ELIJAH: PROPHET OF FIRE
Part 5
“God Restores His Man”
1 Kings 19: 8-10 “So he (Elijah) got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.”
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QUICK RECAP
Now, sitting in this lonely cave, having run away from God’s will and place for him, Elijah is at the lowest point of his life.
He’s literally fallen from pinnacle to pit, victory to defeat, mountaintop to meltdown.
He had prophesied FOR God,
he had prayed TO God,
he had prevailed WITH God,
and now he had run to the mountain OF God out of fear.
Now, a little bit in Elijah’s defense, Queen Jezebel walked in a very satanic anointing.
She was essentially a priestess for Baal worship.
Very dark powers were working with this woman, and Elijah therefore very likely experienced a strong demonic assault when he heard of her threats, and this is part of what overwhelmed him.
Nevertheless, he ran.
Sitting now in this lonely cave, the great Prophet experienced the collapse of his confidence and boldness, coupled with the humiliation of running from one lone woman.
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Sometimes its after a great victory we experience the hardest attacks.
The great preacher C.H. Spurgeon wrote, “When at last a long cherished desire is fulfilled, when God has been glorified, and a great triumph achieved, then we are apt to faint.”
Some of you have been hit hard following
a great victory,
an answer to prayer,
a long awaited breakthrough,
or after stepping into a new level.
And you’re wondering what’s going on?
You may even find yourself, like Elijah, in a cave of defeat, sorrow, confusion, or even despair.
I bring good news today—God knows the address of your cave, and He will not leave you there!
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Throughout the rest of chapter 19, God is going to do three things to get Elijah back into the game:
—A Reality check,
—a Reconnect to God, and
—a Resend to his mission
So first God gives Him:
I. A reality check
God made a personal visit to his cave with a simple question:
“And the word of the Lord came to him: ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’”
God wasn’t just talking about a geographical location.
He was saying, “What are you doing here?—In this place of bondage, fear, depression, loneliness, confusion?”
What are you doing here in this dark hole of defeat?
What are you doing here wallowing in self-pity and listening to Satan’s lies?
This is not where you belong!!
Listen to Elijah’s very revealing answer:
Vs. 10 “He replied, ‘I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty’—CHECK! That was true!
Then he said, “The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword.”—PARTLY TRUE…Israel had done these things but had repented in mass on Mt. Carmel!
“I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.’”—FALSE. God will tell him later that He had “reserved 7,000 in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal.”—19:18
So Elijah was RIGHT on count one, LIVING IN THE PAST on count two, and DECEIVED on count three.
—And that’s the kind of messaging you get in a cave!
Half truths and lies!
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The fact is:
It wasn’t as bad as he thought,
He wasn’t as alone as he felt,
And it wasn’t as hopeless as it seemed!
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There are Christians listening to this message right now who have operated powerfully under God’s anointing in the past but today you’re sitting on the sidelines.
A jezebel spirit—the spirit of fear and intimidation that attacked Elijah, has vexed you.
But God is with you, even when you’re running,
even in your weakness,
even when you don’t feel like “the man or woman of God.”
And He has stepped into your cave with the same question, “What are you doing here?”
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This is a reality check question that says:
—Look around you at your circumstances
—Inspect your state of mind.
—Assess your life and compare where you are right now to where you know God has called you to be!
Listen: God is not condemning you, He wants to encourage and strengthen you.
He wants to put you back into your anointing.
He wants to free you from bondage.
Like Elijah, if you will hear the word of the Lord, come out of your cave and get back in the game—the power of God will come upon you again!
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The second thing God does to get him back in the game is:
II. A reconnect
God tells Elijah to go to the mouth of the cave for a supernatural show and tell.
‘11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”
“Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind.”
Elijah notes that the mighty wind was an ACT of God, but it was not God Himself.
—Then, in case Elijah missed the lesson:
“After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.”
God sent a mighty shaking, but Elijah notes again God wasn’t in that mighty manifestation either.
12 “After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire.”
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Now watch carefully what happens next:
“And after the fire came a still, small voice—a gentle whisper.”
What’s going on here? What is God saying?
Here’s the deal: The wind, earthquake, and fire were things God DID and they spoke of His power.
But the still, small, quiet voice was GOD HIMSELF and it spoke of relationship.
Notice Elijah’s response to the voice:
13 “When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face (an act of reverence) and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.”
When Elijah heard the still, small, quiet voice, he recognized that this was God Himself.
Between the mighty show-and-tell of wind, earthquake, and fire, and the still, small voice, Elijah discerned a difference between:
The acts of God, and the God of the acts.
Elijah was used to God’s mighty acts of power, but God seemed to be saying:
Elijah, you can’t have a relationship with the miracles I do, but you can have relationship with ME!
—The still, small voice reconnected the discouraged prophet to God Himself!
APPLY: And in your cave experiences and mine, the most important thing we can do is reconnect with the Lord…
…listening closely to the soft voice of the Holy Spirit speaking through His word and to our hearts!
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So Elijah received a REALITY CHECK, a RECONNECT, and finally, God gave Him:
III. A Resend
Verse 15 says, “Then the LORD told him, “Go back the same way you came,”
I’m giving you a second chance!
You ran away in fear, now go back the same way you came and face your fears! Run toward the roar!
And then watch this:
God told him, “When you arrive to Damascus, anoint Hazael king over Syria,
and anoint Jehu king over Israel.
And anoint Elisha prophet in your place.”
God gave Elijah a RESEND by giving him a new assignment.
Every one of these men was used by God to finish what Elijah had started by exterminating Baalism from the land!
So Elijah’s RESEND was to go back and finish out his calling.
When he was taken up to heaven by chariots of fire, he went up victorious!
NEXT TIME: The Mantle!