1 Kings 19:1-18 WHAT DOEST THOU HERE?
Elijah was a mighty man of God who was used by the Lord in a wonderful way during his life time. Elijah steps onto the stage of history, from out of nowhere, with a bold pronouncement for King Ahab. After that moment, we are allowed to watch as God took this unknown prophet and formed him into the man of God.
Ill. Humility, 17; Heroism, 18; and Humanity, 19. Ill. James 5:17
Ill. In a place he probably never thought he would be.
God came to him with a message of hope and encouragement. But, God also came with a message of confrontation. In verse 9, the Lord asked Elijah, “What doest thou here, Elijah? Elijah was in a place that he should not have been and God intended to bring him back.
There are times when we all find ourselves in a place like Elijah. We get discouraged; we get defeated and we get down and out. Have you ever been there? Sure you have! We all have. In fact, some are there right now, aren’t you?
This passage has something to say to us during those times of life. When you find yourself in a place like Elijah, you can rest assured that God will come by and ask you the same thing he asked Elijah, “What doest thou here?
Let’s find out why Elijah wound up where he did and how the Lord brought him back. I want to preach for a few minutes on the subject: What Doest Thou Here?
I. v. 1-4 THE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT CRIPPLED HIM
A. v. 3a He Saw The Wrong Things Ill. the wording of verse 3, “when he saw that. (Ill. It is always dangerous when you start looking at things instead of the Lord. Ill. Israel Exodus 14: Some saw only the facts, Ex. 14:10-12; Moses was able to see the truth, Ex. 14:13. Ill. Israel – Num 13-14: Some saw only the facts, Num. 13:33; others were able to see the truth, 14:5-9. Ill. Israel 1 Sam. 17: Some could only see the facts, 1 Sam. 17:24-25; David could see the truth, 1 Sam. 17:36. Ill. Jesus – He was able to see both the facts and the truth – John 1:42. What are you seeing today? Heb. 12:2.)
B. v. 3b-4a He Sought The Wrong Things Elijah went for his life, yet he requested for himself that he might die. What is happening here is two-fold. First, Elijah was concerned about his own safety. Second, he was concerned with getting his own way. His primary concern was his own will and his own way! (Ill. We allow the problems of life to dominate our lives. Our problem is that we often put self in front of God’s will for our lives. God’s desire is that we place Him first, Mark 8:36-37; Matt. 16:24.)
C. v. 4b He Said The Wrong Things Elijah said, I am not better than my fathers. Well, who told him that he was anyway? Ill. Troubles will come!
II. v. 5-8 THE COMPASSION THAT CALMED HIM
A. v. 5 Notice God’s Gentleness No rebuke, just a tender touch. (Ill. Psa. 103:14) (Ill. Heb. 4:15)
B. v. 5-8 Notice God’s Grace Instead of judgment, the Lord gave him grace.
1. v. 5 The Grace Of God’s Presence Ill. Never alone! Heb. 13:5; Matt. 28:20
2. v. 6-7 The Grace Of God’s Provisions God met his needs, even when Elijah was going his own way, Rom. 2:4.
3. v. 5-8 The Grace Of God’s Patience God did not write him off because God still had a plan Jer. 29:11. (Thank God for grace!)
III. v. 9-18 THE CONFRONTATION THAT CURED HIM
A. v. 9 God Confronted His Actions God did not call Elijah to live in a cave, but to stand up for the Lord. By the way, God did not save you for you to be discouraged and defeated. He saved you to experience His peace and His joy, Phil. 4:6; 1 Pet. 1:8.
B. v. 11-13 God Confronted His Attitude Elijah wanted to see the spectacular and the majestic. God had to teach him to look at the little things. (Ill. Too often, we get defeated when God does not do the big things in our lives. If we would learn to praise Him for the little things, we would have plenty to praise Him for! We need to remember that God’s greatest work is the work that moves the heart!)
C. v. 14-18 God Confronted His Assumptions Elijah made two foolish assumptions and became defeated as a result.
1. v. 14, 18 Elijah Assumed That He Was Forsaken God reminded him that he still had 7,000 pure hearts in Israel.
2. v. 15-17 Elijah Assumed That He Was Finished Elijah thought his life and ministry were over, and he was ready to die. God reminded him that he still had big plans for Elijah’s tomorrow.
(Ill. We need to be very careful when we start to live on assumptions. Too often, our assumptions fail to take into account the sovereignty of God. Elijah thought that because he was finished, God must be too. He was dead wrong! Never count God out!)
Conc: Are you in a place you don’t like today? If so, let me encourage you to heed the voice of the Lord. He wants to lead you out of that place into a place of blessing, glory and power. If He is speaking to you, now it the time to listen to Him!