1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives—the God I serve—there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”
Here is what Encyclopedia Britannica tells us about Elijah and Ahab:
The Israelite king Omri had allied himself with the Phoenician cities of the coast, and his son Ahab was married to Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal, king of Tyre and Sidon. Jezebel, with her Tyrian courtiers and a large contingent of pagan priests and prophets, propagated her native religion in a sanctuary built for Baal in the royal city of Samaria. This meant that the Israelites accepted Baal as well as Yahweh, putting Yahweh on a par with a nature-god whose supreme manifestations were the elements and biological fertility, celebrated often in an orgiastic cult. Jezebel’s policies intensified the gradual contamination of the religion of Yahweh by the Canaanite religion of Baal, a process made easier by the sapping of the Israelites’ faith in Yahweh.
We never hear how God has called Elijah to prophesy; all we know is that Elijah appears suddenly, announcing to wicked King Ahab that there will be a drought lasting several years. This prophecy marks the beginning of one of the most amazing prophetic careers documented in the Bible. Elijah is such a towering figure spiritually that he appears with Moses, meeting with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration.
God appoints Elijah to be His voice at a time when Baal worship is sweeping the Northern Kingdom. After Elijah’s announcement of the drought, God hides him near a brook in a place called Kerith, assigning ravens to bring food until the brook dries up. Then sends him to Zarephath near the coast to a poor widow and her son who are nearly starving to death. God multiplies their food, preserving all of them until the time comes for Elijah to confront prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. When the boy suddenly sickens and dies, Elijah raises him from the dead.
On Mount Carmel, Elijah confronts 450 prophets of Baal, decisively proving that Baal is no god while Yahweh is the One True Living God. 1 Kings 18:22-24 Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only prophet of the Lord who is left, but Baal has 450 prophets. Now bring two bulls. The prophets of Baal may choose whichever one they wish and cut it into pieces and lay it on the wood of their altar, but without setting fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood on the altar but not set fire to it. Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by setting fire to the wood is the true God!” And all the people agreed.
Baal fails to respond, despite his prophets gashing themselves with knives and generally going crazy trying to elicit a response.
1 Kings 18:30-38 Then Elijah called to the people, “Come over here!” They all crowded around him as he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down. He took twelve stones, one to represent each of the tribes of Israel, and he used the stones to rebuild the altar in the name of the Lord. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold about three gallons. He piled wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid the pieces on the wood.
Then he said, “Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water over the offering and the wood.”
After they had done this, he said, “Do the same thing again!” And when they were finished, he said, “Now do it a third time!” So they did as he said, and the water ran around the altar and even filled the trench.
At the usual time for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command. O Lord, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O Lord, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself.”
Immediately the fire of the Lord flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the trench! And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The Lord—he is God! Yes, the Lord is God!”
When the Holy Spirit comes on Elijah, he performs miracles and confronts wicked rulers. Given the chance, most of us might be willing to perform miracles if we were assured that the miracles would take place; however, we would far rather let someone else handle dangerous confrontations. Why does God choose Elijah? We have no idea of Elijah’s appearance, whether he is tall, muscular, and handsome or short, squat, and cross-eyed. But God knows Elijah will obey Him diligently and consistently. Obedience is Elijah’s most important virtue. In the end, perhaps God calls Elijah because God knows Elijah will follow orders, something any of us can do is we only will.
Today, is God calling you to do something? You might feel a holy nudge, but because it’s something so small, you doubt whether or not that’s really God.
In the early 1950s, an evangelist named Everett Swanson flew from Chicago to South Korea to speak, sing and play for the American troops. Everett came in contact with hundreds of orphans who lost their parents in the war and now lived on the street and were abandoned.
One morning, he saw some cleaning workers picking up piles of something that Everett thought was clothes rags in a truck. He curiously walked up to the truck to take a closer look and was completely terrified when he saw that the “heaps” were not just clothes rags but there were also frozen little bodies, children who died on the street during the night.
Swanson returned to the United States and at home, people started giving him donations to help the children who needed the most help. This was the start of a unique program that enabled people in the West to provide these Korean children with food, clothing, lodging, Bible teaching and medical assistance. Compassion started in 1952 and today we collaborate with more than 8,000 local churches in 29 countries, we help over 2.3 million sponsored children. https://www.compassionfi.fi/history/#:~:text=1952%20Compassion%20International%20is%20founded%20by%20evangelist,the%20plight%20of%20orphans%20in%20South%20Korea.
What began with one man’s shock and horror at the deaths of street children in war-torn South Korea became a huge movement, something beyond its founder’s wildest dreams. Everett Swanson was just a believer with a tender heart who saw needs. What might God do with you if you will let Him?
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, some of us are feeling Your calling but we are terrified! Please speak to those fearful hearts and assure them that You are the One calling and the One responsible for results. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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