“As Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror.”

as Sarah obeyed Abraham,

Sarah followed Abraham from the city of Ur in the Mesopotamian Valley to Palestine. God eventually changed her name from Sarai (bitter, Gen. 16:6) to Sarah (princess, Gen. 17:15). Previous to her name change, she was a contentious wife. She constantly fought with Abraham. Even though Sarai was a strikingly beautiful woman, she was ugly on the inside. 

Why did God change her name? The reason Sarai was bitter was that she did not have a son. God, in his grace, gave her a son (Gen 17:15f; 18:12f). She relaxed in God’s grace (Rom. 4:16f). Hebrews 11:11 shows that she relaxed in God’s grace by faith,

”By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age because she judged Him faithful who had promised.”

What happened to Sarai? God said, “I promise.” Sarah believed that promise. She relaxed in God’s promise. The anxious, bitter woman became a beautiful woman. God stepped into her life. She claimed by faith God’s promise for her. So God singled  Sarah out as an example of a woman who developed inner beauty. 

The word “obey” comes from two words in Greek: to hear and under. How does a wife arrange her life under her husband? By hearing under – by listening to the essential needs of her husband. She does not do this with her mouth. She does this with her ears. She tunes into his core interests. She listens to his needs. 

Christian women want to take the word “obey” out of their marriage ceremonies today. The reason is quite obvious, but the reason is also quite humanistic. 

calling him lord,

“Calling him lord” means showing Abraham respect. She acknowledged his authority over her. She recognized him as the leader of the household (Gen. 18:12). When Sarah was about 90 years of age, God promised her a son. She believed God. Her inner beauty changed from a contentious person to a person of belief.

This is a title of respect for the office. The husband’s office is the leader of the home. Sarah’s held Abraham in high esteem. She never disparaged him. 

PRINCIPLE: 

God wants the wife to tune into her husband’s essential need of respect.

APPLICATION:

If a wife does not tune into her husband, she will not hear his needs. She hears his words but not his meaning. 

Many women do not listen to their husband’s essential needs. Convinced that their view of his needs is right, they never question their assumptions about him. They, therefore, do not have their ears open to his actual needs. Some men do not communicate their needs directly. They usually do not like to divulge the core of their being, yet they will reveal themselves if their wives develop an environment of inner beauty. 

Why did your husband marry you in the first place? You made him feel more special than any other girl. You treated him like he was somebody. You believed in him. If you downgrade him or never agree with him, you go against the very basis of why he married you. When you make him appear foolish and use sarcasm against him in public, you go against the very foundation of your relationship. This also goes against inner beauty (vv. 1-5). Inner beauty opens men to disclose themselves to their wives.