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Speaker: Probably one of the greatest
challenges of your Christian life will

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be when you're doing everything right.

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At least as you understand it.

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You're doing what God asks you to do.

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You're serving, you're doing the right
things with your wife and your marriage.

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You're working hard at your job.

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And yet still, even after those things,
you find that things are not going right.

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Uh, the consequences to
your actions don't a add up.

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Uh, you would think that A plus B equals
C, but when you're putting in the good

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inputs, the outputs that you're getting
aren't matching to what you're expecting.

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This concept is is often
referred to as disillusionment.

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You approach the life that God has given
you trying to be faithful, doing all the

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things you're serving, you're, you're
loving, you're pouring yourself out.

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Maybe you're giving and you're sacrificing
your time and energy, and your reasonable

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expectation is, well, God said he's
gonna bless me when I do these things.

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God will bless me and God's
gonna take care of me.

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And that's not an entirely
unbiblical thought.

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The problem is, is that oftentimes
when we do those things.

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We can still walk away feeling
a lot like one of the characters

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that we're gonna study today.

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We can feel a lot like Elijah, who though
he did all the right things, at least

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as we understand it, he still walks
away saying, God, what are you doing?

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In fact, things are so bad for
this guy that at one point what

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we're gonna look at this morning,
he asks God to take his life.

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He's disillusioned by what he thought God
was gonna do and what God actually did.

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So what we're gonna look at today is
how to wrestle with this as men, uh,

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what we should expect in terms of how
God interacts with us, but also what

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it looks like to respond rightly.

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And the reason I chose Elijah, because
Elijah actually doesn't respond well at

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this particular juncture in his life.

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He responds.

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The opposite of how we should respond,
but I want you to see this because even

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in his failure, God meets him there and
dusts him off and sends him forward.

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It's a really cool
experience, uh, that he has.

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But I want to give you some
tools and equip you to help you,

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uh, have faith under pressure.

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I want you to know, uh, what
to do when you're doing good

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for God, but things get worse.

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Or when you've been serving faithfully,
but you still feel drained and

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unable to serve God any longer.

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When you feel discouraged, how
do you deal with that pressure?

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And what I want to help you see is that
often what's happening here is your

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faith crumbles under pressure because
you believe something wrong about God.

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You have a wrong story about how
God works, and this is where the

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rubber meets the road for us.

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In our minds, we can so easily turn God
into a formula where we expect him to do

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certain things based on what we put in.

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And again, that's not entirely unbiblical,
but there are exceptions to the rule, and

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that's what we're gonna look at today.

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Turn your Bible to One Kings Chapter 19.

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We're gonna look at this whole
section where Elijah runs away.

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Instead of running to the
problem, he runs away from him.

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I think a lot of us can.

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Really relate to this
feeling in chapter 18.

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Uh, the chapter just before this,
you might recall, Elijah meets.

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Uh, the false prophets of
Baal on Mar Mount Carmel.

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He does this, uh, as a result of God's
call to him to say, I want you to gather

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together all the prophets, and I want you
to make a demonstration of my power and

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authority over the false gods of Israel.

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Now, at this point in Israel's history,
there's two kingdoms that make up the

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whole Israel's divided into the northern
kingdom and the southern kingdom.

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The northern Kingdom is currently
under the reign of King Ahab

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and his malicious wife, Jezebel.

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She might be worse than he is.

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He's a weak leader.

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She's a strong, a strong womanly
type, but she's also quite evil.

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That's the northern kingdom.

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The southern kingdom is ruled
by Jeh, Phat, and the southern

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kingdom makes up Judah and Simeon.

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It's a smaller part of the whole,
but that's God's promised kingdom

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that he's going to sustain.

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The Northern Kingdom has been bad from
the very beginning, from the getup.

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And what we're gonna see here is in
chapter 18, uh, Elijah meets Ahab's

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prophets, or more specifically
Jezebel's prophets on Mount Carmel.

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And he says, let's do
a demonstration here.

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You guys call your God to act
and call down fire from heaven,

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and I'll call my God to act and
I'll call down fire from Heaven.

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And the God that responds is
the one who's the true God.

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Well, surprise, surprise.

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BA's, God's Baal does nothing.

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Uh, and so you see this mockery, uh,
Elijah calls and out and says, oh,

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maybe your God's using the bathroom
and maybe something else is going on.

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Maybe he needs to be awoken.

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They go through their whole situation, but
Elijah says, God, show them your power.

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God sends down fire, licks up the flames,
and showcases his power and strength.

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That fire is an important motif.

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We're gonna come back to that in a second.

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After that demonstration, the people
say, the Lord, Yahweh, he is God.

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The Lord is gone.

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And then Elijah says, take all
of those prophets, the prophets

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of Baal and slaughter them.

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And that's exactly what the people do.

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Immediately after this episode, we get to
our passage here, first Kings Chapter 19.

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I want you to notice how it starts here.

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Remember, king Ahab is the
king of the Northern Kingdom.

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Ahab, king Ahab tells Jezebel,
it's like a son going to his mom

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saying, oh mom, look at what he did.

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Ahab tells Jezebel all that
Elijah had done and how he killed

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all the prophets with a sword.

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Now this is, by the way, this is violent,
but this is a remarkably good situation.

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God does not tolerate false prophets.

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And so this is a right judge, uh,
right, and just judgment of God.

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And we see here this is a
highlight of Elijah's life.

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It's a difficult one.

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No doubt.

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But this is a highlight.

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He tells Jezebel what Elijah
has done, and then in verse two,

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Jezebel sends a messenger to Elijah
and she, she swears in oath saying,

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so may the Gods do to me and more
also, if I do not make your life as

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a life of one of those prophets that
you killed by this time tomorrow.

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Jezebel swears by the gods that
were just disproven in chapter 18.

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In chapter 18, the Gods that
Jezebel serves were humiliated.

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But in chapter 19, she swears by
those same gods and says, Elijah, I

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saw what you did through my husband.

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I'm gonna kill you.

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You killed my people.

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I'm going after you.

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This woman threatens him and
to, to your shock and surprise.

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I hope you see here in verse three.

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Then Elijah was afraid and he
arose and ran for his life.

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This bold prophet suddenly cowers
under the fierce threats of a woman

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whose Gods were previously humiliated.

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What's happening here?

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Elijah's afraid.

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He arose and ran for his life,
and then he came to Beersheba.

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Uh, Beersheba is the southern most
border, not of the northern kingdom,

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but of the southern kingdoms.

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He is far south as he can go.

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It would be like you running to Tijuana
and then saying, all right, I'm gonna go

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even further still, or going to San Diego.

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You stop in San Diego, you
drop off your kids and say, I'm

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going to tj, don't follow me.

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Stay here.

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I'll be back at some point.

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Well, that's what he does.

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He goes to San Diego Beersheba, and
then he goes even further south and

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goes to, to tj, uh, in the wilderness
and leaves his servant there.

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So he's fleeing as far as he can go.

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He's afraid.

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It's flights not fights.

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Uh, this bold servant
of God suddenly changes.

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And I wanna show you something
that's especially important here.

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I want you to see how his faith responds
to this impetus this, uh, situation.

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And what it is at first is, is fleeing.

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At first he fought, he fought
the, the prophets of bail.

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But it, secondly, he flees.

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Something's happening,
something's shifted in him.

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And I wanna suggest to you
that what's happening is that

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Elijah's expectations of what God.

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Should have done were violated.

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Elijah expected something to happen
after Mount Carmel that didn't happen.

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And consequently he says,
oh no, everything I thought

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about God must be wrong.

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I've got a skedaddle.

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Let me make a one quick observation here.

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The very reason Elijah's
experiencing what he experiences

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is because he's doing God's will.

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The threats and the violence
should not be new to him.

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They should be an expected part of
what it looks like to follow God.

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So let's just start with number one here.

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As you do good before God, one of the
things that you should expect from God is

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that there will be increasing opposition.

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And I should say it's not from God.

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It's natural.

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It's part of being with God.

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There will be opposition.

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So expect increasing opposition
when doing increasing.

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Good.

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As you relate to God and you
do more good on his behalf

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you start reading your Bible.

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You start going to church more frequently.

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You attend a men's Bible study
skipping out your normal sleep.

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In day on, on a Saturday.

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You start serving.

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You show up early on a Sunday.

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You stay late after the service.

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All these things you
should expect opposition.

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This is not an anomaly.

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This is normal Christian life.

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This is normative.

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And it's because Elijah's doing
great good that he's greatly opposed.

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If Elijah had not called out the prophets
of Baal, well, Jezebel would have no

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need to threaten him, but it's because he
did good that the threat comes his way.

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Really what's happening here is so
clearly it, it clearly, it happens

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in our Christian life all the time.

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When you sit down to watch Hulu or
Netflix and maybe you're, you finish

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watching Beast Game season two, where
he is given out insane amounts of money.

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You never feel resistance to do that.

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No one's ever saying to you, oh, maybe
some people are, but no one's ever

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saying, you should feel guilty that you're
sitting here on the couch watching Beast

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Games or watching Hulu or what have you.

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There's so little resistance
to doing things like that.

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There's little spiritual opposition
to you to sit, sit down and just

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hang out, uh, watching Bluey with
the kids or watching the Super Bowl.

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All these low or no power mode activities
are not spiritually opposition to you.

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What is opposed is when you do
anything good for God's sake, when

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you begin to say, I don't wanna
just sit here on the sidelines.

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I wanna do good for God's sake, I
should expect there will be opposition.

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And there's at least three that
were always working against you.

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And you know these ones, right?

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You have the world.

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The world does not create a system
where it's easy to be a Christian.

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The world creates structures that
make it abnormal to be a Christian.

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And so the opposition that you'll feel
is things like when you're watching

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Netflix or Hulu or Apple tv, you'll
notice that there are themes and there

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are depictions that are offensive to you.

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They're sinful things.

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There are things that God says are evil
and you should hate, and when you see

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them, you should feel at least a tension
or conscience to say, this is not right.

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The world does not cater
to the Christian worldview.

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It works to the contrary.

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That's part of what the world does,
and that should not be an ex, uh,

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that should not be news to us.

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We, that should be an expectation.

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The world wants to normalize sin.

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So you have the first enemy of the world,
the second one, you have the flesh.

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Your flesh, even though it is redeemed
by God, it is still subject to

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sinful tendencies, and that will be
the case for the rest of your life.

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Your flesh makes it desirable to sin.

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Your flesh will capitalize on
opportunities to see something evil

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and sinful and say, oh, there's
something in there that draws me to it.

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And then finally, you have a devil
that makes it attractive to sin.

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There is a enemy that works
against you and me all the time

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to oppose your good desires.

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So let's just say you say in
your heart, I wanna wake up

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early and start reading my Bible.

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You should expect the world, the flesh,
and the devil to work against you.

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You'll see, oh man, that TV
show that I was watching.

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00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:29,470
Now I'm hooked.

230
00:11:29,800 --> 00:11:32,530
And that little, that little wheel
that says it's gonna automatically

231
00:11:32,530 --> 00:11:35,800
play next episode, let me just click
that so I can watch the next episode.

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And now suddenly you've been up three
hours later than you expected because

233
00:11:39,070 --> 00:11:42,460
you, you started watching this show
that got you hooked your flesh.

234
00:11:42,670 --> 00:11:45,070
When you wake up early, we'll
say, but we need more sleep.

235
00:11:45,340 --> 00:11:47,530
I'd like to sleep in a little
longer, if you don't mind.

236
00:11:47,560 --> 00:11:50,800
And of course, the devil says, wouldn't
it just be awesome to just lay here

237
00:11:50,800 --> 00:11:52,120
because you don't need to read your Bible.

238
00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:54,715
You already, what are the
genealogy gonna teach you anyway?

239
00:11:56,095 --> 00:11:58,375
The world, the flesh and the devil
constantly operate against you.

240
00:11:58,375 --> 00:12:00,805
You should expect increasing
opposition when doing increasing.

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00:12:00,805 --> 00:12:01,195
Good.

242
00:12:02,365 --> 00:12:05,065
We understand Elijah's Elijah's response.

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00:12:05,755 --> 00:12:08,035
Elijah expected God to do
something in Mount Carmel that he

244
00:12:08,035 --> 00:12:09,805
didn't do, and so now he flees.

245
00:12:10,285 --> 00:12:13,465
The temptation for all of us
will always be, I want to flee.

246
00:12:13,465 --> 00:12:16,105
When things get hard, I'm
going to just drop out.

247
00:12:16,315 --> 00:12:19,105
It's easier not to fight and
that's always gonna be true.

248
00:12:20,320 --> 00:12:24,370
But expecting opposition means
being prepared to push through it.

249
00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:26,050
Let me just give you a
small illustration here.

250
00:12:26,590 --> 00:12:29,020
The fish that goes downstream
doesn't have to work at it.

251
00:12:29,680 --> 00:12:31,300
He just goes with the current.

252
00:12:31,750 --> 00:12:35,080
It's when that fish turns around
and decides to go upstream.

253
00:12:35,200 --> 00:12:38,380
That very active, turning around
and going upstream is what produces

254
00:12:38,380 --> 00:12:39,760
the opposition that he feels.

255
00:12:40,465 --> 00:12:45,685
In a similar fashion, you are a Christian
who's not going downstream with the world.

256
00:12:45,805 --> 00:12:48,775
You are trying to go upstream
against the current of the

257
00:12:48,775 --> 00:12:49,945
world, the flesh and the devil.

258
00:12:50,125 --> 00:12:55,405
And that automatically invites you into a
whole realm where life is harder and this

259
00:12:55,405 --> 00:12:57,025
is what it is to be a follower of Christ.

260
00:12:57,145 --> 00:13:01,435
This is what it looks like to be
faithful expecting oppositions means

261
00:13:01,435 --> 00:13:02,905
that you're preparing to push through it.

262
00:13:03,565 --> 00:13:05,815
Um, uh, suppose you signed
up for an adventure club.

263
00:13:06,655 --> 00:13:09,775
You sign up for Adventure Club and, and
you, you finally decide I'm gonna step up.

264
00:13:10,125 --> 00:13:13,785
But then something happens on Wednesday
nights, you begin to realize that man

265
00:13:13,785 --> 00:13:15,795
work is really picking up on Wednesdays.

266
00:13:16,125 --> 00:13:18,465
And so you're busier than
you've been in a long time.

267
00:13:18,465 --> 00:13:20,535
And then you so start suddenly
having these health issues.

268
00:13:21,360 --> 00:13:24,390
Your back's starting to hurt and you
know, you, you got outta bed one day

269
00:13:24,390 --> 00:13:25,740
and your neck hurts for some reason.

270
00:13:25,740 --> 00:13:26,940
You don't understand what's going on.

271
00:13:26,940 --> 00:13:29,610
So now you're, you're trying to show
up to Adventure Club and you got this

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00:13:29,610 --> 00:13:32,940
crick in your neck and you're tired
because you've had a long day at work.

273
00:13:33,060 --> 00:13:35,400
And then you notice that your
spouse has been a little more

274
00:13:35,400 --> 00:13:36,780
irritable with you than normal.

275
00:13:36,900 --> 00:13:38,430
And you're kind of wondering,
well, what's happening here?

276
00:13:38,430 --> 00:13:39,660
I'm doing all the right things.

277
00:13:40,140 --> 00:13:43,205
And then you find yourself at a loss
of saying, Lord, I'm doing, I'm doing

278
00:13:43,205 --> 00:13:46,055
what I thought you wanted me to do,
and yet, life is harder for me now.

279
00:13:46,295 --> 00:13:47,255
What's going on?

280
00:13:48,185 --> 00:13:51,035
A world, the flesh and the devil
constantly at work against you.

281
00:13:51,515 --> 00:13:53,165
The opposition should be expected.

282
00:13:53,375 --> 00:13:55,265
I expect the devil to
go after your marriages.

283
00:13:55,295 --> 00:13:57,725
I expect the devil to go
after your relationships.

284
00:13:57,905 --> 00:14:01,805
I expect your flesh to be suspicious
of your brothers and your wives.

285
00:14:02,105 --> 00:14:05,765
I expect your flesh to be irritated with
your kids when you had a long day of work.

286
00:14:05,855 --> 00:14:08,315
And then you go to serve afterward,
and then you go home and you're like,

287
00:14:08,315 --> 00:14:10,235
oh, kick the dog and you hit the cat.

288
00:14:10,415 --> 00:14:12,305
You're mad because you've had a long day.

289
00:14:12,395 --> 00:14:16,205
Your flesh, the world, and the devil
all conspiring to work against you.

290
00:14:16,610 --> 00:14:21,320
When you do good, you need to expect that
there's going to be increasing opposition.

291
00:14:21,320 --> 00:14:22,940
God does not promise to take it away.

292
00:14:22,940 --> 00:14:27,470
In fact, to the contrary, Jesus
promises that it will be hard, and

293
00:14:27,470 --> 00:14:30,230
that's a feature and not a bug.

294
00:14:30,980 --> 00:14:33,080
You're going upstream that's
gonna cost you something.

295
00:14:35,660 --> 00:14:37,250
When committing to do
good for Christ's sake.

296
00:14:37,640 --> 00:14:39,620
You need to expect your
commitment to be tested.

297
00:14:41,570 --> 00:14:43,460
When Elijah stood there
on the mountain after they

298
00:14:43,460 --> 00:14:44,525
slaughtered the prophets of Baal.

299
00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:48,980
I, I suspect he was thinking, great.

300
00:14:49,070 --> 00:14:51,980
We're about to experience
revival in Israel.

301
00:14:52,430 --> 00:14:53,540
Things are gonna change.

302
00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:54,770
God's gonna do great things.

303
00:14:54,980 --> 00:14:56,420
And yet that didn't happen.

304
00:14:56,420 --> 00:15:00,830
At least not, not immediately,
and not the way he thought he ran

305
00:15:01,400 --> 00:15:02,900
because he was threatened by Jezebel.

306
00:15:03,200 --> 00:15:07,040
And yet what we're gonna see is
that the Lord sends him back.

307
00:15:08,270 --> 00:15:11,360
Your temptation to flee
might feel similar.

308
00:15:11,360 --> 00:15:13,670
I'd rather leave and go
to tj, start a new life.

309
00:15:14,075 --> 00:15:15,575
Then have to face what I'm facing here.

310
00:15:16,205 --> 00:15:18,515
But one of the things that we have
to be okay with gentlemen is that

311
00:15:18,815 --> 00:15:23,255
we let the Lord tell us when we're
done, not our emotions, not our flesh.

312
00:15:24,155 --> 00:15:27,515
In fact, pastor Peter is gonna preach,
I think this weekend, one Peter four 12.

313
00:15:27,965 --> 00:15:30,215
Peter says, beloved, do not be surprised.

314
00:15:30,725 --> 00:15:35,435
Brothers, do not be surprised at
the fiery trial when it comes upon

315
00:15:35,435 --> 00:15:39,635
you to test you as though something
strange were happening to you.

316
00:15:40,865 --> 00:15:42,125
Christians are not cynics.

317
00:15:42,185 --> 00:15:42,845
We're not jaded.

318
00:15:42,845 --> 00:15:47,165
People who are saying life is awful and
hard, but we, we are not surprised when

319
00:15:47,165 --> 00:15:51,575
there's difficulty in opposition to our
faith, to our love for the Lord, to our,

320
00:15:51,575 --> 00:15:54,065
our service, to our wives and our kids.

321
00:15:54,575 --> 00:15:56,495
We're not surprised at the fiery trial.

322
00:15:56,975 --> 00:16:00,605
This is part of what it is to serve the
Lord and our job is to say, Lord, I'm

323
00:16:00,605 --> 00:16:04,475
committed to you even when things don't
go my way, and perhaps especially so

324
00:16:04,925 --> 00:16:06,665
God wants us to learn to be resilient.

325
00:16:07,085 --> 00:16:09,155
But he's not ignorant of our nature.

326
00:16:09,155 --> 00:16:10,205
And this is what's so beautiful here.

327
00:16:10,205 --> 00:16:11,735
I love what we're about to see.

328
00:16:11,735 --> 00:16:14,585
This is probably one of the coolest
parts of the book of First Kings,

329
00:16:14,585 --> 00:16:17,975
and there's lots of cool parts, but
God's not ignorant of our nature.

330
00:16:18,695 --> 00:16:21,185
Psalm 1 0 3, verse 14
says, he knows our frame.

331
00:16:21,185 --> 00:16:23,945
He remembers that we are dust,
and I want you to see how God

332
00:16:23,945 --> 00:16:25,595
cares for Elijah, Elijah fleas.

333
00:16:25,655 --> 00:16:27,755
He's doing the wrong thing, he's
going the wrong direction, but I

334
00:16:27,755 --> 00:16:29,105
want you to see how God pursues him.

335
00:16:30,140 --> 00:16:32,390
Starting at verse four, one Kings 19.

336
00:16:32,390 --> 00:16:33,350
Go to verse four with me.

337
00:16:33,590 --> 00:16:35,180
We just saw that he's on the run.

338
00:16:35,240 --> 00:16:39,200
He's gone south, and then he
went further south, verse four.

339
00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:44,690
He himself, Elijah, went a day's
journey into the wilderness and came

340
00:16:44,690 --> 00:16:50,540
and sat down under a broom tree and
he asked the Lord that he might die.

341
00:16:51,230 --> 00:16:53,180
Saying It is enough now.

342
00:16:53,180 --> 00:16:55,580
Oh Lord, take away my life.

343
00:16:55,790 --> 00:16:57,770
Now let's just camp on that
for just a brief second here.

344
00:16:57,980 --> 00:17:02,540
I don't know if you've ever felt a desire
to leave this life, but if you have,

345
00:17:02,840 --> 00:17:06,800
I want you to see Scripture doesn't
endorse it, but it does recognize it.

346
00:17:07,339 --> 00:17:11,569
You might have such a hard time even
after serving the Lord in great ways.

347
00:17:11,720 --> 00:17:15,440
You might feel so low and so down that you
might like Elijah, say, Lord, I'm done.

348
00:17:15,964 --> 00:17:17,045
Stick a fork in me.

349
00:17:17,315 --> 00:17:18,185
Get me outta here.

350
00:17:18,185 --> 00:17:19,263
I'm tired of this.

351
00:17:19,355 --> 00:17:20,223
I'm tired of fighting.

352
00:17:20,223 --> 00:17:21,005
I'm tired of working.

353
00:17:21,005 --> 00:17:21,815
I'm tired of running.

354
00:17:22,055 --> 00:17:23,493
I'm tired of the threats.

355
00:17:23,555 --> 00:17:27,815
And so Elijah with other Godly men,
felt such deep despair that he was

356
00:17:27,815 --> 00:17:29,105
willing to say, Lord, just take me.

357
00:17:30,335 --> 00:17:31,055
He's not alone.

358
00:17:31,534 --> 00:17:36,665
Moses, his predecessor, also asked
the Lord, please just take my

359
00:17:36,665 --> 00:17:41,315
life Job after being one of the
most righteous men of his time.

360
00:17:42,125 --> 00:17:43,655
He's afflicted by the devil.

361
00:17:43,745 --> 00:17:46,655
God allows him to suffer and
then he asks the Lord, Lord, I

362
00:17:46,655 --> 00:17:47,795
wish is better than I not live.

363
00:17:47,795 --> 00:17:48,905
I wish I were dead.

364
00:17:49,505 --> 00:17:53,315
Jeremiah also wanted to die.

365
00:17:53,795 --> 00:17:56,915
Jonah, a prophet of God, not
the best prophet, but a prophet

366
00:17:56,915 --> 00:17:59,315
of God also wanted to die.

367
00:18:00,425 --> 00:18:03,155
It's not a good place to be, and
I'm not saying that this is okay.

368
00:18:03,155 --> 00:18:05,555
None of us wants to stay
there, but you're not alone.

369
00:18:06,245 --> 00:18:07,955
The Lord can redeem your situation.

370
00:18:08,750 --> 00:18:13,250
Even at the moments of your deepest
and darkest despair, my encouragement

371
00:18:13,250 --> 00:18:17,360
to you is not to stay there to invite
other men into this, especially.

372
00:18:17,360 --> 00:18:20,060
Of course you're gonna go to the
Lord, but don't do this alone.

373
00:18:20,810 --> 00:18:21,740
Elijah wants to die.

374
00:18:21,740 --> 00:18:22,190
He's run.

375
00:18:22,190 --> 00:18:22,910
He's on the lamb.

376
00:18:22,940 --> 00:18:23,870
He runs away.

377
00:18:23,930 --> 00:18:26,960
He says, it is enough now,
Lord, take away my life for

378
00:18:26,960 --> 00:18:28,850
I'm no better than my father's.

379
00:18:29,060 --> 00:18:31,850
Now that little phrase tells us
something about his thinking,

380
00:18:32,300 --> 00:18:34,550
I'm no better than my father's.

381
00:18:35,630 --> 00:18:36,560
I wonder if.

382
00:18:37,100 --> 00:18:40,910
He might have thought himself better
than his ancestors prior to this moment.

383
00:18:41,450 --> 00:18:42,800
He, he's making a comparison.

384
00:18:42,800 --> 00:18:45,020
I'm no better than my father's,
which tells me he's, in his

385
00:18:45,020 --> 00:18:46,130
mind, he's reasoning out.

386
00:18:46,430 --> 00:18:48,830
I thought I would have
different circumstances.

387
00:18:48,830 --> 00:18:50,630
I thought I might be more successful.

388
00:18:52,100 --> 00:18:56,120
And yet he's dealing with the
fact that he's now disillusioned

389
00:18:56,150 --> 00:19:00,110
by what ended up being something
contrary to what he was hoping for.

390
00:19:00,380 --> 00:19:03,440
Maybe he was building his identity
off of his ministry success.

391
00:19:04,145 --> 00:19:07,804
You know, I'm faithful when I,
like the Lord fed me with ravens.

392
00:19:08,014 --> 00:19:10,475
Uh, good Lord has clearly
shown his power through Elijah.

393
00:19:10,475 --> 00:19:12,485
And maybe he got used to that
thinking, this is the way

394
00:19:12,485 --> 00:19:13,715
God's always going to treat me.

395
00:19:13,715 --> 00:19:17,105
I'm always going to live in the
sunshine and never in the darkness.

396
00:19:17,615 --> 00:19:20,345
And yet God directly
confronts those expectations.

397
00:19:21,845 --> 00:19:22,324
And verse five.

398
00:19:24,350 --> 00:19:29,465
Verse five, he laid down and
slept under a broom tree.

399
00:19:31,475 --> 00:19:33,125
God does to Elijah What?

400
00:19:34,325 --> 00:19:38,735
What parents do to their fussy
toddlers take a nap and eat some food.

401
00:19:39,514 --> 00:19:40,355
It's exactly what happens here.

402
00:19:40,355 --> 00:19:40,745
Look at, look.

403
00:19:40,745 --> 00:19:41,345
Look what he does here.

404
00:19:42,034 --> 00:19:43,835
He slept under a broom tree.

405
00:19:43,835 --> 00:19:48,125
And behold, an angel touched him
and said to him, arise and eat.

406
00:19:48,905 --> 00:19:51,065
Notice there's no correction in this.

407
00:19:51,125 --> 00:19:55,475
This is just God using an
angelic messenger to feed him

408
00:19:55,534 --> 00:19:57,245
a rise and eat and behold.

409
00:19:57,815 --> 00:20:01,235
There was at his head a
cake baked on hot stones.

410
00:20:01,235 --> 00:20:02,105
That sounds really good.

411
00:20:02,465 --> 00:20:06,335
A cake baked on hot stones
and a jar of water, and he ate

412
00:20:06,365 --> 00:20:07,745
and drank and laid down again.

413
00:20:08,165 --> 00:20:09,635
This guy is exhausted.

414
00:20:09,995 --> 00:20:11,105
He sleeps.

415
00:20:11,135 --> 00:20:12,695
He gets up only to eat.

416
00:20:12,725 --> 00:20:18,335
He goes back to bed, verse seven, and
the angel of the Lord came again a second

417
00:20:18,335 --> 00:20:23,225
time and touched him and said, arise and
eat for the journey Is too great for you.

418
00:20:24,080 --> 00:20:25,490
Now remember, his journey
is away from the Lord.

419
00:20:25,490 --> 00:20:25,910
At this point.

420
00:20:26,120 --> 00:20:29,420
He's running away from the ministry
post God and given him, and yet God

421
00:20:29,420 --> 00:20:31,910
is graciously supplying his need.

422
00:20:32,510 --> 00:20:33,590
He feeds him twice.

423
00:20:33,590 --> 00:20:37,070
He lets him sleep, and then the angel
says, I need you to eat one more time

424
00:20:37,220 --> 00:20:40,940
because the the journey that you're
going to take Now, you might be running

425
00:20:40,940 --> 00:20:43,520
from the Lord, but I'm gonna use this
journey to teach you something buddy.

426
00:20:43,910 --> 00:20:47,090
So he's running from the Lord and the
angel says, I want to eat some more.

427
00:20:47,090 --> 00:20:47,695
And then verse eight.

428
00:20:48,380 --> 00:20:51,980
He arose and ate and drank,
and then notice this.

429
00:20:52,040 --> 00:20:55,100
He went in the strength of that
food for 40 days and 40 nights

430
00:20:55,100 --> 00:20:57,500
to Horri the Mount of God.

431
00:20:58,940 --> 00:21:01,760
Mount Horri is also probably Mount Sinai.

432
00:21:02,570 --> 00:21:03,500
That's a safe bet.

433
00:21:03,710 --> 00:21:06,050
Mount Sinai, if you're familiar,
is the mountain where God

434
00:21:06,050 --> 00:21:06,980
revealed himself to Moses.

435
00:21:07,805 --> 00:21:09,035
To give them the, the law.

436
00:21:09,095 --> 00:21:12,095
And so we see a lot of parallels
between Elijah and Moses.

437
00:21:12,095 --> 00:21:15,635
In fact, this is, you know, the
same Elijah and the same Moses

438
00:21:15,635 --> 00:21:19,205
who are gonna meet Jesus on a,
on the Mount of Transfiguration.

439
00:21:19,445 --> 00:21:23,345
Remember, Moses and Elijah visit
Jesus and they both collectively

440
00:21:23,345 --> 00:21:25,385
represent the law and the prophets.

441
00:21:25,445 --> 00:21:28,025
So there's a lot of parallels
between Moses and Elijah here.

442
00:21:28,685 --> 00:21:31,295
But I want you to see that how
God treats him is fascinating.

443
00:21:31,295 --> 00:21:32,825
God personally feeds.

444
00:21:33,784 --> 00:21:34,925
Personally feeds Elijah.

445
00:21:35,465 --> 00:21:38,855
Uh, in chapter 17, Elijah experienced
God's provision by sending ravens.

446
00:21:38,855 --> 00:21:42,125
But here God sends a messenger to say,
I'm, I'm going to feed you myself.

447
00:21:42,125 --> 00:21:42,845
Where'd the food come from?

448
00:21:42,845 --> 00:21:43,295
I don't know.

449
00:21:43,505 --> 00:21:44,255
God made it.

450
00:21:44,685 --> 00:21:46,305
And here God tops him off.

451
00:21:46,305 --> 00:21:47,595
But notice he feeds him.

452
00:21:47,685 --> 00:21:48,405
He gives him rest.

453
00:21:48,405 --> 00:21:52,605
And then he says, I want you to fast for
40 days, which is exactly what happens.

454
00:21:52,635 --> 00:21:58,185
He tops him off and then sends him 40
days and 40 nights into the wilderness.

455
00:21:58,395 --> 00:22:01,455
Now just think 40 wilderness.

456
00:22:01,815 --> 00:22:03,885
Mount Sinai, is this
sounding familiar at all?

457
00:22:04,065 --> 00:22:06,135
There should be some connections
that are being connected in your

458
00:22:06,135 --> 00:22:10,755
brain that draw the parallel between
Elijah and Moses who led the people

459
00:22:10,755 --> 00:22:14,475
of Israel through the wilderness
when they were being tested by God.

460
00:22:15,165 --> 00:22:19,695
Moses is on the lamb away from the
ministry post God gave him, and now he's

461
00:22:19,695 --> 00:22:23,685
on the lamb, and God's gonna send him
through the wilderness to test him and

462
00:22:23,685 --> 00:22:26,175
to meet him, and this is fascinating.

463
00:22:26,175 --> 00:22:27,705
I love the way that God responds to him.

464
00:22:28,470 --> 00:22:31,110
Now what we see here is God does
a few things that we need to see,

465
00:22:31,110 --> 00:22:33,030
but let me just put it like this
under a point number two here.

466
00:22:33,210 --> 00:22:38,070
We should expect God to meet our real
needs and not our felt needs, our

467
00:22:38,070 --> 00:22:39,840
real needs and not our felt needs.

468
00:22:40,200 --> 00:22:44,640
Uh, it seems like Elijah expected God
to meet certain needs, that he had

469
00:22:44,760 --> 00:22:48,960
expectations about God provoking, revival,
and doing all sorts of things, but God

470
00:22:48,960 --> 00:22:51,120
instead says, hold on, slow down, Elijah.

471
00:22:51,750 --> 00:22:54,900
I'm gonna meet your needs in a way that
you don't even expect me to do this.

472
00:22:55,995 --> 00:22:58,710
Have you ever seen those cups or
those memes that say, I, I'm sorry

473
00:22:58,710 --> 00:23:01,860
for what I said when I was hungry or
when I was hungry or when I was tired.

474
00:23:02,460 --> 00:23:03,450
I understand the sentiment.

475
00:23:03,630 --> 00:23:05,760
When our flesh is weak, we,
we get a lot more irritable.

476
00:23:06,360 --> 00:23:09,180
And so it's fascinating to me that
here, the first thing God does

477
00:23:09,360 --> 00:23:11,070
is meet Elijah's physical means.

478
00:23:11,125 --> 00:23:13,705
A lot of us would, would do
well to see how God does this

479
00:23:13,705 --> 00:23:14,700
and to do this for ourselves.

480
00:23:15,820 --> 00:23:20,640
Uh, sleep and food and taking care
of your body is not unspiritual.

481
00:23:20,640 --> 00:23:21,630
In fact, we see the opposite.

482
00:23:21,660 --> 00:23:24,030
This is the first thing God
does to minister to Elijah.

483
00:23:24,180 --> 00:23:26,880
It's very spiritual to care for
the body that God has given you.

484
00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:30,750
But I want us to notice the gap between
our felt needs and our real needs.

485
00:23:30,750 --> 00:23:33,060
And for that, I'm gonna take
you outta First Kings for just

486
00:23:33,060 --> 00:23:34,350
a moment before we go back.

487
00:23:34,410 --> 00:23:36,030
Turn to Philippians chapter four.

488
00:23:36,645 --> 00:23:41,055
We're gonna take a brief look
at the Apostle Paul and notice

489
00:23:41,055 --> 00:23:42,435
what he says about needs.

490
00:23:42,525 --> 00:23:43,455
This is so critical.

491
00:23:43,455 --> 00:23:46,185
This unlocked something for
me as I study for this, and I

492
00:23:46,185 --> 00:23:47,175
think it'll be helpful to you.

493
00:23:48,045 --> 00:23:51,375
Philippians chapter four at verse 19.

494
00:23:52,995 --> 00:23:57,165
We need to think carefully about how
God wants us to think about our needs

495
00:23:57,915 --> 00:23:59,865
so that we can have a right expectation.

496
00:24:04,110 --> 00:24:07,530
My thesis here is that our faith
will often struggle because we have

497
00:24:07,710 --> 00:24:11,220
wrong expectations, sub biblical
or even unbiblical expectations.

498
00:24:11,670 --> 00:24:15,450
And part of this then is how
God deals with our needs.

499
00:24:16,140 --> 00:24:19,380
Let's take a look at
Philippians four, verse 19.

500
00:24:19,560 --> 00:24:20,640
This is worth memorizing here.

501
00:24:21,540 --> 00:24:25,140
Paul says to the Philippian Church, after
thanking them for their gift, he says,

502
00:24:25,320 --> 00:24:29,145
my God will supply every need of yours.

503
00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:34,740
According to his riches
in glory in Christ Jesus.

504
00:24:35,550 --> 00:24:36,180
Wow.

505
00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:37,860
Talk about a blank check.

506
00:24:38,250 --> 00:24:40,530
My God will give you
every need that you have.

507
00:24:40,530 --> 00:24:43,170
He will supply your
needs every which need.

508
00:24:43,170 --> 00:24:43,920
Every need.

509
00:24:44,820 --> 00:24:45,780
How is he gonna do that?

510
00:24:45,780 --> 00:24:50,400
Well, according to his riches in glory
in Christ Jesus, that is a blank check.

511
00:24:50,430 --> 00:24:52,560
And for most Christians, I
think we see that and we say,

512
00:24:52,560 --> 00:24:53,730
man, that is so encouraging.

513
00:24:53,910 --> 00:24:54,930
The Lord's gonna provide.

514
00:24:54,930 --> 00:24:56,970
And indeed he does, and he will.

515
00:24:57,600 --> 00:24:58,440
So important.

516
00:24:59,250 --> 00:25:02,370
Staying in chapter four though, I want
you to scoop back just a few verses.

517
00:25:02,370 --> 00:25:06,480
We'll go back to verse 11,
Philippians four, verse 11.

518
00:25:09,930 --> 00:25:14,580
Paul says, as he thanks them for the gift
that they sent to him, the Philippian

519
00:25:14,580 --> 00:25:16,200
church blessed him with some resources.

520
00:25:16,380 --> 00:25:19,530
He's thanking them for this, and
then he says in verse 11, not that

521
00:25:19,530 --> 00:25:21,840
I'm speaking of being in need.

522
00:25:22,080 --> 00:25:25,740
Keep an eye on that word there
for I have learned in whatever

523
00:25:25,740 --> 00:25:28,110
situation I am to be content.

524
00:25:29,070 --> 00:25:31,110
And then he describes the
situations that he's been in.

525
00:25:31,290 --> 00:25:35,610
Verse 12, I know how to be brought
low, isn't been in a low situation

526
00:25:35,670 --> 00:25:41,160
and I know how to about in any
and every circumstance, I have

527
00:25:41,160 --> 00:25:44,280
learned the secret of facing plenty.

528
00:25:44,670 --> 00:25:50,040
And look at this hunger, abundance,
and here's our word, need.

529
00:25:50,910 --> 00:25:56,970
I can do all things through him who
strengthens me Well, which is it Paul?

530
00:25:58,230 --> 00:26:03,600
Does he supply every need or should
we expect to have moments of need?

531
00:26:04,830 --> 00:26:08,850
Should we call on God to fulfill his
promise, to supply every need of ours

532
00:26:08,850 --> 00:26:10,560
according to his riches in Christ Jesus?

533
00:26:10,560 --> 00:26:13,500
Or should we, like Paul,
expect to be naked and hungry?

534
00:26:14,010 --> 00:26:15,150
Hunger's a need, isn't it?

535
00:26:15,210 --> 00:26:15,780
It's a physical.

536
00:26:15,780 --> 00:26:16,710
If I don't eat, I die.

537
00:26:17,475 --> 00:26:21,615
And yet Paul says, here, I know how to
be in both areas and I'm gonna be okay.

538
00:26:21,795 --> 00:26:25,395
I, he says here in verse 11, I, I'm
not speaking of being in need guys.

539
00:26:25,395 --> 00:26:26,145
I have no needs.

540
00:26:26,175 --> 00:26:27,555
I'm well provided for.

541
00:26:27,885 --> 00:26:30,525
And yet he's also saying, I've
also know what it is to be naked.

542
00:26:30,675 --> 00:26:33,405
I know how to have a lot, I know
how to have a little, how do we

543
00:26:33,405 --> 00:26:34,605
put these two things together?

544
00:26:35,205 --> 00:26:38,835
And I think the important part for you
to see here is that God meets your needs

545
00:26:38,925 --> 00:26:41,145
through both abundance and deprivation.

546
00:26:41,985 --> 00:26:45,735
Because your needs are often not the
temporal ones that we're focused on.

547
00:26:45,735 --> 00:26:50,385
The needs are the permanent and the
spiritual ones that God cares more about.

548
00:26:51,285 --> 00:26:54,105
This is not to say that he doesn't want
you to care for your physical body.

549
00:26:54,105 --> 00:26:55,005
Obviously he does.

550
00:26:55,365 --> 00:27:00,045
But our greatest need is faithfulness
to Christ and life and in death.

551
00:27:00,045 --> 00:27:03,855
Our greatest need is to trust that
God knows our needs and will meet

552
00:27:03,855 --> 00:27:07,425
them as he sees fits, and that will
mean as you see here in Paul seasons

553
00:27:07,425 --> 00:27:10,815
of deprivation, where your belt
has to be tightened a notch or two.

554
00:27:11,565 --> 00:27:14,475
Or where you're having to make cuts
that you didn't expect to make or where

555
00:27:14,475 --> 00:27:17,415
you're having to sacrifice sleep that
you weren't expecting to sacrifice.

556
00:27:17,625 --> 00:27:19,155
There are seasons where this is the case.

557
00:27:19,155 --> 00:27:22,425
Paul makes it clear, and yet he
says, even in those seasons, it

558
00:27:22,425 --> 00:27:26,745
is possible and even expected that
God will meet your real needs.

559
00:27:28,065 --> 00:27:33,315
God will be faithful and your hard
marriage, God will meet your real need,

560
00:27:33,825 --> 00:27:37,035
which is not necessarily peace in the
marriage, although you might pursue that.

561
00:27:37,875 --> 00:27:40,005
The need is that you
learn Christ's patience.

562
00:27:40,905 --> 00:27:44,415
That you learn how to love
someone who makes it hard to love

563
00:27:45,885 --> 00:27:47,445
God will meet your real needs.

564
00:27:47,955 --> 00:27:52,515
Your felt needs are helpful
indicators, but they can't be the

565
00:27:52,515 --> 00:27:54,915
thing that governs your responses.

566
00:27:56,115 --> 00:28:00,735
God will sometimes hold, rather,
God will sometimes withhold lesser

567
00:28:00,740 --> 00:28:03,105
needs to meet your greater needs.

568
00:28:04,095 --> 00:28:05,415
We're not often good at.

569
00:28:05,835 --> 00:28:10,035
Ranking these in our minds, which
is why we have to let God lead us in

570
00:28:10,035 --> 00:28:14,505
this and be willing to say, God, I,
I'm trying, I'm, I'm trying to save.

571
00:28:14,505 --> 00:28:15,615
I'm trying to serve my wife.

572
00:28:15,615 --> 00:28:18,135
I'm trying to serve my church,
and I, I'm struggling with

573
00:28:18,135 --> 00:28:19,665
some of my needs not being met.

574
00:28:20,415 --> 00:28:22,995
Lord, is this a season where you're
wanting me to learn how to be

575
00:28:22,995 --> 00:28:25,155
content even when you withhold this?

576
00:28:25,305 --> 00:28:27,615
Or do I need to change the circumstance?

577
00:28:27,705 --> 00:28:31,785
Both are a possibility, but I just need to
expose you to the fact that God might want

578
00:28:31,785 --> 00:28:33,795
you there in that season of deprivation.

579
00:28:34,710 --> 00:28:35,400
It's very possible.

580
00:28:36,675 --> 00:28:36,975
Okay.

581
00:28:37,305 --> 00:28:39,645
Philippians four is a really
helpful place for us to camp.

582
00:28:39,735 --> 00:28:41,655
I, I would love to spend more time
here, but I'd love for you to just

583
00:28:41,655 --> 00:28:44,895
study Paul's life and put these
pieces together for yourselves.

584
00:28:44,985 --> 00:28:47,505
Let's give you a little hint of it,
but let's turn back to One Kings

585
00:28:47,505 --> 00:28:51,435
19 as we look at the facts and just
make two quick observations here.

586
00:28:51,675 --> 00:28:55,275
God met physical needs
first, rest, and food.

587
00:28:55,485 --> 00:28:57,375
And I wanna point out to your
attention here, something you

588
00:28:57,375 --> 00:28:59,175
know, you are a body and a soul.

589
00:28:59,515 --> 00:29:03,115
You are both of these things in
one, and because of that, it is not

590
00:29:03,145 --> 00:29:07,285
unspiritual to care for your body and you
should, you should care for your body.

591
00:29:07,795 --> 00:29:09,595
Both of these things are important to God.

592
00:29:09,835 --> 00:29:13,275
We're not we're not the kind of people
who think that only your soul matters.

593
00:29:13,335 --> 00:29:16,125
We do believe that you should take
care of your physical body, and

594
00:29:16,125 --> 00:29:19,605
that means trusting that God wants
you to use food to care for it.

595
00:29:19,605 --> 00:29:22,455
In fact, Jesus asks you to pray
in the Sermon on the Mount.

596
00:29:22,755 --> 00:29:24,765
Give us this day our daily bread.

597
00:29:26,840 --> 00:29:28,010
Give us this day our daily bread.

598
00:29:28,370 --> 00:29:29,810
God provides sleep.

599
00:29:30,080 --> 00:29:33,680
Uh, in Psalm 1 27, 2, it says that
he gives to his beloved sleep.

600
00:29:34,040 --> 00:29:37,610
God makes it easier for us to fight
when we are physically replenished.

601
00:29:37,610 --> 00:29:41,000
In fact, do you remember what Jesus says
in the garden, uh, as his disciples fall

602
00:29:41,000 --> 00:29:42,410
asleep at his hour of greatest need?

603
00:29:42,410 --> 00:29:43,160
What does he say?

604
00:29:43,310 --> 00:29:45,655
The flesh is weak.

605
00:29:46,010 --> 00:29:47,495
Spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

606
00:29:48,215 --> 00:29:51,335
Sometimes we shoot ourselves in the
foot by weakening our flesh over

607
00:29:51,335 --> 00:29:54,545
and over again through patterns and
habits that don't serve our body.

608
00:29:54,725 --> 00:29:56,945
God feeds and sleeps.

609
00:29:56,975 --> 00:30:02,345
Elijah, before he says anything to him,
before he addresses the issue, he just

610
00:30:02,345 --> 00:30:03,455
says, I need you to take a nap, buddy.

611
00:30:04,595 --> 00:30:08,735
Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can
do is taking a nap and eating a good meal.

612
00:30:10,055 --> 00:30:10,715
No amens on that.

613
00:30:10,745 --> 00:30:10,895
Yeah.

614
00:30:10,925 --> 00:30:11,135
Okay.

615
00:30:11,135 --> 00:30:12,305
I said amen to my heart.

616
00:30:12,845 --> 00:30:13,625
I was all about that.

617
00:30:14,435 --> 00:30:16,415
I don't need an excuse to take
a nap, but that one helped.

618
00:30:18,185 --> 00:30:21,275
Some people focus on one thing to
the exclusion of the other, and I

619
00:30:21,275 --> 00:30:23,465
know that's a danger for a lot of
us, but I just need you to see being

620
00:30:23,945 --> 00:30:26,465
a physical being means that we have
to take care of our physical bodies.

621
00:30:27,095 --> 00:30:31,055
If you don't do that, you end up
being sick, which will not help you

622
00:30:31,055 --> 00:30:32,495
as you seek to love your spouse.

623
00:30:33,005 --> 00:30:35,405
Uh, if you eat poor food on a
regular basis, it's not gonna

624
00:30:35,405 --> 00:30:36,515
help you endure ministry.

625
00:30:36,515 --> 00:30:37,865
It's not gonna add to your energy.

626
00:30:38,075 --> 00:30:40,205
It's not gonna give you
the ability to serve in, in

627
00:30:40,205 --> 00:30:41,825
moments where people need you.

628
00:30:42,360 --> 00:30:46,010
I remember I was telling my kids, look,
I, I, I exercised so I could be helpful

629
00:30:46,010 --> 00:30:49,550
to the church and my, my greatest hero
story of all time, I know I should, you're

630
00:30:49,550 --> 00:30:51,080
never supposed to share hero stories.

631
00:30:51,560 --> 00:30:53,630
Uh, but I showed this,
shared this with my kids.

632
00:30:53,690 --> 00:30:54,680
'cause this was such a great example.

633
00:30:55,190 --> 00:30:58,860
I was serving in Leisure World,
which is now called Laguna Woods.

634
00:30:58,860 --> 00:30:58,880
Laguna Woods.

635
00:30:58,880 --> 00:30:59,160
Thank you.

636
00:31:00,450 --> 00:31:03,270
Pastor Peach and I were doing
ministry before we came here, and

637
00:31:03,330 --> 00:31:07,560
I came early to set up and do my
thing, and I saw a man on the floor.

638
00:31:08,010 --> 00:31:11,160
And I saw another older gentleman,
two of these older gentlemen were

639
00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:13,110
struggling to, to help each other out.

640
00:31:13,110 --> 00:31:15,420
The one older gentleman was trying
to push the other guy up, and the

641
00:31:15,420 --> 00:31:17,040
other guy was just not making it.

642
00:31:17,550 --> 00:31:19,650
So I walked over there,
I said, can I help?

643
00:31:20,010 --> 00:31:21,690
And the other guy said, yeah, he fell.

644
00:31:21,690 --> 00:31:22,560
And so I said, great.

645
00:31:22,560 --> 00:31:23,220
I got this.

646
00:31:23,370 --> 00:31:25,680
So I stood behind the guy,
I put my arms underneath his

647
00:31:25,680 --> 00:31:27,690
armpits and I just did squat.

648
00:31:27,960 --> 00:31:28,770
It was so cool.

649
00:31:28,770 --> 00:31:30,660
It was the only time I've ever
been able to use that in a

650
00:31:30,660 --> 00:31:31,680
really practical situation.

651
00:31:31,680 --> 00:31:33,630
But I put my arms underneath
that, pulled them right up.

652
00:31:33,900 --> 00:31:34,620
It was a piece of cake.

653
00:31:34,620 --> 00:31:36,060
He was very thankful and
I thought, man, that's.

654
00:31:36,645 --> 00:31:37,755
That's why I exercise.

655
00:31:38,085 --> 00:31:38,775
That's it.

656
00:31:38,835 --> 00:31:39,255
That was it.

657
00:31:39,255 --> 00:31:41,745
I mean, obviously I use it now because
we're setting up and tearing down all the

658
00:31:41,745 --> 00:31:43,185
time, but I exercised so I could do that.

659
00:31:43,515 --> 00:31:47,265
And then I, I, I rode my bike before I
came because I wanna have a fresh mind.

660
00:31:47,505 --> 00:31:48,045
That's all I did.

661
00:31:48,045 --> 00:31:51,015
I just rode the bike and I wanted to
think about how I can best serve you guys.

662
00:31:51,825 --> 00:31:54,825
God wants you to use your physical body
to serve the church, to serve your family,

663
00:31:54,825 --> 00:31:58,605
to serve your employer, to serve the
people that God has given you, and the

664
00:31:58,605 --> 00:32:01,095
more physical, physically fit you're able.

665
00:32:01,680 --> 00:32:03,540
To be the more capable you're able to be.

666
00:32:03,540 --> 00:32:08,040
Of course there's a, there's a way to
emphasize that in a, in an unhelpful way.

667
00:32:08,670 --> 00:32:10,470
So God met physical needs first.

668
00:32:10,780 --> 00:32:13,330
Second, God prioritized spiritual needs.

669
00:32:13,540 --> 00:32:15,370
Ultimately, I need you to see that too.

670
00:32:15,610 --> 00:32:20,980
God pr, God met the physical needs first,
but he prioritized the spiritual needs.

671
00:32:21,310 --> 00:32:23,890
That gets the emphasis, and this
is where I need you to land.

672
00:32:24,160 --> 00:32:26,260
Uh, I can't give you a
percentage, like, Hey, 60%.

673
00:32:27,325 --> 00:32:31,975
Spiritual, 40% physical, but I can show
you this is what God prioritized and all

674
00:32:31,975 --> 00:32:35,155
we have to do is look at the fact that God
makes him fast for 40 days and 40 nights.

675
00:32:35,635 --> 00:32:38,695
He ate and he slept and he says, by
the way, I hope you enjoyed that meal.

676
00:32:38,695 --> 00:32:40,255
'cause you're now not gonna eat for 40.

677
00:32:40,765 --> 00:32:44,215
You're gonna be on a, on a, on a, an
elimination diet for the next 40 days.

678
00:32:44,455 --> 00:32:47,455
He does this in order to
help Elijah commune with God.

679
00:32:47,455 --> 00:32:49,315
And that's actually what fasting
is supposed to help us do.

680
00:32:49,765 --> 00:32:52,315
Fasting, withholding yourself from
food allows us to connect with God

681
00:32:52,315 --> 00:32:55,405
in ways that we otherwise would
not, and so he makes him fast.

682
00:32:55,765 --> 00:32:57,925
I also wanted to show, I wanna
show you First Corinthians

683
00:32:57,925 --> 00:32:58,765
chapter five, verse five.

684
00:32:58,765 --> 00:32:59,455
Just write that down.

685
00:33:00,085 --> 00:33:01,555
First Corinthians five, verse five.

686
00:33:02,665 --> 00:33:06,955
Paul says to the church at Corinth, I want
you to send this man outta the church.

687
00:33:06,955 --> 00:33:11,035
And here's what he says, you are
to deliver this man to Satan for

688
00:33:11,095 --> 00:33:14,935
the destruction of the flesh.

689
00:33:15,655 --> 00:33:16,405
Why?

690
00:33:16,735 --> 00:33:21,385
So that his spirit may be
saved in the day of the Lord.

691
00:33:22,195 --> 00:33:23,995
Do you see how God prioritizes?

692
00:33:24,550 --> 00:33:26,380
The spirit over the flesh.

693
00:33:27,040 --> 00:33:30,010
So if there is gonna be one to
suffer, let it be your flesh.

694
00:33:30,400 --> 00:33:32,890
If there is gonna be one to
sacrifice, let it be your flesh.

695
00:33:34,030 --> 00:33:38,530
But ordinarily, as a regular pattern of
your life, God does want you to care for

696
00:33:38,530 --> 00:33:43,750
your physical body while still focusing
and prioritizing your spiritual needs.

697
00:33:44,410 --> 00:33:47,260
What Elijah needed was
a reframed view of God.

698
00:33:47,710 --> 00:33:48,880
That was his expectation.

699
00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:52,420
The expectation should be, I need
to expect God to meet my real

700
00:33:52,420 --> 00:33:53,950
needs and not just my felt needs.

701
00:33:54,775 --> 00:33:58,765
In this last section, and man, this is so
rich, we're not gonna have all the time

702
00:33:58,765 --> 00:34:02,035
that I want to discuss it, but I want to
take you through the last section where

703
00:34:02,035 --> 00:34:07,105
God now meets Elijah face to face, as it
were to deal with his issue, and we'll see

704
00:34:07,105 --> 00:34:10,405
how God reframes Elijah's expectations.

705
00:34:10,645 --> 00:34:11,485
This is awesome.

706
00:34:11,514 --> 00:34:13,195
Okay, verse nine.

707
00:34:13,465 --> 00:34:16,195
I'm gonna read it all the way through
with minimal commentary and we'll, we'll

708
00:34:16,195 --> 00:34:17,425
make our third and final point here.

709
00:34:18,775 --> 00:34:22,764
Then Elijah came to a cave and lodged
in it, and behold the word of the

710
00:34:22,764 --> 00:34:26,545
Lord came to him and said to him,
what are you doing here, Elijah?

711
00:34:27,324 --> 00:34:33,175
Just notice that this is a subtle
and gentle way for God to tell Elijah

712
00:34:33,175 --> 00:34:36,175
you're not in the right place, but he
doesn't do it by pointing his finger,

713
00:34:36,175 --> 00:34:38,844
said, Elijah, stop being an idiot.

714
00:34:38,844 --> 00:34:39,835
Get back to work.

715
00:34:40,284 --> 00:34:43,014
He starts with the question,
what are you doing here, Elijah?

716
00:34:43,855 --> 00:34:45,505
What an incredible God.

717
00:34:47,245 --> 00:34:48,594
How gracious is he?

718
00:34:48,685 --> 00:34:49,225
Verse 10.

719
00:34:49,885 --> 00:34:51,804
Notice how Elijah responds.

720
00:34:51,804 --> 00:34:52,585
Pay close attention.

721
00:34:52,675 --> 00:34:55,284
He says, I've been very
jealous for the Lord.

722
00:34:55,614 --> 00:35:01,135
The God of hosts for e for the people
of Israel have forsaken your covenant.

723
00:35:01,135 --> 00:35:02,545
They've thrown down your altars.

724
00:35:02,545 --> 00:35:04,135
They've killed your
prophets with the sword.

725
00:35:04,135 --> 00:35:10,060
And I even, I, only I alone him left,
and they seek my life to take it away.

726
00:35:10,975 --> 00:35:12,325
Okay, keep that one fixed in your mind.

727
00:35:12,505 --> 00:35:13,375
Notice his response.

728
00:35:13,405 --> 00:35:14,125
I'm alone.

729
00:35:14,125 --> 00:35:16,045
I'm, I'm the only prophet of God.

730
00:35:16,045 --> 00:35:16,435
Left.

731
00:35:18,535 --> 00:35:24,265
If you have time later, chapter
18 in verse seven, actually

732
00:35:24,265 --> 00:35:25,855
starting at chapter 18 verse three.

733
00:35:26,365 --> 00:35:29,485
Obadiah is the household
manager for King Ahab.

734
00:35:29,815 --> 00:35:34,135
He's the one who meets Elijah and
says, guys, Elijah, I've got 50 guys,

735
00:35:34,135 --> 00:35:37,375
50 prophets that I have protected and
hidden, or a hundred actually, but in

736
00:35:37,375 --> 00:35:40,495
fifties, I protected and hidden these
guys, they're faithful to Yahweh.

737
00:35:40,975 --> 00:35:44,305
He had this meeting with Obediah,
and yet Elijah seems to have

738
00:35:44,305 --> 00:35:45,745
forgotten that conversation entirely.

739
00:35:46,825 --> 00:35:47,755
I'm alone.

740
00:35:48,205 --> 00:35:48,745
Verse 11.

741
00:35:50,485 --> 00:35:55,105
God said to Elijah, go out and
stand on the mount before the Lord.

742
00:35:55,525 --> 00:35:58,255
This is also critical because
I don't think Elijah responds.

743
00:35:58,525 --> 00:36:00,625
He doesn't do this, at
least not immediately.

744
00:36:01,375 --> 00:36:02,545
Here's what the Lord says.

745
00:36:02,695 --> 00:36:02,995
Here's what.

746
00:36:03,025 --> 00:36:03,925
Here's what the Bible says here.

747
00:36:03,925 --> 00:36:09,775
And behold, the Lord passed by and a great
and strong wind tore the mountains in

748
00:36:09,775 --> 00:36:12,775
broken pieces, the rocks before the Lord.

749
00:36:13,525 --> 00:36:15,385
But the Lord was not in the wind.

750
00:36:16,660 --> 00:36:21,220
And after the wind, an earthquake, but
the Lord was not in the earthquake.

751
00:36:21,850 --> 00:36:25,480
And after the earthquake of fire,
remember the fire motif, God stands down.

752
00:36:25,480 --> 00:36:26,110
Fire from heaven.

753
00:36:26,290 --> 00:36:27,550
There's a fire.

754
00:36:27,820 --> 00:36:30,190
But the Lord was not in the fire.

755
00:36:30,970 --> 00:36:37,060
And after the fire, the sound of a
low whisper notice here, and when

756
00:36:37,060 --> 00:36:42,850
Elijah heard it, he wrapped his
face in his cloak and went out and

757
00:36:42,850 --> 00:36:44,405
stood at the entrance of the cave.

758
00:36:44,950 --> 00:36:46,660
I just need to pause real quick here.

759
00:36:47,180 --> 00:36:53,010
All this spectacular events that God
showcases to Elijah, these are ways

760
00:36:53,010 --> 00:36:54,330
that Elijah would've been familiar.

761
00:36:54,330 --> 00:36:56,400
God operates in spectacular ways.

762
00:36:56,400 --> 00:37:00,090
Elijah has seen this, and yes,
the Bible repeatedly says the

763
00:37:00,090 --> 00:37:01,290
Lord was not in these things.

764
00:37:01,410 --> 00:37:05,760
It's only until you get this still
small voice, the low whisper, a thin

765
00:37:05,760 --> 00:37:10,080
silence that finally Elijah recognizes,
okay, that's where the Lord is.

766
00:37:10,260 --> 00:37:12,480
But notice that Elijah wraps his face.

767
00:37:13,229 --> 00:37:16,740
Is this, this might seem to you
at least at first glance, oh, he's

768
00:37:16,740 --> 00:37:18,779
being humble, he's being pious.

769
00:37:18,779 --> 00:37:20,640
He doesn't want to
behold the glory of God.

770
00:37:20,640 --> 00:37:23,129
He doesn't want to, uh, look at
something he should not look at.

771
00:37:23,129 --> 00:37:25,589
But I would su suggest to you
that what's happening here is

772
00:37:25,589 --> 00:37:28,290
actually Elijah, avoiding the Lord.

773
00:37:29,040 --> 00:37:33,149
Hiding your face from somebody is
not a positive thing in scripture.

774
00:37:33,149 --> 00:37:37,740
In fact, several passages ask the Lord,
please don't hide your face from me.

775
00:37:38,580 --> 00:37:40,979
Moses, you might think hides his face too.

776
00:37:41,475 --> 00:37:43,395
But not when he is with the Lord.

777
00:37:44,475 --> 00:37:49,185
Moses hides his face when after he
meets the Lord, so that the people don't

778
00:37:49,185 --> 00:37:51,075
see the glory fading from his noggin.

779
00:37:51,885 --> 00:37:54,645
But when he is with the Lord,
he's with the Lord face to face.

780
00:37:55,035 --> 00:37:58,965
Paul says later on, we all with unveiled
face, behold the glory of the Lord are

781
00:37:58,965 --> 00:38:01,845
being transformed into the same image
from one degree of glory to another.

782
00:38:02,325 --> 00:38:06,225
I don't think this is a good
thing I see in Elijah resistance.

783
00:38:07,065 --> 00:38:08,430
I don't wanna see what you're showing me.

784
00:38:08,430 --> 00:38:08,550
God.

785
00:38:09,360 --> 00:38:13,860
And that would explain to me why he
doesn't exit the cave until after the

786
00:38:13,860 --> 00:38:15,660
Lord puts on this firework show for him.

787
00:38:16,440 --> 00:38:20,820
I think Elijah is still very much in
a resistance and rebellious state.

788
00:38:22,290 --> 00:38:25,050
The still small voice, this is
the crescendo of the whole thing.

789
00:38:25,620 --> 00:38:28,440
Chapter 19 really wants us to
see this still small voice.

790
00:38:28,440 --> 00:38:29,550
What, what is God showing us?

791
00:38:29,550 --> 00:38:31,980
Why is God not in the wind,
the earthquake and the fire?

792
00:38:32,040 --> 00:38:34,260
And I, I wanna suggest to you
that what God is showing us

793
00:38:34,260 --> 00:38:35,370
here is that he's not a formula.

794
00:38:35,955 --> 00:38:40,035
And God doesn't operate according to a
fixed calculation where he says, I always

795
00:38:40,035 --> 00:38:42,134
do A, B, C, and D when you expect me to.

796
00:38:43,214 --> 00:38:45,584
We can talk about God's promises,
especially those where he

797
00:38:45,584 --> 00:38:46,664
promises to meet our needs.

798
00:38:46,785 --> 00:38:47,894
But God is not a formula.

799
00:38:47,894 --> 00:38:48,615
He's a person.

800
00:38:48,705 --> 00:38:51,134
He acts according to his personhood.

801
00:38:52,154 --> 00:38:55,095
And I wonder if you've ever expected
God to act in your life in a certain

802
00:38:55,095 --> 00:38:58,124
way, like He's gonna save this person,
he's gonna do this thing or that thing.

803
00:38:58,305 --> 00:38:59,354
Not that he's unwilling.

804
00:39:00,840 --> 00:39:04,950
But I wonder if you might miss the
ordinary ways that God works, the

805
00:39:04,950 --> 00:39:08,129
ordinary the quiets, the unobtrusive ways.

806
00:39:08,879 --> 00:39:12,720
There's a million things that God
is doing and we're, we're really

807
00:39:12,779 --> 00:39:16,890
never all that aware of all of them,
but we can understand how people

808
00:39:16,890 --> 00:39:18,149
would see God in this spectacular.

809
00:39:18,149 --> 00:39:20,430
But I think God is showing
Elijah, I don't need spectacular.

810
00:39:21,060 --> 00:39:22,500
I can work in thin silence.

811
00:39:23,084 --> 00:39:26,924
I can work through a donkey, I can work
through a normal everyday conversation.

812
00:39:26,924 --> 00:39:29,924
I can work in things that you're
not expecting the ordinary,

813
00:39:30,134 --> 00:39:31,544
everyday, and the quiet.

814
00:39:32,744 --> 00:39:34,575
Let us not be like Elijah and miss that.

815
00:39:34,575 --> 00:39:36,224
God works in the ordinary ways.

816
00:39:37,694 --> 00:39:38,534
Elijah approaches.

817
00:39:38,534 --> 00:39:39,704
God hides his face.

818
00:39:40,214 --> 00:39:42,544
And then notice notice here in

819
00:39:45,694 --> 00:39:47,075
verse 14.

820
00:39:47,480 --> 00:39:51,320
Yeah, actually the, the last part of
verse 13, notice again what God does.

821
00:39:51,410 --> 00:39:53,390
He asks Elijah the same question.

822
00:39:55,550 --> 00:39:58,550
There came a voice to him and said,
what are you doing here, Elijah?

823
00:39:59,270 --> 00:40:00,650
Now, God's not stupid.

824
00:40:01,010 --> 00:40:03,920
He's asking a question that's the same
question, and what do you think God

825
00:40:03,920 --> 00:40:07,670
would expect after the display of his
glory, his majesty, and the thin voice?

826
00:40:07,670 --> 00:40:09,410
What do you think God's
expecting after this?

827
00:40:10,310 --> 00:40:11,270
Hopefully a different answer.

828
00:40:12,860 --> 00:40:14,420
Notice Elijah's response.

829
00:40:14,870 --> 00:40:15,860
What are you doing here, Elijah?

830
00:40:16,625 --> 00:40:20,945
He said, and you could just read verse
10 because it's the same exact thing.

831
00:40:21,095 --> 00:40:24,005
I've been very jealous for the
Lord that the God of hosts for the

832
00:40:24,005 --> 00:40:26,615
people of Israel have forsaken your
covenant, throw down your altars, and

833
00:40:26,615 --> 00:40:27,755
killed your prophets with the sword.

834
00:40:27,755 --> 00:40:31,385
And I even, I only am left and
they seek my life to take it away.

835
00:40:32,375 --> 00:40:33,965
Same response.

836
00:40:35,305 --> 00:40:37,045
And yet the Lord still.

837
00:40:37,569 --> 00:40:39,190
Still does not smite him.

838
00:40:39,759 --> 00:40:40,690
He doesn't slap him.

839
00:40:40,750 --> 00:40:42,790
He doesn't throw him off
of the, the mountain face.

840
00:40:42,790 --> 00:40:44,230
He just, he stays with him.

841
00:40:45,640 --> 00:40:51,460
Verse 16, the Lord said to him, go return
on your way to the wilderness of Damascus.

842
00:40:51,549 --> 00:40:55,120
And when you arrive, you shall
anoint zeel to be king over Syria.

843
00:40:55,180 --> 00:40:55,930
And Je who?

844
00:40:55,960 --> 00:40:59,650
The son, the son of Nims, she you
shall anoint to be king over Israel.

845
00:41:00,040 --> 00:41:02,020
Uh, and Elisha, your predecessor.

846
00:41:02,815 --> 00:41:07,045
Uh, your successor, rather, the son
of she of Abel, Mela, you shall anoint

847
00:41:07,045 --> 00:41:10,675
to be prophet in your place and the
one who escapes from the sword of hael

848
00:41:10,675 --> 00:41:13,585
shall jehu put to death and the one
who escapes from the sword of Jehu,

849
00:41:13,585 --> 00:41:15,895
shall Eisha put to death verse 18.

850
00:41:16,255 --> 00:41:18,985
Yet I will leave 7,000 in Israel.

851
00:41:19,045 --> 00:41:23,935
All the knees that I have that have not
bound to bail in every mount that has not

852
00:41:23,935 --> 00:41:26,995
kissed him, he ends by saying two things.

853
00:41:27,340 --> 00:41:29,170
Elijah, I've got work
for you to do, buddy.

854
00:41:29,259 --> 00:41:30,130
I need you to go back.

855
00:41:30,160 --> 00:41:32,020
And then two, by the
way, you're not alone.

856
00:41:32,020 --> 00:41:33,279
There are still 7,000.

857
00:41:35,230 --> 00:41:39,820
God meets Elijah's real needs by
saying, buddy, let me reframe the way

858
00:41:39,820 --> 00:41:40,840
that you're seeing this whole thing.

859
00:41:41,680 --> 00:41:43,330
And even this, God is gracious.

860
00:41:43,690 --> 00:41:45,520
I, I just see God's grace
written all over this point.

861
00:41:45,520 --> 00:41:47,800
Number three here, I need you
to expect your perspective

862
00:41:47,800 --> 00:41:49,240
to be limited and incomplete.

863
00:41:50,410 --> 00:41:51,940
God sees it the way it is.

864
00:41:52,090 --> 00:41:55,005
Elijah does not, he does
this for us all the time.

865
00:41:56,425 --> 00:41:59,785
If our eyes are open, you need to
recognize that anytime something

866
00:41:59,785 --> 00:42:03,415
doesn't make sense to you, things
that God says or does, you have to

867
00:42:03,415 --> 00:42:08,125
remember your perspective is limited
and incomplete because you're a

868
00:42:08,125 --> 00:42:09,385
man, because you're a creature.

869
00:42:09,925 --> 00:42:13,525
If you're going to endure in your
faith, you need to be strengthened

870
00:42:13,525 --> 00:42:17,365
by biblical expectations, and your
biblical expectation is, I don't

871
00:42:17,365 --> 00:42:23,035
know everything and what I do
know, I barely know what I know.

872
00:42:24,055 --> 00:42:28,435
What I know about the Bible and
about God makes me feel I need to

873
00:42:28,435 --> 00:42:30,375
know a lot more that drives me.

874
00:42:30,375 --> 00:42:31,214
I don't know everything.

875
00:42:31,214 --> 00:42:34,395
I wanna know more, but I'll never
have the knowledge that God has.

876
00:42:34,395 --> 00:42:37,004
No matter if I study every day
for the rest of my life, I will

877
00:42:37,004 --> 00:42:38,325
still be limited and incomplete.

878
00:42:38,475 --> 00:42:39,555
That's all of us.

879
00:42:39,555 --> 00:42:41,625
We're all by default,
limited and incomplete.

880
00:42:41,745 --> 00:42:44,774
You're limited by time, space, knowledge,
and wisdom, and you're incomplete.

881
00:42:44,865 --> 00:42:46,549
You'll only ever see
a part of the picture.

882
00:42:47,790 --> 00:42:49,140
How part of the picture will you see?

883
00:42:49,145 --> 00:42:51,330
Uh, uh, uh, there's a tweet
years ago from John Piper.

884
00:42:51,330 --> 00:42:51,960
I'm just gonna read to you.

885
00:42:52,140 --> 00:42:52,890
Here's what he said.

886
00:42:53,370 --> 00:42:58,500
God is always doing 10,000
things in your life, and you

887
00:42:58,500 --> 00:43:01,440
may be aware of three of them.

888
00:43:03,270 --> 00:43:07,380
And of course, this, this is not a, this
is not a formula, but I treat it that way.

889
00:43:07,770 --> 00:43:08,730
If there are 8.3

890
00:43:08,730 --> 00:43:12,090
billion people on the planet
and God is doing 10,000

891
00:43:12,090 --> 00:43:13,320
things in each of their lives.

892
00:43:13,890 --> 00:43:17,189
That would be 83 trillion things.

893
00:43:17,879 --> 00:43:21,419
God is controlling 83, 80
3 trillion things at once.

894
00:43:21,450 --> 00:43:24,330
And to put that in perspective, if
you tried to count to 83 trillion

895
00:43:24,930 --> 00:43:27,899
at one number per second without
stopping to eat, sleep, drink, or

896
00:43:27,899 --> 00:43:29,865
anything else, it would take you 2.6

897
00:43:29,865 --> 00:43:32,039
million years to count to that number.

898
00:43:32,609 --> 00:43:35,549
We're talking about absurd
numerical data here.

899
00:43:36,285 --> 00:43:39,495
And I think the point is that
God is doing all of that at once.

900
00:43:39,524 --> 00:43:41,024
He's not forgetting somebody.

901
00:43:41,055 --> 00:43:44,474
He's doing 10,000 things in each
of our lives all at the same time.

902
00:43:44,745 --> 00:43:46,365
All with complete awareness of who we are.

903
00:43:46,424 --> 00:43:49,064
And we're only aware of
a few things at the best.

904
00:43:49,095 --> 00:43:52,124
Psalm 1 0 3 says the word we're
to count up our blessings, to

905
00:43:52,124 --> 00:43:53,084
be aware of what God is doing.

906
00:43:53,084 --> 00:43:54,434
And so often we're just not.

907
00:43:55,845 --> 00:43:58,305
You need to expect your perspective
to be limited and incomplete.

908
00:43:59,024 --> 00:44:00,915
Like Elijah, we get disillusioned.

909
00:44:01,064 --> 00:44:04,214
We get discouraged if we're only
focusing on what's in front of us.

910
00:44:04,274 --> 00:44:07,814
God, if you really love my family, if
you really love me, if you really, if you

911
00:44:07,814 --> 00:44:11,504
really cared, wouldn't you, A, B, C, and
D, fill in the blank of all the things

912
00:44:11,504 --> 00:44:12,975
that you want God to do in your life.

913
00:44:13,935 --> 00:44:15,134
Those things may not be bad.

914
00:44:16,334 --> 00:44:19,095
I suspect that what
Elijah wanted was not bad.

915
00:44:19,305 --> 00:44:23,444
He wanted God's glory in Israel,
but he wanted it on his timetable.

916
00:44:24,810 --> 00:44:25,830
I want it when I want it.

917
00:44:25,830 --> 00:44:27,240
God, aren't you gonna do it now?

918
00:44:27,420 --> 00:44:29,640
Why won't you do what I want right now?

919
00:44:31,890 --> 00:44:34,379
Expect your perspective to
be limited and incomplete.

920
00:44:35,339 --> 00:44:39,359
I think another mistake that Elijah
makes is that he looks at all that

921
00:44:39,359 --> 00:44:41,069
God is doing from his own perspective.

922
00:44:41,970 --> 00:44:45,779
Now, granted he's a major player in
biblical history, but how easy would

923
00:44:45,779 --> 00:44:49,080
it be to look at your own life and
say, well, God, you clearly need me.

924
00:44:49,620 --> 00:44:52,859
So you're gonna use me to accomplish
your purposes, and maybe God's saying,

925
00:44:52,859 --> 00:44:58,049
look, I'm gonna use you for a season,
but I'm gonna sideline you when you

926
00:44:58,049 --> 00:44:59,460
think you ought to be center stage.

927
00:45:00,960 --> 00:45:04,859
I'm gonna, I'm, I'm not gonna give you
the spotlight for your whole life, Elijah.

928
00:45:05,069 --> 00:45:07,980
In fact, one of your jobs, Elijah,
is when you go back, I'm gonna

929
00:45:08,040 --> 00:45:09,150
make you a point of successor.

930
00:45:12,060 --> 00:45:17,370
We need to expect God to do things
that will defy our expectations.

931
00:45:17,730 --> 00:45:18,960
They'll confuse us.

932
00:45:19,110 --> 00:45:22,020
God will do, and say things
to us that will cause us to be

933
00:45:22,320 --> 00:45:24,780
flummoxed at what he's doing.

934
00:45:25,920 --> 00:45:26,790
And that's part of the point.

935
00:45:26,790 --> 00:45:27,570
You're not gonna know.

936
00:45:28,710 --> 00:45:32,970
God's ways are inscrutable and they're
good Biblical expectation we should

937
00:45:32,970 --> 00:45:38,125
have is that we can trust him in those
things You see, God's gonna force you.

938
00:45:39,785 --> 00:45:41,040
He's gonna force you to trust him.

939
00:45:42,150 --> 00:45:43,350
This is your expectation.

940
00:45:43,890 --> 00:45:46,859
When you're interacting with the
living God, the God who made heaven

941
00:45:46,859 --> 00:45:50,730
and earth, he will force you to trust
him because your mind, no matter how

942
00:45:50,730 --> 00:45:53,759
smart you are, will never be able to
fully comprehend all that he's doing.

943
00:45:53,819 --> 00:45:55,200
He will force you to trust him.

944
00:45:55,859 --> 00:45:56,370
Interesting.

945
00:45:56,700 --> 00:46:01,410
In the New Testament, the man who is
called the new Elijah, John the Baptist,

946
00:46:01,680 --> 00:46:06,330
also came to a moment with God where
he said to Jesus, are you the one who

947
00:46:06,330 --> 00:46:08,310
is to come or shall we expect another?

948
00:46:08,670 --> 00:46:11,069
Now, you might remember,
John says this from prison.

949
00:46:12,015 --> 00:46:15,705
He has to send his it, his entourage
and say, Hey, go talk to Jesus

950
00:46:15,705 --> 00:46:16,995
and say, are you really the guy?

951
00:46:18,524 --> 00:46:21,555
Jesus ends that short conversation
with them, with Blessed is the

952
00:46:21,555 --> 00:46:22,935
one who is not offended by me.

953
00:46:24,585 --> 00:46:25,814
Have you been offended by God?

954
00:46:26,895 --> 00:46:29,234
Has he defied your expectations
as he let you down?

955
00:46:30,615 --> 00:46:32,174
Blessed is the one who's
not offended by me.

956
00:46:34,515 --> 00:46:37,875
You need to place your focus on
who God is and what he's done.

957
00:46:38,940 --> 00:46:44,490
You see, Elijah was bold as long as his
mind was centered on God, but not when he

958
00:46:44,490 --> 00:46:47,070
began to focus his attention upon himself.

959
00:46:48,600 --> 00:46:50,549
That's j Adams in the
Christian Counselor's manual.

960
00:46:52,259 --> 00:46:53,160
Well, God, what's your plan?

961
00:46:53,160 --> 00:46:53,940
Whatcha gonna do what?

962
00:46:53,940 --> 00:46:54,480
What are you doing?

963
00:46:54,480 --> 00:46:54,960
Show me.

964
00:46:54,960 --> 00:46:57,630
Just, if you just told me what the
plan was, God, I would trust you.

965
00:46:57,990 --> 00:46:58,830
That's false.

966
00:46:59,430 --> 00:46:59,759
That's false.

967
00:46:59,759 --> 00:47:00,690
We, we never will.

968
00:47:00,750 --> 00:47:01,650
We're never happy with that.

969
00:47:02,250 --> 00:47:03,150
But here's what we do have.

970
00:47:03,540 --> 00:47:04,259
You should write this one down.

971
00:47:04,259 --> 00:47:05,940
Romans 8 31 and 32.

972
00:47:07,604 --> 00:47:11,654
Paul talks about a life of suffering
of persecution, and he says, what

973
00:47:11,654 --> 00:47:13,004
then shall we say to these things?

974
00:47:14,144 --> 00:47:16,814
If God is for us, who can be against us?

975
00:47:17,714 --> 00:47:22,334
He who did not spare his own son, but gave
him up for us all, how will he not also

976
00:47:22,334 --> 00:47:24,164
with him graciously give us all things?

977
00:47:24,314 --> 00:47:27,194
If God has given you Jesus,
his son, you can trust him with

978
00:47:27,194 --> 00:47:28,455
everything else below that.

979
00:47:28,995 --> 00:47:31,575
That is the most expensive
thing he could possibly give.

980
00:47:31,604 --> 00:47:33,314
Will he not withhold anything from you?

981
00:47:33,314 --> 00:47:33,944
Of course not.

982
00:47:35,115 --> 00:47:37,004
He will not withhold what you really need.

983
00:47:38,924 --> 00:47:42,254
Sometimes we forget that the
Gospel, as Tim Keller said, is

984
00:47:42,285 --> 00:47:47,774
not just the ABCs of Christianity
but the A two Zs of Christianity.

985
00:47:48,345 --> 00:47:53,234
When your heart begins to grow, faint
and doubtful, you need to remember

986
00:47:53,265 --> 00:47:54,884
what God has done for you in Christ.

987
00:47:55,305 --> 00:47:56,144
Elijah didn't have this.

988
00:47:57,240 --> 00:48:00,270
And I feel for Elijah, 'cause I probably
would be in the same spot, but I can say,

989
00:48:00,419 --> 00:48:02,999
I can think about what Christ has done
on my behalf and say, I can trust you.

990
00:48:03,569 --> 00:48:06,120
If I can trust you to give
me Christ to die from my sin.

991
00:48:06,120 --> 00:48:08,279
I can trust you with everything
else that I'm concerned about.

992
00:48:09,270 --> 00:48:11,279
And my expectations are gonna
be held with an open hand.

993
00:48:12,870 --> 00:48:13,979
I don't need to know the whole plan.

994
00:48:13,979 --> 00:48:17,879
If I know the planner, if I can trust
the planner, I can just say, God, you

995
00:48:17,879 --> 00:48:21,840
be God and I'll follow you wherever
you lead, even when, and especially

996
00:48:21,840 --> 00:48:24,270
when it defies what I expect you to do.

997
00:48:27,105 --> 00:48:28,395
Gentlemen, you're not
alone in the struggle.

998
00:48:28,755 --> 00:48:30,015
And there's so much more
to say about Elijah.

999
00:48:30,015 --> 00:48:31,905
But what I want you to see
here is that our job is to

1000
00:48:31,905 --> 00:48:33,465
cultivate biblical expectations.

1001
00:48:33,885 --> 00:48:37,605
It's when we have, uh, biblical
expectations that our faith can endure.

1002
00:48:38,055 --> 00:48:42,075
Those expectations are open-handed,
trust and responsiveness to the Lord.

1003
00:48:42,885 --> 00:48:45,435
When you have your dark seasons,
your moments of loneliness and

1004
00:48:45,435 --> 00:48:48,285
doubt and frustration, know that
people have gone before you and

1005
00:48:48,285 --> 00:48:49,395
God has carried them through that.

1006
00:48:49,815 --> 00:48:52,425
My encouragement to you is take it to
the Lord and take it to your brothers.

1007
00:48:52,815 --> 00:48:54,345
Trust that God will get you through it.

1008
00:48:54,990 --> 00:48:58,020
Don't lose heart, don't lose hope,
because God is the one who sustains you.

1009
00:48:58,050 --> 00:49:00,060
He upholds you with his
righteous right hand.

1010
00:49:01,140 --> 00:49:05,070
Because Christ is rejected, because
he was condemned on the cross.

1011
00:49:05,130 --> 00:49:06,180
You'll never be rejected.

1012
00:49:07,260 --> 00:49:09,720
The things that you experience
are not God saying no to you.

1013
00:49:09,960 --> 00:49:10,590
I don't like you.

1014
00:49:10,590 --> 00:49:11,340
You're not my son.

1015
00:49:11,430 --> 00:49:13,620
It's God shaping you and growing you.

1016
00:49:13,830 --> 00:49:14,970
Your greatest need is christlikeness.

1017
00:49:16,440 --> 00:49:17,190
God's purposes.

1018
00:49:17,190 --> 00:49:19,440
Therefore, cannot be thwarted
and will not be thwarted.

1019
00:49:19,620 --> 00:49:20,400
We can trust him.

1020
00:49:21,240 --> 00:49:22,230
That's why we should be resolved.

1021
00:49:22,560 --> 00:49:22,980
Let's pray.

1022
00:49:23,130 --> 00:49:25,680
God, help us this morning as we
now go to our small groups to learn

1023
00:49:25,890 --> 00:49:27,480
about how to put this into practice.

1024
00:49:27,540 --> 00:49:31,170
Give us boldness to talk openly,
give us vulnerability, give us trust.

1025
00:49:31,410 --> 00:49:34,470
Let us cultivate relationships that
help us to know you better, to love

1026
00:49:34,470 --> 00:49:38,880
you more faithfully, and to know how to
navigate life when things let us down.

1027
00:49:39,420 --> 00:49:42,030
And if we're honest, Lord, when
you let us down, when you don't do

1028
00:49:42,030 --> 00:49:43,740
things according to our expectations.

1029
00:49:44,310 --> 00:49:49,200
Help us to still navigate with trust, with
confidence, even when those moments arise.

1030
00:49:49,290 --> 00:49:51,210
Give us great conversations
in our small groups.

1031
00:49:51,210 --> 00:49:52,980
We ask in Jesus name, amen.