Jason Hensley - Class 4: The Widow

Automatically transcribed. Accuracy is good but not perfect, and words are sometimes wrong. Trust the audio over the text.

1. 0:00

   This is day four of the 2022. Idyllwild, Bible School. Our first period teacher his brother. Jason Hensley is General subject is Elijah. A man of like passions. Today’s topic is the Widow brother Jason Thank you. James did any of you notice that we started James started like to the second at 9:15. I was that was pretty good. Wow.

2. 0:23

   Well good morning. I hope you’re feeling good doing good. Today, we’re talking about the Widow and what I find really exciting about this whole series is it’s almost like you can see what God is doing with Elijah building on each thing, that happens to him. So now as we talk about the Widow, we’re going to build on On the story of the Ravens. Now, before that though, I have a question, I want to ask you, and that is this.

3. 0:53

   Elijah is presented as a type of the Lord Jesus in the New Testament. Here’s the question. What is it that he does? That is his first action? What is his first action? That becomes a type of Christ? Interesting thing to think about what is the first thing that Elijah does that makes him a type of Christ.

4. 1:17

   Your clothes. Yeah. Yeah. Reason son. It’s not the drought. Yep. It’s not the Raven. So yes, you know, you can see. We’re getting close here with the raising the Sun. So yeah, it’s a little more General. It’s when he sent to the Widow. Yep. So in Luke chapter 4, do you remember the Lord?

5. 1:34

   Jesus goes in the synagogue. He picks up the scroll of Isaiah. The prophet to read it. Isaiah 61, he reads it. He says this day is this fulfilled in your hearing and people don’t Like it, they get mad and he says a prophet is not without honour, save in his own country and then he says there are a number of widows in Israel. You remember that.

6. 1:59

   But Elijah was only sent to the Widow in Zarephath. So he parallels his own work, and the fact that he was not accepted with Elijah. So it’s interesting that Elijah’s doing all this work and the first place where he gets paralleled with the Lord Jesus is, when he goes to the Widow, that’s going to be interesting to see because in fact, this time with the Widow becomes explosive for Elijah’s, I don’t even know the word type of facility type – but however you turn that into an adjective, whatever you get what I’m saying. It becomes huge for Elijah being a type of Christ and we’re going to see that the Lord Jesus in fact patterns what he does twice, after Elijah’s time with the Widow Elijah is going to pattern what he does after Elijah’s time with the Widow and so is Peter.

7. 2:56

   So this becomes really Lee almost almost like, the, the climax here, of where Elijah starts to realize, this is what life is about. This is what matters and he’s not gonna learn it fully, right? Because he’s a human and that’s not, it’s not really how it works. You know, we don’t we don’t just say, aha.

8. 3:15

   I learned the lesson. Now, I don’t need to be taught at anymore, you know? I just gonna have to learn this for the next rest of his life, right? But he’s going to start to learn it. And we see it a little bit when he comes to the Widow. So, in First Kings 17, we’re seeing Elijah start to soften a little bit. Let me just read this to you first Kings 17. Now, it’s not actually going to help that much when I read it to you because I’m reading out of the ESV and the ESV doesn’t have it.

9. 3:43

   So I have to tell you what it says in the King James and in the Hebrew. So it’s First Kings 17, he comes to the Widow, And it says in verse 10 1st Kings 17 verse 10. So he arose and went to Zarephath when he came to the gate of the city Behold a widow. Is there Gathering sticks?

10. 4:05

    He called to her and said, this is the important part. Bring me a little water in a vessel that I may drink. Now, we talked already about how that showed a little bit of the obtuseness of Elijah here. But if you read it in the King James, you might notice there’s a little bit of softening at least. You will see the words, I pray.

11. 4:25

    Where I pray these something like that, which, you know, nobody says that today. So when you read it in the KJV, you might just kind of not even notice that, it’s there. It is there in the Hebrew though, it’s the word Na and Hebrew. Which if, you know, if you want to be polite, when you’re talking to somebody in Hebrew, that’s what you say is a knob which basically is the equivalent of please. So kind of interesting, you know you don’t you don’t normally picture Elijah.

12. 4:51

    This like big Brash like man who speaks and you know, three words sentences, you don’t typically picture him being the guy that comes in and says please but in fact he does. So that’s kind of interesting. All right, let’s not let’s not make a huge deal of that but I think it’s just intriguing to see that he does say that and he says it again.

13. 5:10

    When he asks for when he asked for the bread Okay, so that’s just a little bit of background as we get started. We are talking about the Widow class for we have seen that God is in control. We have seen that God hears prayers, that God gives lessons that push us beyond our comfort zones. And so today, what we are going to be noting Maybe. Is that God gives lessons with fantastic blessings. So even though they push us further than what we feel comfortable, with the end result, Is good. The end result is better than we could imagine. God decides when it’s time for judgment, that will be tomorrow and then we will finish with this idea that God does not relent.

14. 5:58

    Alright, here’s our sections today we’re going to be talking about the Grain and the oil. So the miracle here with the woman and Elijah’s interaction with the woman, we’re going to talk about her son, his change, then that happens, and this is, this is the most exciting part I think as You see Elijah start to change. Okay, the main lesson God gives lessons with fantastic blessings and the why is why did Elijah raise the Widow’s son? You might think, what do you mean, why? Like he was dead?

15. 6:31

    Elijah was living with her, he wanted to be nice, but I think with what we’ve seen with Elijah, That’s not really how he did things. You can almost picture him saying, you know, she says, did you come to bring my sin to remembrance you can almost picture him saying? Yeah, I did the end, right? So it’s interesting then in that light in that context, that Elijah doesn’t say that.

16. 7:01

    And what we’re going to see is that he, in fact, goes all the way in the other direction. Action. He initiates this whole raising the sun, he decides what to do and keep in mind. who would raise somebody from the dead before this No one. Nobody had ever done that. This is the first time. All right, so Elijah’s time with the Widow reflects Christ’s ministry as we just said that’s the first time he becomes a type of Christ.

17. 7:31

    What I think is fascinating about that is that as we go through this it’s probably as Elijah is living this. It was probably one of the more frustrating moments of his life. Elijah wanted to do big things, he wanted to send, down fire from heaven, but You think about this, he wasn’t in Israel, right? That’s not.

18. 7:56

    He didn’t want to be in sidon on top of that. He’s in total poverty, living in a place that has been struck by famine and drought and he can only work with two people. And that’s it. So again, I think it’s just fascinating to see things from our perspective, versus God’s perspective. This is where God wanted him, this is what God wanted him doing. so, let’s spend some time thinking about the Widow. If you open up to Second Kings 17. Sorry.

19. 8:30

    First first Kings 17. And verse 9. I want you to notice what is unique about this Widow? There’s an inference. I think that we can make from 1st Kings 17 verse 9. See, if you hear it, there’s something that we are told about the Widow. First king, 17:9 listen for it. Arise go to Zarephath which belongs to sidon and dwell there.

20. 8:59

    Behold. I have commanded a widow there to feed you. What do you infer about the Widow based on that verse she’s God-fearing right? God there’s not really much of a way around that God says, I commanded her to take care of you. So that that shows us there’s something going on with this woman. That can you, can you picture Elijah hearing this right here? He is this man who Wants to condemn sidon because that’s where Baal worship came from.

21. 9:36

    And God says, oh, and by the way, I have a relationship with a woman there and she’s willing to take care of you. I’ve talked to her, I’ve commanded her to do this and she’s going to. So, just keep that in mind because I think, as we, as we read on, we can actually see some more things about this Widow.

22. 9:55

    Again, just listen for, what can you tell about the Widow based on these verses? Verses 10 to 12 says so he arose and went to Zarephath when he came to the gate of the city Behold. A widow. Is there Gathering sticks first question What’s weird about that? The Gate of the city to gather sticks and I feel like that’s a little strange like usually sticks. Don’t, you know, plants aren’t growing where a bunch of stuff is built.

23. 10:23

    So that seems a little bit odd. She’s there Gathering sticks at the gate. It’s almost like she is waiting for someone. Right, interesting. He called to her and said, bring me a little water in a vessel that I may drink and as she was going to bring it, he called her and said bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.

24. 10:43

    What do you notice about that? She actually listens. Now, we’d said earlier on Monday that or on Tuesday, that if somebody had come to you during a drought and said, hey, bring me some water, you’d be like, yeah. Right, you know, I’m not gonna do that and yet this woman does why? I think because God told her to God said there’s going to be a prophet, he’s going to come to you and ask for this. I want you to be ready and I want you to bring it to him. And so she’s there, waiting at the gate. Waiting for Elijah and she’s willing to go get this. Now there’s one other big indication. Who this woman is.

25. 11:25

    Do you see it? She says to him. As the Lord your God lives. Now, wait a minute, how did she know that he was an Israelite? You could just say, oh well, everybody knew Elijah. Yeah. Maybe like there are instances where people say, oh, did did that guy? You met? You know, have a big beard, right?

26. 11:49

    Aha. It Was Elijah, right? But that was an Israel. Okay, this was like random lady who probably never left Zarephath. She’s not going to be like oh that guy. I bet he’s Elijah. She probably had no idea who Elijah was. And so she sees and realizes this is what I was told. Okay, so she says Yahweh your God Lives. Now the other piece, there’s one more thing and that is that she’s responsive to Elijah’s obtuseness. So consider this 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 for thus, says the Lord the god of Israel, the jar of flour shall not be spent.

27. 12:32

    Now, I want you to think about that phrase. The Lord, the god of Israel, where is Elijah. Zarephath in sidon right now, what did people back then believe about the power of their gods?

28. 12:49

    They were limited by geography, right? So Elijah walks in and he’s like, oh, don’t worry. The god of Israel says, You’ll have food now. Random Pagan person is going to be like hey guess what? I’m not in Israel, right? Your God can’t do anything here. So you know that’s that’s one thing on the other hand here, he is saying the god of Israel says this is going to happen and you can just imagine the response of oh that that God.

29. 13:19

    Isn’t he? The reason I’m in this problem in the first place, you know, the God who brought the drought? Right? She doesn’t say any of those things. Things, which is interesting. Now just just to bring this out a little bit as far as this idea. The other times that this phrase the god of Israel is used with the Gentiles.

30. 13:38

    Let me show you a few of those cases. X is five verses 1 and 2. This is where Pharaoh says, who cares about the job? The god of Israel. Right? Judges 5 verses 3 & 5. This is the song of Deborah and talks about Gentiles, recognizing the power of a god of Israel.

31. 13:55

    Ruth 212 is when Boaz says to Ruth that she wants to connect herself to the god of Israel. First, Samuel 5 verses 7 through 11. Again, this is Gentiles acknowledging the power of the god of Israel. So you can see a few of the different ways that this phrase is use. And I would suggest to you that when it’s used about this woman, it’s her recognizing God’s power that it is not. Limited.

32. 14:26

    Two. Geography. Which is how most people thought. At the time here’s the Contemporary record. The time of Ahab says the Servants of the king of Syria said to him, their gods are gods of the hills and so they were stronger than we but let us fight against them in the plane and surely we shall be stronger than they, write.

33. 14:48

    This woman doesn’t think that way. Now here’s another interesting piece, though. So the woman is receptive to the phrase God of Israel. So I think we can see. This woman is open. To learning about God, beginning to understand about him. Now, Elijah by contrast, we said he’s starting to change a little bit, but I’ll tell you this, there’s one other time when he uses the phrase the god of Israel.

34. 15:18

    And it is when he says. 1st Kings 17 verse 1. As Yahweh, the god of Israel lives there will be, neither do nor rain these years but by my word so you can see him still clinging to this drought idea. So that was the only other time. He used that phrase first king 17 one so he still holding onto this drought idea so you know he’s changing but just like us he takes some time. Okay, so the woman is prepared to accept the message that God works in her land.

35. 15:54

    And Elijah now is beginning to change. All right. This is what I think we’re going to see throughout this story with the Widow Elijah starting to soften, but it’s not just about softening. It’s about realizing that people are people here. He is walking to sidon seeing all this death and destruction. That’s happen because of him. and I think what God is going to teach him with the Widow, Is that even though This Woman’s Gentile, he cannot treat her with the same.

36. 16:37

    Indifference with which he had treated Israel and he’s going to have to realize that God is actually a god of compassion. And that God values relationship.

37. 16:56

    All right, so God has prepared this woman. She hit rock bottom right, she’s about to die. God tells her that she’s going to have a vision if she takes care of the Prophet. She goes to the city gate, to wait, the prophet comes. And so what you can see, in fact, is that God throughout the story is working with both Elijah, and with the woman, it’s kind of an interesting thing about scripture, you know, a lot of times, we’re following one specific character and we don’t realize the breadth of what God is doing. And so here we have God working with this woman and with Elijah. Okay, So here we go.

38. 17:34

    Here’s the miracle. The woman. Begins to make the bread. And I don’t know, you know, I’m not sure how this happens. She takes some of the flower and maybe the flower grows a little more in the jar. Something I had she pours the oil out and the oil grows again. She is able to use as much as he needs.

39. 17:58

    So, what’s fascinating about? This is it’s basically a daily miracle. And if you thought about that before, but this woman every day of her life, through till the three and a half years, ends Witnesses, a miracle, Now, I think that’s fascinating because remember, God is working with her. So whenever we see stories like this or situations like this, we have to ask ourselves.

40. 18:29

    Why did God do it that way? so, I want you to just think about God is going to prepare food for this woman. He’s going to sustain her. What else could he have done instead? Of making her oil and flour. Increase, what could he have done instead, any thoughts? Maybe maybe that questions a little obscure here.

41. 18:56

    I’ll give you some I’ll Prime you. Yeah, Janae Write a spring of water could have just grown up so that she could have provided our own food. Yep. Growing our own food. Then he could have done Mana, right? I mean none of these are beyond what God is able to do. He could have just had a cow up here in her room, right?

42. 19:18

    And then, you know, oh boy. Look, we have food. Like there are a lot of different things God could have done, but it’s interesting that he decides this way, and I tend to think, That it’s because God wants there to be this daily miracle and he slowly increasing her faith. Right? Here’s here’s the contrast that she has to go and make food for Elijah first before the Miracle Works. Take the last of what you have.

43. 19:55

    Give it to the prophet and then we’ll see what happens. This becomes a daily thing. Now it’s also just intriguing to think about this when the woman’s son dies. She says to Elijah. Have you come to bring my sin to remember? She blames him. We’ll get to that a little more. but, I don’t think we’ve often thought of this. How do you think your health would be if for two years all you ate was flour and oil.

44. 20:33

    I mean I’m diabetic I wouldn’t survive right. Like but but if if that’s all you gave your kid, you can almost imagine her being like, look, you know, I appreciate that. You kept us alive longer but This is kind of your fault and in the bigger sense of the thing hadn’t, he caused the drought. So there’s another question, right? Maybe maybe God performed the miracle that way in order to lead to the child’s death knowing that Elijah would resurrect the child its possibility. Here’s another thought.

45. 21:07

    Here’s what Elijah says to her, do not fear. Go and do as you have said, but first make me a little cake. Now let’s see if you remember yesterday. We talked about how Elijah wanted to be like who Yeah, Moses Moses was the big person that Elijah wanted to be like he wasn’t a big person but you get it.

46. 21:28

    He really wanted to be like him now. Who was he actually like scripturally? Israel. That’s right. Now again, it’s interesting in this miracle that God says, I’ll give you oral and bread oil and flour and Elijah then asks for a little cake because it’s almost like Elijah is recognizing, wait a minute. I’m not like Moses.

47. 21:58

    I am like Israel. Consider this this word cake doesn’t show up very often, although interestingly it is the modern Hebrew word for cake as well. It’s it’s a really awesome word. You’re ready. Now. You’re all gonna learn how to say, cake and Hebrew. Here we go. Goes like this. Ooh, gah Yeah, so you got so that is cake, and he Ruth Agha. I actually tried it in Israel.

48. 22:24

    Apparently, my accident wasn’t very good, but I said a new year old say, yoga like I want a cake. And anyway, the guy laughed at me but I, then he wouldn’t give it to me, either. He like he got it. He got it, ready? You know? And Israel You’re supposed to be a little more like forthright.

49. 22:41

    So maybe that was my, maybe that was my issue. I was I wasn’t being American enough. So you know I had to go and say, hey, that’s my Take give it to me and he was like, okay, you know, you’ve shown that you’re a man. So so that that kind of thing. So anyway, that’s that’s cake in Hebrew, God.

50. 23:00

    Okay, so it only shows up just a few times in the Old Testament. Ooh, gah it occurs, three times before this. Let me show you where Genesis 18 6. You have the story of Abraham and Sarah preparing food for the angels that show up at their house and And they make cakes. But consider this Exodus 12:39 the Israelites make unleavened cakes in The Exodus numbers 1811, this is the story of the manna. The people make cakes.

51. 23:33

    So you’ll notice that in two of the instances out of the three, where this word yoga is used before the time of Elijah, it’s a reference to the Israelites. That’s just kind of interesting, you know, Was Elijah thinking realizing, you know, I’ve been a little more like the Israelites actually than Moses, maybe.

52. 23:51

    But what is intriguing about this reference is that in numbers 1811? Let’s just read it. The people went about and gathered it, that is the Manna and ground it in. And Mills or beat it in mortars and boiled it in pots and made cakes of it. And the taste of it was like the taste of cakes baked with oil.

53. 24:10

    What do you notice about this? Passage that similar to the Elijah story or yeah. You got oil, right? You have God’s miraculous provision. So, this is a very similar sort of situation. So it’s just intriguing than that, Elijah uses the word cakes. Keep in mind as well. The people had said they were starving.

54. 24:35

    Have you brought us out in the wilderness to die? And it was eaten until the end of that Wilderness time period, just like this woman who would have eaten it. So the three and a half years ends. So just interesting that Elijah specifically uses that word cakes, which connects it back to the Mana.

55. 24:59

    So maybe he was starting to realize starting to recognize, you know, maybe I’m not the superhero. I wanted to be Perhaps, okay. Well, what we do know is that he begins to change and he is learning, and this is all really demonstrated with the Widow’s son. Now, I would put to you that when you’re out there living in the wilderness with birds. For however, long and you can’t talk to anybody that doesn’t change your heart, a whole lot.

56. 25:34

    In fact, it would probably just kind of make you a little crazy. But what God then does, you know, he’s teaching Elijah this lesson that it’s not about law fact. You’re going to have to break the law in order to survive with the Ravens. But now, he’s going to put Elijah in the scenario with the Widow and her son.

57. 25:56

    Where he has to have a relationship. There’s absolutely no way to avoid it, right? He’s living in their house, unless you just said, I’m never going to talk to you ever, right? And just, you know, walked around like, oh, I can’t see you or something like that, but, but, you know, that that’s not going to happen. So, God forces this relationship to exist, and it’s interesting that now he’s going to bring it to this climax. To say Elijah, have you learned?

58. 26:24

    Have you learned the importance of relationship? 1st Kings. 17, 17 18. After this, the son of the woman, the Mistress of the house became ill. His illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him and she said to Elijah, what have you against me? Oh man, of God, you have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son.

59. 26:46

    Now, that’s dramatic already. There’s actually a number of things in this story that adds to the drama that I’m not sure we see. Can you see the woman trying to make sense of what’s Happening? God had miraculously provided for them. Why did this happen hadn’t? He saved their life. And wasn’t he saving their life every day through the drought that this just didn’t make sense. So you can see her trying to wrestle with, what is it that’s going on?

60. 27:25

    There’s an interesting word here though. That I think very much. Emphasizes. The drama of this event. In site where their mistress. The reason that this word underscores, what’s happening said, it’s only use three other times. In all of scripture, this word mistress, let me show you where, First, Samuel 28 verse 7. It says then Saul said to his servants seek out for me a woman who is a medium that I may go to her and inquire of her. His servants said to him behold there’s a medium at end or you want to guess which word mistress is. It’s the word medium.

61. 28:13

    Now shows up one other time in the prophecy of Nahum, Nahum 3 verse 4 in the NIV reads, all because of the wanton lust of a prostitute. Now, this is about Nineveh, the God’s prophecy against Nineveh alluring, the Mistress of sorceries who enslaved Nations by her prostitution and people’s by her witchcraft. This is God’s prophecy against Assyria. This is how he describes a Syria. He says you were the Mistress of sorcery. so, do you notice then what this word mistress here, what it’s connected to This is all about pagan Worship.

62. 28:55

    In fact, yeah, Peter you have an idea. Yes. Now, pretend you didn’t hear that because I’m about to say that in 30 seconds. Huh? All right. Yeah, that’s right. So this word as Peter, very correctly, told us. It’s Bala, it’s the feminine form of Baal. So there it is up there. But Allah, it’s a feminine form of bail. now, that is amazingly telling because Think about this from Elijah’s perspective, Elijah was immensely angry at Israel over, their worship of Baal, and God tells him. And this is how we normally understand that. God tells him go up to the land where bail is worshipped, right? But do you ever think about the fact that he doesn’t just go to the land where bail is worshipped, but God actually brings him to the house of a woman. Who is called a bell?

63. 30:06

    This is a woman who was actively involved in Pagan worship. And she doesn’t change. For at least a while. Because he has to go and live there and live there and live there. And she’s still that way, until the point that her son dies. So, here he is living in this Pagan house. With this woman now can you just picture, Elijah? He prayed for Israel’s destruction. What do you think?

64. 30:45

    Elijah? Would have been praying for about this woman? And can you can you just imagine that like like a lie? Just typical thoughts, would have been something along the lines of bring disaster on this woman because this is what she deserves. And yet what’s amazing is God says to him, right? That’s what Elijah probably would have prayed before, God.

65. 31:06

    Have been teaching him these things. And God says, to him, I want you to go to this woman and I want you to tell her I’m going to provide for her. Can you picture him wrestling with that, what? This woman was going to die. That’s what she deserved. She worshipped. Idols. And God says, go to the woman and tell her, I’m going to perform a miracle for her today and tomorrow and the next day I’m going to keep performing miracles for this by Allah.

66. 31:43

    What kind of Crisis? Do you think that would have put Elijah in? You know, how does this make any sense, right? What what is it that God’s doing? What does this mean?

67. 31:54

    But you know what’s interesting? is that when she talks to him, You can tell that she has been changed. By the fact that she was with him, it’s not interesting.

68. 32:10

    This is what I think is beautiful about the way that God works. God sees us where we can be, he sees what we can become and that’s what he works with, what he calls, those things that are not as though they are. He can recognize, I know you’re going to get to hear and I’m going to be patient as I bring you there.

69. 32:36

    And so he looks at this woman, who is entrenched in Pagan worship and he says Elijah, I want you to go be kind to her. I want you to take care of her because Slowly every day, she’s going to start to change. So, look at the change. She comes to Elijah. And she says, have you come to call my sin to repentance like is it?

70. 32:58

    What you recognize that? I’m a pagan worship person. Now you’re gonna hit me with this right? So she comes and she blames him first which you know, on one hand wasn’t true. But again on another sense they had eaten flour and oil for days and Elijah had caused the drought but then there’s a few more things in her words.

71. 33:16

    Have you come to call my sin to remembrance? But there’s this acknowledgement that. Oh, actually I I have sinned. Now, let me ask you this next question. She clearly demonstrates Faith. However, because why else do you think she would come to Elijah?

72. 33:38

    Yeah, she knows right. She knows he can do something about this. Now, that’s crazy. Because, as we had said, nobody had ever done this before, right? And she says, Elijah. I know you can do something about it now. Next question, this woman shows up in the New Testament. Anyone know where We know this was faithful.

73. 34:04

    And here’s why. Hebrews 11 35. Women received back there dead by Resurrection. What? Women in the Old Testament received their dead by Resurrection. It was this woman and shunammite when Elijah raises her, son to women there there Hebrews 11 in the faith chapter so, this woman, Demonstrated her faith said, do you see that progression here? She first gets mad at Elijah and says, what are you doing? And then she says, but I do have sinned. And then she says, I know you can do something about this. Interesting.

74. 34:55

    So what we’re going to see. Is that Elijah has changed. Not only has the woman changed but he has to so he says give me your son which you know I mean he could have done things a little better. Give me your son, he took him from her arms, carried him, up to the upper chamber where he lodged and laid him on his own bed.

75. 35:17

    But what I want you to notice is, do you see the new Elijah there? He carries him up into the upper chamber where he lodged and laid him on his own bed. This is like, a father. So let’s see. Elijah’s change. This is the only time in scripture where Elijah repeatedly follows Elijah’s example. If I got a chart for you you might want to take a picture of this.

76. 35:55

    Elijah miraculously multiplies, the Widow’s oil first king 1714 it. Like she does the same thing. Second Kings, 4 verse 2. And then, throughout the rest of the record. These stories parallel state of woman’s home, the woman’s only son dies, they’re blamed for the death He stretches forth himself on the child. He then tries to revive the child three times.

77. 36:25

    And it is ah that was that was not right. Okay. All right. Let’s now I alright let me push this another you know, 25 times and will Okay, ha ha ha. All right, all right. You ready there? And it’s, these are the only two resurrections in the Old Testament. So what you can see is Elijah recognizes this was the moment in Elijah’s life. This is, you know, I want to follow in the spirit of Elijah. I want to have a double portion of that spirit. This is the event that I’m going to follow this is the way that I want to be like Elijah.

78. 37:16

    So we see that with Elijah. Now, on top of that, we also see this with the Lord Jesus. See, if you hear Echoes of the story. Soon afterward this is Luke 7 verses 11 to 16 soon afterward. He went to a town called nain and his disciples and a great crowd went with him as he drew near to the gate of the Town, Behold.

79. 37:35

    A man who had died was being carried out. The only son of his mother and she was a widow and a considerable crowd from the town was with her when the Lord saw her. He had compassion on her and said to her do not weep Then he came up and touched the Bier and the bear Stood Still. He said, young, man, I say to you arise, the dead man sat up and began to speak and Jesus gave him to his mother, fear seized them all.

80. 38:00

    And they glorified God saying a great prophet has arisen Among Us and God has visited his people to consider the parallels here between Elijah and Christ. In fact, it’s not just similarities and what happens, but it’s actually quotations in the Greek. So you have this here, Kaya goneto. This is the words and it happened. Both stories start with that phrase in the Greek and it happened.

81. 38:25

    Obviously, the Kings record would be in the Septuagint, not in the Hebrew. It’s the only time that a Widow’s son is raised in the Old Testament in the New Testament. It’s the first resurrection in the old and the New Testament, the sun is an only child They are moved with compassion and pity. That’s a new one for Elijah move with compassion and pity. They connect with the dead.

82. 38:56

    Elijah laying on top of him? Lord, Jesus touching the beer. That phrase and delivered him to his mother, his word for word, the same in the Greek. First, king 1723, Luke 715 in other words, Luke, when writing, this decides, to quote, the story of Elijah. And then recognized as a profit for the work. There you go.

83. 39:22

    That’s the end. There’s Elijah and Christ. Now, what’s fascinating about this is, in fact, the Lord Jesus does it twice. He this this record is so emblematic of who Elijah is that the Lord follows it two times. So he does it here in nein and then he does it again with the syrophoenician woman and her daughter.

84. 39:47

    So see if you here. Elijah again, Matthew 15 21 to 28, Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and sidon and behold a Canaanite woman from that region. Came out and was crying. Have mercy on me O Lord son of David my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon. But he did not answer her a word. Yeah, here.

85. 40:07

    Elijah a little bit. He did not answer her a word. His disciples came and begged him saying, send her away for she is crying out after us. He answered. I was sent only to the lost sheep of the House of Israel, but she came and knelt before him saying Lord help me. And he answered it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs. She said yes.

86. 40:29

    Lord, yet even the dogs. Eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table. Jesus answered her, a woman. Great is your faith be done for you. Is you desire and her daughter was healed, instantly. Yeah. So, here’s the parallels in this record. They’re both in sidon only time. The Lord Jesus goes up to sidon. So, same location.

87. 40:55

    The woman is an idolater she called a Canaanite. She asks on behalf of an only child, maybe, you know, we don’t really know if it’s This Woman’s only child, but we’re not told about any others. Supposed to provide food for Israel. First And it’s noted as an example of faith. Okay, that’s the end.

88. 41:19

    Now I’ll give you one other two on. There’s not, there’s not going to be slides for this. But, you know, it’s always fun to have some homework Acts chapter 10 with Peter. You remember sheet comes down full of unclean animals. Lord. I’ve never eaten anything unclean. Remind you of somebody. Then he’s told go up to caesarea, you know, where that happens to me, it’s in the area of sidon, and I want you to meet with Cornelius.

89. 41:47

    Who is a gentile? And Peter says the Lord has told me. Not to call any man unclean. Think about it. So this instance becomes the defining moment of the life of Elijah, which is amazing. Because if somebody were to have asked you before this week, what was the most important? Most amazing thing Elijah ever did. What you think?

90. 42:13

    You’d say? Probably Mount Carmel. Right? But that’s not what we’re told is the moment. The moment. Is the day when Elijah cares about this woman? When he has compassion on her. So God is teaching Elijah. About the power of relationship. Versus the power of Miracles. It’s not about doing something amazing. It’s not about changing the world.

91. 42:53

    It’s about people. That’s what God cares about because God can change the world. He could just do it right now if he wants, but instead, what he’s decided to do is he says, I want you to give of yourself, I want you to feel compassion to other people. So Elijah had to have everything turned around. so, here’s the moment. Now Elijah could have condemned the woman. She was still an idolator think about what she had experienced. God spoke to her.

92. 43:30

    God said a prophet is going to come and she was faithful enough to believe that. But God had been providing for her every day and she still worship the idols. She was still a bottle. Ah, but what changes her is not the miracle. Is that interesting? Because she’d been seeing those Miracles all the time and I would suggest you, it wasn’t the miracle that her son was raised.

93. 44:00

    It was now her someone’s raised, not by some random stranger. But it was that her son was raised by someone that she knew. And she knew what he stood for. Do you remember what the woman says after the miracle? She doesn’t say thank you. I’m so glad to have my family back together.

94. 44:20

    I mean clearly she would have felt that but the words that we have recorded you know what they are. Now, I know. That you are a man of God.

95. 44:35

    What? You don’t think she knew that when he said? The oil is not going to run out. And it never did. But it’s at this point that the relationship comes together because Elijah is going to do something, he’s never done for anyone. I’m not talking about raising her son.

96. 45:03

    Here’s what he does. He said to her, give me your son. He took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged and laid him on his own bed. He cried to the Lord. O. Lord. My God, have you brought Calamity even upon the Widow with who my sojourn by killing her son?

97. 45:27

    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 now.

98. 45:38

    Do you think that this was all totally silent? Or do you think there was a woman waiting? She could hear this, right? I mean, this isn’t Elijah just saying Oh, Lord. Please fix things. It says he cried out there was a woman you know, often another room hearing O Lord my God why did this happen?

99. 46:02

    You know. And and she’s realizing this this guy actually cares about us. Look at what he’s doing, listen to what he’s saying. Now. The boys in his bed. And he stretches himself out on him.

100. 46:21

     Why do you think he did that? And I think that shows us Elijah has changed. He didn’t need to, you know, again like Miracles Jesus was able to heal people, like not even being in the same general area as them. Right. There was no need to lay on top of the boy and in fact, I think Elijah.

101. 46:45

     Well, it’s 1003, I got real excited. Okay, here we go. We’ll end it with this man. I always keep track of time. Wow, I must have really been excited. Okay.

102. 47:01

     If you touched a dead body, what happened to you? You’re unclean. Elijah puts a dead body in his bed and then lays on top of it, right? So not only is this bed unclean. He is unclean, he didn’t need to do that. But he did. And I think he did it. Because that’s how much he cared. He was so desperate to do anything to change the situation that he says, I don’t care if I get unclean. I don’t care if I break the law.

103. 47:35

     I love this boy. Has he been living there? It was like a son and so he prays bring his life back and Elijah’s not even knowing what he’s doing. Just lays on the boy thinking, maybe this will do something.

104. 47:51

     and that woman, Realizes this. This is what the god of Israel. Is all about the God of Israel. Is about relationship. It doesn’t mean that he’s always going to bring life. Doesn’t mean that he’s always going to save, but it means is that we sure are going to try. So, Elijah begins to change.

105. 48:24

     And that change becomes the defining moment of his life. It’s not caramel, it’s not the fire from heaven, it’s the time that he looked at a boy. And said, I love that boy, and I’m gonna do everything I can. To save him. That is the spirit of Elijah.