Laughing at God


Sarai laughing at God! There seems to be no end of lessons that Sarai (Sarah) needed to learn. Will she ever learn to truly trust in the Lord? Will we?



1 Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. 2 So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him; and when he saw them, he ran from the tent door to meet them, and bowed himself to the ground, 3 and said, “My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. 4 Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. 5 And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts. After that you may pass by, inasmuch as you have come to your servant.”They said, “Do as you have said.”


10 And He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.”(Sarah was listening in the tent door which was behind him.) 11 Now Abraham and Sarah were old, well advanced in age; and Sarah had passed the age of childbearing. 12 Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?”13 And the LORD said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?’ 14 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 18:1-5 & 10-14, New King James Version



Laughing at God!

As we continue to look at the Bible couple, Abraham and Sarah, we find that in Genesis 18, they had some rather unusual visitors. As Abraham looked up, he saw three men from God approaching. As was customary at that time, Abraham ran out and offered hospitality to the men.

“My Lord, if I have now found favor in Your sight, do not pass on by Your servant. Please let a little water be brought, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the tree. And I will bring a morsel of bread, that you may refresh your hearts.

Notice that Abraham only speaks to one man, and he calls him, My Lord. Many times in the Old Testament, people were approached by Christ who appeared in the form of a man. Abraham understood that these were not only men from God, but one of them was really the Lord!

It did not take very long for Christ to state His purpose in coming.

And He said, “I will certainly return to you according to the time of life, and behold, Sarah your wife shall have a son.” Who do you suppose was listening to these words being spoken? Sarah, of course. You know how it is; when strangers come to the door we will listen from another room, if we can, to hear what they have to say.

How did Sarah react? She laughed.

Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, “After I have grown old, shall I have pleasure, my lord being old also?”

Remember, one of the men was Christ; He knew immediately what she thought! Though she denied it, they both knew what she had thought. Did Christ rebuke her for her lack of faith, or for her laughing at God! No! He only responded with a question?

"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.

”It is very hard for us to understand God. We are so confined in our own bodies, that we do not understand the abilities of God. Boy, that is really an understatement, is it not? How often do we find ourselves laughing at God because we try to limit Him as we are limited by time and space?

Remember that today as you go about your normal duties of life. We have an awesome God! He is everywhere at the same time; He knows everything, even what we are thinking; He is totally righteous; He never makes a mistake; He hears and answers prayer; He is all-powerful, there is not a power on heaven or on earth greater than Him; and so the list goes on. When you find yourself laughing at God, think about who God is.

I pray that not only is He all of the things listed above and more, but that He is your Savior as well.


Next: Trouble in Paradise



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Laughing at God

Abraham and Sarah

Barren Woman

God's Plan for Me

Trouble in Paradise

Death of Sarah

Bible Couples

Teen Devotions

Devotions for Women

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