September 11, 2024
Seek First the Kingdom of God -- Part 3
1 Kings 17:12-14
09/11/2024
12 And she said, ``As the LORD your God lives, I have
nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar
and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering
a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it
for myself and my son, that we may eat it and
die.''
13 And Elijah said to her, ``Do not fear; go and do
as you have said. But first make me a little cake
of it and bring it to me, and afterward make
something for yourself and your son.
14 For thus says the LORD the God of Israel, `The jar
of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil
shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD
sends rain upon the earth.''' (ESV)
The prophet Elijah, trusting in God's promise to care for
his needs through the hands of the widow in Zarephath, asked the
woman to bring him water and a morsel of bread.
And she said, ``As the LORD your God lives, I have
nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a
little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of
sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and
my son, that we may eat it and die.'' And Elijah said
to her, ``Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But
first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me,
and afterward make something for yourself and your son.
For thus says the LORD the God of Israel, `The jar of
flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not
be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon
the earth.'''
The widow was at the end of her resources. Due to the
drought, due to the death of her husband, she had no ability to
continue to feed her son or herself. As a last act of
desperation, she would bake a final loaf of bread, share it with
her household, and quietly prepare to starve to death.
Elijah called the widow to act in faith, to seek first the
kingdom of God, to love the Lord and trust in Him above all
things. He told her of God's plan to preserve her and her
family.
May our Lord grant us faith to trust in His promises,
especially as we are in times of trouble and distress. Amen.