We come to this 24th message in the Elijah, Elisha series, and we've entitled it, You Will Embrace a Son. I'll read just verses 14 through 17. This woman has already said, I dwell among my people, there's nothing you need to do for me. Elisha has tried to thank her for this prophet's chamber. And so Elisha said, What then is to be done for her? Gehazi answered, Well, she has no son, and her husband is old. He said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway, and he said, At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son. And she said, No, my Lord. O man of God, do not lie to your servant. But the woman conceded, and she bore a son about the time of the following spring, as Elisha had said to her. Let's pray to the Lord and ask Him to take this message on making room for God and His people and use it in a mighty way for His glory. Father, We're so grateful for your presence here today. And now, would you come down among us in a special way as we preach this message on making room for you, making room for your people, making room in our heart, making room in our homes, being hospitable, I pray that this message, which is so needed in our lives, that it will find a home in our hearts, that we'll learn some things that will go with us for the rest of our lives. For Jesus' sake we pray. Amen. Some of you may remember one of the messages we preached on Elijah being told by the Lord to anoint two kings, and to anoint, as well, his successor. And so he went to a place called Abel Mahola, and he went there and he found a farmer out in his field with 12 yoke of oxen, and the prophet's name is Elisha, the son of Shaphat. And he did something that everyone knew what it meant in those days. He took his cloak and he threw it on Elisha. And Elisha, from that moment on, became a prophet of God. Now, 20 miles northwest of Ebumahola, Elisha's hometown was another town, not very big, but it was known to all Israel as the home of the most beautiful young virgin that was known during the last days of David's kingdom. Some of you remember he was freezing to death in his last days as he died. And they said, Go and find the most beautiful woman in the land and bring her here. He did not cohabit with her in any way, but she kept him warm. before there were electric blankets. And somehow, by the grace of God, she became known all over, and Shunem became known, as Abishag of Shunem was known for being that beautiful lady. Now the town that we're talking about today is Shunem, and we're talking about a woman that Elisha calls the Shunemite. This town of Shunem lays in north Israel in the valley of Jezreel, in the valley of Esdrael, and in the valley of Jehoshaphat. All three of those mean the very same valley. It's perhaps the richest ground in all the land of Israel. The soil is fertile, it's well cultivated. It stretches on and on as far as the eye can see. It's a spread of fertile fields. Jewish tour guides will tell the visitors to Israel that this valley is the breadbasket of Israel. Going on from Shunem Northwest to Mount Carmel, about 25 miles, Elisha would often go up there to where God defeated the prophets of Baal, and God set fire to consume the sacrifice under his mentor, under Elijah. Now most commentators tell us they believe there were at least four schools of the prophets. And those four that seem to be schools, places where the prophets would often go, were Gilgal, that's where they crossed over into the Promised Land, two miles from there, Jericho, then Bethel, and last of all, Mount Carmel. If that's the case, it seems that Elisha, much like a circuit-riding preacher, he was a circuit-going seminary professor. He was going back and forth between Gilgal and Jericho and Bethel and Mount Carmel. Now, he had to be a very strong man to travel those distances because, just to give you a little idea of what he had to travel, from Gilgal to Jericho was two miles, from Jericho to Bethel is 12 miles, all going northwest. Then straight north to Shunem was 50 miles, and then northwest to Mount Carmel is 25 miles. That's a 90-mile trip, or 180, mile trip by foot. That's a long, long distance. That's like the round trip is going from here to Salt Lake. Think of walking that regularly. So it happened in the sovereignty of God that this wealthy Shunammite woman living in Shunamm with her husband, her elderly husband, would see Elisha passing through their town and so she invited him in. to her home, and as she invited him in, she and her elderly husband put him up. They took care of him. It was a wonderful, wonderful time together, and after eating a number of meals together, God laid it on the heart of this Shunammite woman to speak to her husband about building a prophet's chamber for Elisha so he would have a home away from home to stay when his route took him through Shunamm. Now with that in mind, the account is a glorious account about what happens when we give hospitality to the people of God. There's much more in this text, but that's where I'm going to focus my attention this morning. I want you to study it with me. It's a sweet passage about making room for God and making room for His people in our own homes, and I've found seven discoveries that I believe will bless your heart, and they bless mine if we follow the example of the Shunammite woman. What are these seven discoveries? First of all, make room for God and His people. That's the road to godly growth in grace and in faith. Now most of us, when we think of growing by grace through faith, don't think of hospitality. But if you'll notice, this woman did. It says, and she said to her husband, in verse 9 and 10, Behold, now I KNOW this is a holy man of God. He's continually passing our way. Let us make a small room on the roof with walls. He's gonna make a private room on top of the wall, a place that he can access on his own without even going through their house. It'll be his home away from home. Beloved, most of us have busy and cluttered lives. We're sometimes much too busy for God and for serving His special people that He brings our way. It is so easy to talk ourselves out of saying, I don't think I can do that. You know, every so often we have a singing group come through here, and as we do, Kathy gets up and asks people, would you like to host one of these groups? Would you like to host these people or some of these people? And it isn't always easy to get people that say, yes, we love to do that. But I wanna tell you this morning, if you wanna grow in grace and in faith, this is one of the best ways to do so, and you're gonna find out why as we preach today. I urge all short-term missionaries as they go out, and I did again this year, both those going to Columbia and those going to India, be very flexible. Be very flexible. I'm sure if anyone comes over there to serve with you, Jared, don't get your expectations up because you're going to get bent out of shape in a short amount of time. Because missions is just that way. Stay flexible. To have room for God and room for others, to have room to open our homes to God's people is one of the signs that we're growing by grace through faith. It's one of the signs we're growing Christians. Now, the easiest thing in the world is to erect a barrier and to say, maybe another time, but I can't this time. And all I can say is the biggest drawback to hospitality is me. or you. That's the greatest drawback. But you know the New Testament is filled with commands that were to be hospitable. If you think this is just Old Testament, no. The New Testament, the Apostle Paul says in Romans 12, 13, contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Paul writes to Timothy in 1st Timothy 3, 2-5, and right in the middle of saying what an elder and his wife, what they're supposed to be, he says this, an elder, an overseer is to be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, Able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. He must manage his own household well with all dignity, keeping his children submissive, for if someone doesn't know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's Church? Right in the middle of those qualifications for an elder is you must be hospitable. And Titus 1.8 is just a replica of Paul writing the same thing to Titus as he wrote to Timothy. Peter adds in 1 Peter 4.9, show hospitality to one another without grumbling. If that sheet is going around in church that says, would you take some of these people in? And you see that it's not getting filled in. You know what's easy to do? Well, somebody doesn't do it, won't get done. I don't know why we have these groups in here, but I'll sign up, okay. Yeah, I'll take them. Peter says, show hospitality to one another without grumbling. It's not hospitality if you don't want to do it. If you wanna grow in grace, then be hospitable. And if you want to know what Jesus is looking for, He is looking for hospitality and He even makes it part of the qualification for those who are on the left or on the right when He comes in His kingdom at the judgment. You remember what it says in Matthew 25? He says He'll separate the sheep from the goats. And as He separates the sheep from the goats to those on His right, the sheep, He'll say to them, I was hungry. and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me in. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came to me. And they said, Lord, when did all this happen? We don't remember that at all. He says, in as much as you did it under one of the very least of these, my brothers, you did it to me. God is looking in every one of our lives for a hospitable spirit. Are you open to making room for God and His people in your own home? Number two, the second discovery, is making room for God and His people begins with following God's order in the home. If you'll notice in verse 10, this woman says to her husband, Let us make a small room on the roof with walls, and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there. This woman lived in a glorious home. She's a wealthy woman. This is not your normal Shunammite. She's a wealthy woman, and known for that. That's why the Word says so. If you imagine her home, it probably reminds us of some feudal castle in England. You can just see it. In some of those castles, they have massive beams spanning the grand halls. And they have inscriptions that say, this house shall be preserved and never shall decay where Almighty God is worshipped day by day. Whatever it is, she had a nice house. But she didn't want him to stay in her house. She wanted to go beyond that and build him his own apartment on top of their house. It's an amazing thing. This was a godly home. This was a woman with a godly, respectful wife. This Shunammite woman's actions were baptized in respect and submission to her husband. Notice she spoke to her husband about her ideas immediately. This building of a prophet's chamber, it wasn't her secret idea. This Shunammite had no little secret she kept from her husband. She would need the skills of her husband. She would need his agreement with her ideas. She would need his leadership in embarking on this project. She would need his finances to make this happen. Her desire was for them as a couple to build an extension on their home on the second floor in a walled room that was furnished a private room, a home away from home. That was going the second mile. This was the climbing of the mountain of making room for God. I don't know what it would take in any of your lives to say, we want to open our home. We want to open our home to others. This woman wanted Elisha to have a place he could go to easily and not even have to go through the house, a walled in place of his own, a home away from home where he would sense and feel he could stay and sleep and study and strengthen his soul for the next leg of the journey. So they made room for the prophet and the family enjoyed the favor of God. I wanna say a little more about this subject of making room for God and for his people. Sometimes we get comfortable just the way we are. I've seen people that come to faith in Jesus and they let Jesus into their life and they let him come into the foyer of their home. He's there, but they don't invite him on into the rest of the house. It's good right there. He's right there in the foyer. We're glad to have him there. Paul Scanlon wrote, about how the good, it's good to have the Lord in the foyer of our house, but it's good, it's not the best, it's not the greatest. And he writes, many are so grateful for good that they stay where they are, they don't realize that good is only the base camp on the mountain of greatness. And then he talks about Mount Everest. I don't think any of us here that I'm aware of have climbed Mount Everest. Anybody here climb Mount Everest? I wasn't aware of it. Very few people in all the world ever have. That's the tallest peak in the world. It has four base camps. They're strategically placed on the way up to the top, and they're strategically placed so climbers can get adapted. They can get acclimated to that mountain's treacherous climates due to the lack of oxygen as they ascend up, up, up. And they can stay sometime a week or two weeks at one of those base camps, just getting used to that oxygen level. And when a climber has adapted to their surroundings and environment at a base camp, they leave base camp one and go to base camp two, and then three, and then four. And finally, they make the final assault if they ever get past the four base camps. And they make it to the summit, which is 29029, 29,029 feet. 29,029 feet above sea level. Some climbers fail to adapt. They run out of time. They run out of resources. The weather deteriorates. That's what happens most often. The weather deteriorates before the final ascent. For them, the highest achieved base camp becomes the ceiling. They made it to the first base camp. If you even make it to the first base camp on Mount Everest, you've made it a long, long, long ways. But we do this in the Christian life. We find something good in our lives and we say, this is the best it gets. We're gonna leave it this way. And it reminds me of Peter. You remember Peter, James and John, the Lord takes the three of them, his triumvirate, he takes them with him, not the rest of the disciples. They're taking care of a demon possessed boy down below. They're up on the mountain. As they're up on the mountain, Jesus is transfigured before them. He's transfigured. They see Him for a few moments in His glory, and there are two people with Him. Who is it? It's Moses and Elijah. Well, the synoptics write it. Matthew 17.4, Mark 9.5, Luke 9.33. Everybody wants to talk about it, and Peter is so thrilled. This has got to be the summit. This is as great as it gets. This is wonderful. Let's, well, let's be hospitable. If it's okay with you, Lord, I'll make three tents. One for Moses, one for Elijah, one for you. I'll do it right here. It's as good as it could be. Let's camp a while. Let's bask in the glory of your transfigured presence. God the Father had to remind Peter that this transfiguration was not the summit. It was only the base camp for Jesus on the road to the real Mount Calvary. That was where he reached the zenith of his work on earth to die on the cross for you and me. This thing of showing hospitality. If you begin to climb this road to growth in grace and faith, I can only tell you I didn't know anything different growing up. Our parents continually took in people. I have had more help and more strength and more grace. I've learned more things just sitting around a table with missionaries and pastors and people coming through. It has been such a growth thing in my life. And I can tell you, if you want to grow in grace, take people in. But we can have a wonderful overnight, a bed and breakfast with some missionaries, or a pastor and his wife, or we may have a group of people. And let me tell you, it is exhausting. You've got to make all this extra food. Oh no. How many days are they staying? All kinds of questions. It may feel like when you finally get done, this has got to be the summit. It's not. It's just one of the base camps. on the road to growth in grace. For Jesus, the transfiguration was a sealer. It was a pause of encouragement from heaven that God sent Moses and Elijah to cheer him on, to say, you've made it now, through these three and a half years, now we're praying. Lord Jesus says, you go to the cross. What a moment, as he shared with them. What a moment. And Peter, bless his heart, just like every one of us, how many of you have ever gotten out of order? Okay, I see all that lack of hands, but I believe that really means we've all been out of order. Children can be out of order. Wives can be out of order. Husbands can be out of order. Peter was out of order. And right in the middle of all that, he says, this is it. It doesn't get better than this. Let's build three tents. And God the Father had to correct Peter from the cloud. And he said, this is my beloved son with whom I'm well pleased. Listen to him. And Jesus never said, yeah, go ahead with the three tents. That would have gotten in his way. He was on his way to the cross. This wealthy Shunammite woman then knew well her place in the home. She knew her husband would listen to her. She also knew the road to making room for God and for Elisha was first of all, making room in her heart for her own husband. And I want to tell you, if you want to be able to be hospitable as a couple in your home, it must be done as a couple. You must work together. She wasn't out of order. She made room in her heart for her husband. Number three, making room for God and His people means knowing who a holy man of God is and knowing how best to serve Him. You'll notice in verse 9 and 10 again we read these words, and she said to her husband, I know or I perceive that this is a holy man of God. Now the Hebrew word for know is the same word that is spoken of first in the scriptures to speak of intimacy in a married couple between Adam and Eve. It says in Genesis 4.1, and Adam knew Eve, his wife, Yadah. That means they shared physical intimacy and she conceived and bore Cain. This word, Yadah, she knew. She had experienced what it was by observation, by reflecting, by thinking. She had experienced what a holy man of God was. She didn't say, Elisha's a man of God. She says, he's a holy man of God. What a tribute it was to Elisha. She knew by observing him that he kept company with God Almighty. I ask you, what do people see when they observe and reflect upon your life? What do they see? What do they see in me? What do they see in you? Can they see Jesus in our lives? I think of Peter, and I think of John. After Pentecost, the Sanhedrin had them beaten, and they were so thrilled that they could be beaten for the Lord. They could suffer for his sake. And we read there these interesting words. Acts 4.13 says, The Sanhedrin, when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, perceived they were uneducated, common men, and they were astonished, and they recognized, or they perceived, they knew that they had been with Jesus. People will know if you've been with Jesus. They'll know if you're a holy man or a holy woman of God. Making room for a man or woman of God in our house is making room for the possible. You know, the older we get, the more brittle we tend to get. You ever notice? You just get more brittle. And it's easy to talk yourself out of things. Possibilities. This woman didn't know what was ahead for her, but she was open to the possibilities that would come by being hospitable. She was open to the blessings up ahead. She knew in her soul possibilities would come with hosting and being hospitable to this holy man of God. Being hospitable opened the door to expectation and anticipation and possibilities she could never have dreamed of. I wonder if you're inviting possibilities into your life or into your home. Or are you done with that? I'm past that. We did that one time, but I'm not going to do that again. The Bible tells us in 2 Chronicles 16 9, For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him. And if your heart is blameless toward him, you will be one of those. I was a stranger. And you welcome me in. He welcomed me in. I can't tell you how many times people have welcomed me in. Oh, the possibilities. For this man and his wife inviting Elisha into their home was making room for God's miracles. Why? Because everywhere that Elisha went, there were miracles. In Elijah's life, we count 11 miracles. In Elisha's life, we count 22 miracles. He got a double portion of what Elijah had. Making room for good company was filling the heart of this dear woman. She wanted privacy for Elisha. She wanted there to be a room with a roof with walls. She wanted a furnished sacred place. She wanted a bed for Elisha, a table to eat at, a stool, a couch to sit on, a candlestick, a lamp stand to study by. The stool is more than it implies. The word for stool is kisseh, K-I-S-S-E-H, if you transliterate the Hebrew. That means a sofa type of seat or a large chair of some dignity. This man and this woman were not into buying and selling houses. They weren't flipping houses. They were furnishing a prophet's chamber, and they knew how to do it. Now, I mentioned this in the first service, so I'll mention it again. I think it's worth sharing with you. I have stayed in incredible places, very humble places. I've been in places that have chandeliers in every room in the house. But I remember one particular time I was ministering in the state of Utah when I was told this is the family you'll be going home with and I did and I was there for three nights and they were a family that took care of 22 nervous animals because they said all of them were on Valium. And there was all kinds of barking and squealing and noises that I'd never even heard before. And they put me in this front room on a couch and I still remembered I opened it up, I pulled it out and I laid down on it and all I could feel was three ribs of that thing sticking up and I decided to sleep on the floor. This wasn't what you'd call a prophet's chamber. And all during the night, they had a Gila monster that was as close to where I was sleeping as this. It was a great big, great big cage. And during the night, he would wake me up. I just want to say to you, You don't have to have the best place in the world, but make sure the bed is made. Make sure that it's clean sheets. Make sure there's adequate covers. Make it bed and breakfast. Give them a meal. These people had no idea what would come of this. They didn't have any special idea of what would happen. But I see in their provisions for Elisha a deep desire to reach out in love to meet the needs of this man when he's gone from home. In doing this for others, Jesus says, we do it unto him. This couple went out of their way to accommodate Elisha, to establish their home in Shunem as his frequent flyer bed and breakfast away from home. Number four. Watch how these build. Number four is Making room for God and His people means knowing how to accommodate someone so that they feel at home. Notice verse 11, the dream came true. One day, verse 11, he came there and he turned into the chamber and rested there. He didn't knock at the door. He didn't say, would you mind if I'd come in? But he just went straight to his room. He was probably tired. He went up, completely sacked out. Oh, you can imagine when he woke up how rested he was. This woman's beautiful, thoughtful accommodations show us she knew how to make this little roof house Elisha's own. Sometimes we struggle doing acts of service because we think it has to be a great sacrificial act. What kind of service is God looking for? Let me just give you a few examples. If a neighbor is sick and needs a hot meal, don't sound a trumpet or put it in the paper. Just make a meal and bring it to them. Don't have to tell anyone. If we know a poor family and the kids need shoes, a winter coat, or socks, just go buy it for them and bring it to them. If we know someone that's going through a tough time, be there for them. Go visit them. Go set a spell. Talk at length with them. Make room for God and others. It is one of the most fulfilling calls God would ever give you. And if you say, I need to be mentored in that, then just get to know Becky Ryberg. She'll teach you how to do that. And Becky, I have to say it, it's true. No matter where I go visiting, I run into Becky. There she is. This is what you do. You do it wonderfully. Peter Wagner says, you can tell if you have a special gift of hospitality. Now this isn't Bible, I'm just gonna give you a quote from him, and it's worthy of thought. It's not Bible, but it's worthy of thought. He says, it's not the person who has their house spotless and spends hours preparing the meal so everything is just right. It's rather the one who is more concerned about you when you get there than how their house looks or what the food tastes like. It really doesn't matter if the cushions are exactly straight or if the cake is a day old to serve it. He said, with true hospitality, guests may feel like they can even get up and get their own second cup of coffee without asking. What's he saying? He's saying that hospitality is doing what my grandma used to do. My grandma would always do this when we would come to the house. I remember growing up and going to Hilder's place. Grandpa had passed away, and when we'd get to Roland and Ruby's house, she lived with them. We'd come into the house, and the first thing Grandma Hilder would say, come on in, Harold, make yourself at home where you ought to be. You ever tried that? Come on in, make yourself at home where you ought to be. You ought to be at home, and this is your home. This is your home. Make it your home. Number five, it's starting to get good. Making room for God and his people reveals a heart of contentment that needs no reimbursement. Notice verse 12 to 13, And Elisha said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. When Gehazi called her, she stood before Elisha. And he said to Gehazi, say now to her, see, you have taken all this trouble for us. What is to be done for you? Would you have a word spoken on your behalf to the king or to the commander of the army? And she answers very uniquely. She says, I dwell among my own people. I wanna tell you something. People that open themselves up. to God and others aren't secretly looking for perks. Elisha intimated that he may have some pull with the king or the army commander, that he put in a good word for this woman. The woman couldn't be talked into anything. She wasn't covetous at all. Her answer was, I dwell among my people. What does that mean? It simply means thanks, but no thanks. I appreciate your offer, but I have this good home God has provided for me through Elisha. I really don�t need anything. I just have to tell you, this woman is just a darling. What kind of a woman is she? Be alert to the fact this woman gave out of her abundance. She didn�t give to get. I hear people all the time that they hear on the radio, �If you give so much, you�ll get back double, triple, quadruple what you give.� Well, bless your heart, I�m not so sure that always works out that God doesn't always repay in the same coinage. But I can tell you something, she didn't give to get, she gave. As the scripture says, freely you have received, freely give. She gave out of what she had. For her, the blessing of giving was sufficient. The Shunammite woman was satisfied with her life. Her godly life was visible in her home. I think of what Major W.F. Bratt used to say. He said, holiness begins at home and sanctification begins at the sink. You can make whatever you want to make out of that, but I think it's quite clear. It starts in the domestic activities, the way you talk in the kitchen. The way you talk inside the house, that's where sanctification goes on. This woman had substance. She was well healed. She shared from her substance with this holy man of God. She was generous and she seemed to lack for nothing. She was holy and hospitable. Now, number six out of the seven to me is the apex. This is just it. This is the one I hope if you haven't gotten anything yet, you'll get this one. Making room for God and his people. opens the door for God to supply our unspoken heart desires. It opens the door for God to supply our unspoken heart desires. Notice Elisha's words to Gehazi. She's been down, or she's been up there to talk to him. She says, I don't need anything, no thanks, but no thanks. She's gone back downstairs. She's probably working on a meal or something. And so he's talking to Gehazi and he says, what's to be done for? You just imagine, you know, he's just woken up from sleep and he's, it's one of those moments. We got to do something for this woman. So he tried and it failed. She didn't want anything. He still isn't done. He says, what's to be done for her, Gehazi? Gehazi said, well, she has no son, and her husband is old. Elijah said, call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. She's back upstairs. And Elisha said, at this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son. And she said, no, my lord. Oh, man of God, don't lie to your servant. And just think of it now. I want to go over this again a little bit. Resting peacefully in the prophet's chamber, he became so thankful. Have you ever stayed at anyone's house? and thought, this is just like heaven. This is a little piece of heaven. This is such a neat place to be. Some of the times we've gone up to a place north of Pinedale and we've stayed up there at Glory Ranch. Been a place that we've said, this is like a little piece of heaven. Such a wonderful, wonderful place. Well, he's thankful, but he didn't have any way to repay her, so he wants to express his gratefulness. At first, there seemed like nothing that could be done, and then he's a wise man. It's a wise man that when he can't think of anything, will talk to whoever's around him, including his servant Gehazi. And he says to Gehazi, you got any ideas? Gehazi isn't really speaking with faith, but he said, well, she has no son. But her husband is old. I can throw that out. But Elisha is a different kind of man. He's a different kind of man. He has such love. He has such faith. You wonder how this happened. How did Gehazi know all this? Well, I've been on mission trips. I think of going with Saji and going out witnessing while Saji is sleeping. Well, I think while Elisha was sleeping, probably this man Gehazi, the servant, went downstairs and talked to the family. You can just imagine one day he's talking and he says, are all your children grown and gone? No. No, we've never had any children. We prayed for children. God didn't give us any children. We've been childless. But we're thankful to God. He knows our hearts and we love Him anyway. But now, here's this wild thought. You got any ideas? And that crazy thing comes up. Well, she has no son. But of course, he's old. I'll knock that in the head. So I mean, there you are. She has no son. They're old. And the husband is older. And here is Elisha motivated by love, motivated by faith. For him, there was nothing that God could not do. And so he told Gehazi, go back and get her, bring her back upstairs. And she came up and she stood at the door. And what Elisha had to say to this woman, she had no idea what was coming. She had no idea what was coming at all. She walks back upstairs, I wonder what's going on. And at the words of Elisha, every bone in that Shunammite's body must have begun to tremble. God was awakening an unspoken need she had dared never pray for many years. She didn't want to make her husband feel inadequate. She didn't want to, in any way, awaken buried dreams. She had put them to bed long ago. She had said, it's not going to happen. We're not going to have any kids. That's it. That's good enough for me. What did Elisha say? At this season, about this time next year, you shall embrace a son. And she is a quick one on her feet. And she fires back. No, no, man of God, my Lord, oh man of God, don't lie to your servant. This Shunammite knew that when needs were great, God had provided in the past. She knew when her pain was deep, God provided her with a man of God that loved her deeply despite her barrenness. But where did this come from, this unspoken need? She hadn't told Elisha. How did he know the deepest, the deepest thing in her heart that had been buried for years? And he looks at her and he says, this time, a year from now, in the spring of the year, you'll embrace a son. I want to tell you this morning, I don't know what's inside of you, but God knows every one of us have some deeply buried, laid to rest hopes and dreams that have long since died. We buried them, we just accepted, no, it's not gonna be, it's not gonna happen. Would God ever venture to supply what seems impossible? That's what God does. That's what he does for a living. That's what he does eternally, is he supplies unspoken requests. The scripture says he even gives us the desires of our heart. No one else can do it, only Jesus can. You remember we sang it this morning? Only Jesus can do it. He loves to meet unspoken needs with his marvelous grace of our loving Lord. Last of all, making room for God and his people is the end of barrenness, both spiritual and sometimes even physical barrenness. Verse 17 says, despite the Shunammites initial doubt and unbelief, the woman conceived. She did it anyway, in spite of her lack of faith. Don't lie to me. She bore a son about that time the following spring, as Elisha had said to her. By making room for God and his people, this Shunammite woman made room for her miracle. I want to close with a song. It's a song written in 1878 by someone we don't even know, whoever Anonymous is. But Daniel Whittle got a hold of it, and he gave it to a writer that wrote the music, C.C. Williams. And C.C. Williams wrote the song that we sing on page 302, if you wanna open your hymnal. And there are four questions for us about room for the Lord. It's called, have you any room for Jesus? He who bore your load of sin, as he knocks and asks admission, sinner, will you let him in? You can't give him your home until you first give him your heart. You must give him your heart. Room for Jesus, King of glory. Hasten now, his word obey. Swing the heart's door widely open. Bid him enter while you may. Room for pleasure, room for business. But for Christ the crucified, not a place that he can enter in the heart for which he died, Have you any room for Jesus, as in grace He calls again? Oh, today is time accepted, later you may call in vain. And the last verse is. ♪ Room and time now give to Jesus ♪ ♪ Soon will pass God's day of grace ♪ ♪ Soon your heart left cold and silent ♪ ♪ And your Savior's pleading cease ♪ Room for Jesus, King of glory. Hasten now, His word obey. Swing the heart's door widely open. bid him enter while you may. You see, the Lord is here with the church. It was with Laodicea that he was standing outside the door of the church, knocking at the door. And he said, behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hear my voice and open the door, I'll come in to him. I'll sup with him. And he with me. So what have I told you of these seven discoveries? If you make room for God and His people, that's the road to godly growth in grace and faith. If you make room for God and His people, it begins with God's order in the home. If you make room for God and His people, it means knowing who a holy man of God is and knowing how best to serve Him. If you make room for God and His people, it means knowing how to accommodate someone so that they really feel at home. Number five, if you make room for God and His people, it reveals a heart of contentment that needs no reimbursement. If you make room for God and His people, it opens the door for God to supply our unspoken heart desires. If you make room for God and for His people, it's the end of barrenness, both spiritual and sometimes even physical barrenness. Would you bow your heads? As your heads are bowed and your eyes are closed, God's talking first of all to His church. He's talking to His church. That passage, Revelation 3.20, Behold, I stand at the door, and knock, is not, first of all, an evangelism story. That is a church story. Jesus is outside the church that is neither cold nor hot, and He is asking for hospitality. He is asking for a place, for a place. What place have you given to the Lord? Is your heart open? Is your home open? Are you willing to allow a tool to be borrowed? Are you willing to help someone? Are you willing to go next door and do whatever? Are you a hospitable person? It's the road to grace by faith. I'm asking God today to put it on your heart. I had one person go out after the first service and say, that's what I want to do for the rest of my life. I feel God's given me the gift of hospitality. I wanna do it for the rest of my life. Church, I hope it can be part of your resume, part of your household, part of you and your wife or your husband or your family's designs and desires. But now I'm asking, how many of you are here that you can't give him your home until you give him your heart? All He wants is you. No one else will do, not just a part. He wants all of your heart. All He wants is all of you. All He wants is you. How many of you would say, I need Jesus today? I want to make room for Jesus in my life. I want to receive Him today. I know I'm a sinner. I want Him to come into my life and be mine. my Savior, my Master, my Lord. How many of you raise a hand and say, that's what I need to do, yes, sir? Are there others? I need Jesus to come into my life. Just raise your hand right now if God's speaking to you. Give your life to Him. Would you raise your hand? I need Him. I need Him. Thank you, sir. Thank you. Anyone else? I need Him. I'm waiting for you. If God is leading you today to receive Him, would you raise your hand? I want to ask this man right now to pray these words. You don't have to say them out loud. You can, but just say them to God. He can hear everything you think, much less the words you whisper or say out loud. Just say, Dear God, I'm a sinner. I need your forgiveness. Today, I'm making room for Jesus in my life. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus. Forgive my sins. Be my Savior, be my Master. I receive you by faith. Thank you for coming in. I'll live for you and make room for you the rest of my life. In Jesus' name, amen. Now, Father, go with us to our homes. May grace, mercy, and peace, the love of God the Father, the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, and the blessed presence of Christ, our ever-living and abiding Savior. May he dwell with us, for he is welcome in our home until we see your face. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. I love you all. Thank you for being here.