Sermon Tone Analysis

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/“Standing Alone”/

2 Kings  1-8

Pastor Brian à November 13, 2002

 

 

*Last week, *we finished the book of 1st Kings where we were able to read about the ministry of Elijah the Tishbite, the fiery prophet who suddenly appeared in dramatic fashion; the “foreteller” God used to announce judgment on King Ahab, the King of Israel who had “/done more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of the Kings before him”/, and his idolatrous wife, Jezebel.

Elijah, who is described in James 5:17 as a /“man subject to like passions as we are”/ showed incredible obedience, courage and faith.

God used Elijah to confront those who sinned, and to announce judgment if they did not return to the Lord.

His was a ministry predominately to the leaders of the land.

This week, we see the ending of Elijah’s ministry and the beginning of Elisha’s ministry.

We would do well to notice the different gifts that each man has been blessed with and how God uses each man in a different way to bring glory and honor to God.

It might be important for us to remember that in the original Old Testament, there was no division between 1st and 2nd Kings.

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*Because of God’s Word, we can stand in a world filled with IDOLATRY.*

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*/1/*/ After King Ahab's death, the nation of Moab declared its independence from Israel.

*2* One day Israel's new king, Ahaziah, fell through the latticework of an upper room at his palace in Samaria, and he was seriously injured.

So he sent messengers to the temple of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether he would recover.

*3* But the angel of the LORD told Elijah, who was from Tishbe, "Go and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, 'Why are you going to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether the king will get well?

Is there no God in Israel?

*4* Now, therefore, this is what the LORD says: You will never leave the bed on which you are lying, but you will surely die.'"

So Elijah went to deliver the message./

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! 2 Kings 1:  Judgment of Fire

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The last three verses of 1 Kings 22 inform us that King Ahaziah, the son of and successor to Ahab, was a wicked man whose heart had been unmoved by the recent judgments of God.

We now see that neither the rebellion of Moab, nor the injuries from his fall brought Ahaziah to repentance.

In fact, Ahaziah, after sustaining serious injury in his fall—and I do wonder, how did he manage to fall through the lattice work?

Was he drunk?—sends

messengers to a foreign God, Baalzebub, to find out if he’s going to live or not.

*Verses 2-3 tell us that idolatry denies the PRESENCE of God in our lives.*

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Elijah delivers the message of God’s judgment to the King’s messengers, who in turn, deliver the message to Ahaziah.

Ahaziah’s mistake is that he thinks the judgment is from Elijah instead of God and so he calls for his guards to deploy an officer and squad of fifty men to bring back Elijah to him.

*Verse 4-8 tell us that idolatry denies the POWER of God in our lives.*

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*/9/*/ Then he sent an army captain with fifty soldiers to arrest him.

They found him sitting on top of a hill.

The captain said to him, "Man of God, the king has commanded you to come along with us." *10* But Elijah replied to the captain, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your fifty men!" Then fire fell from heaven and killed them all.

*11* So the king sent another captain with fifty men.

The captain said to him, "Man of God, the king says that you must come down right away." *12* Elijah replied, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your fifty men!"

And again the fire of God fell from heaven and killed them all.

/

 

I wonder what the second captain and his fifty men thought when they were sent to retrieve the political insurrectionist, Elijah.

Did they tremble in the fear that they might meet the same fate as the group before them?

*/Was there a point in our lives, before we became children of God—before we acknowledged the Lordship of Jesus Christ—when we trembled in fear of where we were headed?

/*The third captain seems to get it because he certainly enters the presence of the Holy Man with fear and reverence.

Did God use circumstances to transform the life of this army captain and his fifty men?

 

*/13/*/ Once more the king sent a captain with fifty men.

But this time the captain fell to his knees before Elijah.

He pleaded with him, "O man of God, please spare my life and the lives of these, your fifty servants.

*14* See how the fire from heaven has destroyed the first two groups.

But now please spare my life!" *15* Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, "Don't be afraid.

Go with him."

So Elijah got up and went to the king.

*16* And Elijah said to the king, "This is what the LORD says: Why did you send messengers to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether you will get well?

Is there no God in Israel?

Now, since you have done this, you will never leave the bed on which you are lying, but you will surely die."

*17* So Ahaziah died, just as the LORD had promised through Elijah.

Since Ahaziah did not have a son to succeed him, his brother Joram became the next king.

This took place in the second year of the reign of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah./

Ahaziah’s true purpose was to lead the people of Israel to worhip their true God and Redeemer.

Ahaziah failed because of his addiction to idolatry.

We should be careful to understand that *Idolatry denies the PURPOSE of God for our lives.*

Horoscopes, crystals, money, addictions can all be idols in our lives—tools Satan will use to separate us from the love of God.

But these tools work only if we choose to let them work.

*/Personally:  Is there an IDOL IN MY LIFE that is standing between me and the presence, power, and purpose of God for my life?/*

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*Chapter 2:  The Chariot of Fire.*

There was a certain group a few years ago who decided that they had received a revelation from God announcing the time and date of Jesus’ return.

So they dropped whatever they were doing, sold all their possessions, went to Idaho and waited.

Paul’s letter to the Church in Thessalonika warned the believers there not to wait idly for Jesus’ return but to continue to do the work God prepared them for.

Chapter 2 opens with the Lord leading Elijah from Gilgal to Bethel to Jericho to the River Jordan.

*Verses 1-6 shows us that Elijah was walking with PURPOSE.

Philippians 2:13 (NIV) says, /“For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.”/*

We go from Gilgal—the first place Israel camped when crossed the Jordan and entered the Promised Land.

Gilgal was the point of new beginnings.

Bethel was the point of surrender—the holy place designated by God; the place of the altar where Israel came to worship and surrender to the Lord.

Jericho was the point of battle—where the power of God gave Israel an impossible victory.

The River Jordan was the point of transformation—where Israel marked their end to their wilderness wanderings.

We can appreciate the obedience of Elijah to God’s prompting—realizing that God does not force Elijah into retirement but continues to use him even up through his final day on earth.

/6//Then Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here, for the L//ORD// has told me to go to the Jordan River."But

again Elisha replied, "As surely as the L//ORD// lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you."

So they went on together.7Fifty

men from the group of prophets also went and watched from a distance as Elijah and Elisha stopped beside the Jordan River.8Then

Elijah folded his cloak together and struck the water with it.

The river divided, and the two of them went across on dry ground!9When they came to the other side, Elijah said to Elisha, "What can I do for you before I am taken away?"And

Elisha replied, "Please let me become your rightful successor."10"You

have asked a difficult thing," Elijah replied.

"If you see me when I am taken from you, then you will get your request.

But if not, then you won't."11As

they were walking along and talking, suddenly a chariot of fire appeared, drawn by horses of fire.

It drove between them, separating them, and Elijah was carried by a whirlwind into heaven.12Elisha

saw it and cried out, "My father!

My father!

The chariots and charioteers of Israel!"

And as they disappeared from sight, Elisha tore his robe in two.13Then

Elisha picked up Elijah's cloak and returned to the bank of the Jordan River.14He

struck the water with the cloak and cried out, "Where is the L//ORD//, the God of Elijah?"

Then the river divided, and Elisha went across.15When the group of prophets from Jericho saw what happened, they exclaimed, "Elisha has become Elijah's successor!"

And they went to meet him and bowed down before him./

If Elisha does as Elijah asks and stays behind, he would have missed the double portion that God intended for him to have.

Sometimes we have to stand on our promises to God—Elisha does this with his reply to Elijah in verses 2 and 8, /"As surely as the LORD lives and you yourself live, I will never leave you."  /Elijah may have only been putting his pupil to the test.

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*Chapter 2 also shows us how **when we walk with God, we walk with PROGRESS.*

Let’s not forget that years before, Elijah wanted to die in the wilderness.

But God certainly had another plan for Elijah—a plan to go out in glory rather than in fear, apparent hopelessness and dejection.

What does Elisha ask for?

The NLT takes away much of the drama in Elisha’s answer in verse 9.  The NIV says that Elisha replied,

/"Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit," Elisha replied./

Notice how Elijah responds to his servant’s querie in verse 10?