1
00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:02,840
Well, with all of that being 
said, it's such a joy to see you

2
00:00:02,840 --> 00:00:05,480
here tonight. 
Meet me in the precious, 

3
00:00:05,480 --> 00:00:10,680
glorious Word of God in the book
of First Kings, chapter 19. 

4
00:00:13,360 --> 00:00:19,800
Last week, the object of our 
study was a dejected, downcast 

5
00:00:20,160 --> 00:00:26,120
prophet of God by the name of 
Elijah, and he will continue to 

6
00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:28,400
be the focus of our study 
tonight. 

7
00:00:28,960 --> 00:00:36,680
But what was really the frame of
our study was considering the 

8
00:00:36,680 --> 00:00:41,800
factors that caused Elijah to 
experience and undergo spiritual

9
00:00:41,800 --> 00:00:44,800
depression. 
Not that these things are the 

10
00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:49,640
only things that can cause us to
be driven into despair, but they

11
00:00:49,640 --> 00:00:54,080
are pretty significant 
contributors to it. 

12
00:00:54,640 --> 00:00:59,200
And there were four things that 
we received from Elijah's story.

13
00:00:59,440 --> 00:01:03,000
And I want to ask you, because 
it's good to repeat these things

14
00:01:03,000 --> 00:01:06,000
and recall these things so that 
they can be embedded in our 

15
00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:09,640
memory and in our hearts. 
Don't answer all four, but let's

16
00:01:09,640 --> 00:01:12,680
cover all four. 
Can you tell me one of the four 

17
00:01:12,680 --> 00:01:15,280
things? 
And another person will mention 

18
00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:19,720
another one, the four things 
that Elijah experienced that 

19
00:01:19,720 --> 00:01:24,400
caused him to abandon his post 
as a prophet and to wander into 

20
00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,080
the wilderness. 
I'm genuinely asking. 

21
00:01:27,080 --> 00:01:32,960
This isn't rhetorical. 
He number one, he lost sight of 

22
00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:38,360
who God was and instead he he 
looked at Jezebel and heard 

23
00:01:38,360 --> 00:01:42,920
Jezebel and then that caused 
them to obviously crumble. 

24
00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:44,520
Yes, he lost sight of who God 
was. 

25
00:01:44,520 --> 00:01:49,280
Unlike Moses who did not fear 
the anger of the king because he

26
00:01:49,280 --> 00:01:51,920
endured as seeing him who is 
invisible. 

27
00:01:52,440 --> 00:02:00,960
What a contrast yes #2 he was 
what OK, yes, so he was 

28
00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:03,160
discouraged. 
That was, you could say a sub 

29
00:02:03,160 --> 00:02:05,720
point. 
He was pessimistic. 

30
00:02:05,720 --> 00:02:09,400
Remember we that was the Third 
Point that he always looked at 

31
00:02:09,600 --> 00:02:11,520
the negative at least in this 
moment. 

32
00:02:11,520 --> 00:02:13,160
He looked at what wasn't 
happening. 

33
00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:15,600
He looked at the worst outcome 
instead of considering what God 

34
00:02:15,600 --> 00:02:17,640
had done. 
And if you have a tendency of 

35
00:02:17,640 --> 00:02:22,120
being pessimistic, you also will
know a frequent cycles of 

36
00:02:22,440 --> 00:02:24,800
discouragement that can really 
debilitate you. 

37
00:02:24,800 --> 00:02:29,680
Yes, that's the Third Point. 
We have two more huge one that 

38
00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:33,040
we often don't consider 
concerning Elijah's testimony of

39
00:02:33,040 --> 00:02:36,200
this low point of his life. 
He separated from community. 

40
00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:37,880
And how did he do that in his 
case? 

41
00:02:38,640 --> 00:02:40,240
How did he separate yourself 
from community? 

42
00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:42,280
Who did he leave behind when he 
ran away? 

43
00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:44,000
His servant. 
His servant. 

44
00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:46,720
He left his servant behind. 
The Spirit included that for a 

45
00:02:46,720 --> 00:02:48,000
reason. 
What we're going to discover 

46
00:02:48,000 --> 00:02:50,840
today is that God's going to 
bring somebody new in Elijah's 

47
00:02:50,840 --> 00:02:54,920
life. 
OK, one more very good. 

48
00:02:54,920 --> 00:02:59,720
There was neglect, neglect of 
the needs of the body and, and 

49
00:02:59,720 --> 00:03:04,480
this is talking about sheer 
exhaustion, him ignoring the 

50
00:03:04,480 --> 00:03:08,080
basic necessities that would 
keep anybody going. 

51
00:03:08,080 --> 00:03:11,080
And that was something that we 
also agreed in terms of 

52
00:03:11,080 --> 00:03:15,760
overlooking what can cause us to
be confused and foggy in our 

53
00:03:15,760 --> 00:03:19,960
minds and foiled in many cases 
with our faith. 

54
00:03:20,440 --> 00:03:22,720
So that's what we looked at. 
But what we have to also 

55
00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:26,160
consider is where we ended is 
that God dealt with that final 

56
00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:28,840
cause, the one that dealt with 
Elijah's body, did he not? 

57
00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:33,200
And he did so by personally 
attending to this man's needs, 

58
00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:37,600
by coming with some sort of room
service almost. 

59
00:03:38,080 --> 00:03:43,360
He grants him nutrition, 
hydration, and patiently allows 

60
00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:49,200
him to sleep with his weary head
in that wilderness. 

61
00:03:49,840 --> 00:03:54,040
But that is not the extent of 
this mercy that we enjoyed last 

62
00:03:54,040 --> 00:03:56,600
Friday. 
God is going to continue to 

63
00:03:56,600 --> 00:03:59,960
overflow in His mercies toward 
His servant by positioning him 

64
00:03:59,960 --> 00:04:03,400
in a way in which he's going to 
receive more relief so that he 

65
00:04:03,400 --> 00:04:05,800
can know a more complete 
restoration. 

66
00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:09,320
Because dealing with the needs 
of the body is not enough. 

67
00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:14,080
So you have some people who 
overemphasize what we need to do

68
00:04:14,080 --> 00:04:17,399
with this flesh and they neglect
the spiritual. 

69
00:04:18,279 --> 00:04:24,120
And you have others who are so 
consumed with the spiritual that

70
00:04:24,120 --> 00:04:26,400
they neglect the fact that they 
are a body. 

71
00:04:26,400 --> 00:04:29,200
And this is the vehicle that 
carries the spiritual activities

72
00:04:29,200 --> 00:04:30,840
and experiences that we ought to
have. 

73
00:04:31,560 --> 00:04:35,080
So now the Lord is going to deal
with those first three issues 

74
00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:38,560
that have not been touched on 
yet in the rest of this chapter.

75
00:04:39,120 --> 00:04:43,480
And this is important for us to 
consider because it's going to 

76
00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:46,000
show God's heart. 
It's going to show God's heart 

77
00:04:46,000 --> 00:04:49,480
for this man and wanting to see 
him be as efficient as possible,

78
00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:52,600
as healed as possible, as 
restored as possible. 

79
00:04:52,600 --> 00:04:54,440
And it's all going to begin here
in verse 8. 

80
00:04:54,440 --> 00:05:01,720
Let's look at verse 8 together. 
And he arose and ate and drank 

81
00:05:01,720 --> 00:05:07,280
and went in the strength of that
food, 40 days and 40 nights to 

82
00:05:07,280 --> 00:05:11,040
Horeb, the mount of God. 
There he came to a cave and 

83
00:05:11,040 --> 00:05:13,240
lodged in it. 
And behold, the word of the Lord

84
00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:17,160
came to him, and he said to him,
What are you doing here, Elijah?

85
00:05:18,240 --> 00:05:20,800
He said, I have been very 
jealous for the Lord, the God of

86
00:05:20,800 --> 00:05:24,080
hosts, for the people of Israel 
have forsaken your covenant, 

87
00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:26,880
thrown down your altars, and 
killed your prophets with the 

88
00:05:26,880 --> 00:05:29,800
sword. 
And I even I only am left, and 

89
00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:31,760
they seek my life to take it 
away. 

90
00:05:32,680 --> 00:05:36,800
And he said, Go out, and stand 
on the mount before the Lord. 

91
00:05:37,360 --> 00:05:43,000
And behold, the Lord passed by, 
and a great and strong wind tore

92
00:05:43,000 --> 00:05:45,800
the mountains, and broke in 
pieces the rocks before the 

93
00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:47,720
Lord. 
But the Lord was not in the 

94
00:05:47,720 --> 00:05:50,120
wind. 
And after the wind and 

95
00:05:50,120 --> 00:05:52,800
earthquake, but the Lord was not
in the earthquake. 

96
00:05:53,240 --> 00:05:55,920
And after the earthquake a fire,
but the Lord was not in the 

97
00:05:55,920 --> 00:06:02,320
fire, and after the fire the 
sound of a low whisper. 

98
00:06:03,880 --> 00:06:06,800
Lord, we believe this is Your 
word, and we believe that we 

99
00:06:06,800 --> 00:06:10,480
cannot unpack and know the 
fullness of it, lest You help us

100
00:06:10,480 --> 00:06:14,360
by the Spirit. 
We invoke the Spirit to come to 

101
00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:18,440
our aid now and to help us 
receive all that You have 

102
00:06:18,440 --> 00:06:21,120
intended to say through this 
portion of Scripture. 

103
00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:24,080
We pray these things in the 
precious name of the 

104
00:06:24,080 --> 00:06:27,720
intercessor, the great high 
priest, the one who is fighting 

105
00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:30,600
for us every day. 
Amen and Amen. 

106
00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:38,280
Verse 8, this is in connection 
to the fact that Elijah received

107
00:06:38,280 --> 00:06:41,600
a couple of meals from the Angel
of the Lord, and we're told the 

108
00:06:41,600 --> 00:06:47,880
effect of that food, it was able
to energize him for 40 days and 

109
00:06:47,880 --> 00:06:52,120
40 nights. 
And we can consider the 

110
00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,760
supernatural ingredients of 
this, We can look into how that 

111
00:06:55,760 --> 00:06:59,520
is, but I don't want us to be 
too focused on what this food 

112
00:06:59,520 --> 00:07:04,640
was more than I want to connect 
what this food did in terms of 

113
00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:10,400
his journey, the length of his 
journey, and the location of his

114
00:07:10,400 --> 00:07:14,440
journey. 
So we see here that it was 40 

115
00:07:14,440 --> 00:07:18,560
days and 40 nights that he was 
able to walk into a certain 

116
00:07:18,560 --> 00:07:20,760
direction, the Mount of God, the
Mount of Orb. 

117
00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:23,840
Now, if you are a student of the
Hebrew Scriptures, then those 

118
00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:29,240
two components should ring a 
bell. 40 in a wilderness, 40 

119
00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:35,080
days or just the number 40 and 
mount of God, namely Horeb. 

120
00:07:35,080 --> 00:07:44,200
What should come to mind? 
Moses, Just Moses, The 

121
00:07:44,200 --> 00:07:46,160
Israelites. 
Give me give me more specific. 

122
00:07:46,160 --> 00:07:47,920
What about them? 
You're saying Moses and Hebrews?

123
00:07:47,920 --> 00:07:50,400
That's a lot of things. 
What specifically what other 

124
00:07:50,400 --> 00:07:54,040
journeys does this connect to, 
at least thematically? 

125
00:07:54,720 --> 00:07:55,880
The Exodus. 
Thank you. 

126
00:07:56,360 --> 00:08:02,400
The Exodus, how Horeb was the 
destination immediately after 

127
00:08:02,400 --> 00:08:07,240
the Exodus being delivered from 
Egypt, but not just that, the 

128
00:08:07,240 --> 00:08:12,160
same mount of God was the place 
where the people arrived after 

129
00:08:12,160 --> 00:08:15,040
40 years of wandering in the 
wilderness because of their 

130
00:08:15,040 --> 00:08:19,360
disobedience and unbelief. 
And so this, this is supposed 

131
00:08:19,360 --> 00:08:23,760
to, yes, call to remembrance a 
different journey, one that was 

132
00:08:24,160 --> 00:08:26,720
monumental to the history of 
this people. 

133
00:08:27,800 --> 00:08:32,760
And it makes you wonder if that 
crossed Elijah's mind as he was 

134
00:08:32,760 --> 00:08:38,000
walking on his feet for 40 days 
and 40 nights towards the same 

135
00:08:38,000 --> 00:08:41,200
place in which God manifested 
his power and his glory. 

136
00:08:42,480 --> 00:08:45,520
And whether or not it did, we 
should believe that this was the

137
00:08:45,520 --> 00:08:49,760
intent providentially of this 
journey and the location. 

138
00:08:50,920 --> 00:08:53,680
What was Elijah's problem at 
this point? 

139
00:08:53,840 --> 00:08:56,240
We mentioned that he lost sight 
of who God was. 

140
00:08:57,000 --> 00:09:02,280
He lost sight of who God was and
even in this, could it be that 

141
00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:05,520
the Lord in his Providence is 
leading his servant to retrace, 

142
00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:10,920
retrace the steps of the Lord 
That as Elijah's walking day and

143
00:09:10,920 --> 00:09:14,600
night for this duration of time,
going to where everything really

144
00:09:14,600 --> 00:09:17,400
started for the people in terms 
of their covenant with the Lord.

145
00:09:18,360 --> 00:09:23,200
That the same God who delivered 
Israel from slavery, the same 

146
00:09:23,200 --> 00:09:26,960
God who was able to faithfully 
bring a very stubborn people 

147
00:09:26,960 --> 00:09:30,920
into the promised land is the 
same God who Elijah is serving 

148
00:09:30,920 --> 00:09:34,560
today. 
In other words, it's as though 

149
00:09:34,560 --> 00:09:40,960
Elijah is walking down memory 
lane and he's supposed to recall

150
00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:46,480
God has dealt with this stiff 
necked people at one time and 

151
00:09:46,480 --> 00:09:50,680
God came out victorious. 
This is the same God whom I 

152
00:09:50,680 --> 00:09:52,240
serve. 
You would hope that's where 

153
00:09:52,240 --> 00:09:55,600
Elijah would arrive and his 
thinking and in his belief. 

154
00:09:56,760 --> 00:10:01,040
And to even add to this theme, 
what happened during those 40 

155
00:10:01,040 --> 00:10:02,720
years in terms of the people's 
sustenance? 

156
00:10:02,720 --> 00:10:07,040
Were they taken care of by God? 
Did they receive daily food and 

157
00:10:07,040 --> 00:10:09,080
drink? 
Yeah, God took care of them 

158
00:10:09,080 --> 00:10:12,240
supernaturally, just like Elijah
was being taken care of for 40 

159
00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:16,960
days and 40 nights. 
So I'm convinced that this is 

160
00:10:16,960 --> 00:10:20,880
what providentially the Lord is 
trying to awaken Elijah to. 

161
00:10:21,400 --> 00:10:26,480
But on the negative side here is
Elijah reflecting the 

162
00:10:26,480 --> 00:10:29,640
unbelieving people of Israel by 
wandering in the wilderness for 

163
00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:33,920
this duration of time as well. 
So yes, God is the God of Israel

164
00:10:33,920 --> 00:10:37,960
who is able to bring a very 
vacillating people to where He 

165
00:10:37,960 --> 00:10:42,680
wanted him to go. 
But Elijah also is mirroring the

166
00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:46,520
weak faith of the people of 
Israel now individually 

167
00:10:47,320 --> 00:10:53,200
wandering in the wilderness. 
And we now continue to read that

168
00:10:53,240 --> 00:11:00,960
as he arrives to this location, 
he makes his home in a cave in a

169
00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:06,360
murky hole, and it took him 40 
days and 40 nights to get there.

170
00:11:06,360 --> 00:11:10,200
If you actually look at a map of
this time, it shouldn't have 

171
00:11:10,200 --> 00:11:15,120
taken that long. 
But on a practical note, isn't 

172
00:11:15,120 --> 00:11:16,920
it amazing? 
I mean, think about 40 days. 

173
00:11:16,920 --> 00:11:22,360
Imagine some of us don't enjoy 
walking for 40 minutes, 40 days 

174
00:11:22,360 --> 00:11:25,080
and 40 nights. 
And when he comes to this place,

175
00:11:25,080 --> 00:11:26,840
the Lord is going to counsel 
him. 

176
00:11:27,560 --> 00:11:29,480
You know what this duration of 
time also tells us? 

177
00:11:30,760 --> 00:11:32,280
It tells us something about the 
heart of God. 

178
00:11:33,360 --> 00:11:35,320
God is very patient and 
restoring us. 

179
00:11:37,120 --> 00:11:42,040
He's very patient and reeling us
back in and instructing us and 

180
00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,200
teaching us and chiseling us and
cleansing us. 

181
00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:48,880
And this is also a reminder that
things don't turn over so 

182
00:11:48,880 --> 00:11:52,440
quickly for us either that we 
are slow to get it. 

183
00:11:53,680 --> 00:11:57,560
And if you think it was slow in 
these four, it's only Elijah's 

184
00:11:57,560 --> 00:11:59,920
not going to get it, even in 
this conversation with God. 

185
00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:05,440
So he comes and the Lord asked 
him this very penetrating 

186
00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:08,280
question, but I believe it was 
done so gently. 

187
00:12:08,880 --> 00:12:13,200
He asked them, what are you 
doing here, Elijah? 

188
00:12:15,200 --> 00:12:18,600
Whenever God asks a question, I 
am 100% convinced it's not 

189
00:12:18,600 --> 00:12:21,280
because he lacks an answer. 
And you should be convinced of 

190
00:12:21,280 --> 00:12:25,120
that as well. 
The question was meant for 

191
00:12:25,400 --> 00:12:28,640
Elijah to arrive to an answer 
that he has not gotten yet. 

192
00:12:30,080 --> 00:12:33,320
And so he says, what are you 
doing here Elijah? 

193
00:12:34,440 --> 00:12:38,000
Implying what? 
That Elijah was not supposed to 

194
00:12:38,000 --> 00:12:41,680
be where he was? 
What are you doing here? 

195
00:12:42,880 --> 00:12:45,840
And the Lord wanted his servant 
to realize that for himself. 

196
00:12:47,040 --> 00:12:50,320
So you see Elijah's fear and you
know these other underlying 

197
00:12:50,320 --> 00:12:54,840
failures encourage him to 
abandon his duty as a messenger 

198
00:12:54,840 --> 00:12:58,120
of God. 
The hand of the Lord came upon 

199
00:12:58,120 --> 00:13:03,040
Elijah so he can be driven to 
Jezreel and he was not meant to 

200
00:13:03,040 --> 00:13:06,200
leave. 
Their revival technically just 

201
00:13:06,200 --> 00:13:08,240
broke out. 
You would think that a people 

202
00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:11,480
have been revived, need further 
instruction and guidance, 

203
00:13:11,560 --> 00:13:16,840
certainly because of one moment 
coupled with many other issues 

204
00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:18,880
that caused that one moment to 
be bigger than what it was 

205
00:13:18,880 --> 00:13:22,320
supposed to be. 
Elijah left a people who needed 

206
00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:24,360
him and now he's wallowing in 
self pity. 

207
00:13:24,560 --> 00:13:28,600
What are you doing here, Elijah?
What are you doing here, Elijah?

208
00:13:29,680 --> 00:13:31,840
And you know what? 
It would do us all good from 

209
00:13:31,840 --> 00:13:35,920
time to time to pause and ask 
ourselves that question and 

210
00:13:35,920 --> 00:13:37,880
maybe ask somebody that you love
that question. 

211
00:13:41,280 --> 00:13:46,360
One of my favorite reflections 
and challenging verses for 

212
00:13:46,360 --> 00:13:49,760
myself at least. 
You're more than welcome to use 

213
00:13:49,760 --> 00:13:54,560
it for your own walk. 
About where I am in my walk with

214
00:13:54,560 --> 00:13:58,600
the Lord is the last verse of 
Psalm 73. 

215
00:13:59,720 --> 00:14:01,400
I've mentioned this to you 
before. 

216
00:14:01,520 --> 00:14:03,720
I think it's a question that you
and I can ask every week. 

217
00:14:05,600 --> 00:14:10,480
This is what Asaph says about 
himself and Psalm 73, verse 28. 

218
00:14:11,440 --> 00:14:20,680
But for me it is good to be 
where he didn't say it's good 

219
00:14:20,680 --> 00:14:24,480
for me to be in the temple, He 
didn't say it's good for me to 

220
00:14:24,480 --> 00:14:26,920
be around believers. 
Those are all wonderful things 

221
00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:30,480
he said. 
But for me it is good to be near

222
00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:33,720
God. 
You know, that implies you can 

223
00:14:33,720 --> 00:14:35,400
believe in God and not be near 
him. 

224
00:14:39,400 --> 00:14:43,040
Did Elijah love the Lord? 
He loved the Lord, he loved the 

225
00:14:43,040 --> 00:14:44,400
Lord. 
He's about to answer in a moment

226
00:14:44,400 --> 00:14:46,960
saying, I've been very jealous 
for the Lord, the God of hosts. 

227
00:14:50,000 --> 00:14:54,480
But even men of such caliber, 
Asaph, who wrote this Psalm was 

228
00:14:54,480 --> 00:14:58,160
a worship leader in the temple. 
By the way, hey, worship team or

229
00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:01,120
praise team, you know, it's 
possible to sing and not be near

230
00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:04,800
God. 
It's possible for me to preach 

231
00:15:04,800 --> 00:15:08,280
and not be near God. 
Just because you have a position

232
00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:12,040
or a gift does not automatically
promise close fellowship with 

233
00:15:12,040 --> 00:15:16,240
the Lord. 
What are you doing here, Elijah?

234
00:15:19,000 --> 00:15:22,720
From time to time, pause and ask
yourself, am I near God? 

235
00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:26,520
And if I'm not near God, you 
know yourself better than 

236
00:15:26,520 --> 00:15:29,720
anyone. 
Why am I not near God? 

237
00:15:31,200 --> 00:15:33,480
Because that's what God wants to
get to with Elijah. 

238
00:15:33,800 --> 00:15:36,640
What are you doing here? 
Let's let's unpack what brought 

239
00:15:36,640 --> 00:15:38,640
you to this point. 
Because you're not supposed to 

240
00:15:38,640 --> 00:15:41,120
be here. 
So now why am I not? 

241
00:15:41,800 --> 00:15:45,480
Why am I not? 
Why am I finding myself sipping 

242
00:15:45,480 --> 00:15:50,800
from other cisterns more than 
the well of life? 

243
00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:54,640
Why am I getting more 
comfortable warming myself 

244
00:15:54,640 --> 00:15:58,880
around worldly charcoal fires 
like Peter did on the night of 

245
00:15:58,880 --> 00:16:02,120
Christ's betrayal? 
Why, why, why am I here? 

246
00:16:04,360 --> 00:16:07,200
Why? 
Why do I find myself at one 

247
00:16:07,200 --> 00:16:09,800
point this, what I'm watching 
would have been repulsive and 

248
00:16:09,800 --> 00:16:12,560
offensive. 
Now I'm enjoying why? 

249
00:16:13,680 --> 00:16:17,160
Why am I distancing myself where
at one point you couldn't 

250
00:16:17,160 --> 00:16:19,200
convince me otherwise to not go 
to the House of God on the 

251
00:16:19,200 --> 00:16:21,840
Lord's day? 
But why am I more and more now 

252
00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:25,800
inclined and getting comfortable
and even finding excuses to not 

253
00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:26,560
go? 
Why? 

254
00:16:27,040 --> 00:16:31,600
What am I doing here? 
And I hope you have friends and 

255
00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:33,600
I hope you have leaders in your 
life that are willing from time 

256
00:16:33,600 --> 00:16:35,680
to time to ask that question 
when it's necessary. 

257
00:16:35,880 --> 00:16:38,440
What are you doing? 
Why are you doing what you're 

258
00:16:38,440 --> 00:16:41,920
doing? 
Hey, you want to know God? 

259
00:16:41,920 --> 00:16:44,560
Here's God. 
This is the mind of God. 

260
00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:51,000
To ask this question is 
sanctifying, and it's very safe.

261
00:16:51,360 --> 00:16:53,040
And he's not going to just ask 
it once. 

262
00:16:54,000 --> 00:16:56,280
So he asks him, what are you 
doing here, Elijah? 

263
00:16:56,280 --> 00:16:59,080
And here's the answer. 
I've been very jealous for the 

264
00:16:59,080 --> 00:17:04,040
Lord, the God of hosts, for the 
people of Israel have forsaken 

265
00:17:04,040 --> 00:17:07,440
your covenant, thrown down your 
altars and killed your prophets 

266
00:17:07,440 --> 00:17:10,880
with the sword. 
And I even I only am left and 

267
00:17:10,880 --> 00:17:13,359
they seek my life to take it 
away. 

268
00:17:15,160 --> 00:17:18,880
So in his confession about his 
condition, notice that Elijah 

269
00:17:20,920 --> 00:17:24,880
admits his love for the Lord 
says I've been very not just 

270
00:17:24,880 --> 00:17:27,920
jealous, very jealous for the 
Lord, the God of hosts. 

271
00:17:28,880 --> 00:17:33,480
So this admission does not 
showcase that Elijah was weak in

272
00:17:33,480 --> 00:17:36,560
terms of how he felt about the 
Lord, necessarily about his 

273
00:17:36,560 --> 00:17:39,240
conviction about who God is and 
what he's deserved. 

274
00:17:39,440 --> 00:17:43,040
But what it does reveal is that 
there was this appointment in 

275
00:17:43,040 --> 00:17:48,720
his love for the Lord. 
It's possible to really love the

276
00:17:48,720 --> 00:17:52,240
Lord, give everything to serve 
the Lord, and no disappointment 

277
00:17:52,240 --> 00:17:56,200
in that. 
And that's certainly true for 

278
00:17:56,200 --> 00:17:59,200
this man of God. 
And what's really the gist of 

279
00:17:59,200 --> 00:18:01,240
it? 
He felt as though his efforts 

280
00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:04,120
and his stance availed to 
nothing. 

281
00:18:05,640 --> 00:18:08,240
Because he says what? 
I've been jealous and the people

282
00:18:08,240 --> 00:18:10,080
have forsaken your covenant, 
thrown down your altars. 

283
00:18:10,080 --> 00:18:11,520
And guess what? 
They want to kill me. 

284
00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:17,400
They want to kill me. 
And listen, although you and I 

285
00:18:17,400 --> 00:18:20,000
can appreciate a line just 
honestly here and applaud him 

286
00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:23,520
for spilling out his soul. 
What he's saying is that 

287
00:18:23,520 --> 00:18:24,720
entirely true? 
Is it? 

288
00:18:25,120 --> 00:18:26,800
What are some things that are 
not true? 

289
00:18:26,840 --> 00:18:28,880
I just response to the Lord's 
question. 

290
00:18:28,880 --> 00:18:33,960
Yes, I'm the only servant of God
in all of Israel. 

291
00:18:35,640 --> 00:18:37,760
You know, sometimes it feels 
like that when you serve God, 

292
00:18:39,280 --> 00:18:41,200
but that's not true. 
He's about to discover that's 

293
00:18:41,200 --> 00:18:43,400
not the case at all. 
What else? 

294
00:18:44,040 --> 00:18:45,200
There's one one other thing, 
the. 

295
00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:49,400
People didn't seem to destroy 
him. 

296
00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:53,440
That's right. 
So he exaggerates the enmity 

297
00:18:53,440 --> 00:18:55,720
that he was supposedly 
experiencing. 

298
00:18:56,200 --> 00:19:00,680
It was Ahab, mainly Jezebel, who
called for his death. 

299
00:19:00,880 --> 00:19:04,960
But notice how he explains it. 
It says here for the people of 

300
00:19:04,960 --> 00:19:07,000
Israel, I have forsaken your 
covenant, thrown on your altars 

301
00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:09,640
and killed your prophets. 
And I even I only am left for 

302
00:19:09,640 --> 00:19:12,640
they and they seek my life. 
Who's the they, the people of 

303
00:19:12,640 --> 00:19:14,080
Israel? 
Was that the case? 

304
00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:17,840
The people of Israel weren't 
seeking for his life. 

305
00:19:19,760 --> 00:19:23,200
This one. 
Person you know one of the 

306
00:19:23,200 --> 00:19:28,120
common outcomes this is so 
important to to grab a hold of. 

307
00:19:28,680 --> 00:19:35,200
One of the most common outcomes 
of entertaining despondency and 

308
00:19:35,200 --> 00:19:39,920
a downcast spirit is that it has
a way of convincingly 

309
00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:44,880
exaggerating the disappointments
that wounded you to begin with 

310
00:19:47,680 --> 00:19:48,880
you. 
You hear it all the time and 

311
00:19:48,880 --> 00:19:50,120
perhaps you don't even realize 
it. 

312
00:19:52,000 --> 00:19:55,040
So you have a family who's been 
hurt by the church or church 

313
00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:58,640
that they were involved with, 
served with, served in, and 

314
00:19:58,640 --> 00:20:02,040
because of that hurt, what 
happens all churches now. 

315
00:20:03,440 --> 00:20:05,400
Are. 
Problems not to be trusted. 

316
00:20:07,640 --> 00:20:10,040
You have one sour experience 
with a Christian or a few 

317
00:20:10,040 --> 00:20:15,080
Christians. 
All Christians are like this and

318
00:20:15,080 --> 00:20:18,640
so many other examples. 
How disappointment when it 

319
00:20:18,640 --> 00:20:22,840
simmers has a tendency for us to
exaggerate the problem. 

320
00:20:24,560 --> 00:20:27,360
And if it's not challenged by 
people in your life who love you

321
00:20:27,360 --> 00:20:30,920
enough to say that's not the 
case of the bride of Christ, 

322
00:20:32,360 --> 00:20:34,240
that's not the case of how 
ministry is. 

323
00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:36,960
That's not the case of how 
leaders in the church are like. 

324
00:20:37,120 --> 00:20:39,040
Yes, it might be true of some, 
but that's not the case. 

325
00:20:39,200 --> 00:20:42,960
As a general description or 
experience, that's not the case.

326
00:20:43,800 --> 00:20:46,360
And with that, if you don't have
God's objective truth and 

327
00:20:46,360 --> 00:20:49,040
standard and commands, and it'll
be and promises and warnings 

328
00:20:49,040 --> 00:20:52,280
ever before you, then you will 
be a victim of this kind of 

329
00:20:52,280 --> 00:20:55,560
thinking. 
And it will be even more 

330
00:20:55,560 --> 00:20:57,240
paralyzing the more you stay 
there. 

331
00:20:59,000 --> 00:21:00,600
So we see that with this man of 
God. 

332
00:21:00,600 --> 00:21:04,120
It's amazing how the Bible 
unravels the way we think in 

333
00:21:04,120 --> 00:21:07,880
these stories and what's 
possible for us in those 

334
00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:11,320
seasons. 
So we see here that the Lord is 

335
00:21:11,320 --> 00:21:14,360
going to counsel him and the 
Lord is going to unpack 

336
00:21:14,360 --> 00:21:17,360
something for him. 
And how is he going to do that? 

337
00:21:18,480 --> 00:21:20,440
Elijah doesn't entirely answer 
the question. 

338
00:21:20,440 --> 00:21:23,720
He just kind of talks about why 
he is feeling the way he's 

339
00:21:23,720 --> 00:21:26,320
feeling. 
But look what the Lord patiently

340
00:21:26,320 --> 00:21:29,240
does in verse 11. 
And he said, go out and stand on

341
00:21:29,240 --> 00:21:33,360
the mount before the Lord and 
behold, the Lord passed by. 

342
00:21:34,400 --> 00:21:37,640
Reread verse 11 with me the 
first part and tell me if it 

343
00:21:37,640 --> 00:21:41,840
sounds familiar. 
And he said, go out and stand on

344
00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:46,560
the mount before the Lord. 
Stand before the Lord. 

345
00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:49,600
That's what he's asking Elijah 
to do. 

346
00:21:50,080 --> 00:21:51,960
Elijah, come out and stand 
before the Lord. 

347
00:21:53,000 --> 00:21:55,520
By the way, just an interesting,
I'm just going to throw this at 

348
00:21:55,520 --> 00:21:56,480
you and I'm going to come right 
back. 

349
00:21:56,480 --> 00:21:57,280
OK? 
Can I do that? 

350
00:21:58,480 --> 00:22:00,520
All right, Look again at verse 
nine. 

351
00:22:01,680 --> 00:22:03,600
There he came to a cave and 
lodged in it. 

352
00:22:03,600 --> 00:22:05,920
And behold, the word of the Lord
came to him. 

353
00:22:05,920 --> 00:22:10,160
And he said to him, I just think
that's interesting. 

354
00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:14,080
OK, I'm coming back now. 
So now you come here to verse 11

355
00:22:14,280 --> 00:22:16,960
and he said, go out and stand on
the mount before the Lord and 

356
00:22:16,960 --> 00:22:22,400
behold, the Lord passed by. 
Do you remember how Elijah was 

357
00:22:22,400 --> 00:22:26,040
introduced to us in our study of
this man of God? 

358
00:22:26,520 --> 00:22:28,520
Go back to first Kings 17 verse 
one. 

359
00:22:33,970 --> 00:22:37,210
Now Elijah, the Tishbite of 
Tishbi and Gilead said to Ahab, 

360
00:22:37,210 --> 00:22:40,770
as the Lord, the God of Israel 
lives before whom I stand. 

361
00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:46,240
There shall be neither dew nor 
reign these years except by my 

362
00:22:46,240 --> 00:22:50,040
word. 
Look at first Kings 18 verse 15.

363
00:22:51,360 --> 00:22:55,720
And Elijah said, as the Lord of 
hosts lives before whom I stand,

364
00:22:56,440 --> 00:22:58,840
I will surely show myself to him
today. 

365
00:23:00,760 --> 00:23:04,920
Elijah love to say that. 
Elijah love to publicly confess 

366
00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:10,200
I stand before the Lord. 
I am constantly and readily 

367
00:23:10,560 --> 00:23:13,120
available for whatever he asked 
me to do. 

368
00:23:13,120 --> 00:23:15,880
I live before his face. 
I stand before the Lord. 

369
00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:19,760
I stand before the Lord and now 
it's as though in this very low 

370
00:23:19,760 --> 00:23:22,960
point of his life, the Lord is 
graciously leading back to that 

371
00:23:22,960 --> 00:23:27,800
place that he walked away from 
verse 11 again, look at it. 

372
00:23:27,800 --> 00:23:30,960
And he said, go out and stand on
the mountain before the Lord. 

373
00:23:34,440 --> 00:23:39,440
Elijah, I want you to rediscover
that inner posture that you 

374
00:23:40,520 --> 00:23:44,240
deserted. 
I want you to stand before the 

375
00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:48,480
Lord again. 
And the aim of him now standing,

376
00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:51,320
yes, physically before the Lord,
but this was to get his 

377
00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:57,040
spiritual legs up once more, is 
that he would remain there. 

378
00:23:57,600 --> 00:24:00,440
Not just visit that place, but 
stay there like he was in 

379
00:24:00,600 --> 00:24:05,760
chapter 17 and chapter 18. 
I want you to park there, not to

380
00:24:05,760 --> 00:24:08,680
hide in a cave, not to hang out 
under a broom tree. 

381
00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:13,200
I want you to remain before me. 
And he's going to do it by 

382
00:24:13,200 --> 00:24:17,800
providing a spectacular 
manifestation of himself. 

383
00:24:17,800 --> 00:24:22,600
And you and I read it well. 
He's going to whiz through with 

384
00:24:22,800 --> 00:24:27,840
supernaturally amplified wind 
and he's going to split the 

385
00:24:27,840 --> 00:24:32,240
earth with an earthquake and 
he's going to create flames that

386
00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:36,160
make no sense apart from God 
lighting out on fire. 

387
00:24:37,720 --> 00:24:39,960
But. 
Often times people misunderstand

388
00:24:39,960 --> 00:24:43,920
why the Lord's doing this. 
One can make the case that 

389
00:24:44,360 --> 00:24:47,680
Elijah needs a fresh revelation 
of the majesty of God, right? 

390
00:24:47,680 --> 00:24:49,120
He lost sight of who God was. 
So God's. 

391
00:24:49,120 --> 00:24:52,280
OK, let me just give you a quick
panorama of what I'm able to do.

392
00:24:52,280 --> 00:24:56,120
I'm sovereign over all nature, 
whether it's wind, earth, fire, 

393
00:24:56,120 --> 00:24:58,640
anything, rain. 
You just saw that I can control 

394
00:24:58,640 --> 00:25:00,160
all things, I can summon all 
things. 

395
00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:04,080
Everything is a subject to me 
that could be part of it, that 

396
00:25:04,080 --> 00:25:08,120
could be a perk to this moment. 
But notice again what the Lord 

397
00:25:08,120 --> 00:25:11,800
says in His word about each of 
these things being displayed 

398
00:25:11,800 --> 00:25:17,400
before Elijah, whether it was 
the wind or the earthquake or 

399
00:25:17,440 --> 00:25:20,200
the fire, different elements. 
What do they all have in common 

400
00:25:20,200 --> 00:25:25,120
according to these verses? 
What are we told repeatedly? 

401
00:25:27,280 --> 00:25:30,840
The Lord wasn't in it. 
The Lord wasn't in the wind. 

402
00:25:30,840 --> 00:25:32,160
The Lord wasn't in the 
earthquake. 

403
00:25:32,160 --> 00:25:37,360
The Lord wasn't in the fire. 
And strangely, we're told in the

404
00:25:37,520 --> 00:25:42,600
ESV that there was the sound of 
a low whisper. 

405
00:25:45,280 --> 00:25:48,240
And Elijah, with his spiritual 
sensitivity at that time, 

406
00:25:48,240 --> 00:25:49,640
realized that's where the Lord 
is. 

407
00:25:51,720 --> 00:25:54,600
And so in reverence he covers 
his face and he goes to the 

408
00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:58,400
mouth of that cave to meet with 
the Lord. 

409
00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:04,520
Why did the Lord do this? 
You have to remember again what 

410
00:26:04,520 --> 00:26:07,480
Elijah's problem was. 
God is providing a very precise 

411
00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:10,760
prescription to the malady of 
his soul. 

412
00:26:11,360 --> 00:26:15,040
You know what Elijah felt that 
his preaching, that his praying,

413
00:26:15,480 --> 00:26:20,720
that his protest were 
unsuccessful, all in vain. 

414
00:26:22,800 --> 00:26:25,880
I mean, you got to kind of have 
to sympathize with him if you 

415
00:26:27,120 --> 00:26:29,960
with the instrument God used to 
see fire come down from heaven 

416
00:26:30,360 --> 00:26:34,120
and subsequently rain come down 
from heaven in the name of the 

417
00:26:34,120 --> 00:26:37,600
true and living God. 
And the response of that is the 

418
00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:44,000
queen wanting to kill you. 
I'm certain Elijah felt what 

419
00:26:44,000 --> 00:26:47,600
else can we do here? 
What else can be done? 

420
00:26:47,600 --> 00:26:49,880
This is a lost cause. 
That's why he's like, it's 

421
00:26:49,880 --> 00:26:50,960
enough. 
Lord, take me. 

422
00:26:51,200 --> 00:26:52,600
There's nothing else that can be
done. 

423
00:26:52,880 --> 00:26:57,200
What other performance, what 
other exhibition can be made for

424
00:26:57,200 --> 00:26:59,800
the stubborn people, namely the 
leadership, to realize that 

425
00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:01,960
their own fault and that they 
need to repent? 

426
00:27:02,920 --> 00:27:04,920
You know, some preachers feel 
that way after they thought they

427
00:27:04,920 --> 00:27:06,680
preached. 
A good sermon doesn't even come 

428
00:27:06,680 --> 00:27:12,400
close to what Elijah did. 
This man saw God do so much and 

429
00:27:12,400 --> 00:27:14,880
he thought that it would produce
so much and it didn't. 

430
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:18,480
What does the Lord do now in 
response to this? 

431
00:27:19,680 --> 00:27:26,280
He comes in supernatural, 
glorious, stunning, manifest 

432
00:27:26,280 --> 00:27:29,920
power, but each time it shows 
up, we're told the Lord wasn't 

433
00:27:29,920 --> 00:27:34,480
in it, the Lord wasn't in it, 
the Lord wasn't in it. 

434
00:27:34,480 --> 00:27:37,240
And then this whisper comes like
there's nothing. 

435
00:27:37,680 --> 00:27:40,400
There's nothing impressive about
a whisper, is there? 

436
00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:44,200
Whisper. 
I believe what the Lord is doing

437
00:27:44,200 --> 00:27:48,200
here is He's going to teach 
Elijah that God's ways are not 

438
00:27:48,200 --> 00:27:51,640
limited. 
More specifically, there are 

439
00:27:51,640 --> 00:27:56,840
times when he can, like on Mount
Carmel, do the unusual, do the 

440
00:27:56,840 --> 00:27:59,920
spectacular, and perform the 
extraordinary. 

441
00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:02,000
He can. 
He did it on Mount Carmel again.

442
00:28:02,520 --> 00:28:07,640
But that's not always the case. 
That's not always the way He 

443
00:28:07,640 --> 00:28:13,160
moves to stir the hearts of 
people because as you see here, 

444
00:28:13,160 --> 00:28:17,000
the same Lord who sent fire from
heaven, he doesn't do it again. 

445
00:28:17,760 --> 00:28:18,800
He doesn't come in the mighty 
wind. 

446
00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:19,800
He doesn't come in the 
earthquake. 

447
00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:27,200
He doesn't come in any other way
apart from Him speaking softly, 

448
00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:34,240
gently, personally. 
You know what's so remarkable 

449
00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:36,840
about this? 
If you look at the sequence of 

450
00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:41,480
things, when it came to the 
wind, Elijah didn't move. 

451
00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:45,080
When it came to the earthquake, 
Elijah didn't move. 

452
00:28:45,840 --> 00:28:48,360
When it came to the fire, Elijah
didn't budget. 

453
00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:51,640
But read with me again. 
Look at verse 12 and after the 

454
00:28:51,640 --> 00:28:53,520
earthquake of fire. 
But the Lord was on the fire. 

455
00:28:53,520 --> 00:28:55,640
And after the fire, the sound of
a low whisper. 

456
00:28:56,080 --> 00:29:01,680
And when Elijah heard it, he 
wrapped his face in his cloak 

457
00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:04,480
and went out and stood at the 
entrance of The Cave. 

458
00:29:06,080 --> 00:29:12,040
It was that small, small voice 
that pulled Elijah out to meet 

459
00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:17,320
with the Lord. 
What an incredible illustration 

460
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:23,800
of how God works. 
Listen, if you're a genuine 

461
00:29:23,800 --> 00:29:26,360
servant of God, serving the Lord
in any capacity. 

462
00:29:27,520 --> 00:29:29,360
Especially if. 
You're in a place of leadership 

463
00:29:29,360 --> 00:29:33,040
and public ministry. 
You will know the temptation. 

464
00:29:33,280 --> 00:29:35,000
You will know the 
discouragement. 

465
00:29:35,320 --> 00:29:39,080
You will know the lies that will
try to persuade you that unless 

466
00:29:39,080 --> 00:29:44,240
what you do is big. 
Is. 

467
00:29:44,240 --> 00:29:47,480
Impressive is out of the 
ordinary. 

468
00:29:47,720 --> 00:29:50,920
Surprising, compelling. 
Riveting. 

469
00:29:52,080 --> 00:29:57,240
It won't be effective. 
Again, let me remind you that in

470
00:29:57,240 --> 00:30:00,600
comparison to the wind, fire, 
and earthquake, a whisper is 

471
00:30:00,600 --> 00:30:03,240
nothing. 
But the whisper worked. 

472
00:30:04,280 --> 00:30:06,560
The whisper was the thing that 
brought Elijah closer to the 

473
00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:09,720
Lord. 
Here's the point. 

474
00:30:09,880 --> 00:30:12,480
God can use this. 
The. 

475
00:30:12,480 --> 00:30:15,720
Incredible stages. 
He can use large number of 

476
00:30:15,720 --> 00:30:17,960
things and mountainous 
resources. 

477
00:30:18,240 --> 00:30:20,640
You know what this teaches us? 
No matter what it is, whether 

478
00:30:20,640 --> 00:30:25,480
it's a Mount Carmel or a Mount 
Horeb, God has to be in it. 

479
00:30:27,560 --> 00:30:32,080
God has to be in it. 
So if he wants to move with 

480
00:30:32,080 --> 00:30:34,520
fire, let him move with fire 
being shot down from heaven as 

481
00:30:34,520 --> 00:30:38,400
long as he's behind it. 
But if he wants to move in a 

482
00:30:38,400 --> 00:30:42,320
very informal Friday night Bible
study, there's nothing really. 

483
00:30:42,320 --> 00:30:44,280
We're grateful for this 
building, but it's not really 

484
00:30:44,280 --> 00:30:50,560
impressive in terms of other 
edifices, is it Our instrument? 

485
00:30:50,560 --> 00:30:57,240
Top notch. 
My Bible cover is getting ripped

486
00:30:57,240 --> 00:31:01,440
up. 
Does God need that stuff to 

487
00:31:01,440 --> 00:31:04,520
touch the heart of those? 
Who need a? 

488
00:31:04,520 --> 00:31:09,400
Touch. 
No, you need God behind it, and 

489
00:31:09,400 --> 00:31:12,200
that's what we see here. 
God was behind that low whisper.

490
00:31:12,480 --> 00:31:14,080
He wasn't behind those other 
things. 

491
00:31:14,480 --> 00:31:19,400
So don't automatically equate 
lavish, big, large, impressive, 

492
00:31:19,720 --> 00:31:23,440
worldwide, international. 
Don't. 

493
00:31:23,440 --> 00:31:25,880
Automatically equate that with 
God being behind it. 

494
00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:27,760
Can God be behind it? 
Yes, because you have other 

495
00:31:27,760 --> 00:31:32,640
people who are so skeptical they
they have a skewed evaluation of

496
00:31:32,640 --> 00:31:34,280
things. 
If it's big and if it's large 

497
00:31:34,280 --> 00:31:35,640
and if it's impactful, it can't 
be of God. 

498
00:31:35,640 --> 00:31:36,880
It has to be compromised 
somehow. 

499
00:31:37,120 --> 00:31:40,960
You're equally wrong. 
The ultimate thing you and I 

500
00:31:40,960 --> 00:31:43,680
have to determine is, is God 
behind it? 

501
00:31:43,680 --> 00:31:48,400
And in this case, he was behind 
a small whisper. 

502
00:31:50,840 --> 00:31:52,720
So you don't have a giant 
personality. 

503
00:31:53,480 --> 00:31:55,760
You don't have an impressive 
vocabulary. 

504
00:31:57,240 --> 00:32:02,040
I know of preachers who fumble 
and stumble with their words, 

505
00:32:02,640 --> 00:32:07,120
who don't have incredible grasp 
on deep philosophical ideas. 

506
00:32:07,440 --> 00:32:09,200
But you know what? 
They do have the Spirit of God 

507
00:32:09,200 --> 00:32:12,720
behind them. 
And when they got up and they 

508
00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:16,760
speak, you might not find them 
at these grand conferences, but 

509
00:32:16,760 --> 00:32:19,320
men, the presence of God shows 
up when they do. 

510
00:32:21,400 --> 00:32:26,920
I'll take that over any other 
empty thing that might be 

511
00:32:27,840 --> 00:32:33,400
impressive to the flesh. 
The lesson here is Elijah. 

512
00:32:34,520 --> 00:32:38,600
You think that what I did in 
Mount Carmel was all that I can 

513
00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:41,040
do. 
And you think that unless it's 

514
00:32:41,040 --> 00:32:45,880
visible and mighty and large, 
nothing else can work? 

515
00:32:46,800 --> 00:32:50,800
Elijah, I reeled you to myself 
with a whisper. 

516
00:32:54,560 --> 00:32:56,400
What an encouraging thing to 
know in here. 

517
00:32:58,200 --> 00:32:59,800
And so he's drawn out to the 
Lord. 

518
00:32:59,800 --> 00:33:03,120
And look at verse 13. 
And when Elijah heard it, he 

519
00:33:03,120 --> 00:33:05,280
wrapped his face in his cloak. 
You know what that is? 

520
00:33:05,280 --> 00:33:10,960
Reverence, reverence and went 
out and stood at the entrance of

521
00:33:10,960 --> 00:33:14,680
The Cave and behold, there came 
a voice to him and said, what 

522
00:33:14,680 --> 00:33:19,480
are you doing here, Elijah? 
You want revelation in the 

523
00:33:19,480 --> 00:33:22,040
Bible? 
Ask the Bible questions, have a 

524
00:33:22,040 --> 00:33:23,680
conversation with the Bible. 
You know, you know what my 

525
00:33:23,680 --> 00:33:26,320
question was, Lord, why did you 
ask the question again? 

526
00:33:27,760 --> 00:33:29,880
You already asked them a few 
verses before. 

527
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:34,880
Here's what it tells me that he 
wasn't satisfied with Elijah's 

528
00:33:34,880 --> 00:33:38,800
answer. 
So yes, again, he unburdened his

529
00:33:38,800 --> 00:33:42,120
soul before the law, but it, it 
really didn't explain why he was

530
00:33:42,120 --> 00:33:43,640
where he was. 
It didn't explain why he 

531
00:33:43,640 --> 00:33:48,160
abandoned his duty. 
So what are you doing here, 

532
00:33:48,160 --> 00:33:52,640
Elijah? 
Now you would think after the 

533
00:33:52,640 --> 00:33:57,960
wind and the earthquake and the 
fire and the gentle whisper that

534
00:33:57,960 --> 00:34:00,680
Elijah would be advanced in his 
thinking a little bit. 

535
00:34:01,720 --> 00:34:04,000
He would have put some pieces 
together, especially with his 

536
00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:06,120
recent 40 day, 40 night journey 
to Mount Horeb. 

537
00:34:06,280 --> 00:34:10,040
Something must have stood 
together something right. 

538
00:34:10,880 --> 00:34:13,520
What are you doing here Elijah? 
And here's how he answers in 

539
00:34:13,520 --> 00:34:15,040
verse 14. 
And he said, I've been very 

540
00:34:15,040 --> 00:34:18,760
jealous for the Lord, the God of
hosts for the people of Israel 

541
00:34:18,760 --> 00:34:21,040
have forsaken your covenant, 
thrown down your altars and 

542
00:34:21,040 --> 00:34:22,239
killed your prophets with the 
sword. 

543
00:34:22,239 --> 00:34:25,120
And I even I only am left and 
they seek my life to take it 

544
00:34:25,120 --> 00:34:28,920
away. 
Like copy paste of what he said 

545
00:34:28,920 --> 00:34:34,400
earlier. 
Let me. 

546
00:34:34,440 --> 00:34:36,360
Reinforce the truth that I 
opened up with. 

547
00:34:37,080 --> 00:34:39,560
You know what this tells me? 
It tells me something from God's

548
00:34:39,560 --> 00:34:41,560
vantage point, and it tells me 
something from the human 

549
00:34:41,560 --> 00:34:44,520
standpoint, from God's vantage 
point. 

550
00:34:44,520 --> 00:34:50,320
As the counselor in the setting.
It reminds you and I that we 

551
00:34:50,320 --> 00:34:52,719
have to be patient with how 
people arrive to the truth. 

552
00:34:54,400 --> 00:34:56,639
We used to be patient. 
God is patient. 

553
00:34:59,080 --> 00:35:02,400
You and I do not have the 
ability to manifest supernatural

554
00:35:02,400 --> 00:35:05,760
strength and natural phenomena 
like God did. 

555
00:35:06,000 --> 00:35:09,280
And yet, even though God did do 
that, His servant still didn't 

556
00:35:09,280 --> 00:35:13,520
get it and he's still dealing 
gently with him. 

557
00:35:14,120 --> 00:35:16,640
There are times where rebuke is 
necessary. 

558
00:35:17,280 --> 00:35:19,160
Every person is a different 
case. 

559
00:35:19,160 --> 00:35:23,560
In this case, Elijah is not 
operating in the same way like 

560
00:35:23,560 --> 00:35:27,400
let's say Jonah, where God had 
to be a little bit more 

561
00:35:27,400 --> 00:35:30,720
aggressive with Jonah, right? 
He had to let him drown in the 

562
00:35:30,720 --> 00:35:33,840
ocean and let a whale or a big 
fish swallow him. 

563
00:35:34,000 --> 00:35:37,080
And then even after all was said
and done, he had to let a plant 

564
00:35:37,080 --> 00:35:40,600
grow, give him shade, and then 
take that plant away from like 

565
00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:44,200
he, he had to bruise Jonah a 
little bit more because Jonah's 

566
00:35:44,200 --> 00:35:47,000
heart was different than Elijah.
Elijah was very jealous for the 

567
00:35:47,000 --> 00:35:49,040
Lord. 
He, he's just broke in there. 

568
00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:56,640
Here Jonah was annoying. 
Jonah didn't want God to extend 

569
00:35:56,640 --> 00:35:59,360
mercy. 
Here's Elijah seeing God extend 

570
00:35:59,360 --> 00:36:01,880
mercy and he's just heart 
stricken because the people 

571
00:36:01,880 --> 00:36:05,760
didn't receive it. 
So God knows exactly how to deal

572
00:36:05,760 --> 00:36:09,400
with each of his servants. 
And here he's extremely patient.

573
00:36:09,560 --> 00:36:15,080
And at times you have to be two.
You have to be two. 

574
00:36:15,960 --> 00:36:19,400
Is there any wonder why Paul 
told Timothy preach the word in 

575
00:36:19,400 --> 00:36:21,720
season, out of season? 
And in that same instruction, he

576
00:36:21,720 --> 00:36:26,000
says with complete patience. 
Do you know why he said that? 

577
00:36:26,000 --> 00:36:29,400
Because when you preach the Word
regularly, people aren't going 

578
00:36:29,480 --> 00:36:33,520
to get it right away. 
When it does, praise the Lord. 

579
00:36:33,520 --> 00:36:36,920
And if it doesn't, be patient. 
Be patient. 

580
00:36:36,920 --> 00:36:38,280
Be. 
Patient with your spouse. 

581
00:36:39,360 --> 00:36:41,160
You've had many conversations, 
I'm sure about it. 

582
00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:44,040
And they're, they're genuine in 
their hearts and wanting to 

583
00:36:44,040 --> 00:36:45,640
arrive there. 
Be patient. 

584
00:36:45,640 --> 00:36:48,880
Be patient with your children. 
They're not rebellious, yes, but

585
00:36:48,880 --> 00:36:50,480
they're not getting it as 
quickly as you would like. 

586
00:36:50,480 --> 00:36:53,600
Be patient. 
And so we see here that the Lord

587
00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:56,160
is patient, but let's look at it
from Elijah standpoint. 

588
00:36:56,160 --> 00:37:00,920
He's not getting it. 
He's not getting it. 

589
00:37:01,720 --> 00:37:08,360
Again, we're slow to learn often
times, especially when our 

590
00:37:08,360 --> 00:37:12,840
emotions are involved and trying
to understand and register and 

591
00:37:13,000 --> 00:37:16,640
arrive to the right place. 
And so I'm just encouraged that 

592
00:37:16,640 --> 00:37:19,000
Elijah is, is a man with a 
nature like ours. 

593
00:37:19,760 --> 00:37:24,760
And I'm so glad that the Lord 
left this part in His word, but 

594
00:37:24,760 --> 00:37:25,960
how is the Lord going to deal 
with this now? 

595
00:37:26,000 --> 00:37:29,440
You asked the same question. 
You got the same answer the 

596
00:37:29,440 --> 00:37:31,880
first time you revealed to 
Elijah. 

597
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:34,760
Elijah, I work in many ways. 
I work in ways that are very 

598
00:37:34,760 --> 00:37:36,880
obvious and I work in ways that 
are very hidden. 

599
00:37:37,160 --> 00:37:43,360
So don't limit to what your past
experience was and realize that 

600
00:37:43,360 --> 00:37:46,840
I am doing a thing that is 
beyond what you even perceive. 

601
00:37:48,880 --> 00:37:50,480
But then he comes and now he 
says, OK, let's see if 

602
00:37:50,480 --> 00:37:52,840
anything's changed. 
Nothing's changed, nothing's 

603
00:37:52,840 --> 00:37:55,480
changed. 
He's still wallowing in his self

604
00:37:55,480 --> 00:37:58,560
pity. 
He's still contemplating staying

605
00:37:58,560 --> 00:38:00,560
in this cave and not returning 
to his post. 

606
00:38:00,840 --> 00:38:05,880
So what does the Lord do? 
This is fascinating, fascinating

607
00:38:05,880 --> 00:38:09,320
to me. 
Notice what he does here in 

608
00:38:09,320 --> 00:38:13,520
verse 15. 
And the Lord said to him, Go, 

609
00:38:13,800 --> 00:38:17,800
return on your way to the 
wilderness of Damascus, and when

610
00:38:17,800 --> 00:38:24,080
you arrive, you shall anoint 
Hazel to be king over Syria, and

611
00:38:24,080 --> 00:38:26,800
Jehu the son of Nimshi, you 
shall anoint to be king over 

612
00:38:26,800 --> 00:38:30,880
Israel. 
And Elijah the son of Shafat of 

613
00:38:31,000 --> 00:38:34,920
Abel Mihola, you shall anoint to
be prophet in your place. 

614
00:38:35,720 --> 00:38:37,880
So he asked the question, he 
gets the same answer. 

615
00:38:37,880 --> 00:38:39,360
And what's the remedy? 
Now? 

616
00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:46,360
Get to work. 
Get to work, Elijah. 

617
00:38:46,840 --> 00:38:53,600
And that's enough. 
I included that last part, but 

618
00:38:53,600 --> 00:38:57,400
that's essentially what's 
happening here, Elijah. 

619
00:38:57,400 --> 00:38:59,320
Before this time, you know what 
his problem was? 

620
00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:04,080
He worked himself to the bone 
and he needed a couple of meals 

621
00:39:04,080 --> 00:39:07,520
and a couple of good naps before
he can continue. 

622
00:39:08,680 --> 00:39:10,240
But that's all been dealt with 
now. 

623
00:39:10,720 --> 00:39:12,880
His body's replenished. 
He's refueled. 

624
00:39:13,200 --> 00:39:16,640
So what's the issue now that if 
he remains in a state of 

625
00:39:16,640 --> 00:39:21,120
inactivity, he will continue to 
introspect to the point where he

626
00:39:21,120 --> 00:39:25,480
will torture himself and perhaps
never return to ministry again? 

627
00:39:27,240 --> 00:39:30,000
You know what sometimes the 
solution is to overcoming 

628
00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:33,520
spiritual depression, a downcast
spirit, dejection, 

629
00:39:33,520 --> 00:39:37,560
discouragement, taking your eyes
off of yourself and placing them

630
00:39:37,560 --> 00:39:41,760
on others who have needs. 
That's some good counseling. 

631
00:39:42,520 --> 00:39:45,440
That's some good counseling. 
There are times where is you 

632
00:39:45,440 --> 00:39:48,720
need a break, you're running on 
fumes, you're going to destroy 

633
00:39:48,720 --> 00:39:50,120
yourself, you're going to 
destroy your marriage, you're 

634
00:39:50,120 --> 00:39:53,720
going to destroy your church. 
So you need to step away. 

635
00:39:53,720 --> 00:39:56,000
This is not practical for long 
term longevity. 

636
00:39:56,760 --> 00:39:58,840
It's not going to happen. 
And there are other times where 

637
00:39:58,840 --> 00:40:01,640
it's OK. 
You need to stop reflecting on 

638
00:40:01,640 --> 00:40:03,080
this. 
You need to stop grieving. 

639
00:40:03,080 --> 00:40:04,560
You need to stop being 
disappointed. 

640
00:40:04,840 --> 00:40:08,800
There is a great field of 
opportunity that awaits you to 

641
00:40:08,800 --> 00:40:11,360
participate in. 
So get up and go. 

642
00:40:11,720 --> 00:40:13,320
You think that God did this in 
isolation? 

643
00:40:13,920 --> 00:40:16,480
No, he doesn't. 
Go to first Samuel chapter 16, 

644
00:40:16,480 --> 00:40:18,120
verse one. 
You'll remember this when we 

645
00:40:18,120 --> 00:40:23,680
studied the prophet Samuel. 
Look at verse one. 

646
00:40:23,680 --> 00:40:27,600
This is after Samuel new 
disappointment with another 

647
00:40:27,600 --> 00:40:30,720
king, not Ahab. 
Tell me who the king Samuel had 

648
00:40:30,720 --> 00:40:33,040
to deal with for many years. 
Saul. 

649
00:40:33,120 --> 00:40:40,480
Was he the most impressive king?
No, Saul stressed me out when I 

650
00:40:40,480 --> 00:40:43,680
was studying. 
Saul can imagine how much he 

651
00:40:43,680 --> 00:40:47,800
stressed out Samuel. 
But this is after he said you're

652
00:40:47,800 --> 00:40:49,240
done. 
You're no longer to be king. 

653
00:40:49,560 --> 00:40:52,320
And what's so terrifying about 
Saul's story is that he had the 

654
00:40:52,320 --> 00:40:56,600
throne for years after, but he 
lost the anointing. 

655
00:40:58,760 --> 00:41:03,440
He lost God's favor and 
enablement and his near presence

656
00:41:04,360 --> 00:41:08,320
that I find out to be one of the
scariest realities in the Old 

657
00:41:08,320 --> 00:41:12,920
Testament story of how God deals
with people, that he let Saul 

658
00:41:13,080 --> 00:41:18,000
keep his throne and his palace, 
but he removed his spirit from 

659
00:41:18,000 --> 00:41:22,200
him. 
I'm not interested in preaching 

660
00:41:22,200 --> 00:41:24,560
if that's going to be for me, 
not interest. 

661
00:41:24,560 --> 00:41:26,960
I don't care about the pulpit. 
I don't if the Lord removes 

662
00:41:26,960 --> 00:41:28,760
himself. 
Why do you care to sing? 

663
00:41:31,400 --> 00:41:33,840
Why do you care to do anything 
for the Lord unless you have His

664
00:41:33,840 --> 00:41:39,280
backing? 
Saul was left to himself and 

665
00:41:39,280 --> 00:41:41,480
Samuel is broken. 
Look at this, he was grieving 

666
00:41:41,480 --> 00:41:44,720
apparently in verse one of 
chapter 16, the Lord said to 

667
00:41:44,720 --> 00:41:50,960
Samuel, how long will you grieve
over Saul since I have rejected 

668
00:41:50,960 --> 00:41:54,560
him from being king over Israel?
Fill your horn with oil and go. 

669
00:41:54,760 --> 00:41:56,880
I will send you to Jesse the 
Bethlehemite, for I have 

670
00:41:56,880 --> 00:41:59,000
provided for myself a king among
his sons. 

671
00:41:59,520 --> 00:42:02,280
There's a time where mourning 
has to stop, whether it's the 

672
00:42:03,040 --> 00:42:06,040
there is a time for grieving, 
but there there has to be an 

673
00:42:06,040 --> 00:42:10,200
expiration date on it, whether 
that morning is caused by a 

674
00:42:10,200 --> 00:42:12,720
legitimate loss or from 
disappointment. 

675
00:42:13,720 --> 00:42:16,440
There are some people who never 
return to the local church 

676
00:42:16,440 --> 00:42:17,920
because they've been hurt by the
local church. 

677
00:42:18,280 --> 00:42:20,680
There are people who never serve
in ministry again because 

678
00:42:20,680 --> 00:42:25,160
they've been burned in ministry.
That's not the will of God. 

679
00:42:25,720 --> 00:42:28,680
And in this case, we see that he
was grieving over Saul. 

680
00:42:28,680 --> 00:42:31,880
And the Lord says, OK, the 
solution is for you to get out 

681
00:42:31,880 --> 00:42:36,040
of your room now, Samuel, and 
get your feet going because I 

682
00:42:36,040 --> 00:42:39,200
still have a purpose for you. 
And my program on the earth 

683
00:42:39,440 --> 00:42:42,520
hasn't ceased with one man who 
was unfaithful. 

684
00:42:43,680 --> 00:42:46,840
Get up, go. 
There's no different with 

685
00:42:46,840 --> 00:42:51,240
Elijah. 
There's a time where counseling 

686
00:42:52,280 --> 00:42:58,720
has to close and a new pattern 
in life has to be rediscovered 

687
00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:01,280
or an old pattern that was 
abandoned. 

688
00:43:02,480 --> 00:43:05,400
So he tells him it's time to go.
And and here's what's so 

689
00:43:05,400 --> 00:43:07,720
encouraging, because what he's 
going to tell him in the 

690
00:43:07,720 --> 00:43:11,160
remaining verses is what's going
to give him the strength to be 

691
00:43:11,160 --> 00:43:13,520
able to return to where he he 
was. 

692
00:43:14,520 --> 00:43:16,600
Here's the first thing. 
Come back to First Kings 19. 

693
00:43:16,720 --> 00:43:18,680
We already read it, but perhaps 
you didn't notice it. 

694
00:43:19,400 --> 00:43:23,800
He tells him to return to the 
wilderness of Damascus. 

695
00:43:24,040 --> 00:43:26,600
And when you arrive, he says you
shall do three things. 

696
00:43:26,920 --> 00:43:29,600
The first thing was anoint the 
king over Syria. 

697
00:43:32,560 --> 00:43:36,320
Syria, Gentile or connected to 
Israel? 

698
00:43:37,560 --> 00:43:40,880
Gentile. 
What is this supposed to say, 

699
00:43:41,200 --> 00:43:43,800
Elijah? 
I have a work to do among the 

700
00:43:43,800 --> 00:43:46,360
Gentiles. 
And. 

701
00:43:46,720 --> 00:43:48,400
I want you to play a part in 
that. 

702
00:43:49,840 --> 00:43:51,040
What's? 
The next thing he tells him to 

703
00:43:51,040 --> 00:43:54,040
do, verse 16 and Jehu the son of
Nimshi, you shall anoint to be 

704
00:43:54,040 --> 00:43:57,240
king overnight. 
Judah over Israel, the northern 

705
00:43:57,240 --> 00:44:01,520
tribes, the northern Kingdom. 
What's that supposed to mean, 

706
00:44:01,720 --> 00:44:03,640
Elijah? 
Not only do I have a work to do 

707
00:44:03,640 --> 00:44:06,960
among the Gentiles and you have 
a, a part to play in, but I have

708
00:44:06,960 --> 00:44:09,800
a work to do among that 
apostate, rebellious, idolatrous

709
00:44:09,800 --> 00:44:12,640
people that you were originally 
frustrated with Israel. 

710
00:44:15,320 --> 00:44:17,920
Not only that, because I also 
want you to anoint the final 

711
00:44:17,920 --> 00:44:22,440
person named Elijah, Elijah. 
And what you're going to do with

712
00:44:22,440 --> 00:44:26,280
Elijah is that you're going to 
signal him out, and you are 

713
00:44:26,280 --> 00:44:28,920
going to set him apart as a 
prophet. 

714
00:44:28,960 --> 00:44:32,560
Who's going to succeed you? 
You felt like you were the only 

715
00:44:32,560 --> 00:44:34,480
prophet around. 
I'm telling you that I already 

716
00:44:34,480 --> 00:44:36,880
have one prepared. 
Who's going to take your place? 

717
00:44:38,200 --> 00:44:41,000
So even. 
Among the specific lane of His 

718
00:44:41,000 --> 00:44:43,800
service to the Lord, there was 
something to do. 

719
00:44:45,240 --> 00:44:49,280
You know what will encourage you
to revisit serving the Lord if 

720
00:44:49,280 --> 00:44:55,320
you have been on a hiatus or 
been on a pause, and keep you in

721
00:44:55,320 --> 00:44:58,960
that place of serving the Lord? 
It's realizing how much the Lord

722
00:44:59,160 --> 00:45:03,280
is doing, how much is out there 
in a harvest, how many 

723
00:45:03,280 --> 00:45:08,360
opportunities await you and I. 
He tells Elijah, the Gentiles, 

724
00:45:08,360 --> 00:45:10,240
Israel, and even among the 
prophets. 

725
00:45:10,480 --> 00:45:13,440
I have things to do and I'm 
inviting you to it. 

726
00:45:13,960 --> 00:45:18,760
I'm inviting you to it. 
The Lord looks with those 

727
00:45:18,760 --> 00:45:22,320
blazing eyes to and fro 
throughout the whole earth to 

728
00:45:22,320 --> 00:45:24,960
see whose heart is blameless 
towards and for what purpose, 

729
00:45:25,240 --> 00:45:29,880
that He might show strong 
support to that person. 

730
00:45:31,400 --> 00:45:34,080
The Lord is always looking for 
those who are willing to serve 

731
00:45:34,080 --> 00:45:37,440
Him in any capacity. 
That should. 

732
00:45:37,440 --> 00:45:40,040
Excite you. 
That should excite you. 

733
00:45:40,040 --> 00:45:46,800
But that's not the only thing. 
Elijah is not just going to 

734
00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:49,360
learn that there are people to 
Commission and bless and 

735
00:45:49,360 --> 00:45:53,920
disciple. 
Look at verse 17 and the one and

736
00:45:53,920 --> 00:45:58,120
the one who escapes from the 
sword of Hazel shall Jehu put to

737
00:45:58,120 --> 00:46:00,200
death. 
And the one who escapes from the

738
00:46:00,200 --> 00:46:03,800
sword of Jehu shall Elijah put 
to death. 

739
00:46:04,320 --> 00:46:09,200
Why is he telling him this? 
Elijah was fearful and 

740
00:46:09,200 --> 00:46:12,560
disappointed for the obvious 
reason, and one that wasn't so 

741
00:46:12,560 --> 00:46:16,680
obvious was the fact that you 
had the wicked who were able to 

742
00:46:16,680 --> 00:46:20,200
continue to prosper despite the 
rejection of the truth. 

743
00:46:20,320 --> 00:46:22,920
Despite all that God had done, 
you still had evil people 

744
00:46:23,040 --> 00:46:25,920
remaining in their state of 
evil. 

745
00:46:26,480 --> 00:46:28,720
You know what the Lord is 
telling Elijah to encourage him 

746
00:46:28,880 --> 00:46:31,840
to revisit that place of service
and to endure in that place of 

747
00:46:31,840 --> 00:46:35,400
service. 
Elijah, there is a day where I 

748
00:46:35,400 --> 00:46:40,000
will deal with all the evil. 
Yes, in the world and even what 

749
00:46:40,000 --> 00:46:42,080
you experience. 
There's some people who get so 

750
00:46:42,080 --> 00:46:47,640
knocked out, the wind knocked 
out of them because of people 

751
00:46:47,640 --> 00:46:51,360
treating them the way they were 
treated as servants of God. 

752
00:46:52,040 --> 00:46:55,840
Elijah was a true genuine 
prophet, a man of God. 

753
00:46:55,840 --> 00:46:59,960
And, and how was he handled with
absolute disdain. 

754
00:47:00,600 --> 00:47:02,960
And he was crushed by that. 
And the Lord wants to remind 

755
00:47:02,960 --> 00:47:05,600
him, I'm going to call every 
person into account, Elijah. 

756
00:47:07,000 --> 00:47:08,920
There's not one person in what 
they've done who's going to 

757
00:47:08,920 --> 00:47:11,840
escape my wrath. 
And I have also put into 

758
00:47:11,840 --> 00:47:14,360
consideration everything that 
somebody has done to you, 

759
00:47:14,360 --> 00:47:20,040
whether good or bad. 
Let that encourage you, knowing 

760
00:47:20,480 --> 00:47:25,840
that every slanderous word, 
every maybe physical threat, no 

761
00:47:25,840 --> 00:47:28,640
matter what has come your way 
that might have caused you to 

762
00:47:28,640 --> 00:47:31,360
reconsider honoring the Lord 
Jesus with your life. 

763
00:47:32,120 --> 00:47:36,160
God is going to vindicate you. 
He's going to vindicate you. 

764
00:47:37,760 --> 00:47:40,400
He will stand for you. 
Though your whole life people 

765
00:47:40,400 --> 00:47:44,280
are believing lies about you. 
Shouldn't that comfort you? 

766
00:47:44,640 --> 00:47:48,120
It must comfort you. 
And Elijah had a fresh 

767
00:47:48,120 --> 00:47:50,000
revelation of the justice of 
God. 

768
00:47:50,920 --> 00:47:53,560
Ahab and Jezebel, we're not 
going to get the final word. 

769
00:47:55,240 --> 00:47:56,920
Elijah, you do what I've called 
you to do. 

770
00:47:56,960 --> 00:47:59,360
I will take care of the things 
that you have no control of and 

771
00:47:59,360 --> 00:48:01,000
you have no right to interfere 
with. 

772
00:48:02,160 --> 00:48:05,840
I will put an end to this 
apostasy and you will be 

773
00:48:05,840 --> 00:48:08,040
vindicated because you are my 
messenger and you have 

774
00:48:08,040 --> 00:48:09,560
proclaimed my message 
faithfully. 

775
00:48:11,720 --> 00:48:13,400
Is that the only thing that 
encourages this man of God is 

776
00:48:13,400 --> 00:48:15,160
not the only thing that God 
gives this man so that he can 

777
00:48:15,160 --> 00:48:17,640
revisit that place of service 
and remain in that place of 

778
00:48:17,640 --> 00:48:22,960
service. 
No read verse 18 yet. 

779
00:48:22,960 --> 00:48:30,040
I will leave 7000 in Israel all 
the knees that have not bowed to

780
00:48:30,040 --> 00:48:33,080
bow, and every mouth that has 
not kissed them. 

781
00:48:34,800 --> 00:48:36,520
So first. 
He said, look, there's a lot of 

782
00:48:36,520 --> 00:48:40,400
work to do, Elijah, and it's 
time to get to work. 

783
00:48:41,080 --> 00:48:43,480
It's time to put your hands to 
the plow again and keep your 

784
00:48:43,480 --> 00:48:45,520
eyes off of yourself and on 
others who need you. 

785
00:48:45,840 --> 00:48:49,600
That's important. 
Secondly, realize that I will 

786
00:48:49,680 --> 00:48:53,400
make all things right. 
So whether it's external 

787
00:48:53,400 --> 00:48:56,560
persecution or internal turmoil 
and you are caught in the 

788
00:48:56,560 --> 00:49:00,320
crossfires or you are the 
bullseye mark of those who 

789
00:49:00,320 --> 00:49:03,400
profess me but don't really 
belong to me, I'm going to make 

790
00:49:03,400 --> 00:49:06,280
everything right. 
Don't let those things cause you

791
00:49:06,280 --> 00:49:10,400
to reconsider serving me. 
And lastly, Elijah, I always 

792
00:49:10,400 --> 00:49:15,760
have a remnant. 
You know what causes a lot of 

793
00:49:15,760 --> 00:49:17,480
people to not want to continue 
within? 

794
00:49:17,480 --> 00:49:19,640
Their boldness and their courage
and their holiness and their 

795
00:49:19,640 --> 00:49:23,760
commitments to ministry when you
see other people not doing that.

796
00:49:26,000 --> 00:49:28,400
So here you are faithfully 
serving week after week after 

797
00:49:28,400 --> 00:49:32,720
week, and you're looking at 
others and they're fumbling and 

798
00:49:32,720 --> 00:49:36,800
they're flirting with the world.
And here you are. 

799
00:49:37,040 --> 00:49:39,080
Wherever church you're part of. 
I pray that you're part of a 

800
00:49:39,080 --> 00:49:41,680
church that proclaims the truth,
but you're proclaiming the 

801
00:49:41,680 --> 00:49:43,480
truth. 
Your elders are leading 

802
00:49:43,480 --> 00:49:45,600
according to the Bible. 
But what do you realize around 

803
00:49:45,600 --> 00:49:47,680
you that the churches that are 
growing and thriving and getting

804
00:49:47,680 --> 00:49:49,560
all the attention are the ones 
who are compromising. 

805
00:49:50,680 --> 00:49:53,840
And if you're not careful, over 
time, when you feel as though 

806
00:49:53,840 --> 00:49:57,000
you're the only one doing it, it
can mess with your head. 

807
00:50:01,120 --> 00:50:04,200
And what the Lord tells this man
of God is something that is 

808
00:50:04,200 --> 00:50:07,000
universal. 
You might feel like you're 

809
00:50:07,000 --> 00:50:11,480
alone, but you're never alone. 
I always have a set apart 

810
00:50:11,480 --> 00:50:13,960
people. 
They may not be large. 7 

811
00:50:13,960 --> 00:50:18,320
thousand among, who knows, 
Conservatively hundreds of 

812
00:50:18,520 --> 00:50:24,720
thousands in the millions. 
Very likely 7000 isn't much, but

813
00:50:24,720 --> 00:50:30,840
it's still a remnant. 
And that's something that you 

814
00:50:30,840 --> 00:50:34,680
would have to always remember. 
God is not just working in your 

815
00:50:34,680 --> 00:50:36,760
life. 
God is not just working in your 

816
00:50:36,760 --> 00:50:39,520
local church. 
God is doing work across the 

817
00:50:39,520 --> 00:50:42,960
globe. 
And you're part of that, yes, 

818
00:50:44,320 --> 00:50:46,240
but realize that there are 
others who are enduring what 

819
00:50:46,240 --> 00:50:48,680
you're enduring, suffering what 
you're suffering, and being 

820
00:50:48,680 --> 00:50:50,440
faithful as you are seeking to 
be faithful. 

821
00:50:51,600 --> 00:50:53,280
And from time to time, you know 
what the Lord will do. 

822
00:50:53,680 --> 00:50:57,320
He'll allow you to cross paths 
with other people who are part 

823
00:50:57,320 --> 00:50:59,880
of that remnant. 
And that's what God's going to 

824
00:50:59,880 --> 00:51:02,960
do for this man. 
He's going to allow him to meet 

825
00:51:02,960 --> 00:51:05,440
one of those 7000. 
His name is Elijah. 

826
00:51:06,400 --> 00:51:09,240
His name is Elijah. 
And I just love how the Lord 

827
00:51:09,240 --> 00:51:12,320
prescribes this need. 
One of the things that we talked

828
00:51:12,320 --> 00:51:16,200
about how Elijah, Elijah rather 
abandoned himself from 

829
00:51:16,200 --> 00:51:18,200
community. 
And what does God do to to 

830
00:51:18,200 --> 00:51:21,000
rescue him? 
He brings not just a successor. 

831
00:51:21,000 --> 00:51:23,960
Listen, if God was just 
concerned about replacing Elijah

832
00:51:23,960 --> 00:51:28,240
when he would go into heaven, he
would have just called Elijah 

833
00:51:28,240 --> 00:51:31,280
himself, right? 
OK, Elijah's gone. 

834
00:51:32,000 --> 00:51:34,240
Let me speak now to Elijah. 
It's your turn. 

835
00:51:34,480 --> 00:51:37,720
He doesn't do that. 
He connects Elijah. 

836
00:51:38,800 --> 00:51:42,640
With. 
Elijah and he allows Elijah to 

837
00:51:42,640 --> 00:51:45,600
disciple Elijah, not just 
disciple but be blessed by 

838
00:51:45,600 --> 00:51:47,560
Elijah, develop a friendship 
with Elijah. 

839
00:51:49,480 --> 00:51:53,680
That's a gift from the Lord. 
If you feel like you are among 

840
00:51:53,680 --> 00:51:57,360
those who who you just want to 
love the Lord Jesus, you just 

841
00:51:57,360 --> 00:51:59,640
really want to obey him, that's 
what you want your existence to 

842
00:51:59,640 --> 00:52:00,960
be about. 
But you look at others and 

843
00:52:00,960 --> 00:52:03,520
they're just giving lip service 
or they're weak or they're 

844
00:52:03,520 --> 00:52:07,480
worldly and you're like, am IA 
minority here? 

845
00:52:07,480 --> 00:52:09,080
Am I, am I not reading this 
right? 

846
00:52:09,080 --> 00:52:12,440
Whatever the train of thought 
may be, realize that God in his 

847
00:52:12,440 --> 00:52:18,240
great mercy can provide someone 
else in your life and all you 

848
00:52:18,240 --> 00:52:19,680
need. 
Yes, you can. 

849
00:52:19,720 --> 00:52:23,720
You need a local church, but 
even one person in your life can

850
00:52:23,720 --> 00:52:26,720
be enough to keep you going, to 
keep you going. 

851
00:52:28,680 --> 00:52:32,600
But notice here that the same 
truth that we're being told 

852
00:52:32,600 --> 00:52:36,600
concerning this remnant is how 
the apostle Paul uses it in a 

853
00:52:36,600 --> 00:52:39,360
very unique way concerning how 
it relates to us in the new 

854
00:52:39,360 --> 00:52:41,360
covenant. 
Does anybody know where this 

855
00:52:41,360 --> 00:52:47,240
passage is found in the New 
Testament Romans? 

856
00:52:48,560 --> 00:52:50,680
That's right. 
Extra point, if you know the 

857
00:52:50,680 --> 00:53:03,520
chapter Romans, but we're in 
Romans and I hear pages flipping

858
00:53:03,520 --> 00:53:06,800
to Romans. 
That's OK, I'll wait. 

859
00:53:09,640 --> 00:53:11,400
I won't wait too long. 
Who said it? 

860
00:53:12,480 --> 00:53:16,440
What did you say? 
Romans 11, You want to see how 

861
00:53:16,440 --> 00:53:19,000
the Holy Spirit uses this exact 
passage that we've been studying

862
00:53:19,000 --> 00:53:22,200
this past hour or so? 
Go to Romans 11 in the first 

863
00:53:22,200 --> 00:53:28,360
four or five verses and let's 
see it as we close Romans 11/1 

864
00:53:28,360 --> 00:53:37,240
to five, Paul writes. 
I ask then, has God rejected his

865
00:53:37,240 --> 00:53:39,600
people? 
In this. 

866
00:53:39,600 --> 00:53:44,360
Context Who are his people? 
Israel. 

867
00:53:44,560 --> 00:53:46,680
Are we reading the Old Testament
or the New Testament? 

868
00:53:49,640 --> 00:53:51,800
His people, Israel, are his 
people. 

869
00:53:53,720 --> 00:53:56,520
Wow. 
I asked that. 

870
00:53:56,520 --> 00:54:01,080
Has God rejected his people? 
By no means. 

871
00:54:01,440 --> 00:54:06,040
For I myself am an Israelite, a 
descendant of Abraham, a member 

872
00:54:06,040 --> 00:54:09,600
of the tribe of Benjamin. 
You can't spiritualize that. 

873
00:54:11,480 --> 00:54:16,160
OK, I've heard some people try 
to spiritualize Israel in the 

874
00:54:16,160 --> 00:54:19,640
New Testament, but you're going 
to have some disagreements with 

875
00:54:19,640 --> 00:54:24,800
Paul because he qualifies what 
he means by being an Israelite. 

876
00:54:25,360 --> 00:54:27,400
He's not talking about being a 
spiritual Israelite. 

877
00:54:27,880 --> 00:54:31,120
He's talking about being an 
ethnic, real descendant of this 

878
00:54:31,120 --> 00:54:33,800
people group. 
Please pay. 

879
00:54:33,800 --> 00:54:36,600
Attention, we're living in an 
age where this is debated. 

880
00:54:39,280 --> 00:54:46,560
First two, God has not rejected 
his people whom he foreknew. 

881
00:54:47,160 --> 00:54:50,160
Do you not know what the 
Scripture says of Elijah, How he

882
00:54:50,160 --> 00:54:53,640
appeals to God? 
Look at this against Israel. 

883
00:54:54,840 --> 00:54:57,440
That's how fed up Elijah was. 
According to this New Testament 

884
00:54:57,440 --> 00:55:00,760
commentary, He's appealing to 
God against Israel. 

885
00:55:01,200 --> 00:55:04,280
I'm done with these people. 
Verse 3, Lord. 

886
00:55:04,280 --> 00:55:06,240
And he quotes the same passage 
that we studied today. 

887
00:55:06,960 --> 00:55:09,000
They have killed your prophets, 
they have demolished your 

888
00:55:09,000 --> 00:55:12,440
altars, and I alone am left, and
they seek my life. 

889
00:55:12,600 --> 00:55:19,000
But what is God's reply to Him? 
I have kept for myself 7000 men 

890
00:55:19,120 --> 00:55:21,160
who have not bowed the knee to 
bail. 

891
00:55:22,160 --> 00:55:24,680
Verse five is so important. 
What's the application of it? 

892
00:55:25,080 --> 00:55:30,000
So too, at the present time, 
there is a remnant chosen by 

893
00:55:30,080 --> 00:55:35,840
grace. 
If you pluck out verse five, you

894
00:55:35,840 --> 00:55:38,600
can make it say a lot of things.
But if you honor the context, 

895
00:55:38,600 --> 00:55:42,360
then you know exactly what Paul 
is trying to educate the people 

896
00:55:42,360 --> 00:55:46,560
in Rome about. 
He says, listen, I know there's 

897
00:55:46,560 --> 00:55:49,600
some confusion about the state 
of Israel and the people of 

898
00:55:49,600 --> 00:55:54,320
Israel related to where they 
stand with God because as a 

899
00:55:54,320 --> 00:55:57,240
nation, did they receive the 
Messiah or reject the Messiah? 

900
00:55:57,920 --> 00:56:01,200
They've rejected the Messiah. 
They've rejected the Messiah. 

901
00:56:01,480 --> 00:56:05,840
And so the confusion is around 
what is God going to do with 

902
00:56:05,840 --> 00:56:09,480
this people group? 
Now, Yeah, we heard that Christ 

903
00:56:09,600 --> 00:56:12,280
and we believe that truth that 
he introduced and inaugurated a 

904
00:56:12,280 --> 00:56:14,360
new covenant. 
But where does Israel fit in 

905
00:56:14,360 --> 00:56:18,280
this whole thing? 
And Paul assures them God hasn't

906
00:56:18,280 --> 00:56:22,040
rejected his people. 
God has made some promises to 

907
00:56:22,040 --> 00:56:26,760
Israel that transcend and bleed 
into the new covenant. 

908
00:56:27,000 --> 00:56:31,560
The new covenant didn't nullify 
certain promises that God gave 

909
00:56:31,840 --> 00:56:35,200
to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and 
their seed. 

910
00:56:36,960 --> 00:56:38,720
And he says, can I tell you one 
of the proofs of that? 

911
00:56:39,000 --> 00:56:41,920
Can I tell you remind you one of
the evidence as to why God is 

912
00:56:41,920 --> 00:56:45,640
not finished with the people of 
Israel, not spiritual Israel, 

913
00:56:45,760 --> 00:56:49,960
the ethnic people of Israel? 
There is always been a remnant 

914
00:56:50,400 --> 00:56:53,080
of believing Jews. 
In. 

915
00:56:53,080 --> 00:56:56,320
Every generation since the 
inception of the church, there 

916
00:56:56,320 --> 00:57:01,200
has always been a people who 
have believed on the Messiah, 

917
00:57:01,440 --> 00:57:06,160
Jesus Christ of Nazareth. 
And there will always be a 

918
00:57:06,160 --> 00:57:10,840
believing community of Jewish 
people until it culminates to a 

919
00:57:11,000 --> 00:57:16,640
a national revival where the 
entire nation will acknowledge 

920
00:57:16,640 --> 00:57:21,160
that this Jesus Christ from 
Nazareth is the Messiah for the 

921
00:57:21,160 --> 00:57:24,320
Jewish people. 
That's found in Romans 1125, 

922
00:57:24,640 --> 00:57:27,640
that when the times of the 
Gentiles are fulfilled, then all

923
00:57:27,640 --> 00:57:32,840
Israel shall be saved. 
You have to do brutal gymnastics

924
00:57:32,840 --> 00:57:36,520
to Romans 11 to say that Paul is
speaking about a spiritual 

925
00:57:36,520 --> 00:57:39,480
Israel and that the church is 
the spiritual Israel. 

926
00:57:40,560 --> 00:57:43,800
You have to do very crafty 
origami with the Bible to get to

927
00:57:43,800 --> 00:57:47,960
that conclusion because he 
qualifies in the beginning. 

928
00:57:47,960 --> 00:57:50,560
And if you honor the context and
everything really makes sense of

929
00:57:50,560 --> 00:57:54,400
Romans 11. 
In fact, let me ruffle some more

930
00:57:54,400 --> 00:57:59,480
theological feathers. 
Romans 9:10 and 11:00 is all 

931
00:57:59,480 --> 00:58:01,640
about Israel. 
It's not just Roman 11. 

932
00:58:02,440 --> 00:58:04,800
So when you look at 9:10 and 
11:00, that's his. 

933
00:58:05,160 --> 00:58:08,960
That's his essay within a larger
essay, which is really the 

934
00:58:09,400 --> 00:58:12,080
theological treatise of the book
of Romans, where he's making a 

935
00:58:12,080 --> 00:58:18,000
case about God's election, his 
choosing of the people of 

936
00:58:18,000 --> 00:58:21,320
Israel. 
And it concludes in this 

937
00:58:21,320 --> 00:58:26,240
chapter. 
And from a personal perspective,

938
00:58:26,240 --> 00:58:28,640
you you can imagine, yes, this 
is obviously and ultimately 

939
00:58:28,640 --> 00:58:32,280
inspired by the Holy Spirit. 
But Paul relates to Elijah, I 

940
00:58:32,280 --> 00:58:37,000
believe, as a minister, as an 
apostle, as a messenger of this 

941
00:58:37,000 --> 00:58:39,800
new covenant. 
You can see the parallel, right?

942
00:58:39,800 --> 00:58:44,280
You have this man of God, Paul, 
who is dealing with a stubborn 

943
00:58:44,280 --> 00:58:48,880
people who have rejected God. 
And you have a remnant of Jewish

944
00:58:48,880 --> 00:58:51,920
people who believe, while the 
rest, like Elijah's case, are 

945
00:58:51,920 --> 00:58:56,960
not believing. 
And so you can see how Paul is 

946
00:58:56,960 --> 00:58:59,480
confiding in Elijah. 
But the difference between Paul 

947
00:58:59,480 --> 00:59:03,200
and Elijah is this Elijah 
succumbed to the disappointment 

948
00:59:03,200 --> 00:59:04,760
of the people around him not 
believing. 

949
00:59:04,760 --> 00:59:10,320
Paul didn't, Paul didn't and I 
believe the reason why Paul then

950
00:59:10,320 --> 00:59:12,760
at least one reason why he 
didn't come to the point where 

951
00:59:12,760 --> 00:59:16,400
he he said, you know, I don't. 
I stayed in Arabia three years, 

952
00:59:16,400 --> 00:59:20,200
I might go back and stay for a 
longer while is because he 

953
00:59:20,200 --> 00:59:24,040
understood this truth about a 
remnant, something that Elijah 

954
00:59:24,040 --> 00:59:26,160
need to learn. 
Paul learned in his case in the 

955
00:59:26,160 --> 00:59:28,960
new covenant, there is always 
God's not done with Israel, 

956
00:59:30,760 --> 00:59:33,920
God's not done. 
He's not finished. 

957
00:59:34,160 --> 00:59:35,560
He's going to prove himself to 
be faithful. 

958
00:59:35,560 --> 00:59:36,880
He's going to prove himself to 
be true. 

959
00:59:37,080 --> 00:59:40,600
He's going to prove himself to 
be a promise keeper and the 

960
00:59:40,600 --> 00:59:42,600
Savior of this. 
He's going to do it. 

961
00:59:43,000 --> 00:59:46,680
That energizes him to continue 
forth, that Energizer to keep 

962
00:59:46,680 --> 00:59:48,360
preaching and praying and 
believing. 

963
00:59:50,640 --> 00:59:54,360
So you see, when you understand 
these truths as well, which we 

964
00:59:54,360 --> 00:59:59,640
can summarize in this, Jesus 
Christ will be victorious. 

965
01:00:00,800 --> 01:00:02,360
You want to keep going? 
Yeah, I know. 

966
01:00:03,240 --> 01:00:06,520
I know it looks bleak out there.
I know we would want to see 

967
01:00:06,520 --> 01:00:10,760
more, but in the end, it's it's 
all going to come back to 

968
01:00:10,760 --> 01:00:12,840
Christ. 
It's all you're on. 

969
01:00:12,840 --> 01:00:16,240
You're already one in Christ. 
And all he's asking of you, my 

970
01:00:16,240 --> 01:00:19,320
beloved brother and sister, all 
he's asking of you in this time,

971
01:00:19,600 --> 01:00:22,400
with whatever time left you have
on the earth is just be 

972
01:00:22,480 --> 01:00:24,880
faithful. 
Don't give up. 

973
01:00:25,480 --> 01:00:27,880
They'll throw in the towel. 
Don't walk away. 

974
01:00:28,320 --> 01:00:31,320
There's so much to be done. 
God will. 

975
01:00:31,320 --> 01:00:33,800
Vindicate His church, and He'll 
vindicate you personally. 

976
01:00:33,800 --> 01:00:37,280
And there's always a remnant. 
So let's end with these final 

977
01:00:37,280 --> 01:00:45,480
verses of First Kings 19. 
Verse. 19 Of FIRST Kings. 19 So 

978
01:00:45,480 --> 01:00:48,880
he departed from there, and 
found Elijah the son of Shafat, 

979
01:00:49,680 --> 01:00:53,680
who was plowing with 12 yoke of 
oxen in front of him, and he was

980
01:00:53,680 --> 01:00:57,040
with the 12th. 
Elijah passed by him and cast 

981
01:00:57,040 --> 01:01:00,400
his cloak upon him and he left 
the oxen and ran after Elijah 

982
01:01:00,400 --> 01:01:02,760
and said, let me kiss my father 
and my mother and then I will 

983
01:01:02,760 --> 01:01:05,520
follow you. 
I love Elijah's response. 

984
01:01:06,120 --> 01:01:08,200
And he said to him, go back 
again for what have I done to 

985
01:01:08,200 --> 01:01:11,400
you? 
There's a lot of debate about 

986
01:01:11,400 --> 01:01:14,680
what that means. 
I think a major reason for why 

987
01:01:14,680 --> 01:01:17,800
he says he what he says is, 
look, I'm just the messenger 

988
01:01:17,800 --> 01:01:19,080
here. 
This is between you and God. 

989
01:01:19,640 --> 01:01:21,000
God is the one who's calling 
you. 

990
01:01:21,000 --> 01:01:24,600
So you figure that out with the 
Lord, go back again, for what 

991
01:01:24,600 --> 01:01:26,600
have I done to you? 
And he returned from following 

992
01:01:26,600 --> 01:01:29,800
him, and took the yoke of oxen, 
and sacrificed them, and boiled 

993
01:01:29,800 --> 01:01:32,440
their flesh with the yokes of 
the oxen, and gave it to the 

994
01:01:32,440 --> 01:01:35,240
people, and they ate. 
Then he arose and went after 

995
01:01:35,240 --> 01:01:41,000
Elijah and assisted him. 
What a breath of fresh air after

996
01:01:41,000 --> 01:01:43,440
so much disappointment in 
Elijah's life. 

997
01:01:43,440 --> 01:01:46,280
And even in our study when you 
had a people who were 

998
01:01:46,280 --> 01:01:48,000
vacillating between two 
opinions. 

999
01:01:48,720 --> 01:01:51,360
And yeah, though they did show 
some sign of repentance. 

1000
01:01:51,360 --> 01:01:52,800
Who knows how long that really 
lasted. 

1001
01:01:53,000 --> 01:01:56,440
And you have Ahab and Jezebel 
who just stone heartedly just 

1002
01:01:56,440 --> 01:01:58,800
rejected all that God did before
them. 

1003
01:01:59,240 --> 01:02:01,400
You have this man who when he 
received the call of God, 

1004
01:02:01,400 --> 01:02:04,120
listen, he was a successful 
businessman, 12 oxen. 

1005
01:02:05,480 --> 01:02:07,000
That's some that's some pretty 
good stuff. 

1006
01:02:08,400 --> 01:02:10,560
When he realized that God had 
called him to be a prophet. 

1007
01:02:11,440 --> 01:02:14,520
He has a goodbye party. 
He burns everything away and he 

1008
01:02:14,520 --> 01:02:15,800
says, I'm not coming back to 
this. 

1009
01:02:15,800 --> 01:02:18,120
There's no turning back. 
And what does he do? 

1010
01:02:18,120 --> 01:02:20,440
You would think that this is a 
demotion because the last verse 

1011
01:02:20,440 --> 01:02:22,280
here says that. 
Then he arose and went after 

1012
01:02:22,280 --> 01:02:25,560
Elijah and assisted him. 
I'd rather kiss my business 

1013
01:02:25,560 --> 01:02:28,120
goodbye if it means that God's 
called me to this kind of a 

1014
01:02:28,120 --> 01:02:31,440
ministry where, as we learn 
later on, he washes the hands of

1015
01:02:31,440 --> 01:02:33,800
Elijah. 
That's what he that's what he 

1016
01:02:33,800 --> 01:02:36,560
goes down to that kind of a 
level where he will assist 

1017
01:02:36,560 --> 01:02:37,720
Elijah. 
He doesn't become a prophet 

1018
01:02:37,720 --> 01:02:39,760
right away. 
He becomes an assistant. 

1019
01:02:40,120 --> 01:02:42,640
But because he knew it was God's
call, he says that's greater joy

1020
01:02:42,640 --> 01:02:45,120
to me than any business, any 
money, any promotion, any 

1021
01:02:45,120 --> 01:02:46,440
expansion. 
I'll do it. 

1022
01:02:47,040 --> 01:02:51,240
I'll do it. 
And we are soon coming to the 

1023
01:02:51,240 --> 01:02:53,320
story of Elijah. 
Here's how we're closing. 

1024
01:02:53,320 --> 01:02:55,080
Look how many chapters we have 
left in First Kings. 

1025
01:02:55,080 --> 01:02:56,840
Flip your pages and notice where
it ends. 

1026
01:03:00,040 --> 01:03:03,640
Isn't that scary? 
We're almost done. 

1027
01:03:04,240 --> 01:03:07,960
We're almost done. 
And so we're ending our session 

1028
01:03:07,960 --> 01:03:10,840
tonight with many thoughts that 
have come our way. 

1029
01:03:10,840 --> 01:03:12,440
But let's conclude with this 
thought. 

1030
01:03:12,440 --> 01:03:16,840
Lord, keep me faithful. 
Keep. 

1031
01:03:16,840 --> 01:03:20,800
Me faithful, and if you are 
drained for whatever reason 

1032
01:03:20,800 --> 01:03:24,600
tonight, I pray that the truth 
that you heard would animate you

1033
01:03:24,600 --> 01:03:27,840
more, but I pray that you would 
have enough faith to speak to 

1034
01:03:27,840 --> 01:03:32,240
the Lord even now and say, Lord,
please, I want to serve you. 

1035
01:03:32,240 --> 01:03:35,400
And whatever you call me to 
serve you in, I want you to help

1036
01:03:35,400 --> 01:03:38,640
me remember that you will 
vindicate my 'cause I want you 

1037
01:03:38,640 --> 01:03:42,960
to remind me always that I'm not
in this alone, that there is a 

1038
01:03:42,960 --> 01:03:45,480
people here and there's a people
elsewhere that love you and 

1039
01:03:45,480 --> 01:03:46,800
serve you. 
And though they may not be the 

1040
01:03:46,800 --> 01:03:50,240
majority, God, help me believe 
that these relationships will be

1041
01:03:50,240 --> 01:03:54,320
enough for me to live another 
day to serve you with my whole 

1042
01:03:54,680 --> 01:03:57,640
heart. 
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for the 

1043
01:03:57,640 --> 01:04:00,960
blessed word of God. 
We ask you, oh God, with great 

1044
01:04:00,960 --> 01:04:06,360
Thanksgiving and gratitude, to 
chain these golden threads of 

1045
01:04:06,360 --> 01:04:11,240
truth around our hearts. 
And we do ask, O Lord, that you 

1046
01:04:11,240 --> 01:04:17,160
would help us not just survive 
in our service, but thrive with 

1047
01:04:17,160 --> 01:04:20,840
joy and strength and a 
contagious spirit. 

1048
01:04:21,560 --> 01:04:24,080
So even for those who have been 
faithfully serving you, but they

1049
01:04:24,080 --> 01:04:27,320
feel as though they are losing 
energy and desire. 

1050
01:04:27,520 --> 01:04:32,040
Let that change tonight. 
Please, Lord, let that change 

1051
01:04:32,040 --> 01:04:34,200
tonight. 
Let us know the vigor of the 

1052
01:04:34,200 --> 01:04:38,240
Apostle Paul and let us, oh 
Lord, realize that what you've 

1053
01:04:38,240 --> 01:04:40,800
started you can complete and 
finish in US. 

1054
01:04:40,800 --> 01:04:42,640
Lord, we ask that that would be 
true. 

1055
01:04:43,120 --> 01:04:46,120
We love you, Lord, we adore you.
And we ask that you would do 

1056
01:04:46,120 --> 01:04:50,440
what no man can do, revive our 
hearts and keep them alive in 

1057
01:04:50,440 --> 01:04:52,000
Jesus name. 
Amen. 

1058
01:04:52,520 --> 01:05:01,650
Amen. 
Yes, priest team. 

1059
01:05:01,650 --> 01:05:10,420
Thank you. 
I've seen a lot of people start 

1060
01:05:14,240 --> 01:05:20,400
and they didn't live past the 
decade of serving the Lord where

1061
01:05:20,400 --> 01:05:24,040
they can't be found. 
It's. 

1062
01:05:24,040 --> 01:05:28,960
Easy to start a race, and God 
describes this faith as a race. 

1063
01:05:30,360 --> 01:05:31,440
How are you? 
Running. 

1064
01:05:32,600 --> 01:05:36,280
Are you losing steam? 
Are you looking left? 

1065
01:05:37,240 --> 01:05:41,160
Are you looking right? 
I hope to preach a message on 

1066
01:05:41,160 --> 01:05:45,440
this one day, one of the 
strangest commands that Jesus 

1067
01:05:45,440 --> 01:05:46,960
gives in all of the New 
Testament. 

1068
01:05:47,520 --> 01:05:49,880
It's something that I'm 
convinced most Christians have 

1069
01:05:49,880 --> 01:05:53,280
never done, or maybe have done 
once. 

1070
01:05:55,520 --> 01:06:00,880
Jesus commanded. 
Remember Lot's wife. 

1071
01:06:03,280 --> 01:06:06,120
Is that a suggestion? 
No, that's actually a command. 

1072
01:06:06,920 --> 01:06:10,000
Remember Lot's wife. 
Think about Lot's wife. 

1073
01:06:11,120 --> 01:06:13,560
There's so much to unpack with 
that, but I remember stumbling 

1074
01:06:13,560 --> 01:06:15,920
upon that truth recently and 
meditating. 

1075
01:06:16,240 --> 01:06:19,280
Lot's wife, Jesus said remember 
her. 

1076
01:06:21,800 --> 01:06:24,400
Her ultimate crime was that she 
looked back when she wasn't 

1077
01:06:24,400 --> 01:06:28,000
supposed to. 
So I want to admonish you 

1078
01:06:28,000 --> 01:06:33,200
tonight, you can only know 
strength to keep running if you 

1079
01:06:33,200 --> 01:06:39,200
stay abiding in the vine. 
Stand. 

1080
01:06:39,240 --> 01:06:41,560
With me, please. 
And let's ask the Lord to help 

1081
01:06:41,560 --> 01:06:43,080
us keep running this race.