Randy Wray’s Blog

Sometimes we have to stand up for what is right, stand up for what God has said, even without a direct “word” from God.

During the reign of Israel’s most wicked king (Ahab), God’s most powerful prophet (Elijah) appears out of nowhere to call God’s people to repentance.

Ahab has the notable distinction of not only being a worse king than all those before him, a feat it seems every king before him tried to duplicate, but being the king who did the most to provoke God.

1 Kings 16:30 (NCV) More than any king before him, Ahab son of Omri did many things the LORD said were wrong.

1 Kings 16:33 (NCV) Ahab also made an idol for worshiping Asherah. He did more things to make the LORD, the God of Israel, angry than all the other kings before him.

Ahab marries a woman from Sidon named Jezebel whose dad was the high priest of Baal. Ahab makes the worship of Baal the official religion of Israel and watches passively as Jezebel kills the prophets and priests who serve the LORD God.

During a time of tremendous moral decay and decline. Elijah appears and makes this proclamation:

1 Kings 17:1 (NCV) Now Elijah the Tishbite was a prophet from the settlers in Gilead. “I serve the LORD, the God of Israel,” Elijah said to Ahab. “As surely as the LORD lives, no rain or dew will fall during the next few years unless I command it.”

What I find interesting is that the first official recorded communication between God and Elijah occurs in the following verse.

1 Kings 17:2-4 (NCV) Then the LORD spoke his word to Elijah: “Leave this place and go east and hide near Kerith Ravine east of the Jordan River. You may drink from the stream, and I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.”

So the question, which is fun to discuss but has no bearing on our eternity, is this: “Did God tell Elijah to go speak to Ahab or did Elijah get so feed up with the situation in Israel that he took it upon himself to speak for the Lord?”

Follow a train of thought with me.

Elijah is, in fact, fed up with the situation in Israel. The people have suffered much under the hand of the kings which they wanted but God said they would regret wanting. For the last fifty something years every king has been involved in some disrespectful activity towards God. Ahab arrives on the scene and makes the worship of Baal the official religion of the day.

Elijah has had enough. He knows what God said, way back when, about worshiping other Gods:

Deuteronomy 11:16-17 (NCV) Be careful, or you will be fooled and will turn away to serve and worship other gods. If you do, the LORD will become angry with you and will shut the heavens so it will not rain. Then the land will not grow crops, and you will soon die in the good land the LORD is giving you.

So he goes before this vile king and claims one of God’s promises – not one of the good promises mind you but a promise nonetheless.

Pleased that someone remembers his promise, pleased that someone in Israel will stand up for what is right, God speaks to Elijah and says ‚Äúthanks now it‚Äôs time for you to hide.‚Äù Shortly thereafter God makes good on Elijah‚Äôs word. It’s as if God was waiting, for a very long time, to see if anyone would stand up and speak for him.

Even James uses the experience of Elijah as an example of what can happen when a believing person prays.

James 5:17-19 (NCV) Elijah was a human being just like us. He prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years! Then Elijah prayed again, and the rain came down from the sky, and the land produced crops again.

Again, I could be totally wrong. Just something interesting to think about.

Sometimes we have to stand up for what is right, stand up for what God has said, even without a direct “word” from God.