I hit all the time in statements like, well, God expects us to use our common sense. What they're saying is let's be practical. Dr. Tony Evans says faith is tested when God's instruction clashes with human logic. He wants to know do you have enough confidence in his words?
to step out on what he says when it's not practical. This is the alternative broadcast, featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans. Do the answers to your deepest needs sometimes feel just out of reach?
Well, today, Dr. Evans offers practical insights that can help bring them closer as he takes a look at the biblical practice of fasting. Let's join him as he begins. One of the primary reasons that you ought to fast. is that there is a crisis need.
in your life. or in the life of someone. Close to you. Needs come in all shapes and sizes, but when I talk about a need, I'm talking about a crisis situation. Where you are in desperate need for God to address.
an essential need of life. It's okay to fast for a bigger house. Or a nicer car. But that's not what I mean when I talk about a crisis. If you're not walking, you're not in a crisis.
But I'm talking about where You're down to your last dollar. That's a crisis. Talking about you don't know where your next meal is coming from. That's crisis. I'm talking about.
You're given a prognosis where there's no hope. That's a crisis. There are all kinds of crises, and if you don't have one now, wait a while, because life has its way of dishing out needs. Things that are the essentials of life. We're introduced here to a lady who we've gotten to know, the widow of Zarephath.
Elijah the prophet has been serving God, and now he's running from Jezebel. God lets him know That he's going to take care of the prophet Elijah. I'm going to take care of you, Elijah. He tells them, for example, in verse four of First Kings seventeen. And it shall be that you shall drink on the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.
I like that. We haven't even got to the widow of Zarephath. And God already tells you, I get a bird. And the birds will cover your back. If you're in my will.
I have commanded the ravens. To take care of you. That's good news because you never know how God's going to come through. You don't know through what channel.
Sometimes God comes through in the weirdest ways. You know? He is past finding out.
So don't try to speculate. On how God's gonna do. What God's gonna do. Just know God can do. All that he promised.
Too do. Hey then. Commands the ravens in verse 6. And the ravens obey and bring him food. Which leads us to The story of the widow of Zarephath.
Now, Zarephath is a hot, dry village located in Phoenicia. That is Lebanon. If we would use today's Yeah. In current day Lebanon, Where there has been a terrible drought. Month in and month out, no rain.
Now, no rain means no water. No water means no growth. On the land in an agrarian culture, no growth means no food.
So it's not just that it was dry, it was that there was no rain, therefore, no crops, therefore, no food. In addition, she is. A widow.
So she has nobody to cover her back. Nobody to look out for her. She is alone. God tells his prophet, his preacher. In verse 9, arise, go to Zarephath.
which belongs to Sidon. And stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you. I have commanded a widow there to provide for you. Don't miss that.
I have commanded. A widow there. to take care of you.
So God had told this. Widow woman. who we're going to discover is impoverished. To take care of the preacher who was ministering for God.
Now It is in this context. That we're going to learn a few principles related to prayer and fasting. And I want to start off with your perspective or your focus. When you are entering into, as many of you are, fasting and praying. For a need in your life or some other.
Thing based on what we've talked about thus far, a burden or deliverance, or whatever it happens to be, at the core of that act. is faith. Faith is a confidence. that God is able to do. and to meet the need that you bring before him.
But this woman is in a contradiction. We've already seen in verse 9, I have commanded a woman to take care of you. He comes to the lady. He says in verse 10, may I have some water? She goes get some water and then he says to her May I have a piece of bread?
Out of your hand. Bring me bread and water.
Now look at verse 12. And you can put your name in here. But she said. As the Lord your God lives. I have no bread.
Only a handful of flour in a bowl and a little oil in a jar. And behold, I'm gathering a few sticks that I may go in and prepare for me and my son, so that we may eat it. And die. Brothers and sisters, what we have here... It's a contradiction.
Verse nine says, I have commanded the widow. to take care of you.
See, some of you, I can tell you're not with me yet. God Said, I have, I have already done this. I have already told the widow. When you come to take care of you.
So she already had the message. to take care of Elijah. But when Elijah shows up and push comes the shove. Are you getting closer with me? when it comes time to deliver.
On what God has already told her, which is his word, if he told her, it's his word. He has told her when it comes time to perform it. Practical matters get in the way. She goes practical. On God.
She says Your request is not practical. But She didn't become a pagan. Because she introduces verse 12 with, as the Lord your God lives. Yeah, I believe in God and all that, but let's get. Practical.
We have too many folk who never see God because you're just so practical. I hear it all the time in statements like, well, God expects us to use our. Common sense. What they're saying is let's be practical. God doesn't always function.
practically When he speaks, he wants to know. Do you have enough confidence in his word? To step out on what he says when it's not. Practical. When you put practical in it.
It was overruling what God said he told a woman. God said, just since I requested it, he said, I commanded the widow. I have already told her when Elijah shows up, you feed him. But she only has one meal worth of flour. Or if we would say in everyday English, she was down to the last dime.
One meal worth of flour. And uh She says, I'm going to fix this, get a few sticks, cook this last flower. Eat it and die.
Now, what does she tell Elijah she doesn't have? She says, I have no what? No bread. What do you use to make bread? Flower, thank you very much.
Preacher, I don't have any bread. I just have flour.
So I haven't even got around to making this little, whatever little bread I can make. I have no bread, but uh She had flour.
So what she had was the raw material to produce. what God had commanded. Yeah. He had. what she needed to do what God said.
But it wasn't practical. She was down to a last dime. In other words, her circumstances. We're now governing her decision. Her fears were overruling her faith.
Or let me put it another way. She heard what God said. But at the same time, she focused on what she could see. And what she could see did not match. What God had said.
Since what she could see was different than what God said. Her answer to Elijah reflected her. Physical sight, not her spiritual sight. And what every Christian needs.
Somebody spiritual at a given moment to speak into your life. Dr. Evans will explain how faith builds commitment and confidence when he returns in a moment to continue this message from his series on fasting. It's a powerful look at the often overlooked spiritual discipline that can light a fire under your faith. Right now, we'd like to send you all 14 full-length messages in this series as a way of saying thanks for your financial support of this ministry.
Along with the complete fasting audio package, we'll also send you a special bonus, our Hope for the Herding leader kit. Perfect for both leading a small group study and for your own personal spiritual growth. In this Bible study, Dr. Evans offers spiritual principles for facing life's pains and hurts. The leader kit not only includes a copy of the Hope for the Hurting book, but also a study guide, printed content for six study sessions, access to teaching videos and session previews from Dr.
Evans, and more. Get the Fasting audio series and the Hope for the Hurting leader kit along with our thanks. When you request them and make a donation online at tonyevans.org. Or give us a call at 1-800-800-3222. where a team member will be happy to help with your request.
I'll repeat our contact information for you after the second part of our lesson and this. Ever feel intimidated by the thought of reading the Bible like you're not ready? The Unbound podcast with Dr. Tony Evans shares insights and hope for struggles like these. Listen to guest speaker Amanda Bible Williams.
We have put barriers up between ourselves and God's Word. We think it was hard the first time. This must not be for me. We think we're supposed to be a certain type of person, but we keep going because it matters to us. Listen now to the Unbound podcast.
You can find the new Unbound podcast on your favorite podcast platform. Let's return now to doctor Evans' teaching from the book of 1 Kings. Look at verse 13. Then Elijah said to her, Do not what? Do not what?
The reason that she was talking the way she was talking is because she was scared. She was scared to step out. or what God said. because of the practicality of her situation.
So he says, do not fear. Do as you have said. Go ahead and make your little last cake. Make it, but bring it to me first. And afterwards, you may make one for yourself and for your son.
Now you gotta listen to the preacher here. The woman has already told him, I only have enough for me and my son. I can only get two cakes out of this. He said, no, you go make three cakes. Make one for you, one for your son, and bring me mine first.
He says. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel. The bowl of flour shall not be exhausted, nor the jar of oil emptied, until the day the Lord sends rain on the face of the earth.
So she went and did according to the word of Elijah. Please notice the shift. In the woman's response. Elijah says, make me some bread. She says, I can't.
Let's get practical. But then the preacher speaks the word of God into her life. And builds up her confidence to help her take a step she was unable to take on her own. That's why you need people to speak the word of God into your life when the practical. Conflicts.
with the biblical. when what God says and what you see. Are two very opposite things. Rather than forgetting God, get somebody to speak into your life. Who will reinforce invisible, physical, verifiable ways what God is, He didn't tell her anything different, He just told her: look, God will take care of you.
It's always critical if you're going to live this Christian life and not let fear overrule faith that there's somebody that's speaking to your life. He commanded her. Watch this now. to meet the need of somebody else. Give the cake to Elijah.
This lady had been in communication with God. Because God had commanded her what to do with the bread, which means she and God have been talking. I can imagine what she'd been saying: Lord, we're dying. Lord, we're not going to make it. Lord, I need a change.
Lord, I need a miracle. She was praying many of our prayers.
Now, there's a New Testament verse in Luke 4, 26 that talks about this woman. Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his own town. But I say to you, in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, the story we're just reading. When the sky was shut up for three years and six months, so that's how long there'd been a drought. When a great famine came over all the land.
So, Jesus is telling a New Testament audience about this Old Testament story. Look at verse 26. And when Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.
Now, what's Jesus' point? Jesus is being rejected by the Jews of his day. And Jesus' point to the Jews of his day. Was there were a lot of widows that means there were a lot of poor women who lived in Sidon during this story. But God only sent Elijah to Zarephath, to the widow of this story.
Why? Because of all the widows in Israel, Only the widow of Zarephath was willing to respond to God's word. There were a lot of widows, a lot of needy people. But he only had one that he could use. You know what?
There are a lot of needs in this building right now, but maybe only one or two of them will get met. Because only one or two of them are willing to step out on faith. Everybody else is being practical. Everybody else is just operating off of what they can see, not what God says. All the widows had need, but only one.
was sent Elijah Many of you have needs. But you will never see the supernatural hand of God because you're not willing to step out on faith. And it was a step of faith to give Elijah. Her last meal. He says.
Do not fear. God's going to take care of you. Bake me the bread. Do not fear. God is going to take care of you.
Bake me the bread. One more time. Do not fear. I know you're scared, lady. It's your last meal.
That's practical. Go ahead and bake the bread. Go ahead and do what God says, do. And believe God's word that God will take care of you.
Now, why am I repeating that? Here's why.
Some of us know the right thing to do. Many of us know what God wants us to do. But every time we go to do it. Satan throws up a block, and that block is usually thrown up in our heads. This is not going to work.
I can't do this. This block, the partition we talked about last time, it comes up in our brain and it stops us from doing it. If you want to tear down. Satan's authority in your life. The way you do it.
It's by Going ahead and doing what God says. In spite of how you feel, because he told the woman she was already scared. When you obey in faith, it knocks down the wall of doubt. Not go back and think about it. Not even go back and pray more about it because you already know what God wants you to do.
Sometimes you don't need to pray.
Sometimes you need to put on your shoes and Oh. Or what God says. The proof of your faith is your step. Yeah. Thought.
Oh yeah, I know what I should be doing. Yeah, I'm going to pray that God helps me. No, no, no. He's already commanded you. And I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
So what he wants you to do is take the step. Back on what God has said. Once Satan sees you act On what God has said, he loses his power. As long as he keeps you thinking about it, he's got you. As long as it keeps you meditating over it, once it's clear, And it has been reiterated by Elijah.
If you want to tear down Satan's wall, step out. Go ahead and bake it and bring it to me.
So she did. And what happened?
Well, according to the text. Verse 15, so she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household, her son, ate for many days. The bowl of flour was not exhausted, nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord, which is spoken to Elijah.
Now, this is a fast, folks. This is the worst kind of fast. When you're down to your last meal, you fasting.
Okay, that's a fast. All right, when you have to give up your last meal, that's a fast. But the Bible says God took that flower and it just kept on coming.
Now, it doesn't tell us how God did it, but it says until it rained, God kept food coming. For some of us, God can't meet the need because we operate in fear and not in faith. You say, but I can't stop my fear. You may not be able to stop your fear, but you can start your walk of faith. And when you start your walk of faith, your fear will be overruled by your action of faith.
Uh Dr. Tony Evans, encouraging us to exercise our faith and let God meet our needs.
Now today's lesson is part of his series on biblical fasting. and as I mentioned earlier, the entire collection is yours when you make a contribution to help us keep Tony's teaching on this station. and as an added bonus, we're bundling it with our Hope for the Herding leader kit. including Tony's Hope for the Hurting book, study guide, study session materials, teaching videos, and more. This is a special limited time offer, so don't wait.
Drop by our website, tonyevans.org, to let us know you'd like to take advantage of this exclusive deal. Or give us a phone call at 1-800-800-3222. where the friendly people on our resource team are ready 24-7 to help you. Again, that's one eight hundred eight hundred three two two two. I'll tell you about what's coming up on the broadcast tomorrow, right after this.
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That's tonyevans.org. Most of us want God to meet our needs. But we often wait to see His provision before moving on His promise. Tomorrow, Dr. Evans continues his examination of fasting.
and the importance of acting on our faith. Be sure to join us.
