Digging Ditches
Notes
Transcript
RECAP LAST WEEK
9 So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom set out. After they had traveled their indirect route for seven days, they had no water for the army or the animals with them.
10 Then the king of Israel said, “Oh no, the Lord has summoned these three kings, only to hand them over to Moab.”
11 But Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord here? Let’s inquire of the Lord through him.” One of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat, who used to pour water on Elijah’s hands, is here.”
12 Jehoshaphat affirmed, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went to him.
Elisha has just become the main man for Israel
3 Kings in this story coming together to fight against an enemy. They expected to win but it wasn’t going as they planned. And now they were in a situation that seemed un-winnable that they didn’t expect.
Stuck in the desert now and they are out of water.
They march 7 times hoping it will help and finally decide do give God a try. DON’T WE DO THAT?
Elisha is called on to help. He had sone a miracle a chapter earlier where he made some polluted water and makes it drinkable. Then he is being made fun of by kids for being bald. Calling him baldy. And he calls on bears to come attack and kill them. So don’t make fun of bald people.
The kings are so far from seeking God that they don’t even know Elisha’s name and that he’s taken over. They call on him like “Hey isn’t there something that you can do?”
HAVE YOU EVER HAD ONE OF THOSE MOMENTS? WHERE YOU HAVE SUCH A NEED THAT YOU ARE FORCED TO TURN TO GOD?
A great need can be a good thing because it can lead you to God
A great need sometimes can be the best thing that ever happened to us because it leads us to depending on God like we never would have before. You can actually look back and thank God for that lonely time, that hard time, that painful time
13 However, Elisha said to King Joram of Israel, “What do we have in common? Go to the prophets of your father and your mother!” But the king of Israel replied, “No, because it is the Lord who has summoned these three kings to hand them over to Moab.”
Elisha is kinda like “Oh so now you want God” you’ve tried everything else now you’re interested. Get’s kinda sassy with them. Elijah did the same thing he once was challenging these people to call on their false God and nothing happens so he tells them their God must be in the bathroom maybe they need to shout later.
God is so much greater than anything you try to replace him with in your life. To get towards that GREATER life you have to first realize that God is greater than anything.
2 Kings 3:13 (CSB)
But the king of Israel replied, “No, because it is the Lord who has summoned these three kings to hand them over to Moab.”
14 Elisha responded, “By the life of the Lord of Armies, before whom I stand: If I did not have respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I wouldn’t look at you; I would not take notice of you.
15 Now, bring me a musician.” While the musician played, the Lord’s hand came on Elisha.
everyone is about to die in the desert… and you want a musician… This was common though. Prophets would often have someone come and play music while they would call on God.
They were hoping for “GOD IS BRINGING THE RAIN”. God’s gonna make it happen. This is how we want God to work right? We pray and we ask God to do something and we want it done. PUT EXAMPLES HERE OF THINGS WE WANT GOD TO DO IMMEDIATELY
INSPIRATIONAL MESSAGE WITH MUSIC ILLUSTRATION
16 Then he said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Dig ditch after ditch in this wadi.’
They wanted a shortcut to the miracle. BUT GOD IS NOT A SHORTCUT. HE’S THE SOLUTION NOT A SHORTCUT TO THE SOLUTION. If all we want from God is things, that’s idolatry that’s not worship.
Miracles are not magic tricks and faith isn’t a lottery ticket. Faith is a work order. YOU NEED RAIN… DIG A DITCH.
YOU WANT HIM TO BLESS YOU FINANCIALLY? PUT HIM FIRST IN YOUR FINANCES AND GIVE. GIVE GENEROUSLY.
It’s hard when you get inspired to trust God and see him do what he can do but then you feel like you have to go back to the real world
“GOD IS GONNA HEAL YOUR FAMILY AND YOUR KIDS ARE GONNA BE WORLD CHANGERS” And then you go home and they are arguing and punching each other over an iPad
17 In the same way faith, if it does not have works, is dead by itself.
ONLY GOD CAN MAKE IT RAIN BUT HE WANTS ME TO DIG A DITCH
In a valley, tired, thirsty, already sore from all this walking, and now God says the solution is to dig for rain that you’re not even sure is gonna come
That’s faith. Beyond inspiration but actually start participating in what God is wanting to do. A lot of people don’t see greater things because they think God isn’t moving but the truth is if you wont move God wont move.
God want’s people to participate in what he’s doing.
One time Jesus told a man to stretch out his hand to be healed. He could have healed him without all that. But he wanted faith.
WE ARE ALL FOR SEEING GOD MOVE AND DO WHAT WE NEED HIM TO DO UNTIL WE FIND OUT WHAT WE MAY HAVE TO DO
I want a good marriage but i’m not willing to date the right people and have a high standard.
I want to be financially stable but i’m not willing to work hard and put God first in that area and start tithing
I want New Purpose kids to be an amazing place that’s reaching so many kids and telling them about Jesus, which it is, but i want it to continue to grow but i’m not willing to volunteer in NPC kids… … …
I want my kids to know Jesus but we only come to church 2 out of 6 weeks…
JESUS ONE TIME WAS GONNA FEED 5000 BUT FIRST HE HAD THEM BE SEATED SO THEY WERE READY TO RECEIVE THAT MIRACLE
THERE’S A PART ONLY GOD CAN DO BUT THERE’S A PART THAT YOU ARE MEANT TO DO
WHEN IT COMES TO FAITH, AND ASKING GOD TO MOVE, WE PREPARE AND PREPARE FOR SOMETHING THAT WE KNOW WE CANNOT DO
STARTING NEW PURPOSE CHURCH
I CANNOT DO THIS ONLY GOD CAN, AND SO I PREPARED FOR SOMETHING I KNEW I COULDN’T MAKE HAPPEN
DIGGING A DITCH LEAVES A SPACE FOR GOD TO FILL
17 For the Lord says, ‘You will not see wind or rain, but the wadi will be filled with water, and you will drink—you and your cattle and your animals.’
18 This is easy in the Lord’s sight. He will also hand Moab over to you.
19 Then you will attack every fortified city and every choice city. You will cut down every good tree and stop up every spring. You will ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
20 About the time for the grain offering the next morning, water suddenly came from the direction of Edom and filled the land.
I don’t know what rain you need and what ditch you need to dig
BUT YOU KNOW WHAT’S NOT MENTIONED ONCE IN HERE? How hard it was to dig the ditch. Of course it was hard. It was probably awful. Why is that? Because afterwards, the glory of what God did, was so much greater than the sacrifice it took for them to see it happen.
ILLUSTRATION OF MUSIC PLAYING UNDERNEATH ME SPEAKING
You’re gonna go home and you can’t take the music home with you.