January 31, 2016
Victory at Mount Carmel
If you grew up attending Sunday School, in all likelihood you are familiar with the accounting of Elijah and Ahab at Mount Carmel. The account takes place in 1 Kings 18. Ahab wanted to prove who the one true god was. He was convinced Baal was god. Elijah knew otherwise.
At Mount Carmel, Elijah confidently challenged Baal and the 450 prophets of Baal. At the altar, two bulls were slain - one bull to be sacrificed to Elijah's God and one bull to be sacrificed to Ahab's god, Baal. As god, Baal was to burn a bull in sacrifice. When the bull failed to burn after much effort, Elijah mocked the prophets and Baal since he knew Baal was a false god. Then when all else failed, the prophets of Baal cut themselves and bleed all over in the hopes their god Baal would answer their prayers and cause the bull to burn.
Elijah then put his bull to the test by soaking it and the wood on the altar in water - several times over in fact. Then Elijah called on the one true God and He answered and fire consumed all including the water. In that moment, the people of Israel saw who the real God was. Elijah then ordered the slaughtering of all 450 prophets of Baal.
Without question, Elijah was a bold man of God. He may not have always felt like it. (He certainly had his moments where he was depressed, distressed and despondent.) But his spirit man said otherwise. His spirit was mighty and strong, willing and able to do great things for God and to allow himself to be used by God to turn people's hearts toward God. Is that not the calling for all of us as believers, as people who love God, who accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord? To yield ourselves and allow God to do MIGHTY works within our lives and to let the world see and KNOW God as the only way.
There are a lot of Baals out there. A lot of false idols. Those idols come in a myriad of forms: love of ______ (fill in the blank). None of those false gods can bring us to a knowing relationship with the God who created us, the God who loves us. I certainly have been tempted like anyone else to chase after false idols thinking that somehow the false idol will provide what I want or what I need. But in the end, none of it satisfies.
Copyright 2016 - Luke Enno
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