The Great Resignation - 1 Kings 19:1-18

Introduction

2021 has been come to be known as the Great Resignation. According to Pew Research, an average of about 4 million people left their jobs EVERY, SINGLE MONTH of 2021. And, the trend hasn’t slowed down. 2022 has shown much of the same with it estimated that 20 percent of the work force will resign their positions this year. Would it surprise you if I told you that the numbers are even more startling for those who serve in vocational ministry? Barna Research suggests that 40 percent of pastors contemplated leaving vocational ministry altogether in 2021. Think of that.

There have been a lot of contributors to the Great Resignation, no doubt. But, at the top of the list is burnout and cultural climate. Here’s what I mean: The pandemic brought about a crisis that is unprecedented in any of our lifetimes. Over night, our whole way of life changed, and we had no idea how long it would last. Most people, pushed and pushed and pushed to keep businesses afloat, to figure out their best path of healthcare, and to maintain so semblance of living for their families. So, they pushed through on pure adrenaline, at times, without knowing if they were even making a good decision. Frustration built. Then, there was a hotly contested election, deep disagreement over how to manage the pandemic, and people were angry over the disruption to their lives. Frustration built, and anger accumulated. Just ask a teacher friend how navigating the masks has gone for them. Over time, people wore down. If people could retire, they didn’t delay it any longer. If they could figure a way out, they took it. If they could find a fresh start without a history of hurt feelings, it was enticing.

God’s Word

This morning, we’re going to see that it’s not just stressed out teachers and frustrated business leaders and run down pastors that want to quit. It’s prophets, too. In fact, if you can identify with what I’ve been talking about, if you feel run down, if you feel frustration building and anger accumulating, if you feel like you completely failed in managing what you’ve faced, you’ll likely be able to relate to Elijah today. How to Understand our Feelings of Failure (Headline):

Failure “makes” us want to “resign”.

1 Kings 19:1-4 “Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.””

Perhaps no three words would describe the last two years like fear, anger, and failure. Some have been afraid they would lose their lives, others their livelihoods, and still others their way of life. There’s anger over how its been politicized or over how its been managed or over what its cost us. And, for many, there’s a low grade feeling of failure that you didn’t manage your business or your relationships or even your emotions more effectively. Is it any surprise that the World Health Organization says that anxiety and depression are 24 up percent since COVID? In fact, I think it’s clear that Elijah is depressed; so, what he says should make sense to us. He says:

“I’m “afraid”.”

In fact, the narrator says it point blank. And, if we place this in the context of what’s happened, Elijah’s fear seems irrational, doesn’t it? Sure, Jezebel has said that he’ll be dead within 24 hours, but, my goodness, think of what he’s just witnessed. He just saw God shoot fire across the sky in response to his prayers. I mean, how can he be afraid? We should probably understand the situation with Elijah similarly to our situation with COVID. It was cumulative. He’d been in hiding for more than three years. Finally, when God answered his prayer, it appeared it was ending. And, then Jezebel shows up again, Elijah has to hide again, and He realizes there’s no going back to normal. Sound familiar?

So, his fear is irrational in one sense, but valid in another. Valid because of what he sees, but irrational because of what he knows. He sees Jezebel’s threat, but He knows that God is with him and for him. That tension is an ongoing battle for people of faith, isn’t it? So often, there’s a gap between what I know, and what I feel. And that can lead to the deepest despair. “I’m not supposed to feel like this. I believe that God is sovereign and Jesus is risen.”

Which leads to what Elijah says next:

“I’ve “failed”.”

He’s had enough! He can’t take the pressure any more. He can’t keep living afraid. He can’t keep going with his life always feeling like it hangs in the balance. Because try as he has, work as he has, sacrifice as he has, and yet he still feels like a failure. He says, “I’m not better than my fathers.” In other words, the prophets before me couldn’t get ride of idolatry, and I can’t either. No good deed goes unpunished. All my work has amounted to is exhausted failure. I wonder how many mothers can relate to this. I work and clean and teach and cook, and my house never feels clean and kids still don’t respect me. Or, how many business leaders. You’ve tried to innovate and you’ve tried to treat people well and operate with integrity, and you still don’t have enough help, the supply chain is still running dry, and your numbers still haven’t recovered. It feels like the reward for your hard work isn’t success; it’s just a tired, exhausted sense of failure.

And, if you’re honest, you’re right there with Elijah ready to say with Elijah:

“I “quit”.”

Elijah turns in his resignation. Notice that he runs all the way to Judah, which is outside the Kingdom of Israel. Then, he kept going until he was outside of Judah and in the wilderness. He’s leaving his ministry and his life, and he’s running way. He says he’d rather die than keep going like he is, which is interesting since he ran to avoid dying. But, the fear and anxiety had caught up to him. Failure seemed inevitable, and his effort seemed ineffective; so, why not just quit? Do you find yourself wanting to run away from it all? Maybe you’re on the edge of leaving your job — or your family — or even your faith in Jesus.

Exhaustion, depression and anxiety don’t think straight. So, I want you to notice how God responds.

Failure “draws” God near to “us”.

1 Kings 19:5-8 “And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. And the angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.” And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.”

Now, that’s counterintuitive of any other belief system in the world. Not many bosses respond to the resignation by gong closer! And, certainly not other gods like Baal. Every other religion, every other worldview hinges the love of their god or the success of their lives upon your ability to succeed at all the right things. But, not the Christian gospel. That’s why it’s Good News. It was meant for people who fail — who fail to be strong enough, faithful enough, good enough. Jesus confirms what Elijah discovers: God’s ministry is for the failure. He doesn’t run from you, but to you. Elijah just wants to die, when the angel of the Lord (v. 7), who I take as an OT appearance of Jesus, carries out God’s ministry to failures.

He loves with “practical kindness”.

I mean, here’s a prophet who just turned in his resignation to God. He’s quit on his mission. How do you expect God to respond? You expect a harsh, “Get yourself together, man!” Instead, what does he do? He cares for him in real and practical ways. He gives him food to eat and instructs him to take a nap. God has designed us to be integrated people. If you’re physically and spiritually depleted, both need to be addressed. A person can’t properly deal with their soul if they’re physically run into the ground, and so what we is God caring for Elijah according to his design. I wonder if you’re there. If you find yourself in the wrong state of mind, it could be that you need rest. It could be that your wife needs rest. Your son or your dad may need a nap. The Sabbath is God’s instruction to us to care practically for how He has made us physically and spiritually. The Sabbath is a rest from physical work and an investment in spiritual care. It’s practical kindness.

He ministers with “personal gentleness”.

And, I want you to notice the personal touch of the Angel of the Lord. It says that He “touched him”. God isn’t caring for him at arm’s length. And, it says that there is “a cake baked on hot stones.” We’re not just talking about some wild berries that are provided. This is a prepared meal. Here is Jesus doing what Jesus does — humbling himself as a servant to gently nurture his people. The posture of Jesus toward those of us who are harsh with ourselves — like Elijah — is gentle, nurturing care. Dane Ortlund has pointed out that there’s one description in all of the gospels of Jesus’ heart, and it’s that He’s “gentle and lowly in heart.” Do you know what Elijah needed? To turn down the volume of the condemning voice of failure and turn up the volume of God’s gentle care for him. Oh, Jesus is much more gentle than you are. Turn down the condemning voice of your conscience, and turn up the gentleness of Jesus. Turn off the TV, and run to him, not away.

He waits with “patient compassion.”

I love that He waits on Elijah “again.” Oh, our Lord isn’t just kind and gentle with us — He’s patient, too. Healing always takes longer than you think it should. My battle with depression and anxiety took me more than two years to recover from. I wanted to give up, but the LORD never did. Can I just tell you that you can count on the patience of Jesus? Kindness, gentleness, patience — these are the fruit of the Spirit of Christ!

Do you see why the Christian gospel is Good News? Jesus isn’t repulsed by your failure; He’s drawn to it. Your failure doesn’t draw out God’s temper like your dad or your coach or your boss. It draws out God’s kindness. In fact, as Elijah finds out....

Failure “isn’t” what we think it “is”.

We tend to think of success or failure in terms of getting the result we desire through the effort we invest. If I eat a salad for lunch, I feel like a failure if weigh a pound heavier in the morning. This was the case for Elijah. He had done what God had told him. He’d confronted Ahab and proved God the living God. He expected that would mean the elimination of his threat, but it didn’t. Baal worshipers still lived, and He was still in danger. Failure. But, when God finally begins to deal with Elijah’s soul, He shows how he’s misunderstood his role, and as a result success and failure too.

We carry too “much”.

1 Kings 19:11-12 “And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.”

God has Elijah walk all the way to Horeb, which is Sinai where God had given Moses the ten Commandments and started the covenant with his people. And, a strange scene unfolds. There’s a storm and an earthquake and a fire, but God is not in any of those things. You see, that’s how God had made himself known to Moses and Israel at Horeb before. God had come Moses there as a burning bush. Before Israel a storm had descended upon the mountain to show his presence. But, not this time. This time, God showed his usual mode of operation — quiet. That is, Elijah had expected that God would accomplish his purposes through giant, miraculous signs alone. But, his view of God was too small. Because God is at work in every detail, every raindrop, every king that’s anointed. Elijah was a part of the plan, but He wasn’t the whole plan. He was carrying a weight that he wasn’t equipped to carry, and that’s not failure.

It isn’t failure to be unable to do what you weren’t created to do. It isn’t failure to be too weak to carry what you can’t carry. It isn’t failure to be unable to fix what you can’t fix. It isn’t failure to be unable to control what you can’t control. Some of you need to hear that this morning. The economy. Letting go of employees. Your kids and their decision. How other people perceive you. How much of your sense of failure is centered upon things beyond your control? Listen, that’s not failure!

We feel too "alone”.

1 Kings 19:12-14 “And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.””

1 Kings 19:18 “Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.””

No, the inability to carry what he couldn’t carry was not Elijah’s failure. The real failure was in believing that it all depended upon him and that he was all alone. There’s something else that you need to notice about this strange story that Horeb is supposed to remind us of. Now, what’s been his complaint? “I, even I only, am left...” I’m alone. Notice that Elijah is brought to the entrance of the cave. It takes us back to Moses in Exodus 33, where God has said He’d let his people go to the Promised Land, but because of their WORHIP OF BAAL, He would not go with them. MAN, I HOPE YOU SEE WHY WE NEED TO SEE THIS IS ALL ONE, BIG STORY. And, what happens? Moses intercedes on behalf of his people, and God relents. Then, Moses, hidden in the cleft of the rocks, sees the very back of God’s glory as a reminder that God’s presence is going with them. That’s what’s happening here. “Elijah, you’ve never been alone. I’ve been with you. I have more prophets like you. There’s a 7000 person remnant that is with you.”

You may feel alone, this morning, but I want you to know that you’re not alone. Sometimes, like fire and an earthquake, you can see the hand of God clear as day. But, much of the time, He’s working in silence. Just as faithfully, even though not as loudly. But, He will not forsake you. He will not fail you.

So, this morning, don’t resign. Don’t quit. Bring your tears and your worries to a kind and gentle Savior so that He can remind you that it’s not all dependent upon you.