The Still Small Voice

Good Morning, I hope and pray everyone is doing well this morning. Turn with me in your Bibles this morning to .

Everybody stand up say I am alive, I’m alert, and I am ready to hear Gods word.

1 Kings 19:1–18 HCSB

Ahab told Jezebel everything that Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “May the gods punish me and do so severely if I don’t make your life like the life of one of them by this time tomorrow!” Then Elijah became afraid and immediately ran for his life. When he came to Beer-sheba that belonged to Judah, he left his servant there, 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.” Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. Suddenly, an angel touched him. The angel told him, “Get up and eat.” 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. 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.” 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. He entered a cave there and spent the night. Then the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Hosts, but the Israelites have abandoned Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are looking for me to take my life.” Then He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the Lord’s presence.” At that moment, the Lord passed by. A great and mighty wind was tearing at the mountains and was shattering cliffs before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was a voice, a soft whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Suddenly, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of Hosts,” he replied, “but the Israelites have abandoned Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they’re looking for me to take my life.” Then the Lord said to him, “Go and return by the way you came to the Wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive, you are to anoint Hazael as king over Aram. You are to anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel and Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. Then Jehu will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death whoever escapes the sword of Jehu. But I will leave 7,000 in Israel —every knee that has not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

(Let’s Pray)

Last week we talked about prayer which is the act of talking with God. This morning were going to be talking about listening to God or hearing His voice in a world full of temptation. Were heading deeper and deeper into darkness in our world. One look at the world around us and we can see that things are not getting better they are getting more and more wicked.

Things which should never be acceptable are now acceptable by over half of the country. While this is true more and more people are discovering that they need something more. Many people are missing something inside their hearts and they want some kind of spiritual experience.

So they are seeking but since we live in a country where there are so many religions and so many ideas about God they are finding there are multiple options for them to find some kind of experience.

When I was a teenager the question was.... CAN I BELIEVE IN GOD.

My childhood was called the modern era, and this was the question asked by the modern era, CAN I BELIEVE IN GOD.

But now we are living in what is called the POSTMODERN ERA in our day right now, the question has become WHICH GOD SHOULD I BELIEVE IN? Why does this matter to you?

Because your grandchildren, and even your children are going to be growing up in this age where this is the question, and you need to understand why they think the way they do, and why they act the way they do. You are going to need to understand this is what your coworker is struggling with. HOW DO WE KNOW THAT THE GOD OF THE BIBLE IS THE ONLY GOD?

Because from their perspective there could be many other options out there, even though we know this is not true. The reason were looking at this story today is because Elijah lived in a time that is like now, but we haven’t seen it in centuries. They lived in a time when most people were surrounded by gods.

Their question is how do I choose?

What is the difference between the real God and all the other false gods of the world?

At this point in 1 Kings, King Ahab and his wife Jezebel were ruling over Israel. They had began to set up idolatry, or especially the worship of a false God named Baal as the official religion of Israel. Elijah then is called by God to confront them. He then comes before the people and says meet up on mount Carmel and on Mt. Carmel Elijah has a contest challenging the prophets of Baal in front of thousands of people and the King.

One of the things I like about Elijah is this so often your reading the Bible and you say “these people really dont react like me” But here Elijah acts just like us doesnt he?

He walks right into the midst of the kings court and says my god can whip your God because my god is the true god of Heaven. Meet me on the mountain, lets go.

So they have a showdown, and he says to these idol worshippers and the prophets of baal, and he says to the prophets of baal “Come on pray and lets see if fire will come down on your alter and they pray and nothing happens. Then Elijah prays and fire comes down and set the alter on fire from heaven.

At first it begins to burn up the sacrifice and then it begins to burn up the wood, and then it begins to come down further and starts to burn up the rocks and stones of the alter and they begin to disentegrate and then everybody falls down.

THEY SAY THE LORD HE IS GOD

Elijah displayed great faith and God showed Himself to be the One true God by doing one of the most amazing miracles recorded in the Bible by raining fire down from heaven.

1 Kings 18:46 HCSB

The power of the Lord was on Elijah, and he tucked his mantle under his belt and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

Now the question that comes up is this, why would he run to Jezreel?

It was the Capital and the King and Jezebel wanted him dead because he made the baal worshippers look bad and they were the ones who had set up baal worship as the offcial religion of the nation of Israel. They want him dead, so why would go right to the capital where there was a price on his head?

The only reason would be this, He expected that now after this miracle that god did that either Ahab and Jezebel would repent or either the people would cast them out. But no one in their right mind would have gone to the capital city. Jezebel sends him a message, “MAY I BE STRUCK DEAD IF BY TOMORROW NIGHT IF I HAVENT KILLED YOU”

Elijah runs off into the desert...

Why?

He is running off

He is running to Mt. Horeb

why?

Well as were going to see He wants to see God, He wants to hear from God. He is so confused, I mean Elijah has done everything God had asked him to do, and now the nations leaders want him dead.

Have you ever felt like when you tried to do what you thought God was asking you to do everything seemed to get worse in your life?

The king and his wife even though a miracle had happened are completely unphased by god and the people didnt rise up agains them to overthrow them. NOTHING

NOTHING HAS HAPPENED

He did everything God asked and nothing happened except things got worse.

He runs to Mt. Horeb and there God shows him who He is.

Do you want to now God better? Better question, how do you know when God is seaking to you?

When God comes to meet with you He always comes in these ways.

He comes in wisdom

What do I mean?

Well when Elijah runs off we see the man of God cracking in fear. In verse 3 we see that he is scared, but what has changed up on the mountain he was outnumbered 100-1 but now with a simple threat he is running for his life.

1 Kings 19:3 HCSB

Then Elijah became afraid and immediately ran for his life. When he came to Beer-sheba that belonged to Judah, he left his servant there,

1 Kings

What does it mean that Elijah left his servant there? Elijah doesnt have a servant because he is royalty, he has a servant because he is a prophet and when he gets to Judah he lets him go, He lets his staff go. Do you know what this means?

Elijah is quitting the ministry, he has done everything he can he is tired and fristrated and afraid and he is calling it quits.

1 Kings 19:4 HCSB

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.”

He says take my life.

Now i know that there are people in this room who have thought about taking there own life. How do I know that because in a room this size with this many people here there is bound to be someone who has at least had the thought of suicide or at least been affected by it in some way.

Elijah even in this situation of despair doesnt even think he has the right to kill himself. Its amazing he does not think he has the right to do that and so he asksGod to take his life which shows that he is broken.

When God begins to deal with him he gives wisdom to Elijah and what does god do, He does three things.

God sends a minister

God sends an angel, and when the angel comes what does he do?

Does he come and say FEAR NOT.... no

DOES HE COME AND SAY DO YOU WANNA TALK ABOUT IT?

NO

DOES HE COME AND TELL HIM ITS GONNA BE ALRIGHT?

NO

What does he do?

He cooks! This is the angel of the Lord, all the angel of the Lord does is cook and touch him, and say your tired. what does that mean?

God is not like an awful lot of Christians and automatically believe that if your depressed or upset then it must be a heart problem.