This past Sunday, in the message of the morning, the Pastor was in the book of I Kings, looking at the story of Elijah when he’s in the wilderness.  What stuck with me, when looking at this passage again, was the whole part of the passage where God tells Elijah just how many people He had for himself:

Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him. – I Kings 19:18

I had two very different thoughts about this one verse.

7,000 People?  What Was God up to?

Elijah had just come off Mount Caramel.  He had called down fire from Heaven.  He had called forth rain after three years of drought.  He must have thought he was pretty big stuff.  He thought he was the only one that was taking a stand for God—the previous verses say so.

Often we get caught up in wanting to see the big stuff.  It’s the skeptic’s constant call, ‘Show me the miracle!”  And yet the Lord’s comment to Elijah was, “There are 7,000 out there that I’m using as a testimony to Ahab.  My ways are not your ways, and though I used you mightily, I’m using them as well.”

We may think that we’re nothing big or important.  That we are small and not some big miracle, and yet we’re involved in His master plan (if we’re willing) to bring souls to Himself.  That’s a pretty big thing.  Any time a sinner comes to Christ it’s a big miracle!

God’s Plans Are Bigger Than Ours

We would all like to have the power of Elijah.  I, for one, would love to be able to call down fire when a skeptic complained that there was no God.  But the lesson from Elijah is that we are all part of a master plan—the 7,000 were no less important than the guy that brought down fire and ate food from ravens.

God has a plan and is at work in His world in His ways.  They’re not always our ways.  We’d like God to convince people—to write out “I’m here” in the sky, and to make the whole witnessing thing easier for us.

And yet He called us to deliver His Gospel.  He chose people that were weak to show Himself strong.  He wants people to choose Him, rather than be compelled to follow Him.  And He chooses to use whom He wants, when He wants, in the way that He wants.

It’s like me and the President of the United States.  I’ve never seen the man, I didn’t go to his Inauguration, so for all intents and purposes I could live in denial that he really is the President¹.  I could say that he should actually appear at my house, and show me the real Presidential seal—because all of the things I see on the television could be faked.

It’d be absurd, and President Obama would be right to ignore me.  But somehow, when it comes to skepticism, and to the Bible, it’s a great logical point to consider that the God of the Universe should spend His time proving to His creation that He exists.

And yet, His works and His people provide testimony according to His plan—His plan, not ours.

1. Much like some deny 9-11 was a muslim fundamentalist plot or the lunar landing.

Table of contents for Never Alone

1. Introduction
2. Adam
3. Jacob
4. Elijah

Somewhat out of nowhere, Elijah appears on the scene at the court of King Ahab of Israel and promises a drought until he says it will stop.  It’s not clear whether King Ahab believes him or not, and yet the next thing we know, Elijah is whisked off to the Brook Cherith to be fed by ravens.

As if this wasn’t enough, Elijah was then taken to a widow and her son.  He promises them food that will never run out until the drought does.  And he raises the son from the dead.

After some time he returns to fight the prophets of Baal on Mount Caramel, and here’s where things really start to get interesting.  He challenges the prophets to see who is the real god—Baal or Yaweh, and the test is a test of bringing fire down from the heavens to light a sacrifice.

When the prophets of Baal cannot accomplish the feat, Elijah ups the ante by having water poured all over the sacrifice before praying and seeing fire come down.

After this, as a light encore, he calls for rain, and it comes.

He Saw So Much

So, you’d think that this guy that has seen God do some pretty great things would be confident in God, wouldn’t you?

Nope, he hears that Queen Jezebel (King Ahab’s wife) is out to kill him, so he flees for his life.  He leaves his servant in Beer-sheba, and journeys on alone—going almost a day further.  When he gets to a place where he’s alone, he sits down and asks the Lord if he can die.  This is really hard for me to think through! He goes from getting food from ravens to being scared of the queen!

God calls him further- after giving him food to eat via an angel.  And after Elijah tells God that he feels alone.

Isn’t that the case with us?  We do something great for God, we are out in front leading, and then we look around and wonder—how am I doing this?  Where’s everyone else?

Elijah wasn’t alone: Obadiah and 100 prophets were still alive. (I Kings 18:12-13) God told Elijah there were 7,000 that had not bowed the knee (I Kings 19:18).  That’s hardly alone—and God has people where you work, in your community, and all around you accomplishing His mission.  We’re not alone, no matter how much we feel like it.

Request Granted

God grants his request to leave the Earth, in a roundabout way (I Kings 19:15 & 16), and I think this was God’s way of showing Elijah who was in charge.  We’re not done until God is done with us.

Even though Elijah had a special relationship with God and God spoke to Elijah, Elijah could not tell God when he was done.  In fact, I find it kind of amusing that Elijah asks to leave this Earth—and he probably thought death—but God didn’t let this mighty prophet die.  Instead, Elijah became one of two people that never tasted death!

God took Elijah to Mount Horeb and gave him an assignment, and then he brought Elijah home.

We are Not Done Until He is done with us.

Isn’t it neat to know that God is in control, and that we’re not done until He is done with us?  Nothing can stop God’s power to accomplish His purposes in His way.