Where They Said There Is Nothing

You know the story: Israel is being ruled by a wicked king named Ahab, he has not only led Israel away from God into Idolatry but he has also married a witch named Jezebel.

Together they led the children of Israel into deep rebellion and false worship.

God raised up a prophet that would not be shaken, and would not compromise and God sent him to confront this spirit of wickedness and false religion.

Elijah confronted Ahab and the false prophets of Baal and called fire down from heaven.

Now the people have repented and the false prophets have all been destroyed.

In our text the Prophet, the man of God has prophesied the rain is coming.

The drought is over.

He tells Ahab don't worry be happy the rain is on its way. So Ahab goes up to eat and drink, But Elijah goes away by himself along with his servant and throws himself down to the earth and begins to pray.

He sends his servant out to look toward the sea to see if there is any evidence of a change coming, to see if there is any sign of the rain coming.

His servant comes back with a bad report, a empty report, a negative report, he comes back with nothing. He reports to the man of God, there is nothing.

Six times the servant leaves the man of God to wrestle with God while he scans the heavens for a sign, for any evidence that God has heard his prayer. 6 times the report comes back the same, there is nothing. There was no mistaking his words, they were clear, they were sharp, and they were to the point.

There is nothing.

No doubt these words had an effect on Elijah, but a true man of faith is not shaken by what they see or don't see.

Instead of being discouraged and giving up Elijah turns up the heat, he presses his request, he intensifies his prayer.

He takes the negative report as a challenge to the Word of God. God had told him to appear before Ahab and he would send the rain.

He stands on the Word of God (and the Bible says: he prayed fervently). Fervently means white hot.

Finally on the 7th time his servant returns with a side note.

There is still nothing: but I saw a little cloud the size of a man's hand rising up out of the sea.

The poor servant was ready to hear those familiar words go look again.

Instead Elijah jumps up off his knees and sends his servant a different direction with a new order a new instruction.

He says go tell Ahab to hitch up his chariot and get down off this mountain for there is the sound of the abundance of rain. There is the sound of a down pour, a deluge, an extremely heavy hard rain.

And this is the word God put in my spirit and told me to prophesy to you.

He said prophesy to my people. (In the place where they said there is nothing shall come forth and abundance.)

I don't know who I'm talking to, and I don't know what that means to you, but you do.

Somebody has heard those words (there is nothing) not once not twice not 3 times over and over again.

there is nothing.

there's no money.

there's no hope.

there's no way.

there's no love.

there's no chance.

there's no change.

there's nothing left.

there's nothing we can do.

Those words are meant to signify the end. In other words: you can quit praying now. Quit confessing. Quit believing. Quit hoping. Quit expecting. Quit dreaming. Quit looking. Quit praising. Quit marching.

But I came to tell you, don't quit, don't quit believing, don't quit confessing God's Word. Don't quit marching around the walls.

Because in the same place where they said there is nothing shall come forth and abundance.

They may mean your doctor, your banker, your lawyer, your husband, or your wife.

Or they may mean your prodigals, who have said to you I'm never going to serve God so quit wasting your time praying for me.

They may even be religious people around you, who are telling you to give up on your dream, they say there's nothing, it's never going to happen.

They may be your circumstances that stand in total absolute contradiction to your faith.

But I remind you it always gets the darkest just before the dawn. Warfare surrounds the birth of a miracle. A woman never comes closer to dying then when giving birth.

Just before your break through you will fight your greatest battle.

Let me say it like this:

Your abundance is just beyond nothing.

You say I cant see nothing, I don't feel nothing, I don’t have any evidence.