1 Kings 18:21, “And
Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between
two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then
follow him. And the people answered him not a word.”
The cause of Israel’s
idolatry had to be addressed. Jezebel had infected the pure worship
of Jehovah with the idol worship of her ancestral god, Baal. She used
her position as queen to force all of Israel to worship Baal. The
time had come for Israel to choose who they would follow and the evil
influence of apostate religion had to be eliminated. Elijah ordered
that all the priests of Baal were to be killed to rid the kingdom of
their evil influence. Good call, right? 1 Kings 19:1, “And Ahab
told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain
all the prophets with the sword.” Jezebel promised to do to Elijah
what he had done to her priests and he ran for his life. He found
himself all alone hiding away in a deep dark cave but it is there
that he encountered the Almighty Lord God Jehovah. 1 Kings 19:11,
“And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.
And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the
mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but
the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an
earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake:
12And after the earthquake a
fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the
fire a still small voice. 13And
it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his
face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the
cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What
doest thou here, Elijah?”
There are two issues that
Elijah was challenged to address. One, how could he justify his hasty
retreat in the face of such a victory at Mt. Carmel? And second,
could he be used of God to finish his mission? Elijah began to
justify his behavior and defend his cowardly retreat. He had been
very zealous for God when the children of Israel had forsaken His
covenant. They turned to the worship of Baal, having thrown down the
altars of the Lord and slain the prophets of God. Elijah proclaimed
that he was the only one left therefore they sought to take his life.
God assured Elijah that there were “7000” that had not bowed to
Baal or worshiped his image. God's command was to return to action
and finish what God had started.
God was getting ready to
administer His judgment upon this wicked government and apostate
religion and He wanted Elijah to know his role. God was compelled to
let him know what He was preparing to do. God was not finished with
Elijah just yet! God wanted Elijah to know that He still had large
numbers of the faithful who had not bowed to Baal. Elijah had a role
in bringing God's plan to its completion. God said, go and anoint
Hazael to be king over Syria, Jehu to be king over Israel and Elisha
to be the prophet in Elijah's place (1 Kings 19:17-18).
God uses whom He wills to
bring about His plan! But we must have our Elijah moment, our own
intimate encounter with God where He reveals our assignment in His
plan. Holy Ghost revelation is absolutely essential in these last
days. God wants to speak into our lives, into our churches and into
the Body of Christ His directions for the culmination of His grand
plan. But, we must position ourselves in mind, soul and spirit to
hear His voice and heed His call.
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