Good morning! If you are a guest with us this morning, welcome, thanks for coming!  And welcome to all those joining us on KJJR radio. We’re glad you are with us. 

 

We are in a sermon series on the prophet Elijah! It’s a powerful story about taking a stand and listening to the voice of God and his word rather than the deceptions of the evil one that are so persistent and insidious in the culture around us.  Lord help us hear your voice today so that we may be what Jesus called us to be – salt and light in a darkened world.

 

It begins with that ancient confession that the LORD directed Moses to give to Israel. “Hear, O Israel, the Lord: The LORD our God is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” Deut 6:4 

 

To do that we must place ourselves under, not over, but under the authority of Gods’ Word! If you missed out on the first 3 messages, go to our website at clcwhitefish.org. Get out your Bible, read the texts and listen to the message. Don’t let the world squeeze you into its mold.

 

This morning we pick up Elijah the morning after the day before. He found himself in one of those places where we second guess ourselves and say - “My God, what have I done!”

Choices have consequences. Decisions have ripple effects.  Even the decision to avoid making a decision, to go with the flow. That’s often the worst decision of all. Elijah’s decision to obey the LORD and confront King Ahab is about to reap some tough consequences.

 

Open your Bibles to 1 Kings 19. Last week, we heard the story of the battle between Elijah and the 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mt Carmel.  It was really a battle between the LORD God Jehovah and the imposter Baal. Who really was the true and living God, the provider, the sustainer?  Was it Baal or the LORD who was sovereign over all, who rode on the crest of the storm, who provided the rain and produced abundance from the earth?

 

The battle was no contest. The lies of the murderous prophets of Baal were exposed and they were destroyed. Before you feel to sorry for them, remember these guys slaughtered Israel’s babies as sacrifices to Baal and made children sex slaves in the brothels they called temples.

 

After the battle, Elijah told Ahab, “Get in your chariot and run for the palace, the rain is coming.”  Then Elijah outran Ahab’s chariot 30 miles back to Jezreel.  Hard on the rear bumper of Ahab’s chariot comes the Lord, riding the whirlwind of the storm, lighting flashing, thunder booming, rain pouring. You’d think Ahab would get the message – but he didn’t. Or if he did, maybe he feared the wrath of his wife more than the wrath of the LORD.

 

Which brings us to today’s lesson. Whose voice are you listening to?  Choices have consequences. Decisions have ripple effects. When Ahab made the decision to marry Jezebel, probably because he thought it was a shrewd political move, he chose to ignore God’s clear command and now he was reaping the consequences.

If Ahab was bad, Jezebel was downright evil. When she hears the news, she immediately sends a message to Elijah. I can’t use the language she used in church, but basically she says “By this time tomorrow you’re toast!”  Her threat terrifies Elijah so much that he runs for his life. “My God, what have I done!”  Choices have consequences. Here’s what’s strange about this.

 

Elijah, prophet of God, listened to the Lord’s voice to go to the Kerith Ravine and God protected and provided for him. He listened to the Lord’s voice to go to Zaraphath, the very center of Baalism and the Lord protected and provided for him. He listened to the Lord’s voice show himself to Ahab who was trying to kill him, and the Lord protected and provided for him. He listened to the Lord’s voice to set up the showdown with the 850 prophets of Baal on Mt Carmel.  He obeyed and the Lord gave him the victory.  His obeyed, the Lord provided…

 

But now a threat sent through a messenger from Jezebel sends him fleeing for his life! Instead of listening to the Lord, he listens to her!  Why?  Don’t miss this! If Elijah, the super prophet can listen to the wrong voice, so can we. For all his spiritual maturity, for all his theological understanding, for all his profound relationship with the Lord, Elijah is still, like us, very human, very weak, sinful, just as much in need of a Savior, a rescuer, a deliverer as anybody else!

 

Let’s see how the Lord deals with his terrified prophet. Whereas Elijah had run ahead of Ahab’s chariot in the power of the Lord, he now runs in the power of his own fear and adrenalin 150 miles south to the desert oasis of Beersheba!  There he leaves his servant and walks a day’s journey into the Negev, my guess is to die. Only the Lord doesn’t let him off so easy!

 

As evening falls, he crawls under a cactus tree and begins to cry. “Lord, I’ve had it. I’m done. I can’t go on. Take my life. I’m no better than my ancestors.”  Wow, Elijah, that’s good, glad you figured that out!

And he falls asleep. Psalm 127:2 “the Lord gives his beloved sleep!”  Next morning he’s awakened by an angel. Vs. 19:5“Get up and eat!”  Somebody suggested this was angel food cake, I disagree. It was the bread of heaven, piping hot, fresh out of the oven and sparkling water from the river of life. Better than Starbucks and blueberry scones! Elijah eats and immediately falls back asleep.

 

A while later the angel shakes him awake again. “Get up and eat or the journey will be too much for you!”  Fascinating, Elijah doesn’t ask where he suppose to be going. Maybe he doesn’t care as long as it’s away from Jezebel. But the LORD cares, the LORD directs his steps!  He starts walking, 250 miles through one of the most hostile environments on the face of the earth.

 

Forty days later, he arrives at his destination. I have no idea if he knew where he was. But the LORD knew! He was on Mt Sinai, the same mountain where 600 years earlier the LORD had given the 10 commandments to Moses – the law of the Lord, instructions to these former slaves on how to stay free, and not fall back into slavery.  

 

Want to learn something worth knowing! Something that will save you, set you free, show you how to live? Want to hear the voice of God? Read your Bible!  An exhausted Elijah crawls into a cave and falls asleep.  The next morning, he is awakened by the voice of the LORD. “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

I’ve heard the LORD ask me the same thing, “What are you doing here, John!”  Usually its been because I was in the wrong place. Why was I in the wrong place? I’d been listening to the wrong voices!  Little compromise by compromise I’d been wooed away from the truth. Is it possible that’s where our church is today?  Like Elijah, it’s time to listen to God’s voice clearly laid out for us in his Word. “Elijah, what are you doing here? Why aren’t you up there in Israel doing what I sent you to do?” 

 

Sometimes when the Lord has asked me that question, I’ve answered like Elijah. I’ve started singing the poor me blues. “Yeah but Lord, you don’t know what it’s like… and then I start complaining about how I’ve been mistreated, unappreciated, falsely accused, ignored, threatened… blah, blah, blah”

 

Life isn’t easy, is it?  We’ve got relational issues, health issues, money issues, raising kids issues, messed up parents issues, all kinds of issues – sometimes life stinks and its scary, but that doesn’t exempt us from the call God has place on our lives to listen to him and to trust the power of his word to protect, sustain, supply, and empower us to do what he’s called us to do.

 

Elijah pours out his complaint – “I’ve been trying so hard to be a good and faithful prophet but your people have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars and put your prophets to the sword and I’m the only one left and now they are trying to kill me, too!”  1 Kings 19:14

 

Who is Elijah blaming here?  He’s blaming the Lord, isn’t he?  Sounds a bit like Ahab, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel.”  From Adam and Eve to Cain to us and every sinner in between, we’ve tried to pass the buck and blame God for the mess we’ve created. And God took our sin upon himself and wore it to the cross, because that’s the only way we could be saved.

 

The LORD said 19:11, “Elijah, go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.”  This is the place the LORD met Moses and proclaimed his name to him. “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiven wickedness, rebellion and sin.” Ex 34:6-7   

 

But Elijah wasn’t looking for grace; he was looking for revenge, judgment, the wrath of God! But before Elijah could get to the mouth of the cave he’s driven back by a powerful wind that shatters the rocks. But the Lord wasn’t in the wind. Then an earthquake, but the Lord wasn’t in the earthquake, then a firestorm, but the Lord wasn’t in the fire.

 

Then there was a gentle whisper, calling his name. Elijah covered his face, and crept out to the mouth of the cave. “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  Elijah still doesn’t get it. He continues his litany of complaining.  But the Lord is merciful, he interrupts Elijah and reminds him of the task he’s been called to do. And finally, Elijah hears.

 

What task is the Lord given you? It probably isn’t easy. It involves the redemption of the world. Do you trust him enough to step past your fear, your frustration, your self-pity and obey him?  He’s promised all the strength we need and all the grace we need to accomplish what he’s called us to do.