Lessons from the Book (Elijah) || MAPONGA J III

in the book of first Kings chapter 1 versus first Kings chapter 17 verses 1 to 7 we find the story beautiful story of a man Ella here a light job if some might call him or L yeah or le yah Elisha and this man was a tishbite as we learn a prophet in his own time and prophets have a very interesting life which we find outlined for selves in the greater Bible text itself prophets are called of God their mission is complicated because it looks like when Yahweh God calls them into ministry there seem to be extracted away from their comfort zone and given a mission this mission becomes very controversial because constantly the Prophet is at war with a political system he is at war with the religious system the reason why God raises a prophet is because the two institutions that are running the community justice for the poor that is in the department of the kings and the worship of the people would have been going astray therefore prophets have never come as friends of the institution's prophets have never come as friends of the Kings constantly when you read throughout the prophets from Elijah to Isaiah to Jeremiah Ezekiel and Daniel was there and the rest of them you would find this interesting tug of war between the dust says the Lord and what the community wants to hear it is not interesting to note that even at a moment when the nation is going astray and the nation is going through a religious downfall that the people who are running the system if you read The Book of Jeremiah for example it gets very exciting that the kings of the time then gather themselves other prophets now there is a true prophet that is called of God and then you have these other prophets who are in the shadows who have been paid for their gospel who are being managed for their communication in their truth and when Jeremiah had said the Lord is saying this that a false prophet would resurrect on the side and say no no no what Jeremiah is saying is not right this is what the Lord is saying so you find in the atmosphere of truth there is always lies and Liars who are being paid to speak a contrary message to what the Lord would have said the only acid is in the final recipe when what the prophet has said comes to pass and what the false prophets have said has fallen aside but the dangerous part is people want to gather to themselves those will speak what the Itchy is are prepared to hear then you can hear Paul in the New Testament shouting and lacerating the people for the same reasons that in the last days you shall have people who are not interested in truth people who have been led astray and the Lord has sent upon them the power of delusion in the book of Thessalonians that they begin to believe a lie and they gather to themselves in our modern days they gathered themselves pastors they gathered themselves elders they gather to themselves people and systems that simply tell the people what their itching is are prepared to hear the question is when you go to a church and you go to a spiritual person and the person tells you what you eating ears are prepared to hear why would you waste your time listening to someone who is talking to the wind and they've never spoken to the Lord Himself take note that truth therefore is not a friend of anybody truth is not a friend of the system truth is not a friend of the church truth is not a friend even of individuals it is a two agents word in the book of Hebrews chapter 4 there is a two-edged sword 4:13 it cuts and divides even the perception and the thinking's and the emotions and the motives behind the motifs the word of the Lord cuts and divides in terms of the human are not to me itself therefore included spoken it is a two-edged 840 to cut me as a preacher he do also cut you as a member for truth is not a friend to either me or you truth stands alone and I've had many people in life making a huge blunder I'm here to defend the truth I'm here to defend the truth shut up and listen for a little while you don't need to defend the truth the truth can defend itself when you hear that your house is on fire you don't need to go into a house to redeem your God run for your life your God will protect you and we finally on this passage here a prophet Elijah called for a difficult time in the bed drop of his story you'd find a few chapters behind this the King I have it actually slaughtered an innocent man called neighbor for the purpose of his field he wanted to convert there the field of vines and make it into a vegetable garden but also is exciting there another day I might want to come back here never small e27 about that who has come onto your farm and once you remove the long term plans and planned on it short term vegetables imagine you want to destroy a heritage for a seasonal plant it takes 10 11 12 years for you to harvest good grades on a good vine and you want to remove these long sustainable crops because you want plant vegetables so now both his butchered bodies cut down and a body is killed and the king takes over a field that does not belong to him in the bedroom of that Elisha comes up with a word challenging the king on this on this particular issue Jezebel plays a trick on and he begins to she begins to cook a whole story and positions the political system to fight directly against the religious prophetic word that Elijah had said my word for all the people who are standing for the truth my word for those who are proclaiming the way of God without contamination you will not go without challenging this system and every time you challenge the system you better know that it is time for your life to be held ransom and your life is at stake immediately after Elijah had concluded the conversations with a greater King Ahab himself who had married Jezebel most complicated woman you can ever imagine we actually hear from the word she was the queen of make up and no I'm not talking about modern ladies I'm talking about an old woman queen of make up long nails and etc she was the high priestess in the temple of of Beryl herself and you you marry such a woman you know that she is gonna become a husband in your wife and drive your own agendas first Father's was struggling on that corner and the Lord comes up to Elisha and said there is trouble now trouble is caused by the word please run away from where you are move away from the place where you are walk away mr. Tisch bye to the tishbite go down to Gilead for a hub and his wife are not pleased with what you are doing the Lord of God of Israel as long as he leaves you need to stand up now and walk to a place that I will show you every time God places you in a situation why not about the consequences do what is right leave the consequences with God and here you find something that while you are busy fighting your battles on this side God is in the business of organizing another alternative organizing a refuge plan for you while you are doing his work don't you see some relationship right there that when you focus at doing what is right you leave and give God an opportunity to do what you can do for you you find on the passage God had actually planned a holiday resort in isolation away from everybody else into the thickets and the Bible is beautiful for it places before us that I have prepared for you a place in the wilderness and in the wilderness there we need depart from here God is to what I like that part or so is to what seems to be the place where the Sun is coming from eastward seems to be wait is all starting and the Lord says let's move from this place let's go east what the other time I saw this word eastward was in the book of Genesis where many people have dilly-dallied around that vest but after going through some Hebrew texts I was comforted for the Barbuda actually says God created Eden and he put a garden east of eden no tech note that Eden is established but east of eden that's where he puts the garden and he put Adam and if they're the question therefore his where is Eden many people are still arguing even in the 21st century but they don't know where Eden is in the midst of looking for Eden they argue about the garden which was found East of Eden I'll help you those people who argue from this platform seems to be mixed with the foolishness and stupidity because the Bible is clear on the rivers that were flowing in Eden they know where the rivers are but the deliberate they want to ignore where the Garden of Eden was I'll make it easy for you the River Nile begins right here in Uganda and is the only river that flows in the opposite direction in the whole world 3700 kilometers watering the entire desert into Ethiopia and Egypt finally pouring into the Mediterranean Sea so we know where the River Nile is how can we doubt what was East of Eden Africa therefore is Eden there you have it East once and the other place I found the word East appearing also it's in the book of Genesis after the children of Abraham had grown old Sarah had died Abram had married another wife by the name of keturah then the Bible says Abraham then says these children of keturah I don't want them to share in the inheritance of Isaac he gave them Myra he gave them frankincense he gave them gold he sent them to East Oh another one amazed what happens in the East the next time you see people coming from the east it is in the book of Matthew where near schewe is born in a manger in Bethlehem of Judea and the black book says they followed a star aha from the east those who want to do research say the wise men of the east what did they bring frankincense Maira and gold what did Abraham give them he gave them gifts frankincense gold and myrrh and we still don't know who are the wise men from the east or make it easy for you when you study this east toward the movement is another study for another day for those who might want to plow their minds to understand there is something about this concept of they moved eastward and as Elijah moves to the east they he must hide himself and the Lord says you're going to hide yourself by cherries I've prepared for you a brook you know I've prepared for you a stream I have pledged for you resources I have placed water there you know beautiful the abundance of many other things that you may need the Lord knows exactly what would sustain you in the wilderness we are not told much about this Brook where it started where it ended but some ways somehow the Lord in His grace had caused the ground to have this stream of water flowing in the wilderness and they're allowing Elijah to park right there when you have done what is right the resources that you need will be right next to you you don't believe what I say ask Moses only when he gets to there to the Red Sea there the provisions are there it is opened only when they get into the desert their momma is waiting for them only when they cry out to the Lord for water there the river is opened and the rocks opened up and water is given ask Abraham what is doing on top of the mountain there look behind you the lamb has always been there ask Elijah with his servant these soldiers are all around us and the verses open up your eyes greater more are with us than those that are with where they there they are constantly available but away from the visibility of the human eye sometimes when you get into troubles stop praying for things that are far away from you pray that the Lord will open up your eyes for when your eyes are opened that which has always been available in the spiritual realm manifests itself in the physical realm so we don't know whether this Brook was a real physical group or it was a spiritual group but all I know is that a physical man could leave in the proximity of the Providence of the divine grace just when you thought Elijah only had water to drink something miraculous happens and I think that's where the crux of my conversation would be driving towards and here you find that when he was there by the brook you drink from the brook hear the word drink from the brook and the Lord says I will feed you I will feed you as I'm talking right now we're going through a crisis around the whole globe this greater Corona issue blessed are those who are being directed by the Lord wherever you are your supplies are going to be constant that which you are looking for the law to provide for you something miraculous happened of all the beds I know I happen to have grown up in the village by the way right in the village of mzingo they downtown in the sticks heading cattle and etc there is notorious beds we call ravans Makunga whoa Amala by the day they every time I see people putting on black suits and white white shirts and reminded of a mama by mama by these Ravens and is it not true that sometimes the uniform of the people actually tells you of their character but these these these Ravens in black and white I'm greedy Birds Bette's you-you-you don't know these beds until you have put your meat outside and stuff and these beds will come even on the flames and grab a piece of meat and run away these are the beds that will will steal and cause chaos they are naturally scavengers they don't drop anything they fight for everything and they fight for food and you look back and in your theological mind you torture yourself and say there are clean birds like doves you know pigeons beautiful birds that are like ducks you know gentle peacocks you know beautiful birds that seem to have an hour of grace around them but the Lord in his in his in his miracles which I might want to call in his own mischief he does not go for the team you know he goes for their for the greedy for their hungry for the violent for the dead prayers which scavenged all bush eating things that you cannot talk about and the Lord in His grace again the manna story comes in the Book of Elijah with a different texture altogether we are not surprised by now by the time we get the book of Kings in the baking skills of God and I know some of us want to put too much Christianity in passages and we just mess up some good passages and the power says the Lord was supplying the Israelites with manna every morning and I don't know but my inquisitive mind does not want just to accept manna is manna I want to walk into the presence of God I want I want to speak to the chief chef in the house I want to speak to to the one who is mixing the flour I want to hear the ingredients that are going into the flour I want to peep into the ovens of heaven I want to see them baking the and I want to see angels standing in line collecting trays golden trees full of mana I want them to mound up on their wings and fly down to the desert and placing the manna on the ground I know many preachers simply want to run now we ain't said well mana fell from heaven mana fell from heaven the way mana would fall like rain falls like the Lord just as a they are they are there's some food for you no man God is a gentleman I don't think God would for our food with children let's give him some dignity and I would come in and place and for me that becomes like another ouch moment he is manna from the invisible flying through the invisible space and at the moment when they reach where the people are that which is invisible is translated into that which is visible and that is manna every morning and the Israelites would come every morning and grab this meal hot from the ovens of heaven people don't stop sinning even when they have eaten a dad from the tables of grace human nature is complex because sinfulness is s sickness that sits in the DNA of human nature in a similar context Elisha we are not told much all we hear is that the Ravens would fly around we don't know whether these Robins stole this bread from someone's of it we don't know that they have Ravens cooked it we don't know if it was placed in their mouths we don't know if they picked up stones and God converted them into bread we don't know what happened all we know is that by the time the Ruffins arrived where Elijah was they were carrying pieces of bread tech note Ravens don't donate their food but in the hands of Yahweh in the hands of God even the most unspeakable the greediest amongst us will give supplies in this isn't revenge will feed you in this season the most unexpected will happen in this season the grace of the Lord will be your supply don't lose heart don't judge don't be too judgmental and you measure God it would make a mess in life sometimes because we've written a requirement sheet for the Lord but okay if God is going to help me this is how he must help me this is when he must help me these are the kind of people the kind of birds that must supply my food and when the Lord sometimes changes his method of working from the modus operandi the regular to the modus vivendi the irregular many Christians get disillusioned I mean let's talk about it if you hear that Elijah in your church board was eating food that was coming out of the mouths of the Ravens I believe some theologians amongst us would have a good story for Saba school to question the cleanliness of the beds because in the Book of Leviticus chapter 11 we are told about the clean beds and then clean beds and Peter in the book of Acts reminds the Lord that I cannot eat that which is unclean and then some son is told do not eat food that has come out of a dead lion so we can actually create some good theology and put these things together and you can look up at God and say unclean totally unacceptable you should have found a better method should have found a better bird to bring up the food here so that the prophet of the Lord can eat don't be in a hurry the twelve spies of Israel did not sleep in the temple they slept in the house of a prostitute unpredicted regular they slept in a brothel yes you had me they slept in a brother when rabbit saw them she was not seeing men of God she saw clients clients who had come to town for business 12 of them she had a house for them to keep them for the night out of a hospitality business grace visited a she becomes a great mother of Jesus that's a story for another day II regular methods of assisting your people the death of the Messiah who carries the cross never heard of a boom Simon Simon of Arimathea II regular appearances of grace Simon of Cyrene is there Joseph bring me his body let me bury him in the entire Minister of Christ you don't hear about this man he regular methods that the Lord will always cross on our paths to bring us salvation people are being bitten by snakes in the wilderness what happens lift up a snake hang it on a tree tall those who look upon the snake they shall be redeemed what you you look at look at Christians in the 21st century insane look at his snake look at the snake and leave look at his snake and leave the whole church would be sitting to be discussing witchcraft is - what is going on God is asking us look at a snake which which religion is this snake is the devil relax you and God did not go to primer school together you didn't go to the same high school the God that we serve is above everything else consolidating everything to himself Luke and the snake and you will live I find that very interesting when divinity twists our minds from the regular to the irregular boom when you loop you look at the snake another snake is biting at the bottom and you must look at another snake a brass snake that is hanging on the tree and by looking at the other one the other one loses its power I wish we had time to do some theology right there and tell you that good God does his things sometimes he does not bring the most complicated he just converts your problem into your own solution the snake that is biting you if you look at the one that he designed solutions are right there here Elijah told you be fed by the ovens do not judge God don't predict him listen to me don't memorize God don't cram him don't limit him don't manage God in the ways in which you should assist you in the ways in which he should help you many fast becoming to Christian we mess up and miss the gist of the Bible I cannot stop this story before I make someone why Yeshua's feet when they are sitting around in the house of Simon the high priest regular boom a prostitute walks in with her alabaster box from what business is she coming from where is her membership what church does she come from who is he a pastor does she have a transfer letter to do what his book we I know how church boards are beautiful I read the message the other day yesterday actually that got me giggling one elder was writing to a group on the Watts up group writing to a fellow member whom they dispel oh and they put him on a stranger and they were saying to the member please don't be excited because of Khurana we have postponed your Sanja because we st. Chad you before Khurana started you did not experience the full Saint therefore when church is real open you only served one week before they before Khurana so your your proper sage will start when churches reopen this is the quality of membership that we have people who have memorized God they've actually become more superior than God himself don't cram God the methods of God are unconventional the supplies of God aren't conventional there is sources of God unconventional the timings of God are unconditional and he has no limit to what he can do what he can use to achieve these objectives the books can flow in the desert floor Robbins criminals hallux thieves murderers coming for your rescue when they are under the promises and the instructions of God have you not read the Bible nicely that Moses is carrying his walking stick but in the hands of God put it on the ground it becomes a snake hold the tail it becomes a stick again can you not see how God works for his own benefit using the regula in an irregular way to communicate the truth that he wants the people to understand at a particular time and I know Elijah had to sit there and drink from the brook and eat from the ravans and by the way they were constant they brought him a meal constantly of course the barber does not give us enough details but if it wasn't more time modern times it was three meals a day for breakfast quack-quack dropping me slices of bread not too much not too little enough for the day lunchtime quack-quack and I think for the first few days Elijah should have been surprised but you know when things begin to happen more regularly you begin to have expectations when God does good things for you he's building your faith so that you can know that the next meal is sufficient why would this bed supply him constantly why would they do just come with 50 kgs that's how we think they should have just brought 50 kgs of cookies then Elijah I would look at the bucket of cookies and know that tomorrow is sure he will not enjoy this process where God works with little bit at a time little bit at a time for the longest time Elijah was here his meals were being supplied constantly not in abundance but his bread was sure constantly at every meal tech note you're going to need that passage later on constantly at every meal in light therefore he don't need 50 kgs of blessings his blessings I knew every morning the prayer of Matthew chapter 6 give us or come on give us this day not these days give us this day our daily bread many of us lose faith because we don't want the daily bread we want the weekly bread we want the monthly bread we want the annual bread we want the 10-year bread supply so that in the morning when I wake up and I look at my buns and I look at my storehouses I can say now I trust in God for everything that I need is now here but Elijah's miracle is not coming in abundance but constantly coming small but sure no too much not too little enough to lead you from your breakfast to your lunch to your supper can you imagine when you go to bed in the night and your stomach is full and you are worried tomorrow how am I going to make it then I get excited night after night whispers wisdom to the day that is following tomorrow morning when you wake up quack quack if I had to put the same entire dough for this one I'll call it quack quack-quack-quack constantly three times a day you go to bed with a full stomach you wake up in the morning with an empty stomach looking up into the skies for the blessings of the day a fresh every morning come on somebody got him out there for the blessings of the Lord as the bread was supplied in the temple you never brought enough bread for the whole week bread was supposed to be fresh every morning there were the blessings of the Lord don't come in abundance they come with sufficiency to meet the needs and the demands of the day then one day this birds fly in and the Bible tells us again the Lord in His grace decides to dry up the yeah you know the one who switches it on has the switch to switch it off again so Elijah looks at his Brooke and slowly the water begins to dry up when his bees worried about the miracle of the drying brook or the disadvantage of a drying brook the birds come with bread Elijah eats and eats when he thinks his food the way and took note during this entire time God is silent it is just eating and sleeping eating and sleeping but today the Lord comes back in the Ravens bring some more and they bring some more and the Lord says eat the journey is wrong you're gonna travel eat some more drink some more see when you are going to enter into certain period of your life the Lord in His grace gives you extra grace to take you for the extra mile there are times when you drink just to be satisfied they are the times when you must drink to extra satisfaction that time when you eat to fill up your stomach but other times you must eat even an extra load for the Lord is preparing you for the journey that is lying ahead I've good news for everybody life is a life of supply life sometimes runs into shortages but on both sides of the equation we are some wastes by grace grace that supplies in grace that dries up and like that part a grace that gives grace that takes away but note that the blessings are always located in a geographical location some certain miracles will not happen where you are it demands a work of grace to move you from where you are to where the Lord wants you to be at this time of corona that we are going through I bring you good news that the Brooks are drying up but the Lord is asking all of us to eat slightly more the journey is going to be long eat a little bit more a little bit more pick up your lunch boxes spiritually to your fastings do your preparations get yourself ready for the journey which we are now going to conduct is gonna be long journey and only those who have gathered enough strength during the times of supply can live in the times of scarcity but this resources that God has given you in times of abundance must carry you during the times of quarantine remember Joseph seven years of plenty and seven years of scarcity he supplies so but when he switches off grace must carry you it's only here that we can begin to say they just shall live by faith what does it mean it means that when the supplies of God are no longer there let the faith that fed you gin the terms of abundance carry you when there is custody in your life even in these moments when you have scarcity remember the Salar is used to get remember the allowance is used to get remember the extras used to have remember the food used throw in the dustbin remember remember remember remember the forms used to buy remember remember the expenses remember so that in moments of scarcity let the faith you will have billed in terms of abundance carry you in terms of scarcity until you see again next week we are going to be walking with Elijah away from the brook to the woman in surfer may the Lord bless you as you enjoy your bread as you drink your waters the Lord brought you here the Lord will take you there what has brought you here will not take you there god bless you our Father which art in heaven hallowed be thy name thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven give us this day our daily bread forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us lead us not into temptation but deliver us from kicking from evil for thine is the kingdom the power and the glory forever and ever you [Music]

Channel: The Gospel According to Maponga Joshua III

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Length: 35min 6sec (2106 seconds)

Published: Mon Jun 22 2020