“After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
“Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, ‘Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.’ But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, ‘Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the LORD, You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.”’ So Elijah went.
“The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, ‘Why have you returned?’ And they said to him, ‘There came a man to meet us, and said to us, “Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.”’ He said to them, ‘What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?’ They answered him, ‘He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.’ And he said, ‘It is Elijah the Tishbite.’
“Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, ‘O man of God, the king says, “Come down.”’ But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, ‘If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.’ Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
“Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, ‘O man of God, this is the king’s order, “Come down quickly!”’ But Elijah answered them, ‘If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.’ Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
“Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, ‘O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties, but now let my life be precious in your sight.’ Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, ‘Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.’ So he arose and went down with him to the king and said to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.”’
“So he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken.”
Have you ever been challenged by someone questioning your commitment to the Risen Saviour? It seems rather common for people to say something along the lines, “If you were a real Christian, you would…” Whenever someone makes such a statement, they reveal that they hold a bifurcated view of the Faith. Their statement demonstrates that they are segregating the people of God into categories, they are creating a religious caste system. The world has a perception of what a Christian is, and that perception is almost always related to their own comfort. Their perception is coloured by their own desire to control others so that their own world won’t be disturbed.
Truthfully, the issue before us arises from the fact that we do want to be godly. Consequently, our perception is often as distorted as the perception held by those in the world. We focus on the external aspects of the Faith since that is relatively easy; however, in doing this, we are forgetting that God looks on the heart. Though we have heard David’s words, we forget the admonition he delivered to Solomon. “The LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought” [1 CHRONICLES 28:9b].
We forget the words that God spoke through Jeremiah.
“I the LORD search the heart
and test the mind,
to give every man according to his ways,
according to the fruit of his deeds.”
[JEREMIAH 17:10]
We forget the words penned long years past by God’s Prophet, Micah.
“‘With what shall I come before the LORD,
and bow myself before God on high?
Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,
with calves a year old?
Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,
with ten thousands of rivers of oil?
Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression,
the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?’
He has told you, O man, what is good;
and what does the LORD require of you
but to do justice, and to love kindness,
and to walk humbly with your God?”
[MICAH 6:6-8]
The LORD seeks a transformation of the heart. When the heart is transformed by the power of His Spirit, whatever external adjustments are needed will be accomplished through the work of the Spirit who lives within. God will change His child since that is His promise. Recall the words of the Apostle. “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” [ROMANS 12:1-2].
The message this day seeks to remind us of what it means to be a Christ Follower. I am not seeking to impose a perception of what is done on the outside, though that can be important; I am seeking to remind us of the internal changes that are witnessed in the life of that individual who walks with God.
In order to accomplish this admittedly great task, I could readily appeal to any of several passages from the New Testament. Certainly, I could focus our attention on the fruits of the Spirit as listed by the Apostle Paul. These should be cultivated in the life of God’s people. I could remind all who listen of Paul’s invitation to imitate him as he imitates Christ [see 1 CORINTHIANS 11:1]. However, my attention this day is focused on that powerful man of God, the Tishbite, Elijah.
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL HEAR THE COMMAND OF GOD — “The angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, ‘Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’”’ So Elijah went” [2 KINGS 1:3-4].
Ahaziah, the king of Israel, fell through a lattice. His injury was severe. Apparently, it caused him enough pain that he questioned whether he would recover or not. In his distress, he sent to one of the demon gods of the Philistines. Baal-zebub, or “lord of the flies,” as the name would be translated into English, was one of the multiple gods worshipped by the Philistines. It is not certain that this was what the Philistines called this god, or whether it is used in derision by the writer of the Books of the Kings. This god was the local god of the city of Ekron. Beyond this, we know nothing of this god. What is important for our study today is to note that the Living God was insulted that a king over His people would consult a pagan god rather than seek the LORD God.
It is at this point we are introduced to Elijah, a prophet of the Living God. Elijah would hear the command of God, ordering him to confront the messengers of the king before they ever arrived in Ekron. The message Elijah was to deliver was pointed and clear. “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the LORD, ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’”
Elijah received a command from the Lord God of Israel, and his response was immediate. The text quite simply states, “So Elijah went.” The LORD God has spoken, and the man of God obeyed. It is never easy to hear the voice of God. Multiple voices clamour for our attention in this world, and the din of their demands can easily drown out the still, small voice of God. Many of the voices demanding that we pay attention can best be described as siren voices—they are sweet, alluring, almost seraphic. When we hear these voices, they don’t alarm us, though they would distract us from listening for the voice of the Great Shepherd.
If I am a man of God, I will hear the command of God above the strident shouts from this dying world. I will hear the command of God because I am His sheep. The Master has testified, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” [JOHN 10:27]. The reason His sheep hear His voice, is revealed when Jesus testifies, “I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me” [JOHN 10:14].
I am comforted by the statement Jesus made when He was confronted by the religious leaders of the day in which He walked the dusty trails of Judea. Jesus said, “I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd” [JOHN 10:16]. If I am a man of God, if I am a follower of the Master, I will listen for His voice.
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL STAND FIRM IN THE FACE OF EVIL— “So Elijah went” [2 KINGS 1:4a]. It could not have been easy for Elijah to obey God. The message he was assigned to deliver to the king was not at all a pleasant message. The king would not be pleased to hear that God was displeased. In his rage at being rebuked, it would have been an easy thing to strike out at the messenger.
You have often heard me refer to the cautionary words Jesus spoke to His disciples. Listen once again and know that obedience to the Living God can be costly. “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me” [JOHN 15:18-21].
Are you a follower of the Christ? Know that the world hates you! You must not deliberately insult those identified with the world or attempt to debase them in the eyes of others—your mere presence, if you live a holy life, will insult those who live only for this life. You must not make it a practise to attempt to embarrass the inhabitants of the world, speaking sarcastically of their condition or ridiculing them because of their ignorance—the fact that you follow the Risen Son of God will be insulting enough to them.
When Peter and John had honoured the Master through announcing His grace in healing a crippled man, they were haled before the Jewish Council. These two Christ followers were challenged to account for the grace that had been displayed. When the disciples answered the demands of the power brokers, Peter concluded his testimony with these stirring words, “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” [ACTS 4:12].
What I want you to note is the sudden recognition of those occupying the seats of power. “When they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus” [ACTS 4:13]. The Spirit of the Lord became wisdom for the two men. The Spirit of Christ controlled them, ensuring that they would confront wickedness and glorify the Risen Son of God.
Do you imagine that Peter and John felt no fear? Do you think that they were unconscious of what could be done to them? This august body before which they were now standing was the very Council that had condemned Jesus to death. It was these very men who had seized the Master, sent Him to stand before the Roman Procurator and loudly demand that Jesus be crucified. Without question, Peter and John must have been intimidated by the potential harm they faced. Here is what must not be forgotten—these men feared God far more than they feared any man. They recognised that real power, eternal power, lies within the hands of the Living God.
The disciples had heard and believed the words of Jesus when He taught them, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell” [MATTHEW 10:28].
Such boldness appears to have been common among earlier saints. For instance, Polycarp, a disciple of John, had been taken into custody by the Roman authorities. The old man was haled before the proconsul in order to compel him to renounce Christ. Commanded to renounce Christ, in hopes of intimidating the growing Christian movement into silence, the elder responded to the threats of the Roman deputy, “You threaten me with a fire that burns for a moment and soon is quenched; you know not of the flame that is kept waiting for the impious, the flame of judgment and of eternal punishment.” [2] I suspect such courage is more common even now than we might imagine.
Have you heard the story of Matthew Ayariga? Matthew Ayariga was the twenty-first victim of the mass beheading of Coptic Christians by savage Islamists in Libya? On February 15, 2015, a five-minute video pictured the violent murders of the twenty-one followers of Christ. Twenty of those slaughtered believers were Coptic Christians, brothers in Christ from Egypt, but the twenty-first was not a follower of the Christ when he was taken captive. He was a Ghanaian man who had been seeking work in Libya. He had been taken prisoner along with the Egyptian Christians.
During the days of captivity, Matthew Ayariga witnessed the immense faith of the other prisoners. Therefore, when the terrorists asked him if he rejected Jesus, he testified, “Their God is my God,” though he knew that this testimony would mean his death. [3] During the days following his capture, though he was brutalised by the vicious Islamists, Matthew Ayariga had become a follower of the Son of God. Now, when facing the full cost of open proclamation of his faith, he spoke boldly, standing for the cause of Christ. Nothing less than the presence of God’s Holy Spirit could give such boldness to this man. The Spirit of Christ will impart the same boldness in your life. Here is a truth that must not be ignored: God gives dying grace when we face death. You will not have such grace until it is required; but you may be assured that as God’s own child, He does give such grace to His people.
Such courage is not as rare as one might imagine. I have spoken at earlier times of Hugh Latimer and Nicolas Ridley, two men who were counted among the English martyrs during the Marian persecutions. These men had stood for the Word of God in the face of threats until they had fallen into the bad hands of the established church. Ultimately, these good men were imprisoned and sentenced to suffer the auto-da-fé, burning at the stake. Ridley was burned at the stake on 16 October 1555 in Oxford. Cranmer was taken to a tower to watch the proceedings. Ridley burned extremely slowly and suffered a great deal. His brother-in-law had put more tinder on the pyre in order to speed his death, but this only caused his lower parts to burn. Latimer, who later walked bravely to the stake in Oxford, is recorded to have cried out to his companion as he went to the stake, “Play the man, Master Ridley; we shall this day light such a candle, by God’s grace in England, as I trust shall never be put out.”
God’s Spirit is always at work speaking to the heart of those who honour Him, even when they are facing difficult trials. Here is what we must always remember and never forget—The presence of the Spirit of God makes the follower of Christ bold to stand up for Christ. And standing for Christ and for righteousness, the child of God will boldly condemn evil by his very presence.
You, because of your faith in the Living Saviour, have that same Spirit living within you. When required by the demands of the moment, you can be just as bold to glorify the Saviour. Just as the Apostle testified of his own life, you may be certain that Christ will be glorified in you if you permit the Holy Spirit to work through you. You may recall Paul’s confident assertion, “It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain” [PHILIPPIANS 1:20-21].
Because the one who follows the Risen Saviour has been transformed by the presence of the Spirit of Christ, that individual will no longer acquiesce to wickedness. The follower of Christ will no longer maintain silence when the world promotes evil. The believer will not quietly tolerate the slaughter of the unborn. The child of God will point out that euthanasia does not solve a problem, regardless of how pressing the condition that seems to require this extreme and final action. She will do this with gentleness; but she will do it. The follower of Christ can not approve agreeing with the mental illness that an individual can be something other than the man or woman that God made them. It requires courage to stand against the tide to declare the truth of God as Creator and man as made in the image of God.
The presence of God’s Spirit changes us, enabling us to respond as we might not otherwise do. Perhaps you will recall how Peter and John had been taken captive and forced to stand before the Sanhedrin. After this, we read, “When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them” [ACTS 4:23]. In the presence of their fellow worshippers of the Risen Christ, the followers of the Way lifted their voices in prayer. They acknowledged God’s sovereignty and confessed that those opposing the message of grace could do nothing without God’s permission. Then, they got to the one request they would make of the Lord God, “Now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus” [ACTS 4:29-30].
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL SPEAK GOD’S WORD — “The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, ‘Why have you returned?’ And they said to him, ‘There came a man to meet us, and said to us, “Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die”’” [2 KINGS 1:5-6].
The one who seeks to serve God will speak God’s Word. That individual will not think about who he is addressing. He will have stood in the presence of the Living God, and no mere mortal can intimidate him into silence. His message is given by God, and mere threats cannot alter what must be said. His will not be a message defined by sinuous meanings liable to multiple interpretations as one wishes.
The answer Elijah sent by the messengers could not have been that which Ahaziah wanted to hear. In fact, after questioning the messengers, the king was determined to seize Elijah, compelling him to come into the presence of the king. What the king planned on doing once he had Elijah in his presence is not spelled out. However, it would be most likely that he would do all he could to make Elijah sorry for failing to stoke the king’s image. I suppose it is possible that Ahaziah imagined that he could intimidate the man of God into changing the narrative, as has become popularly known. Perhaps the king though he could frighten the prophet of God into doing what the king wanted done. However, the king was wrong, dead wrong, as it turned out.
A man of God, or a woman of God, if you will, will endeavour to know the mind of the Lord. And knowing His mind, that one will speak only what God has commanded. Many people imagine that the preacher must preach a good sermon. Let me say with certainty that any pagan can preach a good sermon. However, only a man of God will have a message. Any fool can parrot the talking points of religion, but only one who has been in the presence of the Living God will have a word from the Master of the universe.
The things that God commands are to be done. The servant of the Most High God must never add to what God has commanded; neither shall he take away from what God had commanded. God, through Moses, made that matter very clear when He said, “Everything that I command you, you shall be careful to do. You shall not add to it or take from it” [DEUTERONOMY 12:32].
You may recall the account that is provided of a man of God who was sent from Judah to address the King of Israel as he was preparing to make offerings at Bethel. Standing before the king and the assembled functionaries at the altar, the prophet cried out, “O altar, altar, thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.’” This prophecy was immediately followed by this confirming word, “This is the sign that the LORD has spoken: ‘Behold, the altar shall be torn down, and the ashes that are on it shall be poured out’” [1 KINGS 13:2-3].
Jeroboam, the King, attempted to have the man seized, but God intervened. When Jeroboam stretched out his hand, it immediately dried up—he could no longer move his arm. Sure enough, the altar split open and the ashes spilt out onto the ground. Isn’t it amazing how the attitude of petulant kings can be changed so quickly? With this, the king began to beg the man of God to plead for him.
The prophet did intercede for the king, and his arm was restored. The king then begged the prophet to come home with him, but the man of God responded, “If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, for so was it commanded me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came’” [1 KINGS 13:8-9].
An old prophet heard what had happened because his sons were present that day. He deceived the Judean prophet into sitting for a meal. As they were eating, the old prophet prophesied, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the LORD and have not kept the command that the LORD your God commanded you, but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers’” [1 KINGS 13:21-22].
Neither of these servants of the Living God were expecting that! The one prophesying knew that he was the cause of judgement on the other; and the Judean man of God realised that he had transgressed the command God had given. Shortly thereafter, the Judean man of God left. He had a date with judgement. As he travelled, a lion killed him, though it did not disturb his body nor eat the donkey on which he had ridden. God does not ignore His own servant when they disregard what He commanded. All who serve the Lord God today would do well to memorise the words of Agur,
“Every word of God proves true;
he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
Do not add to his words,
lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.”
[PROVERBS 30:5-6]
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL BE FEARLESS BEFORE THE THREATS OF THE GODLESS — “Elijah answered the captain of fifty, ‘If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty’” [2 KINGS 1:10a]. Make no mistake, if you choose to live a godly life, you will be threatened. We are cautioned that “All who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evil people and imposters will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” [2 TIMOTHY 4:12-13].
It is always a source of encouragement to read of the first followers of the Master after the descent of the Spirit of God. In one instance, Peter and John had revealed the grace of the Lord by giving healing to a crippled man. God graciously blessed this unfortunate man through the ministry of these two Apostles. When this happened, the Apostles seized the opportunity to declare to those who witnessed what happened that what they saw was because of the mercies of the Risen, Reigning Son of God—the very One whom they had executed as a criminal!
Of course, the religious leaders were offended that anyone would lay responsibility for this heinous travesty of justice at their feet. So, they seized Peter and John and threw them into jail. The next day, the Apostles were compelled to appear before the Jewish Council, where the religious leaders attempted to intimidate them into silence. Peter boldly announced to the assembled leaders, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” [ACTS 4:8b-12].
Obviously, such boldness was not well received by those who sat in judgement of the Apostles. The members of the Council blustered and harrumphed, but all they could do at that moment was threaten the Apostles. However, when they charged them to keep silent about the Master, “Peter and John answered them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard’” [ACTS 4:19-20]. How do you silence such boldness? How do you account for such courage? Surely, it was the Spirit of God at work in these men.
Then, the corollary to all that took place is provided when Doctor Luke writes of their release. These two Apostles went to their friends, reported what the chief priests and the elders had demanded of them, and the company of believers united in prayer. And what a prayer it was! They asked the Lord to “Look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus” [ACTS 4:29-30]. The assembled saints asked for courage and power, and the Lord heard their prayer.
What can the godless do when we speak the truth? How can the unrighteous stand against the truth?
Let me encourage the people of God by reminding you that you have a statement that will unleash raw power in the testimony that God has given you. When you are challenged by those whom you know as to why you do not enter into their dissipation, what answer do you give? Do you make excuses, or do you speak boldly to point your interlocutors to the message of life which you have embraced? Have you asked God for boldness as you face the pressure of daily life? And that points us to yet another demonstration that verifies whether or not you are a man of God.
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL DEMONSTRATE THE POWER OF GOD IN MY LIFE — “Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty” [2 KINGS 1:10b]. Though I believe that each of us want to know the power of God in our lives, I am convinced that few of us reveal the power of God as we should. And I am equally certain that the power of God is available to each of His children. God’s power awaits the obedience of His people for it to be displayed in a broken and fallen world.
In the text, “fire came down from heaven and consumed” fifty-one men. I’m not suggesting that you should go around calling down fire out of the heavens, much less calling down imprecations on the heads of sinners! I will say that it should be evident that God is at work in your life as evidenced by His power. Allow me to repeat this statement. I’m not suggesting that you will witness dramatic miracles through your word, but I am insisting that it will be evident that God is working in your life.
I’ve spoken of the power of God at other times by pointing to Paul’s encyclical we have received as the Letter to the Ephesians. In the opening words, Paul has written, “Because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all” [EPHESIANS 1:15-23]. Paul points to the resurrection of Christ and the salvation we have received in Him and the exaltation of the Risen Son of God as evidence of the power of God working in the life of His people. That is real power!
Because you are a man of God, you will speak the truth in love. You will find yourself moved with compassion for the lost because you see them with the eyes of the Saviour who loved them and gave Himself for their broken condition. You will see the world as “harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” Like the Master, you will experience deep compassion for them [see MATTHEW 9:36-37]. You will want to honour the Master because you are a man of God. You will discover His power at work in you as your words convict the lost as you speak. Because you are walking with the Master, people will ask you for a reason for the hope that is in you [see 1 PETER 3:15], and you will have an answer.
At times, you will marvel at the manner in which His Spirit brings to your mind precisely what must be said at the precise moment that it is necessary for you to speak. You will be enabled to be one who consoles the grieving heart and you will be equipped to build up the weakened soul. Your will witness answers to your prayers—dramatic answers at times. These answers will fill you with joy as you praise God for His mercies to you. In short, you will be empowered to do all that God calls you to do. Whatever He appoints you to do, you will accomplish because He is working in your life.
If I were to conclude this message prematurely, this would be an excellent place to end what is presented. I would urge the people of God to reveal the power of God in their lives. I would plead for each follower of the Christ to determine by the help of the Spirit of Christ that he or she will reveal God’s power through living in power, through walking in power, through exercising the glorious power of the Living Saviour in daily life. I would urge each child of the Living God to seek His power each day, so that He might receive praise and glory through your life. However, there is yet another matter from the text that demands attention.
IF I AM A MAN OF GOD, I WILL SPEAK THE TRUTH — “The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, ‘Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.’ So he arose and went down with him to the king and said to him, ‘Thus says the LORD, “Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.”’ So he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken” [2 KINGS 1:15-17a].
Sometimes, serving God can be dangerous—for those who attack the servant of the Living God. It doesn’t end well whenever an individual attacks God’s servant. God will protect His own. In fact, the child of God can be confident in the thought that we are immortal until our Lord calls us home. Until my work for God is finished, He will stand with me so long as I do His will. And so long as I perform the work which He has assigned, I will succeed. Not all the powers of hell can keep the child of God from fulfilling his or her appointed tasks as the One who appoints stands with His child.
The man of God did at last go to the principal involved in the Word of the Lord. Do you see the man of God who speaks the Word of God with boldness? He will be compelled to stand boldly before the power brokers who are offended. And when he does stand before them, he will speak the truth. He will speak without fear because he has already stood in the presence of the Living God. Underscore that thought in your mind—that one who has stood in the presence of the Lord will speak the truth without fear because he has already stood in the presence of the Lord God.
Let’s review what we’ve seen in this message.
• The man of God will hear the command of God because he is speaking with the Living God.
• The man of God will stand firm against evil because He fears God far more than he fears evil.
• The man of God will speak God’s Word because he will not dishonour the One who appoints him.
• The man of God will be fearless before the threats of the godless because He knows that God is with him.
• The man of God will demonstrate the power of God because he has experienced that power in his life.
• The man of God will speak the truth because God’s Word is true.
I’m calling the people of God to determine that they serve the Living God. Among us today are men and women who to this point have not been challenged in their service. I’m calling each one to present himself, to present herself, before the Lord God who equips and appoints to be used as He determines. I’m calling on each one to seek God’s appointment to stand firm against the culture of death that marks our world today.
For those who are now standing firm against culture, let the message serve to encourage you, lending firmness to your stance that you take each day. Your service is making a difference in the lives of others, though you don’t necessarily see that difference each day. Know that the Lord is using you, even when you feel the loneliness of your labour.
Listening today may be someone who has never known the Living God. Somehow you know in your heart that the world is dragging you down, turning you away from the life God desires for you. Your great need is to look to Christ, the Son of God, the divine sacrifice for sin, receiving Him as Master over life. The Word of God promises, if you openly confess Jesus as Master of your life, believing with all your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be set free. You see, when you believe this truth that Christ lives, that He tasted death because of your own sinful condition and that He has conquered death, you enter into a right standing with the Living God. You have freedom to know Him and to be accepted by Him as His own child. Because of your faith in Jesus the Lord, you enter into a living relationship with God. Your open confession will result in freedom so that God no longer condemns you. You will then be set free to know God and to enjoy Him forever. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] Henry Scott Holland, The Apostolic Fathers, The Fathers for English Readers (Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, London: Brighton: New York 1897) 194-195
[3] “2015 kidnapping and beheading of Copts in Libya,” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_kidnapping_and_beheading_of_Copts_in_Libya, accessed 22 September 2019
