James chapter four, and we're going to read from verse number eight, continuing our series in Elisha. And it fell on a day that Elisha passed a human where it was a great woman and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was that as often as he passed by, he turned in feather to eat bread. And she said unto her husband, Behold, now I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall, and let us set for him there a bed and a table and a stool and a candlestick. And it shall be when he cometh to us that he shall turn in thither. And it fell on a day that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto her, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care. What is to be done for thee? Wouldst thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. He said, Call her. And when he had called her, and stood in the door, and he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. The woman conceived and bore a son at that season, and that Elisha had said unto her according to the time of life. And we do end at verse 17, and we do trust the Lord to bless the reading of His own precious, infallible, inerrant, and inspired word to our hearts. Some of you will remember last week we had Elisha and he met with a lady. And when you compare these two ladies, two different ladies, and there is sometimes we can compare and we can contrast. Last week we don't know where the lady was from. This morning we're told that this lady lived in Shuman. Last week we're told that the lady was a widow. This morning we realized that this woman had a husband who was very much alive. Last week we discovered a lady who was really bankrupt and in need of help. Her two sons were going to be taken captive from her and sold as slaves to try and pay her bills. This morning we meet a lady who was wealthy. A lady who was wealthy and a lady who was giving help. Last week we noticed a lady who had two sons. This week we see a lady who had no children at the point when we begin to read the story. We will discover that this lady had a great need. And when you look at both of these situations, when you look at one who was a widow woman in a bad way financially, and then you look at the other who was well off and seemed to have everything, and sometimes we do that. Sometimes we look at our own situation and we look at others and we think, boy, they get it so handy. They seem to have life so easy, but when you come into my situation, it's so difficult, there's so much going on, and everybody else seems to have it easy. Yet when you look at these two dear sisters this morning, both of them had great needs. And no matter what home we come from, what situation we come from, when you open the door and you enter into that home, there are needs, there are concerns, there are worries, there are circumstances, there are situations. Sometimes we think that we're the only one with troubles, and everybody else seems to have it so easy. Sometimes we would say, I just wish that I was like them. You know, it's a wonderful truth that we find no matter what our situation is this morning, we can take it to the Lord in prayer. I love that little text in Matthew 14, verse 12, The disciples discovered that John the Baptist had been really executed. It says they took up his body and buried it. And in the little phrase it says they went and told Jesus. They went and told Jesus. That's a wonderful thing to do. Just tell the Lord about it. Have you told the Lord about it this morning? Because behind every home, behind every face, behind every marriage, there are needs that no one else is aware of. I wonder have you gone and told Jesus? Peter says, casting all your care upon him for he careth for you. The psalmist said in Psalm 142 that no man cared for my soul. It's really a lament, a pitiful lament. No man cared for my soul. Listen, no child of God can ever say no man cared for my soul. Christ cared so much he went to Calvary and died that you and I. make no forgiveness of sins and we can cast all our care upon him for he truly cares for us. You know this morning as I think of these 2 this morning as I think of this woman that Elisha is meeting and I think of Elisha. I'm reminded that we can be saved and know it this morning. We spent quite a bit of time in 1 John and 1 John is all about giving believers assurance of salvation. We can be saved and we can know it. And of course the Lord Jesus tells us that we're to let our light shine before men. We can be saved and we have to show it. But I believe when I look at these two, not only were they saved and they knew it, not only were they saved and they would show it, but I believe they were saved and others would know it. And I think that's a different thing. And when you look at Alicia here, and when you look at this lady here this morning, I believe when we look into them, we see a godly woman and we see a godly man. They were saved and they knew it, they were saved and they would show it, and they were saved and others knew it. Do others know that we belong to the Lord Jesus Christ? Remember what was said of Peter and John, that others took note of them because they had been with Jesus. Would anyone take note of us and say that we had been? with Jesus. This woman was from a place called Shumen, which lay between Carmel and Samaria, a route that Elisha would pass by often as he would travel from Carmel to the school of the prophets. It was situated in what's known as the Jezreel Valley. It was a very rich, fertile land. It was good land. And because of that many of the people who lived around it became prosperous people. They were well-off people because they had this rich vein of land. It was known as the breadbasket at that time of Israel. And so this lady is described as someone who is great. In verse number 8 she's described as a great woman. That word great is used in many different ways in the Bible. It's used of the physical things. It's used in Genesis 1 verse 16 when it says God made two great lights. It's used morally. Exodus 32 verse 21 when Moses talks about a great sin. It's used of God. Great is the Lord. It's the same word. and greatly to be praised. It's used of a man's prominence or preeminence. It was said of Naaman that he was a great man. But you know, it's also used of possessions. It was said of Job, he was a man with a very great household. And that's the sense that's used here. This lady was a wealthy woman. She was well off. She had plenty of things. It's never said her husband was well off. It could be that the husband married into money, now there's nothing wrong with that, but that could well be the situation, that here was a lady who had property, who had means, and this man married into this lady, and obviously then that she was the great woman. But I want to look first of all this morning at a godly woman, and then we're going to look at a godly man. We're going to do ladies first this morning. I believe in this dear sister here, we see some of the marks, of a godly woman. Now, some of these are interchangeable. Some of the things should be seen in all of us this morning. Some are more relevant to ladies than to men, but I have no doubt the Spirit of God will make the application this morning. First thing I want to say is there's nothing coincidental. Look at verse number eight. A little phrase that begins with, it fell on a day. Just like any other day. You know, this morning, the 17th of November, 2019, is just like any other meeting, isn't it? Maybe not. Maybe not. You see, the Lord speaks to us and there's no coincidences with God. And it fell on a day. This was just like any other day to many, many people, but something was going to happen here. And you know, perhaps the Lord has something to say to you this morning, just today. Just today, just another Sunday, you just get up like any other Sunday morning, you come to church, but God has something very direct and something personal just to say to you this morning. It fell on a day. I believe this godly woman was looking for opportunities to serve the Lord. And I believe that's the mark of a godly woman. It's the mark of a godly man. There's nothing coincidental. This man would pass by, and I believe she could see this An opportunity to do something for the Lord. Are you looking for opportunities to do something for the Lord? Sometimes the opportunities come when you're in the company of an unsaved person. And there's an opportunity, and sometimes they'll even open the door for you. And there's an opportunity to just drop that word in season. I don't know about you, but I know many times I haven't taken that opportunity. There's a natural apprehension. There's a nervousness. There's a fear. And yet we've got such a glorious message, the Gospel. And here was a godly woman. She would have seized the opportunity. She could see this man passing by, and she was looking for an opportunity to do something for the Lord. Has a troubled child of God been brought to your attention? Has a need been brought to your attention? And there's nothing coincidental about it. It's not an accident. And the Lord has drawn you into this company. The Lord has given you this knowledge. You've been made aware of it. Just like this lady was aware of this man passing day by day. And she could see an opportunity to do something for the Lord. Are you looking for opportunities? Would you take the opportunities? You see, I believe here's the mark of a godly woman and we could say of a godly man. Nothing coincidentally. She was looking for an opportunity to do something for the Lord. Coincidental. Then I believe she was a caring woman. Look at verse number 8. And it fell on a day. that Elisha as Elisha passed a human, there was a great woman and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was that as often as he passed by, he turned in feather to eat bread as Elisha passed on his way to Samaria. She constrained them to eat bread. She could see a man. As you could see, a man of God who was in need of hospitality. Remember, in Old Testament times and even in New Testament times, many of the preachers travelled from place to place and hospitality was essential for them. It was essential that homes would be opened up, sometimes to stay in, sometimes just for food. Here was a caring woman and hospitality is the mark of a godly woman. Now of course it's used of elders in 1st Timothy 3 verse 2, given to hospitality. Titus 1 verse 8, a lover of hospitality. But it's used of all of the believers, Romans 12 verse 13, given to hospitality. 1st Peter 4 verse 9, use hospitality one to another without grudging Hebrews 13 verse two, be not forgetful to entertain strangers for thereby some have entertained angels on a word. Some of the incidents in the old Testament where, where people were showing hospitality and it turned out to be angels and people had the angels in their home and didn't realize it until they had left. But as the people came into the home, they, they, they were a blessing to the home and they encouraged the people in the home and they left far more than they ever took with them. What a blessing it must have been. I believe as you look down the chapter in verse number 10, you'll see that she provided hospitality with practical needs in mind. There was nothing fancy. It was just what was needed. You'll read about the bed and the table, the stool and the candlestick. It was just something simple, but something that would meet this man's needs. She wasn't into entertainment. You see, when we entertain, we seek to impress. When it comes to hospitality, it's about expressing. It's about expressing the love of Christ. Not impressing with our fancy home, but expressing the love of Christ. That others might see something of the Lord Jesus Christ in us. There's a man in scripture called Manasseh. You read of him in Acts 21 verse 16. He's only mentioned because of his hospitality. The Lord took note of it. Gaius is mentioned for his hospitality in 3 John 1 verses 5 to 6. I believe here's a godly lady who didn't hold back in giving to the work of the Lord. No coincidence. She's looking for an opportunity to do something for the Lord. She was a caring woman. She was a consistent woman. See the little phrase? I'm sure you've noticed it in verse number eight. It says, as he passed by. This wasn't a flash in the pan. This wasn't a one-off. She didn't feel in a good mood one day and say, I'm going to do something for this man of God. And the next day, she maybe wasn't just feeling in a good mood and she didn't bother her head. As often, she was a consistent woman. Consistency is the mark of a godly woman. You know, there's a phrase I picked up when we were studying in Philippians. It's that phrase, becometh. And I tried to illustrate it when you wear something that's unbecoming, which I can do quite easily. As I've said before, I'm colorblind. Marsala said to me this morning, you can't wear those socks. I don't know what color they were, but they had to be changed. Now, the ones I have ain't much better. Supplies were running low. See these women when they head away in a day, and I run out of socks. It's a pity of me, isn't it? But you can wear something that's unbecoming. Well, when we looked at Philippians 1, we talked about your conversation being as it becometh the gospel. Nothing in your life would be unbecoming of the gospel. You'd have a consistent life. Nothing that would look out of place to someone who professes to love the gospel. Someone who's been saved by the gospel. You know, Paul used the word in 1 Timothy 2 verse 10, and he was talking about how women dressed. And he told the women that they are to dress with modesty. Modesty. And shamefacedness. Not in a shameful way. Not in a way that draws attention to themselves. And listen, there's no prizes for dressing shabbily. There's no prizes at all. But I think the ladies don't need me to tell them how to dress. But here's the word that Paul uses. Now, this is the word of God. Don't be getting cross with me. 1 Timothy 2 verse 10. That which becometh woman professing godliness. I would think this lady would dress in a way that was consistent with her profession. She was a godly woman. There was consistency here. You know, James doesn't use the word, but he said this, out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My children, these things ought not to be so. You see, I think when it came to her profession, when it came to her conversation, and when it would come to her speech, her actual conversation, there'd be nothing there that wouldn't be consistent with her testimony. This is a godly woman this morning. Godly woman's not interested in gossip. A godly woman will dress appropriately. Modestly, this is what the Bible says. A godly woman will be one who will indeed have nothing in her life. And of course, the same is true for men. That'll be unbecoming of the gospel. You see her consistency. Then you see her constraint in verse number eight again. And it fell on a day that Elisha passed to Shuman, where was a great woman, and she constrained him. And I like that word because she urged him. It wasn't done begrudgingly. You know when it comes to doing something for the Lord, and people here who organize things know exactly what I'm talking about. And you're asking people to help you, whether it's with children's work, or young people's work, or older people's work, woman's work, whatever it is. And some people, they're so willing, and yes, they jump at the opportunity, and they're so helpful. Others, it's nearly as if you have to twist their arm up their back. This lady wouldn't need her arm twisted up her back. She did it without grudging. She constrained him. He would know that when she invited him into the home, she really meant it. She really meant it. There was sincerity and there was genuineness there. That word was used of the two on the road to Emmaus. It says they constrained him saying, abide with it. For it is toward even the same idea, she really meant it. This wasn't hypocrisy, this wasn't superficial, this was real. Here are the marks of a godly woman as I see in this woman. Look at her consultation in verse number nine. Remember, she's described as a great woman, her husband is not. Remember, it looks like she was the one that perhaps had the money and he married into money. But look what she says in verse number nine. She said unto her husband. Look at verse 22. We'll come to these verses in weeks to come, don't worry. Look at verse 22. She called unto her husband and said. See, before she would do anything, she talked to her husband. Because she realized he was the head of the house. And here's a godly woman. And if she's a godly woman, submission's no problem to her. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands as unto the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church, and he is the saviour of the body. You see her consultation here. She may have been the one that had the money, she may have been the one that owned the land, that may well be the case, but she knew her place when it come to the marriage. And she talks it over with her husband. Here's the marks of a godly woman. He's not a hen-packed husband. He's not a husband that's battered in to do what she wants him to do. I think there's mutual submission and love here. Nothing coincidental, she's looking for an opportunity to do something for the Lord. She was a caring woman. She was a consistent woman. She constrained him to come in. You see the consultation. Do you see what she's conscious of in verse number nine? And she said unto her husband, behold, now I perceive that this is an holy man of God. Let me put it very simply. She had spiritual perception. So a godly woman will have spiritual perception. Hebrews 5 verse 14, Paul says, And the Hebrew writer is saying that strong meat You know, when you're saved, you're on the baby food, the sincere milk of the Word, and then you move to the meat, and then the strong meat as you get deeper and deeper and deeper into the Word of God. And as you get into the Word of God, then your senses are able to discern between good and evil. It's like your own senses. You know, when you taste something that's horrible, you know not to take it again. That's why I never touch coleslaw, just to put that on the record. You just never touch it again. Or if you touch something that's hot, well, you know not to touch that again if you could burn it. And you can discern that which is good and that which is bad, that which is helpful, that which is not helpful. As you dig into the word of God, you're able to discern that's what pleases God and that's what doesn't please God. And you've got spiritual perception. And when somebody comes to the door to sell the raffle tickets, you've got the spiritual perception, this is not right. This is not right. When something's on television, and you have the sight, and you see it, and you hear with your ears, you hear the language, you see what's going on, you have the spiritual perception to know to switch it off. Because you can discern between good and evil. Because you've been in the strong meat. Here's a woman, and she had spiritual perception. She perceived that this man was a holy man. Look at her contentment. I have to move on or I'll not get to the man at all. You'll think I'm being biased. Look at verse number 11. And it fell on a day that he came hither and turned into the chamber. And Elisha, as he did, he comes and he reveals of her hospitality and her generosity. He wants to repay her because the Lord's no man's debtor. And he said to Gehazi, his servant, call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. Verse 13, he said, Unto him saying, and unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care. What is to be done for thee? He wants to repair. Do you want me to speak to the king? Remember he had helped three kings. He had a channel to the kings or to the captain of the host. Do you want any military help? He had access to royalty. He had access to the military. But look what she says. She says, I dwell among mine own people. She says, I'm just content. Isn't contentment a wonderful thing? A godly woman will be a content woman. As I have pointed out before, you'll never find me in a tent. I don't think I could. Unless I've got a shower and washing facilities, there's no way you're ever going to get me in a tent. But in one way, all of us are living in a tent this morning, either discontent or content. This woman was in content. She was a contented woman. And you might say, well, it's easy for her. She had plenty of money. But listen. She had a longing in her heart for children. For a Jewish woman, this was a big thing. This was an enormous thing. Some people would have looked upon it as nearly a curse from God. I'm going back to Old Testament times. Don't be reading into it today. And this woman lived with this. And had lived with it for years. Her husband was now an old man. But she says, I'm content. I'm content. Godliness, Paul says, with contentment is great gain. Having food and raiment, let us therewith be content. Let your conversation be without covetous and be content with such things as you have, for he has said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee. Paul says, not that I speak in respect of want, for I have learned in whatsoever state I am therewith to be content. What's your state this morning? What's your financial state this morning? What's your physical state? What's your marital state? Paul says, no matter what state I'm in, I'm content. Here's a godly woman and this godly woman was a contented woman. Yes, she had a great need. Yes, there was a burden there. Yes, there was. Life wasn't perfect for her. But she found contentment in the Lord. Has the devil been sowing seeds of discontentment in your life? No, there are the necessities, there are the comforts, and there are the luxuries. And that's what makes up life, that's what makes up our wants. Apparently, 100 years ago, people had an average of 50 wants. Now I'm told it's 500. I don't know how they calculate these things. Have you so many wants this morning that you're not content? Are you contented with what the Lord has given to you? A godly woman will be a contented woman. Look at her carefulness in verse 16. And he said about this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid. I've called this carefulness, and I'll tell you why. She didn't want the man of God making a fool of himself. And she didn't want him to be wrong, and she didn't want to be saying things about him. She says, now, don't be saying that. Because that's not possible. That's not possible. She's careful. She'd be careful when she's told something not to repeat it. She'd be careful not to say something that would hurt someone. She'd be careful. She didn't want Elisha, a man of God, to look foolish. See her carefulness. Look at the conclusion in verse 17. And the woman conceived and bore a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her according to the time of life. You see, she gave birth to a son. We'll look at that next week, God willing. But from her barren womb came forth a son. Let me apply it spiritually. She was a fruitful woman. Fruitful. A godly woman will be a fruitful woman. See the godly woman. Let me say something about the godly man. I know my time's gone, but I promise you I'll do this very quickly. A godly man will trust God to supply his needs. You see, Elisha, last week, remember, there was a widow woman, and here is another woman, and she supplies him with the little room, and the bed, and the light, and the stool, and the candlestick. And so, Elisha's just trusting the Lord to meet his needs. A godly man will trust the Lord to supply his needs unless he didn't take shortcuts. He didn't have a cake stall to raise money for the work of the Lord. He didn't have a jumbled sale. He just trusted the Lord, trusted the Lord. That's the way it used to be among the people of God. A godly man will be seen. Look what she said of him in verse 9. I perceive this is an holy man of God. She didn't say he was a learned man, or a charming man, or a popular man, or a funny man, or a brilliant man, or a successful man. She says, here's a holy man. I wonder, I wonder men this morning. Would any of our neighbors ever look at you or me and say, there's a holy man? There's a holy man. You see, a godly man will trust the Lord to supply his needs. A godly man will be seen. A godly man will of people say things about him. Look at verse nine. And she said unto her husband, behold, now I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually. Day by day as he passed by, he became the object of conversation in this home between this lady and her husband. And there was something about him, something about him that caused them to talk about him. And with Elisha, it was his holiness and his godliness. Again, I sit down and start to think of myself. Would anybody ever look at me and say, boy, he's a hypocrite? He talks about Christ and Christianity. If that's what it is, I want nothing to do with it. Is your life such that when people talk about you, they're talking about your holiness, your godliness? Because that's what they're talking about here with Elisha. Or would they be saying that's the biggest rogue in the country? I remember when my two brothers started out in business, they started up together, they were going into joinery business, and I remember somebody in the church we were in coming and saying, don't do any work for him, that man in the church, because he never pays anything. Not an awful thing to say about somebody. It's an awful thing to have to say it. about a man or a woman of God. You see, a godly man will trust the Lord to supply his needs. A godly man will be seen. A godly man will have people say things about him that are edifying and uplifting. What does a godly man seek? Look at verse number 10. And again, I just think of this little chamber and he had a bed. You know, bed speaks of rest. And of course, when I think about rest, and I know I'm spiritualizing this this morning, I think it's the rest of a troubled conscience. A godly man will not want to put his head on the pillow if he hasn't made it up with his wife, if the wrong words were said. And some of you have maybe slept on it for years and having the guts to say sorry. A godly man will want to have a trouble-free conscience. If there's sin, he'll confess it and he'll never let the sun go down on his wrath. A godly man will want rest. A godly man, when it comes to the table, it speaks of communion on Friday morning. I called in the Royal Hospital to see Raymond and then went over to a missionary meeting for GMSA and there was a few of us, there was three pastors there and others who were all involved with GMSA and we're just sitting around the table having lunch after a meeting and Nigel said to me, isn't this great just to have this fellowship around the table? Just talking about the things of God. The table speaks of communion. A godly man will want communion with the Lord. He'll want to spend time with the Lord. He'll want to be in touch with the Lord. You see, he had a bed, he had a table, and you know he had a stool. And a stool speaks of instruction. The idea is to be studying. The godly man will spend time in the Word of God. Now, listen, these are true of a godly woman as well. You make the application. And you can see someone just sitting in the stool and drinking in the Word of God. In our home in Coke, before we moved to Belfast, I had a wee roof space conversion that was only about four foot by four foot. And it was about four foot high. You were like in a box. Marcella used to put the thing up and close me in. If the house ever went on fire, I was a goner. But she had me locked out of the way. And I used to sit up in that wee room with strong concordance in the word of God and very little else. But an old thing like a word processor, it's so ancient now, I wish I had held on to it. I've had some great times. Great times. And sometimes I think the best times. I wish I could get back to the times. Just me and the Lord. Just sucking it in and soaking it in and drinking it in. You see, he wanted to have the bed, the rest of a troubled conscience. He wanted to have communion. He needed the instruction. And then, of course, the candlestick would speak of a godly man will shine. Godly man will shine for the Lord Jesus. See when you have that rest of a troubled conscience. When you're nothing between you and the Lord, only blue skies. See when you have that sweet communion with the Lord. You see when you're drinking in the word of God. I'll tell you there's only one thing you can do and that is shine. Your light starts to shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father, which is in heaven. We did say in Philippians 2, remember, going through Philippians, that ye may be blameless and harmless to sons of God without rebuke in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation. How crooked it is. How perverse it is. Among whom ye shine as lights in the world. Oh, how we need that rest from a troubled conscience. Listen, if there's sin there, get it right. If there's trouble with another brother or sister, look, sort it out. Have you trouble at home? Listen, peace at home is worth whatever it costs. You need rest. You need that communion. You need the instruction. but you may shine for Jesus. Let me finish this. You see the supply, you see the scene. A godly man, what they'll say about him. You see what a godly man seeks. You see the success of a godly man. Verse 17. And the woman conceived and bore a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her according to the time of life. Let me just put it very simply. He became a blessing to her and a blessing to them. A godly man will be a blessing. A godly husband What a blessing in a marriage. A godly father, what a blessing to the children. A godly young person, what a blessing to parents. Godly people, men and women, what a blessing to a church. You see the godly man and you see the godly woman this morning. Paul tells us in Romans 14, and we're finished, none of us liveth to himself and no man dieth to himself. We can't help that we affect others, but what effect are we having on others? We're going to affect people because we work with people, we live with people, we talk to people, but what sort of an effect are we having with those we work with and live with and meet with? to the sea a godly woman, to the sea a godly man. Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we just thank you for thy word this morning. And Lord, we pray that as we've listened this morning, indeed Lord, as I have had to listen, and Lord, as you've shown the spotlight of the Spirit of God unto my heart, Lord, will you do it in all of our hearts this morning? Search me, O God. What a wonderful thing it would be if people living in Refraind and District would be able to say of us, there's a band of holy men and holy women and holy young people which pass by us continually. Lord, give us the godliness Give us the consistency and may we truly shine for the Lord Jesus Christ in these days. For sending through our Savior's precious name we ask it. Amen.