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  • 1 Peter 1 "Our Living Hope"
    "We all remember Peter, that disciple that opened his mouth too much with Jesus. Peter later, however, because one of the chief pillars of the early church. Peter and Paul were the two major apostles in bringing the gospel to the Jews (Peter) and Gentiles (Paul). The themes are hope, holiness, and suffering. This letter was mainly to bring encouragement and renewed motivation to live in Godliness no matter what the circumstances"
  • Nehemiah 13 "Cleaning House"
    "When you clean your house do you only have to do it once and then it remains clean? No. There is dirt around here and messy people. It takes a continual maintenance and cleaning. When you take a bath do you only have to do it the first time and then you don't have to bathe anymore? No, we get dirty living in this world. We need to keep on cleaning or we stink and become grotesque. The people had made many promises in chapter 10 of what they were going to do for God and how they were going to live. Unfortunately, when Nehemiah went back to report to the King the people had turned quickly back to the sin and impurity that they had said they would not do. Through God's Word, and spiritual leadership, God's people were going to clean house again. This chapter is about cleaning that which was rebuilt. It is a maintenance process to examine your life, family, church, and leadership to make sure they are according to the standard of purity that God has shown us in His Word. "
  • Nehemiah 11-12 "Rebuilding Together"
    "The work of rebuilding is not something we can do alone. We need God obviously, but we also need one another. There are a few lasting lessons that we can take with us about rebuilding our lives. We are given a reminder of those lessons in these final chapters. The people were now right with God, and together they continued in the day-to-day decisions that made this rebuilding last. Let us be reminded that: Rebuilding Together Needs People. Rebuilding Together Needs Praise. Rebuilding Together Needs Provisions."
II Kings 3-4

2 Kings Chapters 3-4 “The Ministry of Elisha”

 

  1. Victory Over Moab (Chapter 3)

  1. 1. Jehoram becomes king in Israel (1-3)
    1. He was a wicked king, though he did put away some of the sin of his father.
  • People think that because they are not as bad as someone else that makes them ok. Wrong. Our standard is the goodness of God, and none of us measure up.
  1. 2. Jehoshaphat joins to help in the battle against Moab (4-12)
    1. Jehoshaphat was a man of God. He recommended that they should find a prophet and enquire of the Lord.
  • If only he would have said this at the beginning! Many of us call on God only when we try to do it ourselves and fail.
  1. 3. Elisha prophesies about the battle (13-19)
    1. First he tells the king of Israel to go to the prophets of his mother and father (Ahab and Jezebel)
  • You worship false gods until there is a real crisis then you come running to the true God of Israel.
  1. The presence of Jehoshaphat saved them. For his sake the Lord will grant them victory.
  • You can see how important our presence is. We need to be those who are salt: preserving the earth.
  • We can stand in the gap for unbelievers, praying that God would save them.
  1. He prophesies with a musician.
  • This shows that times of worship can also be times of prophecy and instruction from the Lord. Let our ears be open to hear from Him through Godly music.
    • 1 Samuel 10:5 “After that you shall come to the hill of God where the Philistine garrison is. And it will happen, when you have come there to the city, that you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place with a stringed instrument, a tambourine, a flute, and a harp before them; and they will be prophesying.”
    • Bringing water was a simple matter for the Lord. Did you know that?
  1. 4. The king of Moab was defeated (20-27)
    1. They thought that the armies had already been fighting and killed each other.
  • Note: God doesn’t always do His work in the same way each time. Let us be open to a new work of God, and new possibilities.
  1. Those who do not love and follow God do things that are completely irrational.
  • This king sacrificed his son. Why? Because his was a false God—Satan—and Satan is a murderer.

 

  1. Elisha and the Widows Oil (Chapter 4:1-7)

  1. 1. Even men and women of God suffer sometimes (1)
  • 1 Peter 4:12 “Beloved, do not think it strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened to you”
  • 1 Peter 5:8-11 “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 9 Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world. 10 But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. 11  To Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
  1. 2. God will always provide what we need (2-5)
    1. Sometimes by a miracle
    2. He uses what we have (skills, money, willingness to work, etc.) (2)
  • Never say “I don’t have enough for God to work with”
  • Say “God, what I have is yours to use for your glory”
  1. 3. God’s work to provide our needs is joined with our work to bring the jars (3, 6-7)
    1. The more we want God to work the more we need to make ourselves, and our resources, available.
  • John 2:7 “Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim.”
  • The lesson of the oil jars is teaching us about faith. God will work, but He wants us to step out in faith.
  1. "She did what she was commanded to do: she did it in faith; and the result answered the end. God takes care to deliver his servants in ways that exercise their faith. He would not have them be little in faith, for faith is the wealth of the heavenly life." (Spurgeon)
  2. "You have God in the measure in which you desire Him. Only remember that the desire that brings God must be more than a feeble, fleeting wish. Wishing is one thing; willing is quite another…”

 

  1. Elisha and the Shunamite Woman (Chapter 4:8-37)

  1. 1. See the giving and hospitable attitude of the woman (8-17)
    1. She fed the man of God whenever he came to town
    2. She made him a room
    3. She did it willingly and not so that she could get something in return
  • How contrary this is to the modern church’s attitude. Sadly, many of us give so that we can get!
    • Acts 20:35 “I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'”
    • Remember, God looks at the motivation for what we do, not just the act of what we do.
  1. God rewarded her for this attitude of giving
  • It was more than she could have imagined or expected. When we give out of a heart of love and gratefulness then God will bless our giving.
    • Proverbs 19:17 “He who has pity on the poor lends to the LORD, And He will pay back what he has given.”
    • Hebrews 6:10 “For God is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister.”
  1. 2. The woman came to Elisha for help (18-28)
    1. She ran to the man of God because it is God who is able to help her in this situation
    2. She reminded him of the promise that He made. (28)
    3. 3. God used Elisha to raise the boy from the dead (29-37)
      1. Gehazi couldn’t do the job that Elisha was meant to do
  • We each have our own special jobs to do in this life. God has given us specific tasks that we shouldn’t try and wait for someone else to do it.
  1. The boy is raised from the dead

 

  1. Elisha and the Famine (Chapter 4:38-44)

  1. 1. Death in the pot
    1. Make sure you know what you are doing before you make a mistake and hurt someone. (worship, preaching, etc.)
    2. God’s grace is their even when we do stupid things.
    3. 2. The food is multiplied
      1. Even with our meager resources God can feed all of the people.