Elisha and the Multiplication Miracle

If I was to ask you the question, where in the Old Testament does it describe the miracle of the feeding of a multitude to the hands of one man, what would you say? Would you even know the answer to that question? Most people have no idea. But because you're here, you will know that it is Elisha. And what he does is foreshadow the feedings that Christ would perform, the feeding of the 5,000, the feeding of the 4,000 during his earthly ministry. So Elisha, the man of miracles, is an individual who foreshadows something that Christ himself would do, but is the only man in the Old Testament who feeds a multitude of people.

And as he foreshadows what Christ would do, he talks to us through the Scriptures about the sufficiency of our God and the dependency of man. That's why when the disciples came to the Lord and they asked him, Lord, teach us how to pray, John's disciples asked him to teach them how to pray. We want you to teach us how to pray. And he said, when you pray, you pray this way, our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. And then he says, and give us this day our daily bread.

Our Lord teaches us how to pray. Matthew 6, 9 to 13 is not so much a passage of Scripture that we are to recite as a prayer, although you can do that, and many people do do that. It goes way beyond just reciting some verses in a prayer. It's a pattern on how to pray. And every one of our prayers must be centered around that particular pattern, because Christ would take the time to teach his men a pattern on how to pray. Because in that element of the prayer is God and his glory preeminent, and then men and his needs.

And the order is significant. Unless God is placed in his proper arena in our own hearts, we can't go to him with the needs that we have every day. But once God is placed in that proper arena in our hearts, he's placed as the priority of our lives, then we know how to pray, how to go to him, and the all-sufficient God is the one that we depend upon to supply our daily bread. And the feeding of the 5,000, the feeding of the 4,000, and the feeding of the 100 in 2 Kings chapter 4 all talks to us about God's sufficient grace, as well as man's need to depend upon God for all things.

And so in three short verses, almost in obscurity, because if I was to ask you the question before this night, where in the Old Testament is there a man who feeds a multitude of people, most would not be able to answer that question. Most have no answer for that question, yet the Bible is very clear about that. And so you have this illustration, you have this miracle, you have this story that goes rather briefly through the account of Elisha, but speaks volumes for your life and mine as we begin to understand this man, this miracle working man, and how God uses him in the lives of these prophets, and how God takes a man, an unknown man, a man that has no name, he has a name, we just don't know what it is, and he is used by God in a very significant way for the glory of God's kingdom.

Let me read to you the scenario, 2 Kings 4 verse number 42, now a man came from Baal, Shalisha, and brought the men of God bread of the firstfruits, 20 loaves of barley, and fresh ears of grain in a sack, and he said, give them to the people that they may eat.

His attendants said, what, will I set this before a hundred men? But he said, give them to the people that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, they shall eat and have some left over. So he set it before them, and they ate and had left over according to the word of the Lord. I marvel at how in the simplicity of the words of Scripture, we see an incredible miracle take place once again in the life of this man, Elisha, and those around him. And as you recall, there's a famine in the land, it's a famine that's been going on for somewhere around seven years.

We know that from 2 Kings 8, we talked about that last time when there was a stew that was poisoned and Elisha healed that stew, for lack of a better phrase, and made it well, healthy. And so there was a famine in the land, it lasted some seven years, twice as long as the famine during the time of Elisha, which was three and a half years. So you can imagine what was happening in the land itself. Now we don't know when in those seven years this miracle took place, but we know there's a great famine in the land, and we know that the cupboards are bare.

We also know that the people in the land of Israel are suffering because of the famine in the land. And so God's going to do a great work. So three things I want you to see tonight, the bread from Baal Shalisha, okay, and then the grumblings of Gehazi, which is the attendant of Elisha, and then we're gonna look at the miracle of multiplication.

First of all, number one, the bread from Baal Shalisha. We don't know the man's name, so we're going to talk about where he was from. You must understand that contributions to the priests were something that Israel was required to do. Deuteronomy chapter 18 tells us these words. Verse 3, Now this shall be the priests do from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, either an ox or a sheep, of which they shall give to the priest the shoulder and the two cheeks and the stomach. You shall give him the firstfruits of your grain, your new wine and your oil, and the first shearing for your sheep.

For the Lord your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes to stand and to serve in the name of the Lord forever. So the tribe of Levi was a tribe that would live off the contributions of the Israelites. In the land of Israel at this time there had been a divided kingdom. There were ten tribes in the north, there were two in the south, and apostasy ruled the land. And because apostasy ruled the land, because of Baal worship, because of Jezebel, because of Ahab, Elijah remember was not able to eradicate what was taking place with all the Baal worship in his day, Elisha follows him.

And so now that Baal worship has multiplied and become even stronger and greater in the land. And so the priests themselves were defiled. The priests themselves were not doing their priestly duty. They were not leading people closer to God. They were leading people in Baal worship. They were people away from God. So this man, whoever he may be, decides that he wants to fulfill the spirit of the law. He doesn't want to fulfill the letter of the law because he doesn't want to give his first fruits to priests that are leading people away from God.

So he looks for the man of God, that's Elisha, to give to him, because in the depths of his soul, he wants to fulfill what God says.

He wants to do what is required of a devoted Israelite, which tells us that this man was committed to Jehovah God. Remember Elijah, when he had run away from Jezebel, had said to the Lord, I am the only one in Israel who loves you and follows you. And the Lord says, what are you talking about? I have 7,000 more that have yet to bow the knee to Baal. This is one of the 7,000. We don't even know his name, but he was devoted enough to his God that some way, somehow, he was looking for the opportunity to give of the first fruits of what he had.

And so he looked for the man Elisha. He was from the place called Baal Shalisha. You say, what is that? Well, Shalisha is north of Lydda and is in the plain of Sharon, but it was called Baal Shalisha because it was a town committed to the worship of Baal. And those towns that were totally entrenched in the idolatrous worship were named Baal whatever, and this happens to be Baal Shalisha, because the town was filled with pollution. It was filled with those who were committed to Baal worship, and yet in that town there was one man, one man, maybe there was more, but there was at least one man who was devoted to his God, and he knew what the law of God said, but he couldn't give of the first fruits of his increase to priests who were taking people away from God, to priests who did not lift up the Word of God as preeminent, to priests who would not honor the Lord God of Israel, but he knew there was a man who wanted God.

He was the man of God, Elisha, and so because of his devotion to the Lord, he wanted to honor the Lord. And you know what the Bible says, he who honors me, I will honor.

And in his effort to honor the Lord, he had no idea that the Lord would honor him by putting him in the text for people to read for hundreds, thousands of years. God honored him, because he truly wanted to honor the Lord with the first fruits of his increase, which also tells us this, that there was a famine in the land, and because there was a famine in the land, his crops were not a plenty.

And so very easily he could say, you know, I don't really have a lot to give, and so because I don't have a lot to give, I'll just bypass giving my first fruits to the Lord.

People do it all the time, you know. They lose a job, or they get cut back on their salary, and they say to themselves, well, you know, I don't have what I used to have, so I can't give to the Lord. Not this man. This man, in spite of the famine, in spite of the fact that he had very little, still wanted to give of the first fruits of his increase, because he was truly devoted to the Lord God of Israel.

You see, we look for excuses not to give. This man looked for excuses to give. He looked for opportunities to give, because he was completely devoted to his God, and he knew that there was a man of God. He knew about Elisha. He knew about the ministry of Elisha. He knew where Elisha was. He was in Gilgal, and so he had to go to him and find him. He had to take to him this bread, this grain, so that he could have something to feed those in the school of the prophets, because their cupboards were bare.

They had a struggle finding food as well, and so this man would go after them, and in spite of the prolonged famine, and maybe it was early on in the famine, maybe it was in the middle of the famine, maybe it was in the later years of the famine, but the more you got into the years of that famine, the more difficult it was to grow crops, the more difficult it was to give what you had away, because you didn't know how long the famine would last. You never knew what was going to happen next, and yet this man knew that he had to give.

This man knew that there was a man of God that had a need. He wanted to meet that need, and so in spite of the pollution in the land, in spite of the Baal worship in the land, in spite of everybody else committed to doing something else, he wanted to honor the Lord. You know, David said in 1 Chronicles chapter 22 verse number 14 that when he built the temple, he gave out of his affliction. Remember what Paul said of those in Macedonia. He says, Brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, 2nd Corinthians chapter 8, that in a great ordeal of affliction, their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality.

For I testify that according to their ability and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord, begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints. And this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.

They've given themselves to the Lord. So for them to give out of their affliction, out of their poverty, with great joy, only was a result of their commitment to their God. The same as this man in 2nd Kings chapter 4. He would give out of his poverty. He would give out of his affliction. Oh, it's one thing to give out of our affluence. It's another to give out of our affliction. And this man, knowing how bad things were in the land of Israel, both materially and spiritually, still had a desire to honor his God.

Still wanted to give in a way that would fulfill the law of God in Deuteronomy 18, to a man of God who upheld the Word of God, who preached the truth of God, and led people to the great Savior, the Lord God of Israel. And that's what he did. And so he would give the bread. He would give to the man of God in a very practical kind of way. And he gave of the first fruits of his increase.

It would have been easy for him to say, you know what, I'm gonna give, if I have any leftovers, I'll give it to the man of God. That's what most of us do. We want to give the leftovers to God. If I have enough to take care of my needs and my family, then I'll give what's left over to God. You know, God speaks about that, about those who give leftovers to him, in the book of Malachi. In the book of Malachi, he says very clearly these words. A son honors his father, and a servant his master. Then if I am a father, where is my honor?

And if I am a master, where is my respect? Says the Lord of hosts, O priests who despise my name. But you say, how have we despised your name? You are presenting defiled food upon my altar. But you say, how have we defiled you? In that you say, the table of the Lord is to be despised. But when you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and sick, is it not evil? Why not offer it to your governor? Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you kindly, says the Lord of hosts?

But now will you not entreat God's favor, that he may be gracious to us, with such an offering on your part? He will receive any of you kindly, says the Lord of hosts. Oh, that there were one among you who would shut the gates, that you might not uselessly kindle fire on my altar. I am not pleased with you, says the Lord of hosts, nor will I accept an offering from you. He says, for from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name will be great among the nations. And in every place incense is going to be offered to my name.

And a green offering that is pure for my name will be great among the nation, says the Lord of hosts. But you are profaning it, and that you say, the table of the Lord is defiled, and as for its fruit, its food is to be despised. You also say, my, how tiresome it is, and you disdainfully sniff at it, says the Lord of hosts. And you bring what was taken by robbery, and what is lame or sick, so you bring the offering. Should I receive that from your hand, says the Lord? But cursed be the swindler who has a male in his flock and vows it, but sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord.

For I am a great king, says the Lord of hosts, and my name is feared among the nations. And God goes on to say, if you do not honor my name, and the way you honor my name is to put me first.

And the way you honor my name is to give me the first fruits of your increase. The way you honor my name is not by giving me the leftovers, or that which is defiled, or that which you've thrown away, but you give me that which is your best. And if you don't give me that which is your best, he says in Malachi chapter 2, I'm gonna take the the dung from your sacrifices, and I'm gonna wipe it in your faces. Pretty nasty, isn't it? That's what God thinks of those of us who give not of our first fruits.

That's what God says. He's talking to the priests, he's talking to the religious leaders, he's talking to those who are to lead the way. And he goes on to say in Malachi chapter 2 verse 8, But as for you, you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by the instruction you have corrupted the covenant of Levi. Because of your leadership, you have turned the nation away from me. You have instructed them on how not to give, how not to honor me, how not to glorify me. You have led the way in what it means to despise the name of the Lord.

And this man, way back in 2nd Kings chapter 4, he wanted to give of his firstfruits. He wanted to give the best that he had. And so he would bring it to Levi, I mean to to Elisha, and say here, take this, feed those under your care with what I have. Which leads us to point number two, the grumbling of Gehazi.

Gehazi is the attendant of Elisha. We'll know more about him as time goes on because in the next lesson, with the healing of Naaman the leper, the captain of Syrian's army, you begin to see a lot about Gehazi, this attendant of Elisha. But he had some problems. He had problems with materialism. He had problems with the work of God. And so in his grumbling, it is inevitable, but it's also inexcusable. It's inevitable because whenever the work of God is going to flourish, there will always be those who grumble about the work of the Lord.

Look what happens. It says in 2nd Kings chapter 4, these words, now a man came from Baal, Shalisha, and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits, 20 loaves of barley, fresh years of grain in a sack. He said, give them to the people that they may eat. His attendant, this is Gehazi, said, what? Will I sit this before a hundred men? You've got to be kidding me. Now remember, these are not 20 loaves of bread. These are 20 bread cakes. Okay. So they're not very big. And there are a hundred men there in this facility.

And Gehazi says, you've got to be kidding me, Elisha. We're going to feed a hundred men with these bread cakes? And in doing so, he mocks Elisha. In doing so, he mocks the God of Elisha. He belittles the ministry of Elisha. But you know what? These kinds of people are inevitable in the church, in Christianity, because they're the ones who, when given the opportunity, will squelch the work of God. It should be inexcusable. Inexcusable. Why? Because he's already seen the miracles of God. He's already seen the Shunammite's son raised from the dead.

That's a pretty profound miracle. You would think that once he saw the boy raised from the dead, that giving 20 bread cakes to Elisha would be no big deal. You would think that this woman, who was barren, who now bore a child, which was a miracle in and of itself, he would have all the knowledge of knowing what Elisha can do, and he would have no second thoughts about, sure, Elisha, whatever you say, I'd be glad to do it.

That's not his attitude. Having been with Elisha, this man of miracles, and seen miracle after miracle after miracle, opportunity after opportunity, and God be glorified, he still lacked the faith to see what only God can do. He still doubted how God would use Elisha. How shameful. But Elisha would not be deterred. His enthusiasm would not wane. He would not say, yeah, you're right, I guess there's not much we can do here, is there? Sorry, guys, just take little snippets of it, hopefully you'll be okay.

But no, he believed in his God. Elisha was a man of God. And Elisha would not be deterred emotionally. His enthusiasm would be strong. He would be able to stand and say, no, you need to give it to them, place it before them, and the Lord will multiply it. There'll be so much that there'll be leftovers. This was Elisha's thinking. You know, in the church today, we have such a low view of God, such a low view of God. We really don't see the God of the scriptures. We read about him, but we don't view him as the supreme creator, the supreme holy God who is all-powerful, omnipresent, omniscient, knowing all, seeing all.

We have such a low view of God in the church. That's why there was grumbling in the church. That's why Gehazi grumbles. We'll see more of with the healing of Naaman, the Syrian captain in our next lessons. But his low view of God only caused him to complain and grumble to Elisha. What? Are you telling me to take these 20 cakes of bread, place them before a hundred men, and that will feed them? Elisha says, you got it. That's what we're going to do. That's what I need you to do. And so he does. I'm reminded of the story of the disciples.

Remember in Mark's gospel, the 14th chapter, it says in verse number one, now the Passover and unleavened bread were two days away.

And the chief priests and scribes were seeking how to seize him by stealth and kill him. For they were saying not during the festival, otherwise there might be a riot. And while he was in Bethany at the home of Simon the leper and reclining at the table, there came a woman with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume of pure nard. And she broke the vial and poured it over his head. Now this is Mary. We know that from John's gospel, because they're in Simon's home. And so she breaks the pure nard.

It says in verse four, but some were indignantly remarking to one another, why has this perfume been wasted? For this perfume might have been sold for over 300 denarii and the money given to the poor, and they were scolding her. Here was a woman who really wanted to give, who really wanted to honor the King in some way, somehow. And in doing so, she was ridiculed. In doing so, she was mocked. And if you read over in John's gospel, you realize that it was Judas. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples who was intending to betray him said, why was this perfume not sold for 300 denarii and given to poor people?

He was the instigator behind the other disciples, ridiculing Mary for her willingness to give and to honor her God. You know, whenever people set out to honor God, as this man did in second Kings chapter four, there will always be those who belittle the effort.

Man gave what he had. He gave of his first fruits. He didn't have much, but he gave what he had. And Gehazi in midst of this whole situation, mocks the man. You got to be kidding me. We can't feed these people with this amount of bread. And you can imagine what must have been going through this man's mind as he gave all that he had. It was a little, but the little became much because Elisha would multiply it according to the word of the Lord. So you move from the grumbling of Gehazi to the miracle of multiplication, very simply stated in scripture.

But he said that is Elisha give them to the people that they may eat for thus says the Lord. This is from the word of God. This is what God wants to have happen. They shall eat and have leftovers. So we said it before them, they ate and they had leftovers according to the word of the Lord, God supplied. It was done according to God's word. Elisha was a man of God. Elisha was a man in tune with God. Elisha knew what God wanted. Now, the unique thing about this is that they didn't know where their food was going to come from.

They had no idea. They were just as hungry as everybody else was. And yet God would use this man who is literally obscure to all people from a place that they would least expect there to come food to meet the needs of these people. You know, so many times we expect certain things to happen in certain ways, but God decides to do things completely different. So he takes a man. We don't know his name from a place that's filled with idolatry and immorality who's devoted to God to come and meet the need of Elisha in the school of the prophets.

He does. And it wasn't very much, but it was way more than was needed because God would take that which was little and multiply it over and over again to show how great his work is. He is the God. He is the one that demands we be dependent upon him, that we serve him, that we follow him, that we honor him. And Elisha was the man of God. That's why when he comes, he comes to the man of God. Again, he's mentioned as the man of God. That's how people saw Elisha, because he was the man in tune with God who obeyed the word of God.

And you would think that Gehazi would say, you know what, Elisha, I've seen you work. I know what God does in you. I'm going to trust what you can do. But no, he murmurs and he grumbles. And yet Elisha would not be deterred. He would not be set back. He would say, no, you need to give it to them. Because according to the word of the Lord, they're going to have leftovers. So Gehazi distributes the bread. As he distributes the bread, it's multiplied. And all of a sudden everyone is fed and there are leftovers.

We have no details to the miracle. We have no details to the meal. It's just simply stated because God wants you to know that when there's a need, he takes care of the need. Now, because this foreshadows what Christ would do in the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000. Remember there were leftovers in both feedings. In the feeding of the 5,000, there were 12 baskets. They're called kofinos because they were small little baskets in the shape of a coffin. And they were small because they would be used to carry a lunch.

In the feeding of the 5,000, there were 12 baskets left over for the 12 disciples. In the feeding of the 4,000, there were seven huge hamper-like baskets, big enough to put a man in and put a cover on it like they did when Paul would escape. When people were seeking to kill him, they put him in a basket and let him down over the wall. That's the kind of basket. They had seven baskets filled after the feeding of the 4,000. The question comes, we know why there's 12 baskets filled after the feeding of the 5,000, because each disciple would see the hand of God and the miracle of God.

In the feeding of the 4,000, you ask yourself the question, why are there seven baskets that are left over and filled? Do you know why? You should know why. Because in the location of the feeding of the 4,000, and those of you who've been to Israel with me have been to this location, it was on the border of the Decapolis, the 10 cities. But there were only seven cities in that location, seven Gentile cities in that direct location. And the filling of those seven baskets, it would be symbolic that Christ was not just the bread of life to the Jewish nation, because that took place in Bethsaida in a Jewish community.

He was also the bread of life for the Gentile nations. And the seven basket being the number of completion, his bread of life is so complete that it satisfies the needs of every man. But the feeding of the 5,000 is recorded in all four gospels. It's the only miracle that is. And there's a reason for that. Because whatever you don't learn from the feeding of the 5,000 is going to hinder how it is you live your life or don't live your life. So whatever lesson there is to learn from the feeding of the 5,000, you better learn it and learn it well.

Because if you miss the lesson of that feeding, the only miracle recorded in all four gospels, God wants you to get it. He wants you to understand it, because it's all about trusting God for daily provisions. And the point is this, if you don't trust God for your daily provisions, which let's be honest, most of us don't. We get up and cook breakfast. We get up and go out to lunch. We come home, the meal's prepared, it's right there. So for the most part, we don't necessarily trust God for our daily provisions.

But if you don't trust God for your daily provisions, you will not trust God in your difficult situations. How do we know that? Because in Mark's gospel and John's gospel, Matthew's gospel, Luke's gospel, the following story tells us. It tells us that Jesus, because the people were coming around him and they truly wanted him to feed them, he sends them away. He makes his disciples get into a boat to go ahead of him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he himself was sending the crowd away. And bidding them farewell, he left for the mountain to pray.

And when it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea. He was alone on the land, seeing them straining at the oars, for the wind was against him. At about the fourth watch of the night, he came to them walking in the sea and he intended to pass by them. But when they saw him walking in the sea, they supposed that it was a ghost and cried out. Now, why do you think they would suppose that Jesus was a ghost? Reason is because they weren't expecting Jesus to show up. It goes on and says this, for they all saw him and were terrified, but immediately he spoke to them and said to them, take courage.

It is I, do not be afraid. Then he got into the boat with them and the wind stopped and they were utterly astonished, for they had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves, but their heart was hardened. They had not gained any insight. They had not learned the lesson of the feeding of the 5,000. They did not take to heart what God was doing. And even when they made them get into the boat, everyone got into the boat with their little cofinos, their little basket. They got into the boat with their baskets.

They just took their baskets on the side of the boat. They took their baskets with them into the boat. And Jesus went up into the mountain to pray. But Jesus seeing them straining at the oars, knowing that there was a storm on the sea, came walking to them on the water. But they did not expect Jesus to show. Why? Out of sight, out of mind. He wasn't with them. So they didn't even think anything about him. And yet he showed up and he calmed the sea. This is the same story where Peter asked Christ to bid me to come out and let me walk on the water with you.

And Jesus says, come on out, Peter. And of course, then the wave comes. Someone said, look out, Peter, there's a wave. And he begins to sink. And he said, Lord, save me. And the Lord saves him. And they get into the boat together and he calms the sea. But they were astonished because they didn't learn from the incident of the loaves. What didn't they learn? They didn't learn about the sufficiency of the almighty God of the universe. They had a low view of God. They had a very low. And they were with God every day.

They watched miracle after miracle. They heard teaching after teaching. They saw the miracle working God every single day. But they had a low view of God, so low that when, when difficulty came, they didn't even expect him to show up. As if he would miss the opportunity to save his own. And yet the scriptures tell us because they did not learn the lesson in trusting God for daily provisions, they were unable to trust him amidst difficult situations. That is a life lesson that most people never learn.

That's a life lesson that most people, when they find themselves in hardship and pain and difficulty, they don't trust God because they don't expect God to show up because he didn't learn the lesson from the feeding of the 5,000. So when you have this story in the old Testament, the only one of its kind, the only other guy to do this is Elisha. And the Lord just uses three verses to speak of his all sufficient grace, his all sufficient power, and the need for us to live in dependence upon him, to make sure that God will take care of us at the right time, at the right place, with the right person, with the right gift.

If we don't learn the lesson of Elisha and the miracle of the feeding of the 100, we find ourselves in difficult situations. We don't trust the Lord. And so it's imperative that we not forget what Jesus teaches us. These men forgot. When you forget his sufficiency, you will fear your surroundings. They forgot his sufficiency. He had just demonstrated to them that day he could feed a multitude of people. And you know, it wasn't 5,000, it was more like 25,000. So he demonstrated his all sufficient power, but they forgot his sufficiency.

When you forget about the all sufficient God, you will always fear your surroundings, always, because you don't expect God to show up. We have a very low view of God. And because you fear your surroundings, you never focus on your savior. So when he walked to them, they thought he was just nothing but a ghost. You see, the Bible says these words, Psalm 50, verse number 15, call upon me in the day of trouble, and I shall rescue you, and you will honor me.

Call upon me in the day of trouble, I will rescue you, and you will honor me. Wouldn't it be good if the disciples remembered that verse? Because Psalm 50, verse number 15, was around when the disciples were around. Wouldn't it be good for them to remember to call upon the name of the Lord, so that he might rescue them, and they then honor him? But no, they didn't call upon the name of the Lord, because why? They had forgotten about his sufficiency. And because they had forgotten about his sufficiency, they feared their surroundings.

And so when the Lord shows up, even though they didn't call upon his name, they did not honor him. Instead, their hearts were hardened because they did not learn from the incident of the loaves. How many people in the church of Jesus Christ today, like the disciples, hearts are hardened because they do not learn the lesson of what God did yesterday, what God did in the past. We must learn those lessons, apply them to our lives. Listen to this, Psalm 5, verse number 11. Let all who take refuge in you be glad, let them ever sing for joy, and may you shelter them, that those who love your name may exult in you.

For it is you who blesses the righteous man, O Lord. You surround them with favor as with a shield. And then over in Psalm 34, this is so good. Listen to Psalm 34. It says, I sought the Lord. He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. I sought the Lord. He answered me and delivered me from some of my fears. No, it says he delivered me from all of my fears. It goes on to say, they looked to him and were radiant, and their faces will never be ashamed. The poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all of his troubles.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and rescues them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints. Know what the Bible says?

The Bible says those who fear him call upon him. And when they call upon him, he delivers them from all of their fears. Those who fear the Lord call upon him and he delivers them from all of their fears. It goes on to say this, for to those who fear him, there is no want. Wow, can you imagine that? To those who fear him, there is no want. For Elisha, he was a man who feared God. He was the man of God. He had no want because he lived in the fear of God. That's the way Elisha was. The young lions do lack and suffer hunger, but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.

Wow, can you imagine that? Those who fear, who seek the Lord, shall not be in want of any good thing. Why? Because they fear him. And with those who fear him, there is no want. They don't lack anything. Why? Because God is the all sufficient God of the universe. Listen, when you open the scriptures, you are to see one thing and one thing only, the God of Israel. That's it. Just the Lord God of Israel, in all of his splendor, in all of his glory. You can't open the scriptures and miss God. For if you go to the scriptures and you miss God, you miss the importance of scripture.

Scripture is to teach us about our God, how great, how marvelous, how kind, how loving, how just, how powerful, how wonderful he is. And when we learn those lessons, we don't forget about his sufficiency. We remember his sufficiency and we rejoice. We rejoice with hearts filled with joy because we know our God will take care of us. The lesson of the man from Baal Shalishar. I'm not sure what it would be for that place, but he was. And here was a man who came with just a little bit, but it was the best that he had because he wanted to give God his best.

And the way to give God his best was to fulfill Deuteronomy 18, the spirit of the law, and give it to the man of Israel who led people to God. And so he came bringing his gifts, having no idea if it was enough or not, having no idea what it would do, having no idea if anybody else had come and brought gifts. He had no idea. He just wanted to honor the Lord. And because he did, God honored him. God put him in the pages of scripture as a man solely devoted. One of those 7,000 that had not bowed the knee to Baal and Elisha sees the man, sees the gift, and God speaks to Elisha and God speaks to Gehazi and gives the lesson for all those hundred men in front of him.

My God, the God of Israel shall supply all your needs according to his riches and glory. Let me pray with you.

Father, we're grateful for today. We're grateful for the word of God. We're grateful, Lord, for how you allow us to study it, to see the King in all of his splendor and glory. Our prayer is that we would learn the lesson of the feeding of the 100 men and that, Lord, we would take it to heart and realize, Lord, that you are an all-sufficient God. Your sufficiency should always lead to our dependency upon you, that no matter what the necessity, our God is sufficient to call upon you in the day of trouble, and you will deliver us from every one of our fears.

And we will learn to fear you. You will answer, and we will honor you. May that be our desire this night. May we be men and women who want to honor you as our King. The man from Baal, Shalishar, wanted to honor you as his God, and you honored him. May we do likewise. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.