THE WIDOW'S OIL (part 1): 'HOSTING A MIRACLE'
A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord. And the creditor is coming to take my two sons to be his slaves.”
So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.”
Then he said, “Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those vessels, and set aside the full ones.”
So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured it out. Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.”
And he said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased. Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest.”
(2 Kings 4:1-7)
The above story teaches us a very important lesson on how to receive God’s portion in our lives.
The woman was told to borrow vessels from other people, as per the instruction received from the prophet Elijah. She obeyed and the size of the miracle fully depended on her capacity to host it.
For as long as she had empty vessels, should be able to host the miraculous oil. Notice as well, that God did not borrow the vessels. She did.
Very often, people tend to give God the full weight of responsibility on everything while forgetting that the Bible says that we are ‘co-workers with God’ (ref. 2 Corinthians 6:1). As much as God plays His part in our world, we also have a part to play.
If the woman in the above story had borrowed only 1 vessel, then she would only have been able to host an oil quantity proportional to 1 vessel. And the rest of the miraculous oil would be suspended in the spiritual world.
There are people who cry for a miracle or a divine portion to come in their lives but they fail to work at building a hosting place that would welcome the object of their righteous desires.
There are many Godly portions that fail to materialize simply because people fail to play their part. In most cases, God is not going to do everything without our input.
The Gospel did not move throughout the world on its own. Men and women mandated by God spread the Gospel.
Jesus did not come into the world out of nowhere. Mary hosted Him in her womb for 9 months.
There are millions (if not billions) of miracles and divine portions suspended in the spiritual world due to the unwillingness of many to play their parts.
If we want to see God’s portions materialize, we also need to obey His instructions that will help host the divine portion He has for us.
So Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” And she said, “Your maidservant has nothing in the house but a jar of oil.”
Then he said, “Go, borrow vessels from everywhere, from all your neighbors—empty vessels; do not gather just a few. And when you have come in, you shall shut the door behind you and your sons; then pour it into all those vessels, and set aside the full ones.”
So she went from him and shut the door behind her and her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured it out. Now it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.”
And he said to her, “There is not another vessel.” So the oil ceased. Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debt; and you and your sons live on the rest.”
(2 Kings 4:1-7)
The above story teaches us a very important lesson on how to receive God’s portion in our lives.
The woman was told to borrow vessels from other people, as per the instruction received from the prophet Elijah. She obeyed and the size of the miracle fully depended on her capacity to host it.
For as long as she had empty vessels, should be able to host the miraculous oil. Notice as well, that God did not borrow the vessels. She did.
Very often, people tend to give God the full weight of responsibility on everything while forgetting that the Bible says that we are ‘co-workers with God’ (ref. 2 Corinthians 6:1). As much as God plays His part in our world, we also have a part to play.
If the woman in the above story had borrowed only 1 vessel, then she would only have been able to host an oil quantity proportional to 1 vessel. And the rest of the miraculous oil would be suspended in the spiritual world.
There are people who cry for a miracle or a divine portion to come in their lives but they fail to work at building a hosting place that would welcome the object of their righteous desires.
There are many Godly portions that fail to materialize simply because people fail to play their part. In most cases, God is not going to do everything without our input.
The Gospel did not move throughout the world on its own. Men and women mandated by God spread the Gospel.
Jesus did not come into the world out of nowhere. Mary hosted Him in her womb for 9 months.
There are millions (if not billions) of miracles and divine portions suspended in the spiritual world due to the unwillingness of many to play their parts.
If we want to see God’s portions materialize, we also need to obey His instructions that will help host the divine portion He has for us.