“Then the word of the Lord came to (Elijah), saying, 9. ‘Arise and go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.”
Elijah is one of the most dynamic and interesting prophets in the Old Testament. In 1Kings 16, he got in trouble with King Ahab, and his wicked pagan wife, Jezebel. God led him away from Israel and the wicked king and queen, to the Brook Cherith. It was there that he was fed by ravens, and that he drank from the brook. Because of the drought that Elijah had predicted that got him in trouble in the first place, the brook dried up. So God sent Elijah to Zarephath. Zarephath was in Sidon, Gentile territory, and the home place of the wicked queen Jezebel. Elijah might have asked God, “What are you thinking? This is enemy territory.” The point that I am making here is that Elijah went to Zarephath and ministered to the widow there who was down to her last meal. Elijah had some qualities that we need if we would obey God, even when He puts us in hard places. What did it take, that we need, for Elijah to go to Zarephath? It took faith for Elijah to go to Zarephath. In Hebrews 11:1, faith is described as: “…the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” When Elijah was commanded to go to Zarephath, he did not know what awaited him there. He had to go there and do what God told him to do. The nature of faith has not changed. When God gives us a command to do His will, it will take faith in Him to do it. Faith and trust are the same thing. We have to trust God in order to serve Him in good times and bad. The times in which God has placed us are not altogether friendly toward followers of Jesus Christ. It takes faith for us to serve God in our day. We can use Elijah’s faith as an example as we serve God in these trying times. By faith, Elijah knew that he did not go to Zarephath alone, for God was with him – as He is with us. Take heart and live by faith. It took an obedient spirit for Elijah to go to Zarephath. Courageous faith and obedience go together. Elijah could have been concerned about his own safety and refuse to go to Zarephath. He could have told God that he felt safe there in the wilderness at the Brook Cherith, and even though the water had run out, he still might have clung to his place of safety. We have “Brook Cheriths” in our lives, and we do not want to venture away from them. But, like in Elijah’s time, there is a lost and needy world out there that needs what we have to offer in Jesus. The widow at Zarephath represents the world to which we are called to witness and minister. They might not be as physically destitute as she was, but they need Jesus. If we cease to believe this, we cease to believe in the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20. The Lord wants and needs obedient servants to go to the lost world, the world that is getting more and more hostile to the Gospel. Like Elijah, we need to trust and obey. It took dedication to the will of God for Elijah to go to Zarephath. In his faith and obedient spirit, Elijah simply had to do the will of God. It is difficult for us to understand that God’s will does not always lead us to happy and safe places. We have an idea about where we want to go and what we want to do. It is great when God leads us to where we want to go to do what we want to do. However, it is possible that God will lead us to places more difficult than we think we should go. We might think that the place he is leading us is too difficult for us to witness and minister, but, like Elijah, we need to remember that if God leads us there, He will be with us and He will lead and guide us even in the difficult tasks. The difficult place might be in the church where you are a member, at the place where you work, or even in your own home. Whatever the difficulty, we need to do the will of God. God/Jesus wants us to be people of faith with obedient spirits and dedicated to doing His will. This means you and me. Bro. Joe
1 Comment
Margaret M Jones
8/27/2015 03:52:47 am
May I always be obedient to God
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