video on sermon current tab

MOTIVATE

The Paris Olympics 2024 opening ceremony created quite a stir with shock/mock scenes and provocative images of women and men (and the twisted nature of everything in between). The follow-up discussions among Christians, whether on social media or personal talks, was how France has become pluralistic, hedonistic, and godless.

If you’re a Christian and you are surprised that unbelievers talk/behave/promote actions that don’t follow Christian values, then you have not been paying attention, or much more read your Bible. The expectation for unbelievers should not be to share the same standards as those of Christians – Jesus said those who are healthy do not need a physician, but only those who are sick. So, Christians should be reminded to consider Jesus’ expectations and interactions with unbelievers. His purpose was to seek and save the lost, turning enemies into friends and friends into family. Every day is a mission field at our doorstep and across our screens.

EXAMINE      1 Kings 17-18       A Prophet’s Message

Review: 1-2Kings remind us the ungodliness of the present have been patterned for us in the past.

Three Southern Kings of Judah

1. Rehoboam (14:21–31)
2. Abijam (15:1–8)
3. Asa (15:9–24)   *only godly king

Six Northern Kings of Israel

• Nadab (15:25–31)
• Baasha (15:33–16:7)
• Elah (16:8–10)
• Zimri (16:10–20)
• Omri (16:21–28)
• Ahab (16:29–34 thru ch.22)

Chapters 16-22 slow down the focus from ungodly kings to an undeveloped prophet. Let’s set the scene:  

Ahab becomes king of Israel (North) during the same time that Asa is king of Judah (South). He reigns 22 years, and his reign does evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him, and provoking the LORD to anger than other kings (1Ki 16:20, 33).

• Married Jezebel who was savvy but sadistic who connived and killed many prophets of the LORD.
• Practiced Ba’al & Ashera with temples all around the land.
• Her influence was infamous that her name was associated with NT churches who practiced immorality and taught falsely (cf Rev 2:20).

1 Kings 17

¹ Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead,

An unknown or unimpressive area; likely rural wilderness far outside and north of Jerusalem. Regardless, Elijah (“Yahweh is my God”) enters the narrative speaking God’s word to the king. So, when God’s ready to judge a land, He doesn’t need a giant army, He just looks for one person willing to stand alone for God. And Elijah’s message is a curse/judgment upon the land. So, this message is unwelcomed from his audience.

Elijah said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

Essentially, Elijah prophecies the fulfillment of an earlier warning God gave Moses for what would happen if Israel radically rejected Him.[1] Further, this begins the competition between Yahweh and Baal. Baal was the false god of the Canaanites that persisted in religious worship among Israel. And Baal was not simply a single deity, but more like a title with a plurality of descriptions: baal zebub “lord of flies… or compared to dung,”^[2] or baal be-er is “lord of the well,”^[3] and all sorts of baals of cities, landmarks, and human desires such as pleasure, power, and prosperity.^[4] In this case, Yahweh is challenging Baal for creation and control of weather (rain) and agriculture (drought/farming/livelihood).

When we read about Baal or hear about historic religious worship, we think, “They were so primitive. Society has advanced and become more educated today.” Hmmm! So, you’re saying that spending money on endless credit and calling it “retail therapy” or “midlife crisis aversion” isn’t worship? Or, what about the man who dedicates endless hours researching stats for where to place bets and gamble the family’s money?[5] Or the parents who spends hours on end driving to sport/dance practices each week and weekend (often skipping church); not to mention the number of finances involved with equipment, coaches/teams, and travel involved – – this isn’t worship? And the female who has boyfriend/husband after another and can’t seem to settle down or see the piggish men who use her for one thing – – those aren’t worship either? None of these things are necessarily negative or entirely immoral, but they indicate their ability to consume our affections, indelibly shape our identity, and strangle our souls. We fail to realize that all of life is spiritual, and this is what makes us actually less advanced than our ancient ancestors, because at least they realized worship was a way of life, while we deny any form of worship. By nature, we are worshipers.

What 1-2Kings, and these chapters with Elijah specifically, are teaching us is that life is worship, and we must decide whom we will worship. And Elijah teaches us that God is up to the challenge w/o a true – or fair – rival.

² And the word of the Lord came to him:
³ “Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan.

God sends Elijah to pick a fight with King Ahab, and then orders him to hide. Does that make sense / what do we learn? First, we are meant to see that Elijah isn’t performing the warfare, the LORD will fight our battles. Second, God sends Elijah to a brook Cherith[6] (word means “to cut down or destroy”[7]). While God will protect Elijah from Jezebell’s assassination attempts and provide food for him, eventually the brook will dry up. God is teaching Elijah not to depend on his prophetic talents or human wisdom but humbling him to fully rely on God.[8] While some with affinity for Baltimore might consider it appealing to be brought food from a raven, I assure you that Elijah also viewed this as disguting (Lev 11:15; Dt14:14).

⁴ You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” ⁵ So he went and did according to the word of the Lord. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. ⁶ And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. ⁷ And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

• What is the good hope of your life but is drying up? Remember, it was God who sent Elijah to this dried up brook. And it is God who permits problems and pains into your life, to teach you faith and take you deeper into the gospel (cf. 2 Cor 1; Ro 8:18; Php 3:10). God gives us Brook Cheriths not by accident but on purpose. Our life on earth is God’s boot camp to train us for eternity. Just like a soldier is broken down from what they think is a strength entering boot camp, they are retrained so their weaknesses connect them with their band of brothers and trusting their commanding officer. So, like Paul we can say, “I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.” (2Cor 12:9).

God permits problems and pains into our life to teach faith and take us deeper into the gospel (cf. 2 Cor 1; Ro 8:18; Php 3:10).

These chapters describe Elijah performing remarkable miracles, which we will not read in full – Elijah’s protégé Elisha will repeat some of his works, which we’ll consider for a couple messages. But overall, Elijah is not presented to us as an extraordinary hero but as a dependent servant. We’re not meant to imitate Elijah’s faith but meditate upon his weaknesses so that we understand our great need for the incomparable and unrivaled God^[9] … which brings us to 1Kings 18. ¹ After many days the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth.”

Drought was interpreted as a sign that Baal was absent. It was also indicative of Israel’s spiritual state: dry, parched, gasping for air, and on the brink of death. God’s silent judgment lasted 3-years.

¹⁷ When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?”

Ahab calls Elijah troubler – the translation is not strong enough; the Hebrew suggests one bringing disastrous consequences,^[10]  or plague[11], or perhaps one consorting with dark supernatural forces in order to render harm.^[12]

• Is Ahab or Elijah the troubler? We know that Ahab is the dark troubler for bringing plague upon the land. However, Elijah is the distinctive troubler for speaking convicting truth.
• How about you – is someone speaking truth into your life, and you’re feeling pained by their critique; you’re despising them for it – attempting to dismiss them and find the wrong in their life?  BUT – do you realize that God might have placed that person there to call you to repentance?
• Pain isn’t always trouble but is a tool that God uses for our protection.
  •  Touching hot stove feels pain so you remove it quickly not causing further damage.
  •  Leprosy is disease where pain is eliminated and it creates worse problems… and Jesus uses this as an illustration to show we can have leprosy of heart, where sin spirals so that we no longer feel the pang of guilt and sin, and we’ll die without hearing the voice of God.
  •  C.S. Lewis: “Pain insists upon being attended. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” Don’t silence God speaking to you!

Pain isn’t always trouble but is a tool that God uses for our protection.

¹⁸ And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father’s house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the Lord and followed the Baals. ¹⁹ Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

Side notice: Elijah links Ahab & Jezebel. Jezebel had a legion of 850 false prophets; clearly, she’s hard at work developing her agenda.
Principle: Before you choose a spouse, be very certain your values and faith are aligned, or things will get messy quickly.

²⁰ So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. ²¹ And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping/wavering between two different opinions?

The people are not fully committed either way – between Yahweh or baal. They’re wavering and shifting allegiance depending on their mood or circumstances, or public opinion.
And yet… we know that indecision eventually results a choice on its own.  

If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.
Too many people are attempting a little faith, a little worldly whateverness, and their god is not in heaven but the mirror. The uncommitted will always experience discontent, but the blessing and privilege of the wholehearted is true and lasting joy (Ps 37:4; Mt6:33; Jn10:10).

Too many people are attempting a little faith, a little worldly whateverness, and their god is not in heaven but the mirror. The uncommitted will always experience discontent, but the blessing and privilege of the wholehearted is true and lasting joy

²² Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. ²³ Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it. ²⁴ And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.” [Good idea!]
²⁵ Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” ²⁶ And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. [crickets. Awkward silence; looking around and nuthin!] And they limped/waivered around the altar that they had made. ²⁷ And at noon Elijah mocked them, [sanctified smack-talk; sacred sarcasm.] saying, “Cry aloud [speak up; he’s hard of hearing], for he is a god. Either he is musing [daydreaming, scrolling internet], or he is on a journey or he is relieving himself [hibernating // or imagine praying and you get “brb” or one of those annoying automated messages // the idiom is actually suggesting baal excused himself for a bathroom break relieving himself – a “poo at the loo!”]^[13], or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” [Is thunder God snoring? No: Ps 121:4 “The LORD neither slumbers or sleeps; He is your keeper and protector”] ²⁸ And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.
²⁹ And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention. [they took the bulk of day leaving little time for Elijah] ³⁰ Then Elijah said to all the people,
[Elijah’s been sitting in a lawn chair all day, sipping an umbrella drink waiting for these baal prophets to give up.]
“Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down. ³¹ Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name,” ³² and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed. ³³ And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” ³⁴ And he said, “Do it a second time.” And they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it a third time. ³⁵ And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water.

• [2 seahs of seed = ~4 gallons / perhaps these 4 water jars/buckets were ~ 50 gallons each = 200 gallons x 3 pours = 600 gallons total? On dry land]
• [Now, I’m no grill master like Jim Benson, Patrick Cleveland, or even Frank Rossi. But I’ve grilled enough to know that pouring any amount of water on firewood is not intelligent. In fact, it’s better and manlier to pour lighter fluid by the bucket-full!]
• And this is what Christians do when they pray. They try to help God along by giving God their desired options. Or we try to help God when we share the gospel to our friends by only talking about grace, forgiveness, love, but leave out a call for obedience, sincerity, and holiness. BUT God doesn’t need our lighter fluid. God simply wants obedience, even if it doesn’t make sense in the moment; heavenly fire falls upon the faithful.]

³⁶ And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. ³⁷ Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” ³⁸ Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. ³⁹ And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.”
[Eli—jah, Eli–jah] ⁴⁰ And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there. ⁴¹ And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.”

APPLY/TAKEAWAY

Characteristics of false gods:

1. Make empty promises, repeatedly… “but no voice, no answered” Idols have a way of attracting, charming, and persuading, but in hindsight we understand it’s selfish manipulation and harmful corruption. Idols promise to please but fail to fulfill. Always.
2. Make you busy with work. This is religion – and you’ll never know if you’ve done enough as you seek acceptance and earning your way. Religion says: “Obey and you’ll be accepted.” BUT Christianity says: “You’re accepted, now obey.”
3. Make you busy and burdened. Where false gods call you to cut and sacrifice yourself, the true God was killed in your place. Jesus wasn’t just killed, His body was mutilated; His heart was ruptured; His side was punctured. And God answered this death power with the fire of life and resurrection power. Thus, Jesus isn’t looking for you to carry your burdens alone; He’s offering freedom and to lift the weight and worries of life.
4. Make empty promises, leave you busy, crushing you with burdens; and lastly false gods attempt to pass you off to something worse. In this case Elijah’s contest ends with the true God not just answering by fire but by sending rain and ending the drought upon the land. Elijah invites King Ahab to participate in this miracle “eat and drink… take your chariot before rain stops you” (18:42, 45). And rather than Ahab repenting of idols and turning to the LORD, Ahab tattle-tales and whines to his evil wife Jezebel. It’s as if Ahab think, “I was not strong enough for Elijah, but my wife will certainly overpower Elijah and his God.” – – This is what Satan attempts in our life. If we don’t succumb to one temptation, then he’ll try another, and another, with one chain linking to the next so that we find ourselves in a prison.
   BUT friend, never forget that Satan can chain us down and wall us in, but can never roof us over. All we need to do is look up, see the fire of God’s hope, the fresh rain of God’s mercy, and the overflow of living water. “Jesus is the only Savior in the world who if you find him will satisfy you, and if you fail him will forgive you.”[14]

If we don’t succumb to one temptation, then Satan will try another, and another, with one chain linking to the next so that we find ourselves in a prison. BUT friend, never forget that Satan can chain us down and wall us in, but he can never roof us over. All we need to do is look up, see the fire of God’s hope, the fresh rain of God’s mercy, and the overflow of living water.

Sing:
“I’ve searched the world for a love that could fill my heart.
Nothing compares to the wonder of who You are… Jesus you alone.”

---

[1] Deuteronomy 11:13-17; 28:12, 24.

^[2] Chad Brand et al., eds., “Baal-Zebub,” Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 154.

^[3] Chad Brand et al., eds., “Baalath-Beer,” Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 153.

^[4] James Newell, “Ball,” ed. Chad Brand et al., Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2003), 152.

[5] About 50% of Americans have placed at least one bet annually. 1/3 Americans place 1 bet each week.

[6] https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3747.htm

[7] https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3772.htm

[8] Insights from this thought inspired from J.D. Greear’s sermons on 1 Kings 17-19.

^[9] J. Gary Millar, “1-2 Kings,” in 1 Samuel–2 Chronicles, ed. Iain M. Duguid, James M. Hamilton Jr., and Jay Sklar, vol. III, ESV Expository Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 653.

^[10] J. Gary Millar, “1-2 Kings,” in 1 Samuel–2 Chronicles, ed. Iain M. Duguid, James M. Hamilton Jr., and Jay Sklar, vol. III, ESV Expository Commentary (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2019), 667.

[11] TWOT,  162 !רַכָע .

^[12] Simon J. DeVries, 1 Kings, 2nd ed., vol. 12, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Inc, 2003), 217.

^[13] Simon J. DeVries, 1 Kings, 2nd ed., vol. 12, Word Biblical Commentary (Dallas: Word, Inc, 2003), 229.

[14] Tim Keller. Reason For God.