Dr. Craig M. Jenkins, Pastor

Sunday School

 

Blessed for Faithfulness
1 Kings 17:8-16
Lesson 7  October 13, 2019

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The Lord sent Elijah to Zarephath, near the city of Sidon, where God said a widow would be there to feed him. There are three significant factors about this destination:

· Sidon is in Jezebel's home country and her Father was King there. The Lord chose to hide Elijah in this land even though one of his greatest enemies was, no doubt, Jezebel.

· With the drought in full progress, it was unlikely a poor widow would have enough to sustain any additional people. This would be an opportunity to demonstrate the power of God to the widow.

· The Sidon area was inhabited by Gentiles, so Elijah's faithfulness and trust in the Lord would in effect make him a prophet to the Gentile woman and her son.

Because of these three factors, Elijah could have argued that there were many other safer and more prosperous locations for him to go. But he showed faith in God's judgment and went to where the Lord had sent him. While God was testing Elijah's faith, Elijah was teaching the widow woman what it meant to have faith in the Lord.

At first, the widow woman objected to Elijah's request for food and water (1 Kings 17:12), but he told her to not be afraid to do as he had asked. He assured her the Lord would provide for them (1 Kings 17:14). God did provide for them and they continued to eat for many days.

God didn't provide them with a 7-course meal each day, but He did provide for their needs ... against all odds. Sometimes we should remember that the Lord knows what we need even better than we do. Therefore, we should always be grateful for the blessings He sends us. As Paul said in Philippians 4:19: "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

 
 Based on First Baptist Church of Chattanooga, TN

Submitted by Donna Reed

 
 
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Beth Eden Baptist Church