1 Kings 17: Lessons from Elijah on Being a Messenger for God When Society Openly Embraces Evil
When evil surrounds you, place your complete trust in God’s Word 1 Introduction : What happens when politicians at every level of government abandon God, evil becomes rampant in society, and the Church remains silent? 1 Kings 17 answers this question. When leaders and nations ignore the warnings in His Word, He reluctantly judges the leaders and the nation. Then, out of mercy and grace, He sends a messenger to call the sinful leaders and the nation to repentance. Elijah was God’s first prophet from within the apostate state of Northern Israel. He appeared four times in the Book of Kings to deliver God’s Word when either King Ahab or King Ahaziah embraced evil, and God’s priests stayed silent (1 Kgs. 16:29-19:18; 1 Kgs. 21; 2 Kgs. 1:2-2:17; 19:19-21; 2 Kgs. 2:1-18). The Jews later imagined Elijah to be a charismatic hero. In Jesus’ day, some Jews even asked if Jesus was Elijah (Matt. 16:14; Lk. 9:8). Yet, during his ministry, Elijah was rejected by almost everyone and persecuted f...