[0:01] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfred, Georgia. It is our prayer that you will be blessed by the preaching of God's Word. Look at 2 Kings 9, verse 22. And it came to pass when Joram saw Jehu that he said, Is it peace, Jehu?
[0:18] And he answered, What peace? So long as the whorlums of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many. Father, I pray that you would help us right now as we look at this passage of Scripture and help us to apply it to our lives and help us to grow.
[0:34] And I'll give you great honor and glory and praise for all you do in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, I want you to go. We're going to stay here in 2 Kings 8, the first few verses. That may be all I'll cover with you.
[0:45] But in the story here, Elisha, in this story, Jezebel's going to die. Everybody knows who Jezebel is, right? If you know who Jezebel is, say amen. I'm going to make you talk so you'll stay awake because some of you have already taken a nap, and I know it.
[1:00] All right. So Jezebel's like this most wicked woman in the world. Don't name your daughter Jezebel. And don't even name your dog Jezebel.
[1:12] I had a lady in our church in Peru. She wasn't in our church. She's in another church. She came to my church, and she's a Spanish girl. And the guy came to me, and he and his wife were having problems or maybe it was his girlfriend yet.
[1:26] And so they came into the office and talked to me. And I shouldn't say this, but sometimes you can tell a lot about a person by their name. And I said, what's your name? She said, Delilah. And I said, oh, boy, that's just one step below Jezebel.
[1:39] Okay. So this is Jezebel. But in the beginning of the story, 2 Kings 8 and verse 1, if you could see this, God takes care of his people.
[1:50] That's what I want you to see. That may be all we'll cover today. God takes care of his people. 2 Kings 8 and verse 1. In this two chapters, I'm going to show you how God took care of his people, and I hope it will apply to you and help you take it home with you.
[2:07] 2 Kings 8 and verse 1 says, Then spake Elisha unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, go thou in thine household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn.
[2:19] For the Lord hath called for a famine, and it shall also come upon the land seven years. So what ends up happening is there's this story. It starts off 2 Kings 8, and there's this woman.
[2:30] You remember the woman? This is a woman. She's married to a man. And Elisha's going to walk him by. And as he goes walking by, carrying his servant with him, Gehazi, and as he walks by, the lady looks out and says, I perceive him to be a man of God.
[2:44] And so she said, honey, we need to fix him a place to live. Let's fix him a little room. And that's where we get prophets' chambers. And our missionaries say in prophets' chambers all over the place, they build a room, put a bed, a candle, and a lamp.
[2:57] And sometimes it's about all, which is all right in her day and time. Nowadays it would be a little nicer if they could put a little bit more in there. But anyway, they build these prophets' chambers, and that's what they did for Elisha as he went through.
[3:08] And one day while they were going through, as Elisha's going through, and they're in the house there, Elisha said, man, we ought to do something nice for this lady. She's so nice to us. What can we do? And they called her in. She said, hey, I'm just one of my people.
[3:20] I'm just one of my people. I don't live here. I don't need nothing from you. I don't need nothing from nobody. I just, I'm fine. Everything's great. And Jehaziah looks at him and says, she doesn't have a kid. She could have a baby.
[3:33] And Elisha said, okay, a year from now you're going to have a baby. So a year from now you're going to have a baby. So they kept coming through, and any time they were through, they stopped at the house. A year later, a baby was born. The baby starts growing up.
[3:44] The baby gets bigger. And then one day the baby got sick and died. And when she got sick and died, she told her husband to stay there. She took off right, and she chased him down. And she caught up with Elisha, and she says, I didn't ask nothing from you.
[3:58] I didn't need nothing from you. And you gave me a kid, and now he's dead. And so Elisha hands his staff to his servant and says, run ahead of me. I'm old and fat, and I can't run as fast as you. So take off, and he runs, lays a stick on the kid's face, and then he comes in and raises the kid from the dead.
[4:13] Now you're at this story. So here's a picture. As I read this, I want you to know. Do y'all realize sometimes you get scared and worried about, are things going to work out? Is God going to take care of me?
[4:25] What's going to happen in the economy? What's going to happen with the president? One lady that used to attend the church, I haven't seen her in quite a while. She came to me right after the president was elected, and she said, I'm leaving the United States of America.
[4:37] I can't live here any longer. Life is going to be ruined and all that. And I was like, I think everything will be okay. See, because God takes care of us no matter what happens. So in the story, here's the lady, and Elisha goes to her and says, evidently her husband's dead because he's not mentioned.
[4:53] He says, hey, there's a famine coming. You need to get out of town. Go find someplace you can eat because God's not going to let things work good here for seven years. And so she leaves and gets out of town.
[5:06] She's been warned about that. Well, it's been seven years. And in the story, she comes back into town. And when she comes back into town, she goes to see the king because she wants the king to give her back her stuff.
[5:19] And so she goes in to ask for that. Look at 2 Kings 8, verse 6. And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying, restore all that was hers and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now.
[5:35] Give her back everything. Give her all the produce. Give her all the income. Give her everything back. Well, what's really funny about the story is how God's taking care of this woman.
[5:47] Because just as she's headed towards the palace and just as she's going to meet with the king in 2 Kings 8, verse 4, the king is talking to Gehazi.
[5:58] In verse 4, it says, and the king talked to Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, tell me, I pray. Give me one of those stories. Tell me some of the great things Elisha has done.
[6:10] In verse 5, it came to pass, as he was telling the king, how he had restored a dead body to life, and that, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to life was there. She cried to the king for her house and for her land, and Gehazi said, that's the woman.
[6:23] That's the woman that Elisha did that with. And all of a sudden, the king said, well, give her all of her stuff. God took care of that woman. Isn't it beautiful how he providentially took care of her?
[6:37] She had taken care of the man of God. The man of God saw to it she had a little baby by praying and asking God to give her a baby. Then later on, the baby died, and the baby is raised back to life. And then all of a sudden, there's some terrible things going to happen, and she doesn't go to a financial forecast or anything else.
[6:53] Somebody just says, you better get out of town because seven years of bad stuff's coming. Leave. She comes back, and all of her stuff's given to her. That's a beautiful story, isn't it? God takes care of his people.
[7:05] But in the same two chapters, God didn't take care of his person the way you'd have wanted him to. There's another story in this two chapters, and that's Naboth. Naboth is, to me, one of the saddest stories in the Old Testament.
[7:19] Because Naboth was a man of God. He was a man of great integrity. And he had a vineyard, and the vineyard was just down the road from Ahab in Jezebel's palace.
[7:30] And it was a beautiful vineyard and very well taken care of. And Ahab went down to see Naboth, and he said to Naboth, I would like to buy your vineyard. And Naboth said, you know that the Bible says, God says, the law says, Moses says, I'm not allowed to sell you my vineyard.
[7:47] It's got to stay in my family. And Ahab said, I want your vineyard. He said, I'm not selling. He said, I'll give you another vineyard just as good as it or better. I'll give you money. Come on. Let's just let me have your vineyard.
[7:58] And Naboth said, I tell you, I stand on my principles. I'm not doing it. I will not let you have my vineyard. So Ahab goes back into the palace and starts pouting. And his wife Jezebel, the wicked witch, comes in the house.
[8:13] And by the way, there were some wicked women that were supposed to come to the altar this morning in my Sunday school class. And so this is for your message. Latasha, are you listening? But anyway, this Sunday afternoon, we're just playing.
[8:25] All right. So anyway, so he comes back in the house, and Jezebel says, Jezebel says, what's the problem, big boy? You can get his land.
[8:36] She said, no, he won't give it to me. He won't sell it to me. She says, I'll take care of it, honey bunch. And she goes down there, tries to get old Naboth. Naboth won't do it.
[8:46] So she has a trial set up and falsely accuses Naboth and has him put to death with all of his family. When I read that story, when I first really remember reading that story, I kept waiting for the United States Calvary to come riding across the hill, for the trumpets to be blowing and the Indians to be running, and for him not to kill Naboth.
[9:07] But the Calvary didn't come, and God didn't help. And Naboth was dead. I think this is a big lesson for all of us to learn. So Naboth was dead.
[9:20] And then Elijah walks in to see Ahab, and he talks to Ahab and says, you killed Naboth. You took his vineyard, and the dogs will eat your wife and drink your blood.
[9:36] And the preacher walked off. I don't think he got asked to preach again at that particular venue. Amen. So he left. But in this chapter, well, before I get to that, so later on, they're going to have a war.
[9:54] Look at 1 Kings 22, 34 with me. They're going to war. And before they go to war, Ahab knows that he's in danger. And so Ahab decides that he can trick God, and he can get away with what he's done, and nobody can hurt him.
[10:10] So he tells Jehoshaphat to wear his armor and to wear all the paraphernalia that says he's a king. He gets somebody else on his team to dress up like that, and he dresses up like a common soldier, and he goes out into battle thinking that he could get away with his sin.
[10:25] And the end of the day is coming. The battle's about over. The battle is about over, and in 1 Kings 22, verse 34, a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and he shot the king of Israel between the joints of the harness.
[10:40] And so let me just real quick. That's funny right there. So Ahab's thinking he can get away with it. He's dressed up, and he doesn't figure anybody can find out who he is.
[10:52] So this one guy's over here, and evidently doesn't want to go home with one of his arrows that he didn't shoot because it's going to look like he should have shot the last arrow. So he just grabs his arrow and goes, boom, lets the arrow fly, and the arrow goes flying through the air and finds old Ahab.
[11:06] Not only does it find Ahab, but he's wearing armor. That's what the harness is. And if it hit here or hit here, everything would have been okay. It would have just bounced off, but it went into joint, went between the two pieces of armor.
[11:17] And Ahab says in 2 Kings chapter 8, excuse me, I'm in 1 Kings chapter 22, verse 34, 35. He says, hey, get me out of here.
[11:29] I'm wounded in verse 34. And in verse 35, he died, and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the chariot. And everybody started talking about it. In verse 37, the king died.
[11:41] In verse 38, look at it. And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood. And they washed his armor according unto the word of the Lord which he spake.
[11:55] Parentheses. Because I'm going to finish this message now. Because if I was all together, I'd be able to remind you I'd said it. So since I'm not going to preach this for another couple of weeks, just listen to this over and over in the story.
[12:06] It's like, just like the word of God said. He'll tell a story and he'll go, just like the word of God said. Tell a story and he'll go, just like the word of God said. Tell a story and he'll go, just like the word of God said. Can I give you a hint?
[12:16] It's just like the word of God said. So let me tell you, whatever he told Israel, he's going to do it just like the word of God said. They're going to get their land just like the word of God said. And I'm going to get my salvation just like the word of God said.
[12:28] And God ain't going to change just like the word of God said. That's another message. That's point four or five here. The dogs licked his blood. Now in this story, in 2 Kings, Jezebel's going to be dead and be eaten by dogs.
[12:46] God didn't save Naboth. Isn't that terrible? Because every one of us, when we pray, we don't want God to let us die. We want to be the first woman, not the second man.
[12:59] We want to be the lady, not Naboth. 2 Kings 9, verse 6, God did avenge Naboth. 2 Kings 9, verse 26, Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his son, says the Lord, and I will requite thee in this plat.
[13:18] So I'm fixing to take you out now. Now I want you to, I'm going to show you two or three more verses, but I really want you to listen to this and get this. One, God often takes good care of us and does great things and everything works out.
[13:33] We're sick and he answers our prayer and heals us. We're in financial bondage and he takes care of us. We don't have a job and he gives us a job.
[13:43] But he doesn't always do that. And that's what I want you to think about. He does not always do that.
[13:56] Sooner or later, you're probably going to die. There was a family in Tarrant City, Alabama, where I worked in a church and we witnessed to her and this lady wouldn't go to church.
[14:10] She said, I don't want to have anything to do with God. She said, I asked God to heal my dad. And he didn't. He let my dad die. And so we said, well, how old was your dad?
[14:24] He was like 90 or 95. We were like, well, I hate to say it, but y'all take a hint. Couldn't say that. You got to be nice. But some of you get bitter because God doesn't answer prayers immediately like you want to answer it.
[14:39] And sometimes God lets us go through stuff. So I want to say this to you. God doesn't always rescue us when we're in trouble and we don't understand. But we have to remember he has a greater purpose in whatever he's doing.
[14:54] And that's to prove his power and his glory. God had a greater purpose that day with old Naboth. He could have saved Naboth, but he didn't want to.
[15:07] And I know that's not Joel Osteen preaching for you. But can I remind you that Naboth didn't really have a bad day that day? I had a bad day watching it happen to Naboth.
[15:17] But if you believe the Bible, Naboth didn't have a bad day. By the time that rock hit old Naboth in the head, the lights went blinking and they went real bright and then they went real dim. Then an angel showed up and took him to heaven.
[15:32] Luke chapter 16 and Lazarus died and angels carried him to Abraham's bosom. Naboth's family goes to heaven. You need to know that God is taking care of us either way.
[15:46] But I think it's going to make you bitter if you don't get a hold of something. The God's not a good luck charm gets you out of trouble. And God's not here to make your life all cushy.
[16:00] God's here to get glory for him and for his cause and for his purposes. And we are the servants. Amen.
[16:13] Amen. Oh, hey, I don't like you. How about some verses? Psalm 116, 15. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.
[16:26] Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. I don't think we like that verse. Aaron's dad, a granddad just died.
[16:37] Aaron Vance's granddad just died. And because he was old, because he was a granddaddy, because he was sick, we all tend to go with the real cute, oh, well, he's better off now.
[16:49] But we don't usually think that unless they're old enough for us to think that. And if they're Naboth, we might get mad at God for not saving Naboth's family. But God's got a whole plan, doesn't he?
[17:01] And God said, you know what? It's sweet and important and valuable to me when my people die. You know why? We're going to be with him.
[17:13] We're going to be with him. On the day that I got on an airplane to go to Arequipa with my family, 40-something people were at the airport to send us off.
[17:26] In 1988, in January of 1988, 40-something people were at the airport. Back before the days, you had to stay outside. Everybody was at the gate. Everybody was crying. Man, we've got pictures of Betty.
[17:39] She looks like she is at a funeral, and 25 people have just died. And if you check me out, I'm like, man, just let me get on that plane. I've got places to go, people to see, and things to do, churches to build, and sermons to preach.
[17:53] Because that's really what it's kind of like when we die here. Because when you die here, it may hurt you that they die, but if they're born again, that's precious. They're going to heaven to be with him.
[18:04] Luke 16, 22, the Bible said, you're not alone even in death. It came to pass that the beggar died and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died, but in hell he lift up his eyes.
[18:14] Did you know when you die, you don't just float around in the clouds and like a wind in 2 Corinthians 5? It's like you'll be clothed upon. You're getting rid of this clothes, but God's got another house for you.
[18:28] So as soon as I die, I'm not going to be some spook. I'm not cast for the ghost. I'm in the presence of God, to be absent in the bodies, to be present with the Lord. So in all honesty, when I see things from God's point of view, dying's not such a bad thing.
[18:43] That's why Paul said, the only reason I want to live is for Christ. For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Just remember that God is and has taken care of you.
[18:54] That's how you got saved. You didn't get saved. You got saved. In other words, you didn't do it, he did it. You couldn't save yourself, he saved you.
[19:06] You couldn't do the work in you, he did the work in you. That's how you know you're still saved. That's how you know you're going to go to heaven and live forever. And one of the ways you know that's because it says over in the Bible, he did it, just like he said he would, did it, just like he said he would, did it, just like he said he would.
[19:20] You can know your sins are forgiven and that you have peace with God. But what is the real, what's the real thing we want from God? Now listen to what I'm fixing to tell you.
[19:31] We are not really needing good health. Because good healthy people go to hell. I'm not saying we don't like to enjoy a little good health.
[19:44] I'm not saying that. But you know what the real need everybody has of God is? It's not good health, it's not money in the bank, it's not a wife, it's not a good happy family. It's to go to heaven when they die. I have been given the greatest gift any human being could ever be given.
[19:58] I've been given eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. And so I may, I may have God bless me and he has all these years so far.
[20:10] And you may have to remind Betty of this if I'm here and you're here when I die. And I'm pretty sure Betty will be. Betty's genes mean she lives to be 200. And mine mean that I may not make it out of the pulpit today.
[20:22] But just let me say this. When I go to heaven, it's going to be a great day. Maybe not be that fantastic for Betty, but God will take care of us. And he has.
[20:33] So God takes care of his people. I'll stop. That was point one. Just let me say this to you. Let me just say this to you. I know you want God to do all this good stuff for you. But the truth is I need to get my head around this.
[20:45] Because I'm not here for God to serve me. I'm not here for God to serve me. I'm here to serve God. I'm not here for God to make my life good.
[20:55] I'm here to make God famous. Tell people about Jesus. That's why my money is not my money. My health is not my health. My family is not my family.
[21:06] Because it's all about Jesus. The truth of the matter is Christianity, true biblical Christianity, isn't about you getting blessed. It's more about you being a blessing because you've been blessed.
[21:19] This message was recorded at Vision Baptist Church in Alfred, Georgia. For more information, log on to www.visionbaptist.com where you can find our service times, location, contact information, and more audio and video recordings.
[21:35] Thanks. We'll see you next time. We'll see you next week. We'll see you next time. Thanks. We'll see you next time. Thanks. Thank you. Bye. Bye.
[21:57] Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye.