Sermon
Elijah
June 12, 2004
Pastor Donald Sheley

I'm going to ask you to take your Bibles, and you'll also notice that with our series, as we've always done in the past, I've included your sermon notes. Now I'm not following them as closely this summer as I normally do at other times. I write them to provide for you some additional material, some background, some history with regards to the Scriptures that we're going to read, and I'd suggest that you read them when you have an opportunity. But because of the very nature of our series this summer, we're spending an awful lot of time just in the word of God itself, and I think that's important.

I was rushed to the hospital for other day as one of our family was in a coma, and as soon as I walked in the emergency room I was met by a lovely lady and she came out and she said, Pastor, my husband and my family and I come to your church and I just wanted to greet you, and she had some very gracious words. Then as I finished my visit at the table with a gentleman that was in a coma, I began to leave the hospital and another lady ran up to me and she said, Pastor, Pastor, I just want you to know that I go to church at your church. And she said, in fact I've only been a Christian for four months. And she said, I'm loving the new series, she said, that you're starting because I don't know those Old Testament stories. I didn't know the Old Testament was as exciting as it is. And I said, I appreciate the fact that you're enjoying it.

And really you'll find I think many, many times the Old Testament is neglected but it's just jammed chockablock with marvelous stories of God's grace and His power. So I want you to turn with me in your Bible to I Kings chapter 17 is where we are going to start today. It's concerning a man that had a marvelous, exciting life. He's called out of the wilderness as a shepherd, walks before a king, announces there's going to be a famine, then the Lord tells him to go stay beside a brook while the famine is in process, God commands the ravens to feed him. So for over a year the ravens morning and night bring him his food, and he drinks from the brook.

And then of course he's told to go on to a city way up on the coast side about 100 miles away, up to the city of Zarephath and there he meets a lady whom God has already talk to and she provides for him food, her boy dies, he prays over the boy, the boy comes back to life again, and then God tells him to go back and meet the king, and he prays a prayer where fire literally flashes out of heaven and licks up the sacrifice. And the way he takes off at the end of the story, God sends a chariot of fire with horses out of heaven and he is taken and placed on that chariot and off to heaven he goes in a chariot of fire. It is an exciting story.

So I want you to take this verse, because really this is the heart of what I'm trying to say tonight. Go way back in the back of your Bible to James. James just is before Revelation; James chapter 5, and it has something to say about Elijah and this is an interesting verse. It says in verse 16, James 5:16, it's there near the end of your New Testament. It says, Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The earnest prayer of a righteous person has great power and wonderful results. Elijah was a human being as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for the next three and a half years! Then he prayed for rain, and down it poured. The grass turned green, and the crops began to grow again.

But the phrase that has always challenged me is it says that Elijah was a human being just like me -- just like me. Oft times, I note in our notes, that when we read these great old stories they seem like they are super-human persons, but as we read the story tonight just remember...Elijah was just like us. In fact, after doing so many great conquests he runs and God asks him where he's going, he turns around, and God fires him and says you go anoint another prophet, he'll take your place. He's a guy just like us.

So let's start the story at verse 1 in chapter 17: Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, "As surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives--the God whom I worship and serve--there will be no dew or rain during the next few years unless I give the word!" Now let's stop there just for a moment because we have to have a little history.

Fifty-eight years ago before this story begins, Solomon, who was the son of King David, had ruled his throne. But Solomon, even though considered the wisest man who lived, yet he did not use his wisdom and he did a very poor job in governing his kingdom. And the result was that he had slave labor build his palaces, and all of his vineyards, and all of his orchards, and as a result, when Solomon dies there's tremendous hatred built up throughout all of Palestine. And the result is that the nation, the little nation, divides. It's about 130 miles in length from top to bottom. It's about 70 miles wide. And as a result the top 10 tribes divide the major portion of the country and the two tribes in the bottom portion.

And those 10 tribes in the northern part of that little country went through seven kings in fifty-eight years. I mean they were ruthless; they were wicked; one king kills another so he can have his throne. They had no respect for each other, and more than that, they had no respect for God. And Jeroboam was the first king in line, and it said that he did that which was evil in the sight of God and he caused Israel to sin. A leader of a nation holds a tremendous position of example and the old Jeroboam led to his nation into sin.

Well we come now to Omri whose it is just before Ahab, and Omri it says of him he even did worse than that -- and he sinned even worse than Jeroboam. And then his son, Ahab, comes on the throne and I mean he's really wicked. He decides that he's going to go to the heathen nation and he marries a heathen lady whose name was Jezebel. And Jezebel brought to the country of Palestine 450 of her false prophets plus 400 other prophets. So here was a country that God had set up not to worship idols and not to marry heathen, and the king sets a poor example, marries a heathen gal, she brings to the land of Israel her prophets, or false prophets, and I mean the nation is in the terrible spiritual condition.

And so we have a prophet, we have a man who's out there in the wilderness, he heard of how Ahab was violating all of the laws of God and so he starts praying, and as he prays he goes back to an Old Testament portion were in the Scriptures God says if My nation turns against Me there will be no rain and there will be a famine. So this old prophet out there in the wilderness by the name of Elijah he's saying, God it's time You honor Your word. It's time You bring a famine and bring this nation to its knees and back to You. That's Elijah.

He prayed earnestly that it might not rain. He claimed God's word, and as the result, now it's time to go make his announcement to the king. And he says to the king, "As surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives--the God whom I worship and serve--there will be no dew or rain during the next few years unless I give the word!"

Then the LORD said to Elijah, "Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook at a place east of where it enters the Jordan River." Now just to kind of get our bearings -- if San Francisco was the lower part of this little nation, probably going up to Fairfield or Vacaville the Highway 80 would be the Jordan River, and the so it says that just about at Vacaville on the east side of 80 there's where God says, now Elijah, I want you now to go there's a little brook over there, and I want you to hide by that broke.

The reason why I lay that out is because when he has to go off to Zarephath he leaves Fairfield and he has to go clear over to Fort Bragg because it was way over in the coast 100 miles away. That's how far he trekked. But here's what it says. It says, the Lord said, "Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook at a place east of where it enters the Jordan River. Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food."

So Elijah did as the LORD had told him and camped beside Kerith Brook. The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook. But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.

Then the LORD said to Elijah, "Go and live in the village of Zarephath" (that's up at Fort Bragg), "near the city of Sidon. There is a widow there who will feed you. I have given her my instructions." So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, "Would you please bring me a cup of water?" As she was going to get it, he called to her, "Bring me a bite of bread, too."

But she said, "I swear by the LORD your God that I don't have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die." But Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid! Go ahead and cook that 'last meal,' but bake me a little loaf of bread first. Afterward there will still be enough food for you and your son. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: There will always be plenty of flour and oil left in your containers until the time when the LORD sends rain and the crops grow again!"

Now that's a miracle, isn't it? Every time she dipped into the flour barrel it never decreased. Wouldn't that be fine if there were times your kids took their Cheerios and the Cheerios box never emptied? What a wonderful answer to prayer.

So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her son continued to eat from her supply of flour and oil for many days. For no matter how much they used, there was always enough left in the containers, just as the LORD had promised through Elijah. Some time later, the woman's son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died. She then said to Elijah, "O man of God, what have you done to me? Have you come here to punish my sins by killing my son?"

But Elijah replied, "Give me your son." And he took the boy's body from her, carried him up to the upper room, where he lived, and laid the body on his bed. Then Elijah cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, why have you brought tragedy on this widow who has opened her home to me, causing her son to die?" And he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, please let this child's life return to him." The LORD heard Elijah's prayer, and the life of the child returned, and he came back to life! Then Elijah brought him down from the upper room and gave him to his mother. "Look, your son is alive!" he said. Then the woman told Elijah, "Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you."

Remember, he's a man just like you and me -- Elijah. After many months passed, in the third year of the drought, the LORD said to Elijah, "Go and present yourself to King Ahab. Tell him that I will soon send rain!" So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria. So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. (Now Obadiah was a devoted follower of the LORD. Once when Jezebel had tried to kill all the LORD's prophets, Obadiah had hidden one hundred of them in two caves. He had put fifty prophets in each cave and had supplied them with food and water.)

Ahab said to Obadiah, "We must check every spring and valley to see if we can find enough grass to save at least some of my horses and mules." So they divided the land between them. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. As Obadiah was walking along, he saw Elijah coming toward him. Obadiah recognized him at once and fell to the ground before him. "Is it really you, my lord Elijah?" he asked.

"Yes, it is," Elijah replied. "Now go and tell your master I am here." "Oh, sir," Obadiah protested, "what harm have I done to you that you are sending me to my death at the hands of Ahab? For I swear by the LORD your God that the king has searched every nation and kingdom on earth from end to end to find you. And each time when he was told, 'Elijah isn't here,' King Ahab forced the king of that nation to swear to the truth of his claim. And now you say, 'Go and tell your master that Elijah is here'! But as soon as I leave you, the Spirit of the LORD will carry you away to who knows where. When Ahab comes and cannot find you, he will kill me.

Yet I have been a true servant of the LORD all my life. Has no one told you, my lord, about the time when Jezebel was trying to kill the LORD's prophets? I hid a hundred of them in two caves and supplied them with food and water. And now you say, 'Go and tell your master that Elijah is here'! Sir, if I do that, I'm as good as dead!"

But Elijah said, "I swear by the LORD God Almighty, in whose presence I stand, that I will present myself to Ahab today." So Obadiah went to tell Ahab that Elijah had come, and Ahab went out to meet him. "So it's you, is it--Israel's troublemaker?" Ahab asked when he saw him. "I have made no trouble for Israel," Elijah replied. "You and your family are the troublemakers, for you have refused to obey the commands of the LORD and have worshiped the images of Baal instead. Now bring all the people of Israel to Mount Carmel, with all 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah, who are supported by Jezebel."

So Ahab summoned all the people and all the prophets to Mount Carmel. Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, "How long are you going to waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!" But the people were completely silent. Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only prophet of the LORD who is left, but Baal has 450 prophets. Now bring two bulls. The prophets of Baal may choose whichever one they wish and cut it into pieces and lay it on the wood of their altar, but without setting fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood on the altar, but not set fire to it. Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by setting fire to the wood is the true God!" And all the people agreed.

Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "You go first, for there are many of you. Choose one of the bulls and prepare it and call on the name of your god. But do not set fire to the wood." So they prepared one of the bulls and placed it on the altar. Then they called on the name of Baal all morning, shouting, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no reply of any kind. Then they danced wildly around the altar they had made. About noontime Elijah began mocking them. "You'll have to shout louder," he scoffed, "for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or he is relieving himself" (maybe he's gone to the bathroom). "Or maybe he is away on a trip, or he is asleep and needs to be wakened!"

So they shouted louder, and following their normal custom, they cut themselves with knives and swords until the blood gushed out. They raved all afternoon until the time of the evening sacrifice (that's 3 o'clock in the afternoon), but still there was no reply, no voice, no answer.

Then Elijah called to the people, "Come over here!" They all crowded around him as he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been torn down. He took twelve stones, one to represent each of the tribes of Israel, and he used the stones to rebuild the LORD's altar. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold about three gallons. He piled wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid the pieces on the wood. Then he said, "Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water over the offering and the wood." After they had done this, he said, "Do the same thing again!" And when they were finished, he said, "Now do it a third time!" So they did as he said, and the water ran around the altar and even overflowed the trench.

At the customary time (that's 3 o'clock in the afternoon) for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed. Now can you imagine the tension? They had been ranting and raving and screaming at their god until 3 o'clock in the afternoon. Old Elijah with confidence walks to that altar. I bet you could cut the air with a knife.

"O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command. O LORD, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself." Immediately the fire of the LORD flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the ditch! And when the people saw it, they fell on their faces and cried out, "The LORD is God! The LORD is God!"

Now remember, the verse said he's just a man just like you and me, and he prayed and fire flashed out of heaven. Then Elijah commanded, "Seize all the prophets of Baal. Don't let a single one escape!" So the people seized them all, and Elijah took them down to the Kishon Valley and killed them there. That ended the false prophets. Now that's a full day's work folks.

Then Elijah said to Ahab, "Go and enjoy a good meal! For I hear a mighty rainstorm coming!" So Ahab prepared a feast. But Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel and fell to the ground and prayed. Then he said to his servant, "Go and look out toward the sea." The servant went and looked, but he returned to Elijah and said, "I didn't see anything." Seven times Elijah told him to go and look, and seven times he went. Finally the seventh time, his servant told him, "I saw a little cloud about the size of a hand rising from the sea." Then Elijah shouted, "Hurry to Ahab and tell him, 'Climb into your chariot and go back home. If you don't hurry, the rain will stop you!' " In other words you'll get caught in the mud.

And sure enough, the sky was soon black with clouds. A heavy wind brought a terrific rainstorm, and Ahab left quickly for Jezreel (that's his home). Now the LORD gave special strength to Elijah. He tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab's chariot all the way to the entrance of Jezreel. Now he outran the horses folks, and he beat the king back to his city.

Well, here's another scene. When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel what Elijah had done and that he had slaughtered the prophets of Baal. So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: "May the gods also kill me if by this time tomorrow I have failed to take your life like those whom you killed." So now he's got a contract on his life by Jezebel.

The next line is the saddest line in the story -- look at what it says: Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. Now isn't that interesting. He can stand and pray prayers that cause fire to flash out of heaven; he can take 450 plus 400 prophets down and slay them, and a little lady says I'm going to get you, and he runs. Remember, he's a man just like you and me.

He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the desert, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors." Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him, "Get up and eat!" He looked around and saw some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again.

I mean the angels came down and cooked him a meal. Isn't that fantastic? He's a man just like you and me folks.

Then the angel of the LORD came again and touched him and said, "Get up and eat some more, for there is a long journey ahead of you." So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai -- Now that's a good meal, isn't it? Enough protein to cause you to hike for forty days -- to the mountain of God. There he came to a cave, where he spent the night.

But the LORD said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Elijah replied, "I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I alone am left, and now they are trying to kill me, too." He didn't answer God's question, did he? He just gave an excuse for what he did. Remember he's a man just like you and me folks.

Go out and stand before me on the mountain," the LORD told him. And as Elijah stood there, the LORD passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"

He replied again, "I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I alone am left, and now they are trying to kill me, too."

Then the LORD told him, "Go back the way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram. Then anoint Jehu son of Nimshi to be king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-meholah to replace you as my prophet." There he got fired, didn't he? "Anyone who escapes from Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jehu will be killed by Elisha! Yet I will preserve seven thousand others in Israel who have never bowed to Baal or kissed him!"

That's a sad scene, isn't it? God said, what you doing here Elijah? Why did you run? Why did you leave your post of duty? You are clear down here nearly 200 miles south. And all he had was just simply an excuse. God said, all right, go back the way you came and you find your replacement; his name is Elisha.

Verse 19: So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field with a team of oxen. There were eleven teams of oxen ahead of him, and he was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and walked away again. Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, "First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!"

Elijah replied, "Go on back! But consider what I have done to you." Elisha then returned to his oxen, killed them, and used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the other plowmen, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant.

Isn't that a beautiful scene where he just burns all the past behind him, even his oxen and his plows so he could set on his new journey? Now in our Bible go with me now to II Kings because the story picks up in chapter 2; so over just a few pages to the right. Look at what it says. II Kings 2:1 - When the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were traveling from Gilgal. And Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here, for the LORD has told me to go to Bethel." But Elisha replied, "As surely as the LORD God lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you!" So they went on together to Bethel.

The group of prophets from Bethel came to Elisha and asked him, "Did you know that the LORD is going to take your master away from you today?" "Quiet!" Elisha answered. "Of course I know it." Then Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here, for the LORD has told me to go to Jericho." But Elisha replied again, "As surely as the LORD lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you." So they went on together to Jericho.

Then the group of prophets from Jericho came to Elisha and asked him, "Did you know that the LORD is going to take your master away from you today?" "Quiet!" he answered again. "Of course I know it." Then Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here, for the LORD has told me to go to the Jordan River." But again Elisha replied, "As surely as the LORD lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you." So they went on together.

Fifty men from the group of prophets also went and watched from a distance as Elijah and Elisha stopped beside the Jordan River. Then Elijah folded his cloak together and struck the water with it. The river divided, and the two of them went across on dry ground! Remember, he's a man just like us.

When they came to the other side, Elijah said to Elisha, "What can I do for you before I am taken away?" And Elisha replied, "Please let me become your rightful successor." "You have asked a difficult thing," Elijah replied. "If you see me when I am taken from you, then you will get your request. But if not, then you won't."

As they were walking along and talking, suddenly a chariot of fire appeared, drawn by horses of fire. It drove between them, separating them, and Elijah was carried by a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha saw it and cried out, "My father! My father! The chariots and charioteers of Israel!" And as they disappeared from sight, Elisha tore his robe in two. Isn't that a story? As I read it each time, I keep going back to that passage in James where it says Elijah was a man just like you and me.

So I say then what were the characteristics, what were the markings of a man who could do that? That could see God work in his life and do the miraculous? And first of all it says that he prayed earnestly. So first of all, the secret to Elijah's life was his prayer life. He prayed earnestly. He prayed with tremendous passion. He would take God's word and that's where it says that he went back into that Old Testament passage and he found that word, that if the nation turns against God, God's going to turn off the faucets of heaven.

And one of the great secrets, folks, of successful prayer that God will listen to is when you take the Scriptures and you read those scriptures back to God. I do it oft times in a prayer, say God, this is what Your book says, and You are not a liar, You're going to do exactly what You've said. And what makes prayer powerful is knowing the word of God and then praying the words in your prayers. God this is what You said, in Jeremiah 33:3, Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.

I've been on my knees many a time saying, God, You said it in Your book, if I call upon You, You will answer me and show me great and mighty things, even beyond my imagination. God that's Your word; that's what You promised, and this is what I'm asking for if it's in accordance with Your will.

Jeremiah prayed earnestly. He took God's words from the Scriptures and he quoted them back to God, and said God, You are not a person who lies. You will always fulfill Your word. So ladies and gentlemen, in order to be a powerful Christian you must know your Bible. You must read it constantly as frequently as you can and tuck those words away in your heart, and then when it comes time for prayer it says Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against Thee.

It's the word of God dwelling in our heart, knowing what God has said, gives us the strength and power to ward off temptation. Thy word I a hide in my heart that I might not sin against You. He was a man of prayer. You'll find that throughout all the Scriptures those who accomplish great things for God were mighty men of prayer. It's so important that you establish that. Some of you are new in your Christian walk -- find that time in your day where you can just be with God and His word, just saturate your being and your mind with the word of God, then pray those words back to Him in your prayers. It's so important.

Number 2, you'll notice he said as the Lord God liveth as before whom I stand. The second secret I think to Elijah's successful life and his power with God, he lived with a constant awareness of God's presence. His heart's desire was always to be in fellowship with God. God was a divine reality to Him. And wherever he was, wherever he went, he believed with all of his heart that God was with him, that God was observing, that God was listening, that God was ever present. Before whom I stand, he said, the Lord God, that Lord is my God.

You know there's a marvelous little book that's written, 'Practicing the Presence of God', and it is a marvelous book that helps you, that directs you, that everything you do, every thought, every word that you say, you do it realizing that God is listening. He's there, and our prayer is that we will always honor Him in everything we do and everything we say.

There's another little book. I think it's entitled, 'In His Steps'. It was written by a man who established this habit in all that he did in life; whatever it was. If it was a situation he always asked himself the question, what would Jesus do? If an issue came up, a possibility of a controversy, the question went through his mind, what would Jesus do? What would Jesus do? And he lived his entire day responding to life's situations and whatever it might be asking and answering the question, Jesus, how would You handle this? What would You do?

And I believe that Elijah lived that kind of the life. God, I want every step that I take, every word that I say, every deed that I do, every thought that I think, I want it to be acceptable to You dear God before whom I stand, in whose presence I always exist.

When you live with a keen sense of God's presence, it totally changes how you respond to life. Elijah said, God, I'm ever in Your presence. There are no closets, there is no darkness, there is no place to hide from God. He's always there.

As a little boy my mother taught us a little song -- My Lord is watching all the time, time, time whatever you do. I forget the words, but that little chorus drilled into my mind and my little heart, God, I never can get away from Your presence. I've never going to be able to hide anything from You. I always live and You observe everything about me. Elijah lived that way, moment by moment. I'm living in God's presence.

And then there's one other thing that reveals part of his faith. He said before the Lord God that liveth. To him God was a reality. He was not some deity tucked away in books. He was not something you read about in the Bible. To him God was a reality. Always there to assist, always there to help; as the Lord God liveth. He's just as much with me through my joys as He is with me through my trials. He's with me through my tears, my sadness; He's always there. He liveth, and He never will depart from me. He will never forsake me. He's mine.

When I really believe that God is for real, that He's not just an idea, that He's not just something that people say that they worship; He's my God and He's alive, and He listens, and He's deeply interested in me. He's alive. And old Elijah could stand there before that king and say, As the Lord God is alive, and this is what He has said, and upon the authority of what He said I take my stand.

You see, ladies and gentlemen, the reason why I like this story is not only does it show the powerful side of Elijah, but it shows his humanness just like us. He was a man just like us. There are moments when after God has been so good to us we run from God's presence. Now pause with me just for a moment and think, if Elijah when he heard that Jezebel was going to get him said, the God that lives is the same God that I just prayed and brought down fire from heaven, let her come -- if he would have stuck to his chores of serving God as a prophet and not run, that could've been a moment for a glorious return of a nation back to God.

God has always brought them to their knees, fire has flashed out of heaven, and Elijah has prayed that prayer, and they've already said...they were on their faces saying, the Lord is God, the Lord is God. They're ready for a revival. They're ready to come back to God. And what does their leader do? He runs off to the desert and leaves a nation floundering without spiritual leadership. He finds himself in a cave, and can't you feel the pathos of God. After God has answered his prayer, bought the little boy back to life, fed him with the ravens, brought down fire from heaven, gave him strength to outrun the horses -- God said, what are you doing here? What are you doing here?

You know I think in life there are times we could become discouraged and seem to walk away from all that God has done for us, and I think God...if we could hear His voice he would say, why are you here? Have you forgotten what I've been doing for you? You see discouragement momentarily often takes our eyes off of our source of strength and the one who's been with us all the time. And I always feel bad about the story because it ends the way it does, but look at the mercy of God. He knows that Elijah has failed and run off from his duties. God had to fire him. Elijah had to anoint his successor, but look at the mercy of God.

It's time to bring old Elijah home folks, and He orders all the chariots of heaven and horses of fire and says go down there and pick up that prophet. Can't you see old Elisha and Elijah walking along and talking (whoosh) here comes that chariot of fire and Elijah is on -- off to heaven he goes. That's the mercy and that's the grace of a wonderful God. We'll sometimes fail Him and leave our posts of duty, fall short by discouragement, but the promise is this -- He will never leave us nor forsake us. And the end of the story is a man just like you and me got carried to heaven in a chariot of fire. Isn't that a story?

You know, I've often thought they have done stories on Joseph, they have done movies on all these folks of the Old Testament, but I have yet to see them do a good movie on Elijah. I think that would jam every theater in town. It's a tremendous story. It's the story of a man who prayed, God heard, and a man who ran when he could have really brought great blessing to his nation. He's a man just like you and me.

Lord Jesus, we read these stories and I'm so very grateful that they bring out not only the strengths, but also the weaknesses. Elijah was just like us, a man with equal passions, and concerns, and failures. You used him mightily as You will use us when we walk ever aware of Your eternal presence in our lives with us. But as soon as we cast our eyes upon the circumstances around us and lose that divine focus, we can run too, and we often do. We run into the paths of discouragement, and in those paths of discouragement we sometimes fail You. Our strength is gone.

Father, please help us at least to establish some of those qualities in our life that Elijah establish. Make us men and women of prayer; men and women who live our lives with an awareness of Your presence always with us. And with the knowledge that You're the Almighty God, that You never change. You can do anything You want to do in heaven and earth. You live and You are alive. Thank you for this story. Thank you for its truths. In Jesus' name I pray...amen. God bless you folks. God bless you.