Sermon Tone Analysis

The moments we are going to examine today should be well known for the seasoned Christian.

In fact, the second set of passages includes an instance that has resulted in a extremely popular reference to the way that God moves and speaks.

The Lord’s timing for this passage is encouraging for me and I think for us.

In light of the division our country is facing over abortion, the financial and political concerns our country is facing, and the overall state of affairs this passage provides insight and encouragement for us.

Our sermon series is entitled Faithful and True.

We have been working our way through the Bible, and stopping each Sunday to see how the whole Word, the entire Bible demonstrates the faithfulness and truthfulness of God and His Gospel.

The approach for our year is to examine the parts of the Bible and the whole in light of who God is.

My prayer is that we see God’s redemptive plan from beginning to end.

And my hope is that it results in our church understanding our place in the story that God is unfolding.

I hope that because I see many churches and individuals inviting God into their personal story.

But God doesn’t fit into the story of a person, family, church, or even country.

Everyone and everything fits into His story.

And the better we understand the big picture of the Bible, the better we understand His plans.

And the better we understand His plans the better we understand what it looks like to be faithful followers of Christ.

In our sermon today we look at 1 Kings 18 & 19.

In chapter 18 we find an amazing displays of God’s power.

The kind of display that proves His existence and inspires faith and obedience.

A quick intro to the people in the story… these aren’t characters.

I say they aren’t characters because we don’t refer to the founding fathers as characters in American history.

Ahab, Elijah, and Jezabel are as real as George Washington.

The events that we are looking at today are as real as events in our history books.

Ahab- King of Israel, and disobedient by worshiping and allowing the worship of Baal and other fertility gods.

Obadiah- over the house of the king, but faithful to the Lord.

He once hid a hundred prophets in two caves to protect them from Jezebel who wanted to them killed.

Elijah- the prophet of the Lord

The Lord (God)- Yahweh, the one true God, the God of the Bible

Baal- a false god worshipped by the Canaanites.

He was a god of fertility.

But ultimately he was the god of gods… he defeated his father and was associated with the sun, thunder, lighting, and rain.

He was often depicted as a bull or ram.

The prophets of Baal- 450 men devoted completely to their god.

Jezebel- wife of Ahab and devoted follower of Baal

Angel of the Lord- a messenger sent from God who spoke and ministered to Elijah in his time of need.

Hazael- he becomes the king of Syria

Jehu- he was a commander in Ahab’s army who became King over the northern kingdom of Israel

Elisha- he was a prophet of the Lord who was used to do mighty works and speak on His behalf.

7000, the Remnant- these are the faithful Israelites who had never bowed to the false god Baal.

They stayed faithful to the Lord in the midst of an ungodly king and culture…

We are going to pick up in 1 Kings 18:20… Elijah is confronting Ahab for his disobedience to the Lord and challenges the king to host a showdown to determine which God is true, Baal or Yahweh.

1 Kings 18:20–46 (ESV)

20 So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel.

21 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions?

If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.”

And the people did not answer him a word.

22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men.

23 Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it.

And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it.

24 And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God.”

And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.”

25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.”

26 And they took the bull that was given them, and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!”

But there was no voice, and no one answered.

And they limped around the altar that they had made.

27 And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god.

Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.”

28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them.

29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice.

No one answered; no one paid attention.

30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.”

And all the people came near to him.

And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down.

31 Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name,” 32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord.

And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed.

33 And he put the wood in order and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood.

And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.”

34 And 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 And the water ran around the altar and filled the trench also with water.

36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word.

37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” 40 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.”

And they seized them.

And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.

(Likely in compliance with the law God gave to Moses regarding false prophets)

41 And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.”

42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink.

And Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel.

And he bowed himself down on the earth and put his face between his knees.

43 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.”

And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.”

And he said, “Go again,” seven times.

44 And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”

And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’

” 45 And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.

And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel.

46 And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he gathered up his garment and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

What an amazing thing that has happened!

First the sacrifice, then the rain!

God has done a great thing for His people… but let’s keep reading

1 Kings 19:1–18 (ESV)

Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.”

3 Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.

4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree.

And he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” 5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree.

And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water.

And he ate and drank and lay down again.

7 And the angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.” 8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.