I'll be reading tonight in verse number 8. We've talked about Abraham and Noah, and we've talked about Enoch and Abel. But tonight we're going to talk about Sarah. And I said verse number 8, but we're going to begin reading in chapter number 11, verse number 11. And so let's look tonight, and if I was titling a message this evening, it would be, When the Baron Brings Forth Bountifully. When the Baron Brings Forth Bountifully. Let's read the Bible here in Hebrews chapter 11, verse number 11. The Bible says, Through faith also Sarah 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, therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the seashore innumerable. Father, thank you, Lord, for this day. Thank you, God, for your precious word. God, I pray tonight that you would take us, Lord, and use us. Lord, my heart is heavy this evening. Lord, for those gone that are not here, Lord, I pray for them. I pray that, God, that you would touch them wherever they may be. Lord, I pray that you would strengthen them, watch over them. God, I pray for them in your prayer requests. But, Lord, I thank you, Father, tonight, Lord, that we have your precious word. And, God, I ask you, Lord, to please take it, God, and, Lord, open it up to us. God, speak to our hearts. Help us, Lord, to see, God, the miracle, God, that faith can bring forth. God, if we apply it, Lord, and use it in our lives, In Jesus' name I humbly pray, amen. Notice in the Bible says that through faith also Sarah received strength to conceive seed. Now, if you go back and you begin reading and you study the book of Genesis from Genesis chapter 12 to Genesis chapter 21 and you look at Sarah's life, you will find that when God first called Abraham and Sarah out of the land of the Chaldeans, that Sarah's name was Sarai. Sarai, S-A-R-A-I, and that name means the dominating one, and Sarah, the dominating one, for years had tried to do in the armor of the flesh, but when God changed her name to Sarah, S-A-R-A-H, in Genesis chapter number 17, the princess of God, God became the dominating one in her life, and then you begin to see that God began to bless Sarah, and things began to happen. And faith brings forth fullness in our life. So often in our lives, we try to do things in the arm of the flesh, and we try to do things on our own, and we leave God out. And that's exactly where Sarai was, and we're gonna see the difference in a Sarai and a Sarah. But Romans 9 verse number 9 says this, For this is the word of promise, at this time will I come, and Sarah shall have a son. Now remember that. God had promised that Sarah would have a son. Now, if you have your Bibles, go to Genesis chapter number 11. Let's look at some things about Sarah tonight, about what the Bible says about her, and may the Lord help us to apply it to our own lives and remember when the barren brings forth bountifully. And man, if we look out across our nation tonight and we look in our own families and our own lives and our own churches, we can see that there's some barren things in our life that we would like to see bountiful. And I'm afraid, though, those bountiful things that we would like to have in our life, we try so hard by the arm of the flesh and by the works of the flesh to get these things accomplished that sometimes we get in the way of God and we don't let God do what God is trying to do through us and for us. Look in Genesis chapter 11 verse number 30. The Bible says this, But Sarai was barren, she had no child. Sarai was barren. If you're taking notes tonight, that is my first point, is that Sarai was barren. Now Sarai, Genesis 16.1, the Bible says, Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bare him no children, and she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. Romans 4.19 says, And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body, now dead, when he was about a hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarai's womb. Understand this, it was not that Sarah did not desire a child. I mean, man, she ends up giving Hagar to Abram to have a child. It was not for the lack of trying. It was not for the lack of following Abraham, of being a good wife. It was not for the fact of her having the goodness of God and the blessings of God on her life. It was not a judgment against her. It was something that God was doing in her life to let her know that God was going to do things His way and for His glory in her life. But she had to wait and to exercise the faith and trust the promise that God had given her. Even though she was barren, God had given her a promise that she would have a child. I want you to think about this tonight in some areas in your life as a child of God and think about the church house tonight and think about the barrenness of the church or the barrenness of areas in your life where you have felt that God has given you some liberty and direction of some things achieve or obtain or to pray for, and man, you've been waiting on those things, but it seems to never come to pass, and man, you're praying about them, and man, you're trying, and you're trying to do this, and you're trying to do that, and you just keep trying and trying, but it seems like, man, nothing is... has any right or merit. It just seems like everything you're doing is futile. I mean, man, there's no glory, there's no relief. It seems that, man, everything you're trying is failing. This is where Sarah was. She was barren. I mean, man, after a woman is married, man, their greatest desire is to have children. I mean, man, that's why God created her and God designed her. And I'm not saying that there's not some that God didn't allow in their lives not to marry and to have children, but I'm talking about a woman as a whole, and Sarah wanted a child. I mean she wanted that, but she was barren. She was promised that, but yet she was barren. Now notice this, I want you to see in chapter 12 verse number 16 of the book of Genesis. Not that she was just barren, but I want you to see she was of a cause. Look in chapter 12 verse number 16. The Bible says this, let's read verse 14. And it came to pass that when Abram was coming to Egypt, the Egyptians beheld the woman that she was very fair. The princes also of Pharaoh saw her and commended her before Pharaoh, and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house. And he untreated Abraham well for her sake, and he had sheep and oxen, and he asses, and men servants, and maid servants, and she asses, and camels. And the Lord plagued Pharaoh and his house with great plagues because of Sarai Abram's wife." She was a because. You say, what do you mean she was a because? Because of her, God placed judgment on Pharaoh. Think about that just for a moment. Here Abraham, remember the story, Abraham had went down into the land of Egypt. He had looked at Sarah and said, Now honey, you're good looking. Oh, you're a beautiful woman. Now understand this, I love you, but I love me more. Now you tell them that you're my sister and not my wife, because if you tell them that you're my wife, they're gonna kill me. I mean, man, aren't you glad you ain't got a husband like that? I mean, think about that just for a moment. I mean, talk about self-love. I mean, man, that's self-love. He says, now, understand, I don't want to die. I don't care what they do to you, but I don't want to die. May God help us. But understand this, Sarah was a because. You see, because of Sarah, God plagued Pharaoh. She was so important to God that her husband may not have loved her enough to lead her in the right way, and her husband may not have loved her enough to protect her. but God loved her enough to protect her. Man, aren't you glad that you're a because in God's eyes? Even though the world may not look at you as important, and maybe sometimes your spouse doesn't look at you as important, aren't you glad that God finds you a because? Aren't you glad that God protects you, and God looks after you, and God provides for you, even though others may not think that you're that important? Sarah was barren, but Sarah was a because. I mean, God judged Pharaoh because of Sarah. But not only that, go to Genesis chapter 16 verse number 1, she was broken. Remember, she was barren, she was a because, but she was broken. Look in chapter 16 verse number 1. Now Sarai, Abram's wife, bare him no children. And she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. Understand this, look in verse two. And Sarai said unto Abraham, Behold, now the Lord hath restrained me from bearing. I pray thee, go in unto my handmaid. It may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abraham hearkened to the voice of Sarai. See, this is 10 years after they had left the land of Egypt. This was 10 years after that escapade, but she still had no child. Man, she had been following Abraham. She had been walking with the Lord. And understand this, she obeyed Abraham calling him Lord. It was not because she was outside of the will of God. I mean, man, for a woman to go into the land of Egypt and to admit to her, to lie to the world and say, I'm his sister and not his wife. She obeyed him calling him Lord. It's not because she was found outside the will of God. Understand this, she was barren. Here we are ten years later, she's still barren, but her desire was so strong, she was so broken. And understand this, child of God, when desires and the burdens cause us to be broken, if we're not careful, we'll do whatever we have to do to get it fixed. You see, she began to get discouraged because she still had no child. She began to get discouraged because God had promised her and her husband that He would make of them a great nation. And here she is, she'd been walking with the Lord, and man, here she is, she'd been doing everything that God and her husband had been asking, and yet here she is still barren, and she had no child, and her burden and her brokenness caused her to be desperate. Man, when we get desperate, we better be real careful about the decisions and choices that we make. See, she left her family following a man that she loved, seeking a city whose builder and maker was God, and trying to find the living and living on that promise that God would take care of them and bless them. But it wasn't happening in her life. She could see their husband was living in prosperity. She could see that he had camels and oxen and sheep and asses. And man, we know how blessed Abraham was, but here she was, all she wanted was a child. And she was broken and she got desperate. And I want to say this to you, you better be real careful when your desperation causes you to get so broken in your life. Now there's a reason for it, understand that. But understand this desperation, man, she wanted it so bad. And so we see her brokenness. But I want you to notice this in Sarah's life. And this goes with her name. Remember, the name Sarai, S-A-R-I-A-I, S-A-R-A-I, means dominating one. Now look in chapter number 16, verse number 1. Now Sarai, Abraham's wife, bare him no children. And she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar. Understand, it wasn't Abraham's handmaid, it was Hagar's handmaid. Look at verse number two, and Sarai, the dominating one, said unto Abraham, Behold, now the Lord hath restrained me from bearing. I pray thee, go in unto my handmaid. It may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. Now there's a lot of things that we could talk about right there, but I've got this down since I'm following Bees. She was bossy. She was bossy. I mean, man, her brokenness led to her being bossy. And here we see Sarai, the dominating one, not the one who obeyed Abraham calling him Lord, but the one who had stepped outside of that position of being a wife, and the one that had stepped outside of that position of not being the lesser vessel but the weaker vessel, and the dominating one began to give orders, and she came to Abraham, and she said, Abraham, It may be that God wants you to have a child with my handmaid." Notice the accusation that she makes. Notice this accusation. She says, the Lord hath restrained me. Now understand that, that is a true accusation. The Lord, she has accused of the Lord. The Lord had restrained her. And notice the authority that she has taken. She says, I pray thee, go into my handmaid, that I may obtain. Not for you, Abram, but that I may obtain it. I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this for me. I want a child. I want this promise that God has given unto me. It's not for you, Abram, it's for me." Notice Abraham here. The Bible says that Abraham hearkened. That word hearkened means to listen, to obey. So you see where she became bossy? Where the broken became bossy? She says, Abraham, this is for me. This is not for God. This is not for you. This is what I want, and I want you to do this. So she took that accusation, then she took that authority, and then Abraham hearkened, And understand this, when it seems that faith begins to fail in our life, we begin to forget the promises of God, the principles of God, and we try to perform God's work in the power of the flesh. Remember, Hagar was from Egypt. She was of this world. She was not of God. She was of the world. Remember, Abraham got her down there in the land of Egypt. He brought her out. It was a gift. And understand this, she was a servant. God has given you and I the gift of the flesh. It is a wonderful servant, but it's a pitiful master. And here, so often in our lives, we try to do the things of God in the arm of the flesh, in the way of the flesh, and we forget the faith that God has given us. Because remember this, it's faith is the avenue that grace travels. That's been our theme all the way through this, is that faith is the avenue that grace travels. Faith is what introduced us into this walk with the Lord. Faith is what has got us this far, and faith is what will bring to pass the blessings and promises of God in our life. But she was bossy. And may I say this to you today, when you and I get to that point in our lives when we try to go to performing God's promises in our life. I mean, as I look out across the building, as I walked in the building tonight and understand this, and this ought to be every pastor's desire, that it be full. It ought to be your desire as a church to bring forth, not to be barren. Think about that just for a moment. Maybe you've become, maybe I'm afraid today a lot of churches have become accustomed to being barren. But it's not God's will for us to be barren. But if we're not careful, we begin to try to do things in the arm of the flesh. And we forget the promises of God. Now, but on the other side of that is some of us don't have the faith to believe that God will keep His Word and His promises. So we're just like Sarah and we just go on and we just don't ever do anything. But here, she took control and she said, I'm going to do it. I'm going to have this accomplished. And we better be real careful about how we're going to accomplish the work of God in our lives. We better make sure that it lines up with the principles of God's Word. We better make sure that it lines up with the promises of God's Word. Now notice this in Genesis chapter 16 verse number 4, not only she was broken and she was bossy, but notice this, what happens. Look in verse number 4 of chapter number 16 of the book of Genesis. And he went in unto Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. She became bitter. She became bitter. I mean, Abram did exactly what she asked. Hagar did exactly what she asked. I mean, man, it happened just like she thought that it would happen. But what happened to that blessing? Man, she was expecting a blessing, but that blessing was a bitterness. Man, I go back through my life and I think about the times that I got ahead of God in my life and I quit waiting on God. Man, I said, well, I'll do this my way. Man, like Frank Sinatra said, I'll do this my way. It may be that maybe God wants me to do it this way. And I got out of the will of God and I got ahead of God. And man, that blessing that I thought would be a blessing unto me in my life became a bitterness in my life. That's exactly what happened to Sarah. She got bitter. I know none of y'all's ever experienced getting out of the will of God like that and getting ahead of God. But you're looking at one old boy, I probably wrote the book on him. I don't know why I can't learn it. Why I can't say, man, why can't I just wait on God and accept His promises? Why can't I accept God's will for my life? Why do I have to be so discontent? That's what she was. but she got bitter. And every time she looked at Hagar, she was reminded of her barrenness, her brokenness and her bossiness. And she despised Hagar, but her despite was really more of what she allowed her barrenness to become in her life. Think about that just for a moment. Her despise for Hagar and that child was more about what she had allowed that barrenness to bring out in her. Man, is that not how we are? We want to blame it on everybody else and we want to get bitter at everybody else, but the truth and reality is we don't want to admit that we've made mistakes. We don't want to admit that we're the problem. You see, if she had waited patiently on the Lord, if she had not got ahead of God, if she had not got out of her position, and she had waited patiently and trusted the Lord to keep His Word, she wouldn't have this problem. But she got bitter on the Lord. She got bitter at Hagar. May God help us. And then I'll now turn to Genesis chapter 18. Remember, we're talking about faith tonight. But it seems like all we're seeing is faults, ain't it? Let's look in Genesis chapter number 18. Look in verse number 10. Not only that she got bitter, but let's look in Genesis chapter 18, verse number 10. And here's where Abraham was sitting in the plains of Mamre, and God came to him. And look in verse number 10. And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life. And lo, Sarah, all right, you see the S-A-R-A-H? Well, you go back to Genesis chapter number 17, you'll notice that God put the A-H in his name and her name. It's when Abraham circumcised himself. Because understand this, Abraham for years had been trying to fulfill the will of God through the power of the flesh, and God said, cut the flesh that you're trying to use. Okay? And when he cut his flesh, God changed his name and put the A-H which is a part of the name of God, okay? Remember Jehovah, okay, the A-H? And he put the name of the part of God in Abraham's life, and he put part of the name of God in Sarah's life, and she went from being Sarai, the dominating one, to Sarah, the princess of God. You see, God became the dominating one in her life. Go back and study Genesis chapter number 17. I don't have time to do all that. But look in Genesis 18, he says, and he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life. And lo, Sarah, the wife, shall have a son. And Sarah heard it of the tent door which was behind him. Now Abram and Sarah were old and well stricken in age. And it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. Not to be crude, but menopause had done past. She was old. Okay? Therefore Sarah what? Laughed within herself, saying, After I am waxed old, shall I have pleasure, my lord, being old also? You say, what do you see there? She belittled the Lord. You see her belittling, we got these, she was bossy, she was bitter, she belittled. She laughed within herself, she heard the promise of God, and she said, man, I'm too old. She said, ma'am, the pleasures of a woman is done gone. She says, I'm past the time. She says, and shall I have pleasure and have a child? And she laughed at the Lord. Therefore Sarah laughed within herself, saying, after I'm waxed old, shall I have pleasure? Now notice Genesis 18, 15. Now let's just keep reading. Verse 13. And the Lord said unto Abraham, Wherefore did Sarah laugh, saying, Shall I of a surety bear a child which am old? Is anything too hard for the Lord? Child of God, remember that right there. Is there anything too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son." Not in the power of the flesh, not when you think it's going to happen. You may think that you've exhausted all resources, there's no power, there's no way, and there's not any way possible in the flesh for you to accomplish what God's trying to do. God says, I've got you right where I want you. Now notice this, what He said here, verse 15. Then Sarah denied, saying, I laugh not." You see, when we begin to belittle the Lord, she laughed at Him, but then she lied to Him. She said, Lord, I didn't lie. I didn't think that about You, Lord. Does this sound like a woman of faith to you? Or does it sound more like you? Sounds a lot like me. But God called her faithful. In Hebrews chapter 11 here, this woman that we're seeing, she made the heroes of the Hall of Fame of faith in Hebrews chapter 11, and God said that she accomplished things through faith. But all we see is failures. But you know what? The Bible says that she brought forth. You see there was a personal change, and I'm going to go back and bring that out to you. Look in Genesis chapter 17, verse number 15. Book in verse number 15 of Genesis 17. And God said unto Abraham, y'all see the ham in his life now? He's went from Abram to Abraham, okay? Because remember God said, your name will be no more Abram, but Abraham. I made thee a father of many nations. And God said unto Abraham, As for Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be. And I will bless her, and give unto thee a son also of her. Yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations. Kings of people shall be of her. Now look at this one. Then Abraham fell on his face, and what? Laughed. Really, Lord? Lord, we done been down this road. Yeah, he says, yeah, but you've not tried me. He says, you've not let me take the reins. You've not let me take control. You've been trying to do it your way, and now I'm going to show you that I can do it my way. And understand this, God's way is through faith. Genesis chapter number 17 verse 16, or verse 15, there was a personal change. And Genesis chapter 17 verse 16, there was a promise reminded. He said, I will bless her and she will. Now let's turn to Genesis chapter 21, verse number one. We have a personal change, a promise reminded, but then we have a promise fulfilled. And the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bare Abraham a son in his old age, at the time of which God had spoken to him." So who brought this child into this world, Abraham and Sarah? No, God did. God used Abraham and Sarah to bring the child into the world. by the name of Isaac. But it was a promised seed. But understand this, it was through faith. Now go back to Hebrews chapter number 12, or chapter number 11, and I'll be closing. Remember, she brought forth. Hebrews chapter number 11. Verse number 11, through faith, not the flesh, through faith, also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she what? Judged him faithful who had promise. When she judged him faithful, she became fruitful through faith in his promises. When she quit trying to perform and she allowed faith to proceed, that's when the barren brought forth bountifully. And because of Isaac, all of the nations of the earth are still being blessed. Now understand this. If we look back over this lady's life, we would say that this lady would not meet up to our standard of a good Christian. Right? I mean, how would you judge her? What would be your judgment of her? Oh, she's a fine Christian lady. She's done everything that God said. She's never had a bad attitude. She's never laughed. She's never lied. There's nothing wrong with her. She's never stepped out of her position. She is the perfect Christian woman. Is that what you would say about her? No? It is? What God said, it's not what we'd say. We'd say, man, look at all those failures. God can't use that. She's laughed at God. She's lied to God. She's caused her husband to commit adultery. She's been bitter against the one that was trying to bless her. Man, look at all the mistakes that she's made. That ain't what God said. God said through faith. Also, Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed when she could not do any more, when it was humanly impossible. God gave her strength to conceive and was delivered of a child when she was past age. Why? because she judged him faithful as promised. Understand this, child of God, faith is not based upon you. Your faith is based upon God. Faith is not what you can do. Faith is what God can do and will do. Faith is not what I can do. Faith is not believing that I have the power to do it. Faith is believing that God's gonna keep His promise and that God is faithful. Remember, He cannot deny Himself. The Bible says, even when we believe not, He's still about a faithful, for He cannot deny Himself. So why is it? We worry, and we fret, and we wonder, and we try to do so many things and obtain so many things in the power of our own flesh, and we use the crutch, I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me. When in reality, all that is is a saying that I can do it, and I hope God blesses it. But we see through Sarah's life and all of her failures, God didn't deem her unfaithful. God counted her faithful and God rewarded her faith because she believed Him. Remember, for by grace are we saved through faith that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. It's not of works, lest any man should boast. Faith is the avenue that grace travels. It's not works, it's faith. Now remember, understand this, remember James said this, you show me thy faith without thy works and I'll show thee my faith by my works. But understand this, it's not our works that gets God's attention. God's not impressed with my preaching. God's not impressed with my living. God's impressed with my faith. That's what impresses God. God's not impressed with you. Man, our righteousness is as filthy rags. But it's our faith in Him and us judging Him faithful. And that's when the bearing will become bountiful in your life.