Have you ever lost something important? I once lost the title to a car, and it would be hard to explain to you all the problems my mistake caused. Truth is, it can nearly drive you crazy when you can’t find something you need! There’s a great story in the Bible concerning something that was lost; it is about the Prophet Elisha and his band of young prophets in training. (If you are older, think of a one-room schoolhouse. If you are younger, bring to mind the X-Men and Professor Xavier with his “School for Gifted Youngsters.”)
TEXT: 2 Kings 6:1-7 [NIV]
The company of the prophets said to Elisha, “Look, the place where we meet with you is too small for us. 2 Let us go to the Jordan (river), where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.” And he said, “Go.” Then one of them said, “Won’t you please come with your servants?”
“I will,” Elisha replied. 4 And he went with them. They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. 5 As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axe head fell into the water. “Oh no, my lord!” he cried out. “It was borrowed!”
The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. “Now get it,” Elisha told him. And the prophet reached in and grabbed it.
The fact that an axe head was almost lost may not seem like a big deal until you understand that at that particular point of time in the history of humankind, an axe head would have been worth about a year’s wages. Therefore, the loss of an axe head would have been catastrophic for the young man responsible for it. So, the miracle of causing the axe head to float, in such a way that it could be retrieved, was incredibly significant. There are many truths in this short story, and I have preached sermons highlighting several of them. But, I think the main point is how God–working through his people–can redeem situations that seem entirely lost.
Have you ever been in a situation that, apart from God’s intervention, there would only have been a terrible outcome? To draw an analogy from this story, what if you are the axe head of this story? What I mean is… what if you are in a situation where you feel like you are sinking? What if things in your life seem to be falling into the abyss? Problems you can’t manage, feelings of isolation—like you’re alone and drowning? Are you overloaded, sensing that you are “underwater” and can’t reach the surface? There are so many things in life that can leave us with that sinking feeling.
I’m here today to remind us that there is power that can lift us up from the depths. There is a miracle-worker who can do the impossible… He can make the axe head float, in spite of the odds, regardless of the norms. His name is Jesus, and He’s really good at making sinking things rise up. Just ask Peter, the disciple. In Matthew 14, Peter had taken that great leap of faith and stepped out of the boat, and for a few moments, at least, he had been walking on the water. But then, vs. 30 tells us, “But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ and 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.”
Our God is good at rescuing sinking things.
See, the real problem isn’t sinking. That happens to all of us. If we haven’t already, we are going to come across something that will sink us in life. The problem is when we don’t let the Lord reach out and save us… when we choose to sink alone instead of letting God lift us up. We can float—resting in His loving care, but we must look to Him and believe.
Are we looking to Him today?
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