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Elijah on Mount HorebBy
Wayne Dailey, | |
Up there on Mt. Carmel Elijah had withstood all of those many false prophets. He prayed down fire from heaven, and a great victory was wrought that day. That day the hearts of the children of Israel were turned back to God, and away from Baal (the false god they had been worshipping). Sometimes people will tell you something that has quite an affect on you. When we think of the timing of this message that Ahab told Jezebel, what an affect this had! We read further and see what her quick reaction was:
Jezebel sent a message to see what she could do to even the score. Hey, she's the one who instituted this Baal worship; and now she wants to defend it. Elijah is being spoken to. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said,
Here's one of the greatest preachers you've ever heard about, and it sounds like he's having a bad day! like he's going through a trial! reacting like some folks you know, who bemoan themselves - feeling sad and sorry; murmuring and complaining, and wishing they were dead. | ||
A Long JourneySo you see Elijah has gone out there in the wilderness a day's journey, and sat down under a juniper tree. He felt bad, and prayed: O Lord, let me die! I'd be better off dead than to be here to go through this today. This man who worked such great miracles for God! This man whom God used in such a great way! This man would be talking like this? Jezebel sent her messengers to chase him down and kill him, if they could get their hands on him. But wouldn't God protect him? If you were in Elijah's place, wouldn't God protect you?
Well, I guess God did care about Elijah! It doesn't matter who we are, the Scripture says in Jude that Elijah was a man of like passions as we are. There was no difference! He was merely a man. We don't want to call him Superman Elijah. He wasn't a superman. He was merely a man whom God had called, yes; a man whom God had chosen, yes; a man whom God used - but, nevertheless, still just a man. We see God's care for him. Elijah had worked hard and long. He is weary here and it's evident by his very conversation that he needed a break. He needed a rest - and God would make a way where he could find some.
So God fed him a second time. He had something to eat that would fill him up, and give him a strength like you wouldn't get out of just two meals. God was letting him know that the journey he was about to take would be too great for him. I think the journeys a lot of people have to take might be what you would call too great for them. Is the journey you're on too great for you? God just sent my wife and I on a four month journey to work and labor for him on the evangelistic field. Was the journey too great? I wouldn't say it was too great. Did we come home tired? Yes, we came home tired: but that doesn't mean the journey was too great. Thinking, now, in light of Elijah and those two meals which the angel had just prepared for him, and the journey he would take. He's about to go on a long journey. He was going with the same trying experience that he'd been going through: but he was going to a holy place, to the mount of God.
Think of that! He ate two meals, and then was on the move for forty days and forty nights. Those two meals lasted him for the journey. They must have had something special about them! | ||
To Mount Horeb
Elijah, what are you here for? Why did you come way over here? We have to see the significance in this place: this was the place where Moses had also met with God (where the commandments had been given on the two tablets).
(Note that mount Sinai and mount Horeb both refer to the same mount - the mountain of God - see Exodus 3:1,12)
When we go to pray, do we tell God something He doesn't know? Do we shock God by what we have to say - or does He already know all about it? Elijah surely didn't shock God by what he said. He was merely expressing an answer to the question God had asked him, "What doest thou here?" In this reason, he's relating back to what had been done to the children of Israel. Jezebel, in her manipulating way, had attempted to slay all the prophets of God. She had one left, and his name was Elijah! and here he is talking with God about how all the prophets had been slain, but himself - and they were seeking to take his life away, also!
God put on a real demonstration for Elijah on this holy mount. But when all of these things were taking place - the rocks were broken by a great and strong wind, and there was an earthquake and a fire - when all of this was happening, Elijah didn't sense any of that was of the Lord, to say, "This is the Lord!" How would you have discerned all of that? Do you ever say, "I know that's the Lord! That's surely God!" Well, Elijah didn't know this was the Lord. The Scripture would stand with us to say that he didn't see the Lord in all of that. Those things were there before him, but he didn't see the Lord in them. | ||
That Still Small VoiceFinally, he came to the place of acknowledging the Lord was there when he heard that still small voice. Maybe sometimes we're in that situation where, like Elijah, we're not in a position to listen or to hear. That still small voice. It comes to you, and in hearing it you can't help but know that you're hearing from God. Elijah was familiar with that still small voice. It wasn't a canon roar in his ears! It wasn't a great big sound he heard. It was a still small voice. Let's think of that still small voice, then, for a moment.
I want you to understand that there was something about hearing that still small voice that day. That was enough to break the trial that he was going through and the feelings that he had within. He needed to hear from God. He needed direction. And this is something we often need, as well - directions, In all our ways we are to acknowledge the Lord, that He might direct our paths (Proverbs 3:5,6). We need a lot of directions along this road of life. We need a lot of directions, and if we don't find those directions we may one day regret it. Elijah, now, heard a voice asking him the same question again, "What doest thou here, Elijah?" One of the things we often need is to say, "God, I don't care what - but, Lord, open my eyes, and visit my heart." Elijah was in the place here where God showed him a lot of things. But he clearly discerned in his heart that, though He caused those things to happen, God wasn't speaking to him through them. If you were facing all of that evidence - the rocks breaking in pieces; the earthquake; and the fire. If you were seeing all of this would you take it as evidence from God? I'm not one to look for a lot of evidence. I don't go to God every day looking for Him to show me a sign that I might believe Him, that I might know it's Him. I look to God and to His Word, and His ability to speak clearly. Now, God asked Elijah again, "What doest thou here, Elijah?" Why would God ask that?
He's still got the same answer. He traveled for forty days and nights to get to this place. Somehow he expected to hear from God now. He wanted this reason to be in the ears of the Lord. But is this all he went this long distance for? Elijah was very thorough, wanting to make sure the steps he was taking were of the Lord. The Lord brought him to this mount, where God had visited other great men of God. This was a place where one would think, "If I could only get to that place where I could really pray, where I could get my mind clear of all distraction." Well, this is where Elijah heard that still small voice. That's what he was there for. We're very quick to jump to conclusions: "This is it! There's no doubt!" Elijah wasn't quick to jump to conclusions: "I heard from God - so now I can go back down off the mount! I'm going back because God shook the mountain for me! He sent an earthquake, and fire. I'm going back on the strength of that! That's enough to know - God has told me what to do." Oh, no. When all of that passed by - Elijah knew that wasn't what he came there for. That was not an answer to him. That didn't satisfy his soul. But, then - he heard a still small voice! He's alone on the mountain - with the exception that God is up there with him. He's alone with God. Do you know any better place to be than to be alone with God? Can you be alone with the crowd around you? When you want to get alone don't you get away from others? Sometimes we fail to get beyond those other things. We fail to get where we can meet God - where we'll surely know God's heart and God's mind. That's where we find Elijah - in the place where he's going to hear from God. God led him to this mountain - and through the experiences he had there perhaps more was accomplished in Elijah and for him than meets the eye. But enough evidence is given here that shows there comes the time and place where we have to get by all of those things that we would assume was surely God, that God surely spoke to us. Is everything God? If you hear the thunder roll, is that God trying to tell you something? Many look at these things and jump to conclusions. There's all of these things which impress people to cause them to make quick decisions, to jump to conclusions. But there's one thing we want to know deep in our heart - is there another answer? Is there something worth going all the way to where you can get alone to really pray and seek the Lord for an answer? Now, is there something else that is worth going all the way up the mount for? Would you want to go somewhere like that where you could really pray and seek the Lord, and hear that still small voice? Elijah, now, has been touched by all of this. In the presence of God, now, God would talk to him with some direction. He begins to speak to Elijah about the journey back down the mount: | ||
Back To Work
God has put him back to work as a prophet, going here and there as God leads. He heard this up there when he heard a still small voice. "On your return trip I want you to go by the wilderness of Damascus, and anoint Hazael king over Syria." "Elijah, are you sure this is God? You're going to anoint a man as king over Syria who is going to be one of the most hurtful men to Israel!"
Here's another man to be anointed king! Elijah was getting some clear directions as to where he should go and what he should do. Was it worthwhile for him to go away those forty days and forty nights? He's getting some pretty clear instructions from on high. He knows where to go. He knows who to look for. And he knows what to do.
Two kings, and another prophet: I guess it was pretty important that he go up on the mount. Don't we have to bring ourselves to the place sometimes where we realize we have to get by all the things that would stand in our way, and get down to the place where we're deep enough in God that He can tell us what to do. The Lord was there to tell Elijah what to do next. What a great work was done on that mount! What a great victory was wrought! God was going to work through all this to even help Elijah in the situation he had spoken of, dealing with those who had made it hard on him. We would look at all that, and say, we want to put ourselves in the place where we're ready to take the time. This is one of the things we often neglect. But how we really need to pray! Let's be ready to take the time to get all alone with the Lord to seek His face and pray. Do you pray best when there's a crowd around? Listen, if you want a place to pray where you'll hear from God, you want to find a place where you're all alone. There's nothing in such a place to disturb or distract you from giving your all.
This is dealing with all those who followed Ahab into Baalism. God is bringing up something in response to the cry of old Elijah. Elijah had been jealous for the Lord, and here we find where there's going to be some action concerning this. And these three individuals whom Elijah was to anoint would be used to accomplish this.
Elijah thought he was the only one left that was serving God! But God is telling him that a remnant of seven thousand has been reserved who have not bowed down to worship Baal. Here he'd been feeling like he was the only one left, and wishing he could just die - not knowing that seven thousand others were out there who still served God. What good news that was to Elijah! He went all the way up Mount Horeb to hear that. What he heard brought a deliverance to his own soul to take some of the anxiety away. Life was going to be more than fleeing from one place to the next, running for his life. The answer Elijah got up there was not only instructions, but also addressed the real issue of his heart (and I'm the only one left). Sometimes life can be like that. We think something is so - only to find out later that we were wrong. Elijah had thought he was the only one left - when, in reality, that wasn't true. | ||
Jumping To ConclusionsHow many times have we felt things, thought things and deep inside may have been as troubled as Elijah was troubled? The mind has a tendency to jump to conclusions. It doesn't need much to do this. The mind can act very quickly, and cause you to move without stopping to reason. One of the traps we can fall into is to jump to conclusions: we don't have time to wait. It's too important to wait for God to speak. One day I lay under my car - ready to have my head crushed! I certainly needed to hear from God - though I didn't know how much I needed to hear from God. God had warned me earlier about it, and I took Him seriously. I certainly prayed about it - and I'm sure glad I did. That day I lay under the car - propped up with its wheels off - and the next thing I knew God was telling me to get out from under the car! I had just a few seconds to roll over - when the car fell down, grazing my belly. I'm glad that I could listen to God. He saved my life by listening to Him. What if I jumped to conclusions, and thought God was speaking about something else? I only moved that day because I heard from God. He would help me because I took what He said seriously, and I prayed about it. God's always right on time. He didn't speak too early. He didn't give me five minutes to wonder if that was God or not. He spoke once! He spoke clearly! Get out from under that car! I certainly obeyed as quickly as I could!! I heard God speak - and I obeyed, to the saving of my life. My quick obedience spared my wife from being a young widow, and from my children going through life without their father. My daughter was too little to have even remembered her Dad. There's a time when you've got to hear from God. And when you hear you've got to hear God - not another voice. And when you hear you need to obey. I heard that voice - and if I didn't obey? My, I had about 15 seconds to respond, if that much! How merciful God was to spare me. He intervened, and spared a calamity. Elijah was in a situation that day where it was important to hear that still small voice. And he heard yet more . . . He got an answer that was good for Israel - and he also got an answer that was good for his own peace of mind. He was going to meet seven thousand people one day who hadn't bowed the knee to Baal. Now, if you take a nation the size of Israel, and realize that everyone except seven thousand were all at one time or another serving Baal! But, thank God, there were those seven thousand. Let's do this - let's keep our ear opened (that ear that the still small voice speaks into). When God speaks it's genuine. It's not a wonderment - where you're not absolutely sure. No, it's clear and true. I live to hear that voice more and more. I get answers then. I want to hear from heaven: and I want that voice clear when I need to hear - not some wonderment, or some this or that. I want to hear from God, Himself. You'll know when the answer comes that you certainly heard from God, for the answer will be sound and real. It won't contradict God's Word, but will be genuine and true. How long does it take to get an answer from God? He could answer quickly. Or it may take time. It may require patience and labor in prayer, weeping and crying before the throne. If I needed a sure answer - I might give up my breakfast and dinner a few days. I'd get as serious before Him as I could. After God sees you there a few days with no food - He knows you're serious. If you weren't serious then you'd be at the table. We need that serious time. Everyone of us needs to get hold of God. How about going over to Horeb! Maybe there's a place there (not the actual Horeb - but a place, like it, where you can get alone with God). Is there a mount of God somewhere in your life? a place where you can slip away to seek God by yourself, a place where you know you can hear from God without any distractions. It doesn't have to be a physical mountain. But it's your mount - your place where you meet with God . . . . . . and He meets with you. There's those serious matters where we can't afford to hear anything - but from above. Let's get up to our mountain. Let's get in our cave - where we can get alone to pray, alone with God - because we need to hear from God. Old Moses climbed that mountain - up and up and up to the top. He was an old man to be climbing up and down that mountain. There's my mountain. There's my place where I get alone to hear that still small voice. There's that hearing directly from God. We hear a lot of things indirectly. You can read your Bible and hear from God - indirectly. You're not actually hearing it with your natural ears. If you closed the Book, you wouldn't still be hearing. But there is that direct hearing - hearing that still small voice.
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