“Death In The Pot”
2 Kings 4:38-41
INTRODUCTION: Read 2 Kings 4:38-41
The prophet Elisha is meeting with his Bible School students … the “sons of the prophets”. There is a famine in the land, so Elisha has one of his servants go out and pick vegetables for a stew.
If we look closely, we can see a deeper meaning than just a pot of stew. We can see a picture of “man” … under the bondage of sin. We can also see redemption through Christ Jesus. (Gal. 4:3-5).
Each of the elements in the Biblical story has a meaning … they tell their own story.
1.- POT – The pot represents MAN. It was probably made of iron … from the ground … like man, who was made from the dust of the earth.
Elisha wanted POTTAGE in the POT, to satisfy the hunger of his students.
2.- POTTAGE – comes from the Hebrew word for “pride” … ‘something that satisfies’. Elisha wanted something in the pot, POTTAGE, that would SATISFY his student’s hunger … something that he could be PROUD of. Elisha was probably a good cook!
This was also God’s idea. God wanted something in man that He could be PROUD of. SO … God made man in His own likeness … after His own image. (Genesis 1:26) Man was fine in the Garden of Eden … like delicious POTTAGE in the POT. He was sinless and perfect. Man was something that God could be PROUD of … He even said “it was very good”.
THEN … sin entered the picture. Man’s heart became corrupt when Adam & Eve disobeyed God. God could no longer be PROUD of His creation, so He cast them out of the Garden of Eden. DEATH had entered into the POT … and fellowship was broken.
3.- FIELD - 4:39 – The servant goes into the field to find herbs to put into the POT to make POTTAGE. The FIELD is the WORLD (Matthew 13:24,38).
Elisha lived about 3000 years after Adam & Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden. Mankind hadn’t gotten any better … but worse! Mankind, created in God’s image, was now reproducing after Adam’s image … sinful in nature.
It seems as if God is saying, “Go into the world and see what you can find. See if there’s anything good that can be put in the POT (man). See if you can put anything into the POT, to make POTTAGE that I can be PROUD of.”
So, the servant goes into the FIELD, the WORLD.
4.- HERBS – 4:39 – Elisha wanted HERBS in the POT, to make POTTAGE … something he could be PROUD to serve his students. The Hebrew word for “herbs” means “light”. This is what God wants in His POT (man). God wants mankind to shine forth the image of God, so all mankind can see Him (Matthew 5:14-16).
BUT … the servant couldn’t find any. The HERBS just weren’t there. The LIGHT had faded. That’s why God sent forth His Son into the world … to be the light of the world. BUT … the light had faded.
5.- VINE – The servant didn’t find any HERBS … BUT … he did find a VINE. The Hebrew word for VINE means ‘to bend’ … ‘crooked’. When God looks into the FIELD (world) today, that’s what He finds. God sees many who are going the CROOKED way … the broad way that leads to destruction (Mt. 7:13-14).
Few there be who walk the straight and narrow way … the way of the HERBS … the way of God’s light. The crooked vines were growing everywhere. BUT … God wants HERBS … He wants light-bearers.
6.- GOURDS – 4:39 – GOURDS are like squash, which grew on these crooked vines. The Hebrew word for GOURDS means ‘to split’ … probably because when you split them open, the many seeds are exposed. The servant split the gourds open, and put them into the pot – 4:39b-40. (cut up the squash).
The servant didn’t know it, but the gourds were POISON. GOURDS are like SIN … it ‘splits’ … or separates man from God. It’s deadly … it kills. SIN is what makes death in the pot. “For the wages of sin is death.” – Romans 6:23. Instead of HERBS (light) in the POT of man, there is DEATH (gourds). Instead of good POTTAGE (that which would make God “proud”), there is DEATH (gourds), which separates man from God (Isaiah 59:2).
OTHER INGREDIENTS – I suppose there were some other ingredients that they put into the POTTAGE besides GOURDS. Numbers 11:5 – “We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick:” They may have put in some of these as well. These were good things that they liked. There’s nothing wrong with them at all. They are like the good qualities of man (pot) … there’s a lot of good qualities that can be found in man.
7.- CUCUMBERS – The Hebrew word mean ‘hard’ … perhaps because they are HARD to digest. This is a good quality that is often found in mankind. (cut up the cucumbers and put it into the pot).
It’s good to be a HARD worker … dependable … faithful. BUT … there’s still DEATH (gourd) in the POT. As long as sin is in the pot, it’s not fit to eat. These good CUCUMBERS won’t make it fit to eat … it won’t be good POTTAGE … that which will make God ‘proud’. Mixed with the GOURD (sin), it still brings death.
There are lots of good, HARD-working people in this world. BUT … you have to settle the sin problem, before you can make good POTTAGE. As long as sin remains in the POT, there is death (eternal).
8.- LEEKS – The Hebrew word means ‘courtyard’ … a big open area. This is an illustration of the “big-hearted” person. (cut the leeks and put them into the pot). This is a good quality in mankind. BUT … there will be lots of good-hearted people in Hell. WHY? BECAUSE … the GOURD is still in the POT. Unless your sins, which separate you from God, is taken out, there is death (eternal) in the POT.
9.- ONION – The Hebrew word mean ‘to peel’. (cut up onion and put into pot). It illustrates a person who APPEARS to be good, honest, kind, moral, respectable, friendly … all good qualities. This would add a lot to the POTTAGE. BUT … it’s just a mask. When you PEEL away the layers of all that respectability, underneath the heart is still tainted by sin. When you peel off the mask of respectability, you still find death in the pot.
10.- GARLIC – The Hebrew word means ‘to exhale’ … I think you can see why! (cut up the garlic and put into the pot). This is an illustration of an outgoing personality … a good quality for anyone to have. Everybody likes him/her. They are the best neighbor you could ask for. They are friendly … they would do anything for you. BUT … the GOURD is still in the POT. In the heart, there is still that sin.
See the problem? It doesn’t matter how many GOOD things you put in the POT … everything will be tainted by the poisonous GOURD … by the sin that SEPARATES you from God. The poison affects the whole pot. You can’t separate the good qualities from the bad … they are all mixed in there together. They are all contaminated and infected with death (sin, gourd).
Unless your sins are forgiven, none of the good things in the pot will have any merit before a holy and righteous God. There are no SCALES at Heaven’s gate, to balance the good and the bad. There’s more GOOD in the pot than there is BAD. BUT … any poison in the GOURD outweighs any good in the rest of the ingredients. All the good is spoiled and tainted by the sin.
The pottage isn’t suitable to eat. WHAT CAN BE DONE? I guess you could throw it out, and start all over. BUT … there’s a famine in the land … food is scarce. God could have done that when mankind was tainted with sin in the Garden of Eden. He could have started all over with a new race of people. BUT … He didn’t. He had a better plan.
11.- MEAL – The Hebrew word means ‘to grind’. 4:41 – God performed a miracle here. The Hebrew word for “meal” gives the idea of ‘to break up, to destroy’. It is a picture of the blood of Jesus that will destroy the power of sin.
The MEAL voided the effects of the GOURD. It made the POTTAGE acceptable and pleasing to Elisha. It was something he could be “proud” of.
There is only one thing that can counter the effects of the sin that is present in the heart of every person. All the other ingredients are fine. It’s good to be big-hearted, respectable, kind, and friendly. BUT … they can’t do anything to counter-balance the sin (gourd) in the pot that separates you and God.
CONCLUSION:
There is only one thing that can destroy the power of sin … the blood of Jesus Christ. We have all broken God’s Law … and it only takes one sin (gourd) to pollute the pottage. Because God is a righteous and just God, He says that all sin against Him must be punished. The punishment is eternal death in the everlasting Lake of Fire.
BUT … Jesus shed His blood for you. He paid the price for your sins on the cross of Calvary. Jesus is the MEAL in the POTTAGE that makes you acceptable to God. Reject Him, and there will be death in the pot. Trust Him as your personal Savior, and your sins will be forgiven, the penalty will be paid, and you will spend eternity in Heaven with Him. Sin will no longer separate you fro God.
God wants POTTAGE, that He can be proud of. Do nothing about your sin, and there is death in the pot. Come to Jesus, and there will be “no harm in the pot’.
STAND – PRAYER
HYMN - #158 – “Nothing But The Blood”
OUTLINE FOR HANDOUT:
“Death In The Pot”
2 Kings 4:38-41
INTRODUCTION: Each of the elements paints a picture.
1.- POT – It represents MAN, from the elements of the ground.
2.- POTTAGE – From the Hebrew word which means ‘pride’ … ‘something that satisfies’.
- God wanted something in man that He could be PROUD of.
- The sin in the Garden of Eden destroyed that.
3.- FIELD – It represents the WORLD (Matthew 13:24,38).
- Mankind hadn’t gotten any better, but WORSE.
4.- HERBS – From the Hebrew word which means ‘light’.
- God wants mankind to shine forth in His image (Mt. 5:14-16)
- The light had faded.
5.- VINE – From the Hebrew word which means ‘to bend’.
- Mankind was going the crooked way, the broad way that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14).
6.- GOURDS – From the Hebrew word which means ‘to split’.
- Sin is the poison that separates us from God (Romans 6:23, Isaiah 59:2)
OTHER INGREDIENTS – Numbers 11:5
7.- CUCUMBERS – From the Hebrew word which means ‘hard’.
- Being a hard worker, dependable is good, but when mixed with the gourd it still brings death.
8.- LEEKS – From the Hebrew word which means ‘courtyard’.
- Being big-hearted is good, but when mixed with the gourd it still brings death.
9.- ONION – From the Hebrew word which means ‘to peel’.
- When all the good layers are peeled off, there still remains a heart that is tainted by sin.
10 – GARLIC – From the Hebrew word which means ‘to exhale’.
- Having an outgoing personality is good, but when mixed with the gourd, it still brings death.
11.- MEAL – From the Hebrew word which means ‘to grind’.
- The blood of Jesus is the only thing that can destroy the poison of sin, and make the heart of man acceptable in God’s sight.
CONCLUSION:
• Reject Jesus, and there will be death in the pot.
• Trust Jesus, and there will be no harm in the pot.
PRISCILLA BAPTIST CHURCH – Ray Scott, Pastor
