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Miracles of Elisha… (4 things)
- 1st – Should have gotten more pots… vs. 1-7 Read: II Kings 4:1-7
- 1st – A certain widow was the wife of a prophet… vs. 1
- She came to Elisha because although her husband was a godly man…
- When he died he left her in a lot of debt – and the collectors were coming…
- Tradition says she was the wife of Obadiah – I Kings 18:3-6
- And the debt that was owed was from feeding the 100 prophets he hid from Jezebel…
- And now Jehoram was threatening to sell Obadiah’s sons to pay for the debt!
- This was a common practice in Israel to resolve unpaid debt – Matthew 18:25
- God has a heart for widows – and we are called to help them out…
- If possible a widow should be cared for by her children / or grandchildren…
- It is the responsibility of the kids to care for their parents – I Timothy 5:4…
- In fact that is why your mom took care of you – put you through college…
- That is why she wanted you to get a good job – earn lots of money…
- So that when she got old – you would be able to take care of her!
- Younger widows – under 60 – should get re-married – I Timothy 5:14…
- There is a stigma in the culture that says a widow should not remarry…
- But God never intended us to be alone in this life – it is normal to want a husband…
- If a widow is under the age of 60 – the Bible says she should remarry…
- I Corinthians 7:39 – “If her husband dies, she is free to remarry… only in the Lord.”
- But a true widow is to be taken care of by the church…
- A widow who trust in the Lord / takes the time to pray to the Lord…
- A widow who is dedicated to the Lord – dedicates herself to serving the Lord..
- That kind of a widow – is someone the church should take care of!
- James 1:27 – “Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles…”
- She came to Elisha because although her husband was a godly man…
- 2nd – Elisha wanted to help – so he asked the widow what she had in her house… vs. 2-7
- But she was VERY poor – and only had a single bottle of olive oil!
- Elisha had her to go and borrow AS MANY empty containers as she could…
- She then poured out the oil from her jar – and filled all the empty containers!
- Only when all the containers were full – did the oil in her jar run out…
- I bet you she wished she had found more empty containers!
- So often we come to God for help – with low expectations…
- When we had the church dedication last month – we had ice-cream after lunch…
- Most of the kids came up with a little cup – and only got a little ice-cream…
- Little Quincy came up with a BIG plate – and waited till it was completely filled up!
- God does not just want to bless us – He wants to fill us up to the very top!
- He wants to give us His whole kingdom – bless us beyond imagination – Luke 12:33
- But when we come to him with a little cup – not expecting much from Him…
- When we come full of our own ideas – there is not much room left…
- We limit what God can do in our lives – instead we need to come with a BIG plate!
- We need to come to Him empty – ready to be filled up with the oil of the Holy Spirit!
- But she was VERY poor – and only had a single bottle of olive oil!
- 1st – A certain widow was the wife of a prophet… vs. 1
- 2nd – A prophet’s reward… vs. 8-17 Read: II Kings 4:8-17
- 1st – One day Elisha went to the town of Shunem (by Mt. Tabor)… vs. 8-10
- A rich (better interpreted Godly) woman who lived there invited him for dinner…
- From then on every time Elisha passed by Shunem – he would eat at her house…
- The Godly woman told her husband she believed Elisha was a prophet…
- So they made a small room upstairs for him to stay in every time he passed by!
- We are commanded to care for others – the widows – even strangers…
- When we take the time to give food the hungry and a home to the stranger…
- We show the Love of God to others – the goodness of God – John 13:35
- Through which we are given the opportunity to tell them about Jesus!
- More than that – we when we care for strangers we actually minister to Jesus!
- Matthew 25:40 – “[Jesus] will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’”
- A rich (better interpreted Godly) woman who lived there invited him for dinner…
- 2nd – One day Elisha was staying in the room… vs. 11-17
- He decided to do something nice for the woman…
- He called her up – and asked her if there was anything she needed…
- Elisha could put in a good word for her with the King of Israel…
- But her family took good care of her – there was nothing she needed…
- Yet Elisha noticed she had no children – next year at this time you will have a child!
- The woman was a bit upset – ‘do not lie to me like that’…
- Apparently she was unable to have children – so she had a hard time believing Elisha…
- But sure enough – she became pregnant – and the Lord gave her a son!
- Our gifts to God – whether given to the widows / or strangers – are like seeds…
- The more we plant – the more of a harvest of blessing we will reap from God…
- If we are ‘cheap’ and choose to only plant a couple of seeds – a little harvest…
- But if we sow bountifully – we will also reap bountifully!
- We will never out give the Lord – the more we give / the more we will be given!
- Matthew 10:41 – “He who receives a prophet… shall receive a prophet’s reward.”
- He decided to do something nice for the woman…
- 1st – One day Elisha went to the town of Shunem (by Mt. Tabor)… vs. 8-10
- 3rd – Raising the dead… vs. 18-37 Read: II Kings 4:18-21 / 32-35
- 1st – One day the son of the Godly woman had a head ache… vs. 18-20
- He was helping with his dad in the harvest – and had to be sent home…
- Perhaps overcome by sun stroke (hot in Israel) / or perhaps an aneurism…
- By noon the young boy had died in the arms of his mother…
- She brought his body upstairs – laid him on Elisha’s bed – and shut the door…
- I am sure there was a temptation to be bitter – as if Elisha / God had failed!
- But God was not taking away her son – he was testing her faith…
- If you go to the Market and want to buy some mangos – you want good ones…
- Problem: how to know which are best – the outside might look good…
- But unless you test the fruit you do not know what it is like on the inside!
- The same is true of our walk with Jesus…
- We can say all the right words – we can make the outside look really good…
- Cause when things are going well – no problems – it is easy to look like a Christian…
- But to really know what we are made of – we need to be tested…
- When things get difficult – that is when see who we really are!
- He was helping with his dad in the harvest – and had to be sent home…
- 2nd – The woman asked her husband to take her to Elisha… vs. 21-26
- He was confused – why did she want to go – he did not know his son was dead…
- The wife simply told her husband that ‘everything was all right’!
- So she made the 6 hour journey to Mt. Carmel as quickly as she could…
- Elisha saw her in the distance – and sent his servant to greet her…
- He asked the woman what was wrong – again she said – ‘everything was all right’!
- The Lord had given her a son – and she was confident God would make it all right!
- When I was a kid my father gave me toy for Christmas – I LOVED that toy…
- But one day I was playing a little too rough – and the toy broke – I was devastated…
- Until I took that toy back to my Dad – and he was able to fix it up like new!
- If we focus in life on our problems – we will quickly become discouraged…
- Joy does not come as a result of our situations – how good or bad things are…
- Joy is when we get our eyes off our problems – and focus on our Father in heaven…
- Because He is the one who can pick up the pieces and make everything like new!
- He was confused – why did she want to go – he did not know his son was dead…
- 3rd – The woman fell down at the feet of Elisha… vs. 27-28
- Elisha could tell something was wrong – but the Lord had not told him what…
- The only way Elisha knew what was wrong – was because the woman told him…
- Men are pretty famous for being oblivious – we tend to miss things…
- When Jen is not happy about something – it can take me forever to notice!
- Yet we do tend to expect others to know when we are hurting…
- People expect a their spouses / pastors to somehow read their minds…
- But in truth we need to learn to be honest – and tell people what is going on inside!
- The woman reminded Elisha – ‘I did not ask for a son’…
- The moment she said that Elisha realized what had happened…
- Although we cannot read minds – that does not mean we should not pay attention…
- When we see people who are acting ‘funny’ – ask them what is going on…
- With a little bit of effort – we can be the lifeline to help people in their time of need!
- Elisha could tell something was wrong – but the Lord had not told him what…
- 4th – Elisha sent his servant ahead – had him lay his staff on the boys face… vs. 29-37
- This seems a bit unusual – why lay a staff on the face of the boy…
- The common assumption is Elisha wanted to check if the boy really was dead…
- Possibly the mother over reacting – perhaps the boy just fainted / or was faking…
- So by laying the staff on his face – it might ‘wake him up’…
- But the servant obeyed – and there were no signs of life!
- Elisha quickly followed and found the boy lying in the upper room – dead!
- He laid down on top of the boy – mouth to mouth / eyes to eyes / hands to hands…
- And the body of the boy began to grow warm again (he had been dead for hours)…
- Essentially Elisha was performing CPR – trying to resuscitate the boy…
- When God heals He often does so in very natural ways…
- He gives wisdom to the doctors / he gives knowledge to the pharmacists…
- Yet even though it is not ‘supernatural’ – it is no less God doing the work!
- Elisha got up and walked around – then laid down on the boy again…
- This time the boy sneezed 7 times – then opened up his eyes!
- Elisha called the mother – and she came in and picked up her little boy!
- If doctors and meds can not heal someone – it does not mean there is no hope…
- God is not limited to the natural – He does not have to use hospitals…
- God does not even have to do things in a way that we can explain…
- Sometimes God chooses to do something ‘supernatural’ – even raise the dead!
- This seems a bit unusual – why lay a staff on the face of the boy…
- 1st – One day the son of the Godly woman had a head ache… vs. 18-20
We are going to find that our lives become more and more like Jesus!
4th – A famine in the land… vs. 38-44 Read: II Kings 4:39-44
1st – One of the prophets prepared a stew for dinner… vs. 38-41
So he gathered some herbs from the field – and a handful of wild gourds…
What he did not know was that they gourds were poisonous…
So when the prophets tried to eat it – they cried out ‘there is death in the pot!’
Elisha put some flour in the pot – and asked them to try again…
Miraculously the poison was gone – and they were able to eat the soup!
It was not the flour that made the food safe – it was giving thanks to God…
All God asks us to do is give thanks for providing – ‘Say Grace’ – I Timothy 4:4-5
Therefore eat whatever you want to – food is meant to be eaten!
I Corinthians 6:13 – “Food is for the stomach, and the stomach is for food.”
Not that I recommend eating poison food – but certainly God can protect you!
2nd – A man brought a 20 loaves of bread for the prophets… vs. 42-44
Elisha told him to use it to feed over 100 hungry prophets (there was a famine)…
The man baulked – 20 loaves was not nearly enough for so many men!
Elisha assured him it would be enough – and there would even be some left over!
Not accidentally – very reminiscent of the feeding of the 5000…
Because when we care for widows and strangers…
And when we take the time to find out why others are hurting…
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