Here we find unbelief casting its dark shadow across the spirit of Abraham, and again turning him aside for a season from the path of simple, happy confidence in God. "And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold the Lord hath restrained me from bearing." These words bespeak the usual impatience of unbelief; and Abram should have treated them accordingly, and waited patiently on the Lord for the accomplishment of his gracious promise. The poor heart naturally prefers any thing to the attitude of _waiting_. It will turn to any expedient, any scheme, any resource, rather than be kept in that posture. It is one thing to believe a promise at the first, and quite another thing to wait quietly for the accomplishment thereof. We can see this distinction constantly exemplified in a child. If I promise my child any thing, he has no idea of doubting my word; but yet, I can detect the greatest possible restlessness and impatience in reference to the time and manner of accomplishment. And cannot the wisest sage find a true mirror in which to see himself reflected in the conduct of a child? Truly so. Abraham exhibits faith, in Chapter xv. and yet he fails in patience in Chapter xvi. Hence the force and beauty of the apostle's word, in Hebrews vi. "followers of them who through _faith and patience_ inherit the promises." God makes a promise: faith believes it; hope anticipates it; patience _waits_ quietly for it.
There is such a thing in the commercial world as "the present worth" of a bill or promissory note; for if men are called upon to wait for their money, they must be paid for waiting. Now, in faith's world, there is such a thing as the _present_ worth of God's promise; and the scale by which that worth is regulated is the heart's experimental knowledge of God; for according to my estimate of God, will be my estimate of his promise; and moreover, the subdued and patient spirit finds its rich and full reward in waiting upon him for the accomplishment of all that he has promised.
However, as to Sarah, the real amount of her word to Abraham is this, "The Lord has failed me; it may be, my Egyptian maid will prove a resource for me." Any thing but God for a heart under the influence of unbelief. It is often truly marvellous to observe the trifles to which we will betake ourselves when once we have lost the sense of God's nearness, his infallible faithfulness, and unfailing sufficiency. We lose that calm and well-balanced condition of soul so essential to the proper testimony of the man of faith; and, just like other people, betake ourselves to any or every expedient, in order to reach the wished-for end, and call that "a laudable use of means."
But it is a bitter thing to take ourselves out of the place of absolute dependence upon God. The consequences must be disastrous. Had Sarah said, "Nature has failed me, but God is my resource," how different it would have been! This would have been her proper ground; for nature really had failed her. But then it was nature in one shape, and therefore she wished to try nature in another. She had not learnt to look away from nature in every shape. In the judgment of God and of faith, nature in Hagar was no better than nature in Sarah. Nature, whether young or old, is alike to God; and, therefore, alike to faith; but, ah! we are only in the power of this truth when we are experimentally finding our living centre in God himself. When the eye is taken off that glorious Being, we are ready for the meanest device of unbelief. It is only when we are consciously leaning on the only true, the only wise, the living God, that we are enabled to look away from every creature stream. It is not that we shall despise God's instrumentality. By no means. To do so would be recklessness and not faith. Faith values the instrument, not because of itself, but because of him who uses it. Unbelief looks only at the instrument, and judges of the success of a matter by the apparent efficiency thereof, instead of by the sufficiency of him who, in grace, uses it. Like Saul, who, when he looked at David, and then looked at the Philistine, said, "Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for thou art but a youth." Yet the question in David's heart was, not as to whether he was able, but whether Jehovah was able.
The path of faith is a very simple and a very narrow one. It neither deifies the means on the one hand, nor despises it on the other. It simply values it, so far as it is evidently God's means, and no further. There is a vast difference between God's using the creature to minister to me, and my using it to shut him out. This difference is not sufficiently attended to. God used the ravens to minister to Elijah, but Elijah did not use them to exclude God. If the heart be really trusting in God, it will not trouble itself about his means. It waits on him, in the sweet assurance that by what means soever he pleases, he will bless, he will minister, he will provide.