Week 9: February 23–March 1: “Is Any Thing Too Hard for the Lord?” Genesis 18–23

Week Overview

Imagine the tender moment when the Lord visits Abraham and Sarah, aged and childless, yet holding to His promise of posterity (Genesis 17:4, 15–22). Notice the quiet power in Genesis 18:14: “Is any thing too hard for the Lord?” Feel the heartbreaking test as Abraham prepares to offer Isaac, the son of that promise, revealing how God proves and improves the faithful (Abraham 3:25). These chapters pulse with faith amid delay, destruction, and devotion.

Key Scripture Moments

Here's the remarkable moment when divine visitors announce Isaac's birth: “Sarah laughed within herself” (Genesis 18:12), yet the Lord responds directly—“Is any thing too hard for the Lord?” (Genesis 18:14). Notice what happens next in Genesis 21:1–7, where “the Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken.”

Observe the urgent drama in Genesis 19:17, as angels command Lot’s family: “Escape for thy life; look not behind thee.” Then comes the stark turn: “But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt” (Genesis 19:26).

Witness the profound command in Genesis 22:2: “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering.” This echoes through Genesis 22:1–19 as a test of unwavering trust.

Hidden Connections

These stories link ancient faith to eternal patterns. Abraham’s offering of Isaac mirrors “a similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son” (Jacob 4:5). See the chart parallels: Isaac as “the only begotten son of Abraham and Sarah” (Genesis 22:2; Hebrews 11:17) aligns with Jesus as “the Only Begotten of the Father” (John 3:16); Isaac offered in place of a lamb (Genesis 22:7–9) foreshadows Jesus as “the Lamb of God” (John 1:29). Lot’s flight connects to modern protection, as in Doctrine and Covenants 88:68, promising deliverance to the pure.

Pattern Discovery

Notice this recurring theme of delayed promises across scriptures: Abraham and Sarah wait decades (Genesis 18:9–12; Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 17:23 [in Genesis 17:17, footnote b]), mirroring faithful Saints in Hebrews 11:8–13 who “died in faith, not having received the promises.” Faith endures delay, as angels urge forward motion without regret (Genesis 19:12–29; Luke 9:62). This pattern builds from Abraham to symbols of Christ’s sacrifice, proving God in His time.

Simple Questions

1. How did Abraham and Sarah react to the promise of a child, and what built their faith (Genesis 17:15–22; 18:9–14)?
2. What do the angels’ actions teach about fleeing wickedness (Genesis 19:12–17)?
3. Why might Lot’s wife have looked back longingly, and what does this reveal (Genesis 19:26)?
4. What symbols in Genesis 22:1–19 point to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ?
5. How does reviewing Genesis 15:6 and Romans 4:3 strengthen trust in God’s promises?
6. In what ways has waiting for blessings mirrored Abraham’s experience?

One Big Idea

The Lord fulfills His promises in His own time, proving the faithful as Abraham learned in vision: “to see if [we] will do all things whatsoever the Lord [our] God shall command” (Abraham 3:25). Abraham and Sarah trusted despite heartbreak, receiving Isaac after years of waiting (Genesis 21:1–7), while Abraham’s sacrifice tested ultimate obedience (Genesis 22:1–19).

Living It

Flee wickedness without looking back, as angels urged Lot: escape evil influences today and look forward with faith (Genesis 19:15–26; Luke 9:62). Sustain faith in delayed blessings by pondering personal experiences or others’, trusting God improves through trials. Offer what God asks, like Abraham with Isaac, finding the ram provided as Christ becomes our substitute.

Faith Builder

Recent prophetic words echo these truths. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught of Lot’s wife: “Apparently, what was wrong with Lot’s wife was that she wasn’t just looking back; in her heart she wanted to go back. … So it isn’t just that she looked back; she looked back longingly. In short, her attachment to the past outweighed her confidence in the future. … Faith is for the future. Faith builds on the past but never longs to stay there. Faith trusts that God has great things in store for each of us and that Christ truly is the ‘high priest of good things to come’ (Hebrews 9:11)” (“The Best Is Yet to Be,” Ensign, Jan. 2010, 24, 26–27). See also President Russell M. Nelson’s “Christ Is Risen; Faith in Him Will Move Mountains” (Liahona, May 2021, 101–4).

These chapters invite fleeing wickedness with forward faith, trusting the Lord’s promises lead to covenant joy through sacrifice and Savior.