Sermons 2024

Text: 1 Kings 17:8–16 
Theme: Rich with little

Outline
1.    Widow, at Elijah’s request, meets His need with little to offer, Lord richly and daily blesses her
2.    We often want to hold onto what we have, as small as it may be.
3.    God forgives us of our selfishness and empowers us to give fully for His work.

Sermon
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
My dear beloved flock, the text for our meditation today is the Old Testament lesson of First Kings chapter seventeen verses eight through sixteen.

Intro: Boys and girls, I pray that you are doing well today. Do you have a lot of things? I am sure that your parents provide you with a lot. They give you toys, food, drink, and many other things. You may not have a lot but a lot is provided for you. This is what we see in our reading for today. The window at Zarephath does not have a lot, only flour and oil. Yet, God richly provides for her , her son, and Elijah that through the time of the drought, they never run out. How does God richly provide for us today? Ponder that question as you hear the rest of the sermon. You may go back to your seats and those who love you.

1.    Widow, at Elijah’s request, meets His need with little to offer, Lord richly and daily blesses her

In our text for today, we see the prophet Elijah in the midst of a severe drought. He is sent, not to any of the widows of Israel, but to a lone widow at Zarephath to care for him. This drought has covered more than just the land of Israel. It is outside Israel’s boundaries in Gentile territory. The importance here is that it shows that Yahweh had also produced a drought in Baal’s own home territory.  Baal cannot even take care of his own territory. It is fully under Yahweh’s control, as is everything. 

At Elijah’s request for a some water and a cake. We see the dire straits of this poor widow. She is in the city gate, gleaning for a few sticks that she might make a small meal for her and her son, and then await death by starvation. Grain and oil were two of the major exports of the city of Zarephath. The fact that they were in short supply is an indication of how severe the drought was. They are also two of the most basic commodities for survival . The widow has enough for only a single solitary meal for her and her son before they face death. She’s probably thinking, “Great I cannot feed my own son but now I have another mouth to feed in this man of God
Yet, the widow grants Elijah’s request. She goes, gets her flour and oil, makes him a cake and returns. She takes Elijah into her house. Every single day, a new miracle. The flour is still there. The oil has not run dry. It is never plentiful, but it is what they need to survive. The Lord rewards faith and richly supplies all that the widow, her son and Elijah need for daily bread. The meager amount never runs out, new each day is the Lord’s mercy.

2.    We often want to hold onto what we have, as small as it may be.

Truly the Lord’s mercy is new every day. Even for us. He gives us our souls and bodies as well as everything that we need to take care of them for this body, life, and life everlasting. Sometimes the Lord gives us a lot. Other times, like the widows in our Old Testament and Gospel readings it’s a small meager amount. 

What do we do with the amounts that we have been given? Often times, we often want to hold onto what we have, as small as it may be. When faced with a situation like the widow at Zarephath, our response would be one of selfishness. “No, I only have a small amount.” “I am going to keep it for myself and my son.” My wants, my desires, my needs take first and foremost priority. We turn inward out of concern for our own survival. If your last supper is on the way, don’t give it away. If you’re down to your last penny, don’t give it away. That’s how we think. We will even justify it in our minds saying, “Certainly God understands the nature of scarcity.” Yes, he does. The problem isn’t with him; it’s with us. We’re happy to feed the poor when cupboards are full, happy to give . . . donate . . . tithe when the account is overflowing. When it gets down to it, we tend to trust in our abundance. When things get scarce, we turn inward on ourselves, depending upon ourselves rather than God. 

Many times we do this to the hurt and harm of our neighbor. We are so focused on our own wants and needs that we do not stop to consider the needs of those around us. Even worse, we look down upon and demean those who are poorest among us, those who might need the most help. We dismiss them and hurt them, often to our own harm.

3.    God forgives us of our selfishness and empowers us to give fully for His work.

In the midst of scarcity what should be our response to the needs of those around us? The accounts of both widows teach the same lesson: God uses scarcity as a doorway to trust. Trust in the Lord and his provision is the only way either of these stories makes sense. A widow obeys, and they all eat for days. The Bible doesn’t say what happens to our other widow, but the point is clear: When We Trust in the Lord, There Is Always Enough. That’s easier said than done, of course, but it really should be no surprise, because God has been using scarcity to lead his people to trust for a long time. When the Israelites were wandering forty years in the desert, God provided manna in the desert and brought water from a rock.

We even see it in the New Testament. With just five loaves and two fish, how many thousands of men, women, and children did Jesus feed (Lk 9:10–17)? 5,000 men besides women and children. There was so much abundance they even had leftovers, because with Jesus there is always enough.

Yes! Jesus is always enough! A lesson we struggle to learn, but one that time and again points us to the cross. Jesus came to be enough—more than enough to pay the full price of our sin. His mission was not about multiplying food to fill our earthly stomachs but about ransom and restoration to free our souls and fill us to overflowing with grace and forgiveness. The writer to the Hebrews reminds us that Christ came to be enough: “He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (9:26).

Having forgiven us all of our sins of selfishness, pride, and scorn by taking them upon Himself, Jesus gives us His Holy Spirit in the waters of Holy Baptism that you may indeed trust in Him to provide for all of your needs, both your physical needs as well as your eternal needs.

Conclusion: It is into the full sufficiency of Christ that you have been baptized. You have been joined with him in his life, death, and resurrection. You are credited with his righteousness, empowered with his grace, crowned with his glory, and loved with a never-ending love. So perhaps the next time you find yourself facing scarcity, wondering if you have enough, remember that with Christ there is always enough. When you are down to the last dollar in your wallet and you happen across that person in need of a helping hand and you’re wondering if you can afford to give; remember with Christ there is always enough. As God’s redeemed children, we need not fear scarcity because our Father is a God of rich abundance. When we put our trust in the Lord, when we put our trust in Jesus, we can be sure, no matter the circumstances, there is always enough. 

The peace of God which surpasses all understanding, guard, and keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.