The Purpose of This Place
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - The Kingdom of God is not a religious institution, a spiritual club, or even your local church or denomination. The Kingdom of God is the realm where God reigns supreme, His authority is recognized, and His will is obeyed. The Kingdom of God is not based on space, politics, or territorial dominance, but of kingly rule, reign, and sovereign control. The kingdom of God is a spiritual rule over the hearts and lives of those who willingly submit to God’s authority and live accordingly. Those who defy God’s authority and refuse to submit to Him are not part of the kingdom of God. Being in the Kingdom of God is not based upon a particular denomination, your church attendance or Bible reading but upon ones surrendering to God’s rule in your heart.
One very important aspect about the Kingdom of God is understanding our purpose within the Kingdom. Unfortunately, many people in the Kingdom of God do not have a true concept about the kingdom of God or their purpose within the Kingdom because their concept of the Kingdom is based upon the traditions of man. They believe if I go to church, give God praise, pay my offering and tithes that I am on my way to heaven, and I am so glad. To understand our purpose in the Kingdom God will have us go through places in our life to develop within us that which we need to fulfill our purpose.
We must understand the purpose of this place because an understanding of the purpose of this place will not only lead to understanding our purpose but have us to develop a better understanding so we can effectively operate within the Kingdom of God.
PRAYER: -
SCRIPTURE: - 1st Kings 17:1-7 “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. And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that [is] before Jordan. And it shall be, [that] thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that [is] before Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land”.
Let me build this message and to do that we must go back to the 16th chapter. In chapter 16 we are introduced to a king by the name of Ahab. Ahab was the king of Israel for 22 years. He reigned as King of Israel from approximately 874 B.C. to 853 B.C.
In those 22 years the Bible says “He did more evil than all the kings before him” therefore he is the worst king Israel ever had. He provoked God. Although he seen the ruin of the wicked kings and their families before him, he didn’t take it as a warning or a lesson to be learned, but he hardened his heart and became enraged against God. He thought it a light thing to walk in the ways of Jeroboam, who didn’t have a problem with idol worship. Ahab even went as far as to marry the daughter of Ethbaal King of the Zidonians whose name was Jezebel. After marring Jezebel, he brought idol worship back into the Children of Israel. He built an altar for Baal. He built a temple for Baal in Samaria for him and the people to worship close to home this violated several laws of God. God commanded that they travel to the place He had put His name to worship and that was Jerusalem. He made a grove about this temple to conceal the abominable impurities that were performed in the filthy worship of Baal. As the leader and ruler of God’s chosen people he caused the Children of Israel to sin.
WATCH THIS: - God needs to get the attention of the people to get them to stop worshipping idols and turn to Him. So, he is going to start at the head and challenge the theory of Baal.
So he chooses a man named Elijah of Tishbi in Gilead.
The name Elijah is a unique name. El = God, Jah = from the name God is called in covenant Jehovah. The letter I is in the middle indicating that I am wrapped up in God. His name begins with God and ends with God. God said I am the first and the last, the beginning and the end, the Alpha and Omega.
Elijah means = Jehovah is my salvation.
The name Tishbi or Tishbite means = stranger. You and I are strangers passing through this barren land.
Elijah is God’s mouthpiece; he is God’s spokesman for such a time as this. God sends him to Ahab the King of Israel.
Here now is Elijah a nobody at this time. He wasn’t known for the miracles God did through him. He was a stranger to Ahab, but God was about to use him bring him into his purpose because he had a relationship with God. God sends Elijah to Ahab to declare God’s judgment.
Verse #1 Elijah comes to Ahab and says “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”. That is a powerful statement because the people believed the rain was a blessing from Baal, God said through Elijah I’m gonna stop what you thought was a blessing from some idol and show you just who I Am, so you can realize just where your blessings come from.
Verse #2 After Elijah declares God’s judgment that it will not rain again until he gives the word from God the Bible says “And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan”. This is Elijah’s instructions.
? - Understand that Elijah was a stranger and all of the sudden he was placed in front of the king, to fulfill his purpose, which was he made a declaration and then immediately God told him because of what I have told you to say I will hasten my word to perform it, but I need you to go and hide by the brook Cherith.
Here is Elijah a man of God who is no doubt content on doing what he did, stick with me for a minute, he goes to church, worships during praise service, gives his tithes and offering and does what we call church. He is comfortable doing church, but he does not yet fully understand his purpose and the Kingdom of God.
However, he is sent to the most evil King and his just as evil wife Jezebel and told to declare God’s judgment on the King, his wife and the entire nation, He is entering into his purpose. But before he can come into and fulfill his purpose God must send him to a place that will truly develop him.
WATCH THIS: - understanding this place in the Kingdom of God is key to your understanding and fulfilling your divine purpose.
Elijah is told to in verse 3 “Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan” because he made a declaration. A declaration is a written or oral indication of a fact, opinion, or belief. The declaration was God’s judgment against sin. The place he tells Elijah to go and hide himself is Cherith.
He sends Elijah to the brook Cherith. The name Cherith means = cutting, piercing, or slaying.
WATCH THIS: - God is saying to Elijah you were a nobody, I took you, placed you before the king, and gave you a word. I will do what I said I will do, but I need you to remain humble. I want you to go to Cherith. There is going to be some cutting I need to do on you, there is going to be some piercing I need to do on you. I need to prune you; I need to mold you into what I need you to be. I am going to use you in a mighty and great way, but I need to prepare you for what I am going to have you do (THAT’S PURPOSE). So, the place I am sending you to it is not going to be comfortable. It is not going to be the palace, but it is going to be among the pebbles. There is not going to be the things you were custom to having. No longer will you be satisfied with church as usual. You can no longer conform to rituals and traditions because I need you to understand relationship. Elijah tt is going to seem as though times are hard. You are going to feel loneliness, there is not going to be family, friend, or companions there to encourage you or feel sorry for you, but I need you to always remember I will never leave you alone; I am with you even until then ends of the world. Have you experienced this type of place in you journey. Listen Elijah there are going to be times when you do not even know where your next meal is going to come from, but I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
Ravens are birds that are commonly known as the birds of death.
Raven is the root of ravenous which means greedy for food. It is a scavenger that does not discriminate between human or animal, it is known for eating the dead carcasses of both. It is a highly intelligent bird that is capable of mimicking sounds even that of human speech.
It is not a pretty bird. There are not any colors that make it appealing to the eye. The look of it is evil. Yet this is what God had commanded to help Elijah.
What are you saying Bishop? Well in this place you will be sustained, you will be taken care of just know that it may not come in the package that you think it should come, but God has commanded. He knows what we need and how to give us our true heart’s desire. It was a miracle that was waiting on Elijah. God commanded the ravens to feed him true, but there was a place Elijah had to go and he had to go to Cherith.
Verse #5:- Elijah’s submission:- Elijah had to go to the place where God was going to do the miracle He said he was going to do. If Elijah would not have submitted himself he would not have received the miracle.
Verse #6:- Elijah’s miracle:- The ravens bought him food in the morning and in the evening.
Verse #7:- Elijah’s provision was removed:- The brook dried up. Sometimes it may seem as though what God has provided us with is dried up, but if we just would listen to the voice of God, He is going to make another way.
This Place - You may be at your personal Cherith right now. You may be going through some cutting in your life. You may be experiencing some piercings in your life right now. There may be some loneliness in your life right now, but God has commanded your victory before the foundations of the world. Your breakthrough is already done. Your deliverance is already done. You just got to go through the process, because the process is preparing you for your purpose.
This Place – Our Personal Cherith is a place that we do not like to be at, but at Cherith.
Pride is destroyed. Selfishness is demolished, High-mindedness is done away with, Self-reliance is put to death, Personal agenda doesn’t stand a chance, at this place Your will is broken, Ego is destroyed, Rebellion is handled, Brokenness happens, Loneliness occurs, Isolation happens
Someone may say I do not want to go to Cherith.
But at Cherith:-
Character is built, Faith is strengthened, God’s Will is manifested, your mind is transformed. At Cherith Miracles happen, Relationship with God is realized, Power is provided, at Cherith Provision is given, Communion is established, Intimacy is achieved, and Victory is WON.
The purpose of this place – Cherith is to cause you to move from religion and fulfill your purpose in Kingdom.
You are a citizen of the Kingdom of God. Philippians 3:20 says “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ”. In scripture the word conversation never pertains to just speech or language but encompasses your life as a whole.
Not only are we citizen but we are servants. Matthew 20:28 says, “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. Matthew 23:11 says, But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant”. When we understand your purpose you with love begin to serve others in meaningful and tangible ways.
Not only are you a servant of the Kingdom of God but you are an Ambassador. 2 Corinthians 5:2 say, “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God”. As ambassador we represent the Kingdom of God and must show the people of the world the wonderful works of God and lead them into the Kingdom.
After you understand that you are an ambassador you realize your purpose in the Kingdom as a king, small letter k for He is the King, you are royalty. 1 Timothy 6:15 says, “Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lord”. He is King of kings you and me. Understand you have been placed in a position of authority in this world to rule over darkness, to rescue people from hell, and establish the rule of Jesus Christ wherever you go by preaching the good news of the Kingdom.
CLOSING: - The purpose of this place you are in currently is to shape and mold you into the image and likeness of Christ so that you can fulfill your purpose in the Kingdom of God as a citizen, servant, ambassador and king to rule and reign with Christ. Romans 5:17 says, “For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.”
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
