Making Room for the Greater Things

Limit life with Jeannie Greer. You can't force the blessing of the spirit of God into a situation, but what you can do uses analogies to put the sale off the sale of so that when the wind doesn't blow that you were there to receive it. You can't make God move in your life that you can make room for them. Here's a common question. I think all pondered at one point or another in our lives. What is a quote life look like wealth, health, happy family a good job today, pastor, author and theologian JD Greer describes what it looks like to be blessed by God and how we can make room for him to move in our lives as part of our series called something greater if you like to catch up on any of the previous messages you can find them all. JD Greer.com. Now let's dive in yesterday called today's message making room for greater kingship before verse eight is where would you be today, God promised to raise up after Elijah greater profit greater profit with twice the power that Elijah had a bad was Elisha. Elisha was the greater prophet, but Elisha really was there to give us a foreshadowing of the greatest of all profits. The greatest one.

Jesus Old Testament prophets do that Elisha no exception.

I explained to you that Elisha also embodies a promises given to you and me.

Not only does he foreshadow Jesus. He foreshadows us because just like Elisha, the greater miracles that Elijah Jesus promised us in John 14, the greater works than he did, we would do that we would do greater works which is sometimes hard to believe but Elijah did 14 miracles, Elisha did 28 Jesus what he did miracles that took place in one region of the world Palestine over three year. We will take Jesus power and message and take the liberation the forgiveness that the life transforming power and we will take out all over the globe. I met you. I am pretty fired up about this because I just got back from Central Asia and Africa where I'm seeing families who were there for the very reasons I'm going to explain to you today to look at a scene from of the story Elisha that shows us what kind of heart receives the greater things. I know that you want blessing from God.

If I asked them if you want blessing from God. Every single heading here will probably go up. I know you want blessing from God, but the better question is, is your heart the kind of heart that didn't receive the blessing of God. Maybe you're not a Christian, and maybe this whole blessing of God taught leisure skeptical because you like why I was here that is where the Christians explain some temporary stroke of good luck even worse.

I'm here to use to to justify their selfishness or as a way to manipulate other people.

I think what you're going to see here today is that the blessing of God is quite real though it's altogether different from what most people think about it. Let's read this passage asked me to give you six principles about your hearts, but must be true. If you can receive the blessing of God. Verse eight.

One day Elisha went to shoot him were a wealthy woman lived the word wealthy is in Hebrew. We don't have a great translation boarding was wealthy. To be honest is not a great translation. It's the Hebrew word good old and what it really means is powerful, great in every way mighty.

I think it's a pretty cool word because this is a good goal to sound that way right now to see Randy on that American Idol say about why don't you log adult is the implication is that she's just awesome.

She is great in every possible way. She urged him to eat some food like on a woman. So whenever he passed that way he would turn and bear to eat food and she said to her husband bold. Now I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing away.

Let us make a small room on the roof and walls and put there for him a better table in a chair in a lab, so whenever he comes, she can go in there to take a no choose number one hope you are number one we can't make God move in our lives but we can make room for him to move. We can make God move in our lives we can make room for him to move this decision to make a little room for Elisha is going to be instrumental in what happens in the rest of the story. It's not like what she did, obligated God to do what he's going to do but put her in the proximity of his power. She does nothing that you and I can do that can force God to move in our lives in the moment you hear somebody talking that way you know that they are misleading you.

I Jesus said that the movement of the spirit was like the wind, you can't always words coming from.

You can't tell where it's going year. It's hard to predict right you can't force the blessing of the spirit of God into a situation, but what you can do uses analogies to put us a lot about the sale of so that when the wind doesn't blow that you were there to receive it. You can't make God move in your life but you can make room for him to move to give you a few examples of this on how people always seem to get a ticket on the conversations I get into an airplane the leaves misleading to somebody getting safe and people tell me they're like I snuffs out like you, I just that just doesn't happen to me.

People don't, you will begin to weep on the plane and tell me that he, Jesus, that's because I don't tell you about the other stories that take place when I'm on the plate. The several that end with this, you know, awkward turtle floor. Now bear as I bring the subject up, I'll tell you what this visit.

His last trip on the way back and sit next to a lady. She looks pleasant enough, she had to know things will I now thought she's ready to talk about God so I thought I heard him like a you know, just like at this point you like it would be closer to her father away from God.

That's what my signature over the question and she said well you not only know sometimes forcing against us about you often tell you my story and she said no.

So I start out on this about 20 seconds into this.

I was like she's bored and I'm a freshman storyteller you know some like I'm good at this and then and then like you know. 20 seconds later, like she's overboard to annoyed John tried to land his plane as fast as I can because she is completely checked out of the conversation and then I got an eight hour ride with her for the next minute we land every five conversations that I have two of them just never get off the runway.

Two of them burst into flames in midair and one of them turns out to be good not tell you that story okay. The reason I experience that one go to someone to go through the other four I can't make God's spirit moving somebody what I can do is put that say a lot and when it does, then it gets exciting or or or here's another from when I am not when I when I was young my parents did everything they could make the church the center of my life. I joke around the drug problem.

I have a good drug to church three times a week right to memorize Scripture for whatever motive they could do you want to Memorize a verse I memorize Scripture. And you know what I honestly didn't do any good but the time I was 16 years old I was not living for God.

I was living for myself but then the wind of the Spirit of God blew into my life and I can remember in a moment when it seemed like every single one of those verses burst into flames of my heart. Why, because the spirit it didn't make God move in my life with a made room for him to move. What this woman did. She made room in her life with one of her but one of the things God bless you with is a God. I want your blessing in my life. So I'm going to set this portion of my life, just for you. You need to do that. Maybe it's an act of obedience that you need to pursue. Maybe it's something that God's given you a talent or possession like this woman, you need a safe got up only use this for me.

I wanted to be blessed. Someone offered out there to you and say God I want you to move in this and I want to make room for you to move verse 11. She does that one, like she was staying there. He says to Ghazi, his assistant, he's like you know this woman is been so kind to us what you think we can do for today suggest some things to her.

But generally have any needs because she was good old right and you face this if you got a rich relative. What do I buy them right so this woman has no need to NAC � currencies like we need anything and everything taken care of. The Ghazi comes Elisha says yes she does have one. She never brought it up. This woman has no son not explain you that that that in those days sons were kind of everything because sons took care of you in your old age.

Sons carried on the family line sons maintain the inheritance that they had been given. This woman is good. Doling everything that she has no son and her husband is very, very old, and apparently she is to interestingly she can complain about that. She seems content Elisha on his own without the word says this time next year. God is going to give you a son, verse 16. She says don't tease me. This is sensitive because having a child was a dream that she had given up on Elisha says I'm not sure enough in the year. She has a baby by her octogenarian husband. Mercifully the Bible leaves out the details.

We got back up.

In verse 18 when the child had grown she went out when he went out one day to his father among the reapers and he said to his father over my head. My head father said he was serving Terry into his mother and when he looked at him and brought into his mother. The child sat on her lap until noon.

Many died she went up and laid them on the bed of the man of God and shut the door behind him and went out and she called her husband and said, send me one of the servants of all the donkeys that I may quickly go to the man of God and come back again and he said while you go to him today. It's either new moon or the Sabbath. She said okay all is well. Verse 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 Ghazi, his servant look there is a shooter might shoot my woman wants to meet her and say to her is all well with you was all well with your husband is all well with your child and she answered all is well. Verse 27 when she came to the mountain to the man of God. She caught hold of his feet and Ghazi came to push her away. But the man of God said leave her alone for she is in bitter distress in the Lord is hidden from me and he is not told me she said that I asked my Lord for a son. Did I not say do not deceive me. This woman got some spunk. Don't verse 29. He said the Ghazi type your garment take my seven and go if you meet anyone to not greet him. And if anyone reads you do not reply and lay myself on the face of the child the mother.

The child said no as the Lord lives and as you yourself lives.

I'm not leaving you. You not sitting your assistant so your rose and followed her.

Ghazi went on ahead and laid the staff in the face of the child, but it didn't work. Therefore, he returned to meet him and said the child has not awaken by the way, cannot tell you real quick, why believe the stories are true, why would you make up that part right there. I seriously like you know a man of God. He misses your hero. This is your profit is called man of God throughout this passage, he tries to do this miracle three different ways in a done work when myths of other sorcerers are written, they always exalt the prophet, a man of God. This sort of exalt the prophet, the man of God. It exalt God who is behind the man because the point is not to exalt the man appointed to show how God uses fallible people. This is not a hero bogus of the story of God using very broken people is completely different than every other religious world is ever been written as all the details in there that have no symbolism at all, just because they happen to write a myth. You put details in there that symbolize things like a child sleazy seven-time drippings asked me anything just happened, verse 32. Elisha came to the house he saw the child my dad on his bed, so we went in and shut the door behind the two of them and pray to the Lord, and he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes and his eyes and his hands on his hands and as you stretch himself upon in the flesh of the child became warm when he got up again. Walt wants back and forth in the house went up and stretch himself upon the child sleazy seven-time's and the child opened his eyes he summoned Ghazi and said call bit shooter might woman so we called her when she came to him, he said, pick up your son.

She came and fell at his feet, bowing to the ground that she picked up her son. She went home number two the blessing of God is only found in the place of our weakness pointed out to you. This woman had everything she's good go this miracle don't miss this occurs in one place, in which she is not goal the place in which she is actually poor and desperate. Notice how harshly the Bible seems to speak about rich people make you curious as to why they think why Mordechai got a get rich people got to class warfare. We got always sticks up for the underdog that what is God's jealous of your success. No, it's that a person's wealth usually deceive them into feeling self-sufficient. That's the original sin. That's the first Senate Avenue committed is, they wanted to be independent of God because they no longer felt like they needed him so people who are rich in possessions usually don't feel like they need to depend on God with their future so that they're not overly concerned about obeying him with what they have right now because they're taken care of in the future.

They're not attentive to whites. God might be saying to them now because as far in the future as they can see their fine it is that feeling of independence that caused the first sin, and it's what leads the rich man to never experience the kingdom of God. People who are rich in talent usually don't depend on God to work in and through them because they usually feel pretty confident in what they do. They're not desperately dependent on God to make something work. Why because there okay there rich in town they've always made things work.

They've always worked it out always to pull themselves up by their bootstraps rich. This almost always leads to feelings of independence. People who believe there rich in good works. In other words, they believe that on the holder.

Pretty good people. As long as God grade on the curve to be fine. There's people never come to a place with a fall at the feet of Jesus and plead for his mercy telling him that they will do whatever he tells them to do because they owed every soul to them what they do they negotiate with God, and I got an old paprika person so you know what I'll do a little bit over here for you and the God you owe me got your obligated to me and got out to be this much you gotta give me this right here.

Go to the kind of people to negotiate God because they feel like they have something to negotiate with you, and know what it means to become a Christian. As you realize you had nothing to negotiate with and you let yourself down your feet as you got nowhere else to go and then you say God you tell me where to go because I got nothing. Our sense of richness and there's things you see is just an illusion. This woman for all of her got no she can't have a child. You think you're rich enough to actually face the future God to take away a second, even if you did manage to die with all of your stuff you pick up any of it into eternity, which really matters you think you're rich in good works. Isaiah says of the very best of us on the very best of our days all our righteousness. Isaiah 64 six is like a filthy rag and that's another Hebrew word that we just love a good translation for this filthy rag that defiled something. It was so disgusting.

You could even be in its presence, use it to describe if the leper had wrapped himself was some kind of you rag unbleached.

We took that rag off. Fill with blood and pious and rotten skin and disease. Imagine you were going to see the president of United States as you go into the Oval Office. What you present him as an offering is a filthy disease ridden class field blooding Dragon is laid at his feet, so this is what I want to offer you on your very best day the very most selfless thing you've ever done the best you've ever been. That's what it's like to God. You think you're rich in good works.

Revelation 317 for you say I'm rich are prospered and I need nothing, not realizing that your wretched, pitiable, poor, blind and naked.

Not that one day you will breathe aperture that now he was a realize it is you because you said you were rich spiritually utilize your poor if you realize you were poor spiritually. If you owned your spiritual poverty. You can cast yourself on the mercy of God, which was rich beyond measure and he would've given you the righteousness of Christ was my friend. Make no mistake, it is not your sin that will send you to hell is your false sense of righteousness because God got mercy for sin, but pride is what keeps you from the mercy of God. There's not a single person in here there's a single person on this planet that has disintegrate for God's mercy, but the vast majority of people will never taste of God's mercy now because her sinister severe because of pride keeps them from falling in poverty upon the richness of his grace and feasting upon it because it's a never-ending supply. You said you were rich, professionally all your super competent you're able to meet all your needs, your separate life you fool like Jesus that one flick of my finger. I take it all away in a second. You never laid up treasure in heaven that could be taken away because you said, I'm rich, relationally, capable husband tables father off you owned your poverty, you could have the help of God.

But you know your poverty. Thought you could take care of it so you and in your marriage.

You raise your children by yourself without the rich and the manifold mercy of God. He was so full of grace. He was so ready to help. It was your sense of richness that kept you from the richness of his mercy is never your weaknesses that keep you from blessing. It's never your inabilities. It's never your sin. It's your strength and your pride that keeps you from the power of God and so sometimes like this woman, God puts things into our lives that we just can't conquer the death of a child were unable to prevent a divorce that we can avoid health scare, an addiction that you can overcome these things are not the judgment of God. These things are the mercy of God, because maybe for the first time in your life. He is giving you. Just a taste of what he gave this woman that about the most important things in life you were totally powerless, and these things are God's mercy to you. Like I said a few weeks ago in Elijah. If dependence is the objective than weaknesses in advantage if dependence on God is the golden weakness becomes our greatest friend in getting us there. I read one of the biographies of Abraham Lincoln. This past week. They say that the Lincoln Abraham Lincoln who entered office in 1861 was vastly different than the Lincoln who died in 1865, at least in terms of his relationship with God. The kind of faith in God that comes through the second inaugural address and the resolve to do God's will.

Toward the end of Lincoln's presidency simply was not there. In 1861. The difference this biographer said came in 1862 when Lincoln's 11-year-old son Willie died in for one of the first times in his life.

Lincoln felt absolutely powerless to do anything about it, but that brokenness. This biographer said taught him to seek a God that was bigger than himself to tapping the purpose is bigger than his own and his newfound trust in God bigger than himself and believing that God and his purposes gave him courage to issue something like the Emancipation Proclamation, which everyone told him was a bad idea but Lincoln reasoned this way. He said if God wants it, then I'm going to stand with God on this because God is determined to see it through his appointed brokenness that becomes the BBB access to our greater strength because it puts us somewhere in touch with something much greater is one of the thing I want whenever I want to ask one the next point to notice.

From there, the woman is by yourself husband and go to significant detail only flick in the bottle before you. Did you know that there were 10 people in the Bible who are raising the dead other than Jesus did. You nine of them who receive the person is raising the dead. None of them are women. Only one exception gets where man gets money raising the dead. Why is that that can be coincidence. Jesus after he raised from the dead after Jesus raising the debt pretty appear to first women. It was 1135 when it talks about women received their dead raised like the why women are flying historically, especially in these days women were the marginalized.

They were the ones Out of power so they were the ones who quickly got the gospel men felt self-sufficient men felt powerful. They didn't recognize the gospel because they sold the need for the point is not the God first women. The point is that God somehow seems to be perceptible by the powerless more than he is a powerful blessing for you and your board spirit is there now have access and are pleased you're listening to a powerful message from Pastor JD Greer here on Senate life. We are in a series called something greater if you missed any of the previous messages you can listen free of charge@jdgreer.com the Senate life team recently worked with Pastor JD to put together a new study but based on the two-part teaching series that we are now about Elijah and Elisha, JD, could you give us a little overview on some of the topics that are covered in this new study of yours. I would love to in the something better part of the study were to see how Elijah confronted a pluralistic religious environment much like our own. That certainly if you're out of the public square, whether that's in education or your business place or talk with a neighbor you find that there's this attitude of luck you got your God. You get your religion. I've got mine.

Religion is a private matter. Elijah and Elisha believe it or not confronted environment very much like that what Elijah shows this is that there really is only one true God and he has revealed himself to us. If we want to make it safely into heaven if we want to live with his presence and his power. We don't define her own way he lays out the truth about himself.

He lays out the path of salvation. Elisha comes along. His ministry is very similar, but that would tweak it slightly and say he shows us the something greater, the secret behind Elisha's power here on earth was his fierce devotion to the God of heaven.

You have an amazing legacy of his life, not because he was thinking about how to establish himself and his kingdom here, but because he was focused on what God's agenda was gender that was eternal time. This is an eight part study that will take you to the ministries of two of the Old Testament's most eccentric and most powerful prophets cut short chapters that align directly with the teaching that hearing on the broadcast. Right now it's got an interactive workbook style, layout of the questions for Scripture study and prayer prompt you to learn more about this and just get connected � go to JD Greer.com and you'll see that the future resource within your copy of something better something greater study analyzing and Elisha today Downey to support ministry suggested level of $25 and more financial support helps us reach people across the country and even around the world 335-5226 335 24 might be easier to get an online JD Greer.com hi Molly minutes thank you so much for joining us, making room Wednesday on career JD Greer ministry