Don't Talk or Think Your Way Out of Your Blessing!

Elisha foretells of Imminent Relief:

2 Kings 6:32–7:2 AV

But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door: is not the sound of his master’s feet behind him? And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of the LORD; what should I wait for the LORD any longer? Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

(2 Kings 6:8-12)

The Aramean army attempted to attack the Israelites. The scriptures tells us that when the King of Syria would make plans to attack Israel, The Lord would give a prophetic word to Elisha to warn the King of Israel, not to go to such and such place because an ambush awaited them.

The King of Syria, thought that someone was playing a traitor, however the Bible says that one of the king’s servants told the King that “Elisha the prophet of Israel tells the king of Israel the words you speak in the privacy of your bedroom.”

(2 Kings 6:13)

The king of Syria, then sends spies out to locate the Prophet Elisha who happens to be staying in the city of Dothan. It is then that, the king of Syria dispatches a army (great host) to apprehend Elisha the prophet.

(2 Kings 6:14-16)

Once this army surrounds the city, Elisha’s servant asks Elisha this question “what are we going to do”?

Elisha replies “Don’t be afraid......don’t worry about it”. I know that is easier said than done....when you have odds stacked up against you and you’re telling me don’t worry about it. God is saying this morning don’t worry about it.....things are stacking up against you, bills may be stacking up, health issues, may be stacking up, family issues may be stacking up.....but I want to tell you this morning what Elisha told his servant.....don’t worry about it! Elisha said “for they that be with us are more than they that be with them”. There are more on our side than on theirs.....you have more going for you than you realize! Listen that one of many words I have for you this morning......”You have more going for you than you realize!”

Elisha prays the prayer “Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see”. When Elisha prayed that prayer, the Bible says the servants eyes was open and he saw horses and chariots of fire in the mountains all around them.

(2 Kings 6:18-23)

When the opposing army came down off the mountain to attack the city, Elisha prayed again and said “Lord smite this people, I pray thee with blindness” and the Lord honored his prayer and smote the Syrians with blindness. This is why it is important that when things get tough, when it gets tight, when it gets difficult, don’t worry.....don’t be afraid.....PRAY!!!

Elisha turns to this opposing army and tells them, this is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek”. But he led them to Samaria. Even though Elisha was being deceptive....God was still merciful to him. Elisha led them to the capital city of the Israelites (Samaria) and then prays to God to open their eyes. When the Syrian army opened their eyes, they realized they were in the midst of their enemies the Israelites.

The king of Israel, with excitement asked Elisha “Father should I kill them, should I kill them” and Elisha replies.....”Naw” do we kill prisoners of war? Give them bread and water and then send them back to their master. That was an interesting response....but it was a Godly response.....because God is a merciful God....He does not give us what we deserve. (scripture for that)

2 Kings (6:24-33)

So this army goes back home, but the scriptures says.....some time later. Ben-hadad of Aram mustered his entire army and besieged Samaria!

This besieging resulted in a great famine (lack of food and water). It had got so bad, that one day the Bible says that two women had a conversation and came to an agreement that on today we’ll cook your son and eat him, and then the next day we will cook your son and eat him. So they ate the woman’s son whom they agreed to cook, but when it came the other woman’s turn she reneged on the agreement. She went to the king and said “Please Help Me my lord the king”. But she was calling on the wrong person. If she had called on the right person to begin with she wouldn’t be in the predicament she was in. Prayer will keep you out of bad places, prayer will keep you from doing bad things, prayer will keep you from making the wrong decisions, you gotta know who to talk to, you gotta talk to the right person....and God is the right person.

The king told the woman right “If the Lord doesn’t help you, what can I do?” Sometimes God will put you in a place where can’t nobody help you but Him. The Israelites, forgot about God....they distanced themselves from God and God allowed them to be besieged by their enemy as a tool of correction. But even in correction God is merciful!

It was so bad that, people were paying outrages prices for things that were uncommon for them to eat: 80 pieces of silver for a donkey’s head (307 dollars), and 5 pieces of silver for a cup of dove’s dung (23.98)!

What makes this so bad is that God had already told them that if they were unfaithful to Him, He would bring them to this place!

Deuteronomy 28:57 NLT

She will hide from them the afterbirth and the new baby she has borne, so that she herself can secretly eat them. She will have nothing else to eat during the siege and terrible distress that your enemy will inflict on all your towns.

I know that we are living in 2021 and some of yall may doubt the severity of the LORD but when God loves you, when God places a calling on you, when you belong to God, sometimes God will bring you to a place severity so that he can clean you up and make you right! He’ll bring you to a place of severity because sin is severe! After God finishes with you, you’ll testify that “I never want to go back to that place again”. That’s why we praise God like we do, that’s why we tell Him thank you and that’s why we live for Him.....because God has brought all of us out of some difficult places and his love for us compels us to repent!

They were in a hard place, but God’s lovingkindness (grace) never runs out. I know some of us are at different levels in our walk with God, but one thing I need to let those of us that are still slipping and sliding that God told me to tell you that my lovingkindness never runs out!

The King of Israel, begin to think about when Elisha had brought this same army to Samaria. They had a chance to kill them but they were merciful to them. The King of Israel said “You know.....this is all Elisha’s fault”. Sin will cause you to blame others instead of realizing that you are in this predicament as a result of your own doing. Sin will cause you to look at and judge someone else instead of judging yourself.

The King of Isreal said “May God strike me and even kill me if I don’t separate Elisha’s head from his shoulders this very day,” the king vowed. So the King sends a messenger to fetch Elisha. While Elisha was sitting in his house with the elders of Israel, the messenger arrived, but before the messenger knocked Elisha told the elders “A murderer (the King) has sent a man to cut off my head”.

When the messenger arrived, the king said “All this evil is of the LORD; what (why) should I wait for the LORD any longer”. Why should I wait for God, I’ve been in this thing for a long time.....why should I wait for the LORD any longer. I’ve been suffering all this time.....why should I pray to God any longer. I been waiting for the right one....why should I wait any longer. I need to take matters in my own hand.....I been waiting for God to speak and He hasn’t spoken yet.....so I’m going to do the talking, I’m going to tell you how I feel, I’m going to start making things happening......but this is the error of our carnal minds! Encourage your neighbor and tell them......don’t you dare stop waiting.....keep waiting!

(2 Kings 7:1-2)

The Spirit of the LORD begins to speak to Elisha and Elisha says something that is astonishing he says “Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the LORD, to morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria!”

Here it is, King Benhadad and his entire army is surrounding the entire city, they’ve gone weeks without food, they were at a point of desperation but yet Elisha says by this time tomorrow.....everything will not only be back to normal, it will be better than it was!

Then the scriptures says in verse 2 “Then a lord whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, “Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven, might this thing be?” In other-words what this lord is telling Elisha is that “This thing couldn’t happen even if the LORD opened the windows of heaven!” But see this man was looking wrong! When you see things the way God sees it, there is absolutely nothing impossible for Him to do!

Elisha then tells this lord, “thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.”

(2 Kings 7:3-19)

The next day, there were four leprous men at the entering in of the gate, and they said one to another “Why sit we here until we die?” If we stay here we will starve to death, but if we go in the city there won’t be food there either. Let’s go to the Aramean camp and if they let us live, we will be in better shape, if we sit here we die, if we go in the city we die, if we go to them and they kill us we die.

The bible says, that as they made their way to the Aramean camp that the Lord had caused the Aramean army to hear the clatter of speeding chariots and the galloping of horses and the sounds of a great army approaching and the Aramean army panicked and ran and abandoned everything!

So when the men with leprosy arrived at the camp, they saw that the Aramean army was no where to be found, but they left all of their goods behind, all of their food behind, so they went from tent to tent eating and drinking. They looked at each other and said “this isn’t right, this is a day of good news, and we aren’t sharing it with anyone, if we wait until morning some calamity will certainly fall upon us. Come on, let’s go back and tell the people of the palace!

So they went back and told the gate-keepers and the gate-keepers told the people of the palace, and the people of the palace told the king. The king gets up in the middle of the night, and told his officers......I know what happened, the Arameans know that we are starving, they left the camp and hid in the fields so that when we come out to get food, they will kill us. So they sent five, scouts out to check.....and the scouts came back with report that the Arameans were gone. The Israelites the Bible says......stormed the gates of the city trying to get out to go to the Aramean camp to get food and supplies and you know what happened?

2 Kings 7:18-20

The same lord, that said that “this thing couldn’t happened even if the LORD opened up the windows of heaven” he got trampled to death! Elisha told him, you’re going to see God do a wonder with your own eyes, but you’ll have no part of it! Don’t allow your doubt to cause you to miss out on the blessings of God!

Don’t forget, that the God that you serve is FAITHFUL! If God made a way for the unfaithful Israelites, how much more will God make a way for those who are faithful to Him!

Noteworthy observations:

Israel found themselves in a precarious position because of their sins. Some times we find ourselves in precarious situations as a result of our own doing.

King Benhadad and he Assyrian army besieged (surrounded) the city of Samaria. No one was able to go in or out, all necessary supplies were cut off, no food, no water, all that you need to be able to live and survive was cut off.

We can have faith in the fact that if God remained faithful to unfaithful Israel.....how much more will God be faithful to those who will be faithful to Him!

God is faithful....it is part of his character, it is who He is as an entity.....God is faithful....we can put our whole hearted trust in God!

You can talk or think yourself out of your own blessings! Unbelief will causes you to miss out on the blessings of God.

I know that it might not make sense to you initially.....but don’t try to figure it out.....just believe! Don’t try and make sense of it.....just believe God’s word! The