Synopsis of October 1, 2023 Sermon

Delivered by Joseph W. Walker, III

1 Kings 19:1-8 NKJV 
And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, also how he had executed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.” 3 And when he saw that, he arose and ran for his life, and went to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. 
4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, LORD, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” 5 Then as he lay and slept under a broom tree, suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 Then he looked, and there by his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. So he ate and drank, and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came back the second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.” 8 So he arose, and ate and drank; and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God.

I.            INTRODUCTION 

1. When God calls us and summons us to an assignment, he has factored in the beginning to the end. We were created to fulfill the assignments of God on the earth. God gives us the grace to do whatever he assigns us to do.
2. There are moments you encounter things you didn’t expect. These are the things that make you wonder how in the world they happened. For example, you had someone that seemed to be your ride or die and out of nowhere, things went left.
3. There are some circumstances that make you question if you even want to continue with your assignment. In these moments, you want the Lord to take your assignment back.
4. All of us have been in this place where we had to deal with stuff we didn’t think we would have to deal with and as a result, we have contemplated resigning or abandoning our assignment. Jesus even said, “Let this bitter cup pass from me”.
5. God is going to give us a word to navigate through our contemplations.
6. What happens in the mind and spirit of a prophet who experiences attacks that they didn’t know they would encounter? Some people have experienced so much, it is a miracle that they even show up at all. In this text today, we are going to find out how Elijah navigates this space. This is the space of wanting to resign the assignment.
   1. Somebody has been in a place of frustration. We are going to find out how to keep from walking away from our assignment.
7. Elijah was a servant of God. After the death of Gideon, the nation had turned away from God. They turned to worshipping the idol They were under the assumption that this was the god of fertility and that he was the true god that reigned.
   1. Whenever there was a drought, they believed Baal would send the rain. King Ahab was the 7^th king of Israel. He formed an alliance with Sidon and Tyre. These was one of the enemies of Israel.
   2. There was a princess in Tyre called Jezebel. Ahab married her.
   3. Elijah was following God and King Ahab marries Jezebel. Elijah’s assignment was to go to Tyre and tell the people to turn away from serving Baal and return to Him. God held up the rain and caused a drought in the land, because they were worshipping Baal.
8. Elijah went a brook where the Lord sent a Raven to feed him and the brook supplied him with water. Eventually, the brook dried up. God then sends him to a widow woman. She is about to make her last cake for her and her son and die, but Elijah asked her to make him a cake first. Because she honored God’s servant, she never ran out of food.
   1. The widow woman’s son fell sick and died. Elijah fell on the boy 3 times while calling on Jesus to help him. Life came into the boy on the 3^rd
9. Eventually, Elijah goes to King Ahab with a challenge and asks him to have the people him to meet him on Mount Carmel. He wanted them to call on Baal to bring down fire on the alter and he would do the same, only he would call on the one true and living God.
   1. Elijah presented Ahab with a challenge. He told Ahab that whoever’s god/God would send fire down on the alter, they would all agree to serve that god/God. So Ahab’s prophets made an altar and placed a bull on it and then they called on Baal to send down fire on it, but fire did not come down on the altar. They tried several times, but still nothing happened. At one point Elijah began to taunt them for 1 Kings 18:27says 27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. “Shout louder!” he said. “Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.” They tried several times without any response from their so called god.
   2. Undeterred, Elijah trusted God, and when it was his turn to call for fire, he upped the ante. Elijah rebuilt God’s altar, dug a trench around it, and prepared a bull to lay across the altar. Then, he drenched everything in water four times over. Why the water? Simple. If the sacrifice lit, no one could claim happenstance or coincidence. It would show that an all-powerful God had done what no other god could do.
   3. Elijah cried out to God on behalf of the people of Israel. At Elijah’s cry God rained fire from heaven upon the altar, and the flames not only consumed the sacrifice, but the wood, the altar and the dust around it. After seeing this amazing display, the people fell on their knees and proclaimed, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God! 1 Kings 18:39 says 39 When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The LORD—he is God! The LORD—he is God!” – And as revival broke out in the land, the dams of heaven broke, too. Much needed rain pattered down on the dusty soil, bringing a new season of fruitfulness to a dead land. Elijah had all the prophets of Baal killed after this.
   4. When Ahab told Jezebel all that had happened, she was angered to the point of wanting Elijah killed. She sent a messenger to tell him this, so Elijah ran into the woods, laid down under a broom tree, and asked God to kill him. This brings us to the place we are in today’s lesson.
10. There are some lessons in this.

II.            THE REASON YOUR DESTINY IS UNDER ATTACK 

• This is not happening by accident. It is sent by the enemy to derail your destiny. The assignment on your life has made you a
• You were not called to adhere to systems designed to harm God’s people.

A.     What you defeated demoralized the enemy 

1. What you have done, has brought embarrassment to the enemy’s camp.
2. Your defeat of the enemy is about:
3. What you revealed-  The enemy was no match for your God.
4. What you represent – You show up as a kingdom representative
5. Witness of His record – When you show up, people see victory! You remind them that no weapon formed against God will proper.

B.      Your assignment is a threat to the enemy’s agenda 

1. The enemy sees you as someone who is in the way.
2. When you don’t know who you are, you empower Satan. God wouldn’t give you an assignment without giving you an anointing that enables you to do it. You are Gods anointed!
   1. The fact that God’s hand is on your life, shows that you are anointed!
3. Know that Jezebel is not restricted to one place. Jezebel is on your job, in your church, and in your house. Jezebel can be anywhere!

III.            THE REAL DESIRE TO BE LEFT ALONE 

• Elijah went and sat under the broom tree by himself.

A.     Sometimes you have to escape the madness 

1. It allows them to be in pain in private – Sometimes you don’t want to deal with the pain publicly.
2. It protects their peace. – Sometimes you have to get away for your own sanity.
3. It allows them to pursue His presence – You need to talk to God. You need to talk to God, instead of other people.

B.      There is a need to talk to Him and not “them” 

1. God can handle your frustration and not judge you. David says my help comes from God!
2. Elijah is bleeding, but he’s still praying. This is a time to anchor down under the broom tree and talk to God about it.
3. Stop talking to everyone and else and learn to talk to God.

IV.            THE REALITY OF BEING DEPRESSED AND ANOINTED 

• Putting this together for many seems like an oxymoron. Know that you can be anointed and depressed at the same time.
• You have to walk out this journey in front of people. If you don’t deal with depression, you will implode! There are people around you every day dealing with low grade depression.
• There is nothing wrong with you, because you are dealing with depression. People are carrying around lots of stuff. Sometimes, things are simply put, “not good”.

A.     Everybody has a breaking point 

1. There is a place where you will find yourself at, that you never thought you would be before.
2. You can be encouraging others and yet be privately broken.

B.      Just because you are tired doesn’t mean it has to be terminal 

1. Elijah asked the Lord to kill him. God does not accommodate his request. He knows Elijah has more life to live.
   1. Be steadfast unmovable always abiding in the work of the Lord. Hold on, help is on the way!
2. Elijah is under the broom tree. This reminds us that we should pray for leaders everywhere. Some of them are under the Broom Tree as we speak.
   1. God met Elijah under the broom tree.

V.            THE RESOURCEFULNESS OF DIVINE ASSISTANCE 

• When God shows up, he shows up under the broom tree. The broom tree doesn’t have a lot of shade, but it has just enough.
  • You don’t have to big or beautiful to bring comfort. All you have to do is show up and be present.
• The word says God saw Elijah and he heard him. God specializes in seeing and hearing. God sees what you are dealing with!
• God sent an angel. How is it that everyone believes in demons, but they don’t believe in God’s angels? All night and all day, Angels have been watching over you!
• Elijah was so depressed, he wished for death!

A.     If you lie in it, you will die in it 

1. There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging your depression, but you can’t wallow in it. You have to get up! God has great things he wants to do in your life. God came that you might have life and have life more abundantly.
2. When Elijah was slapped the first time, he got up, but laid back down. God had to send an Angel a second time.
   1. We often get a revelation, but we slip back under the Broom Tree. Know that this is your last day under the Broom Tree. A break through is about to hit your house!

B.      God is going to feed you for your future 

1. Elijah looked around and he saw bread on coals cooking and water in a jar. Who put it there? God has always used angels to make stuff show up. If you will remember, Abraham was getting ready to kill his son, and there was a Ram in the bush. God will make stuff show up for you.
2. God is about to make what you need show up. You won’t have to worry about the debt on the credit card, because God is about to make it show up! You won’t have to worry about that student loan, because God is about to make it show up!
3. Elijah needed the food for his journey. This was natural remedy. God met his physical needs.
4. Here’s the spiritual remedy. We survive post pandemic, because we get fed on God’s word and it sustains us. Just like Elijah did. He fed off the bread cooking on coals and it sustained him for over 40 days!
5. I would have lost my mind, if it wasn’t for God’s word!!! Excuse me if I praise him like I do!! God showed up for me!!