The Story of Elijah, chapter 10 – 09/22/2024

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Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord join us this morning.
Grant us the gift of having large hearts
Tender and gracious
With affection and attention
To the people we know
The people we meet
And all those we encounter.
Let us feel and know their joys and fears
Grant us the courage to be this sort of person
Save us from being overwhelmed

Allow us to see the world through their eyes
If only for a moment
To better understand how it is for them
The problems they are struggling to solve
The battles they are desperate to win
Their joy for every success
Helping us to love the difficult person
The belligerent
The angry
The hateful
The needy
The broken

Allow us to be safe for them
Without fear of condemnation from us
Fellow pilgrims
Fellow mortals just making our way
Uncertain
Sometimes afraid
Sometimes overwhelmed
Save us Lord from being overwhelmed

Grant us the gift of listening
To hear and receive and respect
What is revealed through word and deed
To listen with curiosity and interest
To listen without planning our response
To listen without correction

Ease our anxiety as we listen
Ease our need to fix things
Ease our need to manage them
Ease our need control those things that make us anxious
Ease our need to judge

Help us to discern
To keep our own inner world in order
So we might help
And serve
And even sacrifice when needed

Lord, grant to us big hearts
To love like you
Because you have loved us
Day in and day out
Through it all
Even through our worse moments
The ones we rather forget
With your very big heart
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

After the death of Ahab,
Moab rebelled against Israel 2 Kings 1:1

This first sentence of 2 Kings is an odd way to begin a new chapter. The transition from the previous book to this one could have been much smoother. For instance, the last lines of 1 Kings provide all the explanation we need for this new episode:
Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria . . . and he reigned for two years. He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother . . . . He served Baal and worshiped him and provoked Yehovah, the God of Israel, to anger in every way that his father had done (1 Ki. 22:51-53)
Instead of this clear statement regarding the throne of Israel passing from the deceased father to the firstborn prince, we have an odd report of Moab’s rebellion. Why?
Moab was located in what is Jordan today. The mention of Moab breaking free from Israel’s domination reminds us that tensions in that area of the world go back for millennia. But what is the significance of this event, that plays no part in any of the action that follows?
The answer is that we learn soon after Ahab died, Israel suffered a substantial loss. A piece of its control in that region was taken from them, and there was nothing they could do about it. This is an important insight into the beginning of Ahaziah’s reign. Israel was beginning to deteriorate from within, and right away the nation suffered a loss of strength and influence.

When Ahab died, his son Ahaziah became king–however, his reign did not last for long. The palace in Samaria had been his home since childhood, and it now belonged to him. Unfortunately, he was unaware that the design of ornamental features in the upper chambers was made to be decorative and not sturdy. So when he leaned against the lattice enclosure of a large window, it gave way and he fell to the ground. He remained bedridden for several days, but his injuries were not improving and his health was worsening.
Ahaziah summoned messengers to his bedside. He told them, “I have heard from others about a reliable source for divining the future and learning one’s fate. Go now, and inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to learn whether or not I’m going to recover from my injuries.” It seems that people in every nation have always sought out sacred places where they could receive oracles from the gods. To “inquire” was the technical term for consulting the deities at those sites. It seems that human mind has always had a special fascination for knowledge of the future, and by various mystical methods tried to pry into things to come. Oracles, soothsayers, prognosticators, astrologers, psychics, and others have been sought out by people who want to penetrate the veil God has placed between the natural world and the supernatural, between the present and the future.
Israel was unique among the nations, in this regard. They were forbidden to resort to occult agents or practices to explore regions of the unknown. God had it written into their law and later he reaffirmed it by one of his prophets, through whom he said, “And when they say to you, ‘Inquire of the mediums and necromancers who chirp and mutter,’ should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of the dead on behalf of the living? To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no [light of the] dawn” (Isa. 8:19-20)
The God of Israel could be consulted–and he would answer, but giving only as much information as served his purpose. Ahaziah’s quest must have been especially offensive to Yehovah, because Ekron was one of the capitol cities of the Philistines, who had been hostile to Israel from the time they entered the land.

While Ahaziah’s messengers were on their way, another messenger was dispatched. The same Hebrew word that translates into English as “messenger” is also translated “angel.” So it was that the angel of Yehovah found Elijah and reactivated him for service. “Get up,” the angel told him, “go up and confront the messengers of the king of Samaria and tell them to take this word back to him: ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now listen to what Yehovah has to say, for he has the answer to your inquiry. You will not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you will die for certain.’”
Elijah carried that message to Ahaziah’s servants. When they arrived at the palace, the king was baffled that they had returned so soon. “What happened?” he asked them, “Why have you come back? What have you learned?”
They explained, “A man came and stopped us. He told us to come back here and tell you, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now listen to what Yehovah has to say, for he has the answer to your inquiry. You will not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you will die for certain.”
If Ahaziah was upset by this news, he controlled himself. He was curious about the person who intercepted his messengers and sent them back with that message. How did he know about their mission? Who told him the king would die? Was he reliable? “Tell me,” the king said to his messengers, “what sort of person was he who stopped you on the road and sent you back to me with this news?” If the king was asking them for their opinion of the stranger, and whether he seemed credible, what they gave him was a description. They asked themselves, “What kind of man was he?” then told the king, “He was the kind of man who is hairy and wears a leather belt.”
Instantly, Ahaziah recognized him by their description. “It is Elijah,” he said–and a flood of memories rushed into his head of Elijah and the drought, Elijah and Mount Carmel, Elijah and how his mother hated that prophet of Yehovah.

The king dismissed his messengers and changed his agenda. For the next mission he needed soldiers, not emissaries. So he summoned one of his captains with a detachment of fifty soldiers. Why soldiers? Was he expecting trouble? Ahaziah commanded the captain, “Take your men and hunt for Elijah the prophet. When you find him, bring him to me.”
When the soldiers found Elijah, he was sitting on the top of a hill. There he was, out in the open, unprotected, defenseless. If a sheriff came to your door, not in uniform but in fatigues and riot gear, you would no doubt feel apprehensive. We have no idea what Elijah felt as he saw those soldiers approaching the hill where he sat.
“O man of God,” the captain called to him, “the king says for you to come down. You must go with us to the palace in Samaria.”
Elijah tilted his head to one side, squinted his eyes at the captain and said, “If I am a ‘man of God,’ then fire is going to come down from heaven and consume you and your soldiers.” Something like a sonic boom jolted the ground as if lightning were ripping the sky apart. A ball of fire fell and instantly the captain and his fifty men were ashes.

If Ahaziah had his wits about him, he would have perceived the significance of this miraculous event–that is, obvious proof had been given that there was, indeed, a God in Israel. But no sooner did Ahaziah receive word of what happened to his soldiers, than he ordered another detachment to go and apprehend Elijah. The prophet had not moved, so he was easy to locate.
This captain resembles a specific person type in the military or law enforcement; someone who asks for cooperation but if they do not get it, they assume they must be rougher, more aggressive, and use force if necessary. It would never occur to them that sometimes the wise approach to dealing with others is to avoid violence.
When this captain approached Elijah, his words were not like the first captain whose words were, “The king says, ‘Come down.’” The second captain said,“this is the king’s order, ‘Come down’” and he added, “quickly!”
Elijah tilted his head to one side, squinted his eyes at the captain and said, “If I am a ‘man of God,’ then fire is going to come down from heaven and consume you and your soldiers.”
Here Elijah was at the end of his ministry, and only one other person ever called him a “man of God.” He met that other person at the beginning of his ministry. She was a widow who lived up north in the nation of Sidon. She addressed him as a man of God, but it was only when he resuscitated her dead son that she actually believed it. She told Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth.”
These two captains with their men learned the hard way that Elijah was indeed a man of God.
Predictably, the king sent a third captain and his fifty soldiers with him.
The first two captains had called Elijah from the base of the hill, but this third captain hiked up the hill, and when he reached Elijah he immediately went down–on his knees, not telling Elijah “The king says” or “The king commands,” but begging the prophet, “O man of God, please, let my life and the lives of these fifty servants [yes, he referred to them as servants, not soldiers; they were only doing what they were told to do], let my life and their lives mean something to you. Value our lives. Look, the two captains who came before me did not honor you, and they were devoured by fire from heaven. But I’m here now, begging you to value our lives and spare us.” This captain had figured out that words “man of God,” were not just a formal title.
Right then, the angel of Yehovah spoke to Elijah, and told him, “Go down with him,” and perhaps anticipating Elijah’s reaction, he added, “There’s no reason to be afraid.”
Elijah tilted his head to one side, squinted his eyes at the captain, and said, “Okay.”

The remainder of the story is anticlimactic. Not many details are given regarding Elijah’s encounter with King Ahaziah. The king remained silent as Elijah repeated what he had already said, only this time it is not a question, but an indictment, “This is what Yehovah has to say to you, ‘Because you sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron–as if there were no God in Israel to inquire for his word–you won’t come down from that bed to which you have gone up, you will die for certain.”
Now, at last, King Ahaziah had his answer and knew his future. And soon the word Yehovah had given to Elijah was fulfilled. Once Ahaziah was gone, his brother Jehoram took his place and became Israel’s next king.

Take a moment. Breathe. Relax.

There is a reality that is larger than our universe, and the source of our universe. That reality is eternal, and therefore encompasses the past, present, and future of our universe at the same time. In that added dimension, God is not hidden as he is from our world of experience. God reaches to us from that dimension and calls us to himself. Jesus our Lord referred to that dimension as “the kingdom of God.”
The invitation of the Scriptures is not to come and inquire about the future, or learn the secrets of the transcendent realm, or tap into spiritual powers. The invitation is to know God in and through his Son. For this purpose, God has given us the potential for spiritual development, so that we can interact with him Spirit to spirit.
For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption . . ., by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Ro. 8:15-16)

Here is the challenging part of this arrangement: Our physical selves are not equipped with the ability to perceive God with our senses or know him with our rational minds. We can learn lots of information about God, but that still falls short of knowing God in his actual beingness. To know him, our spirits need to be enlightened. That is why St. Paul prayed for the Ephesians, that
the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him (Ep. 1:17)

When Jesus taught, his primary tools for enlightening his hearers were, in the synoptic gospels, parables, and in the gospel of John hard sayings (analogies and metaphors that were difficult to digest). Why are the methods for enlightening his disciples useful and effective? Because they do not attempt to explain what we cannot understand, but instead lead us to an experience of truth and of the larger reality. In stories, truth is caught rather than taught. Jesus explained to his disciples, that his parables reveal the mysteries of the kingdom of God. Not all mysteries, but those that benefit us when we are enlightened by them.

We are not aware of everything a story does in us and for us.

In the stories that Jesus told, there are specific patterns. We hear the parable and our brains naturally find the pattern. We do not have to be conscious of the pattern, but our brains will discern and remember it. Later, in the daily grind of our lived experience, something will happen that fits the pattern, and that will take us back to the spiritual truth Jesus has revealed to us. Our spirit is awakened in those moments to God’s presence or his obvious work in us and in our world.

Today’s story of Elijah may speak to us in ways we are not yet aware. In fact, we may find details of the narrative offensive, such as the catastrophic deaths of one hundred men. However, there are subtleties in the patterns embedded in the story that may prove useful to us.

First, we return to the beginning, when Moab rebelled against Israel. This footnote was necessary because the people who lived through it may not have recognized the significance of this loss. This is something that is always a concern to me. Is there something important to my relationship with God that I have lost? One of the saddest moments in scripture is when Samson went to battle with the Philistines, confident of his victory, “But he did not know that the LORD had left him” (Jdg. 16:20) I need all the resources God has ever given me. Sometimes I let an important gift lapse. In those times, I am not doing my best work, or I’m not being my best self.
And it is not only myself that concerns me. A great many people in the Evangelical subculture have lost their way and the central message of Jesus, but they don’t seem to realize the loss or where that leaves them.

A second pattern in the story is one that is common in folk stories and fairytales; namely the way people or events are arranged in “threes.” Three times, the question is raised, “Is it because there is no God in Israel . . .?” Three times captains with the soldiers came for Elijah.
The pattern of three can help us sift out our failures. One captain was polite. One captain was a bully. The third captain learned from the mistakes of the first two. You might recognize the testing of threes in Goldilocks and the Three Bears–one porridge too hot, another too cold, and the third just right. Or the Three Little Pigs.
In scripture,
Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but how can one keep warm alone? And thought a man might prevail against one who is alone, two will withstand him–a threefold cord is not quickly broken (Ecc. 4:9-12).
There is, of course, the ultimate “threefold cord. As my friend, Fr. Romuald, said, “The fundamental revelation of the Trinity is relationship.”

A third pattern is repeated through the chapter, and is very easy to see in the English Standard Version because of its literalness. Ahaziah went up into his bed, and he was not coming down from it. Then the first captain to approach Elijah, went up and told him to come down, and that is when Elijah called fire to come down. The third captain went up to Elijah, but then fell on his knees. Elijah was then told to go down with him to Samaria. This theme will continue into the next chapter, perhaps because it signifies the ups and downs of Elijah’s ministry, until his final move upward.
Embedded in this chapter is an outline of Israel’s history with the Lord their God, which was up and down. The most condensed version of it is found in the Book of Judges, where we see an ongoing cycle of Israel turning to God, then turning away, turning back, then turning away again. The other books of Israel’s history present a longer version, but it’s the same pattern. We also see this cycle in the lives of individuals.
Israel’s upward movement began on Mount Sinai and reached its climax on Mount Zion.
I, too, have had my ups and downs with the Lord. It never hurts to ask where I am in the cycle–and then answer that question as honestly as possible.

Perhaps for us, the central purpose of this story is to get us to ask ourselves, “Is there no God in South Orange County, that we would chase after what everyone is striving to attain?”
A few years ago a famous Christian author wrote a philosophical argument for God’s existence, and even more, for the fact that God continues to speak to people who will listen for him. The title of his book was, He Is There and He Is Not Silent.
This morning we’re going to cross out one letter: He Is Here and He Is Not Silent.

That’s a good enough truth for us to take home and live with this week.