God's Elijah

What a great man of God Elijah was. Here is a man that God used mightily. Here is a man of the OT who had great miracles manifested through him. Listen to the great miracles that happened in this mans life:

*Increases the oil of the widow of Zarephath: 1 Kings 17:17-24.

*Raises the son of the woman of Zarephath from the dead: 1 Kings 17:17-24.

*Causes rain after 7 years of drought: 1 Kings 18:41-45.

*Causes fire to consume the sacrifice: 1 Kings 18:24.

*Calls fire down upon the soldiers of Ahaziah: 1 Kings 1:10-12.

If God could use such a man then He should be able to use men the same way today. You will notice that the spirit of Elijah rested on Elisha and he went out and started performing the same miracles that Elijah had performed. If the spirit of Elijah rested on Elisha then why can’t that same spirit rest on us today? I believe that it can. The same Spirit that anointed Elijah is here to anoint us today. That same Spirit has not only been poured out upon us but now dwells in us. God wants to do through us what He did through Elijah but He also wants to do greater things through us.

God is looking for Elijah’s today that He can mightily use in these last days. Where are God’s Elijah’s today? Elijah may be gone, but God is still seeking people to do His will on the earth today. And by observing certain characteristics that marked Elijah’s life, we’ll see some specific qualities that we can develop in our own lives so God can accomplish His purposes through us.

God’s Elijah –

A Person of Prayer

God is looking for committed believers who know how to pray.

James 5:16-18 – (16) “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. (17) Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. (18) And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.”

In James 5:17, Elijah is given as an example of a righteous man praying.

Elijah was a man of prayer. And when he prayed, he got results! Remember when Elijah was on Mount Carmel with the prophets of Baal? He said, “There’s only one of me and 450 of you, so I’m going to be nice and let you choose a bull for an offering and call upon your god first. Then I’ll take a bull and call upon my God. And let the true God be the One who answers by fire!” (1 Kings 18:20-25).

So the prophets of Baal prepared a bull and called upon their god all morning. But nothing happened. Elijah began to taunt them, saying, “I’ll give you a little longer. Try hollering a little louder—your god may not be home. Maybe he’s away on vacation. Why don’t you find his telephone number and call him up?”

Baal’s prophets tried everything. They cried out, cut themselves, leaped up and down, and prophesied. But when evening came, their god still hadn’t answered (vv. 26-29).

Finally, Elijah’s turn came. He rebuilt the altar of the Lord that had been broken down and dug a trench around it. Next he cut up a bull, laid all the pieces on the wood, and had 12 barrels of water poured over them. Twice more he had the 12 barrels filled and emptied upon the altar so that the entire altar was wet and the trench was filled with water (vv. 30-35).

Then Elijah prayed—and whoosh! The fire of God fell! Everything was consumed: water, altar, wood, sacrifice, and all. There wasn’t anything left.

Now some people get excited about fire coming down from Heaven to consume the offering. But the fire didn’t come down until the man of God prayed (vv. 36-38). You see, Elijah knew something about praying!

Can you remember that there use to be men and women who really knew how to pray? I mean, if you needed something from God, you’d get them to pray with you. Why? Because they could “pray Heaven and earth together.” In other words, when they prayed, God answered! Their prayers were like Elijah’s prayers—effectual.

God is looking for some Elijah’s who are people of prayer: people who aren’t too busy to get on their faces before Him and who get results when they pray! Do you get results when you pray? Does God pay attention to you when you pray?

God’s Elijah-

A Person of Obedience

God’s Elijah’s are not only people of prayer, but they also know something about obedience.