BiblicalInsights.net

God’s questions probe the human heart.  Of course, God already knows the answers.  However, God leads us to discover the truth about ourselves.  Every person needs to take stock of their present circumstances.  Look back.  Look around. Look forward.  Are you in the best place that you could possibly be right now?  Where are you in your relationship with God?  Where are you in relationship to your faith?  Where are you in relationship to the truth?  Where are you in relationship to the mission/purpose God has given to you?  Now is a time for reflection, renewal, and re-commissioning.
God’s Servant
It is time for Elijah to reflect and reassess.  Elijah had just defeated the false prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel (I Kings 18).  After the great victory, he flees before Jezebel who threatens to kill him (I Kings 19:1-2).  He goes too Beersheba.  Here, he leaves his servant (19:3).  He goes a days journey and sits down under a juniper tree.  He requests for himself that he might die.  Elijah is isolated.  He is fearful. He is in despair. He feels alone.  It was time for him to slow down and stop.  It is almost impossible to reflect thoughtfully on our lives when we are constantly at full speed.  Stop and reflect. Recognize destructive patterns of thought and behavior. Identify a good direction. Make clear and correct choices.  Be ready to listen to God. Stop looking for something BIG to happen and look for small things like the still, small voice of God.
God Intervens
God sends an angel to minister to Elijah.  He is not alone.  The angel prepares food and gives him water to drink.  The physical body needs attention and care.  When we are physically depleted, it complicates our negative thoughts and feelings about ourselves.  God sends an angel to minister to Elijah a second time.  He is not alone.  The body and soul must be treated as a whole.  We must draw closer to God.  We must make the effort to close the gap between ourselves and God.  Soul care is just as important as the physical care of the body.  Do loving things.  Be constructive not destructive. Do no harm.  Be more creative.  Walk closer to God.  Elijah was in the wrong place.  God intervened and asked him, “what doest thou here, Elijah? (v. 9 and v. 13).  Elijah needed to move closer to God.
God Speaks
God confronts Elijah.  God had already demonstrated His presence and His power (I Kings 18).  God was with Elijah.  But, was Elijah with God?  God asks Elijah what he was doing in the wilderness.  Elijah replied that he was jealous for God.  Was he the only one?  God reveals to the prophet that He has seven thousand that had not bowed the knee to Baal.  Elijah knows the sins of the people.  He is aware of the threat of Jezebel. His perspective is negative and he feels alone.  God allows Elijah to experience: strong winds, an earthquake, and fire.  Then, He speaks in a still small voice.  He asks Elijah the second time what he was doing there.  The prophet is forced to take stock of his present situation in light of the past and the future.  God directs Elijah to anoint the king of Syria, the next king of Israel, and appoint Elisha as his successor.  Now, all of these individuals will fight to accomplish God’s purposes.  Elijah is not alone.  There is the angel, the seven thousand, the kings and the prophets, and God Himself!  God gives Elijah a new mission.  Elijah cannot continue to stay in the wilderness and accomplish God’s purposes.  God was not done with Elijah.
God’s Servant Responds
Elijah listens to God.  He undertakes a new mission.  He finds a meaningful purpose in living for God.  His life will end, but not in a cave in the wilderness.  Instead, it will end in glory by being taken to heaven in a chariot of fire!
Grasp God’s Perspective
God’s perspective is much more powerful and positive than ours.  We need self-care, soul-care, self-awareness, and mission for God.  We must correct hopelessness, loneliness, and isolation by listening to the still, small voice of God that leads us to be more than conquerors.  God’s voice is found in His Word.  He will guide us in the paths of righteousness. What doest thou here, Elijah?  Go forth in the strength of the LORD!

In 1944, during World War II, Ruth Caye Jones wrote the song, In Times Like These.  The words are appropriate for the times we are experiencing now.
In times like these, we need a Savior
In times like these, we need an anchor
Be very sure, be very sure
Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock
This Rock is Jesus, Yes, He’s the one
This Rock is Jesus, The only One
Be very sure, be very sure
Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock.
We are now living in one of the most significant events of our lifetime.  A pandemic has gripped the globe causing fear, sickness, and death.  An economic crisis has gripped the United States.  Many have lost their jobs and economic stability.  Everyone has lost something!  In the worst of times or in the best of times, what manner of persons ought ye to be?
Our anchor is Jesus Christ the Lord.  We must have the mind of Christ.  “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.”  Jesus shows us what manner of person we ought to be:  humble, obedient unto God, and a faithful servant of the Lord.  We must manifest the Spirit of Jesus Christ.  “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that they Spirit of God swellings you.  Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.  And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness” (Rom. 8:9-10).  This spiritual transformation takes place within an individual whenever he/she surrenders to the Will of God and obeys the gospel.  At that time, new life is imparted by the Holy Spirit and one becomes a new creature created in Christ Jesus unto good works (John 3:3-5; Eph. 2:1-10).  The new man in Christ is dedicated to righteousness and holiness.  We must follow the teachings of Christ.  The wise man is contrasted to the foolish man by Jesus in Matt. 7:24-27.  The wise man builds his life upon the rock.  The wise man hears the sayings of Jesus and does them.  The foolish man hears the sayings of Jesus, but does not obey them.  This lack of obedience reveals unbelief in the heart of the unrepentant.  The wise man is able to weather the storms of life and to stand.  The foolish man’s life collapses during the storms of life.  Be very sure.  Be very sure, Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock!
What type of persons ought ye to be?  
One of the principles that Jesus taught should guide us as we navigate the present crisis.  “Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets” (Matt. 7:12).  This principle is often referred to as the Golden Rule.  We paraphrase the Golden Rule:  “Do unto others as ye would have them do unto you.”  This principle is acknowledged as being right by almost all people.  The Golden Rule is a positive statement requiring us to act in behalf of others as we would want them to treat us.  It requires us to take the initiative.  The rule expresses itself in words and works that are conducive to the law of love.  Love for others is always powerful and positive.  The rule is closely tied to the first and second commandments referenced by Jesus in Matt. 22:36-39 and Mark 12:29-31.  The first and greatest commandment is to love God with all of our being.  The second is to love our neighbor as ourself.  Love for our neighbor is commanded by the Lord and exhibits His mind and His Spirit. Love seeks the highest good of another.  Love is undefeatable, benevolent, goodwill. Love is a principle that manifests itself in positive acts that enhance the wellbeing of others.  Love always gives of itself.  It is selfless.  Selfishness violates the law of love for others.  Jesus was selfless.  He sacrificed His own life for the salvation of all of mankind.  Whenever we are under duress, it is difficult to think of others.  We focus on our discomforts, losses, and needs. Love focuses on others (seeketh not her own-I Cor. 13:5).  Love makes sacrifices that show the value of investing ourselves in the lives of others.
In times like these, we need to unleash the power of love in our marriages, our families, our communities and our nation.
The Principle Fulfills the Law and the Prophets.
Jesus’s teaching was understood and reiterated by the apostle Paul.  Paul states, “Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.  For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there by any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Rom. 13:8-10).  Love is a barrier to all manner of sinful conduct that may be directed toward one’s neighbor.  Love does not act in injustice in order to create justice.  Love is not retaliatory.  The ability to control one’s passions under duress is a sign of discipline and self-control.  These virtues stem from the new life created in Christ Jesus and identify us as belonging to God.  They are the fruit of the Spirit who works in us (Gal. 5:22-23).
In Times Like These
We need a savior.
We need an anchor.
We need to follow the teachings of Jesus.
We need to love God with all of our being and our neighbor as ourself!
Be very sure.  Be very sure. Your anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock!