Elijah, A Hero Who Did Not Waiver Series

Elijah, A Hero Who Did Not Waver

#heroes

OKAY

THIS MORNING – is week 7 of our Summer 2016 series, ‘Heroes, Amazing Stories Of Faith’

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. – Hebrews 12:1

QUESTION – have you noticed that their seems to be increasingly (more and more) warning signs and labels everywhere? I MEAN – in our day, there are warning labels on just about everything.

THIS WEEK – I went online looking for crazy warning signs and labels… (you know, the kind that you read and you are like, seriously – they really need to put that on there)

HERE - are my top ten from want I found this week… AND HEY – if you know of any other ones shoot me an email this week…

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#1

If you touch these and die, it’s gonna cost you, and if this doesn’t work, maybe this will. Maybe that’ll get your attention.

YEAH - there are just a lot of signs…a lot of warnings that don’t seem necessary. BUT - here’s what we know: We know that there are certain times when we need to be warned that we’re in a dangerous situation, because ignoring those warnings can lead to some pretty devastating consequences. Like….

NOW – the hero we are unpacking today… was a one of God’s prophet… a pretty well know one at that.

AND UNDERSTAND – the prophets were God’s messengers who oftentimes warned the people of destruction that was coming, of devastation that was on its way…

IF THEY - didn’t change and do something different.

IN FACT – we read these words in the final chapter of the book of 2 Chronicles… (as the city of Jerusalem falls and is destroyed)… IT’S – kind of a summary statement that come on the screen as we watch scene after scene of the destruction of God’s people and their cities.

And the LORD God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.

But they mocked the messengers of God, despised His words, and scoffed at His prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against His people, till there was no remedy.

– 2 Chronicles 36:15,16

AND LISTEN - when it says God would “rise up early”

IT - doesn’t mean that God set the alarm clock and got up early in the day… NO - it means that God…

BEFORE - tragedy struck,

BEFORE - there was devastation,

BEFORE - sin took root and there was the full weight of its consequences—God would speak and He would warn the people, “Look, you need to make some changes.”

NOW – the prophets would occasionally ‘predict’ a dramatic future event that had been revealed by God.

But they would regularly give a message of warning from God to His people.

MEN LIKE – Jeremiah, Isaiah, Elijah… would hear from God. THEN THEY - would speak on God’s behalf and they would say to the people,

“You need to turn around. You can’t keep going down this path. If you don’t make some changes, let me tell you where all of this is gonna end.

Let me tell you what’s gonna become of this nation,

What’s gonna become of your family, what’s gonna become of your life if you don’t do some things differently.”

AND AGAIN – this morning we are going to meet one of these prophets … His name is Elijah… which means

“My God Is Yahweh!”

NOW - Elijah arrived on the scene about 900 years before Christ. AND - at this time Israel was politically and economically prospering under the rule of King Ahab.

Peace had been established with Judah in the south.

And also a mutually advantageous alliance had been formed with the Phoenicians on the coast, who were the undisputed leaders in international trade on the seas.

Peace and prosperity.... not bad things in and of themselves,

BUT BEFORE - we start a re-elect Ahab campaign…LET’S - do a little more vetting and find out who these guy really is. BECAUSE - there is more to a great leader than simply making us happy, bringing about peace and filling our pocketbooks.

IN FACT - the ultimate criteria for any leader is what does ‘The’ Leader – What does Almighty God think of him…

After all God is the one who Daniel says in Daniel 2:21,

who raises up and brings down Kings and Kingdoms.

WELL - 1 Kings tells us some ‘need to know’ stuff about Ahab, that ruled for 22 years, AND…