It was right around sunrise this morning and the Lord put this scripture in my heart. The scripture is found in 1 Kings 18:21
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.
Many of you will recall this story from the Book of 1st Kings as the nation of Isreal reached an “Inflection Point” This represents a pivotal moment of change, often signifying a turning point where a new direction or phase begins.
My Friends we are at a inflection point today as a world, a nation, a state, as a people. God is speaking to us today: How long will you halt between two opinions? If the Lord be God, following him: but if there is anything else in your life that commands your affection, your admiration, your dedication, your devotion, your finances, your time………then follow that thing or that person.
Paul the apostle warns the new believers at Roman of their inflection point:
Romans 6:1-2
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
**Later to the Church at Galatia Paul has to bring the believers there to their inflection point as they had turned from following Christ by faith and began to seek justification by the works of the Law.
Galatians 3:1-3
1 O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?
2 This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
3 Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?
**John the Revelator in the Island of Patmos in prisoned by the Roman Government and is writing what God is speaking to him about the Churches and the end times. Listen to the inflection point that God brings the Church at Ephesus:
Revelation 2:1-5
1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
***The first point of the message today: God loves you so much, he will bring you to a clear decision point to serve him or something else.
**If you go back with me to 1 Kings 18 we will see how we got here. If you are coming to Wednesday night adult bible study, then I believe you are studying the books of Kings now and are probably familiar with the cycle of godly and then un-godly leadership in both the nations of Juda and Isreal. God would bless the nation when the righteous ruled and they the wicked would come into power, lead the people to worship idols and then God would remove his hand of protection. They would be hurt by the nations around them. The people would then cry out to God. God would bring a righteous leader and then they would turn their hearts back to him, and God would bring his protection back on them.
King Ahab and Queen Jezebel, rulers of 9th-century BC Israel, are depicted as exceptionally wicked, heavily promoting Baal worship, murdering prophets of Yahweh, and engaging in judicial murder to seize property. Jezebel, a manipulative influence, steered Ahab into idolatry, while Ahab was passive and weak, allowing her to destroy righteous opposition.
1 Kings 21:25-26 Amplified Bible
25 There certainly was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do evil in the sight of the Lord, because Jezebel his wife incited him. 26 He acted very repulsively in following idols, in accordance with everything the Amorites had done, whom the Lord expelled [from the land] before the sons of Israel.
Key Acts of Wickedness
- Idolatry: Ahab married Jezebel, daughter of the King of Sidon, and together they made worship of Baal and Asherah the state religion, defying God.
- Persecution of Prophets: Jezebel actively sought to destroy Yahweh's prophets, attempting to eradicate the worship of the Lord.
- The Murder of Naboth: When Naboth refused to sell his vineyard, Jezebel plotted, falsely accused him, and had him stoned, allowing Ahab to seize the property.
- Total Apostasy: Ahab is noted as doing more to provoke God's anger than any king before him, leading the nation into idolatry and corruption.
***Lets jump into the story in Chapter 16
1 Kings 16:30-33
30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him.
31 And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.
32 And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
33 And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
***The 2nd point of the message today: Leadership matters! Who you are following will take you to where they are going.
Proverbs 29:2
2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.
Proverbs 22:24-25
24 Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go:
25 Lest thou learn his ways, and get a snare to thy soul.
Matthew 15:7-14
7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.
10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
12 Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying?
13 But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.
14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
**Paul gives us foundational truth about Christian leadership and discipleship
1 Corinthians 11:1
1 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
***The 2nd point of the message today: Leadership matters! Who you are following will take you to where they are going.
Lets go back to 1st Kings
1 Kings 17:1-4
1 Kings 17:1-4
1 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
2 And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
3 Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
***Elijah goes and stays with a few other people and helps them over the next 3 years of drought and that brings us to the inflection point in 1st Kings 18.
***Point #3 of the message today: God will provide for his people in the middle of trouble and judgment.
***Time and time again in God’s word we see his provision in the middle of troublesome times:
- Noah is protected by God in the ark that God called him to build
- Issac sows seed when there is a famine and nobody else gets a crop and he gets a hundred fold return on his seed.
- Joseph is protected in all his journey from the pit to the palace and then provides resources to his family to sustain them in the time of famine and distress.
- The children of Isreal during the plagues of Egypt
- Danel in the Lion’s Den
- And more and more and more………God will provide for his people in the middle of trouble and judgement
Psalm 23:5
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
***The first point of the message today: God loves you so much, he will bring you to a clear decision point to serve him or something else.
***The 2nd point of the message today: Leadership matters! Who you are following will take you to where they are going.
***Point #3 of the message today: God will provide for his people in the middle of trouble and judgment.
***Lets continue the story in 1 Kings 18
1 Kings 18
1 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
2 And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
3 And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly:
4 For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)
5 And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts.
6 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?
8 And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
9 And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
10 As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, He is not there; he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not.
11 And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
12 And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the Lord shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the Lord from my youth.
13 Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the Lord, how I hid an hundred men of the Lord's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
14 And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me.
15 And Elijah said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day.
16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.
Ancient Greek Literature: Sophocles’ Antigone includes the line, "For no man delights in the bearer of bad news,"
***It is interesting to see the King blame Elijah for God’s judgement on the nation of Isreal. God’s true prophets are always blamed for bringing God’s message of love, correction and judgement.
John 16:1-4
1 These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended.
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.
3 And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me.
4 But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.
***It was a short time later in the book of Act we see a young man named Stephen, full of the Holy Ghost live out this very word of Jesus as he is preaching the Gospel to the Jewish religious leadership:
Acts 7:51-56
51 Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
52 Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.
54 When they heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they gnashed on him with their teeth.
55 But he, being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.
***Point #4 of the message today: Don’t discount God’s message based on your opinion of God’s messenger.
Continuing in 1 Kings 18:19
19 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table.
20 So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
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.
Back to ***The first point of the message today: God loves you so much, he will bring you to a clear decision point to serve him or something else.
22 Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
24 And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29 And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
30 And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.
****Point #5 of the message today: God is calling each of us to rebuild the altar of the Lord in our lives.
** You may say: Pastor Jon, what is an altar of the Lord?
- An altar is a place of sacrifice.
- An altar is a place of worship.
- An altar is a place of repentance.
- An altar is about God and not about you.
- An altar is a place of offering.
But do not miss this….in verse 30 Elijah told the people to come near and to see what he was doing.
- An altar is a place of public display of private devotion.
Elijah wanted the people to see what he was doing. He wanted to show them the pattern of building an altar of the Lord and worship.
Earlier in the message we read from Revelation 2
Revelation 2:1-5
1 Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;
2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:
3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.
4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.
5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.
In closing lets finsh 1 Kings 18:31
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy 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 measures of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
34 And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
37 Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
38 Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, 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 they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God.
40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
41 And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,
43 And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.
44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down that the rain stop thee not.
45 And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
46 And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
***The first point of the message today: God loves you so much, he will bring you to a clear decision point to serve him or something else.
***The 2nd point of the message today: Leadership matters! Who you are following will take you to where they are going.
***Point #3 of the message today: God will provide for his people in the middle of trouble and judgment.
***Point #4 of the message today: Don’t discount God’s message based on your opinion of God’s messenger.
****Point #5 of the message today: God is calling each of us to rebuild the altar of the Lord in our lives.