Sermons

What Giving it All to God Actually Looks Like – 1 Kings 17:8-16 – Livestream for 5/7/23

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Small Group Guide:

Open with prayer.

Go around and give everyone a chance to share about how the past week has been. What’s one highlight? What’s one lowlight?

If your small group has talked about it before, feel free to use this time to hold people accountable to what they’ve asked to be held accountable for previously, and go through the “missional” part of this discussion guide.

1 Kings 17:8-16

8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” 11 And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12 And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die.” 13 And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’” 15 And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.

Message Outline:

In this passage of God’s Word, we see the prophet Elijah being called to go to a Gentile City, where a widow will feed him. There, Elijah meets the widow, and finds that she is using her last provisions to feed her and her son before they die. Elijah, on behalf of God, tells her to do that, but only make him a small piece of bread first. If she does, God will not let her provisions run out throughout the rest of the drought. By taking a close look at this story, we can learn what it really means to give our all to God.

We need to realize that giving your all to God, usually starts out of our lack, not our abundance

With that mindset:

  1. Don’t fear

1 Kings 17:13, Is. 41:10, 2 Tim. 1:7, 1 John 4:18, Ps. 34:4

  1. Trust in God enough to be faithful

1 Kings 17:13, Ps. 3:5, Matt. 6:25, Jer. 17:7-8, Rom. 8:28

  1. Allow God to provide for you

1 Kings 17:14-16, Heb. 13:5, Rom. 8:31-32, Eph. 3:20

Reflection Questions:

  1. Have you ever heard this passage of Scripture or topic taught on before? What stood out to you?
  2. Have you ever thought about giving your all to God out of your lack, instead of your abundance? Read Luke 16:10, 19:17, and Matt. 25:21-23. Have you been faithful with what God has given to you?
  3. The first thing that Elijah tells the widow, after she tells him about her situation, is not to fear. How often do you fear about your needs being met? What do you most often fear? How do you think fear plays a role in how you interact with your possessions?
  4. The widow trusted what Elijah told her enough that she accomplished what God wanted her to do. In what area(s) of your life do you need to trust God more?
  5. After the widow was faithful and did what God wanted her to do, her provisions did not run out throughout the rest of the drought. God was faithful to provide for her. How has God been faithful in your life? How do you think God will be faithful in the future?
  6. How can you help those around you to be faithful with what they have right now, and trust in God better?
  7. What is your biggest take away about how this passage affects your life? What do you need to work on? Who can you share this with and ask you to keep you accountable to accomplishing this?

Prayer Time:

Pray for each other in your small group to be faithful take the step(s) that you shared above. Pray for each other and the interactions that they have with those who don’t know Jesus. Pray that God would soften the people’s hearts to what He has for them. Pray that God would give everyone opportunities to share the Gospel.

Staying Missional:

Share spiritual/missional conversations you’ve had where you live, work, and play:

Who did you have a conversation with that took a spiritual/missional turn this week?
What questions did you ask to discover where God is at work in their life, even if they are not aware?
How were you able to share your story of life change or how you have experienced Jesus?
How can you be intentional this week with people where you live, work, and play to have spiritual/missional conversations if the opportunity arises?
Who in your life do you think could be discipleable or open to spiritual/missional conversations?

What’s next?

Discuss the next step for your small group. When will we gather again and what purpose will it fulfill?