Today we read the story of the woman with the flowing jar of oil.  It’s a beautiful story and one worthy of our attention.  The basic story is this: a widow has two sons and no money to pay her debts.  The debt collector is on his way to take her two sons as slaves in payment of her debts, and all she has to give in their place is a jar with a little oil.  She asks Elisha for help, and he tells her to get as many jars as possible and pour her little bit of oil in each.  As she pours, the oil miraculously multiplies and she fills every jar.  As soon as she runs out of jars, the miracle ends.  She sells the oil, pays her debts and has enough to live on.

A Salvation Metaphor:  Our sinfulness is a debt we cannot repay, and so the master of our sin, death, comes for us.  And whatever we may have, our own righteousness or weekly attendance at church or money or power or reputation, like the oil none of it is enough to pay our debt.  But then God intervenes.  Through the miracle of Jesus death and resurrection, God pays our debt and gives so much that we can live forever on the bounty of His grace.

A Service Metaphor:  When we turn to God for the power to bring His Kingdom here on earth through our teaching, our preaching, and our service to others, He provides all we need.  But unfortunately, we usually ask way too little.  We want the time to spend a few hours at a food bank or in worship or feeding the hungry.  We ask for talent to help lead our church or family in worship.  We ask for a $100 bonus so we can help support a mission at our church.  But God wants us to do more.  Like the jars the widow collected, we don’t prepare for all the blessing that God might give us.  So when our small plans, our small requests are fulfilled, the miracle stops.  But it doesn’t have to.  It could keep going if we only had room in our plans, in our imagination, in our faith, for it to continue.  When you ask God for help, ask big.  He can fulfill our wildest dreams if they are dreams given by Him and utilized for His Kingdom

There are four incidents in the Old Testament where God parted a body of water for His people.  He parted the Red Sea through Moses, He parted the Jordan river through Joshua, He parted the Jordan again for Elijah before he was taken up to heaven, and then again for Elisha after Elijah was taken from him.  And in each instance, the parting of water is always a test, a sign, and a blessing.

Each time, the test is the usual one God sets for us: “Will you trust me?”  Will we trust God to provide an escape from those things that are keeping us hostage? Will you submit to that old fear that has kept you captive?  Will you step out in faith against the thing holding you back from your future with God?

For the 50 prophets of Elijah’s day, the crossing of the Jordan for both Elijah and Elisha was a sign that God was with these prophets.  It was a sign of where God was at work and through whom.

And in every case, it was a blessing of God.  Unlike the Egyptians and their Nile, the Israelites never worshiped the Jordan river but instead saw it as a barrier, an obstacle to be crossed over to get to their future.  With Joshua, the Jordan represented the Canaanite god Baal who had control over the flooded river, the storms and rain.  The stopping of the water, the crossing of the Jordan, was a blessing for the people, a reassurance that Yahweh was stronger than Baal, and would remove the barrier that stood between them and their promise.

What things are blocking your way to God’s future for you?  Will you trust God to remove them?  Will you allow God to bless you by clearing the path to your future with Him?