1 Kings 17:24
And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”
Truth: Our good works ought to point others to God and His truth.
In the above passage we have the end of a story about Elijah and the widow he was staying with and who was caring for him. God had sent Elijah to the widow during the drought in the land. God had promised that the widow would care for Elijah's needs. When the widow's son suddenly died, Elijah felt especially concerned. Elijah takes the son to God and a miracle happens. God heals the son at Elijah's request. Elijah's prayer for the boy brought about a miracle just like later his prayer for rain will bring about a miracle. Note what the Apostle James has to say about this later to the early church:
James 5:16-18
Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.
A strong prayer life and a strong life of faith will result in powerful works being done in the midst of the world. The widow, even though she had already seen a miracle, upon seeing her son raised to life, now believed what Elijah was saying was true. She already had the jar of oil and pot of flour never running out, yet, this miracle caused her to believe in God and to recognize truth. Yes, Elijah was a powerful prophet of God, but God promises the same thing to us. If we do the works that we were sent to do (Ephesians 2:10) then the world will see those good works and, as we attribute them to God, they will glorify God and sing praises to Him. Not our Saviors words in Matthew's gospel:
Matthew 5:16
In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
Good works done in God's name will always bring praise to God! It will allow others to see that what you are saying is truth.
No comments:
Post a Comment