God will Provide
Trusting God's Direction • Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 19 viewsNotes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
I was seeking the Lord’s direction this week and the Lord spoke to me as I was doing a devotion for the Middle School in their FCS program last Thursday morning.
See I was focusing on the topics of faith, obedience and trust....and I was sharing with them the story of Naaman in 2 Kings.
I love the story of Naaman because it reminds us that faith and obedience go hand in hand...
And the wheels began turning in my mind and the Lord spoke to me… but not about this passage… I could have taught about Naaman this morning, and it would have been easy… but that is not where the Lord lead me today.
We are going today to … and we are going to look at the life of Elijah. And we will look at a challenging time in his life.
You see I love it when the Bible reveals to us the struggles that God’s people, his servants had at times…
I love it not, mind you not that they struggled… I love it because it reveals the truth God is with us even during the struggles.
So lets share a few thoughts about what is happening here....
It is a difficult time in the land, a evil King has come to the throne of Israel. King Ahab and come to the throne, . and the Bible tells us that He did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than any king before him and he takes for his bride, a woman by the name Jezebel.
Together they chase after the gods of baal and asherah. They lead the people astray and committed many, many atrocities before the Lord..
Now mind you, God is completely aware of all that is happening in every land, among every person all the time; past, present and future.
And as these events unfold the Lord sends his message to Elijah for the nation… and it is a word of judgement....
says
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”
The wrath of the Lord is being poured out, judgement has come, and there will be no rain these years.... unless the Lord says through the word of His prophet.
So what is the first point we could encounter this morning....
1. Sin Cannot be taken Lightly...
1. Sin Cannot be taken Lightly...
God is Aware of All that is Happening....
I think this is probably the worst thing that happens in today’s world, there does not appear to be any regard for sin.
If there is anything I want you to know my friends is that God is always aware of the events of our live
And my friends I want you to know that God knows what humanity is doing in our world.
I think this is probably the worst
I think often about the days of our ancestor Noah, during his days so long ago, people were living in a way that seemed pleasing unto themselves without any regard for the Lord above.
and Jesus said those days will return.... it will be that way , just like it was before, this will heighten our looking for His return… Jesus spoke of this in
Let me remind you what this past week has revealed just on the news...
Man this week we have seen the worth of a child’s life determined not by God, not by the praise of their parents. But by the gov’t....
26 Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man.
says
While Congress said they would not require states to fund planned parenthood. States like our very own are still determined to fund such a murderous organization.
A child in the UK was deemed unfit for live and when people across their land complained the Prime Minister stated that children were the property of the Crown and did not belong to their parents.
And this past Thursday , a man who was once seen as the Father of America, Bill Cosby has been found guilty of taking such horrible liberties with woman he has drugged all for the sake of lust, and sin.
And in our text we see that God has called for a drought in response to the sin of the people and their King.
In fact we see that the King and his Queen of the land has lead the people deeper and deeper into sin… chasing after so many false gods like baal and asheroh..
The chasing of these so called gods violated the first commandment, “....you shall have no other gods before me....... Exodus chapter 20.
And now the Lord has sent his message and messenger to Ahab…
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”
My friends this passage is just one of many verses that remind us that God, Our God hates sin, He will not tolerate sin..
Listen to the prophet Isaiah 59:2
2 but your iniquities have made a separation
between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you
so that he does not hear.
_______________
Live for him and have life and live for self and the desires of the flesh and you will find punishment and death
But we know God loves the righteous...
9 The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
but he loves him who pursues righteousness.
_________________
As for Israel, they have turned from the Lord, they have chased after sin.... Now the punishment for this nation is simple, - no rain.
Now if you remember several years ago… we went through a drought and things got a little difficult… we had a dry spell and suddenly we were limited in our water use in so many ways....
As for Israel the drought will be long, it will affect many in their land and in some of the lands around Israel. As the ground dries, crops will fail, water will be scarce the people will suffer…
Like the old preacher used to say “Sin will take you farther than you want to go and will cost you more than you want to pay....”
God says our actions matter, sin matters.. maybe not in the world’s eye… but yes in God’s eye’s...
Church, it better matter in our eye as well.....
We cannot give our permission to sin and we cannot give it by not saying anything as well.
We cannot give our permission to sin and we cannot give it by not saying anything as well.
We must stand on the truth.
God is calling the church to be a light and voice calling the world out of the darkness into the light of Jesus Christ....
Now a second thought....
2. Divine Direction ....
2. Divine Direction ....
Consider this thought… Divine direction
If there is a truth we could consider today, it would be that God is completely aware of what is happening among each and every one of his servants, his people.
We walks with us each day, He certainly knows our needs and yes He knows what events are concerning to our lives.
And I believe God will give his people direction....
Now let me talk you back to the Scriptures and we see what God is going to do next with Elijah during the timing of His wrath being poured out on Israel.
Listen to verses 2-3
2 And the word of the Lord came to him:
2 And the word of the Lord came to him: 3 “Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan.
Now I am sure that the king of Israel, ole rotten Ahab spurned the words God has given to the prophet, Elijah.
No rain, he says he doesn’t believe it.
No rain, Baal will take care of those who follow and give the appropriate offerings to him and Asherah....
God prepares a sanctury
No rain, we are not worried… this man really isn’t the prophet of God.
His heart is hard because of its sin....
But....
Suddenly, I am sure as the drought begins and people begin to wonder, the king might be worrying...
He might suddenly start thinking, what did Elijah do to us...
Where is that rotten prophet..... he is killing us.... blah, blah, blah
Heaven knows people will blame God, they will blame his messenger, they will blame his people.... when the world starts falling apart the blame game starts to spread...
It is never their fault, it must be yours
I am sure that as the drought goes on, Elijah begins to find himself in danger, especially in front of King Ahab and his wife.....
So the Lord gives Elijah some direction… Verse 3
3 “Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan.
Things are about to get rough… Elijah, I have a place for you to be… Head east of the Jordan to a brook I have prepared for you..
You see God will ensure Elijah doesn’t face suffering or violence from the hands of the king, but that his needs are meet
look with me at verse 4
4 You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”
Can you imagine...
Elijah, I have this little spot for you out of the way of the hustle and bustle of city life, away from any harm....
And I have some friends ready to feed you....
So the water of the brook kept Elijah hydrated and those ravens, those sweet ravens have brought food to sustain you with… You will be just fine...
Could you imagine ravens feeding you.......
When you see this you are reminded again, God loves his people and will take care of them
Let me ask you a question....
Do you think God knows you well enough to provide for you no matter the situation?
Why, Yes!!
If we didn’t we might need to go back and find out what is happening or not happening in us..
I know God knows my need and the direction I need to take each and every day...
Do you ??
God will give divine directions....
Now I want to show you one last thing in this morning....
Now I want to show you one last thing in this
3. Faith and Deliverance
3. Faith and Deliverance
As we walk through the text we see that God is taking care of his servant and has provided for his every need.
He has kept him safe, He has not been thirsty or suffered the loss of food.
But as time goes one the brook there begins to dry up and it is time for the Lord to lead Elijah to the next stop along the way.
Lets return to our text and lets look at verses 7-9
7 And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.”
So the Lord will send Elijah toward the land of Sidon to Zarephath (Zar a fath) and there a widow will take care of his needs....
So Elijah does as the Lord has told him.... Now I want to point out that the Lord has led him out of the land if Israel altogether ......
The Scriptures teach us that the whole earth is His, not just the land of Israel… and this is not the first time nor the last time the Lord has led his people out of the land.
He led Moses out as a shepherd, Abraham and Sarah were wandering in the land of Egypt and so did Jesus as a young baby as the Lord led Joseph and Mary into Egypt to protect Jesus from the fate of Herod.
So Elijah finds a lady, who is this widow and asks her for a drink and then for a morsel of food… lets listen to this conversation...
lets look at verses 10-12
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” 11 And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12 And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.”
_______________
What a story this passage has to tell....
The widow is expecting death, her food supply has run out, only enough for a small cake of bread is left...
She says death is certain, the drought has depleted all her supplies and that of many others as well.
This is her objections when Elijah asks her for a drink, but also food this day...
But my friends understand God will not allow anyone to perish ahead of the day He as set before us at our birth into this world.
Elijah knows that God has prepared this widow to meet his needs and as such he will take care of her, her house and Elijah as well...
That my friends is how wonderful God is… He takes care of His children.
Listen to the words of the prophet…look at verses 13-16
13 And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’ ” 15 And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
What can we gleam from this passage....
A. There is no need to fear...... Friends their is no need for us to fear, for the Lord knows us...
Elijah tells her not to fear, the Lord will ensure you do not go without.....
She has lived in this area probably all here life, and she knows as we do, if you fill the pot and then start taking things out of it, eventually it will become empty if we do not refill it.
She has no money, but there is not a lot of food left in the land… Her jar is about out… no food and no life she knows...
But Elijah tells her, do not be afraid.. He will provide
Friends trust the Lord and watch His hands as he gives back to you as you want in obedience. Now I am not preaching a prosperity gospel of blessings.... no I am telling you God will bless you as you are faithful.
My freinds there is a sudden reminder her, do not depend on only what we can see.
B. God will sustain.... Elijah tells her to go and do as he as said, She will not go without if she will listen and be obedient.
15 And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
God had put in her heart, commanded her to take care of his prophet and she dies and the Father has sustained Elijah, her son and herself of course. A miracle has happened, as the jar never runs empty.
And in fact greater miracles will happen in the days to come. God will sustain them my freinds.
But let me ask you… Do you believe God will take care of you?
Not just with dollars and cents, but with food, shelter, that he will bless the faithful and will of course grant Salvation unto all those who ask and call upon his name...
Do you believe God will sustain you...
Yes, he will … He will always take care of his people as they live before Him faithfully.
So how are you living… are you faithful…
Is there sin hidden away and eating away at your life?
Can you confess it to him, and find life today?
B.
God takes care of His servant
God will Provide
God gives life not death
1 Now the wife of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord, but the creditor has come to take my two children to be his slaves.” 2 And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” 3 Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. 4 Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside.” 5 So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her. 6 When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. 7 She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”
8 One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. 9 And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. 10 Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.”
11 One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there. 12 And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him. 13 And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’ ” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.” 14 And he said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” 15 He said, “Call her.” And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. 16 And he said, “At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your servant.” 17 But the woman conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her.
18 When the child had grown, he went out one day to his father among the reapers. 19 And he said to his father, “Oh, my head, my head!” The father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” 20 And when he had lifted him and brought him to his mother, the child sat on her lap till noon, and then he died. 21 And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God and shut the door behind him and went out. 22 Then she called to her husband and said, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, that I may quickly go to the man of God and come back again.” 23 And he said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither new moon nor Sabbath.” She said, “All is well.” 24 Then she saddled the donkey, and she said to her servant, “Urge the animal on; do not slacken the pace for me unless I tell you.” 25 So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel.
When the man of God saw her coming, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Look, there is the Shunammite. 26 Run at once to meet her and say to her, ‘Is all well with you? Is all well with your husband? Is all well with the child?’ ” And she answered, “All is well.” 27 And when she came to the mountain to the man of God, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came to push her away. But the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for she is in bitter distress, and the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me.” 28 Then she said, “Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, ‘Do not deceive me?’ ” 29 He said to Gehazi, “Tie up your garment and take my staff in your hand and go. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not reply. And lay my staff on the face of the child.” 30 Then the mother of the child said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So he arose and followed her. 31 Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life. Therefore he returned to meet him and told him, “The child has not awakened.”
32 When Elisha came into the house, he saw the child lying dead on his bed. 33 So he went in and shut the door behind the two of them and prayed to the Lord. 34 Then he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. And as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm. 35 Then he got up again and walked once back and forth in the house, and went up and stretched himself upon him. The child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. 36 Then he summoned Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. And when she came to him, he said, “Pick up your son.” 37 She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground. Then she picked up her son and went out.
38 And Elisha came again to Gilgal when there was a famine in the land. And as the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his servant, “Set on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.” 39 One of them went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine and gathered from it his lap full of wild gourds, and came and cut them up into the pot of stew, not knowing what they were. 40 And they poured out some for the men to eat. But while they were eating of the stew, they cried out, “O man of God, there is death in the pot!” And they could not eat it. 41 He said, “Then bring flour.” And he threw it into the pot and said, “Pour some out for the men, that they may eat.” And there was no harm in the pot.
42 A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” 43 But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’ ” 44 So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord.
1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 2 And the word of the Lord came to him: 3 “Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan. 4 You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” 5 So he went and did according to the word of the Lord. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. 6 And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. 7 And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.
8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” 11 And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12 And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” 13 And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’ ” 15 And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
17 After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18 And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!” 19 And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed. 20 And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?” 21 Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s life come into him again.” 22 And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived. 23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” 24 And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”
1 And the word of the Lord came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, 2 “Since I exalted you out of the dust and made you leader over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have made my people Israel to sin, provoking me to anger with their sins, 3 behold, I will utterly sweep away Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4 Anyone belonging to Baasha who dies in the city the dogs shall eat, and anyone of his who dies in the field the birds of the heavens shall eat.”
5 Now the rest of the acts of Baasha and what he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 6 And Baasha slept with his fathers and was buried at Tirzah, and Elah his son reigned in his place. 7 Moreover, the word of the Lord came by the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha and his house, both because of all the evil that he did in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and also because he destroyed it.
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned two years. 9 But his servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him. When he was at Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah, 10 Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place.
11 When he began to reign, as soon as he had seated himself on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha. He did not leave him a single male of his relatives or his friends. 12 Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, 13 for all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned and which they made Israel to sin, provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger with their idols. 14 Now the rest of the acts of Elah and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Now the troops were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, 16 and the troops who were encamped heard it said, “Zimri has conspired, and he has killed the king.” Therefore all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17 So Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. 18 And when Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over him with fire and died, 19 because of his sins that he committed, doing evil in the sight of the Lord, walking in the way of Jeroboam, and for his sin which he committed, making Israel to sin. 20 Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and the conspiracy that he made, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
21 Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts. Half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri. 22 But the people who followed Omri overcame the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king. 23 In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri began to reign over Israel, and he reigned for twelve years; six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24 He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, and he fortified the hill and called the name of the city that he built Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.
25 Omri did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and did more evil than all who were before him. 26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in the sins that he made Israel to sin, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols. 27 Now the rest of the acts of Omri that he did, and the might that he showed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 28 And Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son reigned in his place.
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him. 31 And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32 He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. 34 In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.
I kings 16