People Whisperer Series

1 Kings 19:1-18

INTRODUCTION

Traditionally, one of the most special Sundays in the church year is the Sunday we are observing today, All Saints Sunday. It is a time when we view the Church from a broader perspective. We see how our Christian forefathers and foremothers have influenced the Church and our lives. As we look at the present, we see how our history is a part of us and how we are a part of the future. We also look with anticipation on what the Church will become and the witness that our descendants will have.

We are excited about what is happening here at Desert Streams. We are in our own worship and community center. It is the result of a lot of hard work over the past thirteen years by a lot of people—some of whom are no longer with us. This facility, we hope, will last beyond us and will be a blessing and an avenue through which God’s love and grace can be shared for several generations. It will be both a blessing now, and a blessing to our children and our children’s children.

This congregation and the Church are the work of saints. For a few moments, lets look at the saints of the Church.

ELIJAH

Our text today is part of the story of the prophet Elijah. Elijah is considered the greatest of the Hebrew prophets. He represents the prophetic tradition of the prophets. On the Mt. Of Transfiguration it was Moses and Elijah, the law and the prophets, who visited Jesus. It was Elijah who was thought to return from the dead and prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah.

When this story begins, Elijah has just come from a great victory. He was pitted against four hundred priests of the god Baal. Baal could not light his own sacrificial fire. Yahweh, the God of Israel, could. As a result, Elijah had all four hundred priests killed. The Queen, who was a worshiper of Baal swore she would kill Elijah.

Elijah ran. As this story unfolds we see Elijah struggling with fear and doubt. He becomes depressed and suicidal. In the dregs of his life, Elijah encounters God. Instead of death, God renews his life and returns Elijah to mission and ministry.

OTHER SAINTS

For Lutherans, one our greatest saints is Martin Luther. He was a courageous man. He also fought depression, hated Jews and had a filthy mouth.

Unless this is fabricated by the F.B.I., Martin Luther King, the great civil rights leader was a womanizer. He was not faithful to his wife, as any man especially an ordained minister should be.

Many of us were surprised to learn that Mother Teresa—the paragon of modern day sainthood—struggled with depression, self-doubt and had an extended time in her life when she did not sense God’s presence.

WE ARE SAINTS

Saints are people whom God uses to accomplish great things. They are also ordinary people. They are people with weaknesses and struggles just like you and me.

We are saints as the Holy Spirit moves in and through us to accomplish God’s will and to share God’s love and grace with those around us. Looking around us, we can see some of the things that God has accomplished.

CONCLUSION

At the end of Elijah’s encounter with God, God gives him an assignment. Elijah is to return and do the things a prophet did. He was to get back to work.

Wherever we are in our walk of faith—up or down, victorious or defeated, this is God’s message to us, also. There is work to be down. We need to get back to work and continue the mission to which we have been assigned.

Amen.