Hello my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
What comes into your mind whenever you see a funeral procession or find yourself near a cemetery? Perhaps the first thing you think of is the brevity of our earthly life as compared to eternity. Maybe you think of the grief of family and loved ones. But I wonder if you ever think about the practical aftermath of death, things like wills and distribution of assets and inheritance and even unpaid bills?
Come with me again, back to Israel about 840bc. Our friend the prophet Elisha is suddenly faced with a grieving widow and the practical aspects of the death of her husband. We find her story in 2 Kings 4.
The record tells us Elisha was one day approached by the wife of a prophet who may have been among those young prophets who had been in one of Elijah’s prophet schools and was likely, therefore, a student of Elisha. Her request of Elisha is heartbreaking: “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the LORD . But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.” (2 Kings 4:1) Now that not only seems cruel but perhaps in your country against the law.
But in Israel, in these ancient times, creditors who found insufficient collateral to repay the debts of the deceased had every right to require the family of the deceased to work for repayment of the debt. For this young widow, if both her boys were taken from her, to live and work on the estate of their creditor, it would leave her destitute. As Elisha heard her plea I have no doubt his heart was torn, just as your heart and mine is torn frequently by the sad but very real stories we hear of desperate people in our day.
Elisha was conflicted. As much as he wanted to help, he had little he could offer, but the Holy Spirit evidently led Elisha to ask an important question: “What do you have in your house?” As evidence of the desperate situation, the widow responded truthfully but probably with some humiliation: “Your servant has nothing there at all, except a small jar of olive oil.” (2 Kings 4:2)
Olive oil was, as we know, a vital part of life for all Israelites. It was cooking oil and it was oil for their lamps at night and much more. Perhaps Elisha remembered how God had provided miraculously both flour and oil for a widow in Zarephath so she could keep herself, her son and his mentor Elijah alive during the famine several years past. The Holy Spirit evidently gave Elisha clear directions and he urged this widow to go to her friends and neighbors and ask to borrow empty jars. “Then go into your house and shut the door behind you and your sons. Pour oil from what you have into all the jars, and as each is filled, put it to one side.” (2 Kings 4:4)
You see it don’t you my friends? Once again God is working generationally to teach important ‘TRUST in God’ lessons, this time to a widow and her sons. We don’t know the age of these boys, but we can assume they are grieving the death of their father, and concerned for their widowed mother. We don’t know what understanding the boys may have had about the creditor and his plan to take them from their home, as his indentured servants, until their father’s debt is paid off. I wonder how they explained to their neighbors why their mother needed empty jars?
Let’s go into the house with them as they arrange all the jars on the table and close the door behind them. Evidently she gave her boys instructions to bring her one empty jar at a time, while she started pouring oil from the one jar she had which only had a little bit of oil at the bottom of that jar.
The record says: “The boys brought the jars to their mother and she kept pouring. When all the jars were full, she said to her son, ‘Bring me another jar.’ But he replied, ‘There are no empty jars left.’ Then the oil stopped flowing.” (2 Kings 4:5,6) Ok my friends, I wonder what your explanation is for this miracle? You and I both know whatever liquid you are pouring out of a jar EMPTIES that jar, it does not replenish by itself, right?
So what happened here? It’s very nearly the same miracle as the widow of Zarephath and her son with the flour & oil, isn’t it? God obviously, miraculously made a chemical reaction take place in that oil jug as the oil simply reproduced continually, until the widow had filled all the empty jars available, and then the miracle stopped just as suddenly as it had begun.
It appears Elisha was outside the house, just as Elijah had been outside when the widow of Zarephath experienced her miracle. The record paints a beautiful picture for us: “The widow went and told the man of God, and he said to her, ‘Go and sell the oil and pay your debts. You and your sons can live on what is left.” (2 Kings 4:7) Not only had God multiplied the oil enough to pay off all her outstanding debts with the creditor, but now she had a surplus to sell for purchasing groceries and other necessities she had.
Now, what does that tell us and teach her boys about God and His all sufficiency to provide for all our needs in surplus!? It shouldn’t be difficult for us to imagine the excitement of her two sons as they kept bringing their mother empty jar after empty jar, and they watched the oil flow without any hesitation.
We can well imagine the boys had so many questions for their mother. And while she had no logical scientific explanation, the widow surely could explain to her boys the greatness of the God of their father and why he was in the prophet’s school preparing to be a man of God like Elisha for their nation.
Over the years, as I’ve had the opportunity to hear the personal stories of missionaries and Pastors and Christian workers, many, many of them have pointed back to miraculous experiences in their family when they were young, as the point at which their trust in God grew so dramatically that they felt called to trust God with the rest of their life in ministry.
Two powerful Scripture admonitions about generational influence came alive in that house with the widow and her sons that day. Have they been part of your life story too?
* Deut. 6:5-9 “Love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength…Impress these commands on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up…”
* Psalm 78:1-7 “…things we have heard and known, things our ancestors have told us. We will not hide them from their descendants; we will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, His power and the wonders He has done…which He commanded our ancestors to teach their children, so the next generation would know them, even the children yet to be born…”
As we reflect on the power of generational influence, let’s worship with these young people, and let’s thank God for those who have influenced our lives, and I’ll meet you right back here tomorrow, my friends…
Today’s Scripture: 2 Kings 4:1-7.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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