How to Bear Children

We examined how God used the widow woman to supply Elijah’s need, as well as how Elijah supplied her need. Reminding us of Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”

How the Fire Falls (1Ki. 18)

During a Feeble time w/ Depraved leadership & Divided people

God provided a Faithful man, who challenged his people; chastised false worship; Corrected the Basis of Worship; who had Confidence in God & Called upon the same

A Falling Fire

Came Powerfully; Sufficiently; Convincingly & Effectively.

How to Get Back in the Saddle

I. The Immorality of the Enemy (v1-4)

Unmistakable; Unconverted; Unsettling

II. The Indulgence of the LORD (v5-8)

Elijah Retreated; God allowed him Rest (v5-6b); God provided Refreshment for the Moment (v5b-6a); God gave Resources for the Journey (v7)

III. The Insight of the LORD (v9-12)

A Prophet Disheartened; God’s Power was Demonstrated; God’s Presence was Discovered

IV. The Instruction of the LORD (v13-18)

Get Back Where you Belong (v15a); Bless the Next Generation (v15b-16)

Be Encouraged

I Have a Plan (v17)

You are Not Alone (v18)

How to Have Peace Under Fire

I. The Reason for the Fire

For Following the Spirit’s Lead (v3); For Declaring the Word of the LORD (v4); For Having a Familiar a Description (v7-8)

II. The Right Way to Handle It

Be Situated Properly (v9b); Stand Fast in your Heritage (v10a); Stay Firm in Your Position (v9-12); Be Perceptive to the Spirit (v13-15)

III. The Rest of the Story

God Protected (v15); God’s Word was Proclaimed (v16); God’s Will was Performed (v17)

How to be Faithful in Times of Trouble

I. A Troubled Time

The Burden of Loss

The Opportunities it Presented;

Reviving of the Brethren; Remembering of the Past; The Resolve to Continue the Work

II. A Testimony of Faithfulness

Through the Pressures of the Known; Through the Pressures of the Unknown; Through the Voices of Discouragement

III. A Transformative Result

Because He was Faithful…

His Prayer was Answered; He Performed Miracles; He Proved His Calling

How to Set the Tone

I. The Waters were Cured

A Pitiful Land (v19); A Pristine Vessel and a Powerful Agent (v20); A Pronouncement Made (v21); A Purification Provided (v22)

II. The Mockers were Cursed

A Fallen City (v23a); A Faithless Generation (v23b); A Fury Unleashed (v24a); A Future Altered (v24b)

How to Solve a Problem

I. The Problem (v1a)

A Lack of Plan / Preparation; A Passing; A Pledge Unfulfilled

II. The Petition (v1b)

He had the Right Standing; She had the Right Source

III. The Plan (v2-6)

Was Faith Based; Faith in Procuring; Faith in Pouring

IV. The Providence (v7)

A Debt Settled; A Future Supplied

I read and re-read this passage of scripture multiple times before the truth of this message was revealed by the Holy Spirit unto me. The manner in which I am going to present this to you, I believe is very powerful and very important. I have never considered this passage in this light, nor have I ever heard it presented in this light. But I believe the application fits wonderfully and is very instructive to you and me.

Today in our "how to" series, we are going to examine the point of ‘How to Bear Children’. And no, we're not going to have a sex education class tonight. I would assume that since all the children are to their sundry classrooms, we're all adults here, and you do not need that instruction this evening. I am speaking tonight about how to bear spiritual children. How to bring God's children to fruition in this life.

This is a call that's upon every one of our lives. It's not just the preacher's duty.

I heard a very interesting thought to consider when I first began the ministry. This old preacher told me, "Shepherds don't bear sheep. Sheep bear sheep."

Mark 16:15 “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Matthew 28:19–20 “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

I believe there are many reasons why the church is struggling today. Probably the greatest fault in the church is that we have not taken our responsibility to reproduce seriously.

(Ill.) What would it look like if everyone in our church reached one person for the Lord? What would it look like if every soul in our congregation led one soul to the Lord every year? What would our church look like? Picture that for just a moment.

Tonight we're going to continue our study in the ministries of Elijah and Elisha. Focusing on Elisha's journey to Shunem and visiting this woman there. I believe that through her actions we can see two specific things concerning our attitude and actions as Christians if we're going to bear spiritual children in our lifetime.

The first thing that we must notice is Our Conduct Unto Men

I. Our Conduct Unto Men

I think we can take verse 8 and direct it toward our conduct toward men. I'll explain why in a little while.

Her Description (v8a)

We see that she is described as a "great" woman. This is really such an interesting insight. It makes one wonder, was she great before, or because?

Some might take it to mean her financial stature in the community.

Some might take it to mean her physical stature.

I think the best way to describe it is her character, as that is what shines forth in these verses.

Church, if you're going to bring forth children in the faith, you're going to have to have the right character. Holiness Matters.

Lost people need to see in the Christian a difference. They don't need to look into the mirror. They need to see a stark difference between someone that is saved and professing that Jesus gives a better life than what they have. For if they see no difference, they will have no reason to turn to Jesus.

C.S. Lewis said: “The same would do no good if they made themselves mad to help madmen”. God's children cannot expect to win the devil's children by acting like the devil.

We’re called to be Holy: 1 Peter 1:15–16 “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

Leviticus 20:26 “And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed you from other people, that ye should be mine.”

2 Corinthians 7:1 “Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”

Holiness (def) sacred, blameless, consecrated How many of you could honestly say that your mouth, eyes, mind, and hands are sacred, blameless, and consecrated unto the Lord?

What are the things that occupy your mind? Must you force yourself to think about the things of God, or are the things of God on your mind continually?

What is it that comes out of your mouth when speaking to others? Is it all foolishness and jesting? Or are you lifting up the name of Jesus and speaking about the things of God?

What is it you are setting before your eyes? How much time does the Bible have before your eyes, as does the internet?

The way the Lord describes her is spot on, speaking of her character, for she is a great woman.

Her Disposition (v8b)

The Bible says, "…she constrained him to eat bread." Constrained (def) To compel or force; to urge with irresistible power, or with a power sufficient to produce the effect. She said, "I have bread for you, and I'm not letting you go until you taste it." She was so bold, knowing that what she had would benefit him, that it would do him good, that she compelled him to come and eat.

Church, I don't know how good her food was, but whatever food she had does not compare to the spiritual food of Christ.

I'm reminded of an interaction between Jesus and his disciples: John 4:30–34 “Then they went out of the city, and came unto him. In the mean while his disciples prayed him, saying, Master, eat. But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of. Therefore said the disciples one to another, Hath any man brought him ought to eat? Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.”

What was Jesus saying? He was saying there are more important things than physical food.

Church, I am here to tell you that there is more important things than physical food. Far more important is the spiritual meat of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

(Ill.) How many of you like Krispy Kreme donuts? How many of you had had them hot and fresh with the red light on? Sometime recently, I spoke with someone about them, and I was so compelled to tell them how much better they are when that red light's on. I spoke of them so highly and was so passionate about it I began to taste them.

Church, why is it that we can speak about food like that, but then when it comes to the things of God, we think it's not even worthy to speak of? We dance around the topic and we approach it almost apologetically, like we have something to say we are sorry for. "Sorry to bother you with this news that will change your life in eternity."

We should be compelling them because we have a story to tell! We have by far the best thing to offer anybody that anyone has ever offered somebody in the history of mankind. If you want to bear spiritual children, you need to stop apologizing for the gospel and constrain people to know the truth about Jesus Christ.

We see her disposition was to constrain him to eat bread.

Her Duration (v8c)

Lastly, here we see that she provided for him continually. As often as he was around, she gave him this bread.

Many times we Christians think that, if we share the Gospel once and they reject it, that we just give up, and that's it. ‘They go to hell, they go to hell… well, maybe someone else can reach them’, we say. Do you know how often we should constrain them? As often as we see them!

(Ill.) Imagine you drive down Smith Street and see me sitting through the window, rocking in the chair. Not a care in the world. You look up and you see there's smoke emanating from one of the bedrooms upstairs. You don't think a lot about it. You're somewhat concerned, but you pass on by. You come back through a little while later. The smoke is now a fire. You are more concerned. Do you stop then? You come back through; the entire upstairs is on fire. Yet I'm still sitting there. What do you do?

If you came when there was just smoke, and I ignored you, when you saw there was fire, would you try again? Let's say I ignored you then. When you saw that the upstairs was aflame, would you stop or pass by? How urgent would you be?

We need to picture lost people in that position. It's our duty to compel and constrain them to get out, no matter how long it takes, no matter how many opportunities.

We see her Duration.

We see first Our Conduct Toward Men

II. Our Countenance Toward God

In the latter part of this passage of scripture, we see a change going from the way she interacts with men vs. the way she interacts with God.

And the turning point is verse number 9. That's where things change.

Her Discernment (v9)

Verse number nine. We see a recognition that this isn't just some man. This is a man of God.

Remember back in those times, people did not have access to God like you and I do today. So when we see that she recognizes He is a man of God, then we recognize the manner in which she is acting toward Him is in fact the way she is acting toward God Himself. Therefore, her actions unto him moving forward are emblematic of her attitude toward God.

What does this mean in the scope of our message here tonight? It means that while we have a conduct toward men that we must do, we need to understand that in the grand scheme of things, our labor is not for men, but it's for God.

Why do we win people to the Lord? Yes, because they're dying and going to hell. But more importantly, it's what God has commanded us to do.

2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”

God doesn't want anybody to go to hell, and he's tasked us with reaching the Lost. But the next verse is frankly terrifying. 2 Peter 3:10 “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.”

I think we need to come face-to-face with a couple of truths:

We have friends, neighbors, and co-workers that are on the broad road of destruction, and hell will be their home unless someone intervenes.

Not everyone that professes salvation is actually going to heaven.

Secondly, we are going to stand before a holy and righteous God one day, and He will not judge us on our intentions but on our actions.

We see her discernment taught her that she had a duty unto God.

Her Devotion (v10)

Do you know what we see in this verse? Sacrifice.

This woman was willing to build and furnish, in addition to their home, to bless and be a blessing unto the man of God (And as we understand, that was not for him but it was unto God himself).

If you're going to birth children spiritually for the Lord, it's going to require some sacrifice.

You're going to have to sacrifice some time.

One of the main reasons people do not witness is because they are afraid they're going to be asked questions to which they know not the answer. The way you remedy that is by study. It's going to require you to sacrifice some time.

You're going to have to sacrifice your pride.

Another reason people will not witness is because they don't want to be viewed differently. They don't want to be viewed as a "Jesus freak," one of "them."

Church, understand this is nothing but pride. That's all it is. And if you're going to birth spiritual children, you must sacrifice your pride.

Philippians 2:3–8 “Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”

Many of us would have viewed the fact that we served Him food to be enough. Not this woman, not this great woman. She was willing to go the extra mile, and that's why we see that she would give birth.

We see her devotion, her willingness to sacrifice.

Her Deference (v13)

Lastly, we see something incredible - her deference. What do I mean by that? I mean that she did not do these things to get something in return. She did them because it was the right thing to do.

She did not go to Elisha seeking blessings. She did not go seeking letters from the king or for the new birth. She did it because she felt it was her duty to do. The blessing came later.

She didn't do to be blessed, but she was blessed because she did.

In our society, we are a people that do in order to get, too often. This should not be the way it is when it comes to the things of God.

(Ill.) You have these prosperity preachers that will tell you to sow so you can reap. They'll say, "Sow ten dollars, you'll reap a hundred dollars." So what does a large portion of foolish, gullible people do? They sow ten dollars. Why? Not because they feel it's the right thing to do, but because they want a hundred dollars. They do it in order to get.

But we should sow not in order to reap, but because it's what God has told us to do. The reaping is a natural consequence to the sowing.

We see her difference.

We see first Our Conduct Toward Men, Her Countenance Toward God

III. Children will be Born

Her Child was Born (v13)

Once again, it's just natural law. If you sow, you will reap. Yet we sow not to reap. But we sow simply because it's the right thing to do and it's what God has told us to do.

Galatians 6:7–9 “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.”

Let me ask you, church, what is it you're reaping? Are you leading souls unto the Lord?

There are so many Christians who fall back on the hope that they are "planting seeds." We should always be planting seeds. But those who plant seeds will also see a harvest.

Children will be Born

Conclusion

How’s your harvest church? Are you bringing forth children in the faith? If not, why not?

Is it just timing? Is it the fact that all your job is is to plant? Do you not think God can use you to bring in a harvest as well?

God uses us, I believe all of us, in every capacity of bringing forth spiritual children.

I tend to believe that most people never or never use of God to lead a soul to Christ is because they do not take their role as soul winners seriously. It's just not that important to them. But it should be church.

Is it important to you? Will you make the commitment today to do all you can to bring forth spiritual children? Stop using cop-outs. Stop giving excuses. And do your part for the cause of Christ that God has commanded you to do.

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