Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20031228.htm

1 AND 2 KINGS: ENJOYING GOD'S BLESSINGS IN AN APOSTATE ERA
Part XXXV: Enjoying God's Blessings To The DEGREE We Trust God's Word And Not Idols
(2 Kings 4:8-37)
  1. Introduction
    1. Failure to trust God fully often arises from a tendency to trust in some false idol besides God.
    2. However, clinging to false idols is never acceptable to God, especially for Christians, cf. 1 John 5:21!
    3. God will thus respond to this state of affairs by letting us face fiery trials that undermine the idol so we will trust in Him alone as is illustrated in the life of the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4:8-37:
  2. Enjoying God's Blessings To The DEGREE We Trust God's Word And Not Idols, 2 Kings 4:8-37.
    1. As a wealthy woman of the town of Shunem extended hospitality toward the prophet, Elisha, she came to appreciate his separation from evil idolatry in the land of Israel, 2 Kings 4:8-10:
      1. One day as Elisha was passing by the home of a wealthy woman in the town of Shunem, she sought to honor him by urging him to partake of her hospitality and eat with her family, 2 Kings 4:8a, 9a NIV.
      2. This proved to be such a blessing that this woman reguarly invited him to dine with her family, 4:8b.
      3. In so doing, she came to be impressed by Elisha's holiness, or separation from Israel's idolatry as a man of God, so she had a guest room built for Elisha in appreciation of his holiness, 2 Kings 4:9b-10.
    2. Elisha then sought to reward her hospitality and growth in appreciating God's holiness by promising her by God's Word what she really wanted but could not have -- a son by way of an aged husband, 4:11-16a:
      1. When Elisha asked what he could do to reward the woman, she refused any gift, 2 Kings 4:11-13.
      2. Elisha's servant told him she lacked a child and her husband was old, so Gehazi told Elisha of her culturally important need to have a child, and Elisha promised her such a child a year later by way of a miracle, 2 Kings 4:14-16a. ( Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament, p. 544-545)
    3. Though there was a Biblical precedent for this miracle in the birth of Isaac to elderly Abraham, the woman refused to trust God's promise by Elisha's word, fearing she would get her hopes up in vain, 4:16b.
    4. Being dissatisfied with such doubt, God corrected her unbelief by allowing a trial to occur that weeded out her degree of dependence on paganism, or unholiness that limited her trust in God, 4:17-36:
      1. In keeping with God's promise by Elisha's word, the Shunammite woman miraculously conceived through means of her aged husband and gave birth a year later to her firstborn son, 2 Kings 4:16, 17.
      2. However, dissatisfied with her UNBELIEF in God's promise of the son by Elisha's word, once the child had lived for a few years, God allowed her beloved son to die, 2 Kings 4:18-20.
      3. Facing her worst fear of being deprived of a son, with what faith in God she had, the woman placed the boy's body in Elisha's room in hope of a resurrection and went to get Elisha, 4:21-25a.
      4. Meanwhile, God kept Elisha from knowing of the boy's death so this woman could express her problem of doubt in God's Word: she thus complained to Elisha upon meeting him, saying she had all along doubted Elisha's promise of her having a son would really not come true, 2 Kings 4:25b-28.
      5. Elisha then sent Gehazi ahead with his staff to try to raise the boy the way a pagan magician might do to expose the futility of idolatry and reveal the need to believe God for help, 4:29-31; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, ftn. to 2 Kings 4:31. This act implies the woman's FAITH in GOD was LIMITED by the influence of paganism, an influence needing to be erased for her FAITH in GOD to GROW.
      6. The boy was raised by Elisha's FAITH, not by a pagan use of Elisha's staff: the lad's 7 sneezes depict God's work as His works in the Old Testament are often linked with the number 7, 2 Kings 4:32-36 (Ibid., B.K.C., O.T., p. 547-548; Ryrie, ftn. to 4:31; cf. 1 Kings 18:43; 2 Kings 5:10; Genesis 1 et al.).
    5. The woman responded to God's work to increase her faith in His Word and lessen her dependence on paganism, and so fell at his feet in respect for Elisha and bowed to worship Elisha's God, 2 Kings 4:37.
Lesson: When the Shunammite woman's FAITH in God's Word was LIMITED by the INFLUENCE of PAGAN PRACTICES, God DEVELOPED her FAITH in Him by letting her face a trial where PAGANISM was futile to help and ONLY FAITH in GOD could end the trial, Ibid., B.K.C.O.T., p. 546.

Application: (1) If we are tempted NOT to trust God's Word FULLY, may we REPENT lest God allow difficult trials that will GROW our faith! (2) If we are FACING such trials, may we cast away all other false idol crutches and hope in God and His Word ALONE to be blessed by Him! (Revelation 3:18a)