Daily Verse: 1 Kings 18:39

Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.

 

The text above is from an event where Elijah was proving to king Ahab and those under his rule that their god (Baal) was false and that the one true God was real. Elijah proposed a challenge to Ahab and his people: Take a bull, cut it up, and sacrifice it to their god atop a pile of burning wood. But there was one catch: they couldn’t light the fire themselves. Instead, they were to call on their god to light the fire for them. And the “winner” of this challenge…the one who had the real God…would be the one standing next to the raging fire. So the group of false prophets went to work assembling the stack of wood and the sacrificial bull. Once completed, they started calling to their god to reign down fire upon the sacrifice. No response. They then started dancing around and shouting louder, as if their god was hard of hearing or needed better entertainment to catch his attention. No response. They even started slashing themselves with swords and spears until they were bleeding…an apparent customer to get the attention of their god. Still, no response. The stack of logs remained intact, just as it was when they began. Then it was Elijah’s turn. But Elijah upped the ante, making things even more interesting. He had the people douse his stack of wood with four large jars of water! And not just once, but three times! There was so much water that it pooled in a trench that had been dug around the wood pile. It would have been quite impressive had God lit the stack of dry wood…but now the wood was wet. It seems completely impossible! Then Elijah spoke these words: “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again." Then the Lord responded…and he responded in a mighty way…raining down fire that burned up the wood, the bull, a group of 12 stones, the dirt, and even the water that had pooled around the structure. Imagine the look on the faces of those that witnessed this miraculous event…this impossible, unimaginable, completely illogical event! God revealed himself to those people that day…and because of this sign, they turned from their false gods and recognized the one true God (1 Kings 18:39)…the one Elijah had been proclaiming all along. It’s encouraging and uplifting to reflect on examples like this where God makes possible what we see as impossible. It shines a light of hope on our own situations…our own struggles and battles…and helps us realize that while we may not see any possible light at the end of the tunnel, God certainly does. We are so incredibly fortunate to have such a powerful God that is not only capable of miraculous feats like this, but cares enough about each one of us to make them happen in our own lives. To God be the glory!