From Famine to Fullness | Elder Rosalind Ang

You're listening to a passage to go from at church.

We hope this message will light up your day.

I want to go into the Word of God this morning.

Are you ready? Are you excited? Okay? Now before I okay,

So let's do a little bit of pop quiz. So

I'm gonna go into the Book of Kings. Do you

know where the Book of Kings is? Old Testament or

New Testament? Oh? Very good, very good. I think you

have being taught very well. Okay. Now, okay, when you

think about the Book of Kings, okay, So I need

to transport you back into two thousand years ago and

more and so there's a series of kings. Okay, So

why do you think you know? What do you know

about this period in the Israel like the Jewish history?

What do you know about kings at the time? Okay?

I know a big question? Right where to start? Okay?

So can I just ask you when you read the King,

the Book of King, do you generally find that there

are more good kings or bad kings? No? Good kings? Phew, phew,

not many? La. Why did God put back kings in

the Bible for us to appreciate the good ones? All right,

thank you, Thank you for that, Joel. Actually, Joe's been

in ECT longer than me. I think when you join

us longer than me. Okay, I joined two thousand and five. Okay,

still longer, Still long Okay. So next year you're celebrating

our twenty fifth anniversary, we want all of you to

be there to just really appreciate what God has done.

It's not really about celebrating us, it's celebrating what God

has done. Amen. And that's why we come together and

celebrate and remember the faithfulness of God. You know, what

is that three person that started this church? What a

day without God? Think about it? Right? You cannot do

much anything great with out God. And so when we

come together, we just want to say God, you know,

all glory goes back to you. Amen. So I'm really

excited the team that's planning it. You know, it's just

like we're gonna bring you down memory lane. Oh my gosh,

you're gonna see stuff, pictures of us like ten fifteen

years ago. You're like, ooh, this is what you look

like fifteen years ago. So so down memory lane. So exciting.

But you see two you know, I don't know how

many of you have been following the US elections. Very interesting, right,

very interesting. I don't know what is your personal take

to it. But God is in control, amen, whatever it is,

no matter. The rhetorics are crazy, you know. Yeah, so

let's not go into politics this morning. Over. There's much

that we can say about it. But God reigns, amen.

God reigns in America, and God reigns in Malaysia no

matter what happens. So okay. So we talk about kings,

and we know that in the Kings, well at least

the first and second book of Kings that we read,

they are majority bad king la Okay, So, so have

you heard of this guy called Ahap? King Ahap? What

do you know about King Ahap? How? Just? How bad?

Is bad? The worst? The worst kind? Whya? Whya? He

killed the prophets? That's right? What else? Now if you

think about it? Okay, human logic? Right, So we know okay,

what is a good leadership and what is bad leadership? Okay?

So okay, So, so give me some feedback. What would

make you think of what will make someone a good

leader versus a bad leader? Okay, So, good leader, what

are some of the characteristics that you're looking for a

good leader. Hine, Okay, what else? What else? Sorry? Leads

the people? Okay what else? What else? Good? King? Come on,

we have to find good words, right, because we never

experienced good leadership. Listens to the people. Okay, what else?

What else? Good leadership? Sorry? Unite the people? Are got

potential to be partical leader? Okay ah, okay, okay, good? Good?

What else? What else? What else makes a good leader?

Gentle but firm? Okay, all right, okay, so have some idea.

We may not experience a lot of good leadership. You're like,

I have to find that bad one. Let's go to

the bad one so that we know how to find

a good one. Okay, bad leadership? What what do you

expect to see in bad leadership? Self centered? Selfish? What else?

Micro managing? Oh? Big word there? Big word from a

young lady? Okay, okay, okay, she's why already? Right? Are

you working? Why already? Know? So? When I first met her,

she was just a campus student. Now or even younger,

just teen coming up now? Micro managing? Okay, bad, bad boss?

What else? What else? What else? Sorry? This obeys God?

Thank you sir? Wow? Okay, the man has spoken. The

man of God has spoken you think about it, right,

So we have all these characteristics of good leadership bad leadership.

Now I want you think about it from God's point

of view. What makes a good leader and what makes

a bad leader? Obedience? That's right, that's right. And what

made King Ahaps so bad was not because he did

not listen to the people, or he did not unite them,

he didn't feed them. What made him so bad in

God's eyes, It's because he worshiped other gods, as simple

as that. You see. You know, sometimes when we read

the Bible, right, we we go into it with our perspective.

All this was bad, this was bad, This was bad.

But you know it's always good to put on the

cap and the mind and the perspective of God. How

does God see this situation? Many times we look at

it from very human eye, right, But you know, I

always like to invite you to take a step back,

put yourself in God's you. I know it's not easy,

not easy, but then you will catch the heartbeat of

who God is. Amen. All right, okay, so let's turn

now to and this is going to be the focus

of our you know reading this morning. This is taken

from First Kings. Go to First Kings chapter seventeen. First

Kings chapter seventeen. Now, so let me give you some context. Yeah,

so I'm reading from First Kings chapter sixteen. So just

give you a little bit of context. Because just now

someone said he was a bad king, the worst of

its kind. So let's see how true this is. Okay, now,

First Kings chapter sixteen. Or by the way, if you

have your Bible, can I encourage you to open the

Word of God for yourself? Okay? Right, we will really

want to bring this habit to all of us, Okay,

that you really get to know your Bible. Okay, all right,

So First Kings chapter sixteen, Verse thirteen. Let's go with

the tyaka. It says here, now, Ahab the son of Omri,

did evil in the side of the Lord, whose side,

human side, men's side, the right yad side, the Lord's side,

more than all who were before him. And it came

to pass as though it had been a trivial thing

for him to walk in the scenes of Jerobom, the

son of Nebad, that he took his wife Jezebel. Oh

have you heard of his name? Jezebel never made Okay,

So parents if you have sons, try to avoid Jezebels

in their lives. The daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians,

and he went and served ba Al and worshiped him.

He didn't do any bad stuff right to the right

yet to the people, but he worshiped Ba'ah. But study two.

Then he set up an altar for Baal in a

temple Aba, all of which he had built in Samaria,

and a had made a wooden image. Ahab did more

to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than

all the kings of Israel who will before him. Amen,

you catch something there already. Are the things that you

do provoking others to anger? Or are they provoking God

to anger? Wow, it's a tough question to ask ya,

because sometimes we might be so concerned with pleasing people.

Do you know why he worshiped Baal and not because

the people were worshiping Bah right, and so he was

doing something to please the people. And just kind of

ask yourself, you know, in your own life, do I

make decisions based on how I please people? Or do

you have this sense that no, I want to please God,

and if I want to please God, it doesn't matter

who I don't please. Now, that's going to get you

into trouble. Yeah, which I'm going to talk to you

about making convictions like that is going to get you

into trouble. But is it worth making those stands? You

think for yourself? Okay, So this is the context. King

ahab right did evil in the sight of God and

God was greatly displeased with this. Now okay, Then suddenly

after you hear about King, then suddenly there's this hero

comes into a picture. Okay, hero, Hero, Now, okay, you're

not Elijah. Tell me what you know about Elijah. He's

a prophet. What does the prophet do? What is the

role of a prophet? Speak the word of God? Yeah,

he's a messenger, right, messenger from God? Like whoa? Suddenly

you know, even in this day end age, they are

prophets in our myth. Just be careful though, Can I

just caution you to be very careful about what kind

of prophecies that you listen There are many, now many,

and I know people are really searching level and centers.

Can I tell you, like everything that you hear and

listen to, you you got to test it against this word.

So you gotta know your word church. If you don't

know your word, you'll be swayed by any kind of

doctrine that's out there. You know, in the last days,

one of the greatest dangers that's facing the church is

false prophecy. It's not even unbelieving, it's false prophets. And

it says Matthew twenty five that even the elect would

be deceived. So you think that you're the elected ones,

just watch out, Just be very careful, okay. And that's

why we have the Family of got together to keep

ourselves watchful for one another. Man. You need to be

in a community of faith, okay, And that's why we

encourage people to not miss gathering in the community of faith,

because on your own you will waiver, you will fail,

you will be deceived. Okay. So so okay, just just'

site not there like not okay. So we know that

Elijah is a prophet. He came and he gave the

word of God. Okay, what else do you know about Elijah?

Come on, tell me what you know about Elijah. He

didn't die. Do you know that that he didn't die? What?

How did he exit earth? He ran on a chariot

like okay? Like Stroy chariot horses, Terry's are fire and

then he went off for right, Okay, interesting things that

you remember about Elijah. What else do you know about Elijah?

He ran away from king ahb Okay, we're gonna see

that a little bit. So there's a little bit or

running with this. Okay. By the way, if you study Elijah,

it's very interesting because before one Kings chapter seventeen, which

is the first mention of his name, you know nothing

about him. Nothing, you know, like, no family background, no

PhD in theology, nothing not no serious time you think

about it. Nothing Where did the man come from? You

know that he came from the land of Gilead. That's

all we know, right. Uh. And to me it's like, well,

sudden boom, you know it's suddenly in the scene. Who

came out? Came this man Elijah? Right? And okay, so

profit how many of you would like to be a prophet?

You know? He oh God, thank you, sir, you know,

thank you? Yeah, yeah, you would like to be a prophet, right,

I mean, hey, come on, you have the word of God.

I can tell you the truth about your life. John,

That says the Lord. Scary, right, quite scary, look quite

scary to be a prophet. But you know that prophets,

you know, when they're gifted and they when they flow

with anointing, they just boom and you're like, cut your heart,

oh a million pieces. But it's truth and that that

is anointing that the prophets carry right, And so do

you know that Elijah is one of those that kept

being mentioned by Jesus. Do you know that out of

all the prophets, Jesus talked about Elijah a lot? You know?

Do you know that John the Baptist was sort of

like likened to the spirit of Elijah? Hey, powerful, lokay

this guy. Do you know that when Jesus was in

the amount of transfiguration, who were the two other folks

with him? Moses and Elijah? Ay? Something about this man? Lah?

Do you know? And I mean like, hey, you don't

want to be like him? Men get last, get always,

like I do want one like other people. Let Selena

be the one Ah because she's CPC right, CPC's church

plank coordinator. Let her be the Elijah okay uh, because

she would take the heat ler okay, closer to Jesus,

the sorry hot hot so so so Elijah's was like that.

And and if you knew that, the other story about

Elijah was he was the one that you know he

encountering it with the prophets of ba Al, Right, how

many of them? Four hundred? No, one man versus four hundred?

What are the odds? And you know that he did?

But do you know that right after the human into

the depression as well? Interesting man, very interesting man. So

let's let's learn where he began. Okay? Are we going? Okay?

So let's read First Kings, chapter seventeen. Now, chapter seventeen.

Let's see how far we can go. Okay. So verse

one and Elijah suddenly and Elijah wow, okay, and thurther scene, Elijah,

the tishbite of the inhabitants of Gilead said to ahep. Now,

I'm also wondering, okay. You know when I when I

read and study scriptures, I'm always thinking, how come this

guy suddenly got audience with the king? He's a no man,

you know, do you think about it? How come he

suddenly got audience with king? A heep? Must be someone now, right, okay? Okay,

So he said to ahep, He's said he's talking to

the king right now, as the Lord God of Israel lives,

before whom I stand, there shall not be due nor

reign this year's except at my word. Okay. Let's let

me just read through the whole context. Okay. Then the

word of the Lord came to him, saying, get away

from here and turn eastward and hide by the brook

chery which flows into the Jordan. And it will be

that you shall drink from the brook. And I have

commanded the ravens to feed you there. Okay, I'm gonna

pause their first Okay, So let's unpack this a little bit.

What is the first four or five words that Elijah said, read, Read,

read the Bible, the open book, Pessa, open book. It's okay,

you don't have to sorry, As the Lord reins Okay,

So that's your translation, as the Lord reins are Okay,

what else? What else? What other translations do you have?

What else does they say, as the Lord God of

Israel lives? What else? What else? Any other translations? Or

is that quite similar? Quite similar? Right? As the Lord

God of Israel lives. Wow, have you ever started your

sentence like that? As the Lord God of Israel lives?

Now what does this tell you about him? As a

person think about it, as the Lord God of Israel lives?

What what what do you think? What? What does this

tell you about this man? His prayer? Fool? Okay? How

do how do you derive that? How do you come

up with that? Because he is he always fears, hears

from God? Right? Can you see that his focus right

now is the Lord God, the Lord God. That's that's

his main focus. Because it's like, whatever you say kind

of tells me what your focus is. Right, So he's

his phrase is as the Lord God lives, truly lives,

right as the Lord not just okay, as the Lord

God of Israel says before whom I stand about that,

before whom I stand? What does that tell you a

little bit more about Elijah? He knows that everything that

he say, he's going to be accountable to God. Wo

before whom I stand. He knows who he's standing every day,

every moment. Do you know? Do you know who you

stand before? Every day? You know that many times? Right?

Because God is out of sight, He becomes out of

mind only on Sundays and maybe homes and prayer service

three times. And we have lost this sort of understanding

and this knowledge that God is here with us. And

that's why, right, It's like we do things and we

say things just as though God is not there, you know,

and it feels as though, like what is there even

a God in your life? Sometimes? Christians, can you hear me?

We behave as though God is not with us. We

behave as though God is not alive with us. You know,

the moment your language and you say things like, oh

my gosh, I'm dead or this situation is impossible, you

are declaring and confessing that there is no God in

your life. Did do you see that? Because if you

dare to say, as surely as the Lord lives, you

are declaring a few things. Hello, God is alive. Yes,

our God is alive. And if you believe that God

is alife, you also believe that he is omnipresent, his omnipotent,

his OMNITIONI right, do you know? This means it's everywhere.

It means he's all powerful. So why are we afraid? Christians? Right?

Why are we afraid? And this is a man, a

bold man who says, as surely as a lordless before

whom I send, He's not standing before king a heap,

he is before his God as he declasses Wow, Wow,

think about yourself, like when after you live this service,

you know, when you go into your workplaces, when you

go into difficult conversations, when you go into a difficult relationship,

would you say, my godless as surely as my godless,

and I stand before him, I know that God will

bring us true this situation. Do you have language of

faith rather than sisters friends? Right? Or is our language

betraying our own faith in God? Whatever impossible situations that

you have, what is your language? What's the first thing

that comes to your mind? Do you know that God

or human we will always try to think about our

way first the solution, and then God will be the

last result. Yes, yeah, is after you try everything that? Okay,

maybe let's try prayer. After we try everything else, then

let's try prayer. But Elijah was a man who knew

that I try God first, and I don't need to

try anything else. Amen. If I go to God first,

I don't need the others. I don't need men, I

don't need connections, I don't need money in my bank.

It's okay, God has everything? Do you believe that? Right? Wow? Okay,

let's see how far I can go ammonia. It was one.

But I think it's very important because you guess what,

right do you know? Profits? Right? They usually bring bad news? Correct?

You think about all the prophets, how many of you

like to read? All the prophets are not really nice stuff. Lah,

you will go into you know, you'll be carried away.

You know you'll be captives in Babylon. Profits. You know,

profits no very nice thing to see, you know. And

this is Elijah declaring that there will be no rain

for you. Okay, I'm if I'm gonna be the prophet, right,

I'm gonna say, ex mpum, you will not have water

for the next one week. Reaction someone said, why I

live in kell no umpump? Thank god I live in

kl I live in subag straight away, right, don't care

about the unbunk people are never have water. So this

is essentially Elijah. Can can you put him yourself into

his situation? He came into the scene with the king

and said there will be no rain for you. You're

no rain, no water for one day? You cry, right, oh,

those dress no water way to find water. And he's

declaring these bad news. You know, man, I don't want

to be him. You think going to be mister popular.

He's going to read the next world elections. No way,

Everyone's gonna hate him because he's prophesigned doom. You know

how many of you like prophets of doom? Nobody, but

you see the things right many times in our own lives.

Before we can get to the good news, I think

we need to paint the bad news first. Do you

know for our contexts right when we we we when

we encounter others, do you know that we will actually

bring bad news to them first? If you really want

to bring someone to know God, you have to paint

a picture that they are sinners first. If you are

not a sinner, you don't need a savior. Many of us,

when we share the gods, we're like, oh God, it's

so good. You know he will come and bless you,

and your life will be transformed and change nothing. Will

you know? You will be like the most blessed person

on earth? And we forget that. Actually, what they need

to come to first is the place of repentance. Yes,

you think about your own liver. Have you confessed and

repentant of your sins? Before you know? I can never

truly appreciate the beauty of God, what God has done

on the cross until I recognize what caused him to

be there in the first place. Do you do you know?

How do you do? You see the brilliance of a diamond?

And anyone who loves diamond ladies all the merit and

single ladies. You like diamonds, You like diamonds. Okay, Uh,

there is some unspoken message here. Okay, you heard it

from the back, sir. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Married couple by

the way, Okay, one's the thing behind one's day friend

the wife you're saying, Okay, do you know that you

can only appreciate the brilliance of a diamond against a

black cloth? Right? If it's if it's against anything that's

white or clear in transfer you you can't appreciate the

beauty of the diamond. And it's against the black cloth.

It's against our sin, our failures. That the beauty of

what Christ had done for us, it shines true like

nothing else. Amen. And so sometimes right, we have to

be the bringing of bad news. We have to to

bring people to a place of conviction and to say, actually,

nothing you can do can save you. Really nothing, no

matter how good a person you are, nothing can save you.

Except if you put your belief in your trust in Jesus, right,

the bad newsless. Okay. So this is a bringer prophet

of doom. He says, there will be bad news for you, okay.

And this brings me to this first point that I

have is what is the conviction that you carry? Elijah

was a very convicted man. Do you know? Before he

can actually deliver bad news, he had to be sure

what he was delivering. He had to be sure that

as he was walking the land of Israel in those days,

that he could see idols everywhere. He erected to worship

bout and he caused such an anger within him to say,

you know, I think God is gonna bring judgment upon

this land. Did you see? That's what's happening. And a

lot of us, in our philosophy, in our theology of God,

we always have this battle. Right, if God is good,

how can he allow bad things to happen? Ooh, it's

a big one. If God is so good, why would

he declare a drought? And guess how long the draught was? For?

How many years? Three and a half years. It says

in James that when Elijah prayed there was no rain

for three and a half years. Three and a half years, guys,

I asked you no water for three days? You cry not?

This is drought famine in the land for tree and

a half years. This man what would cause? You know what?

Because if he had not declared it, it would not have happened.

You know, you know, you think about it. If he

had not said the word, it would not have happened

in that land, because it was based on the word

of Elijah. Right, he was a man carried, man dated

to carry this very difficult word, almost like a curse,

you would say, upon the people. But was there a

purpose to it? And you know that there was a purpose? Right?

And so let's not be so embroad with you know what.

We think it's a nice thing to say. What is

the popular thing to say? What is the truth? What

is the truth? The truth is we're all sinners and

if you choose to we can be saved by grace.

It's a choice, all right. So it's a conviction. What

convictions do you carry? Example, what convictions do you carry?

I can go very long into this. There are many

convictions that you have, right, and it shows how you

live your life right. If you are convinced and convicted

that this is the truth and the word of God.

It means it's gotta be your source of truth. How

many of you read your truth or do you go

to your social media, you know, and you just let

yourself be swept by whatever is current and whatever is viral, right,

and then you go like, oh, I do I don't

know how to think about this situation. You know, but

this one is saying this, that one is saying that,

what is God saying? What is God saying? So that's

is that a conviction? Do you Are you convinced that

this is the truth, that this is the word of God?

Because if you're not convinced, no matter what I tell

you to do, no matter what kind of reading plan

I give it to you, you will not do it.

If you're not convinced that bitter God is good for you,

you will not touch it ever. And we can't talk

about how beautiful it is, how it brings vite means

and minerals to your body, how it cools you down.

You know, Chinese people will say, long, very long, it's

cooling through the system. You know, if your body is

very heaty, Okay, this is a very Chinese thinger. Your

body's very heaty, and then you eat something like every

cooling you balance you out. You know, no matter what

we talk about it, no matter what research points to you, data, research, science, research,

if you're not convinced, you won't eat it. How many

of you eat the word of God daily for your sustenance? Again,

what's your conviction? You know, what is your conviction? What

are you convinced about? Because if you're convinced and you're

convicted about this, it's not about priority anymore. Many of

us we give this research or I'm so busy, you know,

I got so many things. I'm a young mom, nursing mom.

I got a lot of things. And it's very easy

to make excuses. We're all busy, Like, come on, we

will live in a day and age. We're all busy.

But guess what, I'm convinced. You have twenty four hours.

I also have twenty four hours. And my conviction is

God gave us enough time in that twenty four hours

to do what he wants us to do, not more,

not less. Nobody got twenty twenty five hours right, so

that you can kick in and do one more hour

of devotion. No s it's how you manage your priorities.

It's no longer about time or not. It's it's what

you think is important. That's what's gonna consume your time. Amen,

if you believe and you're convicted that on a Sunday,

no matter where we are, we will worship God because

this is my first fruit, my first day of the week.

You know, I believe that Sunday is the first day

of the week for you, not Monday. Sunday is the

first day of the week. No matter what I will,

I'll be here. I know. There's this hashtag for umpun.

It's like love my Sundays. Yeah, can we change it

to love my God? Because I can love my Sundays

and go play pickaball. I mean, I love my Sunday's life.

I playing pickle ball. I can love my Sundays and

I can go and do dim sum breakfast with my family.

I love my Sundays, of course, But the underlying is

do you love your God? Right? So, so what is

the conviction that you carry? And do you know when

you become a man and a woman of convictions? Huh,

let me give you good news here you will be

faith with challenges. Ha you're like, hey, but I thought,

now the Gospel tells me that if I believe in Jesus,

all my problems are over. I love what this one proach.

Just say you know and he says, you know, when

I became a Christians, all my troubles increased. Yes, yes,

it will increase. You know why, because you're gonna stick

out like a store stumb. You're gonna make convictions and

stance which other people. You know why they don't like you,

because it's gonna each into their guilty conscience. You know,

people don't like you, and you're like, what, you're so

righteous Christians? Holy moly, right, cannot do this? Cannot do that.

You think you're very good, you're better than others, right,

do you know that's a defense mechanism against what's already

you know, like you're disturbing their your calmness, your zen

because you when you you're confronted with the truth, right,

there's only two responds. It's either you change and you repent,

or you turn away from God. That's it. There's only

two responds when you encounter the truth. Either you believe

it or you do anything and everything in your power

to dispute it. This is the world that we live

in church. If you look at America, that's that's what

you see news and reporting. Everyone's trying to paint a picture.

The narrative, they call it narrative. Narrative like my story,

your story. And you know now it's like everyone's story

is real. As long as you feel it's right, it's right, La.

There's no more black and white. And that's why when

we are confronted with a black and white like this,

it's hard because we say, you don't care about how

you feel. Do you know? The fight right in America

is about rights? What is my right? And sometimes as

Christians we can get into that same fight, what's my right?

What's in it for me? I don't like this place

because you didn't meet my needs, you know, and we

go around feeding our needs. But do you know that

that's that's not our fath right, that's not all feel

at all. So you know that you start with convictions,

and convictions is going to get you into trouble, by

the way, But you know that every time in the

midst of a challenge or a crisis, and I know

some of all of us are in some form of

crisis or challenge, that the word of God will come

to you, amen, that there will be a command. You know,

let's start with conviction and let's move on to the

next one, which is there will always be a command.

I will give you five seas to frame this for

you to remember, right. First one is your conviction. What

are your convictions? Second one is what is the command

from the Lord? What is the word of God in

the midst of the crisis, in the midst of your challenge?

Do you know that I thank God that God's word

continues to speak. I thank God that he's alive. God,

He's not a day God. You know that his word

was buried, and you know, buried for the last two

thousand years, but it's speaking to us today. Right now.

God's word is speaking to us. Right. So let's hear

what the command is. And the command given to Elijah

was this, get away from here verse three. Get away

from here and turn eastward and hide by the brook

which flows into the Jordan. And it will be that

you shall drink from the brook. And I have commanded

the ravens to feed you there. Wow, how many of

you have been fed by any birds before? No? No Ah,

what this is terrible in the other services. I asked him, right,

you haven't been fed by a bird before? They say, no,

I feed the bird. God, this some better still, I

eat the bird. Chinese people for you, we eat everything

anything that moves, we can eat, and we eat the

whole thing. Don't care black color, what color? Right? We

eat the bird. Okay. So now, in the midst of

the chaos and the famine that he had just proclaimed,

and and and God says, go and run away and hide. Okay.

Sometimes God, God, God's waste. We cannot brain, we cannot

make sense of it, we cannot make logic out of it. Okay.

So God says, go and hide, and then go to

this brooke. So clang right, and then there will be

some some crows, some crows to feed you there. How

many of you will go, you won't be because you're

eating the birds, right, Okay. So this is a clank

persona they see anything that mostly like okay, that's food

food food, So far a clank person. They will go

because they know in Klang there's a lot of buds

that they can eat, and they will make baute out

of it. Okay, okay, all right, Not chick's a butter whatever. Okay,

never mind, cut that out, okay, So so anyways, anyways, right, okay,

that just came out nowhere, okay, okay, So, so how

many of you would obey this weird command? Is it

logical or not? It does not make any sense, my friends,

It does not make sense. But again, you see Elijah,

what was his conviction as the Lord God of Israel, Liz,

he knew who his God is, and he knows that

no matter what crazy commands, what impossible things that God commanded?

God is God? Hey, hello, hello, God is God. Yeah.

He can do whatever he wants. He can raise the

day life, he can make a man out of mind.

Do you believe that about your God? Because if you

begin to have this kind of convictions about who God is, right,

then then there comes a choice, which is my next See,

all of us have a choice. I can say to

you that God's what will come to you? He will

come to you. The question is what do you do?

What do you raisk? How do you respond to the

command of God? Right? You can't say cheesy now in

Chinese emits you're crazy? Why would I go to Sunna Klang? Right?

And to be expected to be fed by crows. It

does not makes it. Ask me to go KFC, Yes,

ask me go to KFC in Klang, right, and then

they will give me free food. That one you can understand.

Can that logic you can accept. That logic you can accept.

But go to a river there is no fast food,

there's no family martin, and then the birds will feed you.

I don't know, La, seriously, I don't know what will

almost be going to eat? Like just mind at a time.

It's like, Oh, it's like, what kind of weird command

is this? And of course the Bible doesn't tell us

what he was thinking. The Bible just tells us his obedience, right,

And I wonder if that can be the testimony of

our lives Church. It doesn't matter what you're thinking, La,

it doesn't matter how you're feeling about it. As long

as the word comes, the testimony of your life is

So he went, so she went, So they went, So

they obeyed first timer. So let's see that m HM.

Verse five, And so he went, this is Elijah. And

so he went and did according to the word of

the Lord. For he went and stayed by the brook

of Chariot, which flows into the Jordan. Verse six, the

ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and

breid and meat in the evening, and he drank from

the brook. Wow, beef the girl breakfast and dinner. How

about that? And as I was thinking about it, I'm

like thinking where it wasn't even just fruits, you know,

you think about it. Fruits the raven can go in

flag lash from the tree and whatnot. Bread he had

to take from where you think the bread the ravens

went and to fly and you know, gotcha catcha put

some oil and then baked it. Hello, how did the

ravens probably stole from somewhere? I don't know. Or it

could be a miracle. Wow, the manna fell from the sky.

Did you believe that it's not just a story? You know,

it's real. Sometimes we read the Bible and so ah, yeah,

this is fairy tale. No, because if you believe that

your god can do anything, means it can do anything

and everything. And that means if he had air flown,

why you be from Japan? You know? And the best

break from China, I don't know where. It's the best

break from Italy, Italy and he brought it together the

ravens because why can fly my right, so make sense?

So Soah fly all the way and feed Elijah breakfast

and dinner every day. You know, Wow, this is the God.

This is a God that you believe in. Amazing. I

think so many times we have missed the awesomeness of

our God, the greatness of our God, and we we

put him into a little box. That God. You know,

I pray to you for this small thing. Small that

But if you dare, and I challenge you in your faith,

if you dare to obey the word of God, this

is what you were experienced. Amazing Now, then then okay? Good?

Like end of story? Right? Is it an a story? No?

In verse seven? And it happened after a while that

the brook dried up because there had been no rain

in the land. Now, some of you are in your

Christian journey, right, and you're like, hey, I've been obeying God. Right,

he said, he gave the word. I obeyed. Now the

provisions stopped. Do you see that some of us get

thrown into this frenzy and we say, oh, no, did

I hear God wrongly? Did I mistaken that God asked

me to come to this job? Why am I in

this place? Right? Now right, and and we questioned, like, God,

did you speak? Did I hear wrongly? Because the provisions stopped? Yep?

Can you identify with this? Or am I the only one?

Sometimes you question like, hey, God, did you make a

mistake or not? Why am I in this very difficult relationship?

Why am I in this very difficult marriage? I don't

know what is God's being? But I thought I heard

from God war? How come so much arguments now with

my husband? I thought, I thought God, I thought you

brought us and everything will be smooth sailing thereafter? Can

you see that there are many times? Is the externals

because the land was dry and barren and because of

that it stopped right? But also because his fault law? Right,

who's the one who declared the drought? Maybe think, oh yo,

it's my fault la I declared and that's why the

brook writer? Right, then we go into this help blame.

But you know that the story doesn't end there. Every

time God is bringing you on a journey with him, right,

Can I encourage your church as you journey, as you

walk with obedience. The moment that it feels like you

know you're stuck, the word of God comes again the

word of God comes again, you know, and that's something

that we can rejoice because the word of God never

stops coming. It's whether you want to listen or not.

Because many times at that point, you know, if you

were like Eliga, we probably blame God. You know, you

are the one that will ask me to declare the draw.

And now I'm in this problem, you know, but if

you choose to continue to keep my eyes come back

to your conviction. Yeah, as surely as the Lord of

the God of Israel lives the word of God. Can

you see it's a cycle, now, your conviction, the command,

the word. You're in the midst of a challenge, now right,

the brook dried up, No more bird, but don't know

where to get bread anymore? Run out of stop. Okay,

And then the word of God came again. Let's see

what happens was it? Then the word of the Lord

came to him. Wow, thank you God that your word

keeps coming. Then the word of the Lord came to

him saying, arise, go to Zarah faith which belongs to Sidon,

and dwell there. See I have commanded a widow there

to provide for you. Let me ask you if the

word of God had been go to the rich man's

house and he will provide for you. Would you go, okay,

go to the poor widow in pingiron Ansana the Bee

forty group, and she's a widow, she's you know, asked

her to provide for you and live there with her.

Would you go? It boggles your mind, right, Why would

God command a poor person who needs more help than

me to feed me? To provide for my need? Do

you see that? And it's it's it's it's really mind boggling,

because you know what in in that sanctuary, and even

now today the role of the man is to the

role of the man is to provide and to protect.

And now he has to be as a man of

God anointed sick shelter under a woman's roof and to

ask her to feed him. I don't know what's going

on in the mindset of Elijah, but I think if

he was an egoistic man, he would have struggled with this.

Think about it many of us, right, I think a

lot of the challenges in our obedience is the ego

buddinness because a lot of the time times the word

of the Lord will ask you to kick your ego

side kick a side your ego and just obey. Do

you know it's very humbling. I think it's very humbling

to go to a poor person and ask supposed to

fit for you, like we had to hide my faser.

No more face you know, serious, No, got no face on.

But let's not be so concerned with our respectability, you know, Christians,

you are we concerned. I need to be a certain thing,

you know, look, a certain thing. We also have our

measure of what success is la decen sealer, things like that.

But this guy, as you read on, goes against all

grains of decency and gentlemanness, as you will see later on.

But he just went according to the word of God.

So again now the cycle. As you obeyed, suddenly there

was a flow. There was a stop to the provision,

and the word of the Lord came and it says,

now go to where else are Go to mpande ful site. Okay,

if you know down the road I'm pay and go

to a poor house in B to flet B two four,

you know, and ask the widow there to feed you

because she will provide for you. Would you go? It

takes a lot for you to obey, but guess what

he obeyed. Right, he made a choice. He continued to

make the choice to follow after God. Can I tell

you that as you walk your life in a journey

as a Christian, every day becomes a choice. The choice

is do I follow God's way? And the answer is

simple if you do not follow God? So some of

us not. We like to play neutrode. Yeah, Christians are

if you do a serve, not Christians are the average relays.

If I ask you to do a survey between one

to five of anything, what is the number that you pick?

Most of three? Correct? All my survey results. I see,

like all three. We like to play safe, right, because

it's like, oh maybe if I put five, then maybe

think people think I'm too egoistic. If I put load,

then I'm like trashing myself. No, I put trees safe. Safe.

Tree is very safe. You know, coming to church every

Sunday is very safe. Let me not do more. It's safe.

We like to play safe. But you know that you're

playing safe. It's not gonna help you step into your breakthrough.

Faith isn't like that. Now. Faith is spelled r I

s key. Some of you have been hearing all this,

but you don't dare take the next step because it's

a risk. It's a risk of saying, what if, what

if this is not true? What if everything that we

believe is a far as Jesus, you know, you're just

a man, you know, clown, comedian, whatever. And he felt

that he managed to fool the entire world, two billion

of us, into believing into him. What if it's farce?

Our faith is like and be play safe, Like as

long as I'm a good person, I don't have others,

you know, I do my duties, I give my thighs.

I'm okay, God, you should be okay with okay what

I'm average, you know. But God doesn't want average people.

He doesn't want us to remain average because he in

his mind, there's greatness in each one of you, Imen,

because it's how he designed you. Hello, A great God

doesn't create mediocre things. A great God creates great things,

and you are his greatest creation. Can I tell you that, Imen, you,

each one of you are his greatest And God says

this is very good, not just good. No, I yeah,

created the birds and all that good, good, good, good good.

But you, you you very good. Why do we stop

ourselves by being mediocre and saying Nola enoughla too much.

You know, sometimes you ask of us, but God kind

of demands all of you. Love God with all your heart,

all your mind, all your soul, all your strength. It's

quite a high callinger high demand. But is it worth it?

Is it worth? So you think about your own salvation?

Is it worth to give up everything on earth for

the glory of God? Is it? Is it worth it?

You have to ask yourself that question because if you

don't answer that question honestly, you will be mediocre, and

you will continue to be mediocre. Amen. And so it's

a choice, right if I want to if I believe this,

if I believe in Jesus, it's all the way or nothing.

You have to come to that place. You have to

make us stand. Guys. You gotta be a one or

a five. You cannot be a tree. It's either all

the way or nothing. All the way on thing big God.

It's like that, right, because if you want to see

the greatness of God in your own life, it's all right.

And so, even though it didn't make sense, Elijah made

that choice. I'm gonna go all the way like God.

You know, if I believe that you've given me the word.

I will go even if everyone thisses me for it,

even if nobody believed in me, even if I'm going

to be the only one in my office that makes

this stance, I will do it because it's all the

way with you, God, as the Lord, God of Israel,

is before whom I stand. Remember that every day, God,

it's you. It's you, fully you, one hundred percent you.

That's a conviction. And he said, so he went, okay,

So let's read verse ten. He says, So he arose

and went to Zarah Feth. Huh, can you see the

quick obedience? So he arose, So he arose, So rose,

he arose and went to Zarahphyth. And when he came

to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was

there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said,

please bring me a little water in a cup that

I may drink. And as she was going together, he

called to her and said, please, okay, before that, let

me not go there first. Let's let's do vers ten

FIRSTA So he called to her and said, please bring

me a little water in a cup that I may drink.

And you know that she was she went together it.

What does this tell you about the widow? By the way,

think about it? Think about it. Yeah, she was very kind,

not only kind, she was very generous. Hello, it's famine,

and do you know that every drop of water is precious?

Think about it. In fact, when I was thinking about this, right, this,

this widow is a if you want to paint it

in today's contact, she's a pre believer. She's not a Christian,

he's not she's not a believer. Lah, but do you

know that there are many kind people out there, very

good people, very good people men. And so she showed

that she expressed her generosity to a man whom she

does not know, by the way, it's a stranger, okay.

And so she was like, okay, I don't know what's

going on in mind. We will see later what's going

on in mind. And she's like, okay, let me go

and get a little cup of water for you, all right.

It's nice to be hospitable, okay. And then now this

is the part where I say the Man of God

is very demanding. Okay, yes, we cannot take it right.

The women in nurse is like ahah. And as she

was going to get she's so kind and as she

was going to get it, he called to her and said,

please bring me a muscle of bread in your hand. Okay,

is that okay? So far, he asked, very nicely, got pleased?

Right for us women? If you got pleased, then maybe

it will entertain Okay, guys, take not verse tip. And

then she said this now very interesting. See how she

says it. So she said, as the Lord your God lives, okay,

I do not have bread. And so how will you

understand this phrase? So, as the Lord your God lives.

You know, this is when they make old or promises,

or they're trying to make a very strong point. It's

like I swear, almost like I swear, and who do

you swear by? The highest name? And she knew that

the highest name at play here is He's God. I

don't know what she believes in, but she's like, okay,

there is a god, and let's use your godla as

an oath to say how serious I am? Okay, she say,

as the Lord your God lives, I do not have breaks.

She's saying, I'm not lying, I'm not lying. I do

not have bread, only a handful of flower in a

bin and a little oil in a jar, and see

I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may

go in and prepare for myself and my son, that

we may eat it and live. Hey, different vision, is it? She?

In her desperation, she say, I'm not okay out of

a kindness, right, I'm gonna give you some water. Now

you're asking me for bread. The desperation comes out. Yes,

do you know many of us? You know when you

push the corner, then all this desperate cry comes out.

You know I got nothing, Levedy. This is my last

meal on earth, by the way, hello, last meal on earth,

you know, because I'm gonna make whatever is left there

eat it and die. How you wanna fight with that? Okay?

So she explained her desperate situation, and as good Christians,

what do we do? It's okay? Right? Oh, I hear

your situation so bad? Pitila empathy? Empathy? Right? No more?

What's wrong with is Elijah? He is not for empathy? Right?

What is wrong with Elijah? Let's read what is wrong

with him? Or what is right with him? Verse the thing?

And Elijah said to her, do not fear. He recognized

that she reacted out of fear. Every time you see this,

do not fear. God is acknowledging, Yes, I know that

you're free. But here is my comfort and my encouragement.

He says, do not fear, people of God, whatever challenge

you're in, even if it's the last meal on earth

you think you have, do not fear. Even if you

think there's no way out of this bad situation that

you're in. God is saying to you, do not fear.

Tell yourself, do not fear, Do not fear, Do not fear,

Go and do as you have said. He says, yes,

go and do that. Huh, this is the cruncher. But

but how many be like? Bye? But make me a

small kick from it first and bring it to me.

Talk about this this, Dilams are very children. Stick okay,

very MCP, very male children. Stick okay, now you yeah,

you can go and make it, but make for me

and bring it to me first. All the wives saying like,

bring it to me and afterward make some for yourself

and your son. I don't know. I think if I'm

the woman and die, dios, I won't do for you,

literally I die die. Also, I won't do for you.

Are not respectful of all? Not gentlemen? How can you hey,

can you say that I'm gonna like I got a

few sticks, you know, and I got a little bit

of left for my son and me and we a widow,

How can you ask so much for me? Bit? Too much?

Really too much, you know, really too much? How would

you respond? Because when Elijah said that to her, he

continued on, For thus says the Lord. Now this is

a direct command, Thus says the Lord, God of Israel.

The bin of flower shall not be used up, nor

shall the jar of all run dry, until the day

the Lord sends rain on the earth. Can you see

the cycle that we are in right now? Elijah as

a man, he had convictions. Yes, Then the word of

God came, the commandment came in the midst of his

crisis or his challenge, and he had a choice, and

we've seen in two instances he obait. Yes. Now can

you see that the very interestingly part this this cycle

is also happening for the widow. There must be some

convictions that she had to be kind and generous to

this man of God. And then in the midst of

a fine challenge in life, her crisis. I thought about crisis.

This is crisis, okay, last meal on earth? For you

and your son. Many of those moans are by the way,

I can say, you know, we we will die ourselves

first rather than our children's are for cry. She's saying,

me and my son, we gonna die because that's it.

We have nothing else. It's Famine's famine, guy, it's famine,

no job, nothing, there's nothing we can do. Desperate. And

then the word of God came. Yes, Elijah brought the

Word of God to her. Guess what, Now she has

a choice. What is your response to the world. It

doesn't matter whether you're Christian or not. Can I tell

you that God speaks regardless whether you're a believer or not,

because he has a He has a greater purpose to

this as we shall see. And God's word came to her,

a widow out of infect she's a name, no name,

And now she has a choice. What do you think

she did? Do you know the easiest thing is to say, okay,

let me eat an ndalah. I mean that's what she

was going to do anyways. But in the most desperate times,

what the man, the Word of God comes and it

brings us is hope. Do you see that? Can you

see that it's the word of God always comes and

brings us. And when you're in that situation, it's like,

what is that to lose? La, it is my last meal? Anyway,

I will probably die a bit faster because got less food,

my right, a bit less food, I will just die faster.

But what if this was real? What if? And then?

Which is what I love? A choice? Again? Right, we're

talking about a lot about choice. This morning Elijah made choices.

Now this widow had to make a choice. And let's

see what her choice is verse fifteen. So she went,

so she went, So she went and did according to

the word of Elijah. And she and he and her

household ate for many days. Amen. Wow, miracle, right from

the last meal to now I can eat and feed

this stranger for many days. And so the next seed

that I can give you is the continuation. The miracle

is in the continuation. All of us are seated here

right now, right here. You may not have experienced the

job of all physically. Anyone of you try buying on shoppy,

the job of all that never runs dry. Gonna don't have, right,

I tried, but don't have scammer hmm. But you see

the very fact that you're sitting here right now, and

you're in your faith. That is the miracle. The many days,

the continuation, because it's so easy to fall away from

the faith, the world that we live in is so

easy to fall in the face. And the fact that

you are here right now, God is allowing us to continue.

The miracle is in the continuation. Friends. It's not about

the big do you know. There's no big houha about

her miracle. They just had enough to eat every day.

That's it. That's it. The miracle is that you had

enough to eat every day. There's a meta where it

comes from some of us, you know, like you could

be you could have lost your jobs. But the very

fact that you are here and you know that you

can get your next meal, your next meal, God is

working his miracle. You don't know how. Suddenly, if they

even came in, Okay, I can eat another few more days.

Suddenly a relative invited me for lunch. Did you see that?

The miracle is in the continuation. And sometimes we get

so hung up? Where is God? Is? My life's on mundane? Now?

Every day eat the same thing? Hey, hello, every day

the same thing is called provision. La. Why are we complaining?

You should be giving thanks. Right, you should be giving

thanks that I'm continuing in my journey. Nothing big hooha

about this, Nothing great about this woman, by the way,

except for obedience. Honestly, you know, I think we all

you know, I don't know what is it that you

want to others to remember you by. It could be

like I want to reach my first million when i'm

the tee. You know, I don't know. I want to

be this, I want to be there. But in God's eyes,

she was obedient, and that's all that method to God.

There's a matter what kind of financial wealth you have

or don't have. In God's eyes, it's very different. Yeah,

God's eyes is did you obey or not? I give

the word? Did you obey or not? I give the word?

Did you obey not? In God's eyes, greatness is obedience.

It's faithfulness, even though it's crazy. Amen. So she did

all that and it did not run dry. And I'm

going to draw to a close. You know that after

all these things, okay, can you please go back and

read that? And you know that as he stayed with her,

they continue on many days again, same cycle that Elijah did.

When the word of God obeyed the woman. Now the

woman obeyed, and then suddenly challenge happened again. What is

this man? Hey? I thought I obeyed God's word. I

gave you that little bit of bread. Now you want

to take away my son? Do you read later on

that her son died? He? Hello, hey, following God obeing

got this thing her? How come? Why did God allow

her son to die? Thought she obeyed? Ready? War? Why God,

You've just been cruel? Is it the challenge him? And

all of this? Right, if you read the whole story,

you know that Elijah also cried out to God, God,

why why did you bring trouble on this family? They

have been feeding me. Right, we've seen your experience, your miracle.

But why why did you allow her precious son to die? Right?

And you know that it was in this and you

know that he prayed and then the child lived and

as he brought and this is the final part that

I want to give you to sort of look the circle.

And at the end of it, let's read verse to

any three. Okay, verse twenty three, I'm going to bring

all the way all of us there. And Elijah took

the child and brought him down from the upper room

into the house and gave him to his mother, and

Elijah said, see your son lives. Amen, your son lives.

Now this is the crux of the math. Then the

woman said to Elijah, now by this I know that

you are a man of God, and that the word

of the Lord in your mouth is the truth. Amen.

Now it's not only Elijah who knew about who God

is and the truth of it. Everything that he had

gone through brought him through again and again, and everything

that the widow went through. It's so that she would

have that clarity, which is the fifthcy for you, the

clarity to know that this God is real, the God

of Israel, Israel, He is no fluke. She experienced the miracle.

Her deepest need, do you know, Her deepest need was

to know the truth. It was not about the provision,

the physical provision. It was not about seeing her son

come to live. What God was interested? Finally, was this

poor woman, this widow, also know that he is God.

That is our team, right, that all may know. It

doesn't matter where you are. Elijah new and through this

whole experience. My gosh, three and a half years, man,

it is not shot, you know. Three and a half

years was the drop. Finally came to this poor woman,

un name, not rich, nothing to shout out for. But

God wanted this captured in the Word of God so

that you and I know that there is a purpose

for us in our walk with God. Amen. And do

you know that as you read on, the cycle continues.

As you obey challenge, you'll come. As you obey challenge,

you'll come. Then it becomes a choice. What would you choose?

What would you choose? And as you choose to walk

towards God and follow him, and then He brings you

to another miracle. He brings you to another breakthrough. And

as you break through, God's gonna break through the mindset

of all those others who do not know Him yet

and see that your God is real. He is real,

He is truth. And we know that Jesus is the Way,

the Truth, and the Life. And no one comes to

the Father except to Him. Amen. Amen.

We hope you've been blessed by this message. For more

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this week is going to be a good week, a

hit for you.

God bless