WITH THE STONES… LET IT BE KNOWN
Today’s Reference 1 King 18:30-39
Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. 31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” 32 Then WITH THE STONES he built an altar in the name of the Lord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.” 34 Then he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. 35 So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water. 36 And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, LET IT BE KNOWN this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. 37 Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.” 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.39 Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!”
[ Background information based on 1 Kings 18:1-29: Samaria: located near the Northern Kingdom of Israel; known as Watch Mountain; located near Jordan. The Samaritans were enemies of the Jews because, the Samaritans were of non-Jewish descent.
Ahab: king in Samaria; disliked Elijah; faced endangered resources; searched relentlessly, to find and kill his adversary, Elijah; his livestock was more valuable than Elijah’s life.
Obadiah: Governor in Samaria; ordered to find Elijah, and natural resources; God-fearing man; protected and provided for one hundred prophets when Jezebel, Ahab’s wife, wanted to kill them; recognized that God’s spirit was with Elijah.
Elijah: a prophet who knew God’s distinct voice; made declarations with the Godkind of confidence; obeyed God; bold enough to speak with King Ahab; exposed the spiritual decay of Samaria; disregarded political correctness; his mission was to preserve the name of the Lord and demonstrate publicly the power of God.
Baal: Samaria’s god of fertility; ruler of the clouds; mighty warrior; protector of crops and livestock; highly revered.]
The story unfolds with Ahab’s search for Elijah because Israel was troubled. There had been a drought and as a result both mankind, greenery and animals suffered. Whenever Ahab looked at his animals, the dried brooks and dead grass, he became more adamant in finding Elijah. Ahab was understandably angry, but this anger was directed at the wrong person. He, as king, was in cahoots with his wife who promoted idol worship.
Elijah recognized the deficiency in Samaria: a broken altar (v.30). So, there was an encounter. Baal was being put to the test. Elijah seized the opportunity to show God strong so that the people would experience the power of the true and Living God. Elijah had infringed on the very core of Ahab’s confidence: Baal.
All God required was an individual who would stand up for their belief in Him. In our lives, the altar gets broken by doubt, fear, suppositions, past hurts and disappointments. Do we believe that the God of Elijah is still able? Do we believe that He is OUR God? Then we should be convinced that He is concerned about us and will show Himself strong, on our behalf and for His glory.
How do we repair the altar? As per 2 Chronicles 7:14: if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.
First, Elijah prepared the altar and the sacrifice (1 Kings 18:33-35). No doubt he used faith, confidence, boldness, decrees, perseverance and the invocation of God’s Spirit. We can imagine him communing with the Living God in all those areas. He gathered twelve stones (representative of each tribe) and with them he built an altar in the presence of all Israel, including the false prophets. Then Elijah made his request to God, and the supernatural happened.
On the other hand, the 850 false prophets (1 Kings 18:19) might have used some chants, blood and incantations to Baal, their god. The people of Israel watched from afar. The situation at hand, plus their circumstances had come between them and the true God. As a result, they became distant from the altar both physically and spiritually. You see, the altar had been in disrepair, but God caused Elijah to summon the people. Technically, Elijah was not outnumbered by the prophets because according to Joshua 23:10 … one shall chase a thousand…. so, the ratio was an imbalance. Elijah could have chased an additional one hundred fifty false prophets.
We do not know how God will perform in our situation, but we are given an assurance in Jeremiah 33:3: Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know. We must prepare/repair our broken altars before making our requests to God. Everything that shakes our confidence in God; anxiety, needs, everything that disturbs our peace/joy; every sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving- –with these stones, build an altar. When we place these before God, He will consume them and then it will be known that “The LORD, He is God. “
After the altar was built, Elijah said, “… let it be known that You are God in Israel…”. God consumed everything, and the people fell to the ground in worship. He asks us to sacrifice our time, efforts, self and distractions, in exchange for worship to Him. See what He will do with our praise and our praying the Scriptures. In so doing, we are drawn closer to a heart of worship. God receives our communication with Him, as sweet fragrances and memorials before His throne. Shall we not give Him a place to inhabit and some treasures in heaven? (Psalm 22:3; Acts 10:4)
The Consuming Fire accepted the sacrifice as evidence to all Israel, that He alone is to be worshipped. One man made it his responsibility to repair the broken altar. Individually, we must repair our altar by spending one-on-one time with the Lord, then, collectively we can declare God’s glory. (Nehemiah 1:6)
The drought ended when there was abundant rain. Look at the impact that one man made on an entire nation when, against all odds, he repaired/ built an altar to the true God. We will impact our household, the Body of Christ, our city, nations and the world at large. They will experience a domino effect as the blessing trickles down. Psalm 33:12“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord….”
What drought do we want broken? As we repair/build the altar, God, the Mighty Creator, Ruler of nature, Protector of all, Everlasting Father, will be on display, thus causing everyone to conclude and proclaim His mighty power. Our goal is that we will not only be built up in our most holy faith (Jude verse 20), but also that mankind will declare Him to be God and choose to serve Him from this day forward. Let God be known by way of our Godly altar.
Dr. O. A. James
REFLECTION
1. Discuss the importance of the altar of sacrifice. What does that mean to you?
2. What actions can we take to display our God?