The Spirit and Power of Elijah

[0:00] The spirit and power of Elijah. Elijah was mightily used of God. And we read of this same spirit and power in the ministry of John the Baptist.

[0:11] ! As it says in Luke 1, verse 17, And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

[0:28] It says of John the Baptist, he came in that same spirit and that same power of Elijah to prepare a people for the Lord. And that's our same mission today, isn't it?

[0:40] That we are in that same time period, if you like, as we are preparing for the coming of the Lord, as we touched on last week. Maybe we could use some of that same spirit and power of Elijah.

[0:56] The same spirit and power of Elijah. That same heart that Elijah had. So what can we learn of this man, of Elijah? We could consider, firstly, the name of Elijah.

[1:16] His name means, the Lord is my God. This was his earnest message. Elijah pointed others to that same faith. He was unashamed. The Lord is my God.

[1:29] What can we learn of Elijah? The spirit of Elijah. The Elijah spirit. Elijah first appears on the scene at 1 Kings 17, verse 1. 1 Kings 17, verse 1, and it says, Another aspect here is the word.

[2:01] The word. The word of Elijah. Very telling. The references to the word. We'll unfold that a little as we go.

[2:15] Elijah spoke boldly. And here he came to King Ahab. He was the highest ruler of the land. And he delivered God's message powerfully, straight out to Ahab.

[2:27] So we think of the word of Elijah was really as the name. The name of Elijah was the name of the Lord. The Lord is my God.

[2:39] The word of Elijah was really the word of the Lord, right? And the word of Elijah, he received it and he transmitted it.

[2:52] And when you think about all of these things that we're talking about, the same is true of you and me. This is not really so much about that Elijah was somebody special.

[3:03] We'll come to it that he was very ordinary. And the point is that the name of the Lord, we know that name. The name which is above every name. The name which there's none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

[3:18] We know that same name. And we know that same word. And he's given us that same word. And we are to give that same word. So I'm giving you the kind of the end point here is that we are in the same shoes as Elijah, you and me.

[3:35] The word of Elijah was the word of the Lord and he delivered it straight out. And what was Elijah's power? Talking about the spirit and power of Elijah, we've got that same power.

[3:45] Amen. Because we have the same Holy Spirit. We have the same one that we can pray to. Elijah depended on prayer. It was said, others said of Elijah when he had passed the scene, they said, where is the Lord God of Elijah?

[4:01] And there's one preacher said, where are the Elijahs of the Lord God? That's the point, isn't it? It's you and me. Elijah's power was prayer.

[4:12] And don't you have that same privilege and blessing, that same opportunity? Elijah's power was prayer.

[4:25] And he depended upon prayer. It says of Elijah his prayer was fervent. And friends, today prayer can do what armies and mighty kings cannot do.

[4:36] It's the power of God. God's moved by the power of prayer. Elijah prayed in faith. We see that in James 5.17.

[4:47] We're going to stay in 1 Kings, but just a quick reference to James 5.17, which speaks of Elijah. It says, Elias, or Elijah, was a man subject unto like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain, and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.

[5:07] Elijah prayed. Can't you pray? Can't we pray? Elijah prayed and God moved. And it says, Elijah heard God. We go to verse 2.

[5:18] It says in part, and the word of the Lord came unto him. The word of Elijah was the word of the Lord. The word of the Lord came unto him. And this phrase is repeated over and over again.

[5:31] Like Elijah, we can know the Lord is my God. The Lord is my God. We know his name. We know him personally. We can know our Father's love, his word, his wisdom, his provision.

[5:44] We read on. As the word of the Lord came unto Elijah, Elijah was sent. Verse 4. And he came, and it says that he was sent to the brook Cherith, and it shall be that thou shalt drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.

[6:00] Notice it says, the word of the Lord came unto him, and he heard it. Faith cometh by hearing, hearing by the word of God.

[6:13] This is how we can receive that word too. Not by some extra biblical revelation, some fancy fast-talking preacher laying hands on you and saying, I've got a word from the Lord for you.

[6:28] Well, I can say that. It's right here between these pages, between these covers. I've got a word from the Lord for you. It's right here. It's not invented or conjured up by my own thinking. It's not extra biblical.

[6:39] It's the word of the Lord that we need. That's what we need. Elijah heard the word, and he obeyed it. We see in verse 5, so he went. The word of the Lord came. He heard it, and he went.

[6:51] He obeyed. He did according unto the word of the Lord. For he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is, before Jordan. You know, it's one thing to hear it. It's another thing to believe it and to act on it, isn't it?

[7:05] Elijah not only heard it, he obeyed it by faith, and he believed God's promises. Here he was in this time of famine now, sent to a brook, and Elijah heard God, and he believed that God would supply, that God would honour his faith, and he did.

[7:20] God honoured Elijah's faith. Verse 6, we see the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning and bread and flesh in the evening, and he drank of the brook. This was an amazing provision of God.

[7:32] And in time then, the brook dried up. Then he hears from God again. Verse 8, the word of the Lord came unto him. The word of the Lord, and he heard it. And the word said, verse 9, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Sidon, and dwell there.

[7:48] Behold, I have commanded a widow, woman, there to sustain thee. So he comes out of this place of Cherith, where the ravens had fed him morning and evening, and he had supply, and then the brook dried.

[8:01] And God said, the word of the Lord came to him, sent him to Zarephath, to a widow woman. Here was this widow woman, as he comes to the scene, as Zarephath, this widow woman gathering sticks, getting ready for her last meal.

[8:16] She was on the bare bones. She was in great need. She had nothing but some couple of sticks and a little bit of flour. It was her last meal. And just some little bit of oil.

[8:29] And Elijah urged her to faith. He spoke the word to her. And this was a challenge for her, because it meant, actually, she would step out in this sacrifice of giving some of what little she had to the man of God.

[8:42] In verse 12, it says she had only a handful of flour and a little oil. And she says, we're going to eat it and we're going to die. What does Elijah do?

[8:54] What does he say? He says, fear not. Now there's a song that goes, little is much if God is in it.

[9:06] I've only got a handful of flour, she says. I've only got a little oil. Little is much if God is in it. Just a little kernel, just a little seed can grow a huge oak tree.

[9:22] A little seed of faith can germinate. And he says, fear not. Verse 14. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, the barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruise of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth.

[9:39] He says, you've got food for a lifetime here. This is going to go the distance. This is going to go right through the length of the famine. And what did the woman do? The woman believed.

[9:50] She believed the word. She believed the word, which was really the word of God. God given through the messenger, Elijah, and she acted in faith.

[10:01] She acted on the word. And God supplied. Again, he multiplied that flour and the oil. Friends, you might feel, what little I have is scarce.

[10:12] But if God is in it, he will enable. He will help you. And you need not fear. He says, fear not. Then another test came. As the woman's son then died.

[10:25] Oh no, another disaster struck. In Elijah's ministry, yet God gave miracles. Eight miracles, including raising this child from the dead.

[10:36] It says, what did Elijah do? He cried unto the Lord. Not only did Elijah hear God, God heard Elijah. Notice here, verse 22.

[10:56] It says, Elijah heard. Sorry, 1 Kings 17, verse 22. It says, the Lord heard the voice of Elijah.

[11:09] And the soul of the child came into him again and he revived. The voice of Elijah. What is that? Prayer. It's prayer.

[11:20] Elijah lifted up his voice. And the Lord heard his voice. Friends, when you pray, God hears your voice. Elijah believed God for the impossible.

[11:32] And God answered his prayer powerfully. Elijah's was persistent faith. His faith was strong. Test after test. Time after time.

[11:43] His faith was strong and steadfast. In the living God and through these testing times. Test after test. Elijah had God-given power.

[11:54] God's power withheld the rain. Parted the rivers. Healed the sick. Restored a backslidden people. And Elijah was used of God. To guide the people to worship God.

[12:07] And to stop the worship of Baal. Elijah knew the presence of God. The power of God. Through many trials in his life. But let's think about that for ourselves now.

[12:18] To apply this. How about us? Are we ready to go through trials and tests? And suffering? To take up our cross? To deny ourselves? Are we willing to pay the price?

[12:32] Are we willing to suffer for righteousness? And friends, this is real for you. I know there's situations here. There's people going through stuff right now. There's a cost.

[12:42] Elijah was such that he was a living sacrifice. Elijah knew these times alone. In a cave. In the wilderness. And Elijah learned humility through that.

[12:53] He learned to depend upon the Lord. And God preserved him. And he will you. Through those tests. Even as Elijah was endangered. People sought his life.

[13:05] To take it. Many times God directed Elijah to have the courage and faith. To speak hard things. To deliver that word. To others. 1 Kings 18 verse 1.

[13:16] It says, It came to pass after many days. Here was Elijah. He's with the widow woman. There was provision. Miraculously. And then another phase begins.

[13:27] Chapter 18 verse 1. And it came to pass after many days. That the word of the Lord came to Elijah. In the third year. Saying, Go, show thyself unto Ahab. And I will send rain upon the earth.

[13:39] Elijah was now called to bring a message. Of condemnation. To the most powerful person. In the nation. In King Ahab. He had to front King Ahab again.

[13:51] You know, years before. He'd gone to the king. And he declared a famine. And then he went into hiding. And now he comes back. Face to face with the king. Elijah's was courageous faith.

[14:01] Amen. Elijah confronted sin. He wasn't afraid to declare the word of the Lord. And to deliver it. And we need that same powerful message today. In this lukewarm time. We need men who will be fiery preachers of righteousness.

[14:17] The message of Elijah was an unwelcome message. But Elijah bravely stood and delivered it. Boldly. He dared to speak the truth. And so should we. Every one of us.

[14:30] Elijah did. And he was hated for it. Don't think it's going to be all easy breezy. When you speak for God. You will face test. So what happens next?

[14:42] Verse 17. Here comes Elijah. King Ahab's there. And Ahab sees him coming. And says. Oh no. Here comes trouble. Here he comes again.

[14:53] That troublemaker. Verse 17. And it came to pass. When Ahab saw Elijah. That Ahab said unto him. Art thou? He that troubleth Israel. You troublemaker. Back again.

[15:03] You're the cause of all this. God gave Elijah the authority. To stand before kings. And he didn't hold back. Imagine what danger he was in. This is the king. This was the authority.

[15:15] This was the government. This was the power over him. And he said. Verse 18. Of chapter 18. Elijah answered.

[15:26] I have not troubled Israel. But thou. And thy father's house. In that you have forsaken. The commandments of the Lord. And thou hast followed. Baal him. He's saying you've forsaken God's truth.

[15:38] You've followed these false gods. The Baal. God. God. And he didn't hold back. He confronted Ahab for his idolatry. Friends. We need to be outspoken.

[15:48] If it is the word of the Lord. Let's speak it out. Speak it forth. Boldly. Lovingly. But boldly.

[15:59] Elijah didn't water it down. That's the point. King Ahab. Was. In great. Error. And he was leading the people falsely. And Elijah told.

[16:12] People. Not what they wanted to hear. But what they needed to hear. And that's true for you and me. As God's witnesses. Sometimes. The truth hurts. Doesn't it? Ouch. Oh.

[16:23] That hit me. In the innards. In the. In the bowels. As it were. As. In the. Inside of us. Oh. Sometimes God's word does that. Doesn't it?

[16:33] It's a two-edged sharp sword. And God. Wants us to hear some. Hard truths. Elijah was such that he wasn't afraid to deliver it.

[16:44] He was fired. With passion. To make ready a people prepared. For the Lord. Friends. God's truth is never popular. For a sin loving society. And we see that.

[16:54] I know the door knockers. Whenever you're witnessing in whatever fashion. People will laugh and mock and scorn. And reject. They might spit on you. Literally.

[17:05] And they treat you. And your message is something negative. Because people hate the word of God. On the streets of our city. Sadly. Most. And it was like in.

[17:17] Isaiah's time. Of Isaiah 30. Verse 9. Where it says. Of a rebellious people. They will not hear. Which say to the seers. See not. To the prophets. Prophesy not.

[17:27] Unto us right things. Speak unto us. Smooth things. Prophesy deceits. You know. Elijah was not a popular preacher. He wasn't the top of the pops. He didn't have the top 10 bestsellers down at Kurong.

[17:41] Elijah dared to confront apostasy. To say it like it is. And now the prophets of Baal were much more hip.

[17:52] Much more socially acceptable. Their message was cool. It was easy listening. It was smooth. So much more culturally appealing.

[18:04] The prophets of Baal. And the people loved these guys. These false prophets. As they do such today. The world embraces the false prophets. Because they do not disturb the carnal hearts of sinful men and women.

[18:19] The false prophets. They rejected Elijah. And the worship of his God. The prophets of Baal. It says they prophesied lies. And the people loved that. They loved swallowing the sugar coated lies.

[18:34] There was no negativity. No challenge. These false prophets told the people just what they wanted them to. What they wanted to hear. And it's the same today, isn't it?

[18:45] That theirs was a comfortable, feel good, seeker sensitive message. All positive. Ecumenical. And you can imagine them being like their modern day counterparts.

[18:56] The prophets of Baal. They're still around us today. They've got churches. Mega churches. The prophets of Baal with their cultural diversity and their coexistence. We could reckon them alike to those of our time whose agenda is ecumenical.

[19:11] Feminist. Pro-LGBT+.! They were all inclusive.

[19:28] Don't ruffle any feathers. Don't dare to say that's wrong. That's actually don't dare to say that's abomination. Oh, we don't use such words nowadays. Baal and Asher were the popular gods.

[19:40] And these were the popular preachers. But Elijah did not hold back. He knew this was false. It was wrong. It was against God. And he called for a showdown with the prophets of Baal.

[19:52] Wow! This is getting to the sharp end now. Verse 19. 1 Kings 18. It says, Now therefore send and gather to me all Israel unto Mount Carmel. And the prophets of Baal, 450.

[20:03] And the prophets of the groves, 400. Which eat at Jezebel's table. And so Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel and gathered the prophets together unto Mount Carmel.

[20:14] So here was Elijah, one solitary prophet. He stood alone. And he stood against Israel's 850 false prophets.

[20:26] Wow! 850 to 1. But little is much if God is in it. Amen? 850 false prophets. And they're on the king's payroll as well. These were public servants.

[20:38] These were the government of the day. You know, we should esteem them, shouldn't we? Elijah was willing to stand up against the evil religious policies of the king. He stood against the false religious system.

[20:50] He stood firm to faithfully deliver God's message. Now it might have seemed too hard. Too divisive. Too negative. But Elijah would not compromise. He had a word.

[21:03] And he had to deliver it. Amen? Don't we? People of God. Amen. Elijah would not compromise.

[21:17] Like Elijah, we must oppose the spirit of compromise. And the falsehood, the fakes, the apostasy. Recognize it for what it is. Now someone was just telling me lately about a youth group.

[21:33] Now it sounds like it might be going in a different direction from what I think our youth group would go. But they had smoke machines and lots of loud thrashing music. And it was like a disco environment.

[21:45] And friends, question that. Shouldn't we question that? It's not to say we can't have some excitement and enthusiasm and some joy and some blessing and some vibrancy.

[21:58] But we don't have to resort to making the church like a nightclub, do we? Why do that? It's the wrong spirit, isn't it? Friends, we must reject what is false and counterfeit and worldly and unworthy of our great God.

[22:16] Come out of her. God was angry with Israel's unfaithfulness and idol worship. He dared to confront the false religious systems. Friends, we must dare to speak the truth.

[22:29] And he challenged the people about what they were going to do, where they were going to stand. 1 Kings 18, 21. Follow me there. 1 Kings 18, 21.

[22:40] And here's the scene as the scene is set for this great showdown. And Elijah calls the people. He says, how long halt you? In other words, how long are you going to waver between two opinions?

[22:51] How long are you going to be a fence sitter? Get off the fence. After a while it gets painful. Get off the fence. Don't halt. Don't waver.

[23:01] Don't be wishy-washy. Don't be a waverer. If the Lord be God, follow him. Follow him. But if Baal, then follow him.

[23:12] And the people answered him, not a word. Friends, it comes to the crunch point, doesn't it? Elijah bravely opposed Baal and his prophets. He challenged them. And so the test began. Two bullocks laid on word with no fire under.

[23:26] Two bullocks laid on word with no fire under. And Elijah boldly proclaimed that the Lord who answers by fire, he is God. So he challenged these false prophets.

[23:38] Verse 24. He says, call on the name of your gods. And I will call on the name of the Lord. And the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, it is well done.

[23:51] Well spoken. Okay, yeah, this sounds like a plan. The two piles of word, the two bullocks, the oxen on these piles of, these altar piles.

[24:05] And what happened next? These false prophets, they worked themselves up into a frenzy. Maybe they were frothing at the mouth and as they were gyrating and dancing and prophesying and they were leaping on top of the pile of rocks and where the bullock was, they were gyrating, they were going mad in their frenzy.

[24:29] And verse 28, it says, and they cried aloud and they cut themselves after their manna with knives and lancers till the blood gushed out upon them. Well, you know, some religions do that today, isn't there?

[24:42] They hit themselves with swords till the blood runs out of them, but their God doesn't hear them. No answer from that God. This all went on for several hours.

[24:52] Friends, this was crazy stuff. They were enthusiastic. There was religious zeal here. They were spiritual. But Elijah says, call louder.

[25:03] Maybe your God is sleeping. But Baal gave them no answer. Friends, you're talking to a God that doesn't exist. There's no answer. Verse 30, and Elijah said unto all the people, come near unto me.

[25:16] And all the people came near to him and he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. Notice here there's an altar. And we'll come to it that there is more than that.

[25:36] We see that the altar was broken down. It talks about, I suppose, prayer, about sacrifice, about surrender, doesn't it?

[25:47] Sometimes the altar gets broken down. That can be true, can't it? In the family setting, in our personal setting, we neglect the altar. It grows cobwebs. It gets dusty.

[25:59] It gets forsaken. It gets left. And it falls down. And Elijah says he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. Friends, it's about worship.

[26:10] It's about honouring God, isn't it? It's about your sacrificial heart before God. It's coming to that place of surrender, of praise, of worship. And we see then what happens next.

[26:22] We see Elijah, he wanted to make sure this was all of God. This wasn't Elijah having some kind of secret little cigarette lighter that no one was watching to light this fire.

[26:35] There wasn't some kind of subtlety or sneaky magic tricks. He said, no, we're going to pour water on this thing so that it's got to be all of God and none of me. And so he pours these four barrels of water three times.

[26:51] Four barrels, once, twice, thrice. This was flooded with water, this sacrifice of Elijah. And then notice how he prays, verse 36. 1 Kings 18, 36.

[27:02] And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. So this other mob had been going on maybe three hours, maybe longer. They'd been going for hours with nothing.

[27:13] And Elijah just comes in humble prayer at this time of the evening sacrifice, three o'clock. Elijah the prophet came near and he said, Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac and of Israel, let it be known unto this day that thou art God in Israel and that I am thy servant.

[27:37] Notice his status here. I'm just a servant. And that I have done all these things at thy word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God and that thou hast turned their heart back again.

[27:56] Notice that was one of the characteristics of John the Baptist, turn the hearts, turn the hearts. Elijah says that thou hast turned their heart back again.

[28:08] And then we see the fire. Verse 38. Then the fire of the Lord fell. It wasn't the fire of Elijah, really, was it? It was the fire of the Lord. The fire of the Lord fell.

[28:20] And consumed the burnt sacrifice and the dust and the wood and the stones. Licked up the water that was in the trench. When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and they said, The Lord, he is the God.

[28:32] The Lord, he is the God. Elijah calls upon God. Friends, and the fire falls, that altar soaked with water. God brought down the fire from heaven to the altar. Now, what can we learn here?

[28:45] Elijah did not compromise. Maybe there was an easy way. But he took strong action. He acted on God's direction. Verse 14. What happens next is even more serious.

[28:56] He says, There was going to be no compromise.

[29:06] There's no half measures here. Slay the false prophets. Now, we can't... I don't think we can do that in the 21st century. But, friends, false teaching, false doctrine is something to be rid of.

[29:24] To be rid of. Elijah trusted in God's promise. He believed God and he prayed. And he said... And then it goes on to say now that the fire fell. The Lord, he is the God. The people recognised and worshipped him.

[29:36] And then Elijah believed God the prayer... The word that Elijah had received that would come the rain. And Elijah said unto Ahab... This is verse 41.

[29:47] Get thee up, eat and drink. For there is a sound of abundance of rain. He could hear a sound of abundance of rain. Don't you just love those little hitter patter?

[30:01] Can't you hear it? Just hitter patter. It's the sound of abundance of rain. And it's going to pour down. And Elijah, it says... Elijah went up to the top of Carmel.

[30:12] And he cast himself down upon the earth. And he put his face between his knees. Elijah said, I am thy servant. And here he shows it in humble prayer. He's got his face between his knees.

[30:23] The man of God needs the power of God. The humble prayer. And he says to the servant, Go and check the horizon. Check the horizon. Go again. Go again.

[30:34] Seven times it says. Verse 43. And just as God promised, it rained. Now notice here, verse 44. Came to pass the seventh time, as the servant saw the rain, the little cloud.

[30:45] He said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud. A little cloud out of the sea. Like a man's hand. So as he put his hand up, it was quite as big as his hand.

[30:57] It's just a tiny little cloud in the scheme of things. It was just his hand could kind of cover it in size. And at the first, it was a little cloud. And he said, Go up, say unto I have prepared thy chariot.

[31:11] Get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass in the meanwhile, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind. And there was a great rain. A little cloud, great rain.

[31:22] A little cloud at the first, but great rain. Friends, little is much when God is in it. You might think, I'm just a little cloud. God will give you some great rain.

[31:34] Great rain. Praise him. It's God's doing. And Ahab road went to Jezreel. The hand of the Lord was on Elijah. That's another thing you could say. The hand of the Lord was on Elijah. He girded up his loins.

[31:45] He ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. And now we come to kind of the human side. You know, we might think, well, I know the name of the Lord.

[31:55] He is my God. I know the word of the Lord. I've got it in my hand. I can tell others the word of the Lord. I can hear the voice of the Lord as he speaks to me through his word in my conscience.

[32:07] And I can give my voice unto the Lord as I pray. And I can go to the altar and surrender and worship God. And I can see his fire fall from heaven. But I'm just little old me.

[32:18] I'm not Elijah. Who am I? But friends, there's hope because we see Elijah's just like you and me. Don't we? We see that here, the human side of Elijah.

[32:30] You might think, God can work through Elijah, but I'm just little old me. But Elijah knew times of fear, of discouragement. This was the man who stood in courage, in boldness, but he also ran in fear for his life.

[32:47] 1 Kings 19.2, Jezebel threatened him and Elijah got up and ran. It says, verse 3, he arose and went for his life. He was running for his life. This same bold and courageous Elijah was battling with fear.

[33:02] Friends, you might think, well, I'm a Christian and I know all of this, but I am afraid. I'm fearful. I'm not like Elijah. No, Elijah was just like you. Amen. And he went to Mount Horeb, it says.

[33:15] And verse 4, he says, oh Lord, take away my life. That's how desperate it was. That's how discouraged he was. You know, this was suicidal. Oh Lord, take away my life.

[33:28] Now, it's interesting, he prayed, he had the voice to pray and God answered his prayer, but God didn't answer that one. Amen. Actually, God did the reverse. It's kind of funny, isn't it? Elijah never died.

[33:39] He says, take away my life. Elijah's prayer was not answered. Now, some of your prayers are not going to be answered. Thank God for that. Amen. Sometimes we know, yes Lord, glad you didn't, glad you didn't say yes to that one.

[33:54] Verse 9, and he came to this cave and he lodged there and behold, the word of the Lord came to him and he said unto him, God says, what are you doing here, Elijah? And Elijah, it says, ultimately he turned his focus to the Lord, his fear fled away and he found courage.

[34:12] And it says, verse 12, 19 verse 12, that he heard the still, small voice. Sometimes we've got to tune out and tune in, don't we? All of the static, all of the interference, just tune in and hear the still, small voice.

[34:28] He was feeling here like he was the only one left. Verse 10, 19, 1 Kings 19, he says, I've been very jealous for the Lord. I've thrown, I've thrown down, sorry, the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, slain thy prophets with a sword.

[34:46] I, even I, only am left and they seek my life to take it away. And then verse 18, God says, you're wrong Elijah, the 7,000 who haven't bowed the knee. Verse 18, the 7,000 who haven't refused to bow.

[34:59] Sometimes you think, it's little old me. Well, it's not. You've got brothers and sisters in Christ all around you and they're in the same boat. They've not bowed the knee to Baal. We can come together and encourage one another. Elijah wasn't as alone as he'd supposed.

[35:12] So we see the prophet, this strong man of faith, he still had human emotions and he found God's strength and supply. So can you, so can we. God enabled him to battle and to find victory over discouragement.

[35:26] And then at the close of his life, we see, this is 2 Kings 2, verse 11, 2 Kings 2, verse 11, Elijah walked on the earth and then, the next, he was caught up in a whirlwind to meet the Lord surrounded by heavenly hosts, the chariot of fire, the horses of fire.

[35:47] Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. Now isn't that a wonderful thought? That God would take you up in a whirlwind into heaven. And Elijah was one of two men, the Bible says, who've never died.

[36:00] The other one, Enoch, but Elijah was taken into heaven. He said, Lord, take my life. I want to die. God said, no, you're not even going to die. I'm going to take you. Wow. That's a, that's a blessing, isn't it?

[36:11] Friends, Elijah was a marked man before God. And he got the privilege of coming back in Matthew 17, 3, where Moses and Elijah appeared with the Lord Jesus on the Mount Transfiguration.

[36:28] It tells of the end of days in Malachi 4, verses 5 and 6 of this like spirit of Elijah, as it were. Now some would think, well that means some, some would misconstrue that to mean some man who they revere.

[36:45] Some false teachers think it means a particular individual. But that spirit and power of Elijah will be at work in the last days in the sense of turning the hearts of the fathers to the children, of the hearts of the children to their fathers.

[37:00] And there's this sense of restoration, of God rebuilding, of healing. And Elijah stood firm. He stood strong. He was committed to that true worship.

[37:12] Yet they called him a troublemaker. That can be true for you too. You might do what God wants you to do and people will call you a troublemaker. And Ahab called him that, but ultimately Ahab humbled himself in 1 Kings 21, 27, that Ahab, he rents his clothes, he puts sackcloth on, he fasted, he repented.

[37:34] And he humbled himself and God honoured that. Friends, the point to consider I put to you today is Elijah was human. Wow.

[37:47] So am I. So are you. He was of like passion, such as we. Yet a man used of God. So there's hope for all of us. Amen. There's hope for all of us.

[37:59] James 5, 17, Elijah, Elias was a man subject to like passion such as we are. And he prayed earnestly that it might not rain and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.

[38:12] And he prayed again and the earth gave rain and the earth brought forth her fruit. Elijah was nobody special. Really. He was of like passion such as we.

[38:23] He was just available. A normal man. The point is that God answers prayer. He hears your voice when you pray.

[38:36] And he prayed again and he prayed again. Now we need to pray again, don't we? The same prayer, the same passion, the same prayer of faith. And as we seek after God in earnest prayer, God can move mightily.

[38:52] What's different between Elijah's prayer and our prayers? Maybe we need to think, how can I pray like Elijah prayed? It was fervent. It was effectual.

[39:03] We see that just to close. James 5, 16, confess your faults one to another and pray one for another that you may be healed. The effectual, fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

[39:15] Effectual, fervent, righteous, availeth much. Friends, think of this just to wrap up again. The name of Elijah, the Lord is my God.

[39:26] Do you know him? Is he your God? Can you say, he is my God. I am his. He is my God. I know his name. I have his word, the word of the Lord.

[39:39] He has given it to me and I am going to deliver it. Not only did Elijah receive the word of the Lord, he gave it to others and he heard the voice of the Lord, the spirit of God, the conviction, the words enlightened to his heart, the words illuminated, quickened.

[39:59] He heard the voice of God and he lifted up his voice unto God. It's prayer. Brothers and sisters, it's prayer. Prayer.

[40:11] Fervent, effectual prayer. And then we'll see the altar. Maybe the altar's broken down. Maybe as in Israel's day, there's cobwebs, there's moss, there's grass, there's souse sobs.

[40:25] As it were, it's broken down. It's been a neglected place. The altar's been neglected. The place of worship, the place of sacrifice, the place of yielding your heart, your will, your life as a living sacrifice.

[40:40] Maybe the altar's neglected, the altar of the Lord. And no wonder the fire's not falling. Let's rebuild the altar. Amen. And the fire of the Lord will fall. The fire of the Lord will consume.

[40:50] The fire of the Lord will flood us and be disseminated, as it were, that we'll get fired up. That we'll be a fired up church.

[41:02] That there'll be people driving past and saying, the church is on fire. That's what we want, don't we? Amen. But not the building, you and me. That's what we need, don't we? The fire of the Lord, the fire of the Lord to fall from heaven.

[41:13] Don't we need that? Let's pray. Precious Lord, we thank you that Elijah's God is our God. You are our God. My God.

[41:24] We can say that, each one, that knows you, Lord, that we can know you're saving and that the name of the Lord is a strong and mighty tower. The righteous run into it and are safe.

[41:35] Lord, we thank you, every heart, every family, every one individual here, Lord, that you would work in our hearts like you did in Elijah, Lord. And we know, Lord, we're just of like passions. He was just as frail and faulty, fearful and discouraged at times, yet, Lord, you used him.

[41:51] Help us to see there's no reason why you cannot use us because little is much when God is in it. Lord, that little oil, that little flower was made much.

[42:03] That little cloud was made great rain, Lord, and the little you and me's that are here amongst us, Lord, the people of God here today, we're little in your sight and we ought to be, Lord, that you can, that we can decrease and you can increase, that you can, use us muchly for your grace, Lord, because little is much when you are in it and we praise you for these things.

[42:30] Lord, let the fire fall as we come back to the altar, we rebuild it, we restore that worship, that heart for you, that you'll turn our hearts back to you as is the spirit and power of Elijah.

[42:44] It's not the spirit and power of Elijah, but it's your spirit and your power that we need. In Jesus' precious name, Amen.