"The fire of God fell"

Today I am preaching at Trion Heights Baptist Church. I am concluding a series from 1 Kings 18 that has been our focus for the 21 Days of Connection. Many have been fasting and praying over the past three weeks; seeking for the manifest presence of God to be seen and experienced in our midst.

In Elijah's time the people had turned their back on God. They were experiencing spiritual and physical troubles for having forsaken God. We need the power and presence of God today as much as they needed it then.

Here is a simple outline of 1 Kings 18 that may help us to learn and apply the message there to our hearts and lives today.

1. Confrontation is Faced (1 Kings 18:17-18)
The prophet Elijah faces the wicked King Ahab. When Ahab sees Elijah he says "So its you, old troublemaker!" (1 Kings 18:17 MSG). Elijah was not intimidated by the false accusation of the King. He simply states the truth with great clarity and no fear when he says ^"It's not I who has caused trouble in Israel, but you and your government—you've dumped GOD's ways and commands and run off after the local gods, the Baals." (1Kings 18:18 MSG). If we are going to truly see the power and presence of God in our midst we are going to have to confront the real source of our trouble. Usually our troubles and conflicts do not find their origin in others as much as they are coming from my own lusts and desires. When we allow the truth of God's Word to confront us we are moving toward seeing his power and presence revealed.

2. Contest is Finalized (1 Kings 18:19-24)
The false prophets and people of Israel are called to Mount Carmel. Elijah lays out a simple "contest." The prophets of Baal will call on their god and Elijah will call on his God and the one who answers by fire will be recognized as the one true God. The people agree with this plan.

3. Crying Fanatics (1 Kings 18:26-29)
The prophets of Baal "prayed all morning long," but NOTHING happened! As time went on their cries grew louder and then they started to cut themselves. It seems mind boggling to read what they did all in an effort to get a false god to respond to them. But what about people today who cry out to their job, or their bank account, or to sensual pleasures all in an effort to get an answer from a god who is powerless to answer. We live in a world of crying fanatics. I do not mean that in an insulting or derogatory way - it is just a statement of fact. We are prone to seek relief where relief can never be found.

4. Confident Faith
As you read about Elijah you get the idea that he is a man of quiet confidence. He is certainly confident in the face of great odds. One man against 450 false prophets and yet he is not fearful or timid. We see his confidence as he builds the altar, digs a trench around it and then soaks the altar with barrels of water. He trusts God today because he trusted God yesterday and the day before and the day before that. God sustained him in the midst of the drought. He knew God would not forsake him now. We all need a confident faith.

5. Consuming Fire
Elijah prayed a simple prayer. He said “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”(1 Kings 18:36-37). The aim of his prayer was that the people would KNOW that the Lord is God. After he prayed the fire of God fell IMMEDIATELY! This fire consumed the sacrifice, the altar, and all the water on and around the altar.
Fire is a representation of the power and presence of God. Remember when Moses saw a burning bush? He was experiencing the presence and power of God. As the nation of Israel journeyed through the wilderness God led them with a pillar of fire - His presence. When the Spirit was given at Pentecost there were tongues of fire that rested over the heads of each believer gathered their waiting on the promise of the Father. These miniature "pillars" of fire show that God is now directing all His children just as he directed Israel in the wilderness. Isn't it interesting that several times the Bible tells us that God is "a consuming fire." The Lord answered Elijah's prayer and the people truly experienced the presence and power of God on that day!

6. Crowds Fall on their Face
^"And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God.” (1Kings 18:39). To experience the presence and power of God is an awesome and awe inspiring event. May we experience this today!

7. Capture the False Prophets (1 Kings 18:40)
This is a part of the story we may be tempted to skip over. Elijah told the people to capture the prophets of Baal and he took them and slaughtered them. Whew, that had to be a gruesome scene! Thankfully we do not wrestle or fight against flesh and blood today (Eph. 6:12). What we learn from this story is that we are to "put to death the deeds of the body," (Rom. 8:13). Anything in our flesh that would lead us astray from a vibrant relationship with God should be eliminated. Just as surely as false prophets were eliminated on that day we should eliminate anything in our lives that will distract us from living for the Lord.

When the fire of God fell in Elijah's day things changed.

We need the fire of God to fall on our hearts, in our homes, in our houses of worship and in our country. When it does, things will change.

Let the fire fall!