
HONOR MOM!
Text: 1 Kings 17:8-24
8 And the word of the Lord came unto {Elijah}, saying,
9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman {young mother} there to sustain thee.
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the {young mother} was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
12 And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
14 For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth.
15 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
16 And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.
17 And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the {young mother}, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
18 And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
19 And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
20 And he cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the {young mother} with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again.
22 And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23 And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
24 And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth.
1. She Did All She Could (v. 12)
This woman has done and is doing
How many of us today could testify to the truth of having a mother who sacrificed, served, and did all she humanly could do for her family?
2. She Took An Opportunity (vv. 13-15)
- This mother saw an opportunity to provide for her family and she took it.
This opportunity led to her family being provided for throughout the remainder of the drought, which could have been as long as 3 more years.
Did your mother ever take advantage of an opportunity that blessed you?
3. She Remained Faithful (vv. 15-16)
- Everyday for the next three years was just like the first day that this mother met Elijah. Everyday she had to make a cake for Elijah first then for her family.
She faithfully
How many people can testify, “My mom saw to it that me and my siblings were in church every Sunday”? How many homes have moms who faithfully serve God even when the father will not?
4. She Interceded On Behalf Of Her Family (vv. 17-18)
- This woman is not a Jew. Elijah is outside of Israel hiding from Ahab and Jezebel. She doesn’t necessarily knows a lot about God, but she knows enough to come to the man of God.
5. She Impacted Her Family With Her Faith
1) Her son
2) Her son was raised from the dead (vv. 19-23)
3) Hypothetically, her son was