FINDING HOPE IN THE HEARTACHE

Genesis 23:1-20

God often uses our greatest

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to establish in us an even greater
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in his covenant promise.

Now Sarah lived 127 years; these were all the years of her life.

2 Sarah died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her.

3 When Abraham got up from beside his dead wife, he spoke to the Hethites:

4 “I am an alien residing among you. Give me burial property among you so that I can bury my dead.”

5 The Hethites replied to Abraham,

6 “Listen to us, my lord. You are a prince of God among us. Bury your dead in our finest burial place. None of us will withhold from you his burial place for burying your dead.”

7 Then Abraham rose and bowed down to the Hethites, the people of the land.

8 He said to them, “If you are willing for me to bury my dead, listen to me and ask Ephron son of Zohar on my behalf

9 to give me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him; it is at the end of his field. Let him give it to me in your presence, for the full price, as burial property.”

10 Ephron was sitting among the Hethites. So in the hearing of all the Hethites who came to the gate of his city, Ephron the Hethite answered Abraham:

11 “No, my lord. Listen to me. I give you the field, and I give you the cave that is in it. I give it to you in the sight of my people. Bury your dead.”

12 Abraham bowed down to the people of the land

13 and said to Ephron in the hearing of the people of the land, “Listen to me, if you please. Let me pay the price of the field. Accept it from me, and let me bury my dead there.”

14 Ephron answered Abraham and said to him,

15 “My lord, listen to me. Land worth four hundred shekels of silver—what is that between you and me? Bury your dead.”

16 Abraham agreed with Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver that he had agreed to in the hearing of the Hethites: four hundred standard shekels of silver.

17 So Ephron’s field at Machpelah near Mamre—the field with its cave and all the trees anywhere within the boundaries of the field—became

18 Abraham’s possession in the sight of all the Hethites who came to the gate of his city.

19 After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field at Machpelah near Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan.

20 The field with its cave passed from the Hethites to Abraham as burial property. —Genesis 23:1–20 (CSB)

LEARNING FROM DEATH:

Genesis 23 has two major themes:
1. Abraham’s

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the death of his spouse.
2. Abraham’s
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God’s land of promise.

Abraham’s response to Sarah’s death reveals that death is an…

  1. DEATH IS AN UNWELCOME

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    So we should
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    what we’ve lost. (John 11:35)

  2. DEATH IS A UNIQUE

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    .
    So we should
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    from what it teaches. (Ecc 7:2)

  3. DEATH IS AN UNEXPECTED

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    .
    So we should
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    God to keep his promise.
    Promised Land = Restoration of
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  4. DEATH IS A UNIVERSAL

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    .
    that will one day be
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    .
    (Heb 11:10; 1 Pet 1:3-5; Rev 21:3-5)

“He’ll wipe away every tear from their eye. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more…” —Revelation 21:3-5

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

  1. Today’s message is about a topic most people avoid: death. Why do you think our culture rarely discusses this issue?

  2. In what way do you see death as an “unwelcome intruder”? Why is death considered unnatural?

  3. In what ways does the sermon suggest death can be a “instructor”? What lessons can we learn from death?

  4. How does the sermon portray death as an “invitation to trust in the promise of God”? Discuss the connection between Sarah’s death and Abraham securing the promised land.

  5. Why was it important for Abraham to legally purchase the burial plot rather than accept it as a gift? What principle was he upholding?

  6. Discuss the connection between the promised land and the restoration of Eden / eternal communion with God? How do we see this theme progress throughout the Scriptures.

  7. In what ways does Jesus fulfill the promise of the “promised seed” who crushes the serpent’s head and restores us to the Garden?

  8. How does the death and resurrection of Jesus defeat the “universal enemy” of death?

  9. What does it mean that our “citizenship is in heaven” and we are “aliens and sojourners on this earth”? How should this shape our perspective?

  10. The sermon concludes by asking if we are resting in God’s promise through Jesus or something else. How would you answer this question personally?