A Portrait of Grace
Notes
Transcript
It’s been a few weeks now, having been at the Men’s retreat and then out of town last Sunday...
And so I wanted to provide a recap from the last time we were together.
If you recall - my last sermon ended with a - TO BE CONTINUED.
In THAT message - we saw a Portrait of Sin...
specifically - regarding the people of Israel - in Samaria.
Samaria was a city where ALL kinds of sacrifices were made and tolerated.
And in looking at that portrait we saw...
Consequences of Sin.
Suffering as a consequence (famine had come upon Samaria - and God used SYRIA to exasperate the seriousness of the famine - as SYRIA chose to SURROUND the city - it got so bad that people began eating their children)
Amnesia as a consequence of sin...
Jehoram (the king of Israel at this time) had called for the head of Elisha - as he dealt with the suffering of the people.
And in doing so - he had FORGOTTEN that Elisha actually PROTECTED Samaria AND SAVED Jehoram’s life… several times.
Rebellion as a Consequence of sin...
In wanting to destroy Elisha - Jehoram no longer wanted to wait on the Lord.
It seems he was guided BY Elisha - to WAIT on the Lord - and come to repentance.
BUT that didn’t happen.
And so king Jehoram called for the death of Elisha…and sent a messenger to Elisha bring the news...
33 And while he was still speaking with them, the messenger came down to him and said, “This trouble is from the Lord! Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?”
FROM HERE - we continue with the story.
And TODAY - we’ll actually piece it together AS we go.
And AS WE GO - we’re going to LOOK to the AIM - OF these TEXTS!
In other words - our POINTS today - will be looking FORWARD in time - from when these things were written.
1 But Elisha said, “Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord, Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.”
2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned said to the man of God, “If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?” But he said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”
If you remember - the Famine in the land of Samaria was so - BAD - that the people decided to begin to EAT their own children.
And as they lived through this - NO DOUBT - they FELT the WEIGHT of God’s judgment over them.
But at THIS POINT NOW - God has LET THEM KNOW - that by the next day - FOOD will be plentiful!
Why would this be good news?
Because - obviously - FOOD (at this point) - meant - life.
When the food shortage is leading people to eat their own children...
FOOD would probably be a good thing!
And God HERE - promises food for His people.
- - LIFE - for His people!
And the CONNECTION is seen.
In the PROMISE of FOOD for God’s People…we see
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: The Promise of Life Coming in Christ
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
God promises that FOOD will rid the land now of - FAMINE...
And life (physical) - will come as a result.
It’s a picture of what was to COME - in Jesus.
*Men’s Retreat - anticipation of food (you’re at the mercy of those running the camp- TELLING YOU when you will eat).
*Baseball trip (got back at 2:30 am) - was SOOOO thirsty (kept drinking - eating fruit - COULD NOT stop.
And I just kept at it - until my body felt like it had enough.
God here would RESTORE the food in Samaria - after bringing judgment -
And it’s a correlation we see throughout scripture.
Even if we STAY in the OT - we see another example of God PROMISING food...
Listen to this:
2 And you shall remember the whole way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not.
3 And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
In the wilderness journey - God - it says - “LET the people hunger...
…and FED THEM with manna - WHICH THEY DID NOT KNOW”
WHY?
So that man would come to know that man doesn’t live by BREAD ALONE - but by every word that comes from GOD.
That IF GOD WILLS that we eat - we will eat.
That if God WILLS we live - we will live.
And so just like - Deut 8 here - our TEXT today in 2 Kings - points to Jesus Christ! - HOW SO?
JESUS - the Son of God - would come to earth - live a PERFECT life - die the DEATH WE deserved - and then ROSE AGAIN to life!
AND SO - How does Jesus DESCRIBE Himself - to His people?
33 For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”
This verse shows us that JESUS is the fulfillment of MANNA in the wilderness...
Remember what God said to His people - in the OT?
22 “For my people are foolish; they know me not; they are stupid children; they have no understanding. They are ‘wise’—in doing evil! But how to do good they know not.”
New Testament?
1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
What is ETERNAL Life?
3 And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.
The MANNA the people did not KNOW...
The WORLD does not KNOW Jesus...
Eternal life - is to KNOW God = the Christ.
The FOOD supplied to Samaria…A POINTER to the coming King - JESUS!
the Gospel itself!
And YET - if we keep going in our story - our text today - we see MORE aspects of the gospel being lived out!
WHY WOULD GOD want to teach mankind about HIM (GOD) having access to LIFE in HIS hands?
If you remember a few weeks ago - we saw how the SYRIANS surrounding the city of Samaria -
represented God’s - - JUDGMENT...
Against what?
Against the SIN that was rampant in the city.
PARTIAL v4
2 Kings 7:3–4 (ESV)
3 Now there were four men who were lepers at the entrance to the gate. And they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die?
4 If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also...
What do we know about Lepers in scripture?
2 “Command the people of Israel that they put out of the camp everyone who is leprous or has a discharge and everyone who is unclean through contact with the dead.
Outside of the camp - is where the LEPERS were to be placed.
The LEPER had NO PLACE within the confines of a village or city.
Outside the GATE is where they were TO BE… HOW LONG?
UNTIL - they were made - - clean.
And so - the LEPER - represents - the SINNER.
What happened to Adam and Eve - when SIN came into the world?
They were - REMOVED from the garden.
Outside the garden - they went!
And SINCE THEN - we now CANNOT return to God - UNLESS we’re made - - CLEAN!
2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!
7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
8 Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.”
And it’s THIS WASHING - that makes us - CLEAN - NOW ABLE to dwell with God.
But HOW DOES THIS washing come?
9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
BY FAITH- we are made clean!
And so - for the LEPERS in our text today...
BEING in that Leperous state - what were their PROSPECTS?
PARTIAL v4
2 Kings 7:4 (ESV)
4 If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also...
WOW - the LEPERS KNEW - whether they ENTERED the city - or STAYED where they were - they would - - PERISH.
WHY?
Because the SYRIANS surrounded the city - and the Syrians were the enemy!
And what did we say the Syrians REPRESENTED in surrounding Samaria??
The Syrians represented - God’s judgment on Israel!
NOW - let’s see what these LEPERS decide to do...
ALL of v4
4 If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but die.”
What did they decide??
They decide to - THROW THEMSELVES at the mercy of the SYRIANS...
Well - who were the Syrians in relation to them??
They were the - ENEMY!
NOW - let’s make the connection!!
The Syrians - REPRESENTED - God’s Judgment on Israel - Samaria!
And so the LEPERS - the “SINNERS” - decide HERE - that their ONLY HOPE....was to....
Throw themselves at the MERCY of “their enemy”...
Well - listen - to SINNERS - - the enemy of SINNERS in this world is - - God’s JUDGMENT!
See - God’s Judgment - ALWAYS - WINS!
It NEVER fails in RENDERING judgment against - SIN
But these LEPERS - here - REALIZE that their ONLY HOPE - was to SEEK - - MERCY!!
And what we SEE - is this story now POINT toward...
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: The Removal Of God’s Wrath in the Coming Christ
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
And what a PICTURE this paints!!!
We SEE the gospel story - being played out in these men’s lives!
It’s not PERFECT…BUT...
They SEEK MERCY… from ANOTHER - and that OTHER - was brought by God’s Judgment.
And let’s see what happens!
4 If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but die.”
5 So they arose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. But when they came to the edge of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no one there.
6 For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians hear the sound of chariots and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come against us.”
7 So they fled away in the twilight and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the camp as it was, and fled for their lives.
8 And when these lepers came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent and ate and drank, and they carried off silver and gold and clothing and went and hid them. Then they came back and entered another tent and carried off things from it and went and hid them.
If you were going to explain this to someone else - today…HOW would you explain it?
God’s MERCY saved the OUTCASTS!
GOD DECIDED that He was going to EXTEND mercy to the OUTCASTS...
And extend LIFE to them!
God made ALL THE MEN of the Syrian army HEAR the sound of a DIFFERENT ARMY…coming to fight.
The Syrian Army CAME by the will of the Lord...
And the Syrian Army FLED by the WILL of the Lord...
Judgment came - in the FORM that it did - and Judgment removed - based on God’s will.
Where do we see this in the coming Christ?
We need to know - THE WORLD NEEDS TO KNOW - that the MERCY of God...
THE SAME MERCY that delivered those LEPERS from the Syrians...
The MERCY of GOD - is ONLY found in Jesus Christ!!
Remember when the woman caught in adultery was brought out into the street…??
Her ENEMY was the law of God...
Her ENEMY - God’s judgment - was ALL around her - ready with STONES!
And Jesus says - He who is without sin - cast the first stone!
What did that STATEMENT - cause those men to do?
They - FLED!
And she LOOKS UP - and sees - her enemy is - GONE!
MERCY was extended - - BY WHO?
JESUS!
The MERCY of GOD - is ONLY found in Jesus Christ!!
12 And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
WHAT NAME?
11 This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.
And SPEAKING of Jesus… [read the ME’s]
1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn;
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
EXCEPT thru ME...
NOT JUST thru His name...
NOT just thru our ALLEGIANCE to Him...
NOT JUST thru the REALITY of His accomplishments...
But THRU - TRUST in HIM / FAITH in Him, OUR NEED of HIM, [AANNDD] what He accomplished for us.
The LEPERS in our text today - they KNEW their standing - ACCORDING to the Law...
According to the LAW - they needed to be OUTSIDE the gate...
UNTIL they were made clean~!
And WE - today - must be made CLEAN as well!
4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared,
5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,
6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,
BY FAITH - we are washed in the renewal of regeneration.
SAVED - by a Spiritual washing of our souls.
The LEPERS - received LIFE - by the mercy of God.
A reflection of God’s judgment being REMOVED - IN Christ.
And when God’s JUDGMENT is REMOVED - that leads to something!
8 And when these lepers came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent and ate and drank, and they carried off silver and gold and clothing and went and hid them. Then they came back and entered another tent and carried off things from it and went and hid them.
9 Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household.”
10 So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city and told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one to be seen or heard there, nothing but the horses tied and the donkeys tied and the tents as they were.”
11 Then the gatekeepers called out, and it was told within the king’s household.
These lepers - KNEW their prospects earlier that morning.
THEY KNEW - death awaited them...
And that their only hope was to seek MERCY from their enemy.
And so - THEY KNEW - when they realized that the Syrians were gone...
When their ENEMY was gone...
They KNEW - mercy was here!
They knew - LIFE had come.
And they TASTED it…literally!
And we end up seeing - another portrait of Grace...
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: Grace Received Leads to Grace Proclaimed
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
When these men (lepers) realize that LIFE was extended to them...
They EAT their fill - and plunder the tents...
BUT THEN - they make a declaration.
9 Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king’s household.”
Today is a DAY of - GOOD NEWS!
LIFE has COME!
We can’t KEEP THIS to OURSELVES!!
We gotta SHARE IT!
Let us GO AND TELL - WHO?
The King’s HOUSEHOLD!
Probably 5 whole sermons in that one phrase.
Let us go - and tell the KING’s HOUSEHOLD…!
We should know:
SLIDE:
The grace of God should lead to the proclamation of God
Has this happened in your life?
*Ken Maynard- (Men’s retreat - JERRY - lead to the Lord through Ken)
- I KNOW Jerry would say - YES - I owe Ken Maynard my LIFE...
- WHY?
Because Ken decided -
“I MUST speak of the grace I’VE BEEN SHOWN!”
And in DOING so - Ken realized over time - after Jerry got saved - that Ken was speaking the good news - to the - King’s Household.
Listen - we will proclaim what we worship.
SLIDE:
We will proclaim what we worship
It’s a portrait of grace.
And to close today - we see one last portrait.
11 Then the gatekeepers called out, and it was told within the king’s household.
12 And the king rose in the night and said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city.’ ”
13 And one of his servants said, “Let some men take five of the remaining horses, seeing that those who are left here will fare like the whole multitude of Israel who have already perished. Let us send and see.”
14 So they took two horsemen, and the king sent them after the army of the Syrians, saying, “Go and see.”
15 So they went after them as far as the Jordan, and behold, all the way was littered with garments and equipment that the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. And the messengers returned and told the king.
16 Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the Lord.
17 Now the king had appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate. And the people trampled him in the gate, so that he died, as the man of God had said when the king came down to him.
18 For when the man of God had said to the king, “Two seahs of barley shall be sold for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria,”
19 the captain had answered the man of God, “If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And he had said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”
20 And so it happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gate and he died.
ANOTHER portrait we see today - is this...
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: The Heart of Man will Distort the Grace of God
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
God miraculously REMOVES the Syrian army...
REMOVES the famine
And FEEDS His people...
And the HEART of man responds this way...
12 And the king rose in the night and said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city.’ ”
And so - to the heart of man - God’s BLESSING becomes a PLOT AGAINST MAN.
The Blessing of God - becomes a CURSE (in the heart of man)
LIFE - from God - become - - Death (in the heart of man).
And this is what the heart of man does!
And it’s a reflection of Romans 1 -
Where we read of CREATION - being MADE by God as a TESTIMONY of His greatness...
YET - mankind NOT ACKNOWLEDGING God and becoming FOOLS.
King Jehoram refused to acknowledge God in this miracle...
And instead viewed it as a plot to kill the people of God.
THIS ACTUALLY would fall under a portrait of sin...
Yet we find it here in the middle of God’s GRACE.
Another Portrait of Grace we find is quite interesting…I believe.
God initially predicted the REMOVAL of the famine - way back in v1 of our text today...
1 But Elisha said, “Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord, Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.”
QUESTION - where did this FINE FLOUR - and BARLEY - come from?
16 Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the Lord.
This FINE FLOUR and BARLEY - came from - the SYRIANS!
And so - what does this tell us?
It shows us another PORTRAIT of Grace.
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: The Judgment of God Leads to Blessing for God’s People
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
The blessing of FOOD - that removed the famine - came from the SYRIANS...
Which as we’ve talked about - represented the JUDGMENT of God.
We need to know - that God’s JUDGMENT - His discipline OF US - as BELIEVERS - always leads to blessing.
Whether FAMINE comes...
Whether suffering COMES...
ULTIMATELY - for believers...
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
WHICH means - our discipline - is not a - CONDEMNING discipline!
It will be used to make us MORE LIKE Jesus - and ANYTHING that makes us more like Jesus - is a blessing…!
EVEN CANCER!
This is NOT to say that SIN is a blessing!
Sin is - SIN...
And God HATES sin!
But as HIS children - He will not CONDEMN us due to our sin...
He will chasten us...
He MAY make us hunger…
He MAY make us suffer...
WHY? - as discipline - to DRAW us CLOSER to Him.
The last portrait of grace we’ll see comes within the last few verses of our text...
18 For when the man of God had said to the king, “Two seahs of barley shall be sold for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria,”
19 the captain had answered the man of God, “If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And he had said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”
20 And so it happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gate and he died.
What is this a portrait of?
SLIDE: A Portrait of Grace: God’s Word can be Trusted
A Portrait of Grace
A Portrait of Grace
This Captain - in our text - didn’t trust the word of the Lord.
He DOUBTED!
he said - WOW - even if the Lord “made windows in heaven” (LET THE FLOOD WATERS COME DOWN to EARTH” - could THAT EVEN HELP produce this food He speaks of???”
The Captain COULDN’T SEE a way that this was going to happen...
And so - in his mind - IT WASN’T...
Or at least - He DOUBTED it.
What’s GOD teaching man here?
That if you DO NOT TRUST His word - you will - - PERISH!
This captain PERISHED.
He SAW the miracle...
SAW that the blessing of food ACTUALLY CAME from the SYRIANS...
BY GOD’s hand...
But he died - was trampled - and never partook of it!
And how SIMILAR this is - to the Wilderness story of those who NEVER entered the promised land...
WHY - as the Bible says - due to - UNBELIEF.
We can TRUST God’s word!
He knows best.
As the song says -
I know I've come so far
But got so far to go
And with these brand-new scars
And this broken heart
It's hard to really know
If there's a reason
And if I'll ever see it
But I wanna believe it
So don't give up on me yet
Tag:
His Grace will never run out
There's enough to go round and round
His love's an ocean where your shame is drowned
If you know what He knows, then you know!
He won't give up on you
BELIEVER - He won’t give up on you.
SUMMARY
A Portrait of Grace
The Promise of Life Coming in Christ
The Removal Of God’s Wrath in the Coming Christ
Grace Received Leads to Grace Proclaimed
The Heart of Man will Distort the Grace of God
The Judgment of God Leads to Blessing for God’s People
God’s Word can be Trusted
We live lives of BROKENNESS...
And YET - God’s GRACE COVERS US...
I’d like to close today by PRAYING - and then just playing a song… It’s about 8 minutes...
But GUESS WHAT...
That’s ok.
Let’s pray....
1, 2 Kings (3) The Siege Is Lifted (7:3–20)
It also reminds the book’s readers to believe God’s word, hope in God’s provision, and count on God’s deliverance