Holy Meets Humble

God feeds and leads. He heals and reveals. He is on high and holy but comes near the humble and contrite. 

“Elijah…said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Leave here, turn eastward…So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat…and he drank from the brook. Some time later the brook dried up…the word of the Lord came to him: “Go at once to Zarephath in the region of Sidon and stay there. I have directed a widow there to supply you with food.” So he went…she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.” Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home…She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the Lord spoken by Elijah.” 1 Kings 17:1-16

There are several ways that you can look at the stories in this chapter. You could see how uncertain life is and how following God is not a piece of cake.  It is not a walk in the park nor is it without times of uncertainty. Imagine how you would’ve felt if you were Elijah and God said go east and birds are going to feed you.  Would you not have been like, what? That doesn’t sound like a good plan. 

After some time, the time comes for Elijah to go again. God’s always got more for us. He sends him to a woman who is down to her last dime and preparing her last meal. Elijah said don’t worry God will provide. Is it possible the time Elijah spent being fed by ravens might have prepared him to be the best person to encourage her to trust God, even when she cannot see how everything will work out? By faith our tests become our testimonies.  What lessons can you learn from these stories? How could they help bring you comfort? 

“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” Psalms 8:1-9

Two very important questions emerge from David’s song. Who is God? Who am I? David said God is the Maker.  David said He is high in the heavens yet sees the lowly. God is both near and far. He is all powerful and ever present. He is the Creator but not done creating. Do you need to expand your view of God? 

David said you are a caretaker. You are a steward.  You are crowned with glory that you might govern what God gives you. Our world has a very interesting perspective on possessions. Possessions can produce pride and reduce trust in God. We were never meant to be possessors. 

Possessions possess your heart. They change how you think. They can create barriers to love and allow the enemy a hold on our hearts. How often are you afraid because you fear losing what you have or not having enough? We are called to be stewards of what God owns. Do you see all you have as yours or God’s?

“if you accept my words and store up my commands…turning your ear to wisdom and applying your heart to understanding…if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding  …you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you. Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men…Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman…Surely her house leads down to death …None who go to her return or attain the paths of life.” Proverbs 2:1-22

Do you realize you were made to know God? Every one of your senses was given to you by God so that you could see how He is working, seek Him with all your heart, hear how He speaks and be aware of His presence. 

Pay attention to the verbs at the beginning. Accept, store, turn, apply, look, search. These are action words that require intentionality. Solomon did not say sit back and do nothing. He did not say reject, ignore, stay, skip, blind, relax. Are your choices leading you to where God is calling? In the Kings passage both Elijah and the widow heard and obeyed. 

Solomon clearly said that not every path will take you to peace. He warned against allowing your heart to love anything more than God and of following people who twist the truth. Solomon said discretion protects you. Your ability to discern and choose is what determines the direction of your life. How is your faith walk? Is the path marked by peace? 

“When you cry out for help, let your collection of idols save you! But whoever takes refuge in me will inherit the land and possess my holy mountain.” For this is what the high and exalted One says— he who lives forever, whose name is holy: “I live in a high and holy place, but also with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite. I was enraged by their sinful greed…they kept on in their willful ways. I have seen their ways, but I will heal them; I will guide them and restore comfort…creating praise on their lips. Peace, peace, to those far and near,” says the Lord. “And I will heal them.” But the wicked are like the tossing sea…There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.” Isaiah 57:13-21

David demonstrated a contrite heart with the humility in which he approached God. He praised the majesty of God and he humbled himself by asking who am I that you are mindful of me. Truth tells us that humility honors God and unlocks healing. God reinforced that message through Isaiah when He said He would comfort the contrite.

God is so different than we are. He does not give up on people. He does not stop caring or calling out with compassion.  He sees and knows that we are not perfect. Yet He pursues us. He said I will heal, I will guide, I will restore, and I will create praise. The people in this passage who cannot find healing are those who twist the truth. 

God is spirit and truth and does not heal the dishonest. Have you humbled yourself before the Almighty today? Will you be honest with the state of your heart and how your ways align with God’s so you can find healing? 

“One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets…he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees…complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Luke 5:1-39

The same God who fed Elijah with ravens and built the stars in the sky is the God who stepped into Peter’s boat and called Levi from his table. All through His Word, God is speaking, providing, and guiding. The question is whether we will hear Him, seek Him, and trust Him enough to move. Elijah went. The widow obeyed. Peter lowered the nets. Levi got up. None of them could see everything that was coming, but each was blessed by their obedience.

Maybe your brook has dried up, maybe your jar is almost empty, maybe you have worked all night and washed your nets. Do not let what you do not have or do not see keep you from believing in what God can do. 

Seek His wisdom. Pursue His presence. Listen for His voice. Humble your heart and be honest about where you are. God will feed, lead, and provide for your needs in your time of need. Each day the widow had to go back to the jar and each day God provided more. We were made for daily dependence on God. 

Your season of uncertainty may even be preparing you to bring faith and encouragement to someone else. Don’t miss how God used the drying up of the brook to help Elijah bring life to the widow. Don’t miss how Jesus used the fishing expedition to turn Peter from fisherman to fisher of men. The place where you are most tested will become the testimony that helps someone else trust God. 

The point of the message is not that you need to be stronger but that now is the time to see the majesty of God and seek Him. Jesus is the Savior. He does the heavy lifting as we learn what it means to follow Him. Where is He asking you to go deeper, loosen your grip, or leave something behind? As much as you want to know all that is coming, you do not need to know every step. You just need an ears open enough to hear His voice and heart humble enough to do what He says.