GETTING YOUR FIGHT BACK
1 Kgs. 19:1-18
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Some things seem to get bigger and bigger.
2. A Texas farmer went to Australia for a vacation. He met an Aussie farmer, who showed off his big wheatfield. The Texan said, "Oh! We have wheatfields at least twice as large."
3. Then they walked around the ranch a little and the Aussie showed off his herd of cattle. The Texan replied, "We have longhorns that are at least twice as large as your steers."
4. The conversation came to a standstill though, when the Texan saw a group of kangaroos hopping through the field. He asked, "And what are those?"
5. The Aussie instantly knew he had something on the Texan. With an incredulous look he said, "Don't you have any grasshoppers in Texas?"
B. TEXT
1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.” 3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. 4 He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, LORD,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There…the word of the LORD came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 11 The LORD said,
“Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” 15 The LORD said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths have not kissed him.” [abbreviated]
C. THESIS
1. We are in a spiritual battle. In Hebrews 12:3, the writer expressed his concern about the early Christians "lest you be weary and faint in your minds." The word translated ‘faint’ means "to unloose," as of a bowstring. He was worried about people giving up their spiritual fight.
2. Paul never lost his “fight”-- "the disposition to continue in the struggle." Paul wrote, "Fight the good fight of faith; lay hold on eternal life." 1 Tim. 6:12.
3. What kind of spiritual fight have you been putting up in the last year? Have you become weak, passive, discouraged, wounded, perplexed?
4. We're going to look at a great believer who became discouraged and see how God restored his fight!
I. ELIJAH’S DISCOURAGEMENT
A. ELIJAH’S GREAT FEATS
1. Stopped the rain for 3 1/2 years.
2. Was supernaturally provided for during the famine.
3. Call down fire from heaven on the sacrifice.
4. Killed the 450 prophets of Baal.
5. Prayed down the rain again.
B. BUT ELIJAH LOST HIS “FIGHT”
1. ELIJAH HAD BEEN UNDER STRAIN FOR 3 YEARS. He’d been running as a fugitive and living on the meagerest of food, clothing and shelter.
2. ELIJAH HAD HOPED FOR REVIVAL. Elijah probably believed that if the nation saw a great miracle from God – like the fire falling from heaven – they would give up idolatry, turn to God and experience a revival. But that didn’t happen because of Ahab & Jezebel. All his efforts seemed to be futile.
3. ELIJAH HAD EXPECTED OPPOSITION TO STOP. But Jezebel immediately sent Elijah death threats and vows that, instead of Baal worship being defeated, she was going to push it back to popularity.
4. ELIJAH FELT ALONE. He felt like the only person still left serving the Lord! “The Israelites have…put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” (Vs. 14).
5. RESULTS? He ran for his life, driven by fear, until he was exhausted. He ran till he collapsed under the Broom Tree. He wanted to give up and quit the fight.
C. YOU MAY FELL LIKE GIVING UP THE FIGHT:
1. Stress/pressures can rob us of our will power.
2. You may be the only Christian in your family or on your job. Your efforts to win others or change the environment may seem fruitless.
3. Or your prayers may seem to go unanswered for a long time, causing you to lose faith and feel like giving up the fight.
4. What did Elijah do when he felt like this?
II. THE IMPORTANCE OF REBOUNDING
A. ANALOGY TO BASKETBALL
1. In basketball, one of the most important skills for players to have is the ability to rebound. Rebounds occur because a shot somewhere has missed.
2. There’s no need for a rebound unless a shot was attempted, but somehow something went wrong in the attempt that caused the shot to be missed and therefore we have the need for a rebound.
3. The same things that cause misses on the basketball court also cause misses in life.
B. REASONS SHOTS ARE MISSED
1. PERSPECTIVE.
a. One reason a shot can be missed is that a player was off in their perspective. They were looking at the goal, but what they saw and what they did didn't match.
b. They may have shot too short, too long, too hard, or too soft. But somewhere their perspective of the goal was off.
2. OPPOSITION.
a. Another reason that shots are missed in basketball games is because the opposing team is in a player's face.
b. It's the job of the opposing team to wave their hands in the shooter’s face and obstruct their view. They want to provide a distraction.
3. MISTREATMENT. Sometimes shots are missed because a player is fouled. A foul means that a player has been illegitimately handled, producing an inability for them to make the shot.
C. REBOUNDING IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO
1. Any coach will want their player to go for a rebound on their missed shot.
2. The player shouldn't walk off the court, quit the game, or throw in the towel because they have missed a shot. A good player will go back up for the ball and retrieve it to shoot again.
3. In the Bible, there are lots of people who missed shots. Many of God's best servants missed their target and had to deal with the consequences of losing their shot.
4. In fact, the Bible tells us of many people whom God used who were on the rebound. Elijah is one of them! [Tony Evans]
III. HOW GOD HELPED HIM GET HIS FIGHT BACK
A. REST
1. GOD MADE HIM SLEEP. Sleep deprivation does effect decision making. Sleepy subjects choose to quit the tasks
prematurely or take unreasonable risks. [August 2004, journal Sleep. Dr. Timothy Roehrs]
2. 60-80% of patients with depression have reported sleep deprivation.
3. HUMOR. A preacher was preaching on Sunday morning and was aggravated because a man right on the front row had his head cocked back and was sound asleep & snoring. He tried preaching louder, but the louder he preached, the sounder the man slept. Finally the preacher said to the person next to the sleeping man, “Sir, would you mind waking him up?” He replied, “No I won’t. You put him to sleep; YOU wake him up!”
B. HEAVENLY BREAD – THE WORD
1.1ST INSTANCE- ANGELFOOD CAKE (Vs. 6). “Human beings ate the bread of angels; he sent them all the food they could eat” Ps. 78:25.
2. Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven” Jn. 6:32.
3. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” Matt. 4:4.
4. This was more than natural bread, for it gave Elijah the strength to travel for 40 days without any other food.
5. “The secret of a good sermon is to have a good beginning and a good ending; and to have the two as close together as possible” -- George Burns
C. GO BACK TO YOUR ORIGINAL EXPERIENCE
1. ELIJAH WENT TO THE MOUNTAIN OF GOD!
a. WHERE MOSES EXP.: Burning Bush, Ex. 3:1;
b. Rock Smitten & water poured out – Ex. 17:6.
c. Law/ 10 Commands Given – Ex. 20:1-.
2. Where do we go when we’re in trouble?
a. When we are depressed, do we reach for the Pill Bottle or for the Bible? Many eat food to combat stress.
b. You call the prayer chain, but do YOU pray?
c. It’s Good to get your Pastor -- but there's no substitute for getting alone with God yourself!
3. GO BACK TO THE PLACE OF YOUR ORIGINAL REVELATION OF JESUS! God is the same God. Go back to the Book of Acts, go back to the FUNDAMENTALS: prayer,
Bible reading, worship, church attending, witnessing, etc.
D. NEW VISION OF GOD
1. “And Behold, THE LORD PASSED BY….” Elijah drew near to the Presence of God. God manifests Himself when we seek Him. God promises: Jer. 29:13, “You shall seek Me & find Me when you search for Me with all your hearts.”
2. HE HEARD GOD’S VOICE. God’s Voice wasn’t in what most would think it would be:
a. A Hurricane like wind – tearing great masses of granite from the Peaks; Great columns of rock exploded with force and came crashing down.
b. The Mountain began rumbling with an earthquake until nothing seemed stable.
c. A Consuming Fire, burning all before it. All 3 were reminiscent of God purifying power, BUT GOD WASN'T IN THEM!
d. God's not in the Christian show, the Razzle-Dazzle, the Hype, the Popular, the highly trodden paths.
e. You won’t find Him in the big crowds, but in the solitary places -- alone and secluded.
3. CAME AS A STILL SMALL VOICE, vss. 12 & 13. "Elijah covered his face" -- "This is God!" It wasn't the Burning Bush which caused Moses to kneel, but the Voice coming from the Bush.
a. Others who heard that Voice:
-- Adam heard the Voice of the Lord walking in the Garden;
-- Samuel heard that Voice calling in the tabernacle;
-- Isaiah heard the Voice of the Lord when he saw a vision of heaven and his lips had been cleansed;
-- Jesus' disciples heard that Voice at the Mt. of Transfiguration -- "a voice out of the cloud which said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to Him" Matthew 17:5.
4. We need to hear from God! You must get past all the rushing and crashing of outside pressures & your inside pressures, before you will get quiet enough to hear the Voice of the Holy Spirit.
5. ILLUSTRATION
a. In the days before widespread refrigeration, when ice blocks were distributed to people's homes to keep their food cool, there were large warehouses in which ice was stored, packed in hay.
b. One of the men working there had a very fine pocket watch, which fell out of his pocket and ended up lost in the hay. Several of the men searched for half an hour, but could never find it. They gave it up & went to lunch.
c. When the men came back from lunch, a young man stood at the door holding the pocket watch. "How in the world did you find it?" said its owner.
d. "Easy. I waited until everyone left and it was quiet. Then I laid down in the hay and listened for the ticking. The sound led me right to it."
e. That's how it is when we get quiet before God; then we can hear the still small voice of the Lord speaking to us!
E. NEW MISSION FOR GOD
1. As kids our purpose is clear: go to school, get good grades, do chores around the house, get a job, develop relationships. Upon graduation our life-purpose is unknown.
2. Elijah had finished all he knew to do. God restarted his ministry telling him to anoint 2 Kings and a Prophet.
3. We too do have a mission! We’re all called to speak up for Jesus in our families, our jobs, and everywhere we go.
4. We’re called to work in our church in some capacity: some work with youth, some usher, some sing, some teach, some give liberally, some support women’s or men’s ministries, but we should all contribute to the local church.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: Hearing God
1. The young man had lost his job and didn't know which way to turn. So he went to see the old preacher.
2. Pacing about the preacher's study, the young man ranted about his problems. Finally he clenched his fist and shouted, "I've begged God to say something to help me. Tell me, Preacher, why doesn't God answer?"
3. The old preacher, who sat across the room, spoke something in reply -- something so hushed it was indistinguishable. The young man stepped across the room. "What did you say?" he asked.
4. The preacher repeated himself, but again in a tone as soft as a whisper. So the young man moved closer until he was leaning on the preacher's chair. "Sorry," he said. "I still didn't hear you."
5. With their heads bent together, the old preacher spoke once more. "God sometimes whispers," he said, "so we will move closer to hear Him."
This time the young man heard and he understood.
6. We all want God's voice to thunder through the air with the answer to our problem. But God's is the still, small voice. . . the gentle whisper.
7. Perhaps there's a reason. Nothing draws human focus quite like a whisper. God's whisper means I must stop my ranting and move close to Him, until my head is bent together with His. And then, as I listen, I will find my answer.
8. “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth” Ps. 46:10.
B. THE CALL
1. We need to hear the still, small Voice of God. He is speaking to us today.
a. To some He is speaking of salvation; "Behold I stand at the door and knock, if anyone here My voice..." Revelation 3:20.
b. To others he is speaking to about your commitments.
c. To still others -- your busy-ness -- like Martha; "Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest" Mark 6:31.
2. Do you need a new Presence of God? Vision of God? Mission from God?
3. Open altars for general prayer.
