This morning, I want to focus on an interesting – and very important – shift that happens in our scriptures. The reading we have from Genesis is just PACKED with significance. Let’s start with our main man Abram! This spry nonagenarian is just hanging about, and has already had quite a life’s journey when we get here, by the way – anyway, there he is, when God pops in and says let’s take a walk.
And this is not the first time this has happened – back in chapter 12, for example, God says to a then 75-year-old Abram “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
And yet, Abram’s loving wife Sarai, has not borne any children. And in a patrilineal and patriarchal society, this is a problem. It’s so extreme that even Abram’s name is a bit of a torment. Because Abram means Exalted Father - and Abram is childless.
So Sarai suggests that Abram have a child with her staff Hagar. And this is NOT the focus of today. But – Abram, aged 86, is a first time father to a son, Ishmael.
And that’s where we start today. Abram – “Exalted Father” has one child, and is 99. And now God says I will make you exceedingly numerous. Also, surprise! Name change!
Now, at the best of times, that’s a lot of information to cope with. And – it’s a direct message from God. It’s no wonder Abram falls down before the Almighty.
So – his new name is to be Abraham. There’s the addition of another root word (hamon), which we see as the H. And this addition adds meaning – because it is adding the concept of fulfillment – of multitudes – of completion. So Abram – Exalter Father – is now Abraham – the father of multitude or the father of many.
Well now THAT’s a bit change, isn’t it! And for Abraham to be told, by God, that he will be father of many nations and many peoples – and that this will be in fulfillment of the covenant that God has made with him. Well. There’s a LOT in that H!
And Abraham is not the only one to experience a change. His wife – Sarai – a name that means my princess – is to be changed to Sarah. The princess of Many. No longer just to be adored by Abram, she will become adored by many, as the princess of a multitude. The princess of the fulfillment of God’s desire.
And so, in their small and private ministry of being devout and faithful people God intervenes and invites them to a change in ministry and in lifestyle.
One H is a small change to a name: One BIG change to a life – and lineage.
And – as of course we all know from our scripture reading and study, Abraham and Sarah are key figures in our religious and faith history. They are central to all the Abrahamic faiths – Judaism, Christianity and Islam – with Abraham serving as the joiner or bridge between the times when the earthly folks really didn’t know God, and the time when the power and grace of God was (and is!) upheld in all the world.
Father Abraham, indeed. The father of a multitude! Sarah – princess of many.
On their own, they thought they were too old, too frail, too tired. But with God: bringing them together, bringing their lives to fulfillment, bringing their hearts through the covenant: here we have new people, new opportunities, new possibilities.
Now, anyone who has had children will tell you that everything changes. EVERYTHING changes. Some things need to be started – new patterns established: feeding times, bath times, etc. These are necessary for the health and well-being of the child, of the family, of the community.
And in order for new things to be taken up, it also means that some existing things have to change – some things need to adapt – like sleeping arrangements and meal planning. And some things need to be put down – either temporarily or for good – like heading out with friends whenever you want to, or what mode of transportation (you can’t fit a car seat on a motorbike!) (Hmm, I wonder -what IS the camel equivalent of a minivan?
New life changes things. And change isn’t to be arbitrarily judged as good or bad – its just different. New life is different life.
So that H in the name change. It’s change! And what delight it brings. Because the child Isaac, borne of Sarah – well he himself brings joy to his parents. His very name means laughter or the laughter of God. Lovely.
And the fulfillment of the covenant of God – a big change! As these simple and faithful folks, whose lives have not been easy, are able to respond to the immediate call of God, and perceive the long-term call of God for their next generations, and to be contented and fulfilled themselves as they understand the impact of God’s completion in their lives.
And the experience of living out the ministry that God had promised for them. It’s change – but it’s exciting: as Abraham and Sarah had the faith to allow their names and lives and ministries to be changed. They put down the old ways, they picked up the new. They maintained their faith as God supported them through change.
So that H. It’s big. It is of completeness, it is of fulfillment, it is of trust.
So my hope and prayer today is that we can all learn from the faithful response of Abraham and Sarah, and recognise how God is calling us forward – in faith, in life, in ministry. I consider this to be especially timely as we head into our Annual Meeting today. We too can be invited to consider how God is calling us forward in faith.
What aspects of our life and witness are we ready to put down gently?
What ministry are we ready to pass along to someone else?
What possibility are we prepared to explore?
How will we manifest our faith in God’s covenant with us?
I don’t have all the answers – obviously! None of us do. But together – at this COVID time, and in this Lunenburg place – we are being called to hear God inviting us into the ministry of the mulititudes… the H of the many. The fulfilling of God’s covenant with us.
And while we aren’t even being asked to put that H of holy completion in our name – we are welcomed to put it in our hearts.
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