Miraculous & Meaningful Conceptions

At age 99, Abram received a divine visitation. He fell on his face before the Lord. The Lord gave him a new name. Abram means father of people. Abraham means the father of many people. The Lord said to him, “I have made you a father of many nations.” [1]

The Lord made a covenant with Abraham. [2]

Then, He told Abraham, “I will bless her [Sarah] and also give you a son by her; then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.”

Abraham fell on his face once again, but this time because he was laughing so hard. He questioned the Lord, asking, “Shall a child be born to a man who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is 90 years old, bear a child?” The Lord affirmed His promise, saying, “Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac...” [3] Isaac means laughter. Psalm 2:1-4 says that the Lord laughs at the mighty who try to undermine His sovereignty. God can do as He chooses to do.

After receiving the promise of a long-awaited child, we find Abraham interceding for righteous people that they would not perish with the wicked. The Lord was about to destroy the city of Sodom because of their wickedness. Abraham’s nephew Lot lived there. So, Abraham interceded for Sodom. He began with fifty and stopped at 10! He asked the Lord to spare Sodom for the sake of ten righteous people in that city. The Lord listened to Abraham’s prayer. He promised to spare the city for the sake of ten righteous people. [4]

Sadly, there were not even five righteous people in Sodom. The city was destroyed after the Lord sent two angels to rescue Lot and his family.

Abraham is a type of Israel in that he waited a long time for the child of promise to born. His child Isaac was the outcome of a long-awaited miraculous birth. Many prophets foretold the birth of a Savior, but thousands of years passed before He (Jesus) was born. Jesus was the outcome of a miraculous birth. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit in the virgin Mary.

Like Jesus, Abraham interceded for righteous people to be saved from the fiery fate of the wicked. It is through our Lord’s sacrifice of Himself on the cross, and His forgiveness that people who believe in Him are made righteous. Jesus prayed on the cross, “Father forgive for they know not what they do.” [5] Those who believe in Jesus are forgiven of their sins, and thus, are spared from the fiery fate of the unforgiven. We all need the Savior Jesus Christ to be saved.

[1] Genesis 17:1-5
[2] Genesis 17:9-14
[3] Genesis 17:16-19
[4] Genesis 18:22-33
[5] Luke 23:34