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God Will Provide
Background:
Philippians 4:19
“And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by
Christ Jesus.”
NKJV
Many examples throughout the Scriptures show us that God provides. Ours
today is of a poor widow who was in dire straits. She lived in a world much
like ours; one in which it was tough to be a believer and at times, hard to
make ends meet.
Text:
II Kings 4:1-7
Body:
I.
The Need of the Widow
II Kings 4:1-2
“A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to
Elisha, saying, ‘Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your
servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to
be his slaves.’ So Elisha said to her, ‘What shall I do for you? Tell me,
what do you have in the house?’ And she said, ‘Your maidservant has nothing
in the house but a jar of oil.’ ”
NKJV
·
The woman is introduced. Who was she? Her husband was a prophet.
·
She “cried out.” In Hebrew this was a desperate need of help. There was no
one else to turn to.
·
Elisha, a recognized agent of God, showed her faith.
·
The crisis was that her husband had died and now she was a widow. The Law
of Moses provided for widows. (Exodus
22:22-24)
“You
shall not afflict any widow or fatherless child. If you afflict them in any
way, and they cry at all to Me, I will surely hear their cry; and My wrath
will become hot, and I will kill you with the sword; your wives shall be
widows and your children fatherless.”
NKJV
Food was provided from the harvest of grains, olives and grapes. (Deuteronomy
24:19-21)
“When you reap your harvest in your field, and forget a sheaf in the field,
you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the stranger, the
fatherless, and the widow, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the
work of your hands. When you beat your olive trees, you shall not go over
the boughs again; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the
widow. When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not glean it
afterward; it shall be for the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow.”
NKJV
There was another crisis. She would have lost her two sons as slaves to the
creditor. This shouldn’t have happened if God’s people were doing what they
should have by providing for her as the Law of Moses said. (James
2:15-17)
“If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you
says to them, ‘Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,’ but you do not give
them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus
also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”
NKJV
·
All she had in the house was a jar of oil. Destitute! “Jar” refers to a
small jug; dipper. She was forced to admit that she had no resources to
solve the problem herself.
II.
Elisha’s Response to the Widow
II Kings 4:3-4
“Then he said, ‘Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors
– empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in, you
shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those
vessels, and set aside the full ones.’ ”
NKJV
·
“Vessels” were storage crocks and pots of all sizes.
·
She was told to borrow all the vessels you can find.
·
Oil: Olive oil was very valuable because it was used for cooking, lamp
fuel, medicine, and in perfumes.
III.
God Takes Care of the Widow
II Kings 4:5-7
“So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought
the vessels to her; and she poured it out. Now it came to pass, when the
vessels were full, that she said to her son, ‘Bring me another vessel.’ And
he said to her, ‘There is not another vessel.’ So the oil ceased.”
NKJV
·
One small jug or dipper filled every vessel they could find. This reminds
us of Jesus feeding the multitude with five loaves and two fish. (Matthew
14)
God has all resources available to Him; He is not limited by things of this
world. Read
Psalm 121. “I will lift up my eyes to the hills – From whence comes my
help? My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth. He will not
allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He
who keeps Israel Shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by
day, Nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He
shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your
coming in From this time forth, and even forevermore.”
NKJV
·
God used Elisha to supply the need of the widow. He typically uses people
to provide His providential care of others. (I
Timothy 6:17-19)
“Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to
trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all
things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready
to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for
the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal live.”
NKJV
·
The widow’s need was provided through her faith in Jehovah. She never
questioned Elisha’s response, but she acted upon it immediately. We must
trust God. (Psalm
37:3, 5)
“Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His
faithfulness.
5
Commit your way to the Lord, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to
pass.”
NKJV
Note also
I Kings 17:8-16.
“Then the word of the Lord came to him [Elijah], saying, ‘Arise, go to
Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded
a widow there to provide for you.’ So he arose and went to Zarephath. And
when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering
sticks. And he called to her and said, ‘Please bring me a little water in a
cup, that I may drink.’ And as she was going to get it, he called to her
and said, ‘Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.’ So she said,
‘As the Lord your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in
a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, 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.’ And Elijah said to her, ‘Do not fear; go and do as you have said,
but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward
make some for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord God of Israel:
‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry,
until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.’ So she went away and did
according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for
many days. The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run
dry, according to the word of the Lord which He spoke by Elijah.”
NKJV
·
Like the poor widow, we all have needs: spiritual, emotional, physical.
Our all-knowing God is fully aware of each and every one. (Matthew
6:26-33)
“Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into
barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than
they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do
you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow;
they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all
his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the
grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,
will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not
worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat? Or What shall we drink? Or What shall we
wear? For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly
Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”
NKJV
·
The church has needs as well. Let’s put our trust in God and ask Him to
help meet those needs.
Conclusion:
The greatest need all of us have is forgiveness. It first comes when we
have our sins washed away in baptism; then as we repent and ask God to
forgive us.
Bobby Stafford
September 2, 2018
