8-11-24 Sermon "Reminder" - 17 Minutes

1 Kings 19:4-8

This morning I'll be reading 1 Kings chapter 19 verses 4 through 8. And I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. 1 Kings 19:4-8 In these verses,,, Elijah is running from Jezebel,,, after she has threatened to kill him for what he did to the prophets of baal. 1 Kings 19:4–8 (HCSB) 4 but he went on a day’s journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. He said, “I have had enough! Lord, take my life, for I’m no better than my fathers.” 5 Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. Suddenly, an angel touched him. The angel told him, “Get up and eat.” 6 Then he looked, and there at his head was a loaf of bread baked over hot stones, and a jug of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. 7 Then the angel of the Lord returned for a second time and touched him. He said, “Get up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you.” 8 So he got up, ate, and drank. Then on the strength from that food, he walked 40 days and 40 nights to Horeb, the mountain of God. The word of God for the people of God,,, thanks be to God! God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning. Let us pray: Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen. ___________________________________ Last Sunday we looked at Psalm 78:23-29,,, and we learned from those verses,,, that God is faithful,,, and He will provide! I also went a little farther into the chapter,,, and by doing so,,, we seen that God punishes the Israelites because they were hypocrites,,, basically worshipping Him in word,,, but their actions showed the way that they truly felt! And I wanted you to remember 2 things,,, 1 - they were delivered over and over again,,, and,,, 2 - they were also punished over and over again,,, when they failed God,,, and turned away! The point being,,, that this should help us to see,,, that God loves us so much,,, and He's always ready to forgive us,,, but we must make the decision to turn back to Him when we fall short! We can't continue to live in sin and think that we will spend eternity in heaven just because that we have said the sinners prayer and think that our job is complete! It's hard for us to think about,,, but God is angry with us when we sin,,, and the punishment for sin is death,,, but thankfully,,, praise God,,, we have an advocate,,, someone to take our sins upon His shoulders,,, and make things right before God,,, if,,, we have turned to Jesus Christ,,, made Him our Lord and Savior,,, because we know that through His life,,, death,,, and resurrection,,, God's requirement for sin has been fulfilled,,, and we don't have to face separation from God any more! But we must still make the same decisions that the Israelites made,,, we must turn back to Him when we realize that we are going in the wrong direction,,, and it must be before,,, it's too late,,, and we do that,,, by being sure that we have made that decision today! For the Israelites,,, some made their choices that led to death,,, be sure that you don't follow that example,,, and follow those,,, that made the choice,,, to turn back to God,,, who loved them,,, and cared for them,,, and accepted their decision,,, to follow Him,,, once more! This morning we will look at these verses in 1 Kings 19:4-8,,, and see how they help us in our walk with God this week. ___________________________________ Verse 4 said: 4 but he went on a day’s journey into the wilderness. He sat down under a broom tree and prayed that he might die. He said, “I have had enough! Lord, take my life, for I’m no better than my fathers.” If you read the previous chapter,,, you will see that Elijah had defeated the prophets of baal,,, and had them put to death. Jezebel had not been present on Mount Carmel; her husband reported to her what had taken place. Infuriated by Elijah’s treatment of her prophets … Jezebel sent a message to him. He was evidently still in the city of Jezreel as she was (cf. 18:46) when he received her warning. She threatened to take his life in 24 hours in retaliation for his slaughtering the 450 baal prophets. It is remarkable that her threat terrified Elijah as it did. Ironically by contrast,,, he had told the widow in Zarephath not to be afraid (17:13),,, even though she only had just enough food for her and her son's final meal. If you remember,,, he convinced her to prepare his food first,,, then prepare some for herself and her son. And we know that not only did God provide enough to feed all three of them,,, He fed them until the famine was over! And Elijah had had just demonstrated that the gods to whom Jezebel now appealed in her curse had no power at all. (Her statement that she was willing to be dealt with severely by the gods [cf. 2:23; 20:10; 2 Kings 6:31] points up the seriousness of her threat. She was so certain she would kill Elijah that she willingly put her own welfare “on the line.“) Evidently Elijah’s fear sprang from the power Jezebel possessed. Rather than resting in God for His protection as he had for the past three and one-half years,,, Elijah ran for his life. He ran all the way through the kingdom of Judah to the southernmost town in the land, Beersheba. Still fearful he might be discovered by Jezebel’s spies,,, he told his servant to stay behind,,, and then,,, he traveled alone one more day’s journey (about 15 miles) into the Negev desert. Finally he sat down under a broom tree (a desert bush that grows to a height of 12 feet and provides some, though not much, shade) and rested. He was so discouraged he prayed that he might die.

Jonah seeks the same thing after God takes away the shade He provided (Jonah 4:8).

Jonah ended up in the situation that he was in because of disobedience and anger. Elijah had forgotten the lessons God had been teaching him at Kerith,,, Zarephath,,, and Carmel. His eyes were on his circumstances rather than on the LORD. His statement that he was no better than his ancestors (19:4) suggests that he was no more successful than his forefathers in ousting baal-worship from Israel. Exhausted and discouraged,,, Elijah lay down … and fell asleep,,, as we see from the next verse. ___________________________________ Verses 5-6 said: 5 Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. Suddenly, an angel touched him. The angel told him, “Get up and eat.” 6 Then he looked, and there at his head was a loaf of bread baked over hot stones, and a jug of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. The broom tree is a desert shrub common to the southernmost region of Judah (the Negev) and Sinai that could be eaten in times of need (Job 30:4) or burned as fuel (Psalm 120:4).

My commentary says that the loaf of bread was a bread cake.

The same type of cake that Elijah had commanded the widow to make (1 Kings 17:13).

Elijah woke at the touch of a divinely sent messenger.

This angel had prepared freshly baked bread,,, still warm apparently,,, and plenty of water,,, which he invited Elijah to consume.

The prophet did so and then returned to his rest.

The angel probably appeared as a human being as was common in the Old Testament. ___________________________________ Verse 7 said: 7 Then the angel of the Lord returned for a second time and touched him. He said, “Get up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you.” Again the angel woke Elijah,,, perhaps after he had slept for some time,,, and urged him to eat more food since the journey before him would require much energy. ___________________________________ Verse 8 said: 8 So he got up, ate, and drank. Then on the strength from that food, he walked 40 days and 40 nights to Horeb, the mountain of God. Moses and the Israelites had traveled in that wilderness for 40 years,,, sustained by the manna God had provided for them and learned lessons of His faithful care and provision.

Now Elijah would traverse the same desert for 40 days and … nights,,, sustained by the bread God provided and would learn the same lessons.

A direct trip from Beersheba to Mount Horeb,,, (the ancient name for Mount Sinai; cf. Ex. 3:1; 17:6; 33:6; Deut. 5:2; 1 Kings 8:9; Ps. 106:19; Mal. 4:4),,, would have taken Elijah only about 14 days on foot (a distance of ca. 200 miles).

Apparently God was reminding him and teaching him during those 40 days and nights.

Finally He went to the mountain of God,,, the very place where God had revealed Himself to Moses and the Israelites,,, and,,, where He had entered into a covenant with His Chosen People.

___________________________________ Elijah,,, just a few days before this,,, has defeated the prophets of baal,,, he's put them all to death,,, his prayers have brought forth the rain,,, and he has outran a chariot,,, all through the strength and power of God.

He knows that baal is useless against his,,, and our,,, God!

Yet,,, here he is,,, hiding,,, wishing that he was dead,,, feeling alone and defeated,,, worthless!

He's allowed earthly thoughts to get the best of him.

He knows how treacherous Jezebel can be,,, and that thought consumes him.

You would think that he would remember what he has accomplished with God's help,,, but he doesn't!

___________________________________ But notice what God does for him.

God provides rest,,, food,,, and water,,, then more rest,,, food,,, and water,,, as He prepares Elijah for the journey ahead of him.

When we allow ourselves to be distracted by worldly things,,, we lose sight of our strength and power!

Just like Elijah did here,,, we can make the same mistake.

And when that happens,,, we can learn from this and see that even when we forget about God,,, God doesn't forget about us!

Just as He didn't allow Elijah to continue in weakness and doubts,,, He won't allow us to continue in that condition either.

We just need to spend time resting in God's presence,,, taking in His food and water,,, as we allow ourselves to be strengthened by Him again.

Allowing us to continue the job that God has for us to do.

___________________________________ We must be aware that we can get tired,,, distracted,,, confused,,, feel useless,,, like what we are doing doesn't matter,,, whatever feeling you want to inject here,,, or whatever feeling that I didn't mention that you might be feeling,,, anything that might be keeping you from feeling God's presence,,, and use these words to help us remember that God will help us to return to Him!

Just as He helped Elijah to get his strength back,,, God will help you too,,, if you just take the time,,, to rest in His presence,,, take in His words to give you the strength and nourishment that you need,,, so that you can continue,,, in whatever journey God has,,, for you to complete!

We can't travel alone,,, we need God's help every step of the way,,, don't allow discouragement to stop you!

Take the time,,, to allow God to fill you with His strength and power,,, through the quiet time,,, that you truly need,,, each and every day,,, but especially when you have allowed the world and worldly problems,,, to come between you and God.

We see that Elijah,,, with all of the mighty acts that he seen God perform,,, still needed this reminder!

Make sure that you remember this as well!

___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Hymn: 337 - Oakdale Hymn: 337 - Seminary Benediction -----------------------------------------------------------