Good morning everyone. I hope you are all having an encouraging morning together as we worship the risen Lord. I hope all of our kids are ready to head back and join a special teacher for this morning…you can go ahead and go on back and meet up with your teacher for kids church this morning. Then of course we want to welcome those of you that are joining us online right now. We are very blessed that you have chosen to be a part of our extended spiritual family this morning. For everyone that is here…let me just tell you how excited I am to see you all and what a blessing it is to get to have this little family reunion every week together…Especially becuase today we get to have food again, and that is ALWAYS a great thing :)

Talk about Youth Take over!

Hey, last week we celebrated an empty tomb and a sacrifice that was substituted for you and me…This week we are going to look at the beginning of a tomb that will become filled up and what it means mourn and honor those that have passed before us. This week promises to potentially be a little hard for some of us that have lost loved ones, but it also promises to be encouraging as we recognize that this place is not the end of the line for the believer. This week we get to see the humanity of Abraham as he mourns, and for the first time in Scripture we see tears shed as part of the mourning process. This week we will be reminded that Abraham was just a person like every single one of us here today.

Today lets take a look at

The Death of a Princess...

Yeah, the death of a princess. You see, God called Sarah a princes back in

Genesis 17:15 (ESV)

And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.

Sarah means princess and God has called her to be the mother of nations…So, today we will talk about the death of a princess. Now, Sarah had been a good wife to Abraham and a good mother to Isaac. Yeah...she had her faults, but don’t we all. Yet, God called her a princess and listed her with the heroes and heroines of faith in Hebrews 11. The Apostle Peter named her as a good example for Christian wives to follow in 1 Peter 3, and Paul uses her to illustrate the grace of God in the life of the believer in Galatians 4. You see, Sarah, while only the wife of Abraham, is just as important in the story of the Gospel as Abraham is. Both Abraham and Sarah had different functions, much like men and women today…But Sarah's role is equally important to this story. Sarah’s faith is equally impressive as Abraham’s is…So, lets dive in and take a look at

Abraham’s tears

I said earlier that this is the first time in the Scripture that we see tears shed as a part of mourning. Well, lets take a look at that in

Genesis 23:1–2 (ESV)

Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

Abraham loved his wife, and her death was a painful experience for him. He showed his love and his grief by his weeping. These are the first recorded tears in the Bible, and these tears will not end until God wipes them away in glory (Rev. 21:4). Even though he was a man of faith, Abraham’s tears were not an evidence of unbelief, they were evidence of being made in the image of God.

One of the most unhelpful responses anyone can every give someone who is mourning the loss of a loved one, is “it’s ok...don’t cry”. Not only is that advice unhelpful, it is also unbiblical. You see, God created you and I with the ability to weep and he expects us to use that ability. Even Jesus wept at the loss of a friend. Mourning is one of God’s gifts to broken hearted to heal the hurt and sorrow that is felt.

The deal is that Sarah died in faith and Abraham cried in faith. Abraham knew that his love was with the Lord, in his care. We don’t read alot about what happens after death in the minds of those that lived in the O.T. Although we do read that those of faith will be in his glory. Look at

Psalm 73:24 (ESV)

You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me to glory.

For the believer to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, so we do not need to look at death in fear…but in anticipation…Abraham may not have known all of the details of how things worked, but Abraham had faith that his bride was in fact with the Lord in glory…so Abraham wept as he mourned for a time, and even during that process he represented the glory of the Lord as part of

Abraham’s Testimony

You see, whenever we are dealing with those that are not a part of our spiritual family, those that are outside of the faith we have a responsibility to represent christ well, that is what a testimony is. Let’s take a look at Abraham’s in

Genesis 23:3–18 (ESV)

And Abraham rose up from before his dead and said to the Hittites, “I am a sojourner and foreigner among you; give me property among you for a burying place, that I may bury my dead out of my sight.” The Hittites answered Abraham, “Hear us, my lord; you are a prince of God among us. Bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will withhold from you his tomb to hinder you from burying your dead.” Abraham rose and bowed to the Hittites, the people of the land. And he said to them, “If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, hear me and entreat for me Ephron the son of Zohar, that he may give me the cave of Machpelah, which he owns; it is at the end of his field. For the full price let him give it to me in your presence as property for a burying place.” Now Ephron was sitting among the Hittites, and Ephron the Hittite answered Abraham in the hearing of the Hittites, of all who went in at the gate of his city, “No, my lord, hear me: I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. In the sight of the sons of my people I give it to you. Bury your dead.” Then Abraham bowed down before the people of the land. And he said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “But if you will, hear me: I give the price of the field. Accept it from me, that I may bury my dead there.” Ephron answered Abraham, “My lord, listen to me: a piece of land worth four hundred shekels of silver, what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.” Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver that he had named in the hearing of the Hittites, four hundred shekels of silver, according to the weights current among the merchants. So the field of Ephron in Machpelah, which was to the east of Mamre, the field with the cave that was in it and all the trees that were in the field, throughout its whole area, was made over to Abraham as a possession in the presence of the Hittites, before all who went in at the gate of his city.

In that time, there was a custom of negotiating for what was wanted. So what happened here is that Abraham went to those in the city gates to ask permission to bury Sarah. He has to ask permission becuase he was a stranger in that place. Then at that point they would play nice, name a high price and the negotiating would really begin. You see, even though God has given all of that land to Abraham, it has not been realized just yet…so Abraham has to live according to the rules of laws of where he lives. So, there is a negotiation and Abraham is kind of against a wall and doesn’t even try to negotiate with the owner of the land. Abraham simply pays the price that is named and moves to bury Sarah.

The men of the land called Abraham “a mighty prince”, which in the Hebrew is “a prince with God.” You see, he had a good testimony among them, and they respected him. Even though this world is not our home, we must be careful as pilgrims and strangers to have a good witness to those who are outside the faith. These Hittites did not worship Abraham’s God, but they respected Abraham and his faith. In fact, they offered him the use of one of their own tombs; but Abraham refused.

Now, just like Abraham was not a citizen of that country, if you are a Christian..this world is not your home, and praise God for that, amen…This world filled with its hatred and degeneracy does not hold your citizenship…As a believer, your citizenship is in glory with the Lord and while we are here for the moment, just like Abraham, you should have a good reputation in the community around you.

You will notice as you read this passage that Abraham did not get dirty and try to use the deceitful games that were customary…instead he simply paid what was asked. Now, is that a condemnation of negotiating a deal…absolutely not…it is a condemnation of negotiating in bad faith as was the custom at that time. You see, Abraham was respected in the community because he was God honoring in his actions and that caused him to deal well with those outside the faith, just the same as those in the faith. We read about that same concept when churches are looking for leaders, check out

1 Timothy 3:7 (ESV)

Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

When looking for leadership Paul tells Timothy to seek men who are thought of well by those outside the faith…this is what Abraham is modeling. Now, Abraham is not modeling this for leaders…Abraham is modeling this for all of us. In our business dealings with the people of the world, we need to be careful to maintain honesty and integrity and to put our witness for the Lord ahead of monetary gain. Abraham knew that Ephron had him trapped and that it was foolish to haggle over the price, as much as that culture loved to do it.

The same can be said of us in our dealings…maybe even in our social media...dealings…Listen, we all fail here don’t we? Well…all of us who use social media fail at this from time to time. We read something that we perceive as false or unjust and we speak out about it. Sometimes we are able to have quality conversations with others in the public square and we should do that. However, we should use caution as we have those conversations, right. Theres alot of people online who simply will not engage in conversation but instead only want to become nasty and tend to get the worst out of you…Listen, Im talking as someone who fails on this topic more than I would care to admit…So Abraham is careful about how he deals with those around him, and as a result he has a good testimony…Finally, we should look at

Abraham’s Tomb

You see, this tomb that we read about this morning is a tomb that only houses 1 individual right now…

Genesis 23:19–20 (ESV)

After this, Abraham buried Sarah his wife in the cave of the field of Machpelah east of Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. The field and the cave that is in it were made over to Abraham as property for a burying place by the Hittites.

Abraham legally now owns a portion of the land that God has promised to him. Abraham purchased the land that held the cave where Sarah is buried. This cave that was turned into a tomb will be full by the end of Genesis. We will see that this tomb is full of 3 generations of this family... Genesis ends with a full tomb, but the four Gospels…the story of Jesus ends with an empty tomb! Jesus has conquered death and taken away its sting we read that in 1 Cor 15. Because of Jesus’ victory, we do not need to fear death or the grave. Because of Jesus’ victory. Genesis is the beginning of God’s story and God’s plan for man…Jesus is the culmination of that plan…While we do mourn at the loss of a loved one, we do not mourn as those without hope…Let Abraham’s story end with the hope that is promised through Jesus

1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (ESV)

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

This morning as we each think of a loved one that we miss…know that we have the hope that only comes from the Lord…If your loved one passed and you are unsure of their relationship with Christ…then make it your goal to ensure that no one else around you passes without knowing about Christ. If your loved one passed and you are sure of their relationship with Christ make sure that everyone around you has the same hope that you have in Christ. If you are here or joining us online and you are unsure about your own relationship with the Lord…friend…don’t wait to reach out and place your hope in the Lord today…Take the time to repent by admitting you are a sinner, believing that Christ paid your debt and confessing publically that Jesus is Lord…Listen, if you have made a decision like that and have never followed Jesus in baptism as a believer…then please reach out and let’s set up a time to talk about your next step as a believer. For now...

Let’s pray...

Now, Im going to be honest here, the full meaning of Sarai is somewhat questionable. You see, the long held thought is that Sarai meant “my princess” while the possessive princess… “my princess” where as Sarah is the mother

https://armstronginstitute.org/818-what-does-the-name-sarai-really-mean