(Elijah Part 4)
“Elijah, John and Us”
Over the last few weeks, we have devoted a considerable amount of sermon time to studying the life and ministry of the prophet Elijah. I chose Elijah as the focus of our last 3 sermons for a variety of different reasons. But, as we conclude this series with our message today, I hope we will come to the realization that Elijah’s story is not merely an historical account of what happened in the past, but it is more importantly an object lesson that was to be typical also of our day and time, and is to be representative of Christ’s church presently and in the future.
In our last sermon, Elijah seemed to have, spiritually speaking, hit rock bottom. After making huge advancements in leading the children of Israel back to the true God, Elijah took a giant step backwards. Due to a threat by Queen Jezebel, he allowed fear to override his faith causing him to leave his post and run for his life. Of course, most of us will admit that we can sympathize with Elijah—after all, haven’t we all experienced times in our lives when it would take only a little more to push us over the edge? Sure we have. And for Elijah, that threatening message from the queen was indeed that proverbial “straw the broke the camel’s back.” Well, thankfully, Elijah wasn’t down for the count though, he came back to serve the Lord his God with a renewed faith and zeal. In fact, throughout his ministry, he caused countless people to realize their spiritual apostasy and return to the Lord their God with all their hearts.
But this morning I want to talk to you about something much more relevant than what Elijah the Tishbite accomplished nearly 3,000 years ago. I want to talk to you about the power behind the man. I want us to consider together this power or this “spirit” that enabled Elijah to subdue his human weaknesses and passions— I want to talk about this “force” that caused him to be such a tremendously effective instrument in the hands the Lord. And perhaps, as we discover the source and purpose of this force, we too may learn how to acquire and utilize this Divine Gift for the glory of God and the benefit of mankind.
Our journey through the scriptures today begins in the last chapter of the last book of the Old Testament. Let’s open our bibles to Malachi 4:1-6. Speaking of the great and dreadful day of the Lord, the prophet Malachi relays this message from God.
Malachi 4:1-6
“1 “Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the LORD Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them. 2 But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall. 3 Then you will trample down the wicked; they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day when I do these things,” says the LORD Almighty.
4 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb for all Israel.
5 “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. 6 He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers…’”
Here, through the prophet Malachi, God promises two things: Judgment and redemption. But He also promises a special messenger who’s responsibility it is to help bring about reconciliation. Let’s look at the beginning of the fulfillment of that prophecy in Luke 1:11-17.
Luke 1:11-17
“11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. 14 He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15 for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. 16 Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. 17 And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.’”
Although John later denied “being Elijah” (John 1:19-27), Jesus revealed to His three closest disciples that John the Baptist was indeed the one about whom it was prophesied in Malachi 3:1and 4:5. This was hard for the Jews to understand because they had long been taught from the Scribes and Teachers of the Law that Elijah was to literally return before the Messiah was revealed. So on the Mount of Transfiguration, when Peter, James and John saw Jesus glorified and also saw with Him Moses and Elijah, this brought to the surface a question which they had likely been pondering from the beginning of their discipleship. Let’s look at Matthew 17:9-13.
Matthew 17:9-13
“9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
10 The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”
11 Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. 12 But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” 13 Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist.”
Jesus makes it clear here that John “was the Elijah who was to come,” but before that, He also says plainly; “…Elijah comes and will restore all things..” By making this statement, Jesus strongly implies that John the Baptist (who was beheaded by this point) was not the last “Elijah” who was to come. There would be yet another manifestation of the Spirit and Power of Elijah in the future. But before we get to the future Elijah, let’s ensure that we are keeping all of these “Elijahs” in prospective by doing a short review:
**Elijah #1: His name in the Hebrew means literally; “my God is Yahweh”. This original Elijah was by birth a Tishbite who was used by God in a mighty way to turn the hearts of the Israelites away from the false deities of the day and back toward the true God of Israel. This Power and Spirit that accompanied the faithful prophet was perhaps manifested most abundantly on Mt Carmel where the people covenanted to turn away from Baal and return to the Lord with all their hearts.
**Elijah #2 was, as we just determined, John the Baptist. Although this prophet did not perform the miraculous signs and wonders of his predecessor, he most definitely possessed the very same Power and Spirit as did the Tishbite. This was evident, not only by the power and effectiveness of his preaching, but also by direct revelation of the Lord. Judgment was soon to fall upon Israel and his warning to the people was; “repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand!” He mission was to deliver a message of repentance and baptism thus “preparing the way” for the first advent of the Messiah.
The third and final messenger to come in the spirit and power of Elijah will also be the fulfillment of the dual prophecy of Malachi 3:1 which says; “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me.” And Malachi 4:5 which says; “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.”
This messenger, though futuristic in the scriptures, has come and is even now preparing the way for the Final Judgment and the Lord’s Second Coming. His message is consistent with the first two “Elijahs” and can be found in Revelation 14:6-11.
Revelation 14:6-11
6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language and people. 7 He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water.”
8 A second angel followed and said, “Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.”
9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, 10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.”
It is important to note that the Greek here from which “angel” is translated is “agellos” which simply means “messenger” or “one sent with a message from God.” May I suggest to you that the church of today is that “messenger” of God. We have the good news of the gospel to proclaim to all the earth!—in fact, we are the Elijah who was to come and our message and purpose is no different than our predecessors. As heralds of the Three Angels’ Message, our job is also to “prepare the way for the Lord” and make ready the world for His Judgment and soon return. What an awesome privilege and responsibility!
I am reminded of a certain servant of the original prophet Elijah. After years of service with this great messenger of God, Elisha greatly desired to inherit a “double portion” of the same Spirit which enabled his master to serve the Lord with such power and effectiveness. We all remember the glorious story of how Elijah was translated to heaven via a fiery whirlwind as recorded in 2 Kings chapter 2. We may also remember how faithful Elisha refused to leave his master’s side just prior to his departure. But do we recall the only tangible thing that Elijah left behind? Let’s look at what transpired in 2 Kings 2:11-14
2 Kings 2:11-14
“11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; 14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.”
Brothers and sisters, once again I tell you that we are the Elijah who was to come. The mantle has fallen at our feet. But with that mantle comes not only the same Spirit and power that drove Elijah, not only the responsibility to deliver a message of hope and repentance, but if we place that mantle upon our shoulders, we also accept the hardships and obstacles that befell our predecessors.
But if this seems to be much more than we, as mere sinful human beings, can bear—if we are hesitant to pick up that mantle of responsibility, then let us draw strength from what is perhaps the most famous evangelistic passage in all of scripture.
Matthew 28:18-20
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Many times, as we read this “Great Commission” we feel that the “important” part begins with “go..” Truly, this is indeed very important. But what is even more important is what precedes this command. “Therefore” is an adverb which links two thoughts. In fact the word itself means; “as a consequence of… or as a result of..” In light of that, Jesus is saying here; “because all authority in heaven and on earth have been given to me……and because ‘I Myself will be in you’(John 17:26)… I charge you to go in My power and with My authority and accomplish these things."
Elijah, John the Baptist and now, we are entrusted with an awesome responsibility. We are to “make straight the way for the Lord” and prepare the world for His coming . Obviously, this involves a warning of the coming judgment, but it also and more importantly involves joyfully spreading the Good News that we don’t have to stand before that Judgment Seat alone.
I am so thankful that we have Elijah’s story to uplift and encourage us as we are faced with some of the very same trials and tests of faith that befell this very human prophet. Indeed it is reassuring to see how God so tenderly and mercifully guided Elijah even when he was spiritually weak and emotionally spent. As Christians, we serve a God who not only loves us enough to save us, but He loved us enough to garb Himself with humanity so that He could identify with each of us on the most intimate level possible. As we accept the indwelling of His Holy Spirit, He continues to be reincarnated inside of each of us, continuing the divine work of reconciliation. And through each of us who is willing to place that mantle of responsibility upon our shoulders, the Spirit and Power of Elijah will live on.
May God richly bless us as we consider and proclaim the beautiful message of reconciliation entrusted to us.
