CONTEXT: In 1 Kings 18, Elijah has just singlehandedly gone against about 850 prophets of baal and molech and God provided victory at Mount Carmel!! The Israelites declared- Jehovah, He is God (1 Kings 18:39) and the false prophets of baal were all slaughtered.
https://youtu.be/P8rZ-0i81zs
Surely now, Elijah would be thinking revival has finally come to Israel. Surely now they will turn from their idols and turn to the one true God!!
And yet in chapter 19 we find king Ahab not only doesn't repent but tells the false prophetess queen Jezebel, who now threatens Elijah’s life (1 Kings 19:2). The people of Israel instead of wanting revival and asking for the queen to be executed for idolatry either remain silent or haven't repented and turned to God!!
Elijah is forced to run for his life because of Jezebel’s death threats!!
DON’T FORGET YESTERDAY’S VICTORIES WHEN FACING TODAYS BATTLES!! (1 Samuel 17:33-37) Elijah forgot that the God who just protected him against the 850 prophets of baal and asherah would also protect him against Jezebel! REMEMBER WHAT GOD HAS DONE FOR YOU IN THE PAST!
Let us now look at some of the struggles ELIJAH faced in this chapter and how The Lord helped Him overcome these obstacles!!
1.DISAPPOINTMENT (vs 10,14)
After God’s victory at Mt Carmel, Elijah would have expected revival!! He would not have expected His outreach to be in vain, which may have led to disappointment (Eg. 1 Kings 19:10).
Q.HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH DISAPPOINTMENT?
What happens when it feels like your labour in the Lord has been in vain? (1 Corinthians 15:58)
Elijah expected RAIN not RESISTANCE! Therefore he needed to change his expectation!
2.LONELINESS/ISOLATION
After having to run away and hide, Elijah felt like he was the only one of the Lord's servants left (1 Kings 19:10,14).
But Hebrews 13:5 reminds us that God will NEVER LEAVE US NOR FORSAKE US!!
Elijah’s story is also a reminder that ISOLATION IS NOT THE WAY TO DEAL WITH OUR PROBLEMS!! Get yourself around other brothers and sisters in Christ who can encourage you through the storm!! Notice in vs 3, Elijah left his servant in Beersheba, rather than taking him along for encouragement!
Compare this to our saviour Jesus and whom Jesus had around Him in the garden of Gethsemane during His high pressure situation!! (See Matthew 26:36-39)
3.PERSECUTION (vs 2)
Elijah had to deal with death threats from queen Jezebel (1 Kings 19:2).
In Matthew 5:10-12, Jesus reminds us not only to EXPECT PERSECUTION, but also that we are BLESSED when we are persecuted for His sake! (1 Peter 4:12-14)
We also find In 1 Kings 19:10, that the attack and persecution came not only from foreigners but Elijah's own people, the Israelites!!
Q.HOW DO WE DEAL WITH THE SITUATIONS WHERE IT IS THOSE CLOSEST TO US WHO ARE THE ONES PERSECUTING AND ATTACKING US?
(In 1 Samuel 17:28-33 it was David’s own brother and his King who persecuted him!!)
4.FEAR (vs 3)
When queen Jezebel threatened Elijah’s life, it caused Elijah to be AFRAID and run for his life (1 Kings 19:3), even to the point where he wanted to give up and die (1 Kings 19:4). Q. WHAT SITUATIONS CAUSE YOU TO FEAR? HOW DO YOU NORMALLY DEAL WITH THIS FEAR? (Do we bring our fears to the Lord?)
5.FATIGUE (vs 5-8)
Elijah’s journey of running for his life into isolation drained him to the point where he lay down under a tree and fell asleep.
SO HOW DID THE LORD HELP ELIJAH TO OVERCOME THESE STRUGGLES?
THE SOLUTION:
1.BE HONEST with the Lord (1 Kings 19:4, Jonah 4:1-2) Elijah was honest with God about how he truly felt. So often we try to hide our feelings from God, forgetting that He already knows!!
2.Allow God to MEET your PHYSICAL NEEDS also (vs 5).
Did you notice that the Lord provided food for Elijah first as he physically needed to eat to gain strength? By doing so, God also reminded Elijah that He is his provider even in the tough times!! We also see that God provided an ANGEL to minister to Elijah in his time of need!! What a great reminder that The Lord provides His angels to help us in our times of need also!! (Hebrews 1:14, Psalm 34:7)
3.Learn to RUN to the LORD’S PRESENCE (1 Kings 19:8,11). When Elijah was tempted to feel downcast and disappointed and fearful, The Lord sent an angel to give him the strength to come to God’s presence at Mount Horeb!!
4.COMMIT TO HIM YOUR PROBLEM/SITUATION (vs 10,14). In James 5:13, we are told “Is any one of you in trouble? He should PRAY.”
Learn to get into the habit of bringing your problems to Jesus in prayer!!
It is interesting to note that the Lord asked Elijah twice the same question “WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, ELIJAH?” (vs 9,13), which prompted Elijah to give the same answer of sharing His problem to God (vs 10,14). But GOD’S RESPONSE each time was different!! The first time God responded by encouraging Elijah to SEEK HIS PRESENCE (vs 11), but the second time He encouraged Elijah to LIVE OUT HIS PURPOSE! This shows us THERE IS A TIME TO BE STILL IN GOD’S PRESENCE AND A TIME TO ACT OUT GOD’S PURPOSE! (Luke 10:37-42)
5.Let the Lord give you GUIDANCE and DIRECTION for action and encouragement, as He did for Elijah (vs 15-18)! It was in the Lord’s presence that God reminds Elijah he is not alone (7000 who have not bowed to baal) and He doesn't have to do this alone (anoint Elisha to succeed him!!)
EXTRA:
vs 12- we often try to look for God and His answers in the BIG THINGS and forget to realise He also works in the SMALL THINGS.
In the midst of the turmoil of Elijah's situation, you answered him in a gentle whisper!! Will we be still and know you are God in our situation? Psalm 46:10
Notice also that to hear God’s whisper, you have to be close enough to hear Him!! (James 4:8)
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