8/3/08 - Pentecost 12 - 1 Kings 19:9-18

WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?
- The Lord knows what is really happening
- The Lord knows what will happen

The prophet Elijah was frustrated, tired, and scared. Frustrated because his fellow Israelites continued to reject the Lord. Tired because he had preached God’s Word for years, performed incredible miracles, labored to rid the land of its false gods, and had spent countless hours patiently instructing those who had fallen away, and no one was listening. And Elijah was scared because King Ahab and Queen Jezebel were bent on killing all of the prophets of the Lord and so Elijah’s life was also in very serious danger. That’s why we find Elijah hiding in a cave 250 miles south of the Promised Land as our sermon text begins. In 1 Kings 19 Elijah is frustrated. He is tired. He is scared. And so he is also discouraged. And he ran away because he did not know what else to do. He did not know what else to try. He was despairing over the situation at hand and was dejected at what was happening to his people.
This discouraged prophet needed some encouragement. And so as he spent the night there in that cave all alone, the Lord himself came to him. And the Lord asked him a simple question, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” The Lord knew why he was there, of course. But he cared about Elijah’s dilemma and he wanted to give him a chance to speak. And so Elijah did. He used that opportunity to do what many of us do in our own prayers: he aired his grievances. “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” Do you hear the discouragement in Elijah’s voice? Do you hear his despair? Elijah didn’t think the situation could get any worse. He didn’t seem to think that any good could come from it at all. And so the Lord encouraged him. Not with words, but with his power. God tells him to stand at the edge of the cave because he was about to pass by. And when Elijah is standing there the Lord sent a violent wind that shattered rocks, a massive earthquake, a terrible fire, and then a gentle whisper that apparently contained the glory of the Lord himself because Elijah hid his face with a robe when he heard the sound. And after the Lord showed Elijah these demonstrations of his power and majesty and might, he asked Elijah the exact same question again, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” In other words, “What’s the problem, Elijah? You are upset about the Israelites rejecting my Word. You complain that you are the only one left. You worry that your life is in danger. But I have just shown you what I can do. I have just demonstrated my power and my glory and my strength. I am in control. And so what’s the problem, Elijah? What exactly are you doing here?”
You would think Elijah might have said something different this time around. You would think after what he had just witnessed, that he would have showed a little more trust in God’s strength, a little more confidence in his power and control. But instead Elijah gives the Lord the exact same answer he did before. “I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
I suppose the Lord could have said, “I know, Elijah. Not only did you tell me that a few minutes ago, but I know everything already. I know the Israelites are rejecting me. I know they are destroying my altars. I know that my prophets are being put to death. And I know that you think your life is in danger. I know everything that is happening. And I know everything that is really happening as well.” Because that wasn’t the whole story, was it? Elijah didn’t know all the details. Do you remember what the Lord told Elijah at the end of our sermon text for today? “I reserve seven thousand in Israel - all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths have not kissed him.” 7000! The Lord had preserved 7000 believers in the land of Israel whom Elijah and no idea existed! He had no clue! He was completely oblivious to the fact that the Lord was using this situation, a situation Elijah was so discouraged about, to produce thousands of Christians and strengthen them in their faith. The Lord, of course, knew all this was happening. But Elijah couldn’t see past his own despair. And it must have embarrassed Elijah a little when he found out what the Lord had been doing that entire time. Because he was despairing about things that he should have been thanking the Lord for! The situation Elijah thought was awful, was actually good. The situation that Elijah thought was unfixable, was in reality completely under control the entire time. There was no problem after all. There was no reason for Elijah to be in that cave. And so the Lord sent his prophet back to the land of Israel to continue to lead the people he was called to serve.
There are many situations in our lives that discourage us, aren’t there? We are discouraged when dealing with family members who will not listen. We are discouraged when we put hours and hours of work into something or someone and never see any results. We are discouraged with when a loved one is very sick and not getting better. When a serious injury does not heal. When a hospital visit becomes a hospital stay. When your children do things contrary to your wise advice. When you can’t find a secure job. When a routine checkup reveals a positive test result. When close friends do not believe in their Savior no matter how many times you’ve tried. When your paycheck never seems to catch up to your bills. When a tragic accident puts someone close to you in a coffin. The list could go on and on. There are many situations that we become discouraged about in this life. There are many times when we can’t see any positives, when it seems hopeless, when it seems unfixable. But let me ask you this: should you ever be discouraged in any situation? Remember what happened with Elijah. He thought all was lost. He was sure that he was as good as dead because as far as he could tell: he had no more allies and he had nowhere left to run. But God knew what was really happening in his life. And he was completely in control. Just as he is in control today.
The Lord sees what is really happening behind the scenes in your own life. And he is powerful enough and loving enough to make sure every situation works out for your good. That’s his promise. No matter what it is: sickness, disease, injury, family problems, death… the Lord will work all of those things out for your good. So what’s the problem? Why should you ever be discouraged about anything that happens? Because the Lord is working it out for your good at that very moment! And so discouragement is not only misguided, it is doubting the Lord’s power, it is forgetting the Lord’s promise, and it is not trusting the Lord’s love. Discouragement is disrespectful to the Lord because it is completely contrary to what he has told you is really happening.
I know that it is hard sometimes to understand exactly how the Lord can work completely terrible situations out for your good. And I’m not about to guess or conjecture how he might do that in specific situations. I will, though, use the ultimate example of the Lord turning something evil into something glorious for the good of his children. And that example is the crucifixion. If you had happened to be there as one of the disciples or one of the women at the foot of the cross, I would guess you would be a little discouraged. Nothing was going right. Nothing was going the way you had planned. Your Savior, the one who told you he was the only way to eternal life, had been betrayed by one of his own disciples, arrested by a mob in the middle of the night, vehemently accused by his own countrymen, wrongly tried, falsely condemned, cruelly flogged, beaten, harassed, and spat upon, and now your Lord is hanging on a cross bleeding to death before your very eyes! And to top it all off: the crowds and the soldiers and the chief priests are mocking him - and he’s not doing anything about it. If you don’t think you would have been a little discouraged about what was happening to Jesus, I would be surprised.
But the Lord, of course, knew what was really happening behind the scenes. Although it may have been a terrible situation, the Lord was using that betrayal and that trial and that pain and that cross to save us. He took the worst thing that could have ever been done by sinners and turned into the best thing ever done for sinners. He used the result of sin to forgive sin. And that includes your attitude of discouragement. In fact, that includes every sin you’ve ever committed. But your sins would not have been forgiven unless those terrible things happened to Jesus. And so if the Lord could turn a situation like that around for the good of the world, he can certainly use any situation that happens in your life to your benefit. Because he not only knows what is really happening in your life. He knows what will happen as well.
From our story today it is clear that he knew what was going to happen in Elijah’s life. Before Elijah left that cave the Lord promised that Hazael would be king in Aram, Jehu would be king in Israel, and Elisha would succeed him as prophet. And the Lord promised that these men would take care of the problem that Elijah was so worried about. Everything was under control. The Lord knew exactly what he was about to do. And no one was going to stop him from doing it.
Your life is part of the Lord’s plan as well. The Lord doesn’t force you to do things, but he sees what will happen and he makes sure that those things will eventually turn out according to his will. That’s his promise. And what a comforting thing it is to know that the Lord knows what is to come! Because the future can be a little scary. It can even be a little discouraging at times, can’t it? We don’t know what’s going to happen. We don’t know what’s around the next corner. We don’t know what tragedies or disasters or pains or losses we will experience on this earth. But we do know this: whatever we face, whatever we run into, whatever we lose, the Lord has already planned for it. And he promises that those things will always work out for our good.
So what’s the problem? There is none. The Lord is powerful. The Lord is loving. He knows exactly what’s happening in your life and he knows everything that will. Any problems in your life are no problem at all because the Lord has planned for them, controlled them, and taken care of them long before they ever occur.
Amen.

“The Lord will rescue us from every evil attack and bring us safely to his heavenly kingdom. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.” - 2 Tim. 4:18