The Faith of a Wife: The Three-Fold Example of Sarah

One of the great Biblical examples of faith is Abraham. Much has been written and spoken about him, and rightly so. Much less has been said of another striking example of faith, the faith of his wife Sarah. Her life of faith was different, and in some ways much harder, than that of her husband. She demonstrated a three-fold faith that is an example for every wife, and for every believer, male or female.

First, Sarah had faith in God’s direction & provision. Hebrews 11:8 says Abraham set out “not knowing where he was going.” Certainly, that took faith on Abraham’s part, but put yourself in Sarah’s sandals. At least Abraham had some type of vision or message from God, but all Sarah had was her new husband telling her, “God told me to go.” “Where, my husband?” “I don’t know.” “How long will we be gone?” “I don’t know.” “How will we eat and stay alive? Will there be any other people there? Will there be any civilization or laws? Will I ever see my home or family again? Will we lose everything we have or be enslaved or worse?” “I don’t know. God just told me to go.”

Remember, this was before national governments, wikipedia, savings accounts, or any type of long-distance communication. Setting out from your own village literally meant “not knowing where he was going,” with no guarantee at all of what it would be like. Imagine that, and realize the faith Sarah had to have in God. None of us will ever be called to that kind of faith. Even the missionary called to a far off land will know quite a bit about what lies ahead: the people, the geography, the government, his mission board and support team, how he will travel, how he can get out if there is danger. Sarah knew absolutely nothing: she needed massive faith in God’s direction & provision.

But, Sarah also had to have faith in her husband’s ability. Let’s get real, Sarah: Did your husband really hear from God? Maybe it was his midlife crisis instead, or over zealous optimism, or misdirected desires. If you’re a wife, it can be a scary thing to put your faith in your husband. And what’s scarier is that God has a track record of sometimes leading people through rough seas— the same chapter in Hebrews that lists Abraham & Sarah’s faith also lists people of faith in chains & torture & death.

I don’t think it’s easy for any wife to have faith in her husband, especially when the direction that he is pointing in doesn’t seem to square with where she thinks God would lead. But what is the alternative, when you look from God’s perspective? A godly college student named Ruth was absolutely convinced that God had called her to be a missionary, but her boyfriend didn’t feel that call. How was she to know at the time that her lanky young Billy Graham would one day become the greatest evangelist of the century with her love and support? She had to take it on faith. Another young college student named Noel was engaged to a pre-med major, when he suddenly told her that he wanted to go to seminary instead. Would she search for a more stable, more secure husband, or would she choose to follow & support John Piper so that one day his ministry would put his theological writings in the hands of millions of believers?

Of course, not every case of a woman having faith in her husband has such a happy ending. Sarah’s life wasn’t all roses, either. Abraham stumbled badly at times, even putting Sarah’s life in danger by his foolish decisions. Even the best of husbands is a flawed & sinning human, and the worst of husbands can be much worse. That’s why Sarah, and every other wife, must have faith in God’s sovereignty. This is the hardest kind of faith to have: to believe that God still has a purpose and will still work for His glory and her good in a flawed, even deeply flawed, mate & marriage.

If you are a wife, why not commit to Sarah’s three-fold faith: to have faith in God’s direction & provision through your husband, to have faith in your husband’s ability, and have faith in God’s sovereignty even in your husband’s weakness, failures, & sin. If you say that you can’t see how you can have that kind of faith with your husband, well, that’s why it’s called faith. You believe it not because of who your husband is, but because of who you know God to be.

If you’re not a wife, you can still look to Sarah’s example of trusting God. Every husband is tempted like Adam to complain to God about “the woman who You gave to be with me.” (Genesis 3:12) Don’t complain— trust God for your mate. Everyone can also apply this faith principle to their friends & church— just because they’re not perfect doesn’t mean you can’t have faith in them & in God working through them. No matter who you are or what people are in your life, God challenges you to live this three-fold life of faith today.