Power Over Death (1 Kings 17:17-24)

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Ryken: God is the main character of this chapter; he is the hero, or protagonist. Thus the lessons to be learned from 1 Kings 17 are not about Elijah primarily…but they are really about the living God

  1. From Life to Death (17-18)
    • What has happened looks like it doesn’t make sense
    • God uses this to display his sovereignty over death, and for His Glory
    • Points forward to Christ
    • Psalm 77:19, Psalm 119:75
    • Widows growing faith
  2. Faithful Prayer (19-21)
    • Elijah trusts God and pours out his heart to him in prayer
    • Lessons about prayer
      1. urgency of
      2. necessity of
      3. value of secret/private
      4. earnestness of
      5. the art of
      6. perseverance of
      7. boldness of
  3. From Death to Life (22-24)
    • Just like Christ with the widow of Nain
    • Declares the Glory of God
    • Death temporarily defeated with this first resurrection, points forward to the ultimate defeat of death through Christ
    • Death still a powerful separator, but not an eternal one
    • Any death should make us reflect on our own readiness for death