Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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SO WHAT?
Why does it matter to God and to us?
DISCUSSION | Our Practical Needs
We're human, which means we all have the same important practical needs.
What do you think those practical needs are?
INSTRUCTIONS: With a white board or sticky notes, make a list of practical needs all humans have.
For each need, ask students to share an example of what happens when those needs aren't met.
Be sure the discussion includes our need for . . .
Food.
Water.
Shelter.
Clothing.
Education.
Safety.
Medical care.
Caring adults, like parents.
There are people everywhere (all over the world and close to home too) who need greater access to essential things like clean water, shelter, food, education, and more.
SCRIPTURE | I Kings 17:8-16
*Jar pic*
One of the most common messages in the Bible is the reminder to be on the lookout for those in need, and often those needs are practical.
Jesus and His disciples said it many times, but it's a common theme in the Old Testament too.
Today, let's see how God used the prophet Elijah to help meet some people's needs.
A prophet is a messenger from God. God would often give a message to a prophet and then the prophet would share it with as many people as possible.
In Elijah's day, the nation of Israel (God's chosen people) were being led by kings.
There were good kings and bad kings — kings that followed God and kings that rejected God and followed other fake gods instead.
One of these kings was King Ahab, the seventh king of Israel and the most evil Israelite king so far.
Ahab and his wife Jezebel both rejected God and worshipped a fake god named Baal instead.
God sent Elijah to give Ahab a message: because of their wickedness, there would be a drought in the land.
In the midst of this drought, even Elijah was struggling to find food, so God sent him to a creek to get water and sent ravens to bring him food.
When the creek dried up and the ravens ran out of food, here's what happened . . .
INSTRUCTIONS: summarize I Kings 17:8-16.
Let's think about how weird this story is for a minute.
At first, God and Elijah kind of sound like jerks.
Sure, Elijah is hungry and thirsty, but so is this widow!
In fact, she and her son are preparing to die of hunger and thirst when Elijah shows up and says, "Hey, God told you to give me the rest of your stuff."
But because Elijah knows God's character, he understands why he's been sent.
Elijah wasn't sent to this widow to take whatever she had left.
God sent Elijah to help her.
Through Elijah, God provides this woman and her son with the miracle they need.
As a result, they're able to make all the food they (and Elijah) need.
But here's something you may not have noticed: Elijah doesn't just secure food and water for this family and leave.
He stays with them for some time too.
This is a simple story, but I think it communicates a few important things about how what to do when someone is in need.
Whether you identify more with Elijah or with the widow and her son, this story shows us:
WE NEED EACH OTHER.
God gives us each other to help meet each other's needs.
Elijah may have helped provide for the widow and her son, but the widow provided for Elijah's needs too.
GOD WORKS THROUGH US.
There are many people in our world, country, neighborhoods, and schools who are in need, but like Elijah, we have to be willing to go where God sends us.
THERE'S ENOUGH FOR EVERYONE.
Rather than being driven by selfishness or fear, Elijah and the widow trusted God would provide enough for all of them.
But it required sharing their extra resources instead of hoarding them.
RELATIONSHIPS MATTER.
Elijah didn't just send this family a check in the mail or perform a miracle and leave.
This wasn't just an obligation or charity work.
They also built real relationship over time.
SCRIPTURE | Matthew 25:40
In Elijah's time, it was clear God cared about caring for people in need.
It's clear that was still God's heart when Jesus was here on earth.
In Jesus' time some people believed God wanted certain people to suffer.
They thought maybe those people deserved it.
But when Jesus showed up, He showed us a different way.
Jesus cared deeply about people.
He sought out people who had needs, and helped meet those needs, but He also spent time with them.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said when He returns, He'll ask all of us how we helped our neighbors when they were in need.
Did we . . .
Give food and water to the hungry and thirsty?
Take care of strangers?
Give clothes to those who need them?
Care for sick people?
Visit prisoners?
INSTRUCTIONS: Read Matthew 25:40
Jesus saw people's needs — but He also saw their humanity.
And He calls us to do the same.
Instead of ignoring or not noticing the needs of the people around us, we are asked to do what Elijah and the widow did, and what Jesus did, and be with people when they're in need.
*Title Slide*
NOW WHAT?
What does God want us to do about it?
But why don't more people do more to help meet the needs of others?
It's a question we should all be asking ourselves.
What about you?
What barriers prevent you from meeting the needs of others?
When's the last time you noticed someone else's needs?
When you see someone in need, what's your usual reaction?
Is your reaction different depending on the person's need?
Have you ever been judgmental when you've seen someone in need?
Have you ever felt powerless or overwhelmed when you've seen someone in need?
What is preventing you from helping to meet more people's needs?
DISCUSSION | What is Shalom?
*Shalom Graphic*
There's a Hebrew word in the Bible that is often translated as "peace."
But when the Bible says "peace," it's not only talking about "the absence of war."
It's talking about a world that's complete, whole, and in perfect balance.
The word is shalom.
In the world, in our country, and in our neighborhoods and schools, there are needs, but there is also excess.
Some people have more than enough while others are in desperate need.
Some people think there isn't enough to go around, so they hoard things and only help people who they think are valuable.
Do you believe there's enough to go around, or do you think we need to hold tightly to what we have?
Other people think there isn't enough to go around because they've never had enough.
They may only have secondhand shoes that don't fit right.
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