In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of having faith in God and knowing the secret to experiencing His mighty works. He uses the story of a woman who had faith in the man of God and witnessed God's power in her life. The preacher encourages listeners to allow the Lord to work powerfully in their lives and to initiate their environments through faith. He also highlights the need to learn how to get God to supernaturally work in times of need and to stay sensitive to cooperate with God's desires. The sermon concludes with a reminder to continually seek God's deep dealings in one's life.

Well, I want to talk to you today about the Shumanite woman, the Shumanite woman. Well, you say, well, who is she? You might say. Most of you know who she is. It's been several weeks now, the Lord had been dealing with me about this Shumanite woman. And I tell you, I don't know how to approach this message, because I have researched every book that I have that I could get to, and as I have done this, I cannot come up with what you'd call a real outline on the Shumanite woman. So what I'm going to do, if you don't mind, is I'm going to read the scripture, and as the Spirit of the Lord gives me understanding, I'm going to talk to you about it. But let's just look at the height of her faith. In the second Kings, the fourth chapter, the twenty-sixth verse, this is the height of her faith. And I'll mention that, and then we'll go through the story. Here Gehaziah, Gehaziah the servant of Elijah, Elisha, not Elijah, Elisha, was told by Elisha to go and see what this Shumanite woman wanted. And he went, and he asked her a question, is it well with thee? And she said, is it well with thee? Is it well with thy husband? Is it well with thy child? And she answered, listen to this, she said, it is well. Boy, you're talking about a statement of faith. This is some statement of faith. She said, it is well. This is the height of this woman's faith, as I can see it. But I want to discuss the whole story with you. The whole story. It's a beautiful story. It starts at the eighth verse of that fourth chapter. It starts at the eighth verse. And it fell on a day that Elijah passed to Shunem, where was a great woman, and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was that as off as he passed by, he turned thither to eat bread. Now, this woman may have understood or may not have understood about the entertaining a prophet, get a prophet's reward. I don't know if she understood that or not. But she was certainly a good steward of her earthly blessings. Some translations read influential woman, wealthy woman. She obviously had a great deal to offer, and she offered it. She first offered it by feeding the prophet. I've been in the itinerant ministry for, oh, about, I'm going on the 27th year now. I'm starting my 27th year. Just started it in July. And I have been in meetings where the people wanted to entertain the prophet because they felt like that they would get the prophet's reward. I'm not sure. I'm not sure that that was their only motive. I'm sure that maybe that was not their only motive. I should have said. But they wanted to entertain the prophet because they'd get a prophet's reward. Well, I don't know if this woman knew that or not, but she flat wanted to entertain the prophet. And so she didn't stop with just feeding him. She said unto her husband, Behold, now I perceive that this is a holy man of God. Well, what a statement to be said about someone. This is a holy man of God. Do you know, I don't know that anything can be said greater than this is a person of God. That person is of God. Oh, beloved, that's, to me, getting the life in shoe leather. That is getting the person where God can mightily, mightily use them. Because, see, people become conscious of God when they see that people are of God. People are of God does not come from a verbal testimony. People are of the Lord have to go farther than a verbal testimony. They can express their life just right out of their person. And it takes time. You notice it didn't come over day. She perceived that this is a holy man of God. And so I trust today that that's what's going on in, that it's being worked on in your life. That God is working on making you a holy man of God. If you're a woman, a holy woman of God. A young boy, a girl, a holy boy or girl of God. It takes time. And so she said, 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. Well, they built the chamber, a part of the already existing home. And they filled it with the furniture and they had it all prepared. And the prophet came by and shut himself up in that room. And that room became a place of rest. And I'm sure it became a place of prayer. And I'm sure it became more than that, a place of meditation. And it even became more than that because it became a place of miracle. Boy, can't you see God, the sovereignty of God here? That one day that this woman was going to have a little boy. He was going to grow up and he was going to die. And at this little shed she built was the very place where he was when God miraculously raised him from the dead. Can't you see God? Now, you can trust a God like that. You can trust a God. God can be trusted. If you're right there where you are right now in your predicament, be faithful to the Lord. And the very thing that you're led to do may be the very thing that God uses to bring you out and bring you in and bring you up and take you in for the glory. Amen. Well, he said to Gehazi, his servant, call this Shumanite woman. Call this Shumanite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care. What is to be done for thee? What is to be done for thee? Willest thou be spoken for to the king or to the captain of the host? She answered, I dwell among my own people. And he said, What then is to be done for her? Gehazi answered, Verily, she hath no child, and her husband is old. And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she 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 thy handmaid. And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season, Elijah had said unto her according to the time of life. Boy, isn't that something? Now, I don't know what this woman wanted. I don't know. I do not believe that she built the shed, entertained the prophet with an ulterior motive in mind. By this, I will be able to conceive and bear a child. I don't believe that was the case. I believe she served the Lord out of the exciting delight of her heart, the reality of God in her heart, by building that shed, furnishing that shed, and feeding this prophet. I believe she just did this out of the desire of her heart, the delight of her heart. But when she obeyed the Lord, then the Lord will not be a debtor to any person. He'll not be a debtor to any person. So he turns around and says, Just ask what you will, and it shall be done unto you. Isn't that something? I remember years ago, I was in one of the schools of learning, one of the many schools of learning I went through. And as I was in this school of learning, I was at this place in Mississippi. And I was doing just work that a laborer would do, and there was nothing wrong with it. I was enjoying it. And I was just busy setting up beds and things for a big conference that was coming up. And the Lord and I were having it out because it was Christmas, and we were Martha and I and the children were in Mississippi, and we always wanted to be around Mother at Christmas time at home. So I was missing the opportunity of being with my family at Christmas time. And so I was in communion with the Lord. I was talking to the Lord. And the Lord seemingly spoke to my heart and said, Son, who are you doing this for? And I said, Lord, for you. I'm doing it for you. I'm laboring for you. And the Lord seemed to say, Son, I'll not be in debt to anyone. You do not labor for me without me knowing it and rewarding Him. And the Lord allowed us to finish that work. And I got in the car with my family and drove to Texas. And all I'd been doing was laboring for the Lord. And I needed about $5,000 before I returned back to Mississippi. And do you know, before I got back home, the Lord had given that $5,000. I tell you, He used my dad. He let me have $1,000. He used another, my sister, and He used another person, and another person, a banker I never will forget. He used them. God mightily used them. And it was such a hand. I left home. I didn't have but $4,000. And I was supposed to go on by to see this banker friend. And I couldn't get by to see him. And he had gone. He was up at Dallas for the Cotton Bowl. So on my way back to Mississippi, I was impressed to call him. And here's what he said to me. He said, Preacher, you should have come by. He said, I have $1,000 here for you. And boy, that made the five. Oh, Lord, how happy I was. But I never shall forget, it all started when the Lord said, I'll not be a debtor to any man. Here was a woman. She was laying out her life. She was laying out her life for the Lord. I'm sure what she was doing for this prophet was unto the Lord. And I'll tell you, God, not be a debtor to any man. Through the prophet, what is it that you want? What would you like to have? I mean, this was some statement. What would you like to have? And Gehazi said, she doesn't have a child. I mean, the prophet stepped right in and said, that's it. And told her about the same time next year she'd have a child. Oh, brother. I mean, she said, now don't make mock of me. Do not make fun of me. Do not mislead me. Do not lead me on. In other words, I must be led of thee. This must be of God. In other words, boy, she wasn't, she was a very serious person. She wasn't for playing games. In other words, boy, she wasn't, she was a very serious person. She wasn't for playing games. By the way, folk, God doesn't play games with you. He doesn't play games like you're a little puppet. He does not play games with you. He means business with you. And so, the next year about that time, she brought forth a little son. Boy, I mean, this is such a blessing. A little boy. And the little boy obviously grew from the 17th verse to the 18th verse. A lot of time passes. And the little boy grew. And then grew and grew and grew and became a strong young man. And so he went to the field with his father to work. And while he was in the field with his father, he said, my head, my head. And he said to a lad, carry him to his mother. Twenty-first and when he had taken him and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees until noon and then died. Boy, this is odd, isn't it? Dying. God had promised him he died. She went up and laid him on the bed of a man of God and shut the door upon him and went out. Well, she knew where to put him. In God's hand. And by the way, isn't it interesting that he's dead now? And isn't it interesting that she'd put him in the prophet's bed instead of lay him out there somewhere where they would make preparation for burial? You see, she did not accept, she did accept that death, but she did not accept it. That death. She said there's more to this thing than that. Now, I'll tell you, I have all the respect in the world for this woman, because she flat had some wisdom. And she just refused to accept this death. Do you see what I'm talking about? I mean, she had to face the reality that he was dead. But she refused to accept this as final. She just flat refused it. So, she went up and put him in the bed, and she called unto her husband and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God and come again. See, she flat refused to accept that death. And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him today? It is neither the new moon or Sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. That's a good statement of faith right there. She knew it would be all right to come to the man of God. And so she did. She saddled an ass and said to her servant, Drive and go forward. Slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee. So she went and came unto the man of God to Mount Carmel. Well, she knew where the man of God was. That's interesting. The man of God must have been in place. There must have been places where the man of God would be found. He obviously was in place. Mount Carmel. And it came to pass when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi, His servant, behold, yonder is the Shumanite. Run now, I pray thee, to meet her and say unto her, Is it well with thee? Is it well with thy husband? Is it well with thy child? And she answered and said, It is well. Now here we are with a boy in the prophet's chamber dead. And she said, It is well. Boy, what a statement of faith. And that faith had works. Look at the works of faith. She put him in the prophet's room. She went to get the prophet. Now she went to get this prophet because she knew that God was her only, only, only answer. That's right. So she went and got the prophet. And she went and got him and I mean she had such faith that she said, It is well. Boy, what a confession of faith. And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet. That's significant, isn't it? She's humbled before him. Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her on, for her soul is vexed within her and the Lord hath hid it from me, hath not told me. Then she said, Did I desire a son of my Lord? Did I not say, Do not deceive me? Boy, I tell you, you're talking about the argument of faith. She had it here. She flat was arguing. Boy, she's just ready to tell that prophet off. She didn't want any kid playing. She didn't want any one fooling around with her. Boy, she laid her argument for the Lord. You see, God initiated this whole thing. God initiated this whole thing with this girl. That's right. Oh yes, God initiated it. That is probably the most significant thing about what happened here. God initiated this activity of that son. On the basis that God initiated it, when she hit the trial of her life, she could come back and say, Okay, God, you started it. That's what she's saying to this prophet. You started it. Now you're going to have to finish it. I realize that many of us could have just bowed down and accepted that death in a very passive way and said, Okay, thank you, Lord, for those precious years. I realize that that's the case much of the time. But somehow, some way, this woman, obviously being a very godly person, a very spiritual person, meaning that you know God and know how to cooperate with Him, she knew how to cooperate with God. She was just laying it out. I didn't start this. You started it. She just stayed there at that point. That's where she found strength. Now, folks, the key to the victory in the time of storms is manifold. There are many aspects to it. But one of the basic aspects to a victory in the midst of a time of trouble, a trial, is that God initiated your involvement. If He did, then you can say, Okay, I'm going to stand on that truth God initiated and tell God the truth about it. And you can find strength and life and victory right there in the midst of that trial. Boy, she got life, strength and victory all together out of this whole occasion. I mean, she stayed with it. Yes, sir, as I grow up the lawns and take my staff in thy hand and go thy way, if thou meet any man, salute him not. If any salute thee, and for him not again, and lay my staff upon the face of the child. And the mother of the child said, Now, this is something. As the Lord liveth, and as thou so liveth, I will not leave thee. And so he arose, the prophet Elijah, rose and followed her. Now, this is very significant. First, Elijah the prophet is going to send a servant. And she said, Oh, no, I'm not leaving here till you go. She knew the man of power. She had wisdom. And, boy, I mean, she stayed with him and he followed. Thirty-first verse, He passed on before them and laid the staff upon the face of the child. But there was neither voice nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him and told him, Say, The child is not awakened. And when Elijah was come unto the house, behold the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. He went in, therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the Lord. He knew her how to get the answer did he? And he went up and laid upon the child, put his mouth upon his mouth, his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands. And he stretched himself upon the child, and the flesh of the child waxed warm. And he turned and walked in the house to and fro, and went up, stretched himself upon him. And the child sneezed seven times. And the child opened his eyes, and they called Gehazi, and said, Call the Shumanite. So he called her. And when she was coming to him, he said, Take up thy son. And she went in and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out. Paul, what a story. Amen. I mean, you talking about a story. A story of victory. Praise God. Well, I talked to you about this Shumanite woman. She really had faith in God. I'll be very honest with you. She had faith in the man of God. And I'll tell you, she knew the secret. She knew the secret of seeing the mighty, mighty hand of God. And she flat just sought the face of God all the way. And she saw his mighty works in her life, the Shumanite woman. I'll tell you, we could all be like her. We could be like her. We could allow the Lord to powerfully work in our life. You've heard me say this. At the walk of faith is that your walk has been initiated by the Lord. That's number one. Her involvement in life with his son had been initiated by the Lord. What about you? Are your involvements initiated by the Lord? Then not only that, but she knew how to get God to supernaturally work at her point of need. Folks, learn that lesson. Ask God to teach you how to get him to work at your point of need. That's what we need. God supernaturally working at our point of need. And she had to have a third step to the life of faith. She stayed sensitive to cooperate with God to his desired end. She knew how to labor. She knew how to labor with the Lord. Well, it's been a blessing to come to you this month, speak to you about 30, 40 minutes, just sharing this passage of Scripture out of my heart. I looked for all the fantry outlines on this, couldn't find a thing. But I just pray somehow, someway, you've been thrilled and encouraged as I have, as I've talked about this passage of Scripture. God is dealing with me very deeply. I trust that you, I suspect your friend, will pray that God will continue to deal with me very, very deeply. I would love to see the glory of God like I've never seen the glory of God in my life. In the last few months I've been in deep battle with a lot of the saints just falling away, not into gross wickedness, but to imbalanced truth, which is error. And I've been so burdened about it. But this month I can see some swinging back to the right balance. And it's exciting. It's exciting. Thank you for praying. Thank you for giving. Thank you for just standing by and being a friend. Thank you. Praise God. I trust that God will mightily, mightily bless you, is my prayer. We are looking forward to the immediate return of Jesus and also a mighty, mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit of God. May God richly bless you and use you in the kingdom of God, is my prayer. May you ladies, may you men be like this Shumanite woman. Is there anything wrong? It is well. It is well. It is well. My, what a statement of faith. What a statement of faith. May the Lord bless you, is our prayer. Amen.