OBEDIENCE AND THE WILL OF GOD A) Prompt Obedience B) Perfect Obedience 3. The future, however, holds a far greater service for Elijah. The fact that it didnt yet look serious didnt alter the fact. He never shared the needs but just committed everything to prayer and believed that God would provide! This is the second message on Elijah and we are in 1 Kings chapter 17. Instantly the word of the Lord came to him and he was told to flee to Cherith and hide there. There are two common ways to explain this: In both cases, it's important to note that the text does not actually say "in the third year of the drought." In order for them not to eat his breakfast, God would also have to take care of the birds. Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, As surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, livesthe God I servethere will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word! (1 Kings 17:1 NLT), Later on, IN THE THIRD YEAR of the drought, the LORD said to Elijah, Go and present yourself to King Ahab. When he went there, there was a nice stream of water with plenty to drink. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening and he got water from the brook. Birds of prey more likely to take meat from him (including of his bones) than to feed him. He stayed put right up until the brook dried up completely! The woman believes him Pulpit Commentary Verse 7. We are His image-bearers, His adopted children, and His chosen ones. She is wife to Drew for over two years and mom to baby Graham. When she said that I thought to myself that that is the way we need to be with God. He raises the widow's son 24. Do you remember the story of His disciples when they went out to preach and did all these wonderful miracles and came back to Him really glorying in all that had happened? Eventually one day it dried up! What Does it Mean That Jesus Was Gods Begotten Son? GODLY GENEROSITY SHALL NOT LOSE ITS REWARD. He can only talk about what had happened with God now that will keep the fleshly pride down! Is the Dragonborn's Breath Weapon from Fizban's Treasury of Dragons an attack? Do you go running off to look for water? The downward slide - from faith to fear to depression, Blindness, self focus and the replacing of Elijah, Elijah, Ahab and the arrow shot at random. Who would have won the victory against Ahabs prophets? Sed malesuada dolor eget velit pretium. What God teaches Elijah, and us, at brook Cherith 1 Kings 17:5-6 So he did what the LORD had told him. One explanation for the alleged contradiction depends on this: rather than the "third year of the drought," the text is referring to the third year of Elijah's residence in Zarephath (1 Kings 17:9), where is staying at the end of 1 Kings 17. However, the story of the ravens feeding Elijah gives me a great hope that my God is omniscient, and He is in control. 'Let's get down to where things are a bit quieter and your dependence on God is more real.' (1 Kings 17:5) To the functionally minded, Elijah's prolonged stay by the brook Cherith looks like a waste of a promising life. Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, "As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word." And the w Drew and Emma serve with Upstate CRU college ministry in South Carolina. As Elijah thought. Elijah told the current king (Ahab) that there will be a drought in the land of Israel. Life itself is a diminishing provision. The second thing that Elijah had to learn here was His provision. As we accomplish one thing from the Lord we neither give ourselves to idleness as if there is nothing more to do, nor do we give ourselves over to despair wondering how we will do what comes next for as we step out in faith we know we will find that God has prepared a stepping stone, and another each appearing as we come to it. This caused idolatry to come into the land because the people worshipped these and were led astray. We are also to note that Elijah continued in the centre of Gods will for he stayed at the brook for a long period as shown by Gods fulfilment of His promise. These birds that I once considered pretty ugly, I now delight in the thought of how the Lord takes care of them and of me. But because of the drought in the land he was going to be affected as well. My wife, Wendy, actually shared on this passage about a year ago. Elijah was not running away, he was being removed. Emma enjoys singing/songwriting, fitness classes, trying new recipes, home makeover shows, and drinking tea! Remember, being in the centre of Gods will doesnt exclude the possibility of crisis, so when it comes wait on the Lord and dont throw in the towel in unbelief. Then the milkman came past and the wheel fell off his cart right outside the orphanage! You can view her articles through her blog at emmadanzey.wordpress.com and check out her Bible Study videos on Instagram @Emmadanzey. "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" Joshua 24:15, Church Mail: PO Box 9007, South Yarra 3141, It is against this background that now we consider v.2-6, in which we see Elijah in response to Gods instruction leaving the kings presence and going to the Brook Cherith. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. So for Elijah this is a test of faith because it is one step at a time. For it was from here that Elijah began the journey to Mt Carmel. God knows where Elijah is going. When you think about your life as a Christian, has God ever failed to meet your needs? Why Do We Need to Be Crucified with Christ? Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. Have we not know this in our own Christian service? After Solomon's death there was a split in the Kingdom; Jeroboam was the King in the northern kingdom of Israel and he set up alternate places of worship because he was afraid of his people going down to Jerusalem to worship. But Elijah didn't have to be fully trained before God called him into ministry; God developed Elijah as he went along. It is actually at the crisis point when there is nothing left that the Word of the Lord came to him. Onum is a values-driven SEO agency dedicated. Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown, among others, take a different approach. It is what John later spoke of when in exile on Patmos he revealed that yet he had sweet communion with His Lord. They naturally think, Whats going on Wheres the blessing? It is a declaration that he is working our His eternal purposes, There is nothing in Scripture to indicate this on the contrary the implication is that he, Last week we saw there were lessons Elijah had to learn in going to the brook Cherith, and here we see them being put into practice as Elijah waited: (i), When our brook seems to dry and we are tempted to cry out. My God loves me more than I may ever know this side of Heaven. The first was learning obedience. Dont throw in the towel but wait on the Lord. That judgement was the application of the curse. He loves you too. Elijah 's message and the meaning of his name go together like a fresh glass of milk and warm cookies. Yet it did. Even in the letters to the 7 churches of Revelation this warning is given, a warning we do well to take seriously as a church (cf 2:5)! Eventually, God told Elijah to move forward after his waiting time at the brook of Cherith. Elijah was told to go to Cherith, immediately after he had prophesied a powerful word to King Ahab. During his exile, Elijah drank from the brook in the ravine, and the ravens brought him bread and meat every morning and evening. Browse other questions tagged, Like any library, Christianity Stack Exchange offers great information, but, Start here for a quick overview of the site, Detailed answers to any questions you might have, Discuss the workings and policies of this site. He had water but he didn't have anything else yet God provided. What I love even more is that we see a similar message in the New Testament in Luke 12:24, Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. He raised a boy from the dead and called down fire from heaven. We will continue with that next time and glean from the lessons that can be learnt there. The second is by telling that the ravens brought Elijah bread and flesh in the morning and in the evening = 1 day. Let's look at another character study on Elijah. Consider Joseph God told Joseph in a dream that provision was going to dry up. It's a place where God actually removes you for a specific purpose and the word means 'a cutting off'. By this method God makes us dependent upon Him rather than upon ourselves. The nation had already had the tap of refreshing moisture turned off, and now having been given a prophet he is immediately removed. Have any of you ever been fed by birds? So when God sent Elijah to Cherith, it was as though God sent him through a time machine, back to an era filled with these stories, and the saints of old such as Miriam, Aaron, Moses, Caleb and . In v.2 we read, Though great and terrifying are temporal judgements upon a people, none is so great as the removal of His Word and instruction and prayer based on that Word. Sometimes in our lives God will use an unclean vessel to bring blessing to us in the same way that He did for Elijah. First letter in argument of "\affil" not being output if the first letter is "L", The "third year" refers to the third year of Elijah's stay in Zarephath, following a stay of some months at the brook Cherith (Adam Clarke, Barnes, Haydock, Keil and Delitzsch), The "third year" refers to the time of Elijah's exile, which did not begin until the dry period had already been underway for six months (Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown; Thomas Coke). So it was in the third year of the drought that the rains came ending it. Elijah demonstrated his complete dependence on God by waiting for Him to tell him what to do next. In this instance, should Elijah have taken the bull by the horns and run off and found his own path? How do we build on it. God provided for the whole lot. But there were years and years of isolation in obscurity. He was actually pro-active and he said okay, if there is going to be a famine, let's start storing our grain now to get us through. Every morning and every evening ravens would bring him meat and bread while the brook provided Elijah with water to drink. Every now and then a Christian cries, perhaps youve done it, Lord, what happened? He or she has been doing the Lords positive will as outlined in the Bible when suddenly disaster struck. I have been saved 21 years now and I can honestly say that I have lacked nothing that I actually needed. Elijah was a prophet of God from the region of Gilead, on the eastern side of the Jordan River. The confrontation was off, at least temporarily. when suddenly there was a knock on the door and a baker was there who said 'God has kept me awake all night and I knew I had to bake an extra three batches of bread for you.' I look back and smile remembering how the Lord was with me and loved me. There! Photo credit: GettyImages/Piotr Krzeslak. OT History: 1 Kings 17:7 It happened after a while that (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg). We need to capitalise on this great start! The Bible says he was a normal person just like us, yet he prayed enormous prayers - and God answered! It was a challenge for me when my friends were getting married and I felt behind. Every time that I see or think of a raven now, I will never be the same. Thank you, Michael, for bringing me a new and more positive perspective on a difficult situation!! He had the time to see Gods faithfulness, to learn to trust his heart.. II. Elijah represents any of . This 9-day plan by David Guzik will encourage you to follow Elijah's example and trust in the living God! God, however, chose a bunch of ravens for the job, thereby dispelling rational theories.. See His unsearchable wisdom in that if humans delivered food they may have divulged the hiding place, if dogs, morning and night, someone might have seen this curiosity and followed. 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