Statistics concerning the rate of failure for marriages in America are discouraging. In many places, for every marriage license recorded, there also is a bill of divorcement recorded. Those numbers fail to tell the entire story, however. In many marriages, husband and wives stay together for religious or cultural reasons. In reality, they are two single people co-existing under the same roof. Can these marriages be salvaged, or are they destined to remain empty? God’s Word has some very specific ideas for transforming these marriages into some wonderful.

Confess and repent (Psalm 51:6-10)

To infer David had marriage issues would be an understatement. This mighty and powerful king of Israel was guilty of adultery. To cover up his sin, David built lie upon lie. He became so desperate, he became an accomplice to murder. Yet David saved his marriage and ultimately became known as a man chasing the heart of God. What happened in David to bring about such a radical transformation?

David understood God to be the God of the second chance. He sought God and begged to be purified so he could know his spirit was free from sin (v. 7). David needed to know he could be made, “whiter than snow” (v. 7). He prayed for God to hide his face from his sin (v. 9). David was consumed with the ideas of grace, “a clean heart and a steadfast heart” (vv. 8–11).

David’s restoration was the result of David’s actions. He sought God, and when he had discovered him, David confessed his sin to God, and he repented of his sin before God. Proper understandings of these two key words are essential to understand the meaning of the focal Scripture passage.

After falling so deeply into sin, David needed to experience God’s love. Knowing full well God had seen his marital indiscretions, he took the only reasonable and logical step necessary for forgiveness. David went before God to offer a plea of guilty. Confession is nothing more than agreeing with God that a certain event occurred.

The second key role is that of repentance. Repentance is a promise made to God indicating desire to move in a new direction. It is a military order to do an, “about face,” and to begin to walk in a new direction. David not only agreed with God concerning his behavior, but he indicated a desire to live differently in the future.

Many broken marriages and those marriages being held together held together by religious and social reason need to have the same spiritual epiphany. The marriage partners need to be strong enough in faith to agree with God that their actions and attitudes are not right. God already knows, but their recognition begins the process of healing. Likewise, marriage partners need to verbalize to each and before God their desire to change their life and to begin to move in a new direction.

Catch the little foxes (Song of Solomon 2:15)

The woman speaking in Song of Solomon 2 is either wise beyond her years or she has experienced enough of life to have unusual understanding. She understands it is “the little foxes” that are destroying the vineyard (Song of Solomon 2:15). Often it is the littlest thing that does the greatest amount of damage.

Interestingly enough most married couples have general agreement on life’s greatest issues. It is the minor things, when left unresolved, which will condemn a relationship. Pressures come in all sizes in a marriage. There are the pressures of money, raising kids, juggling schedules and a dozen other things. Unless couples take the time to deal with these “little foxes” they can become destructive. Too many “little foxes” and the vineyard is destroyed.

Dealing with “little foxes” is a conscious decision. They are similar to weeds. What does it take to grow weeds? Only neglect. Couples must make even the littlest items of discord a priority. They will only grow worse with neglect.

Connect spiritually (Acts 18:24-26; Romans 16:3-5)

Scripture is filled with couples whose marriage was a picture of what God intended the relationship between a man and a woman living in holy matrimony to be. While little is known about them, Priscilla and Aquila seem to be an appropriate model. It was this couple who after listening to Apollos speak, “took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately (Acts 18:26).

In a time when the role of women in the church was rarely discussed, it is interesting to note Priscilla being observed in a teaching role, especially where a man of stature is involved. Later, the Apostle Paul notes the work of this couple when he writes to the church in Rome. He says they were, “fellow workers” (Romans 16:3) and he notes they hosted a church, “in their house” (Romans 16:5).

While it is impossible, based on such limited information, to know everything behind the success and apparent marital relationship they enjoyed, it is apparent they were held in high esteem as a married couple. Even in this current age of complexities, it is obvious couples who base their relationship on spiritual criteria have the greatest opportunity for success.

Conclusion

For many years, it was common to see bumper stickers and graffiti that said, “the family that prays together stays together.” It is more than a cute saying. Couples who maintain themselves and their relationship through confession and repentance, who deal with “little foxes” before they become huge issues and who build their relationship on spiritual foundations have the best opportunity to succeed. Such a formula can save a divorce and infuse new energy into a marriage of co-existence.                      

Recognition of the work of God goes hand in hand with love and forgiveness

We know the story. Joseph’s true identity is revealed to his brothers. Joseph points out that God’s purpose has been carried out—that it was not his brothers but God who has sent him to Egypt (Genesis 45:7). Not only has Joseph been God’s vessel to save Egypt, but he also has ironically become the way to save his own family. Truly, what his brothers had meant for evil has been used by God for good (50:20).

Not to be missed in that story is Joseph’s reaction to his brothers. There is no question that Joseph has reason to be angry, even vengeful, toward his brothers. Instead, he brings them close to him, asks after his father and joyously lays out for them the workings of God through his life in Egypt.

There is no question that Joseph could tell the same story to them and yet have them all hauled away to jail—the story could have been something along the lines of: “Not that you had anything to do with it, but this turned out alright in spite of you. Think about that while you rot in your cells.”

That, however, is not the Joseph of Genesis. Instead, he is a man of love for his brothers, forgiving them and wrapping his arms around young Benjamin. His overwhelming reaction is affection and weeping for joy (45:15).

The lesson for us is that our horizontal relationships need not be sacrificed for “the bigger picture.” Saving Egypt is not enough for Joseph—he is taking the lead in reconciling himself to his family. There is no reason not to do both.

What if … ?

Much of the lesson of Joseph is seen in what did not happen.

What if Joseph had failed the test in Potiphar’s house? If Joseph had succumbed to the temptation before him, who knows what would have happened?

Perhaps there would have been a long-running affair about which Potiphar never would have known. Joseph would not have gone to prison, and instead he slowly would have become another self-seeking man, cheating his master and following his own pleasure. Surely he would have been unable to rise to the huge task that God had planned for him. How many of us have no clue what we could have been because of simple bad decisions we made early on?

What if Joseph had become wrapped up in self-pity during his two years in jail after the cupbearer’s release (40:21–41:9)? What if he had spent his time wallowing in the mire of victimization and chagrin, cursing God and feeling sorry for himself? He had every apparent reason—abandoned and literally sold by his brothers, falsely accused of rape, forgotten by Pharoah’s staff whom he had helped, rotting in prison as an innocent man.

We are not told a lot about Joseph’s time in the cell, but we know enough about Joseph to know he did not curse God, and we know that when his opportunity arose, he took it. He cleaned up, shaved and talked to Pharoah about the power of God (41:14-16).

What if Joseph had given in to revenge? We see some natural indecision in Joseph in chapters 42 through 44. He keeps Simeon as the others return, he hides treasure in their luggage and he toys with the brothers through the placement of a silver cup in Benjamin’s sack.

These actions pale, however, in comparison to what Joseph could have done. Reconciliation was not a foregone conclusion here. What if he had killed his brothers? What if the sin that was surely crouching at his door, as it had been for Cain, overcame Joseph’s love? How could God have used Joseph then?

Joseph understood his place in the larger work of God

Joseph’s last words are instructive. He speaks to his family and indicates his understanding that his own death will not interfere with the plan of God. That plan did not start with Joseph, but instead was announced decades earlier to his great-grandfather Abraham (50:24). Joseph critically comprehends that his role—great as it has been—is not the sine qua non of God’s relationship with his people. Instead, Joseph points his family toward the saving power of God, who will carry out his will just as he promised.
The Israelites will have little to rely upon other than these last words of Joseph for quite some time. After his death, and after Pharoah’s death, there will come to Egypt a king “who knew not Joseph” (Exodus 1:8). The Israelites will be oppressed and will suffer mightily as slaves, forced to make bricks without straw under the arm of a vengeful and evil realm. The words of God that have been clear to Abraham and Isaac and Joseph will seem to go silent, yet the promise made to them—and announced clearly in Joseph’s dying words—will sustain the faithful among the people until Moses rises up.

We learn much from Joseph’s final words. First, God will surely come to our aid. That is the promise of Scripture. We do not rely on patriarchs, kings or even family—ultimately, our hope is only in God. Second, God does not forget his promise. The land of Egypt was a temporary oasis in a time of famine, but it was not the Promised Land. God’s word had been given to Abraham, and it would not return void. God’s promise is sure.

Joseph has quite a place in this story—helping his people survive the famine and showing the power of God to Pharoah; but Joseph is, like you and me, merely a player in the work laid out by God.  Joseph models for us his recognition of that role.  He knows it and he relishes it, and as a result, God uses him mightily.

May it be so for us.

A split-second decision made as a teenager changed the course of his life. Despite the fact that he was the son of a convicted felon and he was being raised by a single mom, at age 16, Dwayne Betts was at top of his class. Yet, on a whim, he and a friend made the regretful decision to commit a carjacking. That choice landed him in jail for nine years.

Behind bars, Betts decided to try and prove his life was more than the 30 minutes it took him to commit the crime. He finished high school, starting tutoring fellow inmates and began writing poetry. When he was released from jail, he entered community college and eventually got an academic scholarship to the University of Maryland where he studied writing.

Now, he is an author, a husband and a father. In an interview with CNN, Betts talked about wanting to be an example for his son. He said, “You can be more than any one mistake you make.” Everyone deserves a second chance at life.

This week’s lesson is about the year of jubilee. The year of jubilee is an opportunity for people in debt and for slaves to be set free. God provides them with an opportunity for a second chance at life.  

Sabbath keeping is a spiritual discipline that truly is a gift from God to us. We literally are commanded to rest from our work. Sabbath is so important that God includes it in the Ten Commandments: “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:8-10).

In Leviticus 25, God instructs the people to take this discipline even further. Every seven years, the land was to get a Sabbath rest; it was to be left uncultivated. Anything that grew spontaneously could be harvested by slaves or even temporary residents. Otherwise, the land was to be left alone.

To people who made their living by agriculture, this must have seemed extreme. Remarkably, God extends the practice of Sabbath even further. Every seven times seven years, is to be a jubilee year.      

The freedom produced from the practice of jubilee was threefold. First, jubilee meant freedom for families who had gotten too far in debt and subsequently had lost their land. Through jubilee, once a generation, every 50 years, those who had acquired others’ ancestral land had to return it.

By requiring the Israelites to return the land to its original owner, God reminds the people that everything they have belongs to him anyway. God tells the people, “The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants” (v. 23).

Second, jubilee meant freedom for Hebrew slaves. In biblical times, it was not uncommon for men who incurred debt to be forced into slavery as a form of payment. The release of Hebrew slaves was a response to God’s gracious deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt.

Third, jubilee meant release from working the land for a year, a Sabbatical year. The land was to be given rest, just as God’s people rest one day out of every seven. The people were told not to cultivate the land for an entire year.

But how would they eat? God assured them that if they followed his commands, “I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years” (v. 21). Letting the land go uncultivated for a year reminded Israel that God alone was their provider and sustainer.    

The key verse in this entire passage is: “Do not take advantage of each other, but fear your God. I am the Lord your God” (v. 17). In God’s kingdom, we are our brother’s keeper. The old idiom of looking out for No. 1 is not an option.

Jubilee was a chance for Israel’s brothers and sisters who have gotten into trouble to be set free. Jubilee also was intended to prevent the wealth of the nation from being concentrated into the hands of just a few people. It helped ensure a class of rich landowners did not emerge over a mass of landless servants.  

How can we practice jubilee today? One unconventional way for Christians to support the spirit of jubilee is by supporting the estate tax. The estate tax, or death tax as it is sometimes called, is levied against inheritances when people die.

On the surface this sounds wrong. Families should be able to pass on money and land to their children, right? Yet, the estate tax is one of the few mechanisms in the United States that we have in place to ensure the gap between the rich and the poor does not continue to expand exponentially. Like the year of jubilee, the estate tax helps ensure the wealth of the nation is not concentrated in the hands of just a few, because as Yuki Noguchi notes in a story for National Public Radio, “Historically, the gap between the rich and poor expands when the estate tax decreases.”     

The year of jubilee is a radical notion. Figuring out how to incorporate this principal of debt relief and generosity into our lives is challenging. It goes against the grain of America’s consumer driven, individualist culture. Yet, through jubilee God ensured the slate was wiped clean for the Israelites once in their lifetime, should not people today have the same chance?

Beginning in chapter 17, the emphasis of the book of Leviticus changes from discussing how to properly sacrifice and practice corporate worship to focusing on individual morality. Seven times in Leviticus 17, the Israelites are told not to act like the people who inhabit Canaan. God makes it clear they are different.

Borrowing terminology from Stanley Hauerwas and William Willimon, the Israelites are to be resident aliens. Of course, they will continue to live in the same neighborhoods as the Canaanites, but they are not to act like them. Their citizenship is in another kingdom—God’s kingdom.

Being citizens in God’s kingdom means living by his statutes. This week’s lesson passage is about God’s people avoiding the ungodly practices of the culture around them. This lesson encourages adults today to take a bold stand against sinful practices.   

God delivered Israel from captivity and granted them a new land. He desired to produce in them a way of living worthy of followers of a holy God. What specifically is involved in the new life God called Israel to live?  

This section of Scripture outlines some of the unacceptable practices. For example, in Egyptian culture, particularly among the royal family, it was common practice for brothers to marry their sisters. God told Israel, “Do not have sexual relations with your sister, either your father's daughter or your mother's daughter, whether she was born in the same home or elsewhere” (Leviticus 18:9).

In the past, Israelites may have adopted the customs of the surrounding culture. After all, Abraham and Sarah were half-siblings, but now God wanted these practices to end. The emphasis of this section is on the fact that Israel’s conduct was to be morally superior to their neighbors. Israel was not to look to Egypt or to Canaan for their sexual standard any more than we should look to the pop charts or Hollywood to justify our behavior. Israel had a new standard set by God and the spirit of that standard still applies to God’s people today.

After this long list of sexual regulations, the author includes a prohibition against an even more disturbing practice, child sacrifice. Israel is warned: “Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molech, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the Lord” (Leviticus 18:21).

The Canaanite culture Israel moved into also would be filled with challenges. The pagan practice of child sacrifice was just one of the many practices unacceptable for Israel. God set them apart from other nations, including Canaan, and God expected them to act like it. They were called to be holy.

In Leviticus, holiness means being distinctive as the people of God. Accordingly, the central verse of this entire passage is Leviticus 20:7 which says, “Consecrate yourselves and be holy because, I am the Lord your God.”  With these words, God set the standard.  God’s very nature was the benchmark and the model for Israel and is for us.  

Frederick Buechner’s definition of holy helps to shed light on how this works in our lives. He said: “Only God is holy, just as only people are human. God’s holiness is his godness. To speak of anything else as holy is to say that it has something of God’s mark upon it.”

As God’s chosen nation, Israel was to live a life of holiness. Yet, humans cannot be holy in and of themselves. Holiness is intrinsically an attribute of God alone. For humans, holiness is therefore a state of grace that comes from contact with the Divine. The message of Leviticus is that through obeying the law and carrying out rituals such as sacrifice, Israel too could become holy.  

Thankfully, we no longer have to offer sacrifices in order to be made holy before God. As the New Testament reveals, “… we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10). Yet Leviticus still raises the question, how do Christians today continue to demonstrate the distinctiveness that God called Israel to through the book of Leviticus? We begin by making sure we continue to hold ourselves to the standards set forth in Scripture. And we continue to resist the influence of the culture around us and follow the example of Christ.  

A few weeks ago, I had a conversation with someone about a Christian businessman who makes his living by running a payday loan agency. Payday loans are small-dollar loans designed to get clients through to their next paycheck.

The catch is that these loans come with high service fees and interest rates. Also, the borrower is normally required to pay off the loan completely at the end of two weeks, which often creates a cycle of debt that is hard to escape. The fees and interest rates that clients are asked to pay “can reach the equivalent of up to 500 percent APR,” according to researcher Amy Wiles. By charging exorbitant interest rates, these businesses take advantage of low income families who are desperate to make ends meet.

The person I was talking with argued that since these businesses are legal, it is fine for Christians to operate them. However, this passage in Leviticus reminds us that if our lending practices, our business deals, or even our sexual relationships look just like everyone else’s, we have failed.  Just because it is legal does not mean it is moral. As followers of Christ, we have a different standard.

Like the Israelites, we are called to be different from the culture around us. We live in the world. Yet, we are resident aliens, constantly aware we are not of this world. Our citizenship is in God’s kingdom and our standard of morality is based on Scripture and the example of Jesus.

Adultery and marital infidelity aren’t new behaviors; they are as old as humanity itself. However, the means of becoming unfaithful have changed significantly. With the ready access to the Internet, many are establishing cyber relationships with people they never even have met. The Internet also provides unparalleled access to pornography. Perhaps more than ever before, the church needs to be offering instructions from God’s Word concerning marital faithfulness.

Avoid mental adultery (Matthew 5:27-30)

Many years ago, then Presidential candidate Jimmy Carter gave an interview to Playboy magazine. In the midst of the interview, President Carter confessed to having committed adultery many times during his marriage. Most in the mainstream media were shocked. How could this conservative Southern Baptist deacon and Sunday school teacher confess to such a horrible sin? Carter obviously was using the context of Jesus’ statement, “anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (v. 28) as his point of reference.

To understand Jesus’ remarks requires a proper understanding of lust. Within the confines of Matthew 5:28, lust is the consideration of another person or thing as an object to be used for self-gratification. Absent from lust is any desire to look out for the benefit of anyone other than self.

Many are guilty of using Jesus’ comments only in reference to men. Adultery is as common among women as it is among men. It should be noted however that the impetus for committing mental adultery is different among men and women. Men, more often than not, are lustful for purely sexual reasons. Women tend to lust after other people or things to fill the need for emotional intimacy.

The Internet has contributed greatly to mental adultery. In Matthew 5, Jesus describes an adultery committed by the eyes and the mind. Never in human history has lust found a more fertile feeding ground. Misuse of pornography has become so pervasive nearly one-third of evangelical ministers admit to accessing pornography on a regular basis.

Pornography has an interesting entomology. It comes from two root words, the first, transliterated “porno” means evil. The second root, transliterated “graphy” means pictures. Pornography is in essence evil pictures. The Bible encourages every believer to “flee the appearance of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22). While there is much good information to be gleaned from the Internet, believers need to guard themselves from the opportunity for evil by every means possible.

Jesus took this matter of mental adultery very seriously. He uses some of the strongest hyperbole used in the Bible. In essence, Jesus encourages dismembering the offending parts of the body if they are the source of sin. As with all hyperbole, Jesus used the exaggeration to make a point. It would be better to, “lose one body part than for your whole body go to hell” (v. 30). All sin begins in the mind and then is conveyed to the mind for action. It is better to eliminate the source than for the source to continue its contamination.

Find fulfillment in your spouse (Proverbs 5:15-21)

Desire in and of itself is not a bad thing. In fact, it has been placed in humans by God himself. It is the expression of desire that becomes the issue.

As every parent should, Solomon took his son aside to explain human sexuality. He told his son to find his sexual fulfillment, “in the wife of your youth” (v. 18). Solomon’s choice of words is important. It is in the early days of marriage, while the marriage partners still are young, that desire is at its peak. Establishing a means of fulfillment in the early days will bring a recognized opportunity for fulfillment even when beauty fades.

Unfortunately, passion tends to wane in latter years. The desires of youth can become the diversions of middle age. Husbands and wives need to work at maintaining or rediscovering the romance they enjoyed when they were younger.

Recognize what is at stake (Proverbs 6:25-32)

Solomon, one of the wisest men who ever lived, continues to educate his son in Proverbs 6. Here, he outlines the cost of adultery. Solomon says the adulterer, “will not go unpunished” (v. 29). It is uncertain as to the source of the punishment. In Solomon’s time, a person caught in adultery was to be stoned to death (John 8) as payment to society for a crime committed. It also is possible Solomon is referring to a punishment God pronounces. Either way, Solomon’s point is valid; the commission of adultery has dire consequences.

Solomon also gives the instruction to consider the other outcomes of adultery. It leads to financial calamity, “it costs him all the wealth of his house” (v. 31) and the one who commits adultery, “destroys himself”(v. 32) and “his shame will never be wiped away” (v. 33). In any time and in any culture, adultery carries a high price. Infidelity’s price is too high to pay, and its results are to long lasting to consider. If for no other reason, Solomon’s warning should help believers understand the severe consequences of their unfaithful actions.

Conclusion

Unfaithful behavior, whether mental or physical, never is a part of God’s intentions. He intends for one man and one woman to live together in a faithful and monogamous relationship. Adultery has serious consequences. Every married believer must take every possible step to protect the integrity of their marital relationship.

The Lord is with Joseph (Genesis 39:2). This lesson of Joseph’s temptation, false accusation and resulting imprisonment leads to more adventures that turn to Joseph’s advantage, as the Lord continues to be with him. Ultimately, we see the hand of God lead Joseph to the place where God can best use him for his family and his nation.

Given this big picture of the life of Joseph, it is tempting to teach this lesson as simply another example—like being thrown into the pit by his brothers (Genesis 37:21-33) and being forgotten in prison by the chief cupbearer (Genesis 40:23)—of the terrible circumstance out of which Joseph victoriously arises. That of course is true—when the spurned wife of Potiphar accuses Joseph of attempted rape (vv. 16-18), Joseph is indeed thrown into prison (vv. 19-20). Even there, “the Lord was with him” (v. 21).

It is important, however, not to miss the trees in that forest. The big picture is crucial, but there is an individual lesson here of Joseph’s faithfulness through and in spite of the luring of Potiphar’s wife.

Joseph is “well-built and handsome (verse 6),” and Potiphar’s wife attempts to seduce him. One only has to look back one page to chapter 38 to understand the near-barbaric sexual mores that surrounded Joseph at this time; a decision not to live a life of chaste faithfulness would certainly not be unexpected.

Joseph cites three reasons for choosing to resist the advances.  Each of these three is instructive to us as we deal with the temptations that surely come.

Joseph is a man of position (v. 8)
    
The temptation put before Joseph is common. Joseph is not, and he knows he is not. The Lord is with him, and as a result he has quickly risen to the place of command in the household (vv. 5-6). As Uncle Ben tells Peter Parker, “with great power comes great responsibility.” That sentiment was not created for the “Spiderman” movie; Joseph recognizes its truth immediately. He has a position that is not worth threatening. He has honor that is not to be debased. He has power that must not be abused.
    
So, too, do we, followers who choose to bear the name of Christ, have a position to consider. It is cliché to say our actions speak louder than our words … that we are “writing a Bible each day by the things that we do.” Things generally become cliché because they are true, and it is indisputable that our position in the discipleship of Christ carries with it responsibilities.

Even if we are never “caught,” there are things we do not do simply because they are inappropriate for us, because of who we are and because of whose we are. Like Joseph, the “Master has entrusted much” to us (v. 8), and we are fools to disregard that in favor of a passing worldly offering.

Joseph is the recipient of much generosity (v. 9)

Potiphar has withheld nothing from Joseph except his wife. To take her would be the extreme act of selfishness. Like Adam and Eve in the garden, Joseph has been given many beautiful and worthy gifts. Like Adam and Eve in the garden, Joseph knows of only one thing before him that is off limits. Unlike Adam and Eve in the garden, Joseph has the good sense to recognize and honor those limits.

Temptation sometimes strikes us where we are lacking. The devil tempts Jesus with turning stones into bread when Jesus is at his hungriest, after 40 days of fasting (Matthew 4:2-3). Temptation often, on the other hand, slithers into our plenty, telling us that we deserve whatever our eye sees. When we have been given much, it can be easy for us to take even more.

Like Joseph, Paul teaches us to be content in what we are given (Philippians 4:11-13). True contentment in the gifts of God becomes an antidote to the temptations of this world aimed at our selfishness.

Joseph does not want to sin against God (v. 9)
    
The idea of sin has not been fleshed out much in Genesis prior to the story of Joseph. We have seen the idea of “sin crouching at the door” in God’s conversation with Cain (4:7). The people of Noah’s pre-flood generation are described as “evil” (6:5), but the actual term “sin” is not used again until the description of the actions in Sodom and Gomorrah (13:13). God tells Abimalech that had he taken Sarah, the wife of Abraham, he would have committed a sin (20:6). Jacob uses the word “sin” in talking with Laban, although it is not clear that Jacob understands sin to be related to a relationship with God (31:36).
    
For Joseph, then, to comprehend adultery to be a “sin” shows a great depth of understanding of his relationship with God. This is not something Scripture shows us has been handed down to Joseph by his fathers. This insight is Joseph’s own, undoubtedly arising because “the Lord is with him.”

Sin is, as Joseph says, “against God” (Psalm 51:4). Giving in to the seduction would harm Potiphar and probably others, but the sin would be against God. Joseph recognizes this, understands sinning against God would be a “wicked” thing, and chooses the right path.
    
No temptation comes to you that you cannot resist and for which God does not prepare a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10:13). Claiming that promise and understanding that temptation is calling on you to sin against God are the keys to resisting the temptation and to remaining faithful.
    
Let Joseph be your model.

The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay (Thomas Nelson)

Here’s the final constant for 23 million fans of Lost, the fantastic, mesmerizing, profound-confounding, mysterious television series that concludes its six-year flight this month. The Gospel According to Lost offers one last mind-bending discussion about the theological implications of a program riven with spiritual paradox, biblical allusions and soulful longing.

Chris Seay, pastor of Ecclesia in Houston, earned a fine reputation for mining spiritual truth from popular culture with books on the Matrix movie franchise and The Sopranos. His rumination on the survivors of Oceanic 815, the Dharma experimenters, the Others and others lives up to that record. Almost every episode of Lost left viewers pondering hard questions—good vs. evil, shades of truth, laws of physics, suffering and redemption, and even time travel. Seay jumps into the fray with the nerdy knowledge of a Lostie and the perspective of a preacher.

One of the things I like most about this book is the fact Seay wrote it between seasons five and six. So, he didn’t benefit from all the answers (we hope for answers!) of the series finale. Lingering mystery and unresolved ambiguity keep this book focused on the grand universal themes presented by the second-greatest TV series of all time. (Of course, M*A*S*H is tops.)

Marv Knox, editor

Baptist Standard

Dallas

Reordered Love, Reordered Lives: Learning the Deep Meaning of Happiness by David K. Naugle

(William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company)

Americans cherish our “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” But in a yuppie, me-first society, hasn’t the idea of happiness been distorted and disfigured?

David Naugle, chair and professor of philosophy at Dallas Baptist University, guides the reader through this theological treatise proclaiming the need for a biblical view of happiness.

Christians tend to struggle with balancing their many loves—their relationships with family and others, material things in creation, experiences, etc. Some may try to shun all loves but God alone. This isn’t biblical. True fulfillment as human beings comes through understanding our loves and making sure they are in the proper order as God intended them to be—under our first love for our Creator and Redeemer.

Yes, the world is fallen, and the various loves of our lives are disordered. But God’s original creation was grounded in “rightly ordered loves and lives.” Through redemption in Jesus Christ and his gospel, our loves and lives can be reordered as they were purposed to be. God’s blessing of happiness, shalom and fulfillment is a result of this right-side-up state of being.

Greg Bowman, minister to students

First Baptist Church

Duncanville

The Summer Kitchen by Lisa Wingate (New American Library)

Having enjoyed Lisa Wingate’s Tending Roses, I was excited when The Summer Kitchen was chosen as Waco’s One Book selection. And I wasn’t disappointed in the novel inspired by the city’s Gospel Cafe.

Wingate’s encouraging volume contrasts the complicated lives of two women—one in her 40s and one age 12. In alternating chapters, upscale Plano doctor’s wife SandraKaye Darden and rundown Dallas neighborhood preteen Cass Blue share their secrets and struggles. The murder of SandraKaye’s Uncle Poppy shatters her orderly family and seemingly perfect world. As she prepares to sell his house, the mother of two finds comfort in its happy memories. Similarly, Cass Blue’s mother’s death shatters her world. She and her high-school-aged brother run away and land near Poppy’s old home. Cass has trouble finding enough food for herself and her brother.

SandraKaye drives by, stops the children from dumpster diving, and finally realizes they’re hungry. Taking peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to them leads to an unlikely friendship between Cass and SandraKaye that changes their lives and ultimately the life of the community.

Wingate’s thriller ending doesn’t spell happiness for every character. However, the story powerfully communicates the importance of hope, second chances and the difference one person can make.

Kathy Robinson Hillman, former president

Woman’s Missionary Union of Texas

Waco

Steps number 8 and 9 in Alcoholics Anonymous’ 12 step-recovery program require recovering addicts to make amends. Step 8 is to make a list of all the people who have been harmed and become willing to make amends. Step 9 is to make direct amends with the people who have been harmed whenever possible.

Why is making amends or restitution a part of AA? People who become addicted to alcohol often lie to the people closest to them to cover up their illness. Sometimes they steal from family and friends in order to get and use alcohol. They show up at important family events like graduation or birthday parties intoxicated or not at all.

As a result of this behavior, a trail of shattered relationships is left in their wake. Recovering addicts are encouraged to make restitution because it is one way they can begin to own up to how their behavior has harmed others. It also is a way for them to begin to let go of the guilt they feel, and hopefully, it is a first step in repairing their relationships.

How does making amends differ from apologizing? Making amends or restitution is an effort to restore justice or  repair what has broken or damaged. For example, if the recovering addict stole money from his parents for alcohol, it is not enough for him to say, “I am sorry.” Making amends means working to repay the money.

As Christians, when our sinful behavior affects others, God also expects us to make restitution. This lesson is about acknowledging one’s sinful actions and making restitution where possible. Through this lesson, adults are encouraged to rectify any situation in which they offended or sinned against another person.

God knows us all too well. God knows sin and impurity will interrupt our relationship with him and our fellow human beings. In Leviticus, we discover that God made a way for Israel to restore their relationship with him when it became broke and that is through sacrifice.

The sacrificial system in Leviticus is completely foreign to us, and it can seem barbaric. But according to Leviticus, there is no atonement without bloodshed. Only sacrifice can undo the effects of sin.  

In Leviticus 1-7, the people are told how to bring sacrifices before the Lord. In this week’s passage of Scripture, two types of sacrifices are described: the sin offering and the restitution (guilt) offering.

The sin offering is required for a multitude of general sins. It is also required for sins of inaction, like witnessing a crime and not reporting it. The restitution offering is required for injury against another person or for doing something that distracts from the worship of God. When an Israelite made a restitution offering it also required that they make amends. Like recovering addicts learn in AA, restoring justice or righting wrongs is a part of repentance.
      
As Leviticus 6:1-6 says, when someone steals, he must return the item; if he finds lost property, he must return it. But he must also add a fifth of the value to the item when he returns it to the owner. It is not enough just to admit guilt or to apologize.

As Christians, when we do wrong, the first step is to admit it or confess our sins. But like the Israelites, God also wants us to work to make it right. What would this look like?

One example in the New Testament is found in Luke 19, when Zacchaeus makes restitution. He was the chief tax collector, which means he probably made his money by extortion, raising people’s taxes beyond what was required by the Romans for his own gain.

When Jesus came to town, Zacchaeus was so changed by his encounter with him that he agreed to pay back everyone he had wronged four times the amount he owed them. He set the bar high for us.

So, what might restitution look like for us? If you own a business and you overcharge someone, restitution means not pocketing the money, but refunding it as soon as you realize the mistake. Or maybe you leave the grocery store and realize they did not ring up an item, you should go back and pay for it.

Genuine repentance leads to a desire to right wrongs. Yet we know we can never fully make restitution for the sins we have committed. We stand in need of a savior.

The book of Isaiah describes how God made the suffering servant, the Messiah, a guilt offering for us. It says, “Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering …” (Isaiah 53:10).

This is the very same word used in Leviticus 5 to describe the sacrifice called the guilt offering. Therefore, the prophet Isaiah proclaims that the Servant of the Lord, Jesus, “gave up his life in death, as a guilt offering on behalf of those who are too heavily in debt to help themselves.”

We show our determination to do right and our appreciation for what Jesus did, when we not only seek to be forgiven of our sin, but also when we make restitution for losses or damages we might have caused.

In recent history, an entire decade was described as the “me decade.” Some sociologists and demographers have even used “me” to designate an entire generation. With so much cultural selfishness, it is not difficult to understand why so many marriages are terminated and so many others are in serious trouble. A healthy marriage is a covenant relationship where selfish needs are diminished and the needs of the spouse are elevated.

Understanding submission (Ephesians 5:21-24), understanding love (Ephesians 5:25-30)

The mere mention of the word submission, when used as a character descriptor of a marriage relationship, can foster strong feelings and open the opportunity for misunderstanding which can compromise the very relationship it was intended to protect.

Many are prone to open the discussion of submission with the Apostle Paul’s instruction that wives should, “submit to your husband as to the Lord” (v. 22). Paul’s discussion of the matter begins in the preceding verse with, “Submit to one another out of reverence to Christ” (v. 21).

Paul’s concept of reciprocal submission is the model of Christ’s relationship to the church. Jesus loves his bride, the church. He always has made sure to meet her every need, even to the point of laying down his life for her. In exchange, the church does everything it can for the benefit of the bridegroom.

This relationship of reciprocal submission literally insures adequate provision and care for the bride and the bridegroom because each is committed, not to their own needs, but to the needs of the other.

Understanding mutual submission removes the fear of individual submission which Paul discusses later in Ephesians 5. Paul tells wives to, “Submit to your husband as to the Lord” (v. 22). Paul never envisioned a submission where the wife becomes a servant to her husband or a situation where the idea of submission could be used as a license for a husband to abusively command his wife to fulfill his every command. The proper motivation behind her submission is the recognition of a husband’s need to be recognized as the leader of the familial unit.

Men need to feel the respect of their wife and to experience having the wife look to them for leadership. A wife’s submission is in consideration of the husband’s needs, not an act of subservience. As a wife recognizes and encourages her husband’s leadership, she mimics the church’s relationship to Christ. It is an act of love (John 14:15) that causes the church to submit to the Lordship of Christ, not a statement of authority.

Paul concludes his treatise on submission with instructions to husbands. Here Paul uses two different representations. He says, “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church” (v. 25) and, “Husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies” (v. 26).

True love, as Paul so accurately described it in 1 Corinthians 13, is an unselfish act of completely giving one’s self to another. It is Paul’s second representation that contains the clearest understanding of Paul’s intent. Paul was a clear proponent of keeping the body under submission (Romans 12) but he never suggested submission should occur punitively. A man places his body under submission through an understanding of what is best for his own body. In like fashion, a man submits himself to his wife, through love, because he recognizes she will be blest through it.

Understanding respect and honor (Ephesians 5:31-33; 1 Peter 3:7)

To avoid any idea of differentiation between men and women relational to submission, Paul affirms the initial statement concerning a marital relationship, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh” (v. 31, Genesis 2:24).

Clearly no part of the body can lord itself over any other part of the body. The human body functions best when each part of the body cooperatively operates with the benefit of every other part of the body in mind. Men and women work best in a marriage relationship based on equality and where each looks after the benefit of the other.

Peter also addresses the idea of submission in the first letter to bear his name. Many of Peter’s comments mirror those of Paul. However, Peter does make a significant contribution, at least for discussion purposes, when he says, “be considerate as you live with your wives and treat them with respect as the weaker partner” (1 Peter 3:7).

Many use this as a proof text for a heavy-handed, servant concept of female submission. Peter’s remark concerning “the weaker partner” clearly demonstrates Peter’s acceptance of the culture in which he was raised and no doubt participated in during most of his ministry.

Women in that culture were not considered weaker partners just in marriage, but in every other enterprise as well. The real import of Peter’s statement is in the use of the two words “partner” and “heir” (1 Peter 3:7). Both words carry the idea of equality.  Partners are equals regardless of role. Scripture gives assurance to every believer that they have an equal inheritance in God’s riches.

Conclusion

The idea of submission within the confines of a marriage relationship has been a cultural and theological lightning rod in recent years. That which God intended to be a unifying aspect of marriage has become divisive among many, even denominations. God’s intent has always been one man and one woman, equal in every way, to form a lifelong relationship.

While the roles of husband and wife differ greatly, mutual submission allows each to focus on the needs of the other and to make the fulfilling of those needs a primary task.

A background of deceit

“Jacob” means “he grasps” or “he deceives.” Born grasping the heal of his older brother, Jacob’s early life is characterized by deceit—both perpetrated by him and upon him. He takes advantage of his brother’s hunger to bargain for the older brother’s precious birthright (Genesis 25:30-34). He conspires with his mother to defraud his father into giving him his brother’s blessing (27:8-29).

Later, he carries out a complicated plan to manipulate the breeding patterns, places and times of Laban’s flocks in order to produce more speckled or spotted calves that will belong to him (30:37-43).  

None of this paints Jacob in a good light. He is selfish, scheming, dishonest, manipulative and downright mean.

Jacob has his turn on the receiving end of deceit, of course, when Uncle Laban slips the “weak-eyed” Leah in place of Rachel under cover of darkness (and no doubt with the aid of some good wine) (29:23). Jacob awakes sober and expecting to gaze upon Rachel, and there is Leah instead (29:25).

These stories are intended to make a point. God’s blessing is not reserved for the blameless. Jacob is a long way from blameless. Still, the promise of God to his grandfather Abram means Jacob is a crucial part of the line of patriarchs—he receives the blessing of God notwithstanding his own complete unworthiness. As we do, Jacob lives a life worthy of condemnation. God has other plans.

Bethel, part one

Before Jacob meets his Uncle Laban and Leah and Rachel, Jacob is fleeing Esau. Stopping for the night to rest, Jacob has a dream. He sees a ladder going to heaven, with angels moving up and down —the literal “stairway to heaven.” He hears, for the first time in his life, God’s recital of his promise to Abram, now repeated to Jacob: “I am God, the God of your father and his father. I will give you this land, and the number of your descendants will be as the dust. Wherever you go, I will bless you” (28:13-15).  

Awakening, Jacob does a curious—and instructive—thing. He recognizes the presence of God. “Surely the Lord is in this place … . This is none other than the house of God, the gate of heaven” (28:16-17). Out of the mouth of the deceiver—the liar—comes this truth that faces each of us: God is here, and we need to take notice of it. This place that hours before seemed no more than a place to stretch out and lay our head on a rock is in fact the place where angels tread, where God moves. It is a sanctuary.

So Jacob builds an altar and names the place Bethel, “the house of God.”  He promises allegiance to God and offers a tithe. God has chosen him, and Jacob recognizes God is present.

Peniel

Fast forward now to Jacob’s journey away from Laban, with his speckled flocks and his two wives. Having long ago blessed Jacob, God now returns to visit Jacob in a most unusual way—as a wrestler.

Jacob wrestles with God. The metaphor here for own lives is strong. We start out as Jacob, a deceiver. We become Israel, one who struggles with God. We humans, who have a deceitful and manipulative nature, will inevitably struggle with God. God blesses us despite our failings, but God does not want us to remain as we were. God meets us on our road and touches us.

Struggling with God is not taboo. God can handle our questions, our anger and our attempts to dislodge him from his place in our lives. Like Jacob, we find ourselves alone with God, and we fight. Like Jacob, we come out of this fight with two marked changes:

•    First, we find that our name has been changed. God no longer sees us as the deceiver; God knows we are a struggler. We do not “win” the struggle or change God, but our very nature is changed. God speaks to us differently. We are Israel.
•    Second, we find that our walk is changed. Jacob, now Israel, walks with a limp. In struggling with God, Israel has had his body touched. When we struggle with God, we will find that our way of doing things has changed. The more manipulative we have been—the more we embodied the grasping, deceiving “Jacob” within us—the more that change will hurt, at least initially. Changing the ingrained can be painful.  

Again, Jacob recognizes the significance of the place and of the presence of God, and he names the place Peniel, for there he has seen the face of God (32:30).

Bethel, part two

Going back to Bethel is a critical part of Israel’s life. Israel is in trouble. His sons have exacted revenge for what they believe is the defilement of their sister (34:1-31), and Isreal fears reprisal. He hears the word of the Lord that it is time to go back to Bethel (35:1).

Bethel is the place of Jacob’s ladder, where he had first heard the covenant of God. Bethel reminds Israel not only that God is with him but that God has blessed and protected him (35:3). When Jacob arrives again at Bethel, God reminds him of both his name change and the covenant. Jacob’s nature is changed—he is no longer the grasper, he is the struggler. He is Israel. God’s covenant still is sure, and God’s plans are not changed.

In “Les Miserables,” Jean Valjean steals silver candlesticks from the bishop, but the bishop forgives the transgression and sets Valjean free, giving him the candlesticks to take with him as a sign the bishop has “bought your soul for God.”

In the stage production, the director always makes sure the candlesticks remain prominent for Valjean, and the audience, to see: the reminder of the sacrifice made and the time when Valjean first understood the presence of God is never far away.  

We Christians all have markers in our walks, places and times in our journeys that have signified the very presence of God to us. When we are in trouble, we need to find that marker, to look at our candlesticks. We often need to go back to Bethel.

My wife and I celebrated 29 years of marriage April 25. To celebrate, we went to a favorite restaurant for dinner. In the course of conversation, we shared with our server, who was 31, we were celebrating our anniversary. When we told him how long we had been married, he seemed shocked. After a moment he said, “I don’t see many people who have been married that long!”

Traditional marriage is under attack. From the attempt to define marriage in terms of alternate lifestyles to increase in serial monogamy to the number of couples choosing to live together, the concept of a lifelong commitment to a spouse clearly is waning. Even when the standards of the world change, the word of God and the admonitions it contains concerning traditional marriage remain.

When 1+1 = 1 (Genesis 2:23-25)

When God created Eve, Scripture says he took a rib from Adam’s side (Genesis 2:21). It was a constant reminder of the physical oneness of a man and a woman. Adam recognized the significance of God’s action and makes his own proclamation of the two becoming one (v. 23). It is apparent, however, the relationship Adam and Eve shared ran much deeper than physical oneness.

As the description of this first married couple continues, the idea of emancipation enters becomes prevalent. “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother to be united to his wife,” (v. 24) indicates an emotional element of a marriage relationship. It is a clear shift from familial relationships. While not a part of this text, it is obvious the same emotional commitment exists for the wife.

The only other “person” present when this first marriage commitment takes place completes the idea of the “two become one flesh” (v. 24). It was God himself who presided over this first wedding. Marriage has an unmistakable element of spiritual commitment.

When a man and a woman are united in marriage, a marvelous, yet mysterious event occurs, “they will become one flesh” (v. 24). While not possible mathematically, 1+1 + 1. It is the very idea of becoming one that should make the marriage commitment a permanent commitment. How can something so carefully fused together ever be successfully divided?

Covenant connection (Malachi 2:13-15)

God’s thoughts on marriage did not stop with the Genesis story. Malachi 2 introduces the concept of marriage as a covenant relationship. Throughout human history, God has offered man the opportunity to experience a covenant. Covenants are agreements where two parties agree to perform in certain ways regarding the other’s benefit. Here a man and a woman enter into a covenant where each acts as one flesh through faithfully carrying through their commitment to remain one.

Two interesting ideas concerning the permanence of marriage are developed in this passage. First, there is the idea of God’s interest in marriages. Malachi says, “the Lord is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth” (v. 14). God literally is watching over the relationship of every married couple. This should cement the spiritual nature of marriage. The second idea is God’s strong condemnation of dissolving a marriage. In some of the strongest language used in the Old Testament God says, “I hate divorce” (v. 16). Divorce is never acceptable to God.

How does one successfully complete the marriage covenant? Two times Malachi says, “guard yourself in your spirit and do not break faith” (v. 16). The word “guard” carries the connotation of a sentry placed to protect. Marriage needs a guard to protect the relationship a couple shares through a marriage covenant. God is so interested in maintaining marriage he offers to be the sentry.

Lifelong commitment (Matthew 19:3-12)

Lest the previous concepts of marriage be considered mere Old Testament law, Jesus speaks to the issue in Matthew 19. In response to the questions of the Pharisees concerning divorce, Jesus confirms the ideas of Genesis and Malachi. As a matter of fact, Jesus quotes the Genesis 2 passage. He then adds and additional element pertinent to the lifelong commitment of marriage, “Therefore, what God has joined together let no man separate” (v. 6).

These words of Jesus often have been viewed in the context of a third party entering the relationship between a man and a woman to become the cause of dissolution. Jesus uses a passive voice meaning a man in and of himself should not desire to divorce his wife.

The Pharisees, always the antagonists for Jesus, bring up the law and it’s provisions for divorce. Jesus quickly dismisses the argument explaining the permit for divorce rests in the “hard hearts” (v. 8) of men, not in the law. Once again, the ideas of the permanence of marriage and the spiritual nature of marriage are the central themes.

Jesus does provide an encouraging word for those who never marry. It appears from the words of the Lord that there will be those who do not marry, “because of the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:12). As with previous lesson, a person can be complete and productive for God’s purposes by remaining single.

Conclusion

Marriage should never be entered into lightly.  God regards marriage as the highest human institution.  It has always been God’s will. for one man and one woman to enter into a lifelong covenant agreement with each other and with him.  A great deal of thought, soul searching and prayer must precede, “I take you.”

God appears in multiple ways (Genesis 18:1-10)

It is not a departure from the point of the lesson to examine first the appearance of the Lord to Abraham and Sarah. After all, whether or not Sarah laughs at the word she hears is not important unless she knows the speaker of the word is the Lord.

The writer of Genesis is clear that “the Lord” appears in the form of three men. There are other examples of God’s appearing to Abraham (Genesis 12:1; Genesis 26:2), but this is the only place where we are told the form God takes. Is God one of the three? Do the three of them together embody God? It is imprecise to call the “three men” angels, since Genesis quotes them as “the Lord.” There may be more questions than answers about the details of God’s appearance, but the writer leaves no doubt that God has arrived.

The Lord’s appearances in the Old Testament often are unexpected. He appears as a wrestler (Genesis 32:24-30); a burning bush (Exodus 3:4); a pillar of fire and a cloud (Exodus 13:21); and a vision in a dream (1 Kings 3:5).  

God comes to us in many forms. A key to faith is to understand the word of God when we hear it. Before we examine and overly criticize Sarah’s response, it is worthy to remember she understood she was hearing the word of the Lord.

Along these lines (and while it is a departure from the story of Sarah), it does not take much holy imagination to find Christ himself throughout the Old Testament: as the lamb with Abraham and Isaac; the cities of refuge of Numbers; the kinsman-redeemer of Ruth; the good shepherd of 1 Samuel; the loving husband of the Song of Songs; the suffering servant of Isaiah; the tears of Jeremiah; the Son of Man of Daniel; Hosea buying back his rebellious bride; and many, many other places.

Laughing at God (Genesis 18:11-15)

Let’s not be too hard of Sarah. She has two very good, very natural, completely understandable reasons to be skeptical of her future as a mother. First, she is old—too old to give birth. Second, she is barren—even when she had been young, she had not been able to have children. Too, Abraham is old. The likelihood of a pregnancy in their future is, in a word, laughable.

Sarah’s response is not unlike our own. We hear God’s plan, and it does not compute in our brains. Perhaps we do not recognize the plan as God’s. Perhaps we are not looking for a word from the Lord. Maybe we are rebellious, not wanting or even caring what God has for us.

Maybe, though, we do know it is God’s plan. We desperately are longing for God’s direction. We often are found in prayer for God’s will. We diligently read our Bible. Then the word comes, and we simply don’t believe it.

We are like King Saul, presented with a boy with no armor and only five smooth stones, when there is a Goliath ahead of us (1 Samuel 17:33). We are like Elisha’s servant, not seeing the chariots of fire bringing help from God all around us (2 Kings 6:15-17). We are like Zachariah, preparing our whole life for a special service to God, only to be struck dumb with unbelief when God actually shows up at our altar and lays out his plan (Luke 1:20).

Sarah’s laughter comes not from a failure to know God or an unwillingness to follow. Sarah’s laughter is the laughter of disbelief. God says he will do something with our life, and we simply do not believe it can happen. We are not equipped. We are not able. We are not the right person. We are not good enough.

The answer, of course, lies not in our ability, our equipment or our goodness. The answer lies in God. Nothing is too hard for God (v. 14). Things that are impossible for humans are possible for our omnipotent God (Matthew 19:26) (Luke 1:37) (Jeremiah 32:17) (Psalm 115:3). It is far less important that Sarah believe the “what” —that she can become pregnant—than it is crucial that she believe the “who”—God has willed it.

Laughing with God (Genesis 21:1-7)

Time passes, but God’s promise is sure. The promised pregnancy comes. The child is born. The beginning of a line that will be as countless as the grains of sand on the shore begins with the advent of Isaac.

And Sarah laughs again. Not in disbelief, but in joy.

Isaac means “he laughs.” Sarah no doubt has influence on her husband when Abraham names the child. Sarah remembers her own moment of disbelief. She knows God’s plan has come to fruition despite her own inability to see the power of God. She gratefully recognizes her faith failure has not derailed God. She laughs not only as any new mother laughs with the joy of new life, although that certainly is there. Sarah laughs also with appreciation at the delicious irony of God, who has opened the womb of the old, barren, unbelieving one to bring forth a son.

If ever there was a picture of grace and resurrection, it is here. Life from death. Grace in the face of unbelief. Deliverance out of hopelessness. Growth from barrenness.  

Not only does Sarah laugh, but also everyone who hears about this will laugh with her (v. 6). So it is with the wonder of God. We may laugh at the very idea, but God’s work carries on. One day, we laugh with God. We tell those around us, and they laugh with us and with God.