Day 183 Bible Readings – 2 Kings 4: 42-44 (ESV)

2 Kings 4: 38-44, 2 Kings 5, 2 Kings 6 1-23, Acts 21: 27-40, Acts 22: 1-22, Psalm 105: 12-22

2 Kings 4: 42-44 (ESV)

“A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing the man of God bread of the firstfruits, twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. And Elisha said, “Give to the men, that they may eat.” But his servant said, “How can I set this before a hundred men?” So he repeated, “Give them to the men, that they may eat, for thus says the Lord, ‘They shall eat and have some left.’” So he set it before them. And they ate and had some left, according to the word of the Lord.”

In verses 42 through 44 from 2 Kings 4 Elisha the prophet performs a supernatural miracle that foreshadows Christ’s many miracles of feeding large crowds with very little provisions. When Elisha received the gift of bread and first fruits, he ordered his servant to serve it to the 100 men. The servant told Elisha it wasn’t enough food to feed all the men, and Elisha prophesied that the men will and there will be left over food. When the food was served to the 100 men, they ate and there was still left over food as Elisha had prophesied. This miracle feeding shows the faith of Elisha to trust Father-God over the visible evidence of our eyes or circumstances. Father-God provided manna for his people when they left Egypt and were wondering in the wilderness, so would he not do the same now for his prophet Elisha. Elisha’s feeding of the 100 men also demonstrates that when Father-God provides, he is generous and provides abundantly with always something left over. As children of Father-God and believers in Jesus Christ, we must always trust that Father-God is always able to meet our needs abundantly. We serve a good God who always delivers on his promises. We also serve a good God who will use all means to accomplish his purpose and to show his love for us his children. We must have faith that provision and supernatural miracles will come at the right time and in God’s perfect timing for our needs. Father-God is not deaf to our prayers, so we must have faith that he is the same God who rained down manna to his people who needed food in the desert. Father-God provided then, and he will provide for us today.

If you enjoyed reading my thoughts on these Bible verses, find yourself a Holy Spirit filled, full Gospel, Bible-based church where you can hear the word of the Lord preached and increase your faith in the God of the supernatural miracles who always provides for his children.

Day 182 Bible Readings – 2 Kings 4: 2-7 (ESV)

2 Kings 3, 2 Kings 4: 1-37, Acts 21: 1-26, Psalm 105: 1-11

2 Kings 4: 2-7 (ESV)

“And Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for you? Tell me; what have you in the house?” And she said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.” Then he said, “Go outside, borrow vessels from all your neighbors, empty vessels and not too few. Then go in and shut the door behind yourself and your sons and pour into all these vessels. And when one is full, set it aside.” So she went from him and shut the door behind herself and her sons. And as she poured they brought the vessels to her. When the vessels were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another vessel.” And he said to her, “There is not another.” Then the oil stopped flowing. She came and told the man of God, and he said, “Go, sell the oil and pay your debts, and you and your sons can live on the rest.”

In verses 2 through 7 from 2 Kings 4, we read about another supernatural miracle from Father-God on provision. A widow owed debt to creditors who were going to take her child as slaves, so she went to Elisha for help. When Elisha asked her what she had in her house, she told him she a small jar of anointing oil. Elisha told her to borrow all the vessels she could get hands from her neighbors. The widow was able to fill all the borrowed jars with oil from the one jar she had. She was able to pay off her debts and still had enough money left over to live on for herself and her sons.

I love this miracle of supernatural provision from Father-God. The widow had enough faith to do exactly as Elisha asked, and provision was her reward. We may get advice that doesn’t make sense from the Holy Spirit when we are praying for a miracle, but we must have enough faith to do exactly as requested and only then will we see a supernatural miracle from Father-God. We also need to have faith that the Lord in the Bible never changes, and he is the same then as he is now. Father-God was provider to his people then, and he is provider to his people today.

If you enjoyed reading my thoughts about these Bible verses, find yourself a Holy-Spirit filled, full Gospel, Bible-base church where you can hear the word of the Lord preached and strengthen your faith that Father-God is the provider of supernatural miracles.

Day 181 Bible Readings – 2 Kings 2: 11 (ESV)

2 Kings 1 & 2, Acts 20, Psalm 104: 31-35

2 Kings 2: 11 (ESV)

“And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.”

Verse 11 from 2 Kings 2 shows us how Elijah the prophet died. Elijah didn’t die like a normal person. He was instead taken up to heaven by a whirlwind. I love how the death of Elijah is so supernatural, because it shows the power of Father-God. Elijah was a powerful prophet, and the Lord honored him by taking him up on heaven so he wouldn’t have to experience death. Elijah’s faithful service was rewarded by his unique departure, since no other Biblical figure was taken up to heaven in this way except for Jesus Christ. Many Biblical scholars have commented that Elijah’s ascension into heaven prefigures the ascension of Jesus Christ. Christ died because he was human like us but was resurrected after three (3) days. Christ then lived among his followers for 40 days before ascending into heaven. Unlike Elijah who was taken up in a whirlwind, Christ was taken to heaven in a cloud. Both ascension experiences give believers in Christ the hope that when we die, we will ascend into heaven like Christ to be with our Father-God. We might not ascend in a whirlwind or a cloud, but we will be resurrected to live in heaven after we die.

If you enjoyed reading my thoughts about this Bible verse, find yourself a Holy Spirit-filled, full Gospel, Bible-based church where you can hear the word of God preached and find assurance that one day you will live with Father-God after your earthly death.

Day 180 Bible Readings – Acts 19: 15-16 (ESV)

1 Kings 22, Acts 19: 14-41, Psalm 104: 19-30

Acts 19: 15-16 (ESV)

“But the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.”

In verses 15 and 16 from Acts 19, we read about how the evil Spirit answered the seven sons of a Jewish priest named Sceva. The seven sons did not have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ nor did they Paul, but they were using the name of Christ to cast out demons. When the seven sons of Sceva tried to cast out a powerful demon from a man, the evil Spirit told them that he knew both Jesus Christ and Paul but not them. Then the evil Spirit attacked the seven sons of Sceva, and they fled the house without clothes and were wounded. Even in people did not believe in Jesus Christ and his divine and powerful nature, the demons recognized who Jesus was and his power. The demons also knew who Paul was because he was able to cast out demons. Evil Spirits know who their enemies are and are afraid of them. It doesn’t make sense that people who believe that demons and evil spirits are real often do not believe in the powerful nature of Jesus Christ, even when they have evidence that demons are afraid of Christ and his power. If you believe that evil spirits and demons are real, why is it so impossible to believe that Christ was real and was resurrected? There were exorcists in the time of Jesus and there are still exorcists today who cast out demons in the name of Jesus Christ. The name of Jesus Christ was powerful during the time of the Book of Acts and still is today to cast out evil spirits and demons, either real beings or the demons of addiction and other illnesses, if you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

If you enjoyed reading my thoughts about these Bible verses, find yourself a Holy Spirit filled, full Gospel, Bible-based church where you can hear the word of the Lord preached and learn to develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.