Tuesday May 31, 2022

Scripture 1 Kings 17: ² Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah: ³ “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. ⁴ You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.”

⁵ So he did what the Lord had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. ⁶ The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

Life Lesson: God’s Word came to Elijah.  God spoke to Elijah and God still speaks to His people today.

– Many today might object and point to their personal experience of never hearing an audible voice from heaven.  Fine.  However, is that the only way the Lord speaks?  Did God not also speak to His people in dreams, visions, through prophets and prophetesses?  We have the Word of God in written form to utilize daily.  God still speaks to His people today. 

– In what Context did the Word of the Lord come to Elijah?  It was in the context of living in obedience to the Spirit’s leading that Elijah heard the Word of the Lord.  How many want to go their own way yet wonder why they are not “hearing” from the Lord?  I believe they are in fact hearing from the Lord and His message to them could not be any clearer; it is a message counseling them to stop, turn around, get alone with God in prayer, talk to their Pastor, confess, repent, and turn around.  Those who are truly listening to the Lord and looking for His direction will hear His voice.

– The Word of the Lord may require you to do something unexpected, even objectionable to you.  Elijah was told to hide, “in the Kerith Ravine” and then to receive his food from scavenging ravens.  No one wants to go into the witness protection system.  You have to be willing to leave everything behind and hide because your life depends on remaining hidden.  Please note, the message that was without question difficult for the man of God to hear, came from God not from the whims of other men.  This clarification is important because for some they might think that any difficult message or direction coming to them is a message from God or conversely any message that suits their own personal desire is also from the Lord.  This requires discernment on the part of the believer.  God has a way of reinforcing His Word to us so that there is little ambiguity as to the Source of the message.  Be honest with yourself and through prayerful petition you will identify whether the message is the whim of others, your own selfish desires, or if what you are hearing is truly from the Lord.  

– Elijah did exactly what God told him to do.  Obedience or acting on the Word of the Lord not only brings with it incredible blessings of God’s providence in your life and the lives of those over whom you have authority, it will also prepare you to receive future messages from the Lord that will lead you into greater experiences of God’s provision for your life!