Sermons
The Lord Heard Elijah's Cry
Series: Days of Elijah: God’s Righteous Mountain ManTHE LORD HEARD ELIJAH’S CRY
Sermon Outline By Terry Siverd
Cortland Church of Christ / February 11, 2018
From the brook Cherith, Elijah journeyed 100 miles north and westward to arrive at Zarephath (see map).
Zarephath was located midway between Tyre and Sidon, perched on the sunny shoreline of the Great Sea.
We might be thinking: after a year living alone in a cave in Cherith, its time for a little rest and relaxation.
But this trip to Zarephath was not meant to be a Mediterranean vacation - - it was for refining not reclining.
God sent Elijah from a place of desolation to a place of destitution.
Zarephath was just 10 miles south of Sidon, the home of Jezebel’s father - - in the heart of Baal-worship.
Geographically speaking, Zarephath was beyond the boundaries of The Northern Kingdom of Israel,
but it remained well within reach of King Ahab’s notorious bounty-hunters. Cf. 1Kgs.18:10
When Elijah arrived, there was no bell-hop to tote his luggage to a luxury suite overlooking the ocean.
More likely than not he had no luggage (just the clothes on his back). He sat down by a well hoping to meet a widow.
God was playing match-maker, but this match made in heaven was not about marriage.
As upside down as it sounds, God sent him there so that a widow could provide for him.
But the widow is destitute. She is poverty-stricken. She is a very poor widow, just barely hanging on.
She has lost her husband to death and is trying to cling to life for herself and her young son.
But they are running on empty. The cupboard is bare and the shadow of death is hovering.
Elijah told the widow that God would sustain them throughout the lengthy drought.
The bowl of flour shall not be exhausted, nor shall the jar of oil be empty (1Kgs.17:14).
God gave them daily bread for MANY DAYS (1Kgs.17:15).
How long was “many”? Perhaps as much as two years?
1Kgs.18:1 notes that the Lord came to Elijah in the third year.
} Open your Bible to 1Kgs.17:17-24 |
Things seem to be going well for Elijah and the widow and her son.
Their pantry was replenished on a daily basis (1Kgs.17:16). There had been no henchmen knocking at the door.
But then comes 1Kgs.17:17 - - Now it came about after these things, that the son of the woman, the
mistress of the house, became SICK; and his sickness was so severe, that there was NO MORE BREATH IN HIM.
An apparent tragedy occurs: the widow’s young son dies.
I say apparent, because we all know that God is able to cause good things to flow forth from difficult circumstances.
Sometimes when we are overwhelmed with grief we tend to fix blame on others.
In this case, the widow seems to lash out at Elijah (1Kgs.17:18) - - What do I have to do with you, O man of God?
You have come to me to bring my iniquity to remembrance and to put my son to death.
The text does not allow us to hear the inflection in her voice. It sounds more like a charge than a question.
Was there sarcasm in her voice when she called her a MAN OF GOD?
It is refreshing to note that she appears to be cognizant of her own sins.
Often in Scripture an untimely death or a severe ailment or disability was attributed to SIN.
We see this in Jn.9:1-2 when Jesus and His followers encountered a man born blind.
Jesus’ disciples asked Him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents that he should be born blind?
Jesus responded by telling them (Jn.9:3) - - It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents;
BUT IT WAS IN ORDER THAT THE WORKS OF GOD MIGHT BE DISPLAYED IN HIM..
This New Testament text can help us greatly as we try to properly interpret the events of 1Kgs.17.
What unfolds in the balance of this chapter is quite remarkable.
Elijah’s words are few. He makes no attempt to explain what has happened and why it has happened.
Sometimes we (especially us preachers) feel the need to say something insightful and profoundly comforting.
More often than not it is our presence that is cherished by the one grieving more than the words we speak.
When Mark Lombardi passed away while scuba-diving, Fred Chester called me and asked that I call J.
With a broken-heart, I broke J’s heart with a dreaded phone call.
(There was a sense of urgency that required me to contact her right away).
Jeannie and I then drove to Burton immediately. We called Shawn & Brenda Wood on the way there.
When we saw J all we could do was hug and cry together.
Let’s remember when tragedy strikes, it’s not what we say that matters as much as just BEING THERE.
1Kgs.17:19 records that Elijah said to the grieving widow: Give me you son. Then he took him from
her bosom and carried him to the upper room where he was living, and laid him on his own bed.
What is truly noteworthy here is what Elijah proceeded to do next: HE PRAYED.
1Kgs.17:20-21 / he called (cried) out to the Lord and said, ‘O Lord my God, have You
brought calamity to the widow with whom I am staying, by causing her son to die?
Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and called to the Lord,
and said, ‘O Lord my God, I pray Thee, let this child’s life return to him.’
Some who discount miracles try to argue that the child had not really died. And that Elijah performed
a kind of CPR on the young lad and resuscitated him from a temporary seizure or some other ailment.
Yet the text clearly states that there was no breath left in him (vs.17b) and that he had died (vs.20b).
This upper room where Elijah dwelled and to which he retreated was his WAR ROOM.
This “upper room” was his “inner room” or “closet” where he prayed to Jehovah God. cf. Mt.6:6.
Elijah’s prayer required great FAITH: Let this child’s life return to him (vs.21b).
In the days preceding Elijah, there was no recorded precedence for such a prayer.
Prior to the days of Elijah there was no ancient story inscribed in the Holy Scriptures of such ever happening.
After the days of Elijah we encounter a few additional resurrections.
In 2Kgs.4:18-37, Elisha prayed to God and God restored life to the son of Shunammite woman.
2Kgs.13:21 – tells of another unnamed dead man who was brought back to life
Heb.11:35 mentions, women received their dead by resurrection…
In the New Testament we read of six additional resurrections:
Jesus raising Jairus’ daughter (Lk.8:49-56) … Jesus raising Lazarus (Jn.11) … During Jesus’ crucifixion –
the tombs were opened and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised (Mt.27:51-53) …
Jesus’ resurrection (Mt.28)… and in the book of Acts: Tabitha (Acts 9:36-42) … and Eutychus (Acts 20:9-12).
Our point here is that at this juncture in time,
Elijah the prophet engaged in boldly asking of God something that had never been done.
1Kgs.17:22 states - - The Lord heard the voice (cry/ESV) of Elijah, and the life of the child returned to him and he revived.
The story concludes with 1Kgs.17:23-24 - - Elijah took the child, and brought him down from the upper room into
the house and gave him to his mother; and Elijah said, ‘See, your son is ALIVE.’ Then the woman said to Elijah,
‘Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.’
Js.5:16 says, the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.
This word fervent means “boiling”.
I’m not sure how to conclude this sermon.
The emphasis of my message is not to encourage us to prayer for the dead to come back to life.
Raising someone from the dead was a miracle. Most, if not all, of the miracles in Scripture were SIGNS.
In all of Scripture we only read of nine instances where someone was brought back to life after having died.
Heb.2:3-4 / (The Word) was confirmed to us by those who heard, God also bearing witness with them,
both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.
1Kgs.9:9 tells us that God sent Elijah to Zarephath, saying, behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.
And so she did. The story also tells us (by what is revealed) that God through Elijah empowered the widow to do so.
While this raising of the widow’s dead son benefited the widow, it was also a great blessing to Elijah.
The raising of this young son proved to be a direct and unequivocal CONFIRMATION from God that HE was with Elijah.
This event refines the faith of Elijah and helps prepare him for a difficult future confrontation with the prophets of Baal.
The main thrust of my sermon is to urge us to capture the bigger picture.
God loves us. He sees our plight. He hears our cries. He cares for us.
The 91st Psalm declares these words (Ps.91:1 & 4) - -
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty…
He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and a bulwark.
In Rom.15:4, the apostle Paul writes - -
For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction,
that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
Such stories as this one are FAITH-BUILDERS.
While it would be presumptuous to read and study them and assume that God will also deal with us
in precisely the same way, we can correctly conclude that God sees; God loves; He hears our cries and cares for us.
Whether it is Job or Jonah or Elijah, or some other ancient text - - the messages are consistent - - GOD IS WITH US!
