We are all familiar with the fact that David was a man after God’s own heart. Yes, we know that David was guilty of adultery, and then in an effort to hide his sin he committed murder, but in God’s eyes these are footnotes on the pages of David’s life… these sins don’t define the man.

These sins don’t define the man because David repented of his sins… that is to say he learned not only to hate his sins, but he also developed a love for the things God loves. In our text today we are going to see the consequences of sinful judging. What happened to David can happen to you and to me… and what is even worse, we can be the ones guilty of making sinful judgments.

1 Chronicles 19:1-3 – It happened after this that Nahash the king of the people of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his place.  2 Then David said, “I will show kindness to Hanun the son of Nahash, because his father showed kindness to me.” So David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father. And David’s servants came to Hanun in the land of the people of Ammon to comfort him.  3 And the princes of the people of Ammon said to Hanun, “Do you think that David really honors your father because he has sent comforters to you? Did his servants not come to you to search and to overthrow and to spy out the land?” 

Our text starts out with the phrase, “It happened after this,” so immediately we need to ask ourselves, “After what?” Well the previous chapters tell us that David has been going to war against the Philistines, the Moabites, the Ammonites, the Syrians, the Edomites, and the Amalekites, and he defeated them all.

Then we are told that Nahash, the king of the Ammonites died. I trust that name sounds somewhat familiar to you. We first met Nahash in 1 Samuel 11. Nahash was the king who threatened to attack Jabeshgilead after Saul had been anointed king over Israel, about sixty years prior to this. Nahash threatened to go to war against Jabeshgilead unless every man of the city agreed to gouge out his right eye. (Nice bedtime story, right?). The people of Jabeshgilead sent messengers to Saul to tell him about the threat, and Saul as you know, rose to the occasion… empowered by the Spirit of God, Saul led Israel to a victory over Nahash and the Ammonites.

This is probably the same Nahash, or it could be his son, we don’t know for sure. Either way, this Nahash had been kind to David. We aren’t told how or when Nahash extended this kindness… perhaps when David was fleeing from Saul, Nahash came to his aid and helped David. We don’t know, but whatever the reason, our text makes it clear that David considered Nahash an ally and a friend. David had every intention of honoring Nahash when he sent a delegation to mourn his death.

After Nahash died, his son Hanun succeeded him as king, and Hanun had some very suspicious people around him. They are fully persuaded that David isn’t trying to be kind at all, and that he is using this occasion to spy out their land and conquer them.

I think we need to realize it is a fact of life that sometimes you and I are going to be misunderstood, even when our motives are as pure as the driven snow. Misunderstandings are a fact of life in this sin-cursed world.

The following is meant to be a helpful tool to men who often misunderstand the women in their life. It was written as coming from a woman to a man:

WORDS WOMEN USE

(1) Fine: This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to say not one word.

(2) Five Minutes: If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

(3) Nothing: This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

(4) Go Ahead: This is a dare, not permission. Don’t Do It!

(5) Loud Sigh: This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) That’s Okay: This is one of the most dangerous statements a woman can make to a man. That’s okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

(7) Thanks: A woman is thanking you; do not question, or faint. Just say you’re welcome. (I want to add in a clause here – This is true, unless she says ‘Thanks a lot’ – that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say ‘you’re welcome’. That will bring on a ‘whatever’).

(8) Whatever: Is a woman’s way of saying, “You don’t have a clue, do you?”

(9) Don’t worry about it, I got it: Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking ‘What’s wrong?’ For the woman’s response refer to # 3.

Misunderstandings are a fact of life in this sin-cursed world.

1 Chronicles 19:4 – Therefore Hanun took David’s servants, shaved them, and cut off their garments in the middle, at their buttocks, and sent them away.

Hanun is obviously trying to pick a fight, and if that was his goal, he succeeded. Hanun shaved each man’s beard off. This was especially humiliating to the Hebrews, as they consider beards a mark of dignity… in fact, many Jewish men didn’t even trim their beard. In that culture, many men would rather die than to have their beard shaved off, because to be clean shaven was the mark of a slave… free men wore beards. By the way 2 Samuel 10 tells us that Hanun shaved off half their beards which would be even more embarrassing.

Keil and Delitzsch. “With the value universally set upon the beard by the Hebrews and other Oriental nations, as being man’s greatest ornament, the cutting off of one-half of it was the greatest insult that could have been offered to the ambassadors, and through them to David their king.”

But Hanun wasn’t done… he also cut off their garments to expose the shame of their nakedness, especially that of their circumcision which was derided by the Gentiles. It would be like forcing each of these men to disrobe and put on a hospital gown, and then cut the gown off at the waist… to say this was embarrassing would be like saying the universe is big, or the sun is bright. It was a move calculated to not only humiliate David’s men, but also to provoke a war with David.

1 Chronicles 19:5 – Then some went and told David about the men; and he sent to meet them, because the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said, “Wait at Jericho until your beards have grown, and then return.” 

I think there is a simple but important lesson here. We have all sinned and come short of the glory of God. All of us have done things and have had things done to us that cause us great shame. Heed David’s advice… give yourself some time to get over it. Contrary to popular opinion, time doesn’t heal all wounds… God is the One who does that. God is the Great Physician, but let’s be wise enough to realize God doesn’t usually snap His fingers so that in an instant the pain is gone. God could do that, but that’s not the way He normally does it. God uses a slower method so that we will draw close to Him in the process. To use the language of our text, “Take a deep breath. Slow down. Let your beard grow.”

1 Chronicles 19:6,7 – When the people of Ammon saw that they had made themselves repulsive to David, Hanun and the people of Ammon sent a thousand talents of silver to hire for themselves chariots and horsemen from Mesopotamia, from Syrian Maachah, and from Zobah.  7 So they hired for themselves thirty-two thousand chariots, with the king of Maachah and his people, who came and encamped before Medeba. Also the people of Ammon gathered together from their cities, and came to battle.

Let’s not forget how/why this has escalated to the brink of warfare… this is happening because of a misunderstanding. Instead of taking the time to ask questions to find out David’s motives, the Ammonites thought the worst. Do you think there might be a lesson here for us? When we come face to face with conflict, we have a choice.

Proverbs 15:1 – A soft answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.

We have a choice as to how we respond to any and every situation. We can choose the flesh or the Spirit… we choose either soft words or harsh words. If we use harsh words, we are choosing to throw gasoline onto the fire. If we choose gentle words, we are throwing water on the fire. That doesn’t guarantee that we will be able to put the fire out, but we can do our part to be a peacemaker.

1 Chronicles 19:8-13 – Now when David heard of it, he sent Joab and all the army of the mighty men.  9 Then the people of Ammon came out and put themselves in battle array before the gate of the city, and the kings who had come were by themselves in the field.  10 When Joab saw that the battle line was against him before and behind, he chose some of Israel’s best and put them in battle array against the Syrians.  11 And the rest of the people he put under the command of Abishai his brother, and they set themselves in battle array against the people of Ammon.  12 Then he said, “If the Syrians are too strong for me, then you shall help me; but if the people of Ammon are too strong for you, then I will help you.  13 “Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the LORD do what is good in His sight.”

“Be of good courage.” Many times that is easier said than done. I believe it is much easier to be of good courage when others encourage us (as Joab is encouraging his troops). Several years ago, there was a television program on PBS about the Library of Congress. PBS’s former chairman, Sir Huw Wheldon, was standing in a mountain of card index files. Sounds like a heart-racing program, doesn’t it?

About halfway through the program, Dr. Daniel Boorstin, the Librarian of Congress, brought out a little blue box from a small closet that once held the library’s rarities. The label on the box read: Contents of the President’s Pockets on the Night of April 14, 1865… as you might know, that was the night Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. All of a sudden, Dr. Boorstin had captured every viewer’s attention.

Boorstin then proceeded to remove the items in the small container and display them for all to see. There were five things in the box: 1. A handkerchief, embroidered “A. Lincoln.” 2. A pen knife. 3. A glasses case repaired with string. 4. A purse containing a $5 bill… Confederate money by the way. 5. Some old and worn newspaper clippings. “The clippings,” Boorstin said, “were concerned with the great deeds of Abraham Lincoln. And one of them actually reports a speech by John Bright which says that Abraham Lincoln is ‘one of the greatest men of all times.’”

Today, almost everyone would agree. It is universally accepted that British statesman John Bright was spot-on in his assessment of Lincoln, but in 1865, that wasn’t the case… there were a lot of Lincoln-haters back in those days. History tells us that President Lincoln’s many critics were fierce and vocal. I don’t think it is easy for any one of us to really understand the agony he endured as he witnessed firsthand the country he loved being ripped apart by war.

There is something we can all relate to but nonetheless very sad as we picture this great leader seeking comfort and encouragement from a few old newspaper clippings. Lesson?

Everyone needs encouragement. You might not think a great statesman like Abraham Lincoln would ever need it, but he did. I don’t care how strong a person may appear to be on the outside… on the inside there isn’t a person alive who doesn’t appreciate words of encouragement.

Hebrews 3:12,13 – See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. ¹³ But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.

In light of this text that we studied on a Wednesday night several weeks ago I have asked you to think of the nicest thing you can honestly say about each of the other members of our church, write it down, and turn it in to Pixi so she can collect them and hand them out next Sunday. Don’t wait for others to encourage you, take the initiative and look for opportunities to build them up. Encouragement is like oxygen to the soul.

1 Chronicles 19:13 – “Be of good courage, and let us be strong for our people and for the cities of our God. And may the LORD do what is good in His sight.”

Not only are we to be of good courage… not only are we to encourage others, but we are to be strong. And not just be strong, but we are to be strong for our people and for the cities of God. I came across the following illustration that captures the essence of what it means to be strong for our people.

It was a busy day in our Costa Mesa, California home. But then, with 10 children and one on the way, every day was a bit hectic. On this particular day, however, I was having trouble doing even routine chores… all because of one little boy.

Len, who was three at the time, was on my heels no matter where I went. Whenever I stopped to do something and turned back around, I would trip over him. Several times, I patiently suggested fun activities to keep him occupied. “Wouldn’t you like to play on the swing set?” I asked again.

But he simply smiled an innocent smile and said, “Oh, that’s all right, Mommy. I’d rather be in here with you.” Then he continued to bounce happily along behind me.

After stepping on his toes for the fifth time, I began to lose my patience and insisted that he go outside and play with the other children. When I asked him why he was acting this way, he looked up at me with sweet green eyes and said, “Well, Mommy, in preschool my teacher told me to walk in Jesus’ footsteps. But I can’t see him, so I’m walking in yours.”

Parents, our kids are watching us. Our kids were born with the tendency to idolize us. We need to be strong for them.

 14 So Joab and the people who were with him drew near for the battle against the Syrians, and they fled before him.  15 When the people of Ammon saw that the Syrians were fleeing, they also fled before Abishai his brother, and entered the city. So Joab went to Jerusalem.  16 Now when the Syrians saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they sent messengers and brought the Syrians who were beyond the River, and Shophach the commander of Hadadezer’s army went before them.  17 When it was told David, he gathered all Israel, crossed over the Jordan and came upon them, and set up in battle array against them. So when David had set up in battle array against the Syrians, they fought with him.  18 Then the Syrians fled before Israel; and David killed seven thousand charioteers and forty thousand foot soldiers of the Syrians, and killed Shophach the commander of the army.  19 And when the servants of Hadadezer saw that they were defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became his servants. So the Syrians were not willing to help the people of Ammon anymore.

I want to spend some time applying this text to us today. I started out today’s sermon by saying… We are all familiar with the fact that David was a man after God’s own heart. Yes, we know that David was guilty of adultery, and then in an effort to hide his sin he committed murder, but in God’s eyes these are footnotes on the pages of David’s life… these sins don’t define the man.

These sins don’t define the man because David repented of his sins, that is to say he learned not only to hate his sins, but he also developed a love for the things God loves. In our text today we have seen the consequences of sinful judging. What happened to David can happen to you and to me… and what is even worse, we can be the ones guilty of making sinful judgments.

One point that jumps off the page is this… God is merciful. He is quick to forgive those who repent. Hanun didn’t repent, and while David is known as a man after God’s own heart in spite of his sins, Hanun is known as a fool. He is known as a fool because he heeded the advice of his counselors who made sinful judgments. Are you curious as what happened to the Ammonites under king Hanun?

1 Chronicles 20:1-3 – It happened in the spring of the year, at the time kings go out to battle, that Joab led out the armed forces and ravaged the country of the people of Ammon, and came and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed at Jerusalem. And Joab defeated Rabbah and overthrew it.  2 Then David took their king’s crown from his head, and found it to weigh a talent of gold, and there were precious stones in it. And it was set on David’s head. Also he brought out the spoil of the city in great abundance.  3 And he brought out the people who were in it, and put them to work with saws, with iron picks, and with axes. So David did to all the cities of the people of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

The Ammonites were reduced to slavery because of one man’s sin that he never repented of… the sin of sinful judging. When I think of the counsel that Hanun listened to, I can’t help but think of the Bible’s teaching on the tongue.

James 3:5,6 – Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. 

One of the reasons I believe the Bible has so much to say about communication is this… we don’t listen perfectly and we don’t speak perfectly, and because of indwelling sin, we also have a tendency to jump to conclusions. In fact we can make sinful judgments w/o a word being spoken.

1 Samuel 1:9-14: So Hannah arose after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat by the doorpost of the tabernacle of the Lord.  10 And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord and wept in anguish.  11 Then she made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.” 12 And it happened, as she continued praying before the Lord, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought she was drunk.  14 So Eli said to her, “How long will you be drunk? Put your wine away from you!”

InActs 2on the Day of Pentecost the church was born and the Holy Spirit descended from Heaven to live within men’s hearts… believers gathered together from many different nations heard the Gospel in their own native language. What did unbelievers think about this scene taking place before their very eyes? They said, “These men are drunk.”

Because we don’t have perfect understanding we see things and hear things and immediately we jump to conclusions… conclusions that are all too often way off base. Sometimes these conclusions are harmless, they amount to nothing more than misunderstandings, but other times the consequences are devastating… as in our text today.

So how are we going to guard against sinful judging? Has God given us any tools to help us in this area? I think you know the answer to that question is a resounding yes. Here are seven questions we need to ask ourselves that will keep us from making sinful judgments:

1. Do I have the facts right?

Proverbs 18:13 “He who answers a matter before he hears it, It is folly and shame to him.”

2. Should love cover it? Is it sinful or is it a preference?

  1 Peter 4:8 “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for love will cover a multitude of sins.”

3. Is my timing right? Should I wait 24 hours to allow myself a cooling off period to see if I still believe I need to address the matter?

Proverbs 15:23 “A man has joy by the answer of his mouth, And a word spoken in due season, how good it is!”

4. Have I gotten the log out of my own eye first?

     Matthew 7:3-5 “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye’; and look, a plank is in your own eye?  Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.”

5. Is my attitude right? Am I lighthearted? Am I trying to condemn or restore the other person?

  Galatians 5:15 “If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.”

6. Are my words loving?

Ephesians 4:15 “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ.”

7. Have I asked for God’s help?

  Proverbs 3:5,6 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

A lot could be said on each of these seven points, but I will comment on just one, point # 2. Should love cover it? Is it sinful or is it a preference?

The story is told of a church in the Northeastern United States that had a disagreement over where the piano should be placed in the sanctuary. “Some felt that the music sounded better when the pianist played next to the wall to the left of the pulpit. Others were convinced that the right side of the auditorium was the best acoustical choice. So they began experimenting with the piano placement, moving the instrument around from week to week. Both sides were convinced they were right.  Soon members of each faction were racing each other to the building on Sunday mornings to see that the piano was “properly” placed before the service started. People began showing up earlier each week, trying to beat the other group to the piano. One day the disagreement culminated in a physical tug-of-war. Members arrived to find the piano standing in the middle of the sanctuary with a handful of people on either side shouting, arguing and pulling with all their might toward opposite walls” (From: War in the Pews).

Ugly, isn’t it? But lets understand this… the piano wasn’t the problem. The key to unity in the church isn’t the removal of all conflict. That won’t happen until we get to Heaven. The key to unity is a spirit of humility in the hearts of God’s people. Ephesians 4 commands us to work hard to protect the unity of the church… this is non-negotiable for all believers.

Ephesians 4:1-3 – I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

All too often, conflict grows out of differences in personal preferences… therefore it is imperative that we acquire the skill to differentiate between our preferences and “Thus saith the Lord.” When we elevate our preferences to the status of God’s commands, how are we functioning any differently than the Pharisees? And in doing so, we are threatening the unity of the church.

Sometimes the commands of Scripture are general, such as “Be holy even as I am holy,” and “Be not conformed to the world.” But the way we put these general commands into practice is going to differ from person to person, depending on our backgrounds and level of maturity. Problems arise when we take our personal preferences and force them on others, thinking that we are the end all and be all when it comes to deciding right and wrong!

Romans 14:1-5 – Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things.  2 For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables.  3 Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him.  4 Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.  5 One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind.

Let me take a minute to remind you of the setting. Elijah has been taken up by a whirlwind to Heaven in a chariot of fire, and Elisha has succeeded him as God’s prophet to the nation. And to authenticate that Elisha is indeed God’s man, and not some imposter, God has empowered Elisha to do miracles… last week we saw God gave Elisha the power to heal Naaman of his leprosy.

In order to get a better understanding of the times in which Elisha lived, lets turn first to 2 Kings 2.

2 Kings 2:19-24 – Then the men of the city said to Elisha, “Please notice, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the ground barren.”  20 And he said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him.  21 Then he went out to the source of the water, and cast in the salt there, and said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘I have healed this water; from it there shall be no more death or barrenness.’”  22 So the water remains healed to this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke.  23 Then he went up from there to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some youths came from the city and mocked him, and said to him, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!”  24 So he turned around and looked at them, and pronounced a curse on them in the name of the LORD. And two female bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the youths.

Please don’t think these youths who accost Elisha are innocent little boys out playing pranks. This is a gang of thugs… trouble-makers. Since we know that 42 of them were mauled, Elisha was outnumbered 42 to 1, and maybe even more than this if there were some who escaped. This could have been a very intimidating confrontation for Elisha, but the bad boys of Bethel got what they deserved. God says we reap what we sow, and here the harvest came in an instant. The very ones who thought it would be great fun to intimidate Elisha wound up on the receiving end of the intimidation as God provided a feast for 2 hungry female bears that “just happened to come out of the woods at this particular time.”

These brats were both hostile and insulting to Elisha. It wasn’t uncommon for the prophets to shave their head, and calling Elisha “baldhead” was certainly not a term of endearment. And there are two ways to understand what they meant by the words, “Go up”. Were they challenging Elisha to do what Elijah had just done (“Go up” into Heaven), or were they suggesting something like this: “Get out of town, you’re not welcome here.” I think it is obvious they did not want to hear the Word of the Lord.

I also think it’s important to realize that Elisha didn’t personally harm any one of these gangsters. Yes, Elisha pronounced a curse on them, but by pronouncing a curse, he left judgment where it belongs… in the hands of God. It was God who sent the bears to maul these young men. If we don’t like what happened to them, then we have a problem with God. God tried these young men as adults and found them guilty.

There are 2 lessons we need to take away from this as we get ready to look at 2 Kings 6.  First of all, watch what you say to bald peopleJ. Second, we need to respect others. Parents, I believe this starts by teaching your kids to respect you.

2 Kings 6:1-7 – And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, “See now, the place where we dwell with you is too small for us.  2 “Please, let us go to the Jordan, and let every man take a beam from there, and let us make there a place where we may dwell.” So he answered, “Go.”  3 Then one said, “Please consent to go with your servants.” And he answered, “I will go.”  4 So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees.  5 But as one was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, “Alas, master! For it was borrowed.”  6 So the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” And he showed him the place. So he cut off a stick, and threw it in there; and he made the iron float.  7 Therefore he said, “Pick it up for yourself.” So he reached out his hand and took it.

At first blush we may be tempted to think, “What a strange story. Why did God include this in the Bible?” But if we slow down for just a minute, I think we will realize it is not so strange after all. Do you see what is going on here?

The school of the prophets was growing and they needed some new facilities. The phrase “sons of the prophets” is not intended to point us to who the parents of these men were, but to identify them as men taught by God’s prophets. It refers to the school of the prophets. We are told very little about these schools of the prophets in Elisha’s day. In fact, we know virtually nothing about them except the fact that they existed. One at Bethel (2 Kings 2:3). One at Jericho (2 Kings 2:5). One at Gilgal (2 Kings 4:38)

One of the prophets asked Elisha for permission to go to the Jordan where all of the prophets would get busy building their new facility, and they even wanted Elisha to join them. I think we need to ask how many seminary students would be willing to build their own schools today, and how many seminary students today want to spend time with their professors outside of the classroom?

As they are in the process of cutting down trees to build their new facility, one of the prophets loses his axe head in the Jordan River. He is upset because the axe head was borrowed, and he no doubt doesn’t have the resources to purchase a replacement (which he knows he is obligated to do). So he cries out to Elisha and the prophet performs a miracle… the axe head floats to the surface and the man retrieves it.

I don’t think the primary lesson for us to learn is that we need to be careful with the things we borrow (even though that is true). And likewise, I don’t think the lesson we need to learn is that we need to make sure the things we lend are in good working order (even though that too, is true). I especially don’t think we need to be too critical of this poor man who lost the axe head for this reason… he was engaged in a great work. He was busy… he wasn’t goofing off doing nothing while everyone else was working. If there is a flaw to be found, it is found in this… he was working, but he was not watching. And because he wasn’t watching, he lost the axe head and thus he was unable to continue his work. He had lost his cutting edge.

The axe head is the power that gets the job done. You are not going to be much help to the rest of the group by flailing at trees with just an axe handle… it takes the sharp, penetrating power of the axe head to cut through the bark and fell the tree. Do you think there might be a lesson for us today? What is our cutting edge?

Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

We need to realize that our cutting edge is the Word of God, and it is the Holy Spirit Who takes the Word and surgically applies it to our hearts. Many of you know the name Vance Havner, and “old-timey” evangelist from North Carolina. He made the following comments about this text:

Many of the Lord’s workmen today have lost the axe head of power.  They have lost the joy of salvation; they have not the upholding of God’s Spirit. The axe head of the Spirit’s unction has fallen into the waters of worldliness, ponds of indifference, and swamps of sluggishness.  They have ability, training, earnestness, but they are chopping with the handle.

Observe, first, that this axe head was borrowed.  The believer’s power for service is from God, he has nothing he did not receive.  He may study, have personality, enthusiasm, but the axe head is borrowed…. 

Consider, next, that this workman lost his axe head.  The tragedy of lost power! Was there a time when you could pray with liberty, teach with power, preach with freedom?  Was there a time when you had influence with your children, and your neighbors had confidence in your testimony?  And now you have lost the axe head; it has fallen into the water of business cares, pleasure, worldly living, evil habits, indifference or laziness….  You are going through the same old motions of wood chopping, but it is all a vain show, for the power is not there….

Consider, again, that the prophet stopped chopping until the axe head was recovered.  That is natural, but would to God that His workmen would stop hollow motions in His service until power be recovered….  Men work all the harder to hide their lack of power as sometimes the preacher pounds the pulpit all the harder when he has run out of something to say.  But there is no sense in working doubly fast with the handle just to keep men from seeing that there is no axe head on it!… 

Elisha asked the distressed workman, “Where fell it?”  The place to find lost power is where you lost it.  If you have disobeyed God, go back there and confess it…. There must be confession before God can cleanse and empower.  Vance Havner, The Secret of Christian Joy (Old Tappen, NJ:  Fleming H. Revell Co., 1938), chapter 7.

But there’s another lesson in this story… one that speaks not only about God’s power in us, but of God’s care for us. Most of you know the story about John Newton, the English sea captain who was a slave trader, but more importantly, a vile and wicked man. He was wondrously saved and he became a well known pastor in London. Newton is best known for composing one of the hymns we love to sing today, “Amazing Grace,” but what is not as well known is the fact that John Newton would regularly compose hymns to tie in with his sermons. Here is a hymn that he composed to go along with the story of the axe head.

The prophet sons, in time of old,

Though to appearance poor;

Were rich without possessing gold,

And honored, though obscure.

In peace their daily bread they eat,

By honest labor earned;

While daily at Elisha’s feet,

They grace and wisdom learned.

The prophet’s presence cheered their toil,

They watched the words he spoke;

Whether they turned the furrowed soil,

Or felled the spreading oak.

Once as they listened to his theme,

Their conference was stopped;

For one beneath the yielding stream,

A borrowed axe had dropped.

Alas! it was not mine, he said,

How shall I make it good?

Elisha heard, and when he prayed,

The iron swam like wood.

If God, in such a small affair,

A miracle performs;

It shows his condescending care

Of poor unworthy worms.

Though kings and nations in his view

Are but as motes and dust;

His eye and ear are fixed on you,

Who in his mercy trust.

 Not one concern of ours is small,

If we belong to him;

To teach us this, the Lord of all,

Once made the iron swim.

Does Scripture bear this out, or is this just wishful thinking?

Psalm 37:23 (NLB) – The steps of the godly are directed by the Lord. He delights in every detail of their lives.

 Matthew 10:30 – But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.

One of the wonderful realities about God is that He guides the galaxies with one hand, and He counts the hairs of our head with the other.

2 Kings 6:8-13 – Now the king of Syria [Ben Hadad] was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, “My camp will be in such and such a place.”  9 And the man of God [Elisha] sent to the king of Israel, saying, “Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there.”  10 Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God  had told him. Thus he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice.  11 Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, “Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?”  12 And one of his servants said, “None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.”  13 So he said, “Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him.” And it was told him, saying, “Surely he is in Dothan.”

The king of Syria was making war with Israel (I wonder what role Naaman is playing in all this now that he has been healed of his leprosy and has become a worshipper of the One, True, Living God, the God of Israel). The college class War 101 teaches us that to be successful in war the element of surprise is essential, and this is where God was giving the Syrians fits through His prophet, Elisha. God told Elisha all about Ben Hadad’s secret battle plans, and Elisha would tell Joram (the king of Israel) before Syria attacked. Obviously, every Syrian attack was thwarted.

After several of these failed efforts, Ben Hadad was convinced that one of his men must be a double agent, passing along secret information to the Israelites. But one of his men (Naaman?) told Ben Hadad that Elisha the prophet was the one revealing Syria’s battle plans to the king of Israel.

I think it is quite amusing that Ben Hadad thought he could take out Elisha, and thus solve all his problems. Ben Hadad had ears, but he couldn’t hear!!! Ben Hadad’s servant told him that Elisha was telling Joram all his secret plans. Does Ben Hadad think that somehow he can keep this new plan a secret?

So the first thing Ben Hadad does is to ascertain Elisha’s whereabouts. How easy it would have been for God to tell Elisha what Ben Hadad was up to (after all, this is what had been happening up till now), and while we don’t know whether or not God revealed all this to him, we do know that Elisha made no effort to get away.

2 Kings 6:14 Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

Ben Hadad found out that Elisha was in Dothan, and as such he surrounded the city with his great army. Humanly speaking, it is not looking good for Elisha.

2 Kings 6:15-17 – And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?”  16 So he answered, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”  17 And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Early the next morning, Elisha’s servant (Gehazi?) went out of the house and thought he was a dead man… Syria’s army equipped with horses and chariots had him surrounded. Dothan is situated in the hill country in northern Samaria, just south of the Jezreel Valley. When the servant walked outside it isn’t hard to imagine his fright when he saw the horses and chariots, and he knew they were ready to attack.

The servant frantically ran back to Elisha and told him the news. He asked what they should do. Elisha told him what he should do… he should calm down. Elisha knew that his servant didn’t see what he saw. His servant saw only flesh and blood. Elisha assured his servant that those who were on their side greatly outnumbered the enemy’s forces, so Elisha prayed that God would open the servant’s eyes so he could see the angelic army that was not visible to the naked eye. God’s prophet was safe and secure. The king of Syria may have wanted to take Elisha out, but God intervened.

Elisha isn’t talking about the people in Dothan when he says, “Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” He’s talking about the angels protecting them. And folks, there is a great lesson here for us. We’re not alone… that invisible army of angels that protected Elisha and his servant are alive and well today.

Psalm 34:7 – The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.

 Hebrews 1:14 – Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?

 2 Kings 6:17 – And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.”

I think one of our biggest problems in life is our lack of spiritual perception… we don’t see things as they really are. And this works both ways. Sometimes the coast looks all clear when in reality danger is lurking. Samson thought it would be of little consequence to tell Delilah the secret of his strength, but when he woke up after a little nap, Samson thought everything was fine… he didn’t know that the Lord had departed from him.

I think too, of Balaam and his donkey. The donkey stopped in the middle of the road because it saw the Angel of the Lord with His sword drawn ready to kill Balaam. Balaam thought the coast was clear when in reality his very life was in danger.

On the other hand, sometimes things look pretty scary, but in reality, we are as safe as can be. Do you remember the time the disciples were on the Sea of Galilee and a storm arose? What was Jesus doing? He was sleeping. The disciples thought they were about to perish. They didn’t know that for every rising of the storm we can count on the rising of the Master.

Do you remember the time Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego were tossed into the fiery furnace? I have no doubt they thought they were about to be die a horrible death.

Daniel 3:19-25 – Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated.  20 And he commanded certain mighty men of valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into the burning fiery furnace.  21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.  22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego.  23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.  24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?” They answered and said to the king, “True, O king.”  25 “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”

Two verses come to mind that teach us a lot about the need for God to open our eyes so we can see what can’t be seen with just the naked eye.

Psalm 119:18 – Open my eyes, that I may see Wondrous things from Your law.

Ephesians 1:15-23 – Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints,  16 do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:  17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him,  18 the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints,  19 and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power  20 which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,  21 far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come.  22 And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church,  23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

2 Kings 6:17- And Elisha prayed, and said, “LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see.” Then the LORD opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

Talk about a change of perspective! When the Lord opened his eyes he saw that he and Elisha were surrounded not by the enemy, but by horses and chariots of fire. Does that phrase, “horses and chariots of fire” ring a bell?

2 Kings 2:11 – Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

As I mentioned earlier, the angels that rescued Elisha some 2900 years ago are alive and well today.

John Paton was a missionary in the New Hebrides Islands. One night hostile natives surrounded the mission station, intent on burning out the Patons and killing them. Paton and his wife prayed during that terror-filled night that God would deliver them. When daylight came they were amazed to see their attackers leave. A year later, the chief of the tribe was converted to Christ. Remembering what had happened, Paton asked the chief what had kept him from burning down the house and killing them. The chief replied in surprise, “Who were all those men with you there?” Paton knew no men were present–but the chief said he was afraid to attack because he had seen hundreds of big men with drawn swords circling the mission station. (Today in the Word, MBI, October, 1991, p. 18).

Back to our text:

2 Kings 6:18-20 – So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the LORD, and said, “Strike this people, I pray, with blindness.” And He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.  19 Now Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, nor is this the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek.” But he led them to Samaria.  20 So it was, when they had come to Samaria, that Elisha said, “LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.” And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and there they were, inside Samaria!

Elisha prayed earlier that his servant’s eyes might be opened, and they were. And now he now prays that the eyes of the Syrian soldiers will be closed, and they were. God struck the entire Syrian army with blindness. That’s a pretty good way to render your enemy helpless. How are you going to fight someone you can’t see? But isn’t this just the point? These soldiers were fighting God whom they couldn’t see as they tried to capture and kill Elisha. They were spiritually blind and didn’t even know it… what a helpless condition. A condition that is worse than physical blindness.

2 Corinthians 4:1-7 – Therefore seeing we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we faint not;  2 But have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness, nor handling the word of God deceitfully; but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.  3 But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:  4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.  5 For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake.  6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.  7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

2 Kings 6:21-23 – Now when the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, “My father, shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?”  22 But he answered, “You shall not kill them. Would you kill those whom you have taken captive with your sword and your bow? Set food and water before them that they may eat and drink and go to their master.”  23 Then he prepared a great feast for them; and after they ate and drank, he sent them away and they went to their master. So the bands of Syrian raiders came no more into the land of Israel.

Joram thought this was the perfect opportunity to slaughter the entire Syrian army, but before proceeding, he first asked Elisha’s permission. Elisha’s answer was quite a surprise. Who would have ever thought that Elisha would say no to such a request… after all the Syrian army had shown up for the express purpose of killing Elisha. Not killing your enemy is one thing, but who would have thought of putting on a banquet for your enemy? But, in obedience to Elisha’s command, the children of Israel fed their enemies. Can you imagine one of these Israeli soldiers coming home to his wife and telling her she needs to help feed an army… and that of the enemy?

After dinner, the Syrian soldiers were released and sent home. What a way to win a war… not by defeating your enemies, but by feeding them!

Romans 12:14-21 – Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.  15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.  16 Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.  17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.  18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.  19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.  20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.  21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary has this to say about the significance of this meal:

In the ancient Near East eating together under one’s roof constituted making a covenant of peace. The Arameans [Syrians]were now bound by social custom not to attack the friend who had extended his gift of hospitality and protection. For these reasons the Arameans stopped raiding Israel’s territory for a time.

Who would have imagined that God would spare Elisha’s life, that He would spare Israel from war, and that He would spare Naaman from warring against God’s people by allowing the Syrian army to find Elisha? Who would have thought that God would deliver His people (Elisha and Israel) through an enemy army, whose sole purpose was to destroy them?

Only God can do such things. Are there circumstances in your life that seem just as bleak? If you are a child of God, I can assure you that God delights in taking those things that appear to be our downfall and making them the instruments of our deliverance.

Our text today deals with the unexpected. For example, many (most?) people think that if they were rich that life would be better… not just better, but much better. As a young man I used to believe that too, but I don’t believe it any more. In case some of you still believe that, let me give you some interesting facts… facts that we could say are unexpected:

      Lottery winner Billie Bob Harrell, who won $31 million in the Texas lottery, committed suicide.

      Patrick Collier won $1 million in the lottery, and two weeks later was arrested for allegedly choking and punching his fiancée in the face.

      Lottery winner Phil Kitchen was found dead on his couch from the over consumption of whiskey.

      Lottery winner Dennis Elwell died from drinking cyanide.

      A 16-year-old lottery winner in the UK named Callie Rogers said, “Some days I don’t even want to leave my house because people scream abuse at me.  Two months ago I thought I was the luckiest teenager in Britain, but today I can say I have never felt so miserable.”

      Lottery millionaire Kevin Lee Sutton was charged with attempted murder for attempting to shoot another man in the head with a .22 caliber pistol.

      Seattle lottery millionaire Rick Camat was shot to death by police in a parking lot after he refused to drop his pistol.

      Gerald Muswagon won $10 million in the lottery, spent it all in seven years, and then hanged himself.

      William Post III, who won $16.2 million in the Pennsylvania lottery, died in bankruptcy.  He told an interviewer, “Everybody dreams of winning money, but nobody realizes the nightmares that come out of the woodwork.”

As we study 2 Kings 5 today, I think you will agree with me that we will find several things that are unexpected.

 2 Kings 5:1 – Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.

Naaman was in all likelihood the commander of the Syrian Army for Ben-Hadad (the king) during that great battle with Israel, when Ahab and Jehoshaphat fought to win the city of Ramoth-Gilead, and Ahab was killed. During that battle:

1 Kings 22:34 – Now a certain man drew a bow at random, and struck the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”

According to the Jewish Targum (commentary), that certain man was none other than Naaman. Now the Bible gives us five superlatives about this man Naaman, followed by that terrible conjunction, “but.”

Naaman was:

      The commander of the Syrian army

      A great man in the sight of the king

      Not only was he great in the king’s eyes, he was honorable

      He was victorious on the battlefield

      He was a mighty man of valor

But then we read that little word “but.” But he was a leper. Naaman had a lot of good things going for him, but none of his achievements, and none of his valor could give him victory over the battle that mattered most to him… victory over leprosy. He was a great man, an honorable man, but he was losing the battle against a foe for which there was no known cure.

Naaman had so much success outwardly… things that we think would make a person happy, but there are other factors that enter the equation. As I am working on this sermon a news story broke that has shocked the baseball world. Baltimore pitching great Mike Flanagan committed suicide… he was 59. The southpaw had won the Cy Young Award in 1979 after posting a 23-9 record and a 3.08 ERA. In 1983, Flanagan went 12-4 for the World Series champion Orioles. And last year Flanagan was hired by Mid-Atlantic Sports Network to work as a color analyst on the Orioles telecasts… a dream job (supposedly).

Do you think there might be a lesson here for us? I do, and it is this… it is possible to have the trappings of success, and to be miserable at the same time. Can you say Elvis? All too often we measure success by the world’s standards, but let me remind you what success is from God’s point of view.

Genesis 39:2 – The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man.

Outwardly Joseph looked like a failure. His brothers had sold him into slavery because they hated his guts. He was about to be falsely charged with attempting to seduce Potiphar’s wife, and as such he was put in prison, but God states unequivocally that Joseph was a successful man. And did you notice why Joseph was successful? Joseph was successful because the Lord was with him. How do you define success?

 2 And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman’s wife. 3 Then she said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy.”

How would you like to have been that young girl taken captive at the hands of the enemy? Suppose this young girl was your daughter… would you be tempted to think God had made a mistake by letting her be taken as a prisoner? It would be easy to fall into that trap, but I want you to see that God is protecting her and using her as His spokesperson… His missionary if you will. By the way it wasn’t “luck” and it wasn’t any accident that this young girl was chosen to wait on Naaman’s wife… this was the hand of God at work behind the scenes.

God planted this young girl exactly where He wanted her to be for one reason. God is asking her to do a very special job… to be a witness. Now I have no doubt that she wrestled with fears, and she probably didn’t know the reason God had her there. I have no doubt she could say with Joseph about her captors, “But as for you, you thought evil against me.” It wasn’t until much later she was able to say, “But God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive,” Genesis 50:20.

It may be that what you and I perceive as evil isn’t evil at all. To be sure it is uncomfortable, but God is using it to change us, and to get us where we need to be. Paul had something to say about this:

 2 Corinthians 4:8-12 – We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; 9 Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; 10 always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body. 11 For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus’ sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. 12 So then death is working in us, but life in you.

Paul knew that all the difficulties that he experienced were not in vain:

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 –  For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; 18 While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.

Naaman doesn’t know it now, but he is going to find out soon that his leprosy will lead him to God.

One more point I want to consider before we move on. What was this young girl’s name? We don’t know… she remains anonymous, and I believe there is a huge lesson for us here… one that is unexpected: it is possible to be an unknown and still be influential. This young girl was a witness, and she pointed Naaman’s wife toward Elisha and toward the God of Israel. Even though her name isn’t recorded and her position was that of a servant, she had an impact that we’re still talking about today, some 2800 years later.

I’m sure every one of us and every school child knows about Paul Revere and his famous midnight ride, but have you ever heard of a man named Israel Bissell? He was a 23-year-old dispatch rider who, on that same April evening of 1775, also took off to warn the colonies that British troops had opened fire on colonial farmers at Lexington. He rode south with the news, and he rode like the wind. According to local legend, he made it to Worcester… normally a day’s ride… in just two hours, and his horse dropped dead when he got there. With a new horse, he took off again, racing through Connecticut, New York, and Pennsylvania, spreading the alarm.  He rode 350 miles in six days, an unheard of feat. Paul Revere, on the other hand, only rode twenty miles. So why is it we remember Paul Revere and not Israel Bissell?  It’s because Paul Revere was immortalized in Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem:

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,

Nobody wrote a poem about Israel Bissell, and he is all but unknown today, but he helped saved the Colonies, leading to the establishment of our United States of America. And as a happy ending to this story, several years ago a poet, Clay Perry, did write a poem about Israel Bissell. It went like this:

Listen my children to my epistle

Of the long, long ride of Israel Bissell;

Who outrode Paul by miles and time

But didn’t rate a poet’s rhyme.

 4 And Naaman went in and told his master [Ben-Hadad], saying, “Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel.”  5 Then the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing.

Ten talents of silver and six thousand shekels of gold is a huge sum of money. Ten talents of silver equals 750 pounds of silver and six thousand shekels of gold equals 150 pounds of gold according to the Bible Knowledge Commentary. ($3,800,000)

6 Then he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which said, Now be advised, when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may heal him of his leprosy.

The king of Israel (Joram, one of Ahab’s sons) thinks that he’s being set up. Why? Because somewhere along the line a very important detail got omitted. The young servant girl was pointing Naaman’s wife to the prophet Elisha and Elisha’s God, but by the time the king of Israel received the message, it was communicated to him that he should be the one to do the healing. He knew he had no power over disease, and as such he was convinced that Syria wanted to go to war with him.

Does this remind you of anything? It reminds me of the game telephone. The game begins with the first person whispering a phrase or sentence to the person beside him. Each person successively whispers what that person believes he heard to the person next to him. The last person announces the statement to the entire group. Mistakes typically accumulate in the retelling, so the statement announced by the last player differs significantly, and often amusingly, from the one uttered by the first person.

But more importantly let’s make sure we notice this important point. It is possible to be the most powerful person in the world, and still be impotent to meet people’s needs. Kings can make edicts, set policies, start wars, and increase taxes, but kings can’t change hearts, forgive sins, or give eternal life… the things people need most. In reality, kings aren’t as powerful or important as they think they are.

Several years ago, a political consultant by the name of Robert Strauss said something in an interview, and I thought it showed rare insight. He said, “Everybody in government is like a bunch of ants on a log floating down a river. Each one thinks he is guiding the log, but the log is really just going with the flow.” I hope I am wrong, but I don’t think Robert Strauss has a clue whom is responsible for guiding the flow.

There’s only one King who is directing the flow of the river of life, and He alone can heal diseases, forgive sins, and give eternal life… and that is King Jesus.

 7 And it happened, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and make alive, that this man sends a man to me to heal him of his leprosy? Therefore please consider, and see how he seeks a quarrel with me.”  8 So it was, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.”

Elisha used a lot of every day items to help people put their trust in the Lord. Please understand, it’s not the things themselves that have the power, it’s the Lord. Think of some of the miracles that Elisha performed and the simple things he used to demonstrate that God was the power behind the miracle.

Elisha put salt in a polluted spring to make it drinkable (2 Kings 2), he put flour in a pot of poisonous stew to make it edible (2 Kings 4), he fed a hundred men from 20 loaves of barley bread. Not only did they all eat, they even had some leftovers (2 Kings 4). Now in our text, Elisha tells Naaman to wash in the Jordan and be healed of his leprosy.

We need to be careful here careful because many, many people cross that fine line between faith and superstition. Do you remember the brass serpent? When the Israelites were in the wilderness, their constant complaining brought God’s judgment on them. People were dying right and left from the fiery serpents that God sent to get their attention.

Numbers 21:7-9 – Therefore the people came to Moses, and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.  8 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.”  9 So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

I am sure it seemed like a silly solution. Who would have thought that looking at a brass serpent could heal anything? Yet the act of looking in faith stopped the plague and brought healing (again something unexpected).

Unfortunately, the Israelites turned this brass serpent into a lucky rabbit’s foot, and it became the object of their worship instead of the Lord. King Hezekiah finally took the brass serpent and destroyed it (2 Kings 18). Back to our text.

10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.” 11  But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’  12 “Are not the Abanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage.

Did you notice the fact that Elisha didn’t go out and talk to Naaman…? Elisha sent a messenger instead. Naaman’s reaction? He flew into a rage. I believe Naaman was expecting some grand display of pomp and circumstance from the prophet himself… Naaman apparently believed all the press reports that he was indeed a mighty man of valor. Naaman was furious that some lowly errand boy would dare insult him by telling him to go wash in the Jordan. Hadn’t Syria just defeated Israel?

Let me explain it this way. I have heard that there is a small rivalry between Duke and Carolina in basketball… have you heard that? Well suppose these two teams make it to the championship game, and suppose (for argument’s sake) that Duke beats Carolina. Can you imagine if Coach K had been suffering for years with something like AIDS, and one of God’s anonymous children (not a Tim Tebow) told coach K after he won the NCAA title game that all he had to do was to go to the Carolina campus and take a shower, and he would be healed of his disease? No… I can’t imagine that either!

But there is another lesson from the unexpected here for us to observe, and we could call it the simplicity of believing. Some people think it’s too simple to just believe in Jesus to receive eternal life. But God has always asked people to trust Him. When God delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt, He asked them to trust Him by putting the blood of a lamb on the doorposts of their houses. In the same way, God simply asks you to believe in His Son, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

 John 3:16 – For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Back to our text:

13 And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the  prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?”  14 So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.  15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his aides, and came and stood before him; and he said, “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel; now therefore, please take a gift from your servant.”

There is one more lesson from the unexpected for us to take note of… it is possible to do something simple and be changed forever.

Naaman was cleansed of his leprosy, and while that was wonderful, that wasn’t the greatest miracle that happened that day. The greatest miracle was something that happened to Naaman’s soul, not his skin. He was healed of his spiritual leprosy… He acknowledged the God of Israel. In today’s language, we would say that he was born again.

 16 But he said, “As the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will receive nothing.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.

Please don’t think the lesson from this verse is that it is more spiritual to refuse gifts! That is not the point… the point is simply this… this is Naaman’s first contact with the Lord, and he needs to know that God operates on mercy and grace, not money. God’s gifts are free. We have all received freely from Jesus, and we should give freely in return.

 17 So Naaman said, “Then, if not, please let your servant be given two mule-loads of earth; for your servant will no longer offer either burnt offering or sacrifice to other gods, but to the LORD. 18 “Yet in this thing may the LORD pardon your servant: when my master goes into the temple of Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow down in the temple of Rimmon-when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the LORD please pardon your servant in this thing.”  19 Then he said to him, “Go in peace.” So he departed from him a short distance. 

Naaman is giving great evidence of saving faith. He is going to put away all the other gods he has been serving, and serve only the LORD. Now in his exuberance, Naaman doesn’t have a clue that his desire to serve God doesn’t line up with the Mosaic Law. If he wanted to sacrifice to the Lord according to the Law, then he would have to go to God’s altar… he couldn’t build his own. And he would have to have a Levite offer up sacrifices on his behalf, he couldn’t do it himself. Did you notice Elisha’s response? Did Elisha rebuke him and tell him all the things he was doing wrong? No, he simply said, “Go in peace.”

I think there is another huge lesson for us to learn here. New believers have exuberance about them, and many times they are like a bull in a china shop. Our job is not to throw water in their face and point out all the things they are doing wrong. We need to rejoice over the fact they are headed in the right direction. Yes, there will be a time and a place to gently instruct them in the ways of God, but let’s make sure we don’t dampen their enthusiasm for God by finding fault with everything they do. The important thing is that in his heart, Naaman is putting away all other gods. What a great place to start.

Naaman is a new believer, and that is the key to understanding Elisha’s response, especially when Naaman (thinking out loud) realizes that his master, Ben-Hadad the king of Syria, is going to ask (require) Naaman to accompany him to his house of worship. Naaman knows it is wrong, but as a new believer he doesn’t know what to do. By his response, Elisha isn’t condoning the worship of Rimmon.

I think this is another example of grace… give the guy a break. When Naaman grows up a little more in the Lord, he will know how to handle this situation better.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego knew they couldn’t bow before Nebuchadnezzar’s golden image. They didn’t say, “God forgive us when we bow before this idol.” But the difference is this… they were mature believers, not new born babes.

The disciples didn’t stop preaching the Gospel just because the Jewish authorities threatened them and told them to stop preaching. They didn’t say, “God forgive us if we stop preaching because things might get awkward.” Naaman is just a new believer. Let’s not condemn him.

As Paul Harvey likes to say, “And now, the rest of the story.”

20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared Naaman this Syrian, while not receiving from his hands what he brought; but as the LORD lives, I will run after him and take something from him.”  21 So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him, and said, “Is all well?”  22 And he said, “All is well. My master has sent me, saying, ‘Indeed, just now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the mountains of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of garments.’”  23 So Naaman said, “Please, take two talents.” And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and handed them to two of his servants; and they carried them on ahead of him.  24 When he came to the citadel, he took them from their hand, and stored them away in the house; then he let the men go, and they departed.  25 Now he went in and stood before his master. Elisha said to him, “Where did you go, Gehazi?” And he said, “Your servant did not go anywhere.”  26 Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants?  27 “Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.

What a sad ending to such a delightful story. I don’t think it takes a genius to figure out the lesson God wants us to learn from Gehazi. Guard your heart because greed is hiding in your heart and is just waiting for a chance to escape.

1 Timothy 6:9-12 – But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition.  10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.  11 But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness.  12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.

Greed will destroy you if you don’t rule over it.

Monkey trappers in North Africa have a clever method of catching their prey. They fill a number of gourds with nuts and chain them firmly to a tree. Each has a hole just large enough to allow an unsuspecting monkey to stick his hand inside the hollowed-out gourd. When the hungry animal discovers this hole and the treasure waiting inside, he quickly grabs a handful of nuts. However, the hole is too small for him to withdraw his bulging, clenched fist. Believe it or not, he doesn’t have enough sense to open up his hand and release the prize in order to escape, so he is easily taken captive. 

This is a picture of many Christians. The devil excels in advertising… he knows how to stimulate the appetites of the flesh. But if we watch and pray… if we bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, God keeps us safe from the deception of sin.

Greed has been the ruin of many a man.

Money makes the same promises as God… I can make you happy. I can give you security. I can make life worth living. I can make you popular. But here is the truth:

Money can buy you medicine, but not health.

Money can buy you a house, but not a home.

Money can buy you sex, but not love.
Money can buy you followers, but not respect.

Once a year I think it is wise to speak on what the Bible has to say concerning your responsibility as a believer to support VBC financially. To speak more than once a year on this subject could easily fall into the category of putting an undue emphasis on money. To speak less than once a year on this subject could easily fall into the category of failing to put you into remembrance of your responsibility before God.

In spite of what many people think, money is not the root of all evil. Christ never said money or material things were sinful. He said the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Money simply exposes the real problem… the human heart. Jesus constantly warned us to guard our hearts against greed, covetousness, selfishness, and pride, because this is where we are so very vulnerable. Christ warned us a great deal more about materialism than He did any other sin.

As we saw last week, the greatest goal we can have in life is to glorify God. If our day-to-day lives don’t reflect that we are living for God instead of living for self, then we need to question our salvation. So today I want to focus on the subject of finances… how can we please God when it comes to our money, and in particular, what does the Bible have to say about tithing?

There are many ideas floating around today concerning the Tithe, with the most popular being this: since we are not under the Law, tithing is not for us today. I believe that makes about as much sense as saying: since we are not under the Law:

Thou shall not commit murder is not for us today.

Thou shall not commit adultery is not for us today.

Thou shall not steal is not for us today.

Thou shall have no other gods before Me is not for today.

There are a lot of people today who think that because we are in the dispensation of grace that the Law has been abolished and serves no purpose whatsoever. Listen to the following letter that Elyse Fitzpatrick wrote… she nails it:

Dear Mr. Antinomian, (antinomianism is a heretical version of Christianity that believes there is no place for God’s law in the life of a Christian)

 Forgive me for writing to you in such an open forum but I’ve been trying to meet you for years and we just never seem to connect. While it’s true that I live in a little corner of the States and while it’s true that I am, well, a woman, I did assume that I would meet you at some point in my decades old counseling practice. But alas, neither you nor any of your (must be) thousands of brothers and sisters have ever shown up for my help…So again, please do pardon my writing in such a public manner but, you see, I’ve got a few things to say to you and I think it’s time I got them off my chest.

I wonder if you know how hard you’re making it for those of us who love to brag about the gospel. You say that you love the gospel and grace too, but I wonder how that can be possible since it’s been continuously reported to me that you live like such a slug. I’ve even heard that you are lazy and don’t work at obeying God at all…Rather you sit around munching on cigars and Twinkies, brewing beer and watching porn on your computer. Mr. A, really! Can this be true?

So many of my friends and acquaintances are simply up in arms about the way you act and they tell me it’s because you talk too much about grace. They suggest (and I’m almost tempted to agree) that what you need is more and more rules to live by. In fact, I’m very tempted to tell you that you need to get up off your lazy chair, pour your beer down the drain, turn off your computer and get about the business of the Kingdom.

I admit that I’m absolutely flummoxed, though, which is why I’m writing as I am. You puzzle me. How can you think about all that Christ has done for you, about your Father’s steadfast, immeasurable, extravagantly generous love and still live the way you do? Have you never considered the incarnation, about the Son leaving ineffable light to be consigned first to the darkness of Mary’s womb and then the darkness of this world? Have you never considered how He labored day-after-day in His home, obeying His parents, loving His brothers and sisters so that you could be counted righteous in the sight of His Father? Have you forgotten the bloody disgrace of the cross you deserve? Don’t you know that in the resurrection He demolished sin’s power over you? Aren’t you moved to loving action knowing that He’s now your ascended Lord Who prays for you and daily bears you on His heart? Has your heart of stone never been warmed and transformed by the Spirit? Does this grace really not impel zealous obedience? Hello… Are you there?

Honestly, even though my friends talk about you as though you were just everywhere in every church, always talking about justification but living like the devil, frankly I wonder if you even exist. I suppose you must because everyone is so afraid that talking about grace will produce more of you. So that’s why I’m writing: Will you please come forward? Will you please stand up in front of all of us and tell us that your heart has been captivated so deeply by grace that it makes you want to watch the Playboy channel?

Again, please do forgive me for calling you out like this. I really would like to meet you. I am,

Trusting in Grace Alone,

Elyse

I think it is important to remember what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:

Matthew 5:17 – Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.

Do you know where the first mention of the Tithe is located in the Bible? Genesis 14. Here Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek. This is very important… in fact, it is crucial.  When did Abraham live? 2000 BC. When did God give the Law to Moses? 1500 BC. That means the principle of tithing was established 500 years before the Law was even given.  Therefore the argument that says, “Since we are no longer under the Law, the Tithe is not for us today” will not hold water.

By the way, in Genesis 28 we have the account of Jacob’s dream… the one we sing about, “We are climbing Jacob’s ladder.”  Do you know how this story ends?  Jacob makes a vow, and he vows that he will practice tithing (roughly 250 years before the Law was given).

Hebrews 7 teaches us tithing was not just something for Old Testament saints… the early church was tithing:

Hebrews 7:4-10: ⁴See how great this man [Melchizedek] was to whom Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils!  ⁵And those descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers, though these also are descended from Abraham.  ⁶But this man who does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises.  ⁷It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior.  ⁸In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one of whom it is testified that he lives.  ⁹One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, ¹⁰for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.

Notice verse 8…the text doesn’t say, “In the one case tithes were received by mortal men.” The present tense of the verb is teaching us that tithing is something the early church was practicing.

The argument of the book of Hebrews is this: Christ is better.  He is better than the prophets, the angels, Moses, Aaron, and He is better than Melchizedek.

Who is Melchizedek? If you go back to Genesis 14you will see

Melchizedek is a type of Christ… He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. 

Who is THE King of Righteousness? And who is THE King of Peace? It is Jesus Christ, so when we see these titles applied to Melchizedek, we can safely say he is a type of Christ.

Melchizedek received tithes from Abraham and in a very real sense from the entire Levitical priesthood. Christ, however, is better than Melchizedek. Now the argument is really quite simple… if it was right for men to pay tithes to Melchizedek, and Christ is better than Melchizedek, what should we be doing today… what is our responsibility?

There is also a great deal of confusion about whether the Tithe is on the gross or the net. Who owns your money? Do you own it, or does God own it? God does! You are simply the steward. What is a steward? A steward is someone who has control… he is the one responsible for the allocation of the monies. The gross amount of your paycheck is not something over which you have complete control. You have to pay federal and state taxes. Therefore, since you have control only over the net amount of your paycheck, I believe you tithe on that amount… the net.

Two comments on this matter:

1. If you have been taught to tithe on the gross and believe that is what you should do, then do it.

       2.The net is the amount of your check after federal and state taxes. Do not think hospitalization, retirement plan contributions, stock options, child care, etc. also fall in this category… these are items over which you do have control.

It is also very important to understand that the Tithe was not the sole financial responsibility that God placed upon His people… it was the cornerstone of God’s teaching on finances, but the Tithe was not their sole responsibility, and neither is it ours.

 Deuteronomy 12:1-6: These are the statutes and judgments which you shall be careful to observe in the land which the Lord God of your fathers is giving you to possess, all the days that you live on the earth.  ²You shall utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green tree.  ³And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their gods and destroy their names from that place.  ⁴You shall not worship the Lord your God with such things. ⁵But you shall seek the place where the Lord your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His dwelling place; and there you shall go.  ⁶There you shall take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes[plural], the heave offerings of your hand, your vowed offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. 

Verse 6 teaches us that one Tithe was not the sole responsibility that God placed on His children… in addition to the Tithe, the children of Israel were to give burnt offerings, special offerings (also called heave offerings or fellowship offerings), freewill offerings, and the firstborn of their herds and flocks.

Also every third year there was a second tithe that was collected to help the Levites, the widows, the orphans, and the stranger.

Deuteronomy 14:28-29: At the end of every third year you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates.  ²⁹And the Levite, because he has no portion nor inheritance with you, and the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied, that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

You might recall several years ago we had Dr. Charles Petitt and Dr. Clay Nuttall come teach us why local churches should support Bible Colleges and Mission Boards. I believe Bible colleges and mission boards are worthy of our support… they exist to serve the local church. If we fund these much needed arms and legs of the church through the channel of grace giving (a suggestion of 2% of your net income), then these ministries will be able to function and function well.

I do believe we can learn important principles from the way God instructed the nation of Israel to handle their finances.  First I want to point out the distinction (the clear distinction) between the Tithe and free-will offerings.

2 Chronicles 31:4-14: Moreover he commanded the people who dwelt in Jerusalem to contribute support for the priests and the Levites, that they might devote themselves to the Law of the Lord. ⁵As soon as the commandment was circulated, the children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of grain and wine, oil and honey, and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly the tithe of everything.  ⁶And the children of Israel and Judah, who dwelt in the cities of Judah, brought the tithe of oxen and sheep; also the tithe of holy things which were consecrated to the Lord their God they laid in heaps. ⁷In the third month they began laying them in heaps, and they finished in the seventh month.  ⁸And when Hezekiah and the leaders came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord and His people Israel.  ⁹Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps.  ¹⁰And Azariah the chief priest, from the house of Zadok, answered him and said, “Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat and have plenty left, for the Lord has blessed His people; and what is left is this great abundance.” ¹¹Now Hezekiah commanded them to prepare rooms in the house of the Lord, and they prepared them.  ¹²Then they faithfully brought in the offerings, the tithes, and the dedicated things; Cononiah the Levite had charge of them, and Shimei his brother was the next.  ¹³Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers under the hand of Cononiah and Shimei his brother, at the commandment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the ruler of the house of God.  ¹⁴Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the keeper of the East Gate, was over the freewill offerings to God, to distribute the offerings of the Lord and the most holy things. 

The distinction between Cononiah and Kore is very important because the monies these two men controlled were used for very different purposes. The Tithe went to the Levites, full time workers for the Lord. The free-will offerings were used to build and maintain the house of the Lord.

 Numbers 18:6,20,21: Behold, I Myself have taken your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel; they are a gift to you, given by the Lord, to do the work of the tabernacle of meeting… ²⁰Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You shall have no inheritance in their land, nor shall you have any portion among them; I am your portion and your inheritance among the children of Israel. ²¹“Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.

 The Tithe had one purpose and one purpose only… to support the full time workers of the ministry. Nowhere in the Bible will you find the Tithe used to build or maintain facilities… do you think that fact ought to have any influence on us today, or should we just ignore it?

Where, then, did the money come from that was necessary to build and maintain the Tabernacle and the Temple?

Exodus 35:4-9, 20-22, 29: And Moses spoke to all the congregation of the children of Israel, saying, “This is the thing which the Lord commanded, saying:  ⁵‘Take from among you an offering to the Lord. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to the Lord: gold, silver, and bronze;  ⁶blue, purple, and scarlet thread, fine linen, and goats’ hair;  ⁷ram skins dyed red, badger skins, and acacia wood;  ⁸oil for the light, and spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense;  ⁹onyx stones, and stones to be set in the ephod and in the breastplate…

²⁰And all the congregation of the children of Israel departed from the presence of Moses. ²¹Then everyone came whose heart was stirred, and everyone whose spirit was willing, and they brought the Lord’s offering for the work of the tabernacle of meeting, for all its service, and for the holy garments. ²²They came, both men and women, as many as had a willing heart, and brought earrings and nose rings, rings and necklaces, all jewelry of gold, that is, every man who made an offering of gold to the Lord…

²⁹The children of Israel brought a freewill offering to the Lord, all the men and women whose hearts were willing to bring material for all kinds of work which the Lord, by the hand of Moses, had commanded to be done…

36:4-7:Then all the craftsmen who were doing all the work of the sanctuary came, each from the work he was doing, ⁵and they spoke to Moses, saying, “The people bring much more than enough for the service of the work which the Lord commanded us to do.” ⁶So Moses gave a commandment, and they caused it to be proclaimed throughout the camp, saying, “Let neither man nor woman do any more work for the offering of the sanctuary.” And the people were restrained from bringing, ⁷for the material they had was sufficient for all the work to be done—indeed too much.

Freewill offerings (not Tithes) were used to build and maintain the house of the Lord.

2 Kings 12:4,5,16: And Jehoash said to the priests, “All the money of the dedicated gifts that are brought into the house of the Lord—each man’s census money, each man’s assessment money—and all the money that a man purposes in his heart to bring into the house of the Lord,  ⁵let the priests take it themselves, each from his constituency; and let them repair the damages of the temple, wherever any dilapidation is found.” ¹⁶The money from the trespass offerings and the money from the sin offerings was not brought into the house of the Lord. It belonged to the priests.

 Churches for the most part have lost sight of the fact that the Tithe was set apart for those in full-time service for the Lord.  Suppose… just suppose… that every church across the world today would set aside all the tithes that they receive and use it exclusively for those in full time Christian service… what would be the result?  Let me name just a few:

1. Missionaries wouldn’t be spending several years raising their support… they would be well funded, and thus, could arrive on their fields much sooner.

2. Pastors would receive the double-honor they are to receive according to 1 Timothy 5:17, 18.

3. Since many churches lump all their receipts into one general fund, it isn’t hard to understand that there is frequently a lot of lobbying by people of influence within each church to spend the monies received according to their own particular agendas.  Making Biblical distinctions (such as the difference between the Tithe and freewill offerings) as to how the monies should be spent goes a long way in eliminating this carnal process.

4. A lot of money that is currently being spent on buildings and grounds would be re-allocated… there would be a lot less spent on fancy meeting places. The emphasis would be put back where it belongs… on the messengers, not the meeting place.

2 Corinthians 8,9 gives further instructions for giving:

 2 Corinthians 8:1-15: Moreover, brethren, we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia:  2 that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality.  3 For I bear witness that according to their ability, yes, and beyond their ability, they were freely willing,  4 imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints.  5 And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God.  6 So we urged Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also complete this grace in you as well.  7 But as you abound in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us—see that you abound in this grace also. 8 I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others.  9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich. 10 And in this I give advice: It is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and were desiring to do a year ago;  11 but now you also must complete the doing of it; that as there was a readiness to desire it, so there also may be a completion out of what you have.  12 For if there is first a willing mind, it is accepted according to what one has, and not according to what he does not have. 13 For I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened;  14 but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack, that their abundance also may supply your lack—that there may be equality.  15 As it is written, “He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack.”

2 Corinthians 9:1-15: Now concerning the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you;  2 for I know your willingness, about which I boast of you to the Macedonians, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal has stirred up the majority.  3 Yet I have sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this respect, that, as I said, you may be ready;  4 lest if some Macedonians come with me and find you unprepared, we (not to mention you!) should be ashamed of this confident boasting.  5 Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, and prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity and not as a grudging obligation. 6 But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.  7 So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.  8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.  9 As it is written: “He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.” 10 Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness,  11 while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.  12 For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God,  13 while, through the proof of this ministry, they glorify God for the obedience of your confession to the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal sharing with them and all men,  14 and by their prayer for you, who long for you because of the exceeding grace of God in you.  15 Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift!   

Let me list 10 main principles from these two passages:

1. Outward circumstances and difficulties should not prevent us from giving and giving generously… the Macedonian churches were giving not out of their abundance, but rather out of their poverty.

2. Giving generously and an abundance of joy go hand in hand.

3. All financial giving should be preceded by self-giving… they FIRST gave themselves to the Lord. God wants you more than He wants your money.

4. Giving is a tangible way we can manifest godly character.

5. There is a direct connection between the grace of God and the grace of giving.

6. A willingness to give is more important than the amount given.

7. In the economy of God the sufficiency of some ministers to the lack of others.

8. If we give to please God (not giving to get) God will continue to supply and meet all our needs.

9. Giving will bring praise and honor and glory to God.

10. Giving should be the spiritual response to God’s indescribable gift.

Let’s look at how this works out in real numbers for us today:

Average Gross income with 2 wage earners: $54,000

Average Net income after Fed & State:       $39,000

Tithe on Net                                                         $  3,900

Freewill Offerings (2%)                                $     780

Grace giving (2%)                                          $     780

Total                   $  5,460

Tithe on Gross:                                         $  5,400

Freewill Offerings (2%)                              $  1,080

Grace giving (2%)                                           $  1,080

Total                    $ 7,560

Let me show you how this pertains to our budget for 2012:

Our total budget for 2012 is $86,000…here are the details:

Tithe = $73,705 = $6142 per month = $1417 per week

Freewill = $12,295 = $1025 per month = $236 per week

Our missionary support in 2012 is roughly 22% of our total budget… I think our Lord is pleased with that.  Let me close by reminding you of some Biblical principles on finances:

Proverbs 11:24-25: There is one who scatters, yet increases more; and there is one who withholds more than is right, but it leads to poverty. ²⁵The generous soul will be made rich, and he who waters will also be watered himself.

Galatians 6:6-10: Let him who is taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches. ⁷Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.  ⁸For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.  ⁹And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.  ¹⁰Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.

Haggai 1:1-11: In the second year of King Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying,  ²“Thus speaks the Lord of hosts, saying: ‘This people says, “The time has not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.”’” ³Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet, saying,  ⁴“Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, and this temple to lie in ruins?”  ⁵Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! ⁶“You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; and he who earns wages, earns wages to put into a bag with holes.” ⁷Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways!  ⁸Go up to the mountains and bring wood and build the temple, that I may take pleasure in it and be glorified,” says the Lord.  ⁹“You looked for much, but indeed it came to little; and when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why?” says the Lord of hosts. “Because of My house that is in ruins, while every one of you runs to his own house.  ¹⁰Therefore the heavens above you withhold the dew, and the earth withholds its fruit.  ¹¹For I called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain and the new wine and the oil, on whatever the ground brings forth, on men and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.”   

Malachi 3:6 -11:For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed.  ⁷From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’  ⁸Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions.  ⁹You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you.  ¹⁰Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.  ¹¹I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. 

Let me leave you with one final thought about giving.  Giving is not primarily about money…..did you know that?  Giving is primarily about teaching us to fear and to reverence God.

Deuteronomy 14:22-23: You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year.  ²³And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place where He chooses to make His name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil, of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks, that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always. 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Today is January 1, 2012… the New Year is not even 1 day old. My question for you is this… have you set any goals for this New Year, and if so, what is your greatest goal?  I hope the answer to this question is an easy one… one that doesn’t take much thought. The greatest goal that anyone can have… and the goal that each of us should have… is to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Let me ask you another question… did you grow spiritually last year? Are you more like Jesus Christ in thought, word, and deed today than one year ago? If so, in what ways? How did you become more like Christ… what method(s) did you use to achieve this goal? I trust we can all agree on this… the mere passing of time does not make anyone more like Jesus Christ… just because we are a year older physically doesn’t mean we have grown spiritually.

The Bible teaches us very clearly how we are to grow in godliness:

 1 Timothy 4:7: But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself toward godliness.

The key word is exercise.  The Greek word is γυμνάζω, and it gives us our English word gymnasium. If you are going to grow spiritually… if I am going to grow spiritually… you and I are going to have to exercise spiritually… we are going to have to have regular workouts. And do you know where this exercise has to begin? With our thinking:

 Proverbs 23:3: For as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.

 2 Corinthians 10:3-5: For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:  4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds; 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; 

 Ephesians 4:22-24: You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;  23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;  24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

This familiar text tells us to put off the old man and to put on the new man. Why? The old man is being corrupted by his deceitful desires. Now think about that just a minute… if you knew when your desires were deceiving you, you wouldn’t/ couldn’t be deceived, right?

Do you know how to discover where you are being deceived?  Do you think God wants you to figure this out? Do you think you could grow to become more like Jesus Christ if you discovered where your thinking was leading you astray? God has given you the means to do this very thing.

Hebrews 4:12: For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Do you realize that because of the noetic effect of sin that your thinking cannot be trusted? Do you realize that you have a Benedict Arnold… a traitor… living within you? Do you realize that this traitor wants to go undetected? Do you realize that when God saved you He didn’t change your old nature… and that your old nature is at war with God?

If you think this battle is hard, you are right… but let me remind you that life gets a whole lot harder if you think this battle is not worth fighting:

Psalms 106:7-15:  Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders; they did not remember the multitude of Your mercies, but rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea. 8 Nevertheless He saved them for His name’s sake, that He might make His mighty power known. 9 He rebuked the Red Sea also, and it dried up; so He led them through the depths, as through the wilderness. 10 He saved them from the hand of him who hated them, and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy. 11 The waters covered their enemies; there was not one of them left. 12 Then they believed His words; they sang His praise. 13 They soon forgot His works; they did not wait for His counsel, 14 but lusted exceedingly in the wilderness and tested God in the desert. 15 And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul.

Exodus 14and 15 give us the miraculous account of how God delivered the Jews out of the bondage of Egypt. If you didn’t know your Bible history you would like to think the Jews never forgot God’s mighty power and thus, they lived happily ever after… but unfortunately, as Paul Harvey likes to say, “And now for the rest of the story.” They soon forgot His works. Notice they didn’t just forget His works… they soon forgot His works.  Do you know how soon “soon” is? 3 days after breaking camp at Mt. Sinai. The nation went 3 whole days before they started complaining!!! How is that possible? How could their memories be that short? I hope you don’t think this is just a Jewish problem. I hope you don’t think this is just an Old Testament problem. Oh no… this is a problem that affects the entire human race.

One minute a baby is nursing contentedly at mother’s breast, but the second that baby doesn’t get what he/she wants, what happens? You know what happens… the room is filled with that baby’s cries. Why? Because we all want what we want more than we want to please God… our hearts are filled with selfish desires. As long as we are able to possess the things we want, we can seem so spiritual/content, but take those things away, and we turn into Jekyll and Hyde.

13 They soon forgot His works; they did not wait for His counsel, 14 but lusted exceedingly in the wilderness and tested God in the desert.  

Again I must point out they didn’t just lust in the wilderness… they lusted exceedingly. What are you lusting for this morning? Paul said “For me to live is Christ.” How would you fill in the blank? For me to live is____________? My husband to pay attention to me as he did before we were married. My wife to have a meek and quiet spirit and stop finding fault with everything I do. For me to live is children who give me first time, cheerful obedience. For me to live is a boss who appreciates me and pays me enough so I don’t have to live from paycheck to paycheck.

 15 And He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul.

If your heart is not overflowing with the goodness of God this morning (if your soul is lean), then I believe this Psalm is teaching us you have been lusting after the things this world has to offer instead of lusting after God.

Now just in case I haven’t persuaded you that your heart is as corrupt as the Jews of old who witnessed God’s miraculous deliverance through the Red Sea… just in case you think your heart is more pure than Peter’s (remember it was Peter who said, “Even if I have to die with You, I will never deny You”)… just in case you think exercising yourself unto godliness is something others should be doing, but you have too many other “important” things to do… I want to show you what the word “corrupted” in Ephesians 4:22 means when it says put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires.

Back in Bible times if you were convicted of murder, do you know how some nations dealt with this? They would take the dead corpse and tie it to your body… back to back, leg to leg, arm to arm, etc. and they would tie the body so securely there was no way you could loose yourself from it. It doesn’t take much of an imagination to picture how the dead rotting corpse would soon begin to attack the flesh of the murderer. This is what lies behind the meaning of the word “corrupted.”

So this morning I would like to look at a tool that I believe can push us forward in the sanctification process.

My Journal of Spiritual Growth.

Reality check: am I a hearer of the Word only, and not a doer, thus deceiving myself?  The following questions will tell me.  Why is this important?  Is this something only some people have to guard against, or do you recognize your own vulnerability to be a hearer only?

 1. My biggest goal in life is to please God.  True   False

Why did you eat (or not eat) breakfast this morning?

Why did you select the clothes you are wearing?

Why did you come to church this morning?

Why do you have a job?

Why did you go to bed when you did?

Why did you get up at the time you did?

Why did you go to the doctor the last time that you were sick?

I am not looking for morbid introspection here… I am not asking you to become mechanical in the way you live… but we must realize there is a great danger of saying our biggest goal is to please God, but the fact of the matter is we don’t function that way much of the time.

There are 3 basic levels of motivation:

1. To please self      2. To please others     3. To please God

Question… in which level do you function most of the time… do you see your need to grow in living to please God?

2. Am I willing to look at MY sin without justifying or blame shifting?  Yes     No

Esther 3:1-5 – After these things King Ahasuerus promoted Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, and advanced him and set his seat above all the princes who were with him.  2 And all the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate bowed and paid homage to Haman, for so the king had commanded concerning him. But Mordecai would not bow or pay homage.  3 Then the king’s servants who were within the king’s gate said to Mordecai, “Why do you transgress the king’s command?”  4 Now it happened, when they spoke to him daily and he would not listen to them, that they told it to Haman, to see whether Mordecai’s words would stand; for Mordecai had told them that he was a Jew.  5 When Haman saw that Mordecai did not bow or pay him homage, Haman was filled with wrath.

Haman was upset…he was filled with wrath. What did Haman think the problem was? He thought the problem was Mordecai.  But let me ask you, was Mordecai the problem? Of course not.  Let me ask you another question… how is it that you and I can see this so clearly, but Haman was blind to it? Could it be that you and I are blind to our own sin? Do you think we are any different than Haman? Do you recognize that our thinking is also under the curse of sin and must be renewed by the Word of God?

I would strongly suggest to you that one of the biggest hindrances to spiritual growth is this… just like Haman, we frequently think our biggest problems in life are other people and or circumstances, but when we think that way we have been deceived… we have bought a lie.

Whether we like to admit it or not, pride lives within each of us… we all struggle with pride. A proud person thinks to himself, “I will always love God… others may fall into sin, but not me.” I would suggest to you a humble person thinks more along these lines, “I know the corruption that lives within my heart… I am not convinced of my unfailing love for my Savior, but I rest in the knowledge my Savior will always love me… His love is an unfailing love.”

I think a good question we all need to ask ourselves is this, “When was the last time I asked someone to forgive me for sinning against them?” Proud people don’t humble themselves and as such they seldom own their sins and ask for forgiveness. Humble people, however, are quick to own their sins and ask for forgiveness. We cannot trust our feelings… our feelings are telling us all the time, “I need this, and I need that,” but the fact of the matter is what we really need is the Lord.

I trust you will agree with me on this very important point… for us to be successful in this battle against sin, we are going to have do a whole lot more talking to ourselves than listening to ourselves. A person who listens to himself is a person who is ruled by his/her feelings, but a person who talks to himself (by the constant input of Scripture) is a person who is growing spiritually. Over and over again the Bible teaches us that what we think we need (what I like to call felt needs) are not our real needs at all!

Adam and Eve felt they would be better off heeding Satan’s counsel than heeding God’s counsel.

David felt that he needed Bathsheba, but God said that David’s need was nothing less than despising God.

The young man in Luke 12who was cheated out of his inheritance by his older brother felt he needed that money to be content. Jesus told him, however, his need amounted to covetousness, and unless he repented he would go to Hell.

The Apostle Peter felt he needed to distance himself from the Gentiles in Galatians 2when the Jewish religious leaders were present. God called Peter’s felt need hypocrisy.

What do all these illustrations have in common? In each case the “felt needs” were sinful… once again pointing out how important it is for us to talk to ourselves (by renewing our minds with Scripture) and not listen to ourselves. Living by your feelings is a costly thing to do… it is a “luxury” we can’t afford.

3. I did not have a hard heart today even for a moment… which means I never murmured or complained, but gave thanks in everything and for everything.  True     False

What does Romans 8:28, 29 teach us?  What is your good? It is growing in Christ-likeness. Do you believe that God is orchestrating every single detail that comes into your life with the goal to make you more like Jesus Christ? Do you believe that? If you believed that would you ever complain? Would you? No. The only reason you and I complain is this… either we don’t believe God in His sovereignty is using even this situation (whatever that might be) to make us more like Jesus Christ, or (and I think we think this way all too frequently) we don’t want to enter into the pain that comes along with becoming more like Jesus… we would rather be comfortable than Christlike. God hates complaining because what we are really saying is this, “If I were God this wouldn’t be happening.” Complaining is a visible sign of a proud heart… a heart that thinks it deserves better.

4. The areas circled below show me where I am least like my Savior:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶ Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷ It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 1 Cor.13:4-7.

What is the greatest commandment? Jesus has taught us the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength and the 2nd is like unto it, love your neighbor as yourself.

I want you to see that God has not left it up to us to figure out what this love – this agape love – looks like.  If this is the greatest commandment does it not deserve our greatest attention?  Again I want to ask you, if Jesus Christ were to visit you today in your home and if He were to ask you, “Does the greatest commandment command your greatest attention,” what would you say?  Do you need to rearrange some of your priorities?  What does this love look like in real life?

Love is Patient:

Good example…2 Corinthians 12:1-10: It is doubtless not profitable for me to boast. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord:  2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago–whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows–such a one was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know such a man–whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows–4 how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. 5 Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities. 6 For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me. 7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

Bad example: Abraham & Sarah & Hagar…Genesis 16

King Saul…1 Samuel 13

Is Kind:

Good example: Good Samaritan…Luke 10

Midwives…Exodus 1

Bad example:   Cain killed Abel…Genesis 4

Does Not Envy:

Good example: Abraham…Genesis 13

Bad example: Korah…Numbers 16

Does Not Boast:

Good example: Joseph (It’s not I, but God)…Genesis 41

Bad example: Nebuchadnezzar…Daniel 4

Is Not Proud:

Good example: Joseph…Genesis 50

Bad example: Pharisee…Luke 18

It doesn’t dishonor others:

Good example: Boaz and his care for Ruth

Bad example: David and his treatment of Bathsheba

Is Not Self Seeking:

Good example: Abraham (intercedes)…Genesis 18

Esther…Esther 4

Shadrach, Meshach, Abed-Nego…Daniel 3

Bad example: Ananias & Sapphira…Acts 5

Samson…Judges 14

Is Not Easily Angered:

Good example: David & Shimei…2 Samuel 16

Bad example: Jonah

Keeps No Record of Wrongs:

Good example: Stephen…Acts 7

Bad example: Tamar (Seduces Judah)… Genesis 38

Absalom kills Amnon (Tamar)… 2 Samuel 13

Does Not Delight in Evil:

Good example: Joseph (Potiphar’s wife)… Genesis 39

Bad example: Amaziah… 2 Chronicles 25

Rejoices with the Truth:

Good example: Ezra… Nehemiah 8

Bad example: Cain… Genesis 4

Always Protects:

Good example: Jesus/woman taken in adultery… John 8

Bad example: Abraham/Sarah/Abimelech… Genesis 20

Always Trusts:

Good example: Abraham & Isaac… Genesis 22

Bad example: Lot’s daughters… Genesis 19

Always Hopes:

Good example: David… Psalm 23

Bad example: Rachel (give me children or I die)… Gen 30

Always Perseveres:

Good example: Paul… 2 Tim 4:7

Bad example: Adam & Eve… Genesis 3

Loving God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength is the greatest commandment… does it have your greatest attention?  If it doesn’t have your greatest attention, aren’t you really just a hearer of the Word and not a doer?

5. I believe God allowed “heat” to come into my life today to show me the idols of my heart (not to make my day miserable), to show me He can satisfy my heart regardless of circumstances, and ultimately to make me more like His Son.   True     False

There is a very important principle that runs throughout the entire Bible that we must frequently remind ourselves of:

Exposing our sin is more important to God than alleviating our suffering.

 In Luke 12 we find the story of the younger brother cheated out of his inheritance. Could God have prevented this? Yes.  Why did the younger brother seek out the Lord Jesus? He wanted Jesus to change his circumstances. Why did God allow this to come into the younger brother’s life? God wanted the younger brother to see he had a covetous heart that needed to be redeemed. Being cheated out of an inheritance won’t keep anybody out of Heaven, but having a heart ruled by covetousness will keep you out of Heaven.

6.     I sinned today because I was willing to disobey God’s Word (lie, cheat, steal, fornicate, do drugs, etc.) to get what I wanted.  True     False

Are you making plans to sin, or does sin deceive you and take you by surprise in spite of your plans to please God? Pigs get in the pigpen and love it. Sheep, on the other hand, slip and fall into the pigpen… but we hate it.

6 b. I sinned today because the good thing I wanted became a demand (not just a desire), and I thought I couldn’t be content unless ______________________  (like Martha in Luke 10, Mary did things my way)

7.  My actions were no different from the unsaved. 

True     False

It is one thing to believe in God… it is quite another to believe God. If an unsaved person followed you around for 24 hours, would he be convinced of your salvation?

8. I have confessed my sin to God, and to those against whom I have sinned.   True     False

Fellowship with God is NOT based on our goodness or our perfection, it comes from walking in the light, and walking in the light is having an open attitude about our sin!

Psalm 16:11 “In Thy presence is fullness of joy.”

So if you do not have fullness of joy what is the problem?  According to this verse, you are not in God’s presence… perhaps you have unconfessed sin in your life.

 Psalm 119:165: Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.

So if you don’t have great peace, what is the problem?  According to this verse you don’t love God’s law.

9. I should have overcome evil with good, and in this situation I could have done that by _______________________________________________________

It is one thing to confess our sins, but it is quite another to take the time to figure out what we should have done in that situation, so when that situation comes up again we will choose to please God instead of pleasing self.

10.  I have prayed and asked God to give me godly repentance (not worldly repentance) so I can change and grow to become more like my Savior Jesus Christ.  

True    False

Worldly sorrow: I am sorry I got caught. I am sorry because of the punishment. I am sorry because of the embarrassment. Godly sorrow: I am grieved that I sinned against God.

Peter when he denied the Lord, wept bitterly. He never denied the Lord again. To the contrary, Peter spoke up boldly for the Lord (Acts 2,3).

11.  Which troubles me more… my trials (the way people treat me and my circumstances) or my sin?

You can answer this by examining the pastures in which you let your mind graze. Do you frequently find yourself thinking, “Poor me… nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen.” If so, you have probably slipped into self-pity.

One word of caution. Balance is the key word. It is very easy to go into one of two ditches. Either we don’t take our sin seriously enough, or we beat ourselves up unnecessarily. Jesus took the punishment we deserved so that we wouldn’t experience the wrath of God. But that’s not all. God has also clothed us in the perfect righteousness of His Son, and He wants us to bask in the fact we are adopted sons. He wants us to bask in the truth that He has taken us from a standing of enmity to a standing of acceptance.

 Ephesians 2:19: Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.

His plan for us at this present time is to struggle with the corruptions of our heart. Are you winning the struggle more and more frequently? If so, this is worship. Happy New Year.

I wonder what the Lord Jesus would have to say about the way we celebrate Christmas across the world today. Do you think He would be pleased for the most part? By and large I think I am an optimist, but I am fully persuaded that Jesus would not be pleased with the way we celebrate His birth, and here are some reasons why. Do you think Jesus is pleased with people who max out their c/c to buy presents and then take months to pay it off? Is going in debt being a good steward? Do you think husbands and wives ever get into heated arguments about whose parents they are going to spend this Christmas with? Do you think these arguments please the Lord? Do you think it is possible we are deceiving ourselves thinking we are celebrating Christ’s birthday when in reality we aren’t?

 Think about this for a minute. Add up in your mind how much time and energy and thought and money you put into: Christmas cards (sending and receiving), the Christmas tree (selecting and decorating), other Christmas decorations both inside and outside your home with the lights, and wreaths and garlands and mistletoe and holly and candles and the knick-knacks on the mantle over the fireplace, Christmas presents (who are you going to get presents for this year and how much are you going to spend), and then the special get-togethers and meals that we all enjoy this time of year. Where is Christ in all of this? Is He the focus or is He an after-thought? Is He really no more than an excuse to have a party?

 Why do we put ourselves thru this? I think we want everyone to be happy. We want to be able to get and give plenty… somehow we have bought the lie that spending more and receiving more equals a better Christmas. We want peace and joy to abound, but in reality, Christmas often turns into a real hassle. We are rushed and pushed for time. All too often we spend money we don’t have for people we don’t even like so they can acquire things they don’t even want or need. In our struggle to make Christmas a success, we often fail and end up making ourselves and others miserable. So how can we get Christmas right this year? How can we change our thinking so Christmas can be a time of blessing and wonder instead of a time of stress and tension? The Word of God has the answer.

 John 1:1-5 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  2 He was in the beginning with God.  3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.  5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

 John is the human author of our text this morning, and let’s just for a moment consider the backdrop against which the Holy Spirit inspired him to write his Gospel. His brother James was dead… martyred for the faith. Peter, the leading apostle to the Jews was dead. Origen says that Peter felt unworthy to be put to death in the same manner as his Master, and was therefore, at his own request, crucified upside down. Paul, the dynamic apostle to the Gentiles was dead… church tradition tells us he was beheaded while Nero was emperor of Rome. In fact, at the time John was writing his Gospel, all the other apostles were dead.

So was John bitter? Was he thinking he had made the biggest mistake of his life by following that itinerant preacher by the name of Jesus? Hardly. Just the opposite is true. If we are going to understand the Gospel of John, we are going to have to understand John’s purpose in writing it, and to do that all we have to do is turn to John 20:30,31.

John 20:31,13 – And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.

 In other words, John is writing because he wants you to know that Jesus is the Christ, the promised Messiah, the Son of God, 100% man and 100% God, and John is writing so you will come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ which will give you eternal life. Does that sound like John is thinking he made a bad decision by becoming a disciple of the Lord Jesus?

Think of the memories that were stored away in John’s heart. He had lived thru marvelous times. In his day the Son of God became the Son of Man, born in a manger in Bethlehem. In his day Jesus was baptized in the Jordan (by another John), tempted in the wilderness, and proven to be holy, harmless, and undefiled in thought, word, and deed throughout His entire ministry… and what a ministry that was. Jesus had healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, and raised the dead. He had made the blind see, the deaf hear, the dumb speak, and the lame walk. He had turned water into wine, walked on the water, and fed the hungry multitudes from five loaves and two fish.

In his day John saw Jesus betrayed, falsely accused, beaten, and crucified. But not only had John witnessed Jesus’ death and burial, but more importantly John witnessed Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into Heaven.

John was there in Jerusalem when the church was born on the day of Pentecost, 10 days after the ascension, when the Holy Spirit descended like a mighty rushing wind as cloven tongues of fire. He was a charter member of the church, and John had seen it grow from 120 to over 3000 strong in one day. Now at the end of the first century John had seen it take root and spread into many different parts of the world. Unfortunately he had also seen all kinds of false teaching enter into the church. Thus, the Spirit of God used John to write the fourth and last Gospel.

The moment we read John’s Gospel we are aware it is different from the others. There is no genealogy, no manger scene, no temptation, no Mount of Transfiguration; in fact, there are no parables such as we find in the first three Gospels. John’s language is simple and his vocabulary small. There are about 600 words in John’s vocabulary, which corresponds roughly to the vocabulary of a seven year old. But as Dr. Phillips says, “If John’s ‘coins’ are few, their denomination is large; they are golden coins, royal sovereigns, the kind one would find in a rich man’s purse.”

So while the structure is simple, John brings us face to face with eternity past and eternity future, and introduces us to the eternal, immortal, invisible, only wise God… our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

John 1:1 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

The word translated “Word” in this verse is the Greek word logos. It refers to “speech, reasoning, explanation, a word about something.” That is exactly who Jesus is. He is called the Word because a word is a visible expression of an invisible thought. Jesus is the perfect expression of who God is… the visible expression of the invisible God.

In our culture we are so used to hearing that Jesus is God in the flesh, but think about how the disciples must have struggled with this. What had they been taught all their lives?

Deuteronomy 6:4-6 – “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! 5 “You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 “And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart.

So when Peter said to Jesus, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” this was no small confession.

As you know the Bible presents Jesus as God manifest in the flesh in many different places.

1 Timothy 3:16 – And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.

Romans 9:3-5 – For I could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my brethren, my countrymen according to the flesh,  4 who are Israelites, to whom pertain the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the service of God, and the promises;  5 of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.

Titus 2:11-14 – For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men,  12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age,  13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,  14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.

Hebrews 1:5-8 – For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again: “I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”?  6 But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.”  7 And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.”  8 But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom.

As you know Jesus claimed to be God.

John 5:18 – Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.

Jesus received worship that belongs to God alone. In the wilderness temptation Jesus said to Satan, “You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.” And having said that, notice how Jesus received worship again and again.

Matthew 14:25-33 – Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.  26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.  27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”  28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”  29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.  30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”  31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

Matthew 28:6-9 – He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.  7 “And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”  8 So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.  9 And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him.

Revelation 5:8-14 – Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.  9 And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll, And to open its seals; For You were slain, And have  redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation,  10 And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.”  11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,  12 saying with a loud voice: “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!”  13 And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: “Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!”  14 Then the four living creatures said, “Amen!” And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him who lives forever and ever.

I am sure you remember Thomas’ statement when he saw Jesus

John 20:26-28 – And after eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, “Peace to you!”  27 Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”  28 And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”

And one of my favorite stories that emphasize the deity of Jesus is found in Mark 2:

 Mark 2:1-7 – And again He entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that He was in the house.  2 Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And He preached the word to them.  3 Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men.  4 And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying.  5 When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven you.”  6 And some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts,  7 “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

And if we compare Scripture with Scripture our text is a clear declaration of the deity of Christ.

John 1:1,14 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Word became flesh… that’s why we are celebrating Christmas today. And on a more technical note when the text states, “In the beginning was the Word,” it is important to understand the phrase doesn’t imply the Word had a beginning. It means that the Word has always existed. The word “was” is in the “imperfect tense” and it means an action in the past that continues into the present. It could be read this way, “In the beginning was the Word, is the Word and always will be the Word.” The Word is everlasting… He always has been and He always will be. Before anything else came into existence, there was the Word. Jesus had His birth in Bethlehem, but not His beginning.

Micah 5:2 – “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.”

A couple of months before Christmas, a mail carrier’s wife was killed in a car accident. The husband was overcome with grief and was trying to work through his sorrow by staying late at the post office. One evening as he was sorting through the mountain of mail he came across a letter that was addressed to “Santa Claus,” and he noticed that the return address in the upper left hand corner of the envelope was his own address. So, he opened the letter and saw that his only daughter had written the following letter:

Dear Santa:

My Mommy died two months ago and since then my Daddy has been crying himself to sleep every night. He says only eternity will heal him. Would you please send a little bit of eternity to my Dad this Christmas?

Well God not only sent us a little bit of eternity, He sent us the very heart of Heaven. A little later in John 1 we read:

John 1:18 – No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.

Jesus is the perfect expression of who God is. The author of Hebrews puts it this way…

 Hebrews 1:1-3 – God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,  2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the  worlds;  3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person

In other words Jesus is the perfect explanation and revelation of God. If you want to know more about God, study the Person of Jesus. Remember, Jesus said I and My Father are one.

I think we get so used to hearing the Christmas story that we can easily lose the wonder of it all. Who was it that was born on Christmas day? Just the Creator of the world, that’s who.

John 1:3 – All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

The Creator of the universe humbled Himself and became a creature in the creation. God the Son became dependent upon a human mother. The Author of creation stepped out of eternity past, He laid aside His glory, and He entered this world as a baby. This is the essence of Christmas. That is why this season is not about decorations and packages and parties. Christmas is all about Christ… the Author of creation.

As I mentioned last week, Christmas then, is all about Christ… contrary to what the world thinks, Christmas is not the same as Happy Holidays. If you are not in Christ you cannot have a successful Christmas… you can have “Happy Holidays” but please don’t confuse the two. You can enjoy the family time, the shopping, the giving and receiving of presents, the food, the Christmas trees and lights and tinsel, the eggnog, the mistletoe and holly, the snow scenes, the music, and the time off from work. But you cannot have a Merry Christmas because the essence of Christmas is Christ. Trying to celebrate Christmas w/o Christ is like trying to celebrate the Super Bowl w/o football; it’s like trying to celebrate the World Series w/o baseball. It simply cannot be done. You cannot celebrate Christmas w/o Christ.

Not only is Jesus the Author of creation, He is the One who holds it all together.

Colossians 1:15-17 – He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.  17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

Consider the vastness of space for a minute. Distances are so great that astronomers use a different yardstick to measure… it’s called light years (the distance light travels in one year). As you know light has a pretty heavy foot… it travels at the speed of 186,000 miles/second. By that yardstick our sun is about 8 light minutes away, but out in space there are stars believed to be billions of light years away. And some stars are large beyond thought. The star Antares for instance could hold 64 million suns the size of ours. And in the constellation Hercules there is a star that could contain 100 million stars the size of Antares. God created all this, and here in John 1 we are told Jesus is both the Author of creation and the One who holds it all together.

Then we can go from the world of the infinitely large to the world of the infinitely small. The building block of the universe is the atom, an entity so small that each one measures less than 150 millionth of an inch in diameter. If the molecules of a single drop of water could be converted to grains of sand, there would be enough sand to build a concrete highway 1/2 mile wide and one foot thick all the way from NY to LA.

And when we turn to the world of living things the complexities are even greater. Each cell in a living creature contains 200 billion molecules of atoms, and on and on I could go but I think you get the point. Jesus made it all.

 John 1:3 – And w/o Him nothing was made that was made.

In the Greek it is even more emphatic, “”not even one thing.” This proves the excellency of the Christian faith, for the Author and Founder of it is the same as the Author and Founder of everything in existence.

John 1:4 – In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

When Jesus came into this world, He entered a world filled with men who were spiritually dead. But, these dead men didn’t know that they were dead.

A farmer years ago was trying to teach his son the ways of life on a farm. So, he took his son out to the hen house, grabbed a chicken and said, “Son, your Mama wants a chicken for dinner, so you know what we have to do.” With that he cut the chicken’s head off, and the chicken began to flop around on the ground. Well, the little boy’s eyes got wide with amazement, and he said, “Daddy, look at that. That thar chicken is dead and he don’t even know it.” That is exactly the way lost people are, Eph. 2:1-3.

Life is one of the key themes in John’s Gospel… not simply being alive in the sense of a beating heart, but real life… the abundant life which is communion with God. Scientists tell us there are four essential qualities necessary for human life: light, air, water, food, and it is no accident that Jesus is all of these.

John 8:12 tells us He is the light of the world. John also tells us that when we come to a saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus we are born of the Spirit which is the breath of life. In John 6 we read that Jesus is the Bread of life, and in John 4 and John 7 Jesus tells us He is the Water of life, “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me.” So we can safely say the four essential qualities of life find their personification in Jesus.

 John 1:5 – And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

That word “comprehend” is an interesting word as it has a two-fold meaning. It means to comprehend in the sense of understanding, but significantly it also means to overpower. Darkness rules and reigns in the human heart if a man has been born only once. Someone has rightly said if you are born only once you will die twice, but if you are born twice you will die only once.

Darkness is everywhere. There is the darkness of the political mind that thinks government can solve all our problems. There is the darkness of the scientific mind that thinks we are the product of evolution and that life is only chemicals. There is the darkness of the philosophical mind that speculates vainly about the meaning of life, but is described by the Apostle Paul as “ever learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.” There is the darkness of the religious mind that thinks it doesn’t matter what your doctrine is (in fact, doctrine is bad because it is too narrow and thus it divides)… all that matters is your sincerity.

So darkness is everywhere swallowing up human souls, but darkness is not all powerful… it cannot overpower the Light. One small candle can dispel the darkness, and John’s Gospel and the Book of Romans teach us that in the heart of every person is the recognition of God and of right and wrong.

John 1:6-9 – There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.  7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe.  8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.  9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

John 16:7-11 – “Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.  8 “And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:  9 “of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 “of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 “of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

 Romans 2:12-16 – For as many as have sinned without law will also perish without law, and as many as have sinned in the law will be judged by the law  13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified;  14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves,  15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them)  16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.

That light within the heart of man has never been extinguished and no amount of activism on the part of atheists or secular humanists can put it out. At Calvary, Satan and the powers of darkness thought they had put out the Light, but on that resurrection morning it blazed forth again, triumphant forever. The darkness overpowered it not.

I am sure all of you are familiar with the text we have looked at today as it is a familiar one. But I trust it serves to remind us once again of the majesty of God, and when we reflect on the majesty of the Lord Jesus our hearts should cry out, “Come let us worship and bow down.”

We the creatures are so limited in every aspect… in power, in knowledge, in time and in space, but God is not limited. He is eternal, infinite, and almighty. Like us He is personal, but unlike us He is sinless and majestic.

Isaiah 9:6 – For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful  Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Merry Christmas

Mary had the little Lamb, who lived before His birth;
Self-existent Son of God, from Heaven He came to Earth. (Micah 5:2)

Mary had the little Lamb; see Him in yonder stall—
Virgin-born Son of God, to save man from the Fall. (Isaiah 7:14)

Mary had the little Lamb, obedient Son of God;
Everywhere the Father led, His feet were sure to trod. (John 6:38)

Mary had the little Lamb, crucified on the tree;
The widely rejected Son of God, He died to set men free. (1 Peter 1:18)

Mary had the little Lamb—men placed Him in the grave;
Thinking they were done with Him, to death He was no slave! (Matthew 28:6)

Mary had the little Lamb, ascended now is He,
All His earthly work being done, our Advocate to be. (Heb. 4:14-16)

Mary had the little Lamb—mystery to behold!
From the Lamb of Calvary, a Lion will unfold. (Revelation 5:5,6)

When the Day Star comes again, of this be very sure:
It won’t be Lamb-like silence then, but with the Lion’s roar. (Psalm 2:12; Revelation 19:11-16)          Marv & Marbeth Rosenthal

I am sure you have been busy this Christmas season with lots of things to do… even good things to do… but have you been too busy to ask yourself this question: what is going to determine whether or not this Christmas is a success? Has your thinking changed from when you were a child?

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.”  Have you put away childish tings?

When you were a child what was it that determined whether Christmas was a success? Be honest now… wasn’t it whether or not you got what you wanted? If you wanted a bike and you got a bike, Christmas was wonderful. If you didn’t you might have thought Christmas was a failure, right?

Now let me press the issue… as an adult what determines whether Christmas is a success or a failure? For many it still comes down to the presents we receive. But somehow I think we all know that getting great presents is not the Biblical view of a great Christmas.

Christmas is not about getting… it is all about giving. The greatest Christmas gift ever given took place a little over 2000 years ago when God the Father gave us His Son.

St. Augustine put it this way: The Word of the Father, by whom all time was created, was made flesh and was born in time for us. He, without whose divine permission no day completes its course, wished to have one day for His human birth. In the bosom of His Father He existed before all the cycles of ages; born of an earthly mother, He entered upon the course of the years on this day.

The Maker of man became man that He, Ruler of the stars, might be nourished at the breast; that He, the Bread, might be hungry; that He, the Fountain, might thirst; that He, the Light, might sleep; that He, the Way, might be wearied by the journey; that He, the Truth, might be accused by false witnesses; that He, the Judge of the living and the dead, might be brought to trial by a mortal judge; that He, Justice, might be condemned by the unjust; that He, Discipline, might be scourged with whips; that He, the Foundation, might be suspended upon a cross; that Courage might be weakened; that Security might be wounded; that Life might die.

To endure these and similar indignities for us, to free us, unworthy creatures, He who existed as the Son of God before all ages, without a beginning, deigned to become the Son of Man in these recent years. He did this although He who submitted to such great evils for our sake had done no evil and although we, who were the recipients of so much good at His hands, had done nothing to merit these benefits.

Christmas then, is all about Christ… contrary to what the world thinks, Christmas is not the same as Happy Holidays. If you are not in Christ you cannot have a successful Christmas… you can have “Happy Holidays” but don’t confuse the two. You can enjoy the family time, the shopping, the giving and receiving of presents, the food, the Christmas trees and lights and tinsel, the eggnog, the mistletoe and holly, the snow scenes, the music, and the time off from work. But you cannot have a Merry Christmas because the essence of Christmas is Christ. Trying to celebrate Christmas w/o Christ is like trying to celebrate the Super Bowl w/o football; it’s like trying to celebrate the World Series w/o baseball. It simply cannot be done. No one can celebrate Christmas w/o Christ.

Christmas is all about God becoming a Man. I love the way the Apostle Paul puts it when writing to the Philippians:

Philippians 2:6-8 – Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:  7 But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:  8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

Jesus was about 30 years of age at the time when He officially began His public ministry and immediately the Holy Spirit led Him into the wilderness for a confrontation with Satan to reveal that He, the sinless Son of God, was tempted in all points like as we are, yet w/o sin. The first Adam failed the test when he was in idyllic circumstances in the Garden, but our Lord Jesus, in spite of the less-than-idyllic surroundings of the wilderness not only defeated the devil at every turn, but in so doing He gave us the pattern for victory whenever we come face to face with temptation.

How did our Lord win so convincingly? “It is written” was the resource Jesus relied upon every time. What a confirmation that our Lord has indeed already given us everything we need for matters of life and godliness. Thus our Lord’s temptation is both triumphant and instructive, and as such is living proof that the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation (2 Peter 2:9).

Luke 4:13-16: Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time. 14 Then Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and news of Him went out through all the surrounding region.  15 And He taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 16 So He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. And as His custom was, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read. 

It is significant that it was Jesus’ custom to go to the synagogue on the Sabbath day. Now I am sure that Jesus found a lot of things to be less-than-perfect in the worship of God in the synagogue, but notice, He didn’t use that as an excuse to “forsake the assembling of ourselves together.” If anyone didn’t need to “go to church” it was Jesus… yet it was His custom to do so. What a rebuke to everyone who is slack in their faithfulness to the local church. If Jesus found it important to establish this custom, what does that say about those who attend when it is convenient?

Luke 4: 17-21 – And He was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when He had opened the book, He found the place where it was written: 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed; 19 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.” 20 Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. 21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.”

What we need to understand about this event is this… Jesus was claiming to be the Messiah and everyone in the synagogue understood His claim.  I think a good case can be made that this claim to be the Messiah (making Himself equal with God) actually set in motion the plans to put Jesus to death.

John 5:15-18: The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath.  17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.” 18 Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God. 

John 19:7 – The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and according to our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God.”

Jesus was reading from Isaiah 61 and everyone in the synagogue understood that He was claiming to be the Messiah (that He was making Himself equal with God).

Isaiah 61:1-3: The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;  2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;  3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.

Combining Luke 4 with Isaiah 61, Jesus was announcing that He was the Messiah and He said His ministry was to:

1. to bring good news to the meek (the poor in spirit)
2. to bind up the brokenhearted
3. to set the captives free
4. to give sight to the blind
5. to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord

What more could anyone hope for? Yet instead of receiving this for the Good News that it was, distrust filled the hearts of those who heard His words of grace. How sad.

Jesus came to bring good news to the poor… not just the economically poor, but also the poor in spirit. The poor in spirit are blessed because they recognize their spiritual depravity. We get a glimpse of this in Mark’s Gospel.

Mark 2:15-17 – Now it happened, as Jesus was dining in Levi’s house, that many tax collectors and sinners also sat together with Jesus and His disciples; for there were many, and they followed Him.

 16 And when the scribes and Pharisees saw Him eating with the tax collectors and sinners, they said to His disciples, “How is it that He eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners?”  17 When Jesus heard it, He said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”

The religious crowd in Mark 2 asked, “Why is He eating and drinking with tax collectors and sinners?” It is important to understand these folks had morality without holiness/ they could look good but they couldn’t be good/ they could act righteous but they couldn’t be righteous. Their question was intended to be a stinging rebuke, a bitter, vindictive attack against Jesus, but in reality it was the greatest compliment they could have given Him… it wasn’t just Good News, it was the Best News than mankind could possibly hear.

Romans 4:5 – But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,

The Gospel is a conflict between grace and all other religions which are forms of law/ between faith and all other religions which are forms of works/ between divine accomplishment and all other religions which are forms of human achievement as a means of salvation. Jesus is saying to the religious crowd (to the ones who are not poor in spirit), “You think you are righteous, and because you think you are righteous you don’t see how sick you really are. You think you are righteous, and because you think you are righteous you think you don’t need Me, and because you think you don’t need Me, I can’t help you. I came to call sinners to repentance.” Oh how they hated Him for this.

The prerequisite to forgiveness and redemption is this… a person must see his need of a Savior. God has never saved a person who didn’t think he needed to be saved, and in Mark 2 the Pharisees didn’t think they needed to be saved. Just as a sick person goes to a doctor to get well, so a sinner goes to Jesus to get well… to receive righteousness.

Many people don’t understand that the church is not made up of good people, it’s made up of bad people. It’s not made up of people who think they’re righteous, it’s made up of people who know we’re not. It’s not made up of people who have achieved righteousness on our own, it’s made up of people who have received righteousness from God as a gift. This is the Gospel.

Jesus also said He came to heal the brokenhearted.  What mere man can claim the ability to heal the brokenhearted?  This in itself is a claim of deity. The most godly man or woman you know could never heal a broken heart… but what we can do is point the brokenhearted to Christ.

What a Friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear!
What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer!
O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear,
All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.

Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care?
Precious Savior, still our refuge, take it to the Lord in prayer.
Do your friends despise, forsake you? Take it to the Lord in prayer!
In His arms He’ll take and shield you; you will find a solace there.

Jesus also claimed He came to set the captives free. We need to understand the worst prison of all is the prison of sin.

John 8:31-34: Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” 33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will be made free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.

It is one thing to be saved from the penalty of sin… that is salvation. It is quite another to be set free from the power of sin… that is sanctification.

I would suggest to you that 99.9% of the lost people today think they are free. In fact, not only do they think they are free, but they also think that Christians are in some kind of bondage… and they think they’re the ones who are free. The Bible, however, makes it abundantly clear that the lost are not free… the only thing they are free of is righteousness. The Bible calls them prisoners.

John MacArthur says this: Sin has indebted them to God. They cannot pay that debt. They are held prisoner to God, really, by His justice and His holiness. They are in bondage and they are awaiting death. Satan wields, according to Hebrews 2:14 and 15, the power of death and holds them in bondage all their lifelong by the fear of death. They are the children of wrath, of whom Eph.2:1 and 2 says, they are under the power and authority of Satan. So there’s a sense in which they are captive to sin, captive to Satan and to the dominion of Satan, the prince of the power of the air, and yet all of that is only a sub-definition. The real sovereign over them, the real Judge over them who has  imprisoned them and held them guilty and sentenced them to death is God Himself. It is God who destroys both soul and body in Hell. So the sinner is a prisoner. He is a prisoner of Satan, he is a prisoner of sin, but more than that, he’s a prisoner of the eternal Executioner who is God who holding him accountable and has him awaiting his eternal execution.

Jesus also claimed that He came to give sight to the blind. In John 9 Jesus healed the man who was born blind.

John 9:1-7 – Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”  3 Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  4 “I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  5 “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”  6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  7 And He said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So he went and washed, and came back seeing.

Jesus is again proving He is the Messiah, the Son of God, the Creator of all things, the One by Whom all things exist. Who else can take dust from the ground to fashion eyes for a blind man?

And did you notice how straight forward the command was… “Go and wash.” Now put yourself in the blind man’s shoes… wouldn’t a command like this put hope in your heart? This command was a test of the man’s faith. Now to the natural man it would seem like a foolish thing to do in order to obtain your sight, but obedience to the Word of God always brings a blessing. So w/o delay the blind man obeyed the divine command… he went, he washed, he saw.

When he came back seeing, those who knew him could hardly believe their eyes. Let’s not miss the big picture here… a transformed life is a powerful testimony. People want to know what happened when selfish people become concerned about others… when immoral people turn from their wicked ways and start living a holy, righteous life… when drunks are no longer controlled by the bottle but instead are controlled by the Spirit of the living God.

Now if you continue to read thru the rest of the chapter you know that not everybody was thrilled for this blind man. Do you remember who was upset? The Pharisees were upset. What/who did the Pharisees think the problem was? They thought the problem was Jesus, Now I think it is obvious that Jesus wasn’t the problem, so how could they be so deceived?

In a word… pride. Pride is like the aids virus. Aids is a disease that renders the body’s immune system unable to resist infection. According to the encyclopedia, “the aids virus causes so much damage to the immune system the body becomes susceptible to a variety of opportunistic infections… infections that are less harmful to people with normal immune systems, but take advantage of the breakdown in an aids sufferer’s immune system to produce devastating and eventually lethal diseases.”

When people die as a result of contracting aids, they do not die of aids; they die of aids complications such as pneumonia or tuberculosis. Aids works like this… it puts out the eyes of the auto-immune system. The body can’t see other dangerous micro-organisms, and since it can’t see them, it can’t go after them. And this is what the sin of pride is like… it puts out our eyes (it blinds us) to the other sins in our life. It causes us to hate correction and reproof. It hides our sin from us. It justifies our sin. It excuses our sin. It minimizes our sin. And it keeps us from repenting of our sin. It deceives us into thinking we are spiritually well, when in reality we have a deadly disease and are in desperate need of the Great Physician’s balm.

One last point we need to take note of. This blind man not only received his sight, he also received insight.

 John 9:24-33 – So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, “Give God the glory! We know that this Man is a sinner.”  25 He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”  26 Then they said to him again, “What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?”  27 He answered them, “I told you already, and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His  disciples?”  28 Then they reviled him and said, “You are His disciple, but we are Moses’ disciples.  29 “We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.”  30 The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes!  31 “Now we know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, He hears him.  32 “Since the world began it has been unheard of that anyone opened the eyes of one who was born blind.  33 “If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

Jesus also came to relieve the oppressed. Ask the woman at the well if Jesus was able to take the burden off her shoulders. Ask the Syro-Phonecian woman if the Lord Jesus was able to relieve her burden. Ask the leper (who was required to cry out “unclean, unclean” everywhere he went) if Jesus was able to relieve his burden. Ask the father of the little boy who was sick… the father who cried out, “Lord I believe; help my unbelief”… ask him if Jesus was able to relieve his burden.

Jesus also said that He came to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. What in the world does this mean? Well, it means the time when God is looking in grace upon poor sinners. It is the time when the Gospel is going out to lost men and women.  It is this current dispensation of grace.

2 Corinthians 6:1,2: We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain.  2 For He says: “In an acceptable time I have heard you, and in the day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.  

Hebrews 3:7,8: Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you will hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts…

Isaiah 1:18: Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 

When we think about the many lost people in the world, (and that is the majority of the population) we need to understand they are poor, they are blind, and they are in the biggest prison of all… the prison of sin. They may, in fact, be rich in this world’s goods. They may, in fact, have no physical infirmities whatsoever, let alone blindness. They may, in fact, think they are as free as a bird… and they may appear to be on top of the world, wildly successful. But the fact of the matter is, every lost person falls into these categories. Apart from the salvation that Christ brings, they are poor, they are prisoners, they are blind and they are oppressed. This is the desperate condition of the sinner (as God sees him) and until the sinner recognizes his condition, he will have no desire to seek a remedy.

There is something fascinating in verse 19 where Jesus reads from Isaiah 61:2,to proclaim the favorable year of the Lord. Jesus stops in the middle of the verse because the rest of verse 2 in Isaiah says, And the day of vengeance of our God… and Jesus leaves that out. This is not the Day of vengeance. This is not the Day of judgment. Today is the Day of salvation.

And then in Isaiah we read more about the Savior’s ministry:

Isaiah 61:2,3 – To comfort all who mourn, 3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.”

Ashes speak of consequences of sin… they speak of sorrow, grief, bereavement, failure, and despair. Nobody is immune from tasting the ashes of sin… let me quote Cornelius Plantinga Jr. in his book, Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be… A Breviary of Sin,

If he is very proud, an envious person will resent not only a superior good in somebody else but also an equal one.  Thus, if he gets an A on an examination in school he’d like to be the only one.  If he wins first place in a piano competition, the envier wants to win it alone.  Having to share first place makes him fee like a loser.  If he wins the Nobel Prize, thereafter each year’s announcement of it makes him melancholy, for now others are prizewinners too, and their prizes are newer than his. To the truly envious person, other persons and their goods are so much underbrush that needs to be trimmed away so that one’s own tall tree can stand unobscured.  We might say that the proud envier keeps running for the office of God – not the biblical God who creates and cherishes good in others but the pantheist God who swallows all good into himself.  

This is who we are apart from the grace of God. But Jesus came to rescue us from ourselves so we don’t have to live under sin’s reign. He has come to give beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, and the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.

Luke 4:20,21 – Then He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him.  21 And He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” 

 Luke 4:21 – Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.

Christmas then, is all about Christ… contrary to what the world thinks, Christmas is not the same as Happy Holidays. If you are not in Christ you cannot have a successful Christmas… you can have “Happy Holidays” but don’t confuse the two. You can enjoy the family time, the shopping, the giving and receiving of presents, the food, the Christmas trees and lights and tinsel, the eggnog, the mistletoe and holly, the snow scenes, the music, and the time off from work. But you cannot have a Merry Christmas because the essence of Christmas is Christ. Trying to celebrate Christmas w/o Christ is like trying to celebrate the Super Bowl w/o football; it’s like trying to celebrate the World Series w/o baseball. It simply cannot be done. No one can celebrate Christmas w/o Christ.

As you can probably imagine, some sermons are more difficult to preach than others because frequently we discover the Bible is not meant to make us feel good about ourselves. Every now and then, however, we come across a text that is a delight to preach because as in our text today we see God has a marvelous sense of humor… and He doesn’t have to tickle our ears to get a very serious point across.

In chapter 20 we find King Ahab at war with Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria. The Syrians have joined forces with 32 other kings, and as such Israel was severely outnumbered. Now on the surface you might expect Syria and her allies to have soundly defeated Ahab, especially since he was such a wicked king, but God in His grace gave Ahab the victory not just once, but twice. Why twice? The Syrians came back the second time and challenged the Israelite army out on the plain rather than the hills of Samaria because they wrongly surmised:

1 Kings 20:22 – Then the servants of the king of Syria said to him, “Their gods are gods of the hills. Therefore they were stronger than we; but if we fight against them in the plain, surely we will be stronger than they.” And even though they were severely outnumbered, God once more showed grace to Ahab, and the Syrians were soundly defeated.  

After this second defeat, Ahab captured Ben-Hadad, and rather than killing him, Ahab let him go. While some might look at this as being merciful, God wanted Ahab to kill Ben-Hadad, and Ahab paid a terrible price for his disobedience. Ahab was rebuked for this by one of the prophets:

1 Kings 20:42,43 – Then he said to him, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Because you have let slip out of your hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.’”  43 So the king of Israel went to his house sullen and displeased, and came to Samaria.

1 Kings 21 gives us the account of Ahab and Jezebel killing Naboth for his vineyard. I think you know the story well, so I will just highlight the consequences for killing Naboth:

1 Kings 21:21-25 – ‘Behold, I will bring calamity on you. I will take away your posterity, and will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both bond and free.  22 ‘I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which you have provoked Me to anger, and made Israel sin.’  23 “And concerning Jezebel the LORD also spoke, saying, ‘The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.’  24 “The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Ahab and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the field.”  25 But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up.

I think if Ahab and Jezebel could stand here today before you they would tell you even though sin has pleasure for a season, God will not be mocked, “We sowed to the flesh and we paid dearly for it. We thought we were smarter than God… we believed a lie and are paying for that mistake for all eternity because we failed to repent.” It is also important to see that Ahab failed to fulfill his God-ordained leadership in the home and he allowed his wife, Jezebel to rule the home. Whenever anyone reverses the roles that God has assigned, there will always be trouble (Genesis 3:16).

So with this background, let’s read our text for today:

1 Kings 22:1-3 – Now three years passed without war between Syria and Israel.  2 Then it came to pass, in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went down to visit the king of Israel. 3 And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, but we hesitate to take it out of the hand of the king of Syria?“

Jehoshaphat was considered a good king. He followed the Lord, and he brought about a lot of good spiritual reforms in the southern kingdom of Judah. However, the parallel account in 2 Chronicles 18 tells us that Jehoshaphat made an alliance by marriage to wicked king Ahab. He formed this alliance by having his son Joram marry Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel. Although Jehoshaphat was a good king, because of this unequal yoke he was drawn into war with Syria.

Ramoth in Gilead is about fifty miles east of Samaria on the eastern side of the Jordan River. Back in 1 Kings 20 after his 2nd defeat at the hands of king Ahab, Ben-Hadad promised to return the cities to Ahab that his father had taken, but Ben-Hadad didn’t keep that promise. By the way, Ramoth in Gilead was one of the cities of refuge (Deuteronomy 4:41-43).

Ramoth in Gilead was originally a part of the tribe of Gad, and even though it was a part of the area belonging to Gad, the actual city itself was populated by Levites of the Merari family (1 Chronicles 6:80).

1 Kings 22:4 – So he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight at Ramoth Gilead?” Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”

Because Jehoshaphat feared Ahab more than he feared God, he was caught in a trap. He should have forbidden his son to marry Athaliah, but now he feels he has no choice but to join forces with Ahab.

5 Also Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire for the word of the LORD today.”  6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to fight, or shall I refrain?” So they said, “Go up, for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.“

Jehoshaphat still has the wisdom to know it would be foolish to go to war w/o checking with God first, so he asks Ahab to ask God whether or not this was a good idea. So Ahab gathers 400 of his prophets together. Does the number 400 sound familiar? Could these be the four hundred prophets of Asherah that had not been executed by Elijah back on Mount Carmel? You might remember that Elijah killed only the 450 prophets of Baal… why he didn’t kill the 400 prophets of Asherah we are not told. Could these 400 prophets be the same ones who escaped with their lives?

These false prophets all said, “Go for it, king Ahab.” Do you think there might be a lesson here for us? I do. Beware of a person who is always telling you what you want to hear.

What is really sad is when men stand in the pulpit in the name of God and do nothing but tell people what they want to hear. They never preach on sin, responsibility, stewardship, or denying oneself. They water things down so that no one will ever get upset with them. Can you say Joel Osteen? Paul warned us:

2 Timothy 4:2-4 – Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching.  3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers;  4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables.

 7 And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of Him?”  8 So the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of the LORD; but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say such things!”

Even though 400 false prophets had given the thumbs up to the battle plan, Jehoshaphat somehow knew that these men weren’t speaking for God so he says, “Don’t you have any prophets of the Lord here?” Ahab said, “there’s one man, Micaiah, but I hate him.”

Really Ahab… you hate a man who speaks truth? Do you think there might be another lesson here for us? The world will always hate us for telling the truth.

 John 15:18,19 – “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. 19 “If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

The world is convicted by the truth, and because they choose to not repent they hate the truth… and according to Romans 1 they suppress the truth. The truth will make us very unpopular with some, but what a great way to enter Heaven. I hope you would rather have people hate you for telling the truth than everyone loving you for telling them what they want to hear. I am sure Micaiah knew exactly how Paul felt when he told the Galatians:

Galatians 4:16 Have I therefore become your enemy by telling you the truth?

Sometimes the truth hurts… it is a difficult thing for us to listen to, but if it’s the truth, then we ought to be glad someone cares enough to rescue us because ultimately the truth will prevail. Do you want to be on the winning side or not?

  9 Then the king of Israel called an officer and said, “Bring Micaiah the son of Imlah quickly!”  10 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, having put on their robes, sat each on his throne, at a threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.  11 Now Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah had made horns of iron for himself; and he said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘With these you shall gore the Syrians until they are destroyed.’”  12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and prosper, for the LORD will deliver it into the king’s hand.”

This show (and that’s what it is) reminds me of the shows that the Benny Hinns and the prosperity preachers of the world put on. I detect a whole lot of pomp and circumstance here with the kings dressed to the nines in their regal robes and sitting on their thrones.

 13 Then the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Now listen, the words of the prophets with one accord encourage the king. Please, let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak encouragement.”  14 And Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, whatever the LORD says to me, that I will speak.”  15 Then he came to the king; and the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall we refrain?” And he answered him, “Go and prosper, for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king!”  16 So the king said to him, “How many times shall I make you swear that you tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?”

I don’t know about you, but if I could go back in one of those imaginary time capsules, this would be one of my top ten selections. I think this is hilarious. One of the king’s “speech-writers” counseled Micaiah to follow the party line: “Whatever you do, don’t make any waves Micaiah. Speak encouragement.” So Micaiah tells the kings to go ahead with their plans and God will prosper them, but he does so in a way that Ahab can tell Micaiah isn’t being sincere.

  17 Then he said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the LORD said, ‘These have no master. Let each return to his house in peace.’”  18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”  19 Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left.

Needless to say, Ahab wasn’t too thrilled to hear (again) what Micaiah had to say. And I want you to notice one little tidbit that is easy to overlook… where are these 2 kings sitting? They are sitting on their thrones (verse 10). What did Micaiah see? He saw the LORD sitting on His throne and the whole host of Heaven standing by. Guess which throne is holding the trump card???

 20 “And the LORD said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner.  21 “Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, ‘I will persuade him.’  22 “The LORD said to him, ‘In what way?’ So he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the LORD said, ‘You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.’  23 “Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you.”

We have to be careful to see the difference between God using evil to accomplish His purposes, and attributing evil directly to God. God did indeed allow a lying spirit (a demon) to speak through the 400 false prophets as a means of bringing Ahab to the grave.

1 John 1:5 – This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

James 1:13 – Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.

God does allow evil to occur to accomplish His will. God had decreed that Ahab would be killed at Ramoth Gilead… Ahab’s time had expired and it was time for his judgment.

Isaiah 45:7 – I form the light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, the LORD, do all these things.

A lot of people don’t think a God of love should be in the business of creating calamity… but that’s because their God exists only in their imagination. God appointed a lying spirit to deceive Ahab because God said Ahab’s time had expired.

So I think we need to briefly address this question… Why does God allow evil to exist in the first place? God allows evil because in His sovereignty, God has ordained that sinful man is to have a limited amount of freedom (what we call freewill). Evil exists because sinful men are going to make sinful choices. Theologians have always struggled to reconcile man’s freewill with God’s sovereignty. I think A.W. Tozer has explained it better than anyone I have ever heard explain it:

“God’s sovereignty and man’s free will. That’s the toughest problem in theology, I think, tougher than the incarnation… You can fall off either end of a log, brother. You don’t have to pick one end, you can fall off either end; and in my opinion the Calvinist fell off one end, and the Armenians fell off the other end… How do I explain the sovereignty of God and the free will of man? Well, you see, God’s sovereignty is God’s absolute freedom to do whatever He ordains to do… God created man in His own image, and in His sovereign and absolute freedom He ordained that man was to have a limited amount of freedom; and that was God’s sovereign decree; that man should have some freedom. So, when man exercises his freedom, he is fulfilling the sovereignty of God, not canceling it out.”

God didn’t create us to be robots that love Him when He pushes a button. He has created us with freewill so that we have to make a choice. W/O freewill there is no accountability. It is similar to God’s challenge to Cain:

Genesis 4:6,7 – So the LORD said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?  7 “If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it.”

Consider this… was Cain born dead in trespasses and sins?  Of course he was. But notice, God is still clearly implying that Cain has the ability to “do well.” And what does Cain have to do to “do well ?” He has to repent and obey God so that he can rule over sin. If he fails to do so, sin will rule over him.

Joshua’s challenge to the children of Israel also emphasizes man’s freewill:

Joshua 24:14,15 – “Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD!  15 “And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Mankind has a choice to make… we either choose to love God or we choose to love ourselves.

 24 Now Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the spirit from the LORD go from me to speak to you?”  25 And Micaiah said, “Indeed, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide!”

False prophets don’t like to be told they are false prophets do they? Micaiah’s response, “Indeed, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide!” simply means Zedekiah would find out who had the true Word from the Lord when he fled to hide in an inner room; i.e., after Ahab had been killed the false prophets would flee in terror.

  26 So the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah, and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son;  27 “and say, ‘Thus says the king: “Put this fellow in prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and water of affliction, until I come in peace.”‘”  28 But Micaiah said, “If you ever return in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Take heed, all you people!”

Ahab’s reaction shows the darkness and delusion that overtakes those who disregard the Word of the Lord. Instead of repenting, Ahab hardens his heart again, and this time it will cost him his life. Even though the odds here were 400 false prophets against 1 true prophet, (400 to 1) the point we want to take note of is this… the majority isn’t always right. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and Ahab continues to demonstrate that he is a fool.

Notice too, there is a cost for standing up for the truth. Micaiah is thrown into prison and fed with the bread of affliction and the water of affliction… I am not sure exactly what that entails, but I do know this… it is not good. Isn’t it amazing how the promoters of the prosperity gospel avoid passages like this when they preach?

29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.  30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

Did you notice who is taking the leadership in this relationship between Ahab and Jehoshaphat? Ahab is. Too bad he didn’t take the same leadership in his marriage with Jezebel. I think we need to ask two questions here. First, in light of Micaiah’s prophecy that disaster awaits Israel if they decide to attack Syria, why is Jehoshaphat even going to battle with Ahab?

That makes no sense to me.

And second, doesn’t it seem like Ahab is playing Jehoshaphat for a fool by telling him that he, Jehoshaphat should go to war all dressed up in his kingly robes, while he, Ahab, goes incognito? Isn’t it obvious that the Syrians would want to focus their efforts on killing Israel’s king? Don’t you think wearing kingly robes into a battle which God’s prophet has already predicted the outcome would be a disaster would make you stand out like a neon billboard that says, “Here I am, kill me?”

 31 Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”  32 So it was, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, “Surely it is the king of Israel!” Therefore they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out.  33 And it happened, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. 

2 Chronicles 18:31 gives us one more important detail:

So it was, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, “It is the king of Israel!” Therefore they surrounded him to attack; but Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him, and God diverted them from him.

It was only by God’s grace that Jehoshaphat survived to live another day. Hebrews 1:14 teaches us that God keeps His angels busy ministering to the saints, and in this particular case I think the angels were working overtime!!! Jehoshaphat is in an alliance he shouldn’t be in, he’s in a battle he shouldn’t be in, and now he cries out to God for help. If you were God, would you not be tempted to say, “Hey, you made your bed, now lie in it!” It is true that we reap what we sow, but it is also true that God is a God of grace.

 Psalms 34:4  I sought the LORD, and he heard me, and delivered me from all my fears.

God doesn’t promise to deliver us from the consequences of our bad decisions, but He has also promised He will never leave us nor forsake us.  There is a very important lesson that God is driving home here… be careful who influences you. Let’s skip ahead to 2 Chronicles 19 and read the account of God’s message to Jehoshaphat when he returns home the battle:

 2 Chronicles 19:1-4 – Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely to his house in Jerusalem.  2 And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Therefore the wrath of the LORD is upon you.  3 “Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God.”  4 So Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem; and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the mountains of Ephraim, and brought them back to the LORD God of their fathers.

This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t minister to ungodly people. This doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t love our enemies. But it does mean we need to be careful, very careful about who we help and why. Jehoshaphat isn’t trying to help Ahab by leading him back to the Lord. He tried to help Ahab with his own little war.

Yes, God wants us to love sinners. Jesus was the friend of sinners, but we need to consider this: are we influencing them, or are they influencing us? We find this principle repeated in the New Testament:

2 Corinthians 6:14-18 – Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?  15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever?  16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.”  17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18 “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.”

34 Now a certain man drew a bow at random, and struck the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.” 35 The battle increased that day; and the king was propped up in his chariot, facing the Syrians, and died at evening. The blood ran out from the wound onto the floor of the chariot.

One of the Syrian soldiers pulled back his bow and let his arrow fly… he wasn’t even aiming at king Ahab, and notice Ahab was wearing his armor, but this arrow found the tiny opening between the joints of his armor. I like what Dr. J Vernon McGee says about this. He calls it the first guided missile. Ahab probably was thinking, “What bad luck,” but you and I know there is no such think as luck. Every random event is actually foreseen and ordained by the Lord.

36 Then, as the sun was going down, a shout went throughout the army, saying, “Every man to his city, and every man to his own country!” 37 So the king died, and was brought to Samaria. And they buried the king in Samaria. 38 Then someone washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood while the harlots bathed, according to the word of the LORD which He had spoken. 39 Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, the ivory house which he built and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 40 So Ahab rested with his fathers. Then Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.

Ahab propped himself up in the chariot in an effort to keep up the morale of his troops, but he died that night, and his army lost courage and returned home.

Back in 1 Kings 21 God sent a message to Ahab through Elijah after Ahab and Jezebel murdered Naboth:

1 Kings. 21:19 – “You [Elijah] shall speak to him [Ahab], saying, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Have you murdered and also taken possession?”‘ And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD: “In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, dogs shall lick your blood, even yours.”‘”

This prophecy was fulfilled literally, as Ahab’s blood pooled in the bottom of his chariot, and the dogs licked it up there next to the pool of Samaria, as the chariot was being washed out.

I believe there are several lessons we need to learn from our text today. Jehoshaphat almost lost his life because of his ungodly alliance with Ahab. We need to please God before we try to please people. We need to please God even if it means other people will be upset with us.

Lesson # 2. Ahab said of Micaiah, “I hate him.” The truth will make us very unpopular with some, but what a great way to enter Heaven. I hope you would rather have people hate you for telling the truth than everyone loving you for telling them what they want to hear.

Lesson # 3. Beware of people who are always telling you what you want to hear.

Lesson # 4. There is frequently a cost for standing up for the truth. Micaiah was put in prison and fed the bread of affliction and the water of affliction. But I believe with all my heart if he could testify before you this morning he would not regret speaking the truth.

Lesson # 5. Don’t think for a second that you can sin and get away with it. Ahab thought he could hide from the consequences that God had prophesied concerning the battle at Ramoth Gilead. God, however, sent a guided missile that appeared to be nothing more than a random shot, and in spite of the armor Ahab was wearing that arrow found the opening in the joints of that armor.

Lesson # 6. We need to heed the Word of God.

Psalm 119:105 – Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.

Elijah began his ministry to King Ahab by announcing that there wasn’t going to be any rain or dew until he said so. Then Elijah promptly disappeared from the scene for 3 and 1/2 years. Why would God do such a thing? These are pretty drastic measures to getIsrael’s attention, don’t you think? Is God simply throwing a temper tantrum?

Then we saw that Elijah called for what amounted to an old fashioned gunslinger’s shootout… but instead of meeting at the OK Corral, they met on Mount Carmel. Elijah tells Ahab to invite “allIsrael” and the 450 prophets of Baal along with the 400 prophets of Asherah, and even though the odds are 850 to 1 against him, Elijah wasn’t worried about the outcome. And why was he so confident? Elijah had graduated with honors from the schools he attended at the Brook Cherith and at the widow’s house in Zarephath.

Both sides agreed in advance that, “the God who answers by fire, He is God” (1Kings. 18:24). After Baal didn’t show up, and after Elijah got in several jabs at mocking Baal, Jehovah sent fire to consume Elijah’s sacrifice. Elijah then ordered the people to seize the prophets of Baal, and execute every one of them by the Brook Kishon. So let’s pick up the account at this point.

1 Kings 18:40-46 – And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!” So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and executed them there.  41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.” 42 And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees,  43 and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”  44 Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot , and go down before the rain stops you.’”  45 Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel.  46 Then the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

The fact that Elijah was able to outrun Ahab’s chariot to Jezreel some 20 miles away is no small miracle. But I think we ought to slow down here and try to put ourselves in Elijah’s position. What was running thru his mind… why did Elijah want to go to Jezreel… why go to all that trouble?

I think the answer is simple… he knew Jezebel was there. I think Elijah was so excited about the huge victory that God had won on top of Mount Carmel that he wanted to be there when Ahab told Jezebel all about it (I mean who wouldn’t want to be there and see the look on her face). I think he was hoping that both Ahab and Jezebel would repent after such a dramatic display of God’s power. I think Elijah is thinking, “How could anybody not see the hand ofIsrael’s God in this?” Now please understand this is pure speculation on my part… the text doesn’t give us any of these details, but wouldn’t this be running through your mind if you were in Elijah’s shoes?

1 Kings 19:1,2 – And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword.  2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.“

Jezebel, of course, has seen the black clouds and the heavy rains, and you know what she was thinking from her palace in Jezreel… she is thinking her 450 prophets of Baal have won the day. So when Ahab tells her what has happened, she is furious… so furious that she sends a messenger to Elijah and tells him that she will kill him within 24 hours. But if Jezebel really wants to kill Elijah, why didn’t she just kill him there on the spot? Why warn him? Did she just want to scare him? There is no way we can know for sure, but perhaps in the back of her mind she is afraid she might end up dead like her false prophets if attempts to hurt Elijah.

3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs toJudah, and left his servant there.

Elijah doesn’t hang around long enough to find out if Jezebel is serious or not. She had massacred the Lord’s prophets before (1 Kings 18:4), and he didn’t want to give her the pleasure of adding his name to the list of martyrs. Elijah wastes no time in getting out of town.

From our point of view Elijah’s fears seem totally baseless. Has he forgotten how God cared for him by the Brook Cherith? Has he forgotten how God provided for him and the widow and her son in Zarephath in the midst of the famine? Has he forgotten how God raised the widow’s son from death? Has he forgotten how God annihilated the 450 prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel? Has he forgotten how God miraculously energized him to outrun Ahab’s chariot to Jezreel? So how is it possible that now, after these tremendous victories that he is afraid of one pagan woman’s threat? The answer is found in verse 3.

 3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs toJudah, and left his servant there.

Notice the phrase, when he saw that. We are responsible for what we see (or more accurately in this case what we fail to see). Yes Elijah saw Jezebel, and in doing so he failed to see God… and because Elijah failed to see God, he believed a lie. He believed Jezebel was bigger than God. We always get in trouble when we start looking at things/people instead of looking at the Lord. Do we have any examples of this elsewhere in Scripture?

Exodus 14:10-13 – And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the LORD. 11 Then they said to Moses, “Because there were no graves in Egypt, have you taken us away to die in the wilderness? Why have you so dealt with us, to bring us up out of Egypt? 12 “Is this not the word that we told you inEgypt, saying, ‘Let us alone that we may serve the Egyptians?’ For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness.” 13 And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.

What did the children of Israel see in verses 10-12? They saw the Egyptian army. What did Moses see? He saw the Lord.

In 1 Samuel 17 what did the children of Israelsee? They saw Goliath. What did David see? He saw the Lord. So the question we each need to ask ourselves is this… what do I see… what fills my vision? The author of Hebrews has a recipe for success we would do well to heed:

Hebrews 12:1-3 – Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,  2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.

This would have been a good time for Elijah to remember the “Fear Nots” in the Bible. After all, what is fear… do you remember? Fear is confidence in the enemy!

3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba,  which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.

From Jezreel (in the North) to Beersheba (in the South) is about 100 miles. Elijah will continue on to Mount Horeb (or, Mount Sinai), another 200 miles further south… and this is after having run ahead of Ahab’s chariot from Mount Carmel to Jezreel, another 20 miles.

I think we need to heed the lesson that is staring us in the face. After a victory, be on the lookout for an attack. We just witnessed the pinnacle of Elijah’s ministry. God has used him in a dramatic way to be victorious over the prophets of Baal. All Israel had been assembled to witness this great moment… it would be talked about for generations. And then comes an attack. We see the same thing in Peter’s life. He first had a great revelation from God:

Matthew 16:16,17 – Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”  17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

And do you remember the next words that come out of his mouth?

Matthew 16:21-23 – From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.  22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!”  23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

The Scottish pastor Andrew Bonar (1810–1892) said, “Let us be  as watchful after the victory as before the battle.”

 4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!”  5 Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.”  6 Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again.  7 And the angel of the LORD came back the second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.”  8 So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God.

Elijah is so discouraged he wants to die. We need to pay attention here, because God’s response is probably not what you expect. When the Lord comes to Elijah, how does He treat him? What does God do/say first? Up front there are no sermons, no lectures, no threats, no reproaches and no rebukes. The first thing the Lord does is to meet his physical needs and the Lord speaks to him gently.

I think many of us have grown up in churches that have taught us to expect to see God standing over Elijah with a raised baseball bat in hand, just waiting for Elijah to say or do the wrong thing so He can bash him over the head. While it is true that God chastens His children, it is also true that God is longsuffering and patient with us. Aren’t you glad that God knows when we need chastening and when we need encouraging!!! How many times have we seen the Lord deal tenderly and patiently with us? I am reminded of the following verse in 1 Thessalonians:

1 Thessalonians 5:14 – Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all.

It is easy for us to get this backwards. I think all too often we comfort the unruly, we beat up the fainthearted, and we are impatient with everyone… everyone but ourselves that is.

Now lest you think God is a pushover and you can count on His comforting you even in your sin, let’s take a look at how God responded to Jeremiah when he got sorely discouraged.

 Jeremiah 15:15-19 – ¹⁵ LORD, you understand; remember me and care for me.  Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long-suffering—do not take me away; think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.  ¹⁶ When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty.  ¹⁷ I never sat in the company of revelers, never made merry with them; I sat alone because your hand was on me and you had filled me with indignation. ¹⁸ Why is my pain unending and my wound grievous and incurable?  You are to me like a deceptive brook, like a spring that fails.  ¹⁹ Therefore this is what the LORD says: “If you repent, I will restore you that you may serve me; if you utter worthy, not worthless, words, you will be my spokesman. Let this people turn to you, but you must not turn to them.

In this passage, Jeremiah is expressing his belief that God has not only forsaken Israel, but to his way of thinking, even worse, God has also forsaken him. Jeremiah can’t understand how after he has faithfully and accurately declared God’s message to the nation, he has received only hatred and persecution in return (does that sound familiar?). He is overwhelmed with grief, sinking deep into despair. He even suggests that God is a deceptive brook, and a spring that fails. Jeremiah is expressing the idea that because he has obeyed God, these things shouldn’t be happening to him. Job’s thinking also went along these same lines (Job 19:6-25) when he fell into self-pity after being attacked by Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar.

So how does God respond to Jeremiah? Repent Jeremiah. If you return to me I will continue to use you. I will give you a backbone to survive this ordeal… I will deliver you, but you need to repent of these worthless words.

Again, aren’t you glad that God knows when to rebuke us and when to comfort us? One important note… please don’t think God is going to allow Elijah to get away with his temper tantrum. God will deal with him about this very soon.

Warren Wiersbe writes, “Is it unusual for chosen servants of God to become discouraged and endanger their own ministries? No, because every servant of God is human and subject to the weaknesses of human nature. Moses became discouraged and wanted to die (Num. 11:10–15); Joshua was ready to quit and leave the Promised Land (Josh. 7:6–11); …and Jonah became so angry he refused to help the very people he came to save! (Jonah 4). God doesn’t want us to ignore our feelings, because that would make us less than human, but He does want us to trust Him to change our feelings and start walking by faith.”

Back to our text:

8 So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God.  9 And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 So he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed  Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

The first thing the Lord did was to meet Elijah’s physical needs, and while God didn’t rebuke Elijah in the same way He rebuked Jeremiah, God knew that there was a problem that had to be confronted. Elijah had gotten his eyes off the Lord and this had to be dealt with before the Lord could use him again.

Elijah arrives on Mount Horeb, a place of great significance for the children of Israel. It was here that Moses had met God in the burning bush. It was here that God had handed down His Law to the children ofIsrael. We don’t know for sure, but perhaps Elijah came here so that he might hear from God again, and if, indeed that was the case, Elijah wasn’t disappointed.

“What are you doing here, Elijah?” Now please understand God isn’t looking for an answer to this question in the sense that Elijah knows something that God doesn’t know. That’s not at all what is going down here. God is asking this question to help Elijah see where he stopped following God. God is challenging Elijah this way: “Elijah, what are you doing hiding in a cave on Mount Horeb, hundreds of miles away from where I sent you to minister on My behalf? I called you to stand before kings, to expose false gods and false prophets in a dramatic way for all Israel to see. I called you to call the children of Israel to repent from their evil ways and to return to righteousness. Elijah, what are you doing here?“

God wants Elijah to come face to face with the fact that he has sinned against the Lord. As most of us respond when we are confronted with our sin, Elijah tries to deflect the questions and he justifies his actions by reminding the Lord of all he has done and how alone he is. But do you see what is really going on? Elijah is whining. Someone call the whaaaambulance!

By the way I wonder if God is asking anyone here that same question this morning, “What are you doing here? I didn’t save you to be living the way you are living. I called you to be a light to the people you know at home and at work. I called you to call them to repent and to return to Me. I called you to serve Me! What are you doing here?”  If the Lord is asking you that question this morning, it’s only because He loves you.

 11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces 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 a still small voice.  13 So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

Now that the Lord has Elijah’s attention, He commands him to stand before Him. Obviously, this is where Elijah should have been all along… if Elijah had been standing before the Lord all along he wouldn’t have lost sight of the Lord. God wants Elijah to “see” Him and to stop seeing Jezebel. God is calling him back to that place where God and God alone matters!

While Elijah stood before the Lord on Mount Horeb, the Lord passed by and a strong wind tore into that mountain, a wind so strong that it broke the rocks in pieces. Then an earthquake shook the mountain. After that there was a great fire, but, we are told that the Lord wasn’t in any of these. After that, there was a still, small voice. What the wind and the earthquake and the fire could not do, the still, small voice did… it pierced Elijah’s heart! Elijah needed to learn that God doesn’t always work in the realm of the spectacular.

I don’t think we can be too hard on Elijah here, because after all, for the past 3 1/2 years he had seen God working in the spectacular. He had been fed by the ravens. He had seen God feed three people with a bin of flour and a jar of oil that never ran out in the midst of a famine. He had seen God raise the dead. He had rebuked a king and lived. He had challenged and mocked 450 prophets of Baal (and we can also add 400 prophets of Asherah), prayed fire down from Heaven and then killed the prophets. Elijah is accustomed to seeing God work in the spectacular. God, however, wants to teach Elijah a very important lesson. More often than not, God doesn’t work in the realm of the spectacular. He uses a method employing His still, small voice.

What was Elijah supposed to learn from this? And more importantly for us, what are we supposed to learn from all this? When Jezebel sent the messenger to Elijah with her threats, he was terrified. It looks like he expected God to continue to do a spectacular work… maybe she would catch on fire and melt into a replica of the Ark of the Covenant. To be sure, God does occasionally “speak” dramatically, as He did onMount Carmel, but this is not the norm. God speaks today through His Word, and in those days, through His prophets.

Hebrews 1:1,2 – God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets,  2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;

Before the modern day convenience known as the refrigerator, people used icehouses to preserve their food. Icehouses had thick walls, no windows, and a door that had a snug fit. In winter, when streams and lakes were frozen, large blocks of ice were cut, hauled to the icehouses, and covered with sawdust. Often the ice would last well into the summer. One day a man lost his pocket watch while working in an icehouse. He looked and looked for it, carefully combing through the sawdust, but he couldn’t find it. His friends also looked, but their efforts, too, were in vain. A neighbor’s little boy heard about the man’s loss and so he slipped into the icehouse the next day as soon as the sun got up and soon emerged with the pocket watch. Amazed, everyone asked him how he found it. “I closed the door,” the boy replied, “lay down in the sawdust, and kept very still. Soon I heard the watch ticking.”

We have to slow down to hear that still, small voice of God. And please hear me on this… the way (the only way) to hear that still, small voice of God is by reading your Bible. Today God is primarily interested in changing and growing men and women into the image of His Son, not working miracles (Romans 8:28, 29; Ephesians 4:13). But let’s not lose sight of the fact that taking a sinner, saving him by grace and reproducing Jesus in him is no small miracle.

 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.  13 So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

It looks to me as if Elijah is having a pity party…  after he hears the still, small voice Elijah pulls his cloak over his face and goes out and stands in the entrance of the cave. Did you notice that God asked Elijah the same question a second time, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God of hosts; because the children ofIsraelhave forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

Elijah’s answer hasn’t changed a bit… in fact, he seems to have dug his heels in. Romans 11 gives us some insight into this.

Romans 11:1-4 – I say then, has God cast away His people? Certainly not! For I also am an Israelite, of the seed of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.  2 God has not cast away His people whom He foreknew. Or do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel, saying,

3 “LORD, they have killed Your prophets and torn down Your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life”?  4 But what does the divine response say to him? “I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.”

Verse 2 tells us Elijah was pleading with God against Israel. Elijah is begging God to judgeIsrael. He wants God to come down hard on the nation because after 3 and 1/2 years of serving God in a way that no doubt made his head spin, after this dramatic confrontation on Mount Carmel that left no doubt that God was God and Baal was exposed for all to see that Baal was nothing more than an impotent imposter, Elijah was expecting the nation to repent, starting with Jezebel. And when Jezebel hardened her heart, Elijah thought his ministry was in vain and he thought that he was the only person left in the entire nation that wanted to serve God. It was too much for him (or so he thought), because now they even want to kill him. So what does Elijah do? He is turning in his resignation. All he heard was a still small voice, but Elijah wanted more, much more. I believe he had the same spirit within him as James and John, the sons of thunder:

Luke 9:51-56 – Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem,  52 and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  53 But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  54 And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”  55 But He turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  56 “For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village.

I am convinced that Elijah “needed” God to send down fire to consume Jezebel… anything less just wouldn’t do.

 15 Then the LORD said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness ofDamascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria.  16 “Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king overIsrael. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.  17 “It shall be that whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and whoever escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill.

God does not allow Elijah to resign on the spot. He allows him to give his notice, so to speak, but he cannot step aside immediately. God made Elijah retrace his steps and travel back those 200 miles and more all the way to the Wilderness of Damascus. He was given orders to anoint 2 kings and a prophet… the prophet Elisha who would take Elijah’s place.

Elijah had put to death 450 prophets of Baal, and these 3 men that Elijah was to anoint would be instrumental in finishing the job of eradicating Baal worship inIsrael. As it turned out Elijah only carried out one of the three commands, that of anointing Elisha.

18 “Yet I have reserved seven thousand inIsrael, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

I think Elijah was stunned at this revelation. Just because you and I aren’t acquainted with other believers who might live elsewhere doesn’t mean they don’t exist.

There are many lessons to be learned from our text. Let me mention a few.

First, we shouldn’t be surprised that sometimes Christians… even godly Christians, can be depressed, even suicidal. In Elijah’s case, notice how quickly and unexpectedly it happens. The man of great faith that we saw onMount Carmelsuddenly becomes fearful and runs for his life. How quickly and unexpectedly we fall.

Second, we should be reminded that our definition of success is not the same as God’s definition of success.

Genesis 39:1,2 – Now Joseph had been taken down to Egypt. And Potiphar, an officer of Pharaoh, captain of the guard, an Egyptian, bought him from the Ishmaelites who had taken him down there. 2 The LORD was with Joseph, and he was a successful man; and he was in the house of his master the Egyptian.

Too many Christians today equate health and wealth with success. But did you notice why Joseph was successful? He was successful because the Lord was with him. Too many Christians today equate success with good circumstances.

Third, we must see the Lord in all of our circumstances… Elijah failed to see the Lord when Jezebel threatened him and fear filled his heart.

Fourth, let’s remember that fear is confidence in the enemy. We need to remind ourselves of the “Fear nots” in the Bible.

Fifth, Elijah is just like the people he wants God to judge. He is angry with God because He didn’t zap Jezebel, and he is angry with the children ofIsraelbecause they haven’t fully repented. But did Elijah repent when He heard the still, small voice? No. Elijah is hard-hearted and stubborn, just like the Israelites. Could you and I ever fall into the same trap?

And last but not least, God’s work will never fail, even when His servants do. We can thank God that His work does not depend upon our faithfulness, but

Last week we saw that Ahab had no interest in pleasing or pursuing God… in part because of his sinful marriage. Ahab had married Jezebel. Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, the king of the Sidonians. As you can probably tell by the name “Ethbaal,” Jezebel was from a group of people who were ardent Baal worshipers. The two of them, Jezebel and Ahab did more to introduce the worship of Baal to the people ofIsraelthan any other ruling family. Jezebel was a worshipper of many gods, but what separated Jezebel from most other Baal worshippers at this time was her zeal to stop Israel from serving Jehovah… she wanted the worship of Yahweh eliminated. Why?Israel’s unpardonable sin was her exclusiveness.Israel’s God was God alone, and to serve Jehovah, one must serve no other gods. Jezebel found this particularly offensive and so she began to systematically kill off the prophets of Yahweh.

God was not about to allow this to happen, and so God has a prophet waiting in the wings, and the prophet’s name was Elijah. Elijah shows up out of nowhere and announces to Ahab that there would be no dew or rain until he said so. Why was this particular judgment chosen by God? This was a direct attack against the false religion of Baal worship because Baal was the Canaanite god of rain, thunder, fertility and agriculture. Needless to say a drought would be particularly embarrassing for the worshipers of this false god. When Elijah made his announcement, God (thru Elijah) was declaring war on Baal. It took great courage for Elijah to stand up before the chief promoters of that false religion and in effect say, “My God is bigger than your god! And to prove it, my God is going to shut off the spigot. There will be no rain until I say so. And, there’s nothing you, Jezebel, or Baal can do about it!” By the way, Elijah’s name means, “My God is Jehovah.”

1 Kings 18:1 – And it came to pass after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth.”

As we come to chapter 18 three years have passed. Three years of drought. Now that is easy to read, but try for a moment to imagine what that would be like. Suppose America hadn’t had a drop of rain since 2008… just to refresh your memory it was November 4, 2008 that Barack Obama defeated John McCain for President. We have all seen pictures on TV of the effects of droughts in Africa and other parts of the world. Perhaps there were people suffering with swollen abdomens due to malnutrition. No doubt there were carcasses of dead animals scattered everywhere with birds of prey circling above.

Elijah had been waiting “many days” w/o hearing anything from the Lord. Do you think he ever wondered if God had forgotten him? But as we know, many of the saints had to wait. Abraham waited for a son. Joseph waited in prison. David waited to be King. Time and again the children of Israel waited for deliverance. Paul waited in jail for two years. And ever since the Lord’s ascension, we have been waiting for the Lord’s return. Here Elijah showed his faith by his willingness to wait. In the book of Psalms we hear these words over and over again, “Wait on the Lord.”  Patience and faith go hand in hand.

 2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; and there was a severe famine in Samaria.  3 And Ahab had called Obadiah, who was in charge of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly.  4 For so it was, while Jezebel massacred the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and water.)  5 And Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go into the land to all the springs of water and to all the brooks; perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses and mules alive, so that we will not have to kill any livestock.  6 So they divided the land between them to explore it; Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.  7 Now as Obadiah was on his way, suddenly Elijah met him; and he recognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Is that you, my lord Elijah?”  8 And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’”  9 So he said, “How have I sinned, that you are delivering your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?  10 “As the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to hunt for you; and when they said, ‘He is not here,’ he took an oath from the kingdom or nation that they could not find you.  11 “And now you say, ‘Go, tell your master, “Elijah is here”‘!  12 “And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from you, that the Spirit of the LORD will carry you to a place I do not know; so when I go and tell Ahab, and he cannot find you, he will kill me. But I your servant have feared the LORD from my youth.  13 “Was it not reported to my lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, how I hid one hundred men of the LORD’S prophets, fifty to a cave, and fed them with bread and water?  14 “And now you say, ‘Go, tell your master, “Elijah is here.”‘ He will kill me!”  15 Then Elijah said, “As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely present myself to him today.”  16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

I think it is remarkable that in spite of Jezebel’s zealous efforts to wipe out all the prophets of God, Obadiah hid 100 of those prophets in caves and took care of them. Obadiah knew the risks he was taking… if Jezebel ever found out about this he, like John the Baptist would have had his head served up on a platter.

Our text tells us Obadiah met Elijah when he (Obadiah) was searching for grass for Ahab’s livestock, and Obadiah was thrilled to see the prophet… he bowed before him. That jubilation didn’t last long, however.

Elijah instructs Obadiah to go tell Ahab that he (Elijah) wants to see him, but understandably Obadiah hesitates. He tells Elijah that if he tells king Ahab that he has seen Elijah and then Elijah disappears and is nowhere to be found, he (Obadiah) is a dead man. Elijah promises Obadiah, “Don’t worry, I will show up.” So Obadiah takes Elijah at his word. He trusts him and gives king Ahab Elijah’s message.

This takes great courage on both Elijah’s part and Obadiah’s part. Put yourself in their shoes… you know Ahab and Jezebel have earned quite a reputation. You know they have been out to kill anyone and everyone who professes faith in the God of Israel. As a follower of Jehovah, you are being blamed for the drought, the famine, and the devastation that has Israel in a choke hold. There is a good chance Ahab will try to kill you as soon as he sets eyes on you if you are Elijah, and if Ahab even suspects that you, Obadiah, are in cahoots with Elijah, well you have just breathed your last.

I think a fair analogy would be similar to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton walking alone into the Al-Qaeda headquarters for a face to face confrontation with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan before his death. What do you think her advisors would say about such a meeting? Suppose Elijah had gotten a second opinion before acting on “Thus saith the Lord?” Any advisor would have told Elijah that he would be a fool to do this. Elijah had been to God’s Boot Camp by the Brook Cherith and he also graduated with honors at the widow’s house in Zarephath, so Elijah knew that as long as he obeyed God, he was perfectly safe and no one could defeat him.

It takes courage to be faithful. It takes courage to stand and be obedient to Christ in public school where your beliefs are ridiculed. It takes courage to live as a believer in the work place where the humor is crude and the co-workers are only looking for a paycheck (doing work for the glory of God is a foreign concept to most employees and employers). It takes courage to remain faithful in your marriage even though you are unhappy and the opportunities to be unfaithful are plentiful. It takes courage to stand up for Biblical morality in a world that sees such convictions as repressive. It takes courage to continue to trust God when your body is being ravaged by cancer and you can’t find any relief. Faith and courage, however, walk hand in hand.

1 Kings 18:17,18 – Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, “Is that you, O troubler ofIsrael?”  18 And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and have followed the Baals.

What did Ahab think the problem was? He thought the problem was Elijah, didn’t he? Was Ahab right? Of course not! I think you have heard me say once or twice, “The problem isn’t the problem.” When Ahab met Elijah he charged him with being a troublemaker because in Ahab’s way of thinking all the woes of the nation were Elijah’s fault. Elijah, however, answered a fool according to his folly. He told Ahab that he (Ahab) was the troublemaker, and that it was Ahab’s idolatry that was responsible for the drought and the famine.

1 Kings 18:19,20 – “Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”  20 So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together onMount Carmel.

So Elijah proposes a little contest. He tells Ahab to invite “all Israel” and the 450 prophets of Baal along with the 400 prophets of Asherah, and he proposes that this 850 to 1 contest take place onMt.Carmel. Now where do you think Elijah summoned up all this confidence? I can assure you it didn’t magically appear out of thin air. I believe with all my heart that God’s Boot Camp at the Brook Cherith and the graduate degree he earned at the widow’s house in Zarephath were the main ingredients that fed Elijah’s faith in this confrontation with Ahab.

1 Kings 18:21-25 – And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.  22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.  23 “Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it.  24 “Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” So all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.”  25 Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.” 

Elijah suggested that both he and the idolatrous prophets each prepare a sacrifice (a bull) to their Gods. The God who consumed the sacrifice with fire would be considered the true God.  Elijah even let the prophets of Baal go first. Elijah does this because he knows that these false gods have no power whatsoever.

26 So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” But there was  no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.  27 And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”  28 So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them.

The sacrifice was prepared and the false prophets called on Baal from morning to noon, but the heavens were silent. The Baal worshipers worked up a frenzy through their circus-like actions even leaping on the altar. They shouted and they danced… but nothing happened.

After several hours of this Elijah began to mock these false prophets by suggesting Baal was nothing more than a god with human qualities… and Elijah forcefully drives this point home. Perhaps their god is preoccupied in thought, like a husband who ignores his wife while watching the ballgame. Baal might be busy… perhaps he is on the toilet. Yes, it’s crude, but it presses home the point of the inferiority of their god. What a pathetic god Baal is turning out to be. Maybe Baal is just “out of the office” at the moment and can’t be reached. He obviously doesn’t even have a cell phone. Perhaps he has dozed off, like some people do with Sunday afternoon naps. If he was asleep, there was only one solution… yell louder to get his attention.

Elijah was bold in his attack, but this was no time for subtlety. Either Baal was God, or he was an impostor.  If he couldn’t come through at a critical time like this with allIsraelwatching, then he could never be trusted. And that is exactly the point that Elijah is driving home.

And did you notice these Baal worshipers even cut themselves with knives and lances, hoping that would gain favor with their god who was not answering. But shedding blood apart from the instructions that God has given in His Word is useless.

29 And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.

I have no doubt the demons in the unseen world wanted to come help these Baal worshipers, but our God in Heaven restrained them. There was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention. How devastating!

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down.  31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.”  32 Then with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed [about four gallons].  33 And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.”  34 Then 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 So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water.

Here is the scene. I picture two altars, not very far apart from each other… at least within sight of each other. On the one side, there is the altar of Baal, fully functional because of its present day use in the worship of Baal. On the other side is the broken down altar of Jehovah. The stones have been torn down and they lay in a heap. As the drama begins in the morning the prophets of Baal arrive at their altar in a regal procession, similar to the faculty of a graduate school filing in for the commencement ceremony. With all of their pomp and circumstance, they lay the wood for the fire, and then slaughter the bull they expect to be consumed with fire. They  begin to call upon Baal, and now you know what happened… nothing.

I believe “all Israel” is keeping one eye on Elijah as he begins to rebuild God’s altar. And after he rebuilds it, Elijah does something unheard of, especially during a drought… he instructs the people who are helping him to dig a trench around the sacrifice, and then to pour water on the sacrifice until the trench is filled to the brim. Not once, not even twice but three times Elijah instructs them to pour more water on the sacrifice. It is his way of proving that what happens next is of God and God alone.

Now some skeptics will say, “If there was a three year drought, where did they get the water?”  The answer is simple: Mt. Carmel is right off the coast of theMediterranean Sea.  Getting water was not a problem at this location. Nobody was able to drink the water because of the salt, but it could still be used for this purpose.

After all this is finished, Elijah does not dance around… he does not scream… there are no theatrics. He simply prays,

 36 And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word.  37 “Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.”  38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.  39 Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The LORD, He is God! The LORD, He is God!”  40 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!” So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook Kishon and executed them there.

Elijah wanted everyone to know that it was God and God alone who had the power to answer prayer and consume this sacrifice. The contrast between the LORD God and Baal couldn’t have been clearer. What was billed as a great contest was in fact, no contest at all.

Remember it hadn’t rained for over three years, so there is good chance the sky was clear. So on this clear day, lightening came out of the sky, and it consumed not only the sacrifice but the altar, the stones and even the water.

The people fell down to worship their true God. God had won the face-off. They acknowledged that He and He alone is worthy of worship. They saw the error of their ways and as such they were prepared to destroy the false prophets at Elijah’s command. The point was obvious… there is only one God and we should serve, obey and worship Him.

I believe there is a lesson to be learned here concerning prayer. Both Elijah and the 450 prophets of Baal (and even though it is not stated, I believe the 400 prophets of Asherah also) prayed on that memorable day. Baal and Asherah did not hear or answer the prayers of the 850 prophets, but God did hear the prayer of Elijah. One reason why the prayers of the 850 prophets were not answered is because they prayed to the wrong god. No matter how many people are praying, or how hard they pray, prayers to the wrong god are futile.

Proverbs 28:9 – One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, Even his prayer is an abomination.  

I believe there is something else we need to consider. It is not uncommon in many Christian circles to hear believers talking as though getting an answer to your prayers is directly related to the number of people praying, to the fervency of the people praying, to the frequency of the people praying, and even to the popularity of the people praying. (If you can get Billy Graham to pray for you, you can be assured your prayers will be answered).

All this seems to suggest that the only way Satan can be defeated is if enough Christians gang up in prayer. In our text, 850 people prayed together, they prayed persistently (all day long), and they prayed fervently.

We know from the Book of James that Elijah is a model for us when it comes to prayer.

James 5:13-18 – Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.  14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.  15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.  16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.  17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.  18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

Since Elijah is an example of a prayer warrior, I would encourage you to consider the implications. Is God prompted by the number of those who pray? James tells us that the prayer of one saint avails much. Why is it that we think we have to assemble hundreds of thousands of people in Washington, DC to pray in order for God to hear and to answer us? Could it be we think we can manipulate God?

41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.”  42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees,  43 and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”  44 Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot , and go down before the rain stops you.’”  45 Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel.  46 Then the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

Elijah could have said many things to Ahab after the victory on Mt. Carmel. He could have condemned him for the idolatry.  He could have done a little dance and said, “Nana nana boo boo.” But Elijah didn’t go there. Instead, Elijah told Ahab to go eat and drink because the drought was about to end. Elijah told him, “There is the sound of abundance of rain.” That’s confidence!

While Ahab hit the buffet line, Elijah hit his knees. He put his face between his knees and sought the Lord. Notice this… we are not told the exact words of his prayer, but we do know what he was praying about because he kept telling his servant to go and look toward the sea for rain clouds.

I believe we aren’t told Elijah’s exact words because God knows the tendency of our sinful heart to take the words and make them into some kind of lucky rabbit’s foot for getting our prayers answered. Still others will look at Elijah’s posture and believe that his posture was the key to getting his prayers answered. But folks, these things are minor. What is crucial is the attitude of the heart. Elijah prayed expectantly. He was confident that God would answer him.

James 1:5-8 – If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.  7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;  8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

We need to take note that Elijah persevered in prayer until the Lord answered. Seven times Elijah sent his servant to check the skies for a sign of a coming storm. How different this is from the way we sometimes pray. We ask God for something and then we either never think of it again, or we give up and think that God is not going to answer our prayer.  Persistence in prayer is a sign of faith. Do you remember the parable Jesus told in Luke 18?

Luke 18:1-8 – Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart,  2 saying: “There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man.  3 “Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’  4 “And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man,  5 ‘yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’”  6 Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said.  7 “And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?  8 “I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” 

We would be horribly mistaken if we thought that Jesus was teaching that God is like this self-centered, unjust judge. That would fly in the face of everything the Bible teaches us about the character of God. Jesus is using this humorous example to get our attention. He is arguing from the lesser to the greater and He is taking it to the nth degree. If this widow can get justice from this self-serving, wicked, unjust judge, how much more will our loving, tender, gracious Heavenly Father hear and answer His own children when they cry out to Him for help?

If we are serious about answered prayer we won’t give up.  I wonder how many people will be in Heaven because someone prayed for them for 5, 10, 15, 20 or more years?  Do you remember why Jesus told this parable?  In verse 1 we are told that Jesus spoke this parable so that we would continue to pray and not lose heart.  Consider for a moment how much better off we are than this widow:  She had no advocate, but we do. She came to a court of law, but we come to the Throne of Grace. She pled out of poverty, but we plead out of riches (not financial riches, but the riches of our standing in Christ).

Jesus is teaching us that we ought to come boldly to the Throne of Grace. Ask and keep on asking. Seek and keep on seeking. Knock and keep on knocking. Why? Because the character of God is 180 degrees opposite that of the “unjust judge…”

Our job is to pray. Our job is to remember that we were created to serve God… all too often we get it reversed and think prayer somehow obligates God to serve us. Our job is to trust God remembering that He and He alone knows what is best. Our job is to remember that God is too wise to ever make a mistake, too holy to ever do anything wrong, and too kind to ever do anything cruel. Our job is to always pray and not lose heart.