Faithful and True in the midst of Rebellion and Rejection, 1 Kings 18-19

The moments we are going to examine today should be well known for the seasoned Christian. In fact, the second set of passages includes an instance that has resulted in a extremely popular reference to the way that God moves and speaks.

The Lord’s timing for this passage is encouraging for me and I think for us. In light of the division our country is facing over abortion, the financial and political concerns our country is facing, and the overall state of affairs this passage provides insight and encouragement for us. Our sermon series is entitled Faithful and True. We have been working our way through the Bible, and stopping each Sunday to see how the whole Word, the entire Bible demonstrates the faithfulness and truthfulness of God and His Gospel. The approach for our year is to examine the parts of the Bible and the whole in light of who God is. My prayer is that we see God’s redemptive plan from beginning to end. And my hope is that it results in our church understanding our place in the story that God is unfolding. I hope that because I see many churches and individuals inviting God into their personal story. But God doesn’t fit into the story of a person, family, church, or even country. Everyone and everything fits into His story. And the better we understand the big picture of the Bible, the better we understand His plans. And the better we understand His plans the better we understand what it looks like to be faithful followers of Christ.

In our sermon today we look at 1 Kings 18 & 19. In chapter 18 we find an amazing displays of God’s power. The kind of display that proves His existence and inspires faith and obedience.

A quick intro to the people in the story… these aren’t characters. I say they aren’t characters because we don’t refer to the founding fathers as characters in American history. Ahab, Elijah, and Jezabel are as real as George Washington. The events that we are looking at today are as real as events in our history books.

Ahab- King of Israel, and disobedient by worshiping and allowing the worship of Baal and other fertility gods.

Obadiah- over the house of the king, but faithful to the Lord. He once hid a hundred prophets in two caves to protect them from Jezebel who wanted to them killed.

Elijah- the prophet of the Lord

The Lord (God)- Yahweh, the one true God, the God of the Bible

Baal- a false god worshipped by the Canaanites. He was a god of fertility. But ultimately he was the god of gods… he defeated his father and was associated with the sun, thunder, lighting, and rain. He was often depicted as a bull or ram.

The prophets of Baal- 450 men devoted completely to their god.

Jezebel- wife of Ahab and devoted follower of Baal

Angel of the Lord- a messenger sent from God who spoke and ministered to Elijah in his time of need.

Hazael- he becomes the king of Syria

Jehu- he was a commander in Ahab’s army who became King over the northern kingdom of Israel

Elisha- he was a prophet of the Lord who was used to do mighty works and speak on His behalf.

7000, the Remnant- these are the faithful Israelites who had never bowed to the false god Baal. They stayed faithful to the Lord in the midst of an ungodly king and culture…

We are going to pick up in 1 Kings 18:20… Elijah is confronting Ahab for his disobedience to the Lord and challenges the king to host a showdown to determine which God is true, Baal or Yahweh.

1 Kings 18:20–46 (ESV)

20 So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. 21 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.

22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. 23 Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it. 24 And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.”

25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” 26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made. 27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” 28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name,” 32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” 34 And he said, “Do it a second time.” And they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it a third time. 35 And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water.

36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. 37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.” 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” 40 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.

(Likely in compliance with the law God gave to Moses regarding false prophets)

41 And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” 42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. And he bowed himself down on the earth and put his face between his knees. 43 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again,” seven times. 44 And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’ ” 45 And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. 46 And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he gathered up his garment and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

What an amazing thing that has happened! First the sacrifice, then the rain! God has done a great thing for His people… but let’s keep reading

1 Kings 19:1–18 (ESV)

Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 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.” 3 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.

4 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.” 5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 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. 7 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.” 8 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.

9 There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 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.”

11 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. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. 13 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?” 14 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.” 15 And the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus. And when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael to be king over Syria. 16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. 17 And the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu put to death, and the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha put to death. 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.”

I’d like to take some time and walk through some things that I believe we need to focus on from these passages. Kind of a cumulative impact rather than a passage by passage or verse by verse approach.

First we see once again that God is faithful and true

God is Faithful and True

He demonstrates it by keeping His promises and proving Himself

He does it on the mountain when he consumes the sacrifice and altar

He does it when He nurtures and cares for Elijah in the desert

He does it when He speaks to Elijah outside the cave… And this moment, how much we need to be reminded of the fact that God speaks to us.

So many people want God to speak in power and might. They want the thunder and the lightning, they want the earthquakes and magnanimous moments… but God doesn’t always speak that way. In would say that more often than not God speaks in the still small way. And what does that look like? I think it looks like the ordinary means of grace. What I mean by that is that God speaks in the regular and routine ways of the Bible and the weekly preaching of the local church. These are the ways that the NT tells us we will hear from Him… and yet we are prone to go looking for God to move and speak in some other way.

The clearest and most amazing way that God has proven himself to be faithful and true is the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus

Romans 5:8 (ESV)

8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Being faithful to God comes with great victories and great rejection

Elijah experienced an incredible moment when God consumed the sacrifice with fire from heaven.

Elijah saw the Lord keep His promise by sending the rain they so desperately needed.

And yet, Elijah was running for His life. And because he was running for his life his perception was that he was the only one still following the Lord.

And isn’t this true for us today. When God moves we look for every person to rejoice and follow Him. Like the SCOTUS ruling this week. God has moved in a powerful way for the oppressed. He has intervened in small ways through the years leading up to the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade. And as Christians and pro-life supporters celebrate and rejoice… millions and millions of Americans have turned out to decry the decision and lament the loss of death. And in the midst of a country where the President decries the decision. Where a former President Obama commits to working harder to restore the right to kill that was lost, and many politicians began to commit to make their first act in office to undo the decision of the Supreme Court… in the midst of our country, where entertainers, business, and the world of media are angered at the decision… its easy to feel like you are alone as a follower of Christ.

In fact, when you combine the current state of affairs in the church of American you can really begin to feel alone. Some churches are becoming liberal and abandoning the Word in favor of coding sin like homosexuality and the trans-movement. Other churches are abandoning the word in favor of a health and wealth/prosperity gospel. Where Jesus is simply the means to another end, rather than the treasure that we seek. Still others are giving up the Word to teach and preach principles that can be applied to any life and any situation with or without Jesus. Other churches are abandoning the Word by not reaching out the lost, they are committing to huddle up and weather the storm while ignoring the explicit command of God to make disciples. And many churches are simply becoming shallow and pragmatic in their way of thinking. And this approach abandons the Word of God in favor of what is easy and works to keep the people happy. And the pragmatic approach is the one wreaking the most damage in our convention. As church after church focuses more on what people want rather than what God says. Regardless of the approach, each of this is snowballing in a dangerous direction. Because whatever you win people with is what you keep people with… and when you take away what you won them with it’s only a matter of time before you lose them.

If you are a Christian and a church that is seeking to follow the Word of God by preaching it, teaching it, organizing by it, and standing on it you might start to feel alone. But, you’re not. It may be true that there aren’t as many with the Lord as you thought. There may not be as many who are willing to stand faithful to God as you hoped… but you are not alone.

Jesus, the most faithful one there is experienced rejection. And the NT tells us that because of what He experienced we have a Savior who understands and sympathizes with what we are going through. And that truth serves to help us to turn to him in our time of need because He actually understands what it’s like.

So, you are not alone because of Christ, and you are not alone because one of the things we learn in this part of Scripture is that God is faithful to always keep a faithful remnant.

A faithful God always keeps a faithful remnant.

1 Kings 19:18

Know this to be true… where God intends to work in the future, He keeps a remnant. It’s God’s desire that the whole church would be faithful, but unfortunately that’s not always the case. And where God is going to revive and restore, He keeps a faithful remnant. It’s true that God doesn’t always choose to revive and restore the church that rebels. But, where there is a faithful remnant God is going to move. It’s a matter of his time and His plans.

God encouraged Elijah with the

And this leads me to the question that Elijah asked of the people of Israel at the beginning of chapter 18.

“How long will you go limping between two different opinions?” As Elijah said, “If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.”

In 1 Kings 18 it says that the people did not answer him a word… but that ’s not the way God’s people should respond… but it is an option.. the wrong option, but an option none the less.

There are three options to choose from, but only one is acceptable to the Lord.

You can choose outright rejection

You can choose to limp or waver back and forth between the world and the Lord

Or you can choose to follow Christ and seek to be faithful to Him.

I think that most of us here fit the category of limping between the two or following Christ. It’s possible that you are living in outright rebellion, and if so, skip straight from rebellion to repentance.

But I think the emphasis God would have me make is this…

You cannot continue living between two opinions

The opinions are truth… you cannot waver back and forth between what is true when it comes to the Lord. You can argue about which pizza is the best, who the best athlete in a given sport is, best band, best movie etc… But you cannot waver back and forth between following the Lord or not.

Elijah calls it limping. Do you remember the three legged race? It only works when both people are working together and moving in the same direction. This is true for our spiritual lives. If you are living in between two opinions it is the equivalent of limping… you can’t pick and choose what to obey, you must follow the Lord and obey all the time. (I think this applies to the spiritual condition of many churches and even denominations… they are limping because they are in-between opinion rather than together.) And the opinion you should pick is the one from the Word… but as we see in our own lives, and in here in Scripture that is not always the case. Even when the Lord moves in a powerful way.

Abortion

Political parties

Women in ministry

CRT

Etc

I feel like what some people want is for pastors to get up and check off a bunch of boxes about what they think and believe… and that’s because we live in a world where people are inundated with opinions… and in a world where everyone screams their opinions I think pastors just need to stick with preaching the Bible to their congregations so that the members of the church can live faithful to God’s Word, rather than going off of opinion.

trust me, I have had multiple friends challenged and even asked to resign in recent weeks over cultural issues. And it’s not because the men were unfaithful… its because they weren’t willing to act like an ESPN analyst, Fox News analyst, or MSNBC analyst and just share their opinion and observations on everything under the sun.

Friends, pastors are not called to share their opinions, they are called to preach the Word. And much of what is passing for preaching these days is detached from the Bible but connected to the main stream media and culture.

A pastor should speak to culture in the ways the Word of God can be faithfully applied. But pastors are not nightly news or talking heads… they are servants of the Lord who are called to deliver the Word of the Lord… and that is what we need right now in this church. We can’t change what’s happening on the other side of the country… but we can change what’s happening right here in Tupelo. We can’t change peoples opinions on Roe vs. Wade, but we can lead them to the one who can change their heart, soul, and eternal standing. We can’t change hearts by winning arguments, but we can become soul winners on behalf of the Lord by growing in our faith, sharing the gospel, discipling others, and becoming as biblically grounded as a church and families as possible.

You must choose, and you must choose daily. In Luke 9:23–27 (ESV) Jesus said to everyone:

“If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when he comes in his glory and the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. 27 But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God.”

You cannot be faithful to God and limp along pulling in different directions. And being faithful to God means a daily dying to self to live for Him… and living for Him means being faithful to His Word, seeking the good of others and the glory of God.

So, which is it for you?

Did you come here today wavering back and forth?

Did you come living in complete rebellion?

Did you come today striving to be faithful, but weary and tired from the experiences and situations you are going through?

Regardless of which situation you are in, Jesus is your answer.

He understands the struggle of living in this world but living for God.

He calls you to take up your cross daily and to repent from the limping and wavering way of life you have been living.

He extends his love and His grace to you in the midst of your rebellion. Like we read early in the sermon. He died for you while you were still in rebellion, so that you could be forgiven and brought to forgiveness by repentance and faith.