Elijah – Courageous in Devotion – Clint Ware

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Courageous VII – Elijah: Courageous in Devotion

1 Kings 18:20–19:21 

Big Idea: Isolated people can be courageous for a moment but never for a lifetime.

Olympians -

 

Swimming obstacle race

Dates played: 1900

 

In this event, competitors had to climb over a pole, scramble over a row of boats, then swim under another row of boats… against the current of Paris’s Seine river! Bonkers but thrilling. Bring it back, we say!

Club swinging

Dates played: 1904 and 1932

 

 

Solo synchronized swimming

Dates played: 1984, 1988, 1992

This oxymoronic event took place at three Olympic Games before someone realized it didn’t make any sense. Interestingly, in each of the sport’s three years, the medallists were from the USA, Canada and Japan.

 

Consistency -

 

Inconsistency

Bowling

Golf

being Romantic

Consistently Courageous Christian

Consistent  or Inconsistent

 

 

The Courage of a Christian is in direct proportion to their Strength of their Faith.

 

 

 

What do we do with Inconsistency in our Strength of Faith?

 

1. Realize we are not alone in our weaknesses.

 

Elijah -

New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)

Elijah and Obadiah

1 Kings 18:16-24

¹⁶ So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah. ¹⁷ When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?”

¹⁸ “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the Lord’s commands and have followed the Baals. ¹⁹ Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

²⁰ So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel. ²¹ Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”

But the people said nothing.

²² Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only one of the Lord’s prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets. ²³ Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. ²⁴ Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire —he is God.”

Then all the people said, “What you say is good.”

 

I Kings 19:1-5

Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. ² So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”

³ Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, ⁴ while he himself went a day’s journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” ⁵ Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep.

1. Isolation is the breeding ground of despair

III. It is better to journey together

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

⁹ Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:
¹⁰ If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!
¹¹ Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
¹² Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Proverbs 27:17

¹⁷ As iron sharpens iron,
so one man sharpens another.

In order to strengthen our faith we must walk with others

 

confessing

supporting

learning

challenging