Now turn to 2 Kings 4. We will read from verse 1.
A certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the Lord: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two children to be bondmen.
And Elisha said unto her, What shall I do for thee? tell me; what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid hath not anything in the house, save a pot of oil.
Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbors, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.
And thou shalt go in, and shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and pour out into all those vessels; and thou shalt set aside that which is full.
So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons: they brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.
And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.
Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons of the rest.
During the lifetime of the prophet Elisha, he performed a number of miracles. As you read these miracles, you will find that oftentimes he came upon a very difficult situation—or, may we say, an impossible situation.
Then, by the grace of God, that impossible situation was turned into glory. The ministry of Elisha is a ministry of life; it is a ministry of resurrection. So every time you find a miracle was done, it was to turn a desperate situation into a moment of glory.
Now, all these miracles performed have their spiritual significance in them. So this morning, we would just like to mention one of them. In this incident, I think we are shown the law of spiritual increase.
A woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha. Now, she was the wife of one of the sons of the prophets.
Now, we mentioned before that the sons of the prophets actually means young people who had a desire to serve the Lord. They came into these training centers.
Because during the days of Elijah and Elisha—it started with Samuel, actually—you will find there were training centers for young people who had the aspiration of serving God as prophets. They were gathered there and trained.
So one of the sons of the prophets died, and he left behind him a widow with two sons. Worse than that, he left behind him a great debt. Because of that, the creditor came to take the two sons away from the widow, to sell them as slaves in order to satisfy the debt.
So this widow was in a very desperate situation. She came to Elisha for help.
In a sense, this widow represents the church today. So far as the church’s relationship with the world is concerned, the church is like a widow.
So far as the church’s relationship with the Lord is concerned, of course, the church is the bride-to-be. So far as our individual relationship with the Lord is concerned, we are virgins, as espoused to Christ. But corporately, the church is the bride-to-be to Christ, who is the Bridegroom.
But when you look at the relationship of the church with the world, then the church is like a widow. In a sense, our Lord Jesus is not here physically. He has gone to heaven, and we are left behind in the world.
And, of course, in the world our situation is like the situation of a widow. The world will oppress us. They think that we have no help, and they will do anything to us. We are so helpless, in a sense.
You remember in Luke 18, our Lord Jesus mentioned how a widow pleaded before an unrighteous judge, and how the judge avenged her of her adversary. Not even that judge, in the beginning, would do that.
In other words, what are we in the eyes of the world? Nothing. But it was because of her persistent pleading that finally the judge wanted to get rid of her and avenged her of her adversary.
So anyway, you find here the picture is that the widow is the picture of the church on earth. So far as the world is concerned, the church is like a widow: oppressed, helpless.
Now, of course, in spiritual application, you cannot try to apply every detail. Because, in another sense, our Lord has never left us nor forsaken us. Even though physically He is not with us, spiritually He is always with us. He is always with us.
So far as that is concerned, of course, He has never left us behind as widows. And certainly, He will never allow us to be in such destitute situations, because He is full of grace and truth. All the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Him bodily, and we are complete.
So we cannot apply every detail when we come to spiritual application. We can only hold on to some major, essential parts. Now anyway, you find the widow here represents the church.
How does it come about that the church today is in such a destitute situation—a widow with two sons, a great debt, and the creditor come to take away the two sons? How comes it that the church today is in such destitution?
I think probably if we look at it from another angle, the widow represents the church in our generation. We inherit, as it were, from the former generation all the debts.
The son of the prophet who died was a godly man. He had a desire to serve God. And why was he so poor? Evidently, it reflected the spiritual condition of the people of Israel at that time.
The children of Israel had no desire for the things of God. Because of that, they neglected to support these sons of the prophets. These young people really had a desire to learn to serve God, but nobody cared.
That is the reason why the sons of the prophets were so poor and incurred such debt. So actually, you will find it reflected the low spiritual condition of the children of Israel at that time.
But this son of the prophet, even though he was so poor, in poverty and in debt, yet he was faithful to the very end. But he left behind an impossible situation.
Now, dear brothers and sisters, I do not know how you feel, but as I look back, I can see that the generation before us was a more godly generation than the generation we are in now. You will find among older people very godly people.
Even though in the former generation many were not clear on salvation, even many did not know much spiritually, yet you do find that the former generation was a more godly generation than we are today.
They feared God. They were pious. They were more orthodox and scriptural than probably our generation. But unfortunately, they did not know too much of life—of the life of the person.
In other words, you will find that even though they feared God, yet they still lived in their flesh—good flesh. They tried to serve God with their goodness. You will find good works, Christian works, and all these things going on; yet you find there was not much of real life there.
Is that not something that can represent the former generation?
And because they tried to serve God in their good flesh, they put themselves under the law, and they were sold to sin.
Who was their creditor? Who is the creditor? I think the creditor is the flesh. Because in Romans 8, Paul said, “We are not debtors to the flesh, to live after the flesh.” In other words, we can be debtors to the flesh.
If we depend on our good flesh instead of depending on the new life, if we depend on our good flesh to keep the commandments of God and to serve God, we will find ourselves debtors to the flesh. And we will find ourselves being sold unto sin.
And I think probably that is the reason—not because our former generation was not godly, but unfortunately it was more of self-righteousness than of the real spiritual life of Christ. The result is an almost impossible situation left with our generation.
Now, how is this situation to be corrected? Fortunately, this widow, knowing her helplessness, went to Elisha the prophet. And you notice, Elisha here, in a sense, represents Christ.
When the church is in a destitute situation, when we find ourselves in debt, when we find ourselves not even able to keep our children, when we find ourselves in such spiritual poverty and under such spiritual oppression, it is well for us to go to the Lord and ask for help.
And you will find the answer of Elisha was rather strange. Because when she came to him and asked for help, Elisha said to her, “What shall I do for thee? Tell me, what hast thou in the house?”
She came to Elisha for help. She was looking for help from outside. Yet Elisha said, “What do you have in the house?”
Elisha knew that she had nothing. If she still had something in the house, she would not come to Elisha. Yet Elisha said, “What do you have in your house?”
In other words, how often, when we come to an impossible situation, we look for outside help. But the Lord would turn us within and say, “What do you have in you?”
Sometimes we forget what we have in us. Actually, what we have in us is sufficient to turn the situation into glory, but we do not know.
So here you find Elisha said, “What do you have in your house?” And she said, “Thy handmaid hath not anything in the house, but a pot of oil.”
Now, is this not strange, that she should have a pot of oil in the house? Of course, not a large pot; it must be a small pot.
Certainly, that pot of oil was not cooking oil, because she had nothing to cook with. And certainly this oil was not for anointing herself. She was a widow; she was in mourning.
Why was it that in her house there was still a pot of oil? I think probably that pot of oil was the trademark of the son of the prophet. You know, a prophet is supposed to anoint kings and priests.
And this young man, you know, was trying to be a prophet. So evidently, he kept a pot of oil with him, hoping that one day, when the Lord really called him to be a prophet, then he could use that oil to anoint kings and priests—to anoint people.
But he died. And for sentimental reasons, the widow would not part with that for the world, because that reminded her of her husband—of her husband’s life, of her husband’s aspiration.
So probably that pot of oil was kept at home for that reason. She must have sold everything else: no furniture, nothing, everything else. But that pot of oil was still there. It was her last link with her husband.
So she said, “I have nothing but a pot of oil.” Now, dear brothers and sisters, we all know oil in the Scripture speaks of the Holy Spirit.
We may be very destitute. We may be deprived of everything. We may have nothing in our house. But, dear brothers and sisters, at least we have that pot of oil.
Individually speaking, we have the Holy Spirit who dwells in each one of us. We who have believed in the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit dwells in our spirit, and He never leaves us nor forsakes us. He is always there. That pot of oil is always there.
Collectively, the Holy Spirit is in the church. But oftentimes, you will find our interest and our concern about the Holy Spirit is more of a sentimental reason than of a practical reason.
In other words, we know the Holy Spirit dwells in us, and in a sense we do respect the Holy Spirit because He is God. Yet we do not know what He is in us for.
We know the Holy Spirit is the seal and is the pledge of our inheritance. When we believe in the Lord Jesus, we are sealed with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is in us as a pledge of our full inheritance. We know that.
And yet we do not know that it is the Holy Spirit in us who will bring us into our full inheritance, beginning now.
How often our thinking of the Holy Spirit is more sentimental than practical. We know the Holy Spirit is in the church, and the Holy Spirit in the church represents authority. Yet somehow, we do not know how to recognize His authority, how to yield ourselves to Him, and let Him manifest His glory.
Dear brothers and sisters, no matter how low you are, no matter how spiritually destitute you are, you may come to a point when you cannot be lower. You are like that widow.
Or collectively, no matter how low we may be in our spiritual life, we cannot be lower. And how we look for outside help! But God would direct our hearts to one thing: we have the Holy Spirit in us. There is sufficient supply within us, if only we know how to draw upon it.
Just a pot of oil. Never forget: you have that pot of oil.
But why is it that the abundant supply of the Holy Spirit is not experienced? We have the Holy Spirit in us, but why is it that His abundance is not experienced? What holds us up?
And you will find the secret here: the pot of oil is there. It requires empty vessels.
So Elisha said, “You go to your neighbors and borrow as many empty vessels as you can. And then you shut the door and pour the oil.”
Thankfully, this widow followed the instruction. So she and her sons went around to their neighbors and borrowed as many vessels—big and small vessels, empty vessels—as they could. Then they got them into the house, shut the door, and poured the oil.
And the oil filled every empty vessel until the last vessel was filled, and there were no more vessels. Is there not a real lesson for us today?
We have the Holy Spirit in us, individually and collectively. But sometimes we do not experience the abundant supply of the Holy Spirit, as if He is not sufficient.
How often we feel that we cannot meet our situation. We are destitute. We are poor. There is no way out. And yet we know the Holy Spirit is in us. We know He is able, but somehow it does not work. Why?
The reason is, we do not have empty vessels. We need to be empty. That is what we need.
If we are empty before God, then the Holy Spirit will fill all the empty vessels. But where do you get the empty vessels? Borrow from your neighbors.
Our neighbors are our brothers and sisters. You know, I sometimes feel it is really amazing. God gives us our brothers and sisters not only to wash our feet, but to empty us too.
We really need our brothers and sisters. We cannot live alone. This widow, if she did not go to her neighbors, would not have empty vessels.
How we need our brothers and sisters. We cannot live by ourselves. We need to go to our brothers and sisters to borrow empty vessels.
Oftentimes, thank the Lord, when we are very low and we come to the meeting, we feel ourselves a little bit cloudy. Then some brothers and sisters, in their prayers, in their songs, or in their testimony, lift our spirits, clear our atmosphere, and refresh our spirits.
Oh, we thank God for our brothers and sisters, for they wash our feet. But do we ever thank God for our brothers and sisters that they empty us?
Sometimes we come among our brothers and sisters and feel we are quite spiritual. We feel we are very full, and our brothers and sisters really reduce us to emptiness.
And when our brothers and sisters try to empty and reduce us, how we rebel against that! We feel we are much better than what they think. We feel we are quite full, quite intelligent, quite knowing, quite good.
But then our brothers and sisters may be a little bit blunt. They may be too honest with us, and probably God just uses them.
And how often you come among your brothers and sisters and find that instead of filling you, they empty you. They make you feel you are nothing; you are nobody.
You will not get these empty vessels from the world. The world will praise you, maybe, or they will either persecute you or oppose you.
But it is only with your brothers and sisters, only in the church, only in the house of God, that you will find God can use your brothers and sisters to really empty you—to make you empty vessels.
Sometimes you are pretty high. When you come to the brothers and sisters, suddenly you find you will drop a thousand feet. They make you feel you are really nothing.
You think you have something. Sometimes you feel, “Well, you really gave a good message.” And lo and behold, some brother or some sister will come to you and say, “You are in the flesh.”
Thank God for your brothers and sisters. Have you ever thanked God that they empty you? There is no better place to be empty than in the church.
That is God’s purpose. The church is not a social place where everybody tries to say something good. It is a real, real place where people learn to be real to one another. And that is the way to get empty vessels.
But unfortunately, how we resist that. And that is the reason why you do not have enough empty vessels. You do not know fullness because you refuse emptiness.
The way to fullness is through emptiness. This is a spiritual law. There is no alternative.
Now, that is one thing. The other way that your brothers and sisters can empty you may not be that they do something directly to you.
But, you know, when you fellowship with your brothers and sisters, then you begin to realize how little you have.
If you shut your door, just between you and the Lord, after a month you think that you have grown a lot. You have known a great deal.
Then you begin to come to your brothers and sisters, and you begin to hear this brother or that sister giving a testimony, giving some word, praying, praising, or speaking in their spirit. Suddenly, you begin to realize, well, you know nothing; you have nothing.
I wonder if that kind of experience comes to you. They empty you, you know. It is through fellowship that you are emptied.
But how can you go and borrow from your neighbors? Because you have to love them. That is why, among brothers and sisters, how we need to love one another. It is only when we love one another that we can borrow from one another.
And how precious is the fellowship of the saints. I often feel—I do feel very strongly—there is nothing that builds up God’s people more than fellowship with one another.
The ministry of the Word will help, but it is indirect. It is the fellowship of the saints that really does the real work, especially this work of emptying.
Then this widow borrowed many empty vessels. Dear brothers and sisters, borrow as many as you can.
Every brother and sister may give you an empty vessel. Any brother and sister may empty you. Expect that.
And with these empty vessels, then you find: shut the door and pour from that pot. Of course, shutting the door means going to the Lord.
“Lord, I am now emptied by my brothers and sisters. I have nothing now. I am really nothing. I look to You. I look to Your Holy Spirit to fill me, to supply me with all that I need to meet every situation.”
And, dear brothers and sisters, when you go to the Lord in that manner, you will find oil poured and poured and poured, until you have filled the last empty vessel, and then it will stop.
So after this miracle happened, the widow went to Elisha and said, “Now we have—I do not know how many and how many vessels of oil—now in the house.” It must have been a great amount.
So she came to Elisha and said, “Now what should I do?” Elisha said, “You sell this oil, pay your debt, and live on the rest, you and your sons.”
In other words, when the Holy Spirit fills us, it is more than enough to pay off all our debts, and there will be more for the days to come.
So, dear brothers and sisters, this is the law of spiritual increase.
We have the Holy Spirit in us, individually and corporately. Whenever we have problems, whenever we experience poverty—spiritual poverty—I believe the Lord will redirect our attention to the Holy Spirit.
And if only we are willing to be emptied, then we will find the abundant supply of the Holy Spirit.
You know, Paul, in the letter to the Philippians, mentioned the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Now, do we know the supply of the Holy Spirit?
If we know emptiness, we will know the supply of the Holy Spirit. And that is the solution to our spiritual poverty, both individually and collectively. So may the Lord help us.
Shall we pray?
O heavenly Father, how we praise and thank Thee that Thou hast put in us Thy Spirit, and there is no limit to His supply.
O, how we praise and thank Thee that the Holy Spirit is in us and would never leave us nor forsake us, ever ready to supply all that we need.
For, O Lord, we ask that Thou wilt remind us. Thou wilt turn our attention to Thy Spirit, that we may know the supply of Thy Holy Spirit in our lives, both individually and collectively.
O Lord, if it is Thy law that it is through emptiness that we can be filled, then Lord, empty us.
Teach us how to borrow from one another empty vessels. Teach us how to be humbled before our brothers and sisters. Teach us how to thank Thee for our brothers and sisters, for Thou dost use them to empty us.
Bring us to a point to see that we really are nothing; we have nothing. O, how we praise Thee. Lord, Thou must be everything to us.
And to Thee be all the praise and glory. In Thy precious name. Amen.