24 Nov Where do you put your hope?

2 Kings 4:8-37

2 Kings 4:8-17 – ⁸ One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. ⁹ And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. ¹⁰ Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.” ¹¹ One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there. ¹² And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him. ¹³ And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.” ¹⁴ And he said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” ¹⁵ He said, “Call her.” And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. ¹⁶ And he said, “At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your servant.” ¹⁷ But the woman conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her.

Have you ever wished for something so bad that you don’t want to admit it because you don’t want to get your hopes up in fear of disappointment? As many of you know, I’m a big fan of Manchester United. At the beginning of every season, I always say, “This is going to be our season. This is going to be the season we are making a comeback.” I look forward to the season with anticipation and excitement, only for my hope to crash after a few games. I still watch every game, but I no longer have my hopes up because I don’t want to be disappointed again and again. I am sure many of us can relate to it. We are afraid to get our hopes up in fear of disappointment. There is this common problem at many workplaces called ‘quiet quitting.’ It is when you still show up at work, but you do the bare minimum. You are deeply unmotivated. You have stopped caring about your work. You have quit, but you are still at work. And my guess is some of you have the same posture toward Christian life. You quiet quitting God. You still come to church. You still serve in ministry. You still participate in small groups. But you have quit hoping. As a way to protect yourself from disappointment, you adopt this self-protecting posture of “I just don’t care anymore.” You stop hoping in anything, including God. Instead of living by faith, you are apathetic. You have grown weary of hoping, only to be disappointed again.

Tonight, we are on our fifth sermon on the life of Elijah and Elisha titled, “Living by faith.” Both Elijah and Elisha lived at a time when the people of God were faithless, and God used their life and ministry to show us what living by faith looks like. We’ve done a few sermons on the life of Elijah, and we will now focus on the life of Elisha. Elisha’s name means “My God is salvation.” And Elisha’s life is the story of God who saves his people. In today’s passage, we meet a woman who does not want to get her hope up in an effort toward self-protection, but then God surprises her with a wonderful gift. And God’s gift contains both joy and sorrow. But in sorrow, this woman keeps her hope up in God. This story teaches us to put our hope in God because hope in God does not disappoint. Let’s look at the story together.

I have three points for my sermon: the wish of the heart; the sorrow of life; the hope of resurrection.

The wish of the heart

2 Kings 4:8-13 – ⁸ One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. ⁹ And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. ¹⁰ Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.” ¹¹ One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there. ¹² And he said to Gehazi his servant, “Call this Shunammite.” When he had called her, she stood before him. ¹³ And he said to him, “Say now to her, ‘See, you have taken all this trouble for us; what is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army?’” She answered, “I dwell among my own people.”

We are introduced to a Shunammite woman who is rich and prominent. She knows that Elisha is a holy man of God. So, whenever Elisha passes through Shunem, she always invites him to eat at her place. But she doesn’t stop there. She then convinces her husband to make a small room on the roof for Elisha to stay and rest whenever he is in town. In the culture of the day, hospitality is very important because travelling is not safe and easy. When people make a long journey from one place to another, they rely a lot on people’s hospitality to welcome them into their houses to rest. So, whenever Elisha travels through Shunem, he enjoys this woman’s hospitality. One day when Elisha stays at her place, he asks Gehazi his servant to find out what the woman wants. After all she has done for Elisha, Elisha wants to give something back to her. And Elisha has many connections to the higher-ups that she could benefit from. But she replies, “I’m good. I don’t need anything. Thank you.”

Let’s pause here. This story shows us the importance of hospitality. Jesus says in Matthew 10:41 – The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person’s reward. What is Jesus saying? Jesus is saying that if you want to receive a pastor’s reward from God, you better have a room ready for me in your house. Okay, that’s not true. Jesus is not teaching us to do something for God, to get something back from God. That is not what the Bible teaches us. But the Bible does teach us that God loves to reward those who love him and show hospitality to his people. This Shunammite woman does what she does with no ulterior motive. She just wants to show hospitality to Elisha. She does not expect anything back from Elisha. That’s why when Elisha asks her what he can do for her in return, she says, “I’m good. I don’t need anything.” But as we are about to see, her decision to make a little room for Elisha is going to change her life forever.

Don’t miss the point. We can’t manipulate God to give us what we want, but we can make space for God to work in our lives. There is nothing we can do that can force God’s hand to give us what we ask. So, do not hear me saying that if you prepare a room for me in your house and let me stay there for free, God will give you what you want. You might get a free dinner, but that’s about it. But I am saying that we can position ourselves to receive God’s blessing. It’s like sailing. When a sailor wants the boat to move, he raises up the sail. But the boat won’t move unless the wind blows. Do you see? We can’t manipulate God and put him into a formula. But we can raise up the sail and pray that God will send the wind. That’s how faith works. We can’t manipulate God to give us what we want, but we can make space for God to work in our lives. If we never see God move in our lives, maybe it is because we never put the sail up. The point is God loves to reward biblical hospitality. Look at what happens next.

2 Kings 4:14-17 – ¹⁴ And he said, “What then is to be done for her?” Gehazi answered, “Well, she has no son, and her husband is old.” ¹⁵ He said, “Call her.” And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. ¹⁶ And he said, “At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son.” And she said, “No, my lord, O man of God; do not lie to your servant.” ¹⁷ But the woman conceived, and she bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her.

What do you give a woman who seems to have everything? Apparently, there is something she does not have. In fact, she wants what she does not have so much that she does not want to hope anymore. It is too late for her. Her husband is old. The only thing she does not have is the one thing she really wants, a son. And when Elisha tells her that she will have a son by next year, she replies, “Oh no no no. Don’t do this to me, Mr Prophet. Don’t you get my hopes up. Don’t play with me.” In other words, a son is the deepest wish of her heart that she refuses to entertain. It is a desire too precious for disappointment. This Shunammite woman wants a son so badly that she cannot bear to have her hope dashed. And what Elisha said seems too good to be true. This woman is sceptical of the generosity of God. But God is faithful to his word. The woman conceives and she bears a son as Elisha had said to her.

This story is a rebuke to many of us who doubt the generosity of God. Some of us live with the suspicion that God is a stingy God. We do not believe that God is good all the way through. We assume that if God’s promise is too good to be true, there must be a catch to it. It is really hard for us to trust that God is a generous God. But think about it. Why did God give a son to this woman? The pattern of barren women who give birth happens frequently in the Bible. For example, Sarah gave birth to Isaac at the age of 90. God opened Rachel’s womb, and she gave birth to Joseph after years of rivalry with her older sister. God answered Hannah’s prayer for a son and gave her Samuel after many years of tears. However, there is something unique about this Shunammite woman story. In all other cases either the birth of the child is essential for continuing the story of God’s people, or the child becomes an important figure in a time of crisis. Isaac was the promised son through whom God’s chosen nation would come. If it wasn’t for Joseph, the people of God would have perished in famine. Samuel was the prophet who anointed Israel’s first and second kings. But that’s not the case with this story. We never know the Shunammite woman’s name, and we never know the name of her son. The son never becomes an important figure in the Bible.

So, what’s the point of giving her a son? I love what Dale Ralph Davis writes in his commentary. “Sometimes Yahweh gives such a gift not because he will fulfill some grand redemptive-historical function but simply because he wants to make a woman happy with a child. Sometimes it’s far simpler than we imagine.” I love that. Sometimes it’s far simpler than we imagine. Sometimes God gives us good gifts not because we are prominent or useful. Sometimes God gives us good gifts just because he wants to make us happy with his gifts. God is not a stingy God; he is a generous God. It is the enemy that wants us to believe that God is stingy. The truth is that God is a good Father who loves to give good gifts to his children. God is the overflowing fountain of all good. Those who hope in God will not be put to shame. So, where do you put your hope?

The sorrow of life

2 Kings 4:18-24 – ¹⁸ When the child had grown, he went out one day to his father among the reapers. ¹⁹ And he said to his father, “Oh, my head, my head!” The father said to his servant, “Carry him to his mother.” ²⁰ And when he had lifted him and brought him to his mother, the child sat on her lap till noon, and then he died. ²¹ And she went up and laid him on the bed of the man of God and shut the door behind him and went out. ²² Then she called to her husband and said, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, that I may quickly go to the man of God and come back again.” ²³ And he said, “Why will you go to him today? It is neither new moon nor Sabbath.” She said, “All is well.” ²⁴ Then she saddled the donkey, and she said to her servant, “Urge the animal on; do not slacken the pace for me unless I tell you.”

If before she received her deepest wish, now she experiences her greatest nightmare. Her son suddenly gets sick and dies. Do you realise how painful this is for the Shunammite woman? Remember where she came from. She had no needs. She did not ask for a son. It is God who gave her a son. It is God’s gift that made her needy. And now her son died. Do you see the problem? God has given her a gift only to take it away. If God had never given her the child, this problem would not happen. She won’t be heartbroken. She won’t be in sorrow. She won’t be in despair. But now she is in anguish. We understand this. It is much harder to lose something very precious than to never have it in the first place. So, what are we to make of God here? Is God a mean God? Does God like to play around with her life? Does God lift her up to drop her all the harder? Is that what’s happening? We are never told why God allowed her son to die. But here is a hard truth that we must embrace. Everything that comes our way, everything that happens in the world, whether good or bad, is under God’s providence. There is no such thing as accidents for God. God is in control of everything that happens in our lives. It does not mean we should passively accept everything. But it does mean humble recognition of God’s hand behind all things. We may never know how God uses our pains, but we do know that God has good purposes. So, notice what this woman does.

2 Kings 4:25-28 – ²⁵ So she set out and came to the man of God at Mount Carmel. When the man of God saw her coming, he said to Gehazi his servant, “Look, there is the Shunammite. ²⁶ Run at once to meet her and say to her, ‘Is all well with you? Is all well with your husband? Is all well with the child?’” And she answered, “All is well.” ²⁷ And when she came to the mountain to the man of God, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came to push her away. But the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for she is in bitter distress, and the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me.” ²⁸ Then she said, “Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, ‘Do not deceive me?’”

This woman is in so much pain. This woman is confused. She doesn’t understand why this happened to her. But do you know what she does? She goes to Elisha. She seeks Elisha, and she clings to Elisha. She won’t let anyone stop her. Earlier when her husband said to her, “Why would you go see Elisha today? Don’t be silly.” she ignored him and went ahead. And now Gehazi tries to stop her. “Is everything okay with you? Is there something that you want? You can tell me, and I’ll tell Elisha.” She replies, “All is well. I just need to see Elisha. Let me see Elisha.” She won’t let anything, or anyone stop her. And when she finally sees Elisha, she immediately clings to his feet. And Gehazi is like, “What are you doing woman? He is a holy man of God. You cannot touch him.” He wants to push her away, but Elisha stops him from doing so.

Why does this woman do that? Remember that Elisha is God’s prophet. Elisha is God’s representative and spokesperson. Clinging to Elisha is in some measure clinging to God and his word. And she does not go to Elisha pretending that everything is okay. The Shunammite woman’s words are filled with grief. She asks Elisha, “Why did this happen to me? I never asked for a son. I never wanted to hope again. But God gave me a son. God was the one who made me very happy. But why then God take him away from me? Did I not tell you to not deceive me?” Can you hear her pain? She is extremely heartbroken. But at the same time, she keeps saying, “All is well.” So, this woman has a mixture of emotions. She is in deep sorrow, and she is confused. But at the same time, she knows everything will be all right.

This teaches us a simple important lesson. What do you do when you are confused by the difficult providences of God? You go to God. This woman understands that the God who gave her the son, the God who took away her son, is the only God who can give her back her son. There is no one else she can go to but God. This is amazing. There are three possible responses if we are in her situation. The first one is resignment. We say, “God is sovereign. He can do whatever he wants. All I can do is simply accept my lot. There is nothing I can do about it. Que sera, sera.” The second one is resentment. We say, “God is sovereign, and he allows me to experience this pain. If God has done this to me, then I don’t want anything to do with him. Sayonara.” But this woman does neither. Instead, she responds in a third way, the way of faith, realignment. “I know God is sovereign. I know God is good. I don’t understand why he allowed me to experience this pain, but I am going to come to him and ask him to change my circumstances. Because he is the only one who can.”

Do you know the hymn, “It is well with my soul”? The hymn was written by a man named Horatio Spafford in 1873. Let me tell you the story behind the hymn. Two years earlier, a great fire burned his factory in Chicago, and he lost his wealth. And then he decided to leave for England to help D.L. Moody with his evangelistic campaign. But he had some business to finish, so he sent his wife and children on ahead. But their ship sank, and all four of his daughters died. Only his wife survived. When he heard the news, Spafford left America to be with his grieving wife. Along the way, the captain of the ship informed Spafford that they were passing the site of the accident. Spafford stood at the place where all his daughters died, picked up his pen and wrote, “Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, it is well, it is well with my soul.” Do you know where Spafford got the inspiration to write, “It is well”? From what the Shunammite woman said, “All is well.” This is what living by faith looks like. Faith in God leads us to turn to God in times of pain and confusion because we know God is sovereign and good.

The hope of resurrection

2 Kings 4:29-33 – ²⁹ He said to Gehazi, “Tie up your garment and take my staff in your hand and go. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not reply. And lay my staff on the face of the child.” ³⁰ Then the mother of the child said, “As the Lord lives and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So he arose and followed her. ³¹ Gehazi went on ahead and laid the staff on the face of the child, but there was no sound or sign of life. Therefore he returned to meet him and told him, “The child has not awakened.” ³² When Elisha came into the house, he saw the child lying dead on his bed. ³³ So he went in and shut the door behind the two of them and prayed to the Lord.

Elisha is the man of God, but he is not God. Elisha is limited in knowledge and power. First, he does not know why the woman is grieving. Second, he tries to raise the son from the dead using his own way, but it does not work. He tells Gehazi to lay his staff on the son, and Gehazi reports back to him, “I’m sorry Mr Prophet but it seems that your staff is not powerful enough. I did what you told me, and nothing happened. The child is still dead.” It reminds us not to put our hope in the servants of God. Do not put your hope in any pastors or preachers because they will disappoint you. Yes, they are servants of God, but they are only servants. They are pale substitutes for the one true God. The power to heal does not lie in any person. The power to heal does not lie in any formula. The power to heal lies in God alone. God is the only one who is able. So, when Elisha sees that his way does not work, he does what we must do. He prays to God.

It tells us that it doesn’t matter who we are, it doesn’t matter how long we have been a Christian, we don’t have control over God’s power. Because God is a God of grace who is a personal God. Let me explain. In religion, access to power comes through a formula. It is mechanical. “If I do everything right, if I perform well, if I sacrifice enough, if I press the right button, then God has to bless me.” That’s how religion works. Religion puts us in control. It’s like getting in the elevator. What do you do? You press a button, and the elevator will take you there. If you live on the 3^rd floor but you accidentally press 5, you will go to the 5^th floor. Every time. The elevator never says, “I think you hit the wrong button. You lived on the 3^rd floor, not the 5^th. So, I’ll take you to the 3^rd floor instead.” The elevator is a machine. Our relationship with an elevator is mechanical. But the God of grace is different. He is not mechanical but personal. We can do all the right things and press the button we want, it does not guarantee we will get what we want. God is not obligated to give us what we want. We cannot control God and his power. But here is what we can do. We can pray and ask God. True faith is not faith in a formula but faith in a person. Look at what happens next.

2 Kings 4:34-37 – ³⁴ Then he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. And as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm. ³⁵ Then he got up again and walked once back and forth in the house, and went up and stretched himself upon him. The child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. ³⁶ Then he summoned Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite.” So he called her. And when she came to him, he said, “Pick up your son.” ³⁷ She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground. Then she picked up her son and went out.

If you remember our first sermon on Elijah, what Elisha does is very similar to what Elijah did. He gets on top of the dead child and stretches himself upon him. The child then returns to life and sneezes seven times. Do you know why the boy sneezes seven times? Because seven is the number of completions. Seven sneezes mean the child is completely healed. Okay, I made that up. The reason it says the boy sneezes seven times is because that is what happened. That’s it. There is no hidden spiritual meaning behind seven sneezes. The point is not the sneezes. The point is the boy was dead, and he is now alive. God answers Elisha’s prayer and returns the boy to her mother alive.

Here is where I want to draw your attention. Do you know how the woman receives her miracle? Persistency. She won’t let anyone stop her from coming to Elisha. And when she meets Elisha, she won’t let him go. Even after Elisha tells Gehazi to go to the child with his staff, the woman says, “I’m sorry Mr prophet but I am not going anywhere without you. I am not leaving you. You must come with me.” It reminds me of the parable of the persistent widow that Jesus gives in Luke chapter 18. There is a widow who keeps coming to an unrighteous judge who does not fear God and does not care about justice. This widow keeps bothering the judge to give her justice and the judge keeps refusing her. Finally, the judge says, “This woman keeps bothering me. I will give her the justice she wants so she will stop coming to me.” Do you know the point of this parable? Jesus is telling this parable so that we will always pray and not lose heart. The point is not to compare God to an unrighteous judge but to contrast God with one. Here is the point. If an unrighteous judge would grant a request because of a persistent asking, won’t God who loves us give us what we ask if we come to him persistently?

In other words, God is inviting us, “Pester me. Bother me. Don’t quit asking. Don’t quit coming. I’m not like that unrighteous judge. If he can be pestered into doing something by the widow, why would you think twice about continually coming to me? I am a good God who cares for you.” Do you see? Some of you are thinking right now, “Why doesn’t God just give it the first time I ask? It makes life a lot easier.” The answer is I don’t know. But here is what I know. God will only give us some things in response to our persistent prayer. God loves it when his children keep coming to him and ask him. So, the question is, what is it that you want God to give you? Is it that deep longing for a child? Is it healing for that person you really love? Is it a spouse? Is it that child who walks away from the Christian faith? Whatever it is, God wants you to be like this woman who won’t let go until God answers your prayer. So don’t quit coming to God. God is a good God who will not fail to give what is good for you.

But here is what I want you to see. As amazing as this miracle is, this resurrection is only a clue to something much greater. This resurrection is only a preview of the blessing God can and will give his people. Sometimes people ask this question, “If God can resurrect the dead, why doesn’t he do this now? Why don’t we see the dead come alive more often?” The same reason we don’t see many resurrection stories in the Bible – It’s not the time yet. All the resurrection stories we see in the Bible are previews of the resurrection day that all God’s people will experience at the last. Until that day comes, God gives us previews to assure us that death will not have the last word over us. In this story, Elisha is giving us a preview of the resurrection power of Jesus. In Luke chapter 7, there is another resurrection that happened not far from Shunem. There was another woman who had lost a son. This woman was lamenting bitterly over the death of her son. And just like the Shunammite woman, this woman also received her son back from death. But if Elisha had to pray to God for resurrection, Jesus simply commanded the young man back to life. Elisha called to the one who had the power to raise the dead, but Jesus is the one who has the power to raise the dead. Jesus is not just a prophet calling on God; he is the God to whom all the prophets call. Jesus is far greater than Elisha. He is our ultimate hope of resurrection.

But how will Jesus give resurrection to us? The same way Elisha resurrected the boy. What did Elisha do? He stretched himself upon the boy. Elisha lay on the boy mouth to mouth, eye to eye, hand on hand. In other words, Elisha covered the boy with himself. When God looked at the boy, he could not see the boy. He could only see the holy man of God, Elisha. The boy was hidden. Do you know what it symbolized? Listen to what Paul says in Colossians 3:3-4 – ³ For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Paul says that we have died, and our life is hidden with Christ in God. It means that Jesus stretched himself upon us, mouth to mouth, eye to eye, hand on hand, so that we are hidden. So, when God looks at us, he does not see us. He sees Jesus over us. What happened to all our sins? Jesus took them. Imagine you fall into a hole and a grenade gets thrown into the hole. Then suddenly your friend jumps on top of you and covers you with his body. What happens? You live but your friend dies. Why? Because he covered you with his body. He took the explosion, so you can live. And that is what Jesus did for us. The wrath of God was thrown at us because of our sins. But Jesus jumped on top of us, and he covered us, so the explosion of God’s wrath did not touch us. God treated Jesus as if he had done everything we did. Why? So that when we put our faith in Jesus, God could treat us as if we had done everything Jesus did. That means when God looks at us now, all he sees is beauty. God sees us as holy, righteous, and blameless. All God sees is the perfect record of Jesus because we are hidden in Jesus. But that’s not the end of the story. Because one day when Jesus appears in all his glory, we also will appear with him in glory. The gospel is good news not simply because Jesus died but because Jesus rose from death. With his resurrection, he guarantees future resurrection for those who put their faith in him. And because of it, today we can live with the hope of resurrection.

Let me close with this. Do you know what happens when we have the hope of resurrection? If God is the God of resurrection, then we have every reason to get our hopes up. It does not matter what we are going through, it doesn’t matter how painful it is, we never lose hope because we know what is coming. Everyone who trusts in Jesus will be raised to eternal life. And God is using everything that is happening right now to prepare us for the future resurrection. If God can defeat death, the ultimate problem, God can defeat all our other problems. If God conquered death, then nothing that happens to us can destroy us. When we see God cannot be defeated, we become more confident in living for God. We press on no matter what because we know we will spend eternity with God. That’s the hope of resurrection. The question is, where do you put your hope? Let’s pray.

Discussion questions:

1. What struck you the most from the sermon?
2. Based on your experience, why do you find it hard to trust the goodness and generosity of God?
3. Look at the three responses to painful situations (resignment; resentment; realignment). Which one is your tendency and why?
4. How does the hope of resurrection make you more confident in living for God?
5. Spend time to pray with one another regarding the wish of the heart or the sorrow of life.