Death in the Pot

All of us are familiar with the story of Snow White: A poisoned apple results in a supernatural sleep, from which only the kiss of a prince can cure. That is good theology. Sin is the poison, and Jesus is the only Prince that can wake us, from that sleep. (Eph. 5:14).

There is another life lesson we can learn about poisoned food and that is found in 2 Kings chapter 4, in that passage there was something of a famine and so a group of prophets put together a hodge podge of a stew, when they started eating it they realized something was terribly wrong and the bible says that they cried out to the chief prophet Elisha and said: 2Ki 4:40 " ... O thou man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof." It must have been something very nasty that was served up for them to say it was going to kill them. So what was it and how did it get in their pot?

The answer is found in this verse: 2Ki 4:39 One of the men went out into the field to get some herbs; he came across a wild vine and picked gourds from it, filling his gunnysack. He brought them back, sliced them up, and put them in the stew, even though no one knew what kind of plant it was. (MSG) In other words someone threw something in the community pot that poisoned the whole batch. I want to give you something to think about that is very important. What is cooking in your community pot? What strange things have been thrown into the mix of who you are?  The book of James tells us: James 3:6 And the tongue is a fire, the [very] world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of [our] life, and is set on fire by hell.

In other words, words can contaminate you if you are not very careful. What words are you stewing over? What words are you letting marinate in the center of your being? Is there death in your pot? Have you let others put poisoned apples inside of you? The cure for the prophets that day was very simple, Elisha instructed them to put meal in the pot and that would counteract the poison. The spiritual application is that the meal (bread) of the word of God can counteract all the poison that comes to us and tries to settle in our pot. Be careful what you let in, and take copious amounts of the cure, in that way you will keep the right fire burning in your heart.