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Has there ever come a time in your life where all you could think about was the trials and struggles of life?
What is so difficult about trials is the not knowing of what may come.
I mean why we doubt, and fear, and despair is because we don’t know how things will end.
How does our trial end, and will things get any better?
That is what we think about and want to know.
This morning we have a lot to unpack here, and there are many topics in our passage that I could take time to address, but the main thing I want us to see here is God’s Victory.
When you are in despair and dealing with discouragement, run to this passage.
Don’t delay, don’t stop, get into your word and see that our God is a Victorious God and He is there with us in the battles and trials of this life.
Turn with me to 1 Kings chapter 18.
This is the story of God’s Victory over Elijah’s opponent’s.
During this time in Israel’s history the people had abandoned the Lord their God and chased after other false gods.
Elijah had dedicated his life to proving that Jehovah was the only true God in Israel.
In fact, Elijah’s name meant, “My God is Jehovah.”
More than anything Elijah wanted his people to know there was only one God, and He was the true Victorious God that could save them and rescue them from their sin.
1.
No Enemy can Succeed Against God.
What we see here is that Elijah faced several enemies or people who were against him.
First, wicked King Ahab stood against Elijah.
In fact, Ahab blames this whole drought thing on Elijah.
Ahab calls Elijah, “Troubler.”
This means one who brings on serious consequences.
We see this same word used in the Old Testament of Achan who hid some valuables under his tent in Joshua 6:18 and 7:25.
Also we see this used in description of King Saul in 1 Samuel 14:29.
However the problem was not with Elijah.
He wasn’t the real troubler.
The enemy was Ahab, his father, and the nation of Israel because they had failed to keep God’s commandments and so this is why the curse is happening on the land and thus the 3 year drought.
They had abandoned the commandments of the Lord.
This was a very sad thing for Elijah to see and deal with.
I am sure that at times he dealt with despair and discouragement but here we see him fired up for the Lord.
Notice verse 21.
Make up your minds people on who you will serve!
Quit sitting on the fence.
Either you are for the one true God or you are not.
What is it going to be???
The second enemy we see here that stood in Elijah’s way was the false prophets of Baal and the false prophets of Asherah.
Baal and the worship of Baal had been around for 100’s of years so none of this was new for this people.
Baal was the storm god and he would look after your crops and gave people crop fertility along with blessing people with many children.
Because Baal was related to weather, this is why Ahab and the people believed Baal was angry with Elijah and was with holding rain for 3 years.
All of this was Elijah’s fault is what the prophets of Baal, the King and the people thought.
Again the ultimate issue here was not just the wicked King and the wicked prophets, but the state of the nation as a whole.
In verse 21 that we just read Elijah insists that the people need to make a choice, and their choice or response is silence.
This must have been terribly frustrating for Elijah.
The people, the King blaming Elijah for this drought and yet Elijah understands the problem and tires to address it.
Sadly, the people don’t want to do anything about it.
They are non-responsive.
There may come times in your life where the problems of this world seem too frustrating or overwhelming.
It may seem that others are against you, slandering, ridiculing, talking about you, your family, or even church family.
But, remember this today.
God and His people will succeed.
Others may seem to win for a while or get their way but eventually their sin will catch up with them.
God gets the final word and has the final say on all things.
Remember in your trials that God is victorious.
2.
You are Not Alone.
The Lord Fights for You.
Here in verses 22-24 it looks like it is Elijah versus the whole world or everyone else.
And clearly he alone is taking a stand for God.
But my point here is that we are never alone.
Elijah issues this challenge here to the prophets of Baal by inviting them to see which God would answer the prayers of their people.
The prophets of Baal would provide a sacrifice along with Elijah.
The God who would provide fire was the Victor.
Elijah had the one true God on his side and we know that Elijah was not alone.
God was with him and God was present in this situation.
In verse 26 we see that the prophets of Baal call out to their god.
But this was all to no effect.
There was no voice, no answer.
The voice of Baal would have been thunder and his fire would have been lightning since he was a god of weather but all they got was silence.
So, here is where things get a little comical.
Elijah calls out to them, hey guys you might want to shout or cry louder.
Maybe Baal is on a bathroom break, or on a long journey.
Maybe he is taking a nap, or is distracted with something??? Elijah is doing all of this to prove the utter foolishness of Israel in abandoning their God.
Eventually their time runs out, there was no voice, no answer, no Baal.
Elijah was not alone and God was listening to his prayer proving that there was only one God.
In Joshua 23:10 we see that Joshua gives this charge to the leaders of Israel.
Here is what he reminds them of.
The One True God of Israel, Jehovah was fighting for Elijah and He is fighting for you today.
God is the defender of His children.
There may seem like times that the enemy is winning but God will get the victory and fights for His people.
Today the enemy may seem too big and too overwhelming in your life, so call out to God and know that God hears the prayers of his children and answers those prayers just like he did here with Elijah.
3. God is Always Victorious.
Now it is Elijah’s turn.
There was no answer and no response from Baal so the stage is set for the One True God.
I want us to zero in on Elijah’s prayer here.
In verses 36-39 we see that Elijah goes directly to God.
Remember Elijah’s name meant “My God is Jehovah.”
So, it should be no surprise that at the core of Elijah’s prayer was a desire to glorify God.
Elijah asks God, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel.
How powerful is that statement?
What this shows us is that the test rests on which god answers prayers.
Elijah’s prayer is a serious prayer and it centers on God revealing himself to his people once more and bringing the people too repentance once again.
What will God do?
How will He respond?
Notice the Lord’s response.
The fire of the Lord fell from heaven and it consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, the dust, and it licked up the water.
Everything was consumed.
The reason why this was so amazing church, is that fire from heaven had only happened 3 times before this.
First when Moses and Aaron got the sacrificial system going.
Also when King David bought the threshing floor as a suitable plot for the temple and builds an alter.
Finally, when Solomon dedicates the temple and the first offering is made.
So my point is that this didn’t just happen every day.
All of this is to show us that God alone is God of heaven and earth.
God breaks all the man made rules and shows us that we are not King over Him but He is King over us.
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