Elijah: The Prophet Of Courage And Confrontation
Sermon #1
1 Kings 17:1
A MAN SENT FROM GOD
Intro: The pages of our Bibles are filled with accounts
of men that seem larger than life. People like Moses,
David, Daniel, Paul and others, all seem to be
characters that are so far above the realm of our own
experience that we may feel like we can never be like
them. However, I'll let you in on a secret this morning:
All of these people were just that: people! The fellow in
our text is no different. When I read about the life and
ministry of Elijah, I am amazed at his courage and at his
power with God. Yet, I am reminded by the Word of
God that Elijah "was a man subject to like passion as
we are." (James 5:17) He was just a man who walked
in humble obedience before his God.
This morning, I am going to begin a series of
messages that will focus on the life and ministry of this
man named Elijah. We will call this series "Elijah: The
Prophet of Courage and Confrontation". Today, we
will focus in on this one verse and talk about "A Man
Sent From God." In this message, I want you to see
that God can take a nobody and make a somebody out
of him. God can take any life that will be totally yielded
to His will and use that life for His glory. Our goal this
morning is to see whether or not we possess this kind
of life within ourselves. If not, then you will be given the
opportunity to get where God can use you. Let's look at
this verse together this morning and meet A Man Sent
From God.
I. ELIJAH WAS A COMMON MAN
A. His Home - This verse tells us that Elijah was
from a place called Tishbe in the region known
as Gilead. Gilead was a rough, mountainous
area known for its high peaks and deep valleys.
The very name "Gilead" in its Hebrew form
means "raw or rugged." This tells us that Elijah
was a backwoods man. When he stepped onto
the scene and began his ministry, his methods,
his mannerisms and his message were as
rough and rugged as the place he called home.
Evidently, Elijah's method of dress was as
strange as anything else we know about him, 2
Kings 1:8.
B. His Humanity - We are given an interesting
insight into the prophet Elijah in the book of
James. "Elias was a man subject to like
passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly
that it might not rain: and it rained not on the
earth by the space of three years and six
months. And he prayed again, and the
heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth
her fruit.", James 5:17-18. As one follows the
life of Elijah, it becomes clear that he was a
mere mortal. He was a man with a fiery temper,
who was prone to bouts of depression. He also
suffered from loneliness, due to the life of
solitude from which he ministered.
(Ill. The emphasis here is that the Lord is not
looking for spiritual giants to use for His glory.
He is simply looking for people who will readily
obey His Word and follow Him where He leads
them. You see, nothing at all is known about
Elijah until he steps onto the scene in the
presence of king Ahab. He was a nobody from
nowhere, but he was handpicked by the Lord
God to do His will and to carry His message to a
wayward nation.
God doesn't need the rich, the educated, the
intelligent, the beautiful or the movers and
shakers of this word to get His work done.
(Remember David? - 1 Sam. 16:6-7, 12) God
has chosen to work through the lives of men and
women who will simply yield themselves to the
will of God and, who will like Isaiah, say "Here
am I, send me!", Isa. 6:8. The bottom line is
this: God wants your obedient surrender to His
will more than He wants anything else you can
give to Him, 1 Sam. 15:22.)
I. Elijah Was A Common Man
II. ELIJAH WAS A COURAGEOUS MAN
A. He Defied A Foolish Ruler - The king of Israel
during the time of Elijah was a little toad of a
man named Ahab. According to the Bible, 1
Kings 16:30, 33, Ahab was the most wicked
king that ever squatted upon the throne of Israel.
Besides that, he was married to a wretchedly evil
woman named Jezebel. She was the daughter
of the king of Zidon. This too was an offense to
the Lord, 1 Kings 16:31. Jezebel was from a
group of people who were ardent Baal
worshipers. And she, along with her husband
Ahab, did more to introduce the worship of Baal
to the people of Israel than any other ruling
family, 1 Kings 16:32. This produced a state of
affairs in Israel, where people lost all regard for
the commandments of God. This is illustrated by
1 Kings 16:34, where a man named Hiel the
Bethelite attempted to rebuild Jericho. This was
in direct disobedience to a clear command of
God, Josh. 6:26.
Yet, it was to this king that God sent the
prophet Elijah. Elijah walked right into the
presence of king Ahab and delivered the
message of the Lord without flinching. He told
Ahab that there would be no rain or dew until he
said there would be. It took courage to defy the
wicked ruler!
(Ill. Chuck Mcillhenny, pastor of the Orthodox
Presbyterian Church in the Sunset District of San
Francisco for over twenty years, has written a
book titled When the Wicked Seize the City.
When I first met him, I expected to find the man
in a chrome helmet with loaded weapons all
around him and double bars on the door. Here's
a man whose home has been fire-bombed,
whose bedroom for the children is built like a
bunker (it's so fireproof) so his children can
survive as he stands actively for Christ. He is
now ministering a great deal in the hospitals to
those dying of AIDS, but standing firm for the
truth, that the only hope beyond this life is a faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ.
He told a wonderful story of how he was
sitting, reading the newspaper one day. And
there was a council meeting being held the next
day in San Francisco, and he thought he'd go to
the city council and hear this particular issue. It
was a homosexual rights issue. He thought, I
can't just sit here and let that pass. He didn't
take anyone with him. He didn't take any
placards. He didn't march against them, like
many of them march against him. It's not
uncommon for his services to be interrupted by
lesbians and homosexuals. He just went to the
city-council meeting.
He sat there and heard the legislation. The
council was about to take a vote. The chairman
said, "Is there anyone who has anything to say?"
No one moved. Then he stood up and said, "I
would like to say something." He walked to the
platform, stated his name, that he was a citizen
residing in the Sunset District, San Francisco.
"What would you like to say?" He replied, "Well,
I would like to say nothing for myself, but I would
like to quote three individuals that I've respected
for years." And he read to them from Moses in
Leviticus, from one of the psalms by David, and
from Paul in Romans 1. Didn't preach, didn't
scream, didn't sermonize--just closed his Bible
and sat down.
They said, "Wait. Before you sit down, who
are those people--Moses and David and Paul?"
And someone said, "You're reading from the
Bible, aren't you?" "Yes," he said, "I am." And
one of the council members then said, "I vote
no," and another and another. And it didn't pass.
He sat down. That is straight thinking and
courage.
(Ill. Each of us needs to manifest that same kind
of courage! America today is headed down the
same road that Israel was on back then. We
have sacrificed our innocence for the pleasures
of the flesh. We have openly mocked the written
Word of God. We have turned a deaf ear to the
cry of the millions of the unborn who are slain in
the name of convenience every year in this
country. We have paid homage to the onslaught
of sexually explicit programming that invades our
homes on a daily basis. We have sacrificed our
morality to gratify our flesh. We have watched in
mock horror as our sons and our daughters yield
their bodies to the perversions of premarital sex,
homosexuality, and lesbianism. We stand by in
mute silence while the minds of our own children
are captivated by the siren song of prosperity,
selfish indulgence and independence from God.
We pass their choice of music off as a fad. We
have no say in where they go or what they do.
We have watched this once great, godly nation
become reduced to a stagnated cesspool of
iniquity, open sin and outright hostility to God
Almighty! After Elijah was taken to Heaven in
the whirlwind, Elisha took Elijah's mantel and
smote Jordan and cried, "Where is the Lord
God of Elijah?". This morning, I would ask you,
"Where are the Elijah's of the Lord God?"
B. He Denounced A False Religion - The crux of
Elijah's message was that there would be no
dew or rain until he said so. This was a direct
attack against the false religion of Baal worship.
You see, Baal was the Canaanite god of fertility.
He was seen in the thunder heads and in the
rain that fell. Baal worship was usually
conducted on the tops of hills where statues of
Ball were built. Typically, these Baal shrines
were staffed by priests and priestesses.
Worship was carried out through performing
sexual acts with one of these ministers of Baal.
It was their belief that when you were joined to a
priest or a priestess in a sexual union, that you
literally became a god or a goddess for that
period of time. One of the most horrible aspects
of Baal worship existed in the realm of human
sacrifice. When there was time of drought, it
was supposed to mean that Baal was angry with
the people. To get his attention, they would
often sacrifice a firstborn child by burning it alive.
It was a terrible religion that existed to gratify the
flesh. There is much more that could be said
about Baal worship, but this is enough to see
why it was an offence to the Lord God of Israel.
After all, it involved breaking many of the
commandments, but especially numbers 1-3 and
7-10.
When Elijah made his announcement, he
was declaring war on Baal. It took great courage
to stand up before the chief promoter of that
false religion and in effect say, "My God is
greater than Baal! And to prove it, God is
going to shut off the spigot. There will be no
rain until I say so. And, there's nothing you,
Jezebel or Baal can do about it!"
(Ill. That took courage! Can you imagine how
they must have laughed at him and mocked
him? That is kind of courage we need to see
manifested in this day. This is the kind of
courage that was derived from time spent with
God and from angry indignation over the sins of
the nation of Israel. This is the kind of courage
that stands up against ridicule. It is the kind of
courage that protests things like abortion, the
homosexual agenda, the erosion of religious
liberties, etc. It is the kind of courage that makes
a difference for God in these days of self-indulgence. It is the kind of courage that says, "I
will be different, regardless of what it costs me or
my family. I will stand for God!" Are you filled
with kind of courage? Can God count on us to
stand?)
I. Elijah Was A Common Man
II. Elijah Was A Courageous Man
III. ELIJAH WAS A COMMITTED MAN
A. His Designation - His very name tells us his
testimony. The name Elijah means "My God Is
Jehovah". His name tells us that he had a
personal relationship with the God of Heaven.
My friends, this is the first and crucial step in
becoming anything for God. Until you know Him
you cannot serve Him! Has there been that time
in your life when you met the God of Heaven in
a personal way? The only way to meet the Lord
God is through His Son Jesus Christ, John 14:6;
Acts 16:31. Are you saved?
B. His Dependence - By walking into the presence
of Ahab and Jezebel in the name of Jehovah,
Elijah was demonstrating that in his life and
ministry, he was totally dependent upon the
Lord. He was not trusting the arm of flesh, but
was resting in the everlasting arms by faith.
There is a huge difference! This is the secret of
success for the child of God living in a wicked
world. Only when we are totally yielded to God
in total dependence, will we be assured of
success. You see, there is only one thing that
honors God: Faith, Heb. 11:6; Rom. 14:23. We
must come to the place where we kick out all of
our props and rest totally in the hand of divine
providence. We must come to the place where
we stop trying to and start trusting God to! We
have plenty of people who live by plastic, by job,
by education, by ability, by intellect, by whatever.
What we need are people who will live by faith,
depending on nothing but God to meet their
needs and enable them to stand!
C. His Devotion - Note the phrase Elijah used
"before Whom I stand." Elijah was standing in
the presence of the king of Israel. He was
standing in the presence of one of the most
powerful men of his time. Yet, Elijah was able to
see beyond all the trapping of the throne room of
Israel. Elijah knew that he was standing in the
presence of God. He knew that here was no
need to try and please Ahab. There was no
need to soft sell his message and make it more
pleasing. There was only one Person in that
room Who had to be pleased and His name was
Jehovah. You know, that is the place we all
need to get to in our lives. If we can get beyond
what this one or that one might think of us and
live for nothing but to please the Lord God, then
we are on the road to being used by God. Elijah
was a man on a mission. He desired nothing
less that carrying out the will of God. Can you
honestly say that you do not care what anyone
thinks about your stand for God? Can you
honestly say that regardless fo what anyone
thinks, you are going to live for God, stand for
God and serve God until He finishes with you?
That is the attitude of total commitment. That is
the attitude God can bless and that God can
use!
I. Elijah Was A Common Man
II. Elijah Was A Courageous Man
III. Elijah Was A Committed Man
IV. ELIJAH WAS A CONFIDENT MAN
A. In The Person Of God - Note that Elijah
believed that God was alive. He said, "as the
Lord God of Israel liveth." Most of those other
folks were living like Jehovah was dead. Sounds
like America doesn't it? We need some people
like Elijah who will stand up and say, "You can
live like God is dead if you wish, but I am
going to live for Him, because He is alive in
me." You see, that was Elijah's situation. God
was living in him and when God lives in you, you
just can't keep Him quiet!
(Ill. Elijah's God was alive. Is yours?)
B. In The Power Of God - Look at James 5:17-18.
It seems from these verses that the drought was
Elijah's idea. Apparently, he was so upset with
the sins of the people that he began to pray that
is would not rain. Of course, this idea was put
into his heart by the Spirit of God, no doubt. As
he prayed, he received assurance that this was
indeed the Lord's will. So, he just marched up to
Ahab and told him it would not rain. He believed
that he served a God Who was powerful and
able to do anything!
(Ill. One of the tragedies of the modern church is
the lack of respect we have for God and His
ability. I just want to remind you that we serve a
God Who can do anything, Job 42:4; Luke
1:37; Eph. 3:20. He can meet any need. He
can heal any disease. He can stop any anything
from taking place. He can cause anything to
take place. He is God and He is all powerful!
Nothing is too hard for Him, Gen. 18:14! God
help us that we quit living like God was dead or
on vacation. God help us to remember that He
is God all the time, in every situation, regardless
of what we face in life. When we are battling sin:
He is God! When we have a need: He is God!
When we are fighting Satan and his activities:
He is God! He is God all the time! Never forget
that! What He did for people like Elijah, He can
do for you and me. We just have to arrive at the
place where we can trust His ability.)
C. In The Promise Of God - This man stood
before Ahab because he had received a word
from God concerning this matter. Elijah had
enough sense to know that when God told him
something was going to happen, it would
happen. My friends, God will never, never,
never back away from a single promise he has
made to His people. He will not desert you and
leave you to flap in the breeze. If He has made
a promise to you, it will be fulfilled, Rom. 4:21;
Heb. 6:18.
Conc: We are going to see that Elijah stirred up a
hornets nest when he made his announcement before
Ahab. However, the point of this verse is that he stood
and he did what God had told him to do. Elijah was a
man sent from God. He was sent to a wicked people to
declare that judgment was coming from the hand of
God. He was not afraid to speak up and expose the
evils of his day. He was not afraid to live by faith in the
God of Heaven. He was not afraid to put his very life
into the hand of God and trust God all the way through.
I just wonder this morning how many of us are like
Elijah? How many of us are trusting God com what
may? How many of us are taking our stand for God in
the midst of this wicked world? How many of us are
standing against the tide of evil in the world today?
How many of us really know God like Elijah did. We
need some Elijah's in our day. Elijah's God has not
changed. Where are the Elijah's who will believe Him
regardless of the cost?
