A Man From Nowhere Series

ELIJAH—A MAN OF LIKE PASSIONS

01 The Man From Nowhere

TEXT: 1 Kings 17:1

1 Kings 17:1 KJV And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.

I. INTRODUCTION—THE MAN OUT OF NOWHERE

A. Illustrations of People From Nowhere

-We have witnessed men or women who seemingly make sudden appearances from nowhere that step on the scene and literally change the landscape of history.

• It happened in the business world, Bill Gates first effort at starting a business failed. But he was persistent and the rest is history with Microsoft.

• It happened in American history, Benjamin Franklin’s parents could not afford his schooling so he had to drop out at age 10. But through voracious reading and self-education, he became one of the greatest minds to ever live.

• It happened in the art world, Vincent Van Gogh only sold one painting during his lifetime. After he passed away, his paintings became some of the most famous in the world.

• It happened in the world of fiction-writers, Stephen King’s first novel was rejected 30 times.

• It happened in the entertainment industry, Steven Spielberg was rejected from USC twice.

• It happened in baseball when Fernando Valenzuela appeared in 1981 and started playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

• It happened in football when Tom Brady stepped in for an injured Drew Bledsoe in 2001.

-If you dig around in history, you will find all sorts of examples like this. . . people who seemingly appeared out of nowhere to great success.

B. Elijah, The Man from Nowhere

-While Elijah’s accomplishments far supersede what any of these examples demonstrate, there is a reality that somewhere before men arrive on the scene there has been an intense preparation that has taken place somewhere. Elijah was no different.

-Elijah was literally the man from nowhere. God grows great souls in places of isolation and obscurity. This was the case with this great prophet. Isolation and obscurity were his school teachers and Gilead was the school house.

-Why the isolation? Because courage is often created in moments of isolation. The kind of courage that develops in this place is one that will not lose its voice to the peer pressure of a crowd or a crown that does not value what you value.

-There are things that can only come to us when we have been separated from all of the noise of the surroundings.

2 Corinthians 6:17 KJV Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,

Revelation 18:3-4 KJV For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. [4] And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

-Come out of her. . . my people. . . Separate yourself from the noise of the surroundings.

• Separation from the noise of the rebellious—Num. 16:21 (Korah, Dathan, and Abiram)

• Forsake the foolish—Prov. 9:6

• Flee from Babylon—Jer. 51:6

• Save yourself from this untoward generation—Acts 2:40

• Separation from the filthiness of the flesh and the spirit—2 Cor. 7:1

-Far too many in our world today do not believe in the power of separation but there is a prevailing anointing that comes to those who are willing to do so.

II. ELIJAH’S TIMES

-The times of Elijah was marked by all sorts of sin and folly.

• Political upheaval among the kings of Israel.

• Assassinations in the palace.

• Children being sacrificed to Moloch (they had live babies being sacrificed on altars of fire, we have children being killed in sterile surgical suites).

-Here are the descriptions that we find in the Scriptures:

1 Kings 13:33 KJV After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.

-The land was filled with “high places.” The pagan gods and idols had infiltrated the land and Jehovah had been pushed out. Our nation is also filled with “high places” and “groves” that give honor and worship to pagan idols.

-As we shall see, Elijah’s times show us that not much has changed in the avenue of human nature and yet some of our so-called smartest and brightest souls in the world would lead us to believe that we are evolving into a higher state of life.