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King James Bible Study – “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” – Mark 8:34

Date:
Chapters: I Kings 18-19
Message: What Are You Doing Here, Christian?

Hello My Friend,

There are two very scary movements going around all over the world, the “PRIDE” movement, in which the sins of the world are being vaunted, and God is rejected, and the “JUSTIFIED” movement, in which the sins of the world are being vaunted, and God is proclaimed. Let me tell you, the “PRIDE” people have more sense than the “JUSTIFIED” people because at least they have the sense to say that God is not the one who allowed them to be they way they are. Right smack dab in the middle of these two movements are guess who? God’s people. And it is not pretty, we are threatened, mocked, ridiculed, and many have lost their lives by both of these groups in an attempt to silence the truth. Because of this, God’s people have turned a blind eye to all this, many are in hiding, and some have even joined them out of fear that they will come after them. We must remember, that we belong to Jesus, we are going to be hated, we must never fear them, for Jesus is with us. “And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake. But there shall not an hair of your head perish. In your patience possess ye your souls.” – Luke 21:16-19.

“And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake.” Talk about being hated, Elijah was one of the few prophets left in the Northern Kingdom, preaching the Word of God when it was outlawed. He first showed up to tell Ahab that a drought was coming. Three years had come to pass, and no rain, water was so scarce that Ahab and his governor, Obadiah, began searching for it throughout the land. God was about to prove to them that He is the only living God, and was still in Israel, he sends Elijah to Obadiah, a godly many who greatly feared Ahab.

“And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah? And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here. And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me? And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day. And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim. Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel’s table.” – I Kings 1,7-9,15,17-19.

“to slay me?” Obadiah even hid prophets whose lives were in danger from Jezebel who sought to kill them, he thought for sure that if he went to Ahab with the news of Elijah wanting to meet with him that he would be dead. You must remember that God has a plan and purpose for you, and while it may be a bit scary to be out here in this godless and immoral world, He will protect you. Whenever something catastrophic happens the first thing the world does is, not blame God, they blame the one who spread all the hate by preaching the words of God in the first place. Nevertheless, they will always be the ones looking like fools, which God was about to prove here.

“Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken. And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made. And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them. And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.” – I Kings 18:22-24,26-29.

“Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking,” I love this story, and they say God does not have a sense of humor. The world thinks they can make up a god, and it will hear and answer them, but they are fools. There are these commercials that I change the channel or plug my ears to every time they are on because they are praying to a goddess that seems to answer their prayers. False gods do not answer prayers, if is seems so it is the devil, and God does not answer the prayers of those who do not believe solely upon Him, He does answer the prayers of those who are true to Him. Now, it was Elijah’s turn, he repairs the altar they were using, places twelve stones around it, digs a trench, has them pour three barrels of sacred water into it, and begins to pray.

“Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.” – I Kings 18:37-41.

“The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God.” You see, we may think that everyone in the world has forsaken God and turned to Baal, but the truth is many worship something unknown to them, but when they see Him that is when they come to understand that there is only one God, and He comes through Jesus Christ. “Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” – John 4:22-24.

“when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth:” True worshipers do not need some supernatural discovery to know that God is real, and that He is found in Jesus Christ. True worshipers walk by faith, and amazingly find Him, and see Him, not only in their own lives, but others as well. And let me tell you, there is no greater feeling than watching someone bow their head and trust Christ as their Saviour after learning the truth about Him. You can be sure that if you led people to Christ that those who led them astray in the first place will try to come after you. Nevertheless, you need not fear them because God is always with you. True worshipers, while faithful to God, can often run in fear when faced with the danger of losing their own lives because of their faith, but never forget that Jesus is with you. After that great revival, Jezebel did not take the news too well that all her prophets were dead, and the people turned to God, and vowed Elijah would die for what he did. Fearing for his life he ran, and even prayed for God to end his life so he would not be killed.

“But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?” – I Kings 19:4,9-13.

“What doest thou here, Elijah?” Get this straight, You are not alone. As Elijah was wallowing in his sorrows, the most demonstrative symbols of God’s mighty strength were seen, a storm, an earthquake, and fire, but it was not in any of these powerful elements that God made Himself known, it was only in His still small voice. You see, God’s power not only comes through with great force of the elements, it also comes as a quiet whisper. The question God asked Elijah is one that He asks every fearful Christian, “What are you doing here hiding?” Let me tell you, no one will see the power of God if we are sitting in our caves afraid to come our. Remember, Jesus sends us out into the world so that His light can be shone in this dark world because there really are many who have not bowed to Baal, that just need to see that Jesus is the way. We have nothing to fear when we belong to Jesus. “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.” – Hebrews 13:5-6.

Jesus Christ Magnified: “And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?” – I Kings 9:12-13.

Today’s Prayer: God, This world is so deaf from hearing You that it either rejects You or makes You into someone unrecognizable. We, who are faithful are Your eyes, ears, and mouths to boldly proclaim the truth, but often we hide in fear not to be persecuted by those who mock and ridicule us. Lord, we are Your voice, give us Your power, wisdom, guidance, and the grace to boldly stand up and preach Your truths. Let us not hide in fear, but boldly shout, You are my helper, I will not fear what man shall do to me, for You are with me. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen!

I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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