11.4.13 THE FALTERING STEPS OF FAILURE I Kings 19:1-3 19 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.” 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. Lets begin by giving credit where it is due. Elijah was indeed a great man of God. He had done what no other human being had ever done - including the dramamatic: call fire from heaven, raise the dead, and personally kill 850 false prophets with his sword... all of this at the inspirational word of God. The thing I love about our God is He never sugarcoats or coverups the sin and failure of even His best soldiers. This should give US HOPE! We ALL HAVE FAILED but we, like Eljah, can recover from our poor judgements. Elijah started strong but faltered after 3 1/2 years of faithful service. He had stood before the King of Judah (a killer of Gods prophets) and boldly announced Gods judgement upon him. He had, because of his obedience to Gods word, survived the Kings man-hunt to have him killed. He stood before the false prophets of Baal and distroyed their credibility by calling fire from heaven. But in this passage a message from a woman (Queeen Jezebel) sends him off in a fear of panic to hide. What got to this amazing man of God in this moment of weakness? Pay attention to Satans deceptive plan because you too will encounter such temptation to be rendered impotent for the Kingdom of God. Satan, appearing to Elijah via the order of Jezebel does what he is a master of doing - deceiving (lieing) to the people of God. It is doubtful Jezebel could have carried through on her threat because she and her husband had lost the kingdom of Judah... they were no longer in charge because of the peoples repentance to God. So, why did Jezebels message send Elijah packn? I sumit to you it was a graphic word picture that congered up a powerful picture in Elijahs imagination! She (Satan using her) called to Elijahs mind the bloody massacre of 850 prophets. That image was burned into Elijahs mind. The threat of receiving what he had delivered by Gods word at a time when he was weak with exhaustion clouded his judgement and he ran from that terrifying image. Your imagination will work for you in the Kingdom, or it can work against the Kingdom causing us to falter and fail Gods ultimate plan to bless us. CONFESSION: Lord I will learn from the power of imagination. I understand it can be a great asset, a pathway to rich blessings designed for me from you. It can also be an albatross to take me out of service and miss those designer blessings. I will keep my mind stayed on you and your word! More tomorrow on Lessons to learn from Elijah.
Posted on: Tue, 05 Nov 2013 13:31:41 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015