A Widow with Nothing Left

In 2 Kings 4 we read about a widow who approaches Elisha because a creditor is about to take her two sons as slaves to satisfy her husband’s debts. She has no means to repay what she owes. Wanting to help, Elisha asks her what she has in her house. All she has is a pot of oil.

“Then he said, Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few.

“And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt 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, who 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 children of the rest” (2 Kings 4:3-7).

The Only Thing God AskS US to Bring

We all have our debts. There are gaps between where we are and what God wants us to become. Some of those debts can never be paid without Christ. Don’t worry about what your vessel looks like–old or new, big or small.

The shape or color of our vessel doesn’t matter either.

And sometimes our vessels are broken.¹

All He asks is that we bring a vessel He can fill: a broken heart and a contrite spirit.

Whatever vessel we are able to bring, Jesus Christ can fill it, pay our debt, and redeem us.

---

Photo by Sid Mahale on Unsplash

1. see “Like a Broken Vessel” by Jeffrey R. Holland