Genesis 18:13-15 And the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I surely bear a child, since I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.” But Sarah denied it, saying, “I did not laugh,” for she was afraid. And He said, “No, but you did laugh!”
Sarah says, “I did not laugh.” Notice God’s response, “No, but you did laugh!” Sarah’s denial of the truth did not make it the truth. God didn’t let her off the hook simply because she was afraid. He didn’t let her lie to herself. He corrected her. The exclamation point at the end of the verse suggests that it was a quick and pointed correction.
How often do we deny the answer that God is providing? The marriage is uncomfortable… we think divorce… God says – submit and serve… we whine and deny. The job is poisoning us… we think just endure for the paycheck… God says – I have a better plan, leave and trust Me… we complain and deny. Life is falling apart… we pray for relief… God highlights a habitual sin we must give up… we ignore and deny. When nothing changes, we cry out and God says, “I’ve given you the answer. Your denial does not alter My answer.”
God still corrects in this manner. We may deny it, but God corrects. God has blessings waiting on us and we must step out obediently and accept the truth of His plan. Perhaps we’ve fallen into a habitual sin or we’ve started to worship possessions or we’ve denied God’s call in favor of our desires. Whatever the situation, when we pray and the still small voice of God gives us the truth and our ego rises to deny this truth, God WILL correct us… quickly and pointedly. The question becomes – are we listening?
Denial on our part does not become truth on God’s part. In verse 12, it says that Sarah “laughed within herself.” God hears our heart – not our words.