The
Book of first kings
Chapter 17
[1] And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants
of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I
stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
[2] And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
[3] Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook
Cherith, that is before Jordan.
[4] And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded
the ravens to feed thee there.
[5] So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and
dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
[6] And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and
flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
[7] And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there
had been no rain in the land.
1) The Brook (17:1-7)
In 1 Kings 11
we found that Solomon had miserably failed to lead the nation of Israel, and
according to the promise of
God in the Davidic Covenant,
the kingdom would be rent from Solomon’s son.
MOST of the kings who ruled in
the N or S Kingdom were wicked kings!
There was division on every hand, brought about by
the example set by Solomon in their days of prosperity!
Jeroboam
is best known for his leading Israel into gross idolatry in
erecting 2 golden calves and setting up 2 altars of
worship
in Dan & Bethel in order to keep his people from going to Jerusalem to worship in the
Temple.
Certainly
a Time of Great Spiritual Darkness
A.
Divinely Sent Drought (Vs1)
A prophet is
not just a "fore-teller", but a "forth-teller"
who exposes and announces the judgment of God.
God raised up "a man of like passions as
we are" (James 5:17)
This man also had "great
courage & faith" to address Israel
Wicked King Ahab
& Queen Jezebel had followed the pattern of Jeroboam
in that they instituted idolatry –
Baal worship! This was a terrible form of
idolatry in which they often offered human sacrifices in the fire.
Baal was the fertility god
of the sky
Elijah the prophet came before King Ahab and said “as the Lord liveth before who I stand”.. Elijah stood before the Lord
Elijah said “there shall be no dew nor rain these years” He prayed to the Lord about a drought to be brought upon Israel
B. Divine Direction (Vs 2-4)
Having pronounced God’s
judgment upon Israel, Elijah was commanded by the Lord to "Go and
Hide Thyself!" God told Elijah exactly where to go
and what to do
God withdrew Elijah, not to
punish Elijah, but to protect him as he was considered a threat to King
Ahab
God withdrew Elijah, not to
punish Elijah but to prosper him (while training him)
God withdrew Elijah, not to punish Elijah but to prove
him -to trust in the Lord no matter what the economy
C. Divine
Dependence (Vs 5-7)
The man of God had brought a
message of drought that he would have to endure himself
Elijah obeyed God & went to the brook Cherith, (cut down) & there the Lord rewarded faithfulness by feeding him.
Notice that Elijah would only be provided for/ supplied or fed “there” & he dwelt “there”
It is always BEST to be where God would have us to be –
When we are not, we miss out on God’s blessings.
To carry
bread & meat to God’s servants & to do good for the church & yet
God still uses the unclean ravens
Bread and
flesh, morning and night. Maybe the ravens took it right from the table of King
Ahab?
Next, we
notice that the brook dried up!
Elijah stayed right there
and watched the brook slow down and dry up, but he did not leave as it slowed
Drying
Brook of Popularity - John the Baptist
Drying
Brook of Health- Breaking Health like Job or Paul
Drying
Brook of Friendship - Jesus (diminishing relationships)
Dry
Brook of finances-Job dries up
WHY??? Why would God allow the brook to dry up when Elijah was being so
faithful? To
take us to new & better things
God wants us to trust Him and not His gifts
(Philip had to leave Samaria in time of great revival to go to desert)
Elijah prayed, drought came, now he is suffering greatly himself, yet he kept Gods purpose first
[8] And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
[9] Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there:
behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
[10] So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the
city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to
her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may
drink.
[11] And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I
pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
[12] And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an
handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am
gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we
may eat it, and die.
[13] And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make
me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee
and for thy son.
[14] For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste,
neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain
upon the earth.
[15] And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he,
and her house, did eat many days.
[16] And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
2) The Barrel (17:8-16)
A.
Divine Declaration (Vs 8-16)
The
Lord spoke to Elijah, in this dry place and told him to leave Cherith and go to
Zarephath to dwell there
God told Elijah to "Go
to Gentile territory where a widow will feed you."
And Elijah went and did as
God said
The widow was very poor, and
when Elijah came to her, she was gatherings sticks to prepare her last
meal.
Elijah requested water and she went to fetch it, he
then requested a morsel of bread.
The
woman confessed she only had a handful of meal and was very fearful of the future.
The
man of God told her to fear not and bring a little cake to him first and then
make for her and her
son
and the barrel will not fail till it rains
It
sure sounds like the worst way to receive the collection, but when you trust
the Lord He will
provide!
And when the widow put God first – God provided for her, her son, and her guest! God’s SUPPLY
is infinite!
The meal barrel
was continually full (Jesus - Luke
4:24-26 turned from Jews to Gentiles)
[17] And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the
mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was
no breath left in him.
[18] And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God?
art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
[19] And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom,
and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
[20] And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also
brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
[21] And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the
LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him
again.
[22] And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came
into him again, and he revived.
[23] And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into
the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son
liveth.
[24] And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of
God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.
3) The Boy (17:17-24)
A.
Divine Deliverance (Vs 17-24)
1. The happy days of provision, supplied by the
continuing miracle of God now under shadow of sickness & death
The presence of the man of
God caused the woman to remember her sin and the powerful conviction it
brought
2.
The man of God asks for the boy to be released from the clutches of his mother
and he took the body into the loft
Where he laid it upon his bed and
stretched himself over it 3 times and sought the Lord in prayer
a.
Elijah
knew that God could take the dry brook bed and YET run water thru it
b.
Elijah
knew that God could take the empty meal barrel and YET provide daily bread
c.
Elijah
knew that God could take wasting oil bottle and YET supply daily needs
Elijah, in faith, prayed believing that
God could take the empty shell of a boy and fill it with a soul (breath
of God) As best I can tell this
has never happened before
3.
God answered the prayer of faith and the son was raised and the boy brought to
his mother
God can still save our families and breath
the spiritual eternal life into them
a.
God
resurrected the boy and thus resurrected the faith of the widowed mother
4.
Remember – 1 Kings 17:2 – "Go Hide Thyself!"
These three experiences – A Brook, A
Barrel, & A Boy – would prepare Elijah for the Public Service
in Ch. 18.
5.
Has God been training and testing YOU in private??? Do YOU wonder why He has not
used YOU in public??? May God help us to be faithful in the little things as
well as the greater things.
.