CHAYEI SARAH (Life of Sarah) Gen 23:1–25:18; 1Kings 1:1–31; Matt.2:1–23
“Sarah lived to be 127 years old; (37 years after she had given birth to Isaac at age 90) these were the years of Sarah’s life.” (Gen.23:1)
This parasha, (‘Life of Sarah)’ marks her death at 127 years in a place called Kiriat Arba (modern day Hebron). With only a few exceptions a person’s life is celebrated in Scripture at the end rather than at the beginning.
Sarah is the first woman whose age and funeral is recorded in the Bible. Wherever there are first mentions in the Bible, it is something of significance. In this case, Sarah’s death was linked to God’s promise to Abraham regarding the land that he and his descendants would inherit.
Until now, Abraham had received nothing. Although God had promised Abraham that he would inherit a land given to him by God as an everlasting inheritance, after all this time, he had not actually received anything to date. But, now, finally he’d got a downpayment and it came through a purchase in a legal sale of a small tract of land in Machpelah.
Abraham purchased this piece of real estate from Ephron the Hittite for 400 shekels (over a 100kg of silver) and it provided a place of burial for Sarah in a cave. But it also signified something of enormous significance because it represented ownership of the first piece of land that had been promised to him by God.
Our sages tell us that the Torah contains 600,000 letters, the same number of people counted in the Exodus symbolic that each Jew possesses something of the Torah. The same can be said for the Land of Israel which is the eternal inheritance of the Jewish people, (i.e., every individual Jew). And so we see how the purchase of the cave of Machpelah, the place of Sarah’s burial was the first moment of actual Jewish ownership of the Holy Land.
Abraham was 137 years at the time and he is described as being ‘Old and advanced in years’ and yet he lived another 37 years. 30 is the gematria which denotes God’s highest degree of perfection in His timings. For example, as EW Bullinger explains, Yeshua was around 30 years at the commencement of His ministry Lk.3:23; — the age of Joseph when he commenced ruling over Egypt, – Gen 41:46; and also for David when he began to reign – 2Sam.5:4. This is underscored by the number ‘7.’ (‘Number in Scripture’) Seven times Abram had been promised the land of Canaan, yet he still did not own even a square-inch or even a place to bury his wife until her death 37 years later after she had given birth to Isaac when she was 90 years old.
Sarah’s passing came as a severe blow to Abraham. She had been his constant companion throughout his life, sharing all of life’s experiences together having left everything behind in Haran in answer to God’s call to “lech lecha!”
What does a person who is “old and advanced in years” do following such an event? He was 137 years old and had been traumatised by two highly traumatic events involving people who were his most precious possessions in the world. How did Abraham overcome his grief? He didn’t go to a psychiatrist or a professional counsellor but placed his whole trust in the Lord. And this is a remarkable feature of Abraham’s character that despite everything he still had the resilience to move forward because he understood something of great importance – one first one has to build a future before one can mourn the past otherwise one will become stuck in the present and be unable to move on.
Abraham heard the future calling to him. Sarah had died. Isaac was unmarried. Abraham had yet to possess the entire land promised to him by God or grandchildren for himself. Yet, instead of bewailing his circumstances he realised he had a choice to make – whether or not to trust God for the next step forward even amid the grief and turmoil that filled his life. Abraham chose to trust God to guide him and create His future amid his grief rather than in spite of it. That was how he overcame and consequently became a hero of faith, but far greater became known as God’s friend.
God enters our lives as a call from the future bidding us to follow Him from the far horizon of time for the journey a lifetime – a future not yet made that awaits our making. And we may tell ourselves that we don’t have the faith of Abram to do such a thing.
Abraham trusted God for His promises despite the fact that He had promised him many children and nations ‘as many as the grains of sand in the sea-shore and the stars in the sky.’ And yet at that point he had only one son of the covenant, Isaac who remained unmarried whilst in his mid-thirties. Instead of regressing into unbelief Abraham was motivated with a peace and confidence that comes from trusting God unselectively in all things revealing to us that the measure we trust God will determine the measure of our future inheritance. And again, we may tell ourselves that we don’t have the faith of Abram to do such a thing. And the only thing we can be sure of when we face mountains that threaten to overwhelm us is with the knowledge that God never allows us to face any situation without providing us with the grace and strength to overcome. And His promise to us as our faithful God is “I will never leave nor forsake you.”
When I think about these things, I ask myself the question, What does my future hold? How will I be remembered by others and most importantly, how is my life pleasing to the Lord? To become a general in the army of the Lord has nothing to do with how many PhD’s one may have, the level of human accomplishments, or recognition from others, status or position in society. But it has everything to do with the depth of our love for Yeshua lived out before Him and expressed towards others. This is what the heroes of faith in ch.11 of Hebrews had in common comprising a motley mixture of both leaders and the nameless and faceless.
This parasha links indirectly with a parable Yeshua told of a Rich Man and Lazarus. When we understand the story in context we see that it has all to do with being good custodians of the deposit that God has placed upon our lives. – not about how much He has bestowed upon us but how faithful we have been with it. (Lk.16:19-31) Yeshua told the Pharisees: “So if you haven’t been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who is going to trust you with the real thing? (i.e., spiritual riches) And if you haven’t been trustworthy with what belongs to someone else, who will give you what ought to belong to you?”
Yeshua was accusing the Pharisees for being poor custodians of the spiritual riches they had been entrusted with. Some of the Pharisees ridiculed Yeshua but He replied, “You people make yourselves look righteous to others, but God knows your hearts; what people regard highly is an abomination before God!” In the Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man, Yeshua continues with the same theme as a warning to the religious hierarchy and to those who would follow down through the centuries.
The fiercest statement of faith and ultimate response even within the darkest of times which carries us from moment to moment, strengthened by His all-surpassing greatness is modelled with Abraham. God’s promises are unswerving in the good, the bad and the ugly; in a crisis and in a God-moment: in restoration and transformation: in the darkness of soul and within an epiphany: in the shadows and in the fullness of God’s glory. Each of these things are demonstrated powerfully in Parashat Sarah, the life of Sarah, making a profound statement that challenges us to walk in the footsteps of the Master Potter as did Abraham, the friend of God.
Our Jewish sages tell a story of a king who entered a province and said to the people: ‘May I be your king?’ But the people said to him: ‘Have you done anything good for us that you should rule over us?’ He built the city wall for them, he brought in the water supply for them, and he fought their battles. Then he said to them: ‘May I be your king?’ And they said to him: ‘Yes, yes!’
Likewise, God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, divided the sea for them, sent down the manna for them, brought up the well for them, brought the quails for them. He fought for them the battle with Amalek. Then He said to them: ‘I am to be your king.’ And they said to Him: ‘Yes, yes!’
What are the sages seeking to communicate? It is the fact that so often our responses to God are motivated by what we receive rather than what we give.
But one may well ask, “What can I ever give to God that was not already received?” And here lies by implication the hidden question as a response: do we love God more for what He has provided or simply for who He is? If He were to give us nothing, would we still love Him the same?
The life of Abraham demonstrates that he trusted God unconditionally, not primarily for the benefits but simply because of his love and reverence for Him. Its as simple and complicated as that!
One more thing. The unique message of Yeshua is that the greatest prize, the ‘pearl of great price’, is to discover the love of the Father through the Son who is above all things and takes precedence over all things. Through Him, we get to choose the best in life without lack. He is worth working the hardest for and forging the deepest relationship with because with Him we possess all that is of infinite worth. Therefore, the most we can ever give Him is the very least He deserves, which invariably leads to a life of fullest abundance.
So, does God have favourites? Yes, each one of us is! “All that the Father does is motivated by His everlasting love for us. A love that is perpetual, unending, and eternal. He has drawn us with a loving-kindness that will never run out or dry up. Father’s everlasting love has always been there and will always be there. There is nothing we can do to make God love us any more than He does right now and there is nothing that we can do to make God love us any less. We may know that God loves us in our heads, but He desires for this revelation to seep into every fabric of our being.” https://www.fathersloveletter.com
Divine love overflows with abundance. So as for me, I will endeavour in every demonstration of my life to discover it more and more to its fullest extent – to embrace it as did the psalmist who could declare, “The Lord is my Shepherd and I will lack nothing.” (Ps.23:1)
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