Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. 18 She said to Elijah, “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”
19 “Give me your son,” Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. 20 Then he cried out to the LORD, “LORD my God, have you brought tragedy even on this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?” 21 Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried out to the LORD, “LORD my God, let this boy’s life return to him!”
22 The LORD heard Elijah’s cry, and the boy’s life returned to him, and he lived. 23 Elijah picked up the
child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, “Look, your son is alive!”
24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth.” 1 KINGS 17:17-24
The woman was having the perception that her son was dying because of her sins and that the MAN of God has brought Judgment unto her. Then Elijah took the boy into his room thus the upper room and called unto God. Then the child was brought back to life, the child was not sick but was dying because Scripture says there was no breath in him thus, he eventually died at the end. This woman was enjoying Divine Provision, she hadn't done anything but tragedy just struck, she was having the mindset that
God knew about this. Because why would God make her enjoy then all of a sudden take away her joy, thus the son she was suffering for, that was her perception. She was doing everything for her son because she was a widow and her only joy was her son; because even when Elijah met her, she said what I have I am going to prepare for myself and my son. Then all of a sudden tragedy struck then she attributes it to God. If you were the man of God staying in that house, what would you do? She was seeing God to be judgmental all of a sudden and if nothing is done about it, her faith and belief in God will change. Let's say she's in a church, then she's helping the church and all of a sudden this happens and she attributes it to God, what can you do for her to be consoled? because she has nothing that makes her truly happy apart from her son. Are we going to console her that it's God who gives and God who
takes?, will we be able to gather boldness and go to her again and ask for funds to build the mission house. Osofo, she has been sponsoring your programs and always makes sure that your mission house is supplied with all that you need. She makes sure that the church never lacks anything; when you needed a projector, she bought it and even added a laptop and was willing to pay the guy who will be doing the projection. And all of a sudden, this tragedy hits her, you know her son is young, you know well that the LORD does not have a hand in this, what will you do? Many at times we enjoy so many benefits from people and we forget to carry them in prayers. I bet you, many men of God are only interested in the benefits and not the giver; just as some of us are so interested in what God can give and not God Himself. It was not stated that Elijah either prayed for her when He was staying with them but a time
came that he had to pray. When a medical emergency happens, they don't send the patient to the classroom, nor to the barbering shop nor to the seamstress but when a medical emergency happens, the patient is sent straight to the Hospital. When they get there, they send the person to the emergency ward then nurses will start attending to that person as quick as possible; if it calls for special attention, they bring in the doctors who are specialized in all areas. When it has to do with the eyes they call an optometrist, if it's the mind they call the psychiatrist, if it’s with teeth, they call the dentist, if it's with surgery they call the surgeon. Everyone is specialized in one way or the other, because they had to go through series of training to be who they are, so they are called to attend to such issues with all boldness because they qualify. We can even go to them without having to check their certificate because we
believe that they have been trained and trained so well. It is only in ministry that someone can see things in the realms so they just start doing ministry, someone can sing well so they just start calling themselves ministers, someone can explain Scriptures, so if you don't call them Apostle they get offended, they can see and mention telephone numbers so of you don't call them Prophet they won't mind you. But ask Yourself, where is their training? Did the Holy Ghost train them or they trained themselves; when the time is due for these doctors to graduate, it's not they themselves that graduate but is the school that makes them graduate. The school can say that, this year your seven years is up but we will graduate you next year; the student doctor cannot do anything about it because if they try to graduate themselves, they will not have any certificate to back their graduation. The school can
decide to say that, the seven years has been extended to 8 years. Why did Jesus give us His Spirit!? He is to Help us do what Jesus did and even Greater Works than what Jesus did but we don't want Him, we want Ministry; the Holy Spirit is not just a help or means to do ministry but He is the Ministry. Has the Holy Spirit schooled you and trained you? Has He graduated you that you can start? Many start ministry and they fall because they didn't graduate. It took Peter and the rest 3 and half years, then they waited for Power before they graduated. The Holy Spirit as we know is the Seal of the Father on us.
22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.2 Corinthians 1:22. Every school’s certificate is valid not by signature but by the seal of the school, it is the seal that makes the certificate authentic or valid, no matter how beautiful the certificate may be,
if it doesn't have the seal, forget it; It is not valid. So, the Disciples Graduated when Jesus said, " 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”". (Mathhew 28:18-20)
This was their Graduation, but after this in Acts, He tells them that though you have graduated, they should Wait for the seal. They had the certificate to Preach, Teach, Cast out Demons, Heal the sick, Drink deadly thing and speak with other Tongues, Work Miracles and Work the Works of Jesus and even more but they needed the Seal to make their Certificate Valid and functional. That was why they had to wait
for the Spirit and when He came; Fearful Peter who could not win three souls and denies Jesus Christ now wins 3000 people through a single meeting because of the Seal of the Holy Spirit. Their walk with Jesus was their training and they Receiving the Holy Spirit was a Validation of their Commissioning and Certificate that Yes, indeed they can do all these. Where is Our Training and where is Our Specialty? Now the Holy Spirit is doing both the Training and Validation at the same time. Have you met Him, Is He training You, have you graduated from the school of the Spirit? Where is Your Validation. The woman said, Now I know that You are a man of God, there was a validation to Elijah now. Ministry is more than what we are craving for; people are just in for the fame, glory, accolades, benefits, titles and the rest. They just start doing what they are doing because they saw others doing it, just like the sons of Sceva.
They casted out demons because they saw Paul cast out demons; as the demon asked them, “Paul I know, Jesus I know...Who are You?”. (Acts 19:13-16). The demons know the people who are validated and the people who are not. Many are not being caught and disgraced because its’ just a matter of time, some of us it's just” Takashi” that we are doing and Mercy is keeping us so we think that's all. Many are indeed called but few are chosen. All are students but some complete with First Class like I am by the Grace of God, others with Second Class Upper and Lower, others with Third Class and others with a Pass. All are called students but few are chosen as first class students because they went through the process, the pain, the sacrifice and others. Many are called but they haven't allowed the Spirit to train them so they are not yet chosen. Are we called? Are we working it out to be chosen? Or we want to remain in the called
zone and not chosen? My Father in the LORD Apostle Isaac Brown Boateng will say "Collar is not Calling" and I will also confirm it this way that "Title is not equal to Mantle but Mantle determines the Title".
That is why every day we receive a prophecy that we have been called by God to do this this and that, what have we done about it to be chosen and deployed. What is your specialty Sar, what is your specialty Ma? what can they call you for when there is an emergency? If they go to the Hospital and they say this is Spiritual, where can they also call you to fit and execute the Will of God and stand for God when the need arises. Even those serving tables thus Stephen was healing and preaching, even Philip turned a whole city upside down? We are having the clericals and titles but the Holy Ghost is not a validation to that, it is only the church or denomination that sees us that way but the Holy
Ghost hasn't validated us. We are managing the church and not the Spiritual aspect of our members, we are allowing them to go to other places because they are not seeing anything. Sofo, are you not tired that every day the membership is going down? Minister are you not tired that people are sleeping under your ministration and even stand up to go out but when another minister comes then they come and rejoice? We are doing ministry without the Holy Spirit. We are doing Ministry with gifts and not the Holy Spirit, don't you know the Gift is not functional outside Him as it will be functional in Him? In Him is Life and the Life was the Light of men; it is when we dwell in Him that the Gift becomes alive and Gives light unto men expelling every darkness they are going through.
Elijah took the child and went to the Upper Room and called out unto God then the LORD heard Him and
brought the child back to Life. We have counselled the people about that problem too much, let's take them to Upper Room, our Meeting place where we meet God, where we have fellowship and bring Cases to Him as a judge to Preside over it and grant us Pardon and Victory. Anytime they bring problem we counsel them but we don't consult God on their problem; Elijah took the child to the place of Prayer. Just like David, when the enemy took all things after returning from battle to find an invaded city, he was could have encouraged the people but the people were beyond encouragement. They were even thinking of stoning him, what would he do? Osofo, sometimes the encouragement is good but after that take it to God.
What a friend we have in Jesus’
All our sins and grief to bear!
What a privilege to carry
Everything to God in Prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit,
Oh, what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in Prayer. MHB 538 v 1
The pain the people are bearing is needless because we encourage them a lot but don't take it to God in Prayer; we don't take it to the Upper Room. Someone’s situation is beyond encouragement, the situation is beyond “Nyame Beyj” (thus God will do it) ...carry it to God and let God indeed do it. If we don't do that, they are carrying a mindset that there are certain things God cannot do so next time they won't come but will try something else on their own. We are shepherds and the shepherd feeds the flock,
cares for them, tends them as Jesus told Peter to do; but David unveils another work of the Shepherd, 34 But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, 35 I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. (1 Samuel 17:34-35).
This means when we are taking care of the sheep, the lion and the bear thus the devil will come for some of them through many ways; sickness, pain, death, stagnation, disappointment just to mention a few.... Are we going to allow these things take them away? Osofo, death is taking them so much, have you not seen? They are getting sick too much, what are you doing about it? Are we going after these things to fight and deliver them or we will always say “Nyame noa na Cdze Ma, Noara na Cgye?” (it is the
LORD who gives and the LORD who takes). Not all these happenings are from God oo, if David hadn't consulted God, his wives and properties plus the properties, wives and children of his men would be lost forever. Do you think the people would have followed him again when He called them? Osofo (Man/Woman of God), when you call them, they are not coming because a lion took something that belonged to them, when they told you, you didn't go after it. But they went to another Pastor in another church and the Pastor went after that which the devil took from them and restored it unto them by the Grace of the LORD....do You think they will come again when you call them? Where is Our Upper Room, what is on Our Upper Room, we even Preach full doctrines but No Power. The Apostles never went to Bible School, they just walked with the Word thus Jesus and when they spoke, more were added to the
church. We've preached Doctrines so much that instead of adding to the church, we are rather subtracting from the church. It was in the Upper Room that they received Utterance, they Received Fire, their Weaknesses were taken away. Elijah took the child to the Upper Room; Elijah took the Case to The Heavenly Court where God Dwells; He presented his Case and God answered. When are we going to the Upper Room and come out to Change the perception of People that Our God exists, that our God still raises the dead, that Our God still saves, that Our God still Delivers, that Our God still restores, that Our God still heals., that this same Jesus is Alive.
As the child lived the Woman said "Now I know by this that you are a Man of God and that the Word of the LORD in your mouth is the Truth". It changed her perception, not because Elijah was trying to prove a point but He went to the Upper Room and God
proved a point to the woman that He was not judging her and He even has the Power to give life to her dead son. Now I know by this..., that the Word of God in your mouth is Truth, God was giving her provision and her statement makes it clear that she believes that Life was also part of the Provision. Because the food she gave Elijah was for her and her son, why should Elijah say it will not go waste, the food did not waste but my son is wasted; so, as you've brought him to Life, now I know that the Word you spoke was the Truth. The Healing messages we are preaching to our members is it for them of other people? because they are not being healed. How will they know it's for them, it is when We enter The Upper Room and come out with God and present God through the message then they will know that it's for them. We've prepared the Sermon with nice English but the One who will Give Life to what we are saying
and bring it into Manifestation we have sidelined Him. Many of us are preaching by experience and not by the Spirit. That was why Paul wanted the people of Corinth to understand that he was not like other preachers who will preach by experience and that's all, he was not like those who preach by enticing words and that's all. But he boldly said.... “And my speech and my preaching were not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power”.1 Corinthians 2:4. Can we boldly say that as Men and Women of God? As Song Ministers of God, can we say that my Ministration is not just with sweet voice, not just with melody and harmony but a demonstration of the Holy Ghost and Power? If not, let us Enroll in the School of the Spirit, be Trained, Graduate and Given Certificates with His Seal then when we come out from the Upper Room thus the
School of the Spirit…People will know that indeed Our God Exists and nothing is too Hard for Him. It's not too late to enroll, the Holy Spirit has always been there...Pray and Invite Him, after that tell Him You want to enroll in His School and He will gladly accept You no matter who you are. The only Qualification you need is that You have to be saved? If Yes, He is willing to enroll, teach you, empower you and deploy you. Many are Called but few are chosen…the Harvest is indeed plentiful but the laborers are few...Enroll Now!!!