1 Kings 18 v. 17 - 40 Note
1. THE CHALLENGE GOD FACES - v. 30 "And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down." See the:-
(a) The Problem of Sin - v. 18 "And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim."
(b) The Power of Sin - "forsaken the commandments of the Lord"
Romans 7 v. 18 - 20 "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me."
Sin conquers the will, corrupts the walk, and confuses the way for individuals
(c) The Product of Sin - "and thou hast followed Baalim" Note:-
(1) The Abandonment Sin Brings - Ahab abandoned:-
(a) Righteousness - Isaiah 66 v. 3 "He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations."
(b) Reasoning - i.e. v. 18 - forsaken the Lord to folllow Baal
(c) Responsibility - Ahab abandoned his faith, his family, his fellowship, his future
(2) The Association Sin Brings - i.e. followed Baalim i.e.
with the:- carnal, the corrupt, and the condemned
(3) The Aggravation Sin Brings - v. 17 "And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?"
The root of trouble was sin, the reason for trouble was Ahab's sin,
the remedy for the trouble was salvation
(4) The Accusation Sin Brings - v. 18 "but thou and thy father's house"
2 Samuel 12 v. 7 - 9 "And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; And I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee such and such things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in his sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon." i.e. the grief, the guilt and the grace of God
2. THE CHARGE GOD MAKES - Note:-
v. 18 & 19 "And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim. Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table."
(a) Confrontation - v. 16 "So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah."
(b) Condemnation - v. 18 "thou and thy father's house" i.e. Elijah condemns
Ahab's rule, his religion, and his rebellion -
Jeremiah 19 v. 5 "They have built also the high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it into my mind:"
(c) Castigation - v. 19 "Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table."
3. THE CHOICE GOD GIVES - v. 21 "And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word." i.e. a time for:-
(a) Questioning - "How long halt ye?"
(b) Qualifying - "If the Lord be God"
(c) Quantifying - "If Baal then follow him"
Joshua 24 v. 15 "And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."
Exodus 32 v. 26 - 28 "Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side? let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. And he said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbour. And the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses: and there fell of the people that day about three thousand men."
4. THE CHANGE GOD WORKS - v. 30 "And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down."
v. 38 "Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench." Note:-
1. The Meeting with the Fire v. 38 when? "then" - fell - what fell? - fire -
i.e.symbolic of the presence of God, where did it fall? - on the altar,
why did it fall? - v. 30 altar repaired
2. The Misunderstanding about the Fire i.e. unnecessary, unnatural, unnerving
3. The Mercy in the Fire - There was pardon, purity, and power in the fire
4. The Malignity toward the Fire - some attempt to
ignore it, escape it, control it, extinguish it
5. The Manifestion of the Fire - it was
vertical - "fell",
visible - v. 39 "And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God."
verifiable - v. 38 "signs" - "Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench."
6. The Meaning in the Fire - declared the
Pre-eminence of God, Prerogative of God, Presence of God, Power of God, Purity of God, Pathway to God
7. The Message from the Fire - the helplessness of man, the hopelessness of religion, the holiness of God
8. The Ministry through the Fire - The fire:-
consumed some things, confirmed some things, condemned some things,
and changed some things.
