The passage
Thoughts on this passage…
I want us to notice just three things in this passage:
- The tragedy of death
- The power of God
- The trust in His truth
The tragedy of death
In 2019 my amazing wife Gemma said goodbye to her mum at home as she slipped away after a short and gruelling battle with cancer. Our daughter Willow was 3 at the time and cuddled her grandma goodbye for the last time.
It was heartbreaking to walk through that.
A year later we where there again, this time with my dad. I prayed for my dad as his breathing started to slow, I whispered into his ears that I loved him and that God loved him. I then watched the man I had leant on and looked up to my whole life breath his last breath and die.
Two weeks later we lost a baby.
We’ve all experienced the tragedy of death in one way or another. If it’s not as close to home for you as that story yet, a sad fact of life is, it will be one day.
100% of us will die.
I want to set a little fire going inside your soul now though. Have you ever stopped to think about how, deep down, even though death happens to all of us, it somehow feels wrong, like it shouldn’t happen?
Well, the bible would agree with you.
The bible suggests that death isn’t the plan but, instead, it’s a consequence.
The widow in the passage above picks up on this.
She says: “did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son”.
The widow links death with the concept of sin.
This theme permeates the bible wherever you turn. Death is linked intimately to sin, it’s a consequence of sin.
And the bible says that we’ve all got this sin nature. Therefore, we all have to suffer this consequence.
What gives?
This leads us to the incredible power of God
I’m sure you noticed that the story of the widow’s son doesn’t end in his death though.
Something incredible happens: he’s brought back to life.
Notice this isn’t the work of Elijah. It’s not because Elijah did what he did in carrying the dead child upstairs.
It was not about the process.
Elijah looked to God and asked Him, “Lord my GOD, let this boy’s life return to him”.
What bought the boy back? The incredible power of God.
This story points powerfully forward to another story of the power God has over life and death.
As we’ve already touched upon, death shouldn’t be the norm. It’s a consequence of sin.
So how do we get back to the norm, how does death get defeated?
In the New Testament, we encounter the answer. God in flesh. Jesus.
Jesus lived a life without sin. As a result, the consequences of sin could not stick to Jesus.
But, anyone familiar with the Christian faith will be aware that Jesus did die. Horrifically.
On the Roman cross, Jesus took the consequence not of his own sin (he had none) but of all of humanity’s sin — Past, present and future. That includes yours and it includes mine.
With the weight of sin on his shoulders, Jesus died.
Then he did something mind-blowing
Jesus’ resurrection proves that death has lost its sting.
It can be overcome. Not in our own strength though.
The bible teaches us that, if we trust Jesus to carry us into the tomb and back out again, then He will do just that. We will rise again to a permanent life, in proximity to God.
That’s the power of God at work in the ultimate story and seen in microcosm in our passage in 1 Kings 17:17-24.
Trust in God’s truth.
There’s only one response to this story.
Trust in God or don’t.
The widow chose to trust. She declares to Elijah: “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of God from your mouth is the truth”.
She associates the word of God with the truth.
That’s the ultimate disposition of the Christian too. As followers of Jesus we are trusting that Jesus is the truth.
As we trust, we are saved.
I wonder, where are you putting your trust?
You know death isn’t right, you feel it deep down.
I’ve presented you with an account of the truth – will you trust Jesus?