's pray.

Our Father in heaven,

we do praise you

and thank you

that you meet us

as we falter

and fail,

that our mistakes

cannot stand

in the way

of your kingdom

as it moves forward.

They don't block

our relationship

with you

because we don't rise

or fall

on our behavior,

but instead

our hope

is in Jesus Christ.

We ask that you

would remind us

of that,

you would drive it

deeper and deeper

into our hearts

and we would believe it

more and more

that we would have

great hope.

We ask these things

in Jesus' name.

Amen.