Speaker 1: Good morning. Refuge shirts
online. It is so good to see you, pastor
Jason here. Listen, I've been praying for
you all week asking God to move powerfully
in your life. I'm so excited about week two
of our series, the prophet, and I just
cannot wait to see what God does in our
lives today. Thank you to our guests who are
worshiping with us for the first time. We're
so thankful that you're a part of the Refuge
Church family today. But before we jump into
God's word, let's take a moment and let's
pray and let's invite the power and presence
of God into our hearts and our homes. Jesus,
we love you so much. And we are so thankful
God that you have provided us with the
technology to be able to worship you from
wherever we're at God. I pray for our church
family today.
Just like I've been praying all week long,
God, that you would move powerfully in our
hearts and in our homes today, God, that you
would speak to us in such a powerful way,
father, that your word would not return void
this morning, but God, you would speak to
us, God that you would change us, God, that
you would refresh us God, that you would
renew us so that we can become more and more
like your son. Jesus, Jesus. We love you.
It's in your name. We pray. And everybody
said a man, Hey, this morning we are
continuing our series called the prophet.
And what we're doing this month is we are
examining the life of one of the most highly
regarded profits in Jewish and Christian
world alike. One of the most powerful
spiritual giants that we see in the
scripture, the prophet Elijah, and last
week, we ended with God using Elijah to
resurrect a young boy who had fallen ill and
died. And now between first King 17 and
first Kings 18, three and a half years have
passed. Let's jump into first Kings 18,
starting in verse one. It says later in the
third year of the drought, the Lord said to
Elijah, go and present yourself to King
Ahab. Tell him that I will soon sin rain. So
Elijah went and appeared before a Hab. This
is important. If you're taking notes. Number
one,
Speaker 2: We see that Alijah presented
himself.
Speaker 1: Elijah presented himself now
because of Elijah's fervent prayers. This
drought has now lasted three and a half
years. And if you'll remember last week, God
had told Elijah to go in the hide at Karath
Brooke. Now we see God telling Elijah to go
and present himself. This is important.
There is a tem to hide and be alone with
God. There is a time to be in the secret
place and there is also a time to present
ourselves to the world. There's a tem. When
God is going to elevate, there is a time
where God is going to use in a powerful way.
It starts with the hidden life. It starts
with the secret place. And then there is a
Tom of presenting. We not only see this in
the prophet Elijah's life. We also see it in
Jesus's life as well.
Speaker 2: There were times where Jesus
Speaker 1: Would go away and retreat. He
would get away from people to rest, to
relax, to prepare.
Speaker 2: And most importantly, spend time
with God. Then there were times of intense
ministry where he was always with people,
teaching and healing and loving.
Speaker 1: There were times when God would
present him in situations just like he did
at Jesus's
Speaker 2: Baptism, but there are times of
preparation and there are times of
presentation. You see, God has called us to
seasons of preparation and to seasons of
action, God has called us to seasons of the
secret place and seasons of action and
presentation as well. There will be a time
when God will
Speaker 1: Call you to present yourself and
take
Speaker 2: Action. It may
Speaker 1: Be to step into a ministry role
or a serving role. It may be a situation in
your family or at work. It may be someone
that you need to have a difficult
conversation with or someone that you need
to forgive, but God is going to call you
Speaker 2: You to action. Listen,
Speaker 1: I believe in the power of prayer,
I have seen all God can do. We have
experienced it in our lives. We have
experienced it in our church family, but
many times, God also calls us to present
ourselves
Speaker 2: And to take action. This then
there was
Speaker 1: Once a man who lived in a
two-story house, the was near a river, and
unfortunately the river began to flood. As
the river Rose warnings were given via radio
and TV and on cell phones, Lords Jeeps drove
into the area to evacuate people. And as a
Jeep rode by the man's house, he was told
you are in danger. Your life is at stake.
You must evacuate getting the Jeep. Let us
help you get out of here. No, the man
replied from his doorstep. I have faith in
God. I'm going to be okay. The floods not
going to get me. God is going to take care
of me.
Speaker 2: But the water continued to rise.
Speaker 1: The man was on the second floor.
A boat was coming through the area and
arrived at the man's house. Rescuers made
every effort to convince the man to get out
of the house, to take action. So his life
would be saved. You're in danger. Your life
is at stake. You're going to drown in the
flood.
Speaker 2: No worries. The man says I have
Speaker 1: Faith in God. Everything is going
to be okay. Even though the flood is
Speaker 2: Rising, I will be fine because
God is going to take care of me. But the
flood and the water continued to rise. The
man went on to the roof now to avoid the
rising water
Speaker 1: Helicopter pilot sees him on top
of his roof and hovers above the man using a
megaphone. The pilot tries to convince the
man to grab the rope ladder, which was
dangling above his head. Y'all are in
danger. The flood is still rising. You will
drown. If you don't grab this rope ladder
and climb up to the helicopter, let us help
you.
Speaker 2: No worries. The man said I will
be fine. I have faith in God. The flood is
higher, but I have faith. God is going to
take care of me on the flood rises and the
man drowns. If the pearly Gates, the man
says to God, I had faith, why did you let me
die? To which God replies. I sent you a
Jeep. I sent you a boat. I sent you a
helicopter. What more could I have done for
you? You see prayer is important. Prayer
works. We need prayer in our lives, but God
has called us to prayer. And action. God has
called us to prayer and presentation. And in
our lives, we have to have those quiet
moments alone with God. We have to have
those seasons of preparation, but there is
going to be a time when God is going to call
you to move.
God is going to call you to act and you have
to be ready and you have to be willing to
step up and do what God has called you to
do. Elijah was a man of action. He was a man
who trusted God. And because of that
preparation time, because of that hidden
lifetime, because of that secret place,
time, Elijah was ready to present himself to
the evil King Ahab. Once again, he was ready
to go toe to toe with the most evil King in
all of history at that time. Now what
happens next is that a Hab called for
Obadiah. Obadiah was in charge of the
palace. Obadiah was one of King Ahab's
servants, but the Bible teaches us that
Obadiah also feared the God that he was a
believer in the one. True God. He was very
devout
Speaker 1: In earlier in years before when
Speaker 2: Queen Jessebelle tried to kill
off other prophets of God, Obadiah actually
hit a hundred of them in caves, 50 and one K
50 in another. He fed them and took care of
them and supplied them with what they
needed. Now, a Hab told Obadiah to go out
into the country and try to find some water,
try to locate streams, try to locate Springs
so that they could find enough grass to feed
the horses and the mules. So they divided
the country and they begin to go on a
search. And while Obadiah was out, searching
for water, he met Alijah and he fell to his
Speaker 1: Nice. And he said, Elijah, is
that you? My master? He said, yes, it is the
real me. Now go tell your boss that Alijah
is here and I need to talk
Speaker 2: To him. But Obadiah was scared.
Speaker 1: He said, what have I done to
deserve this? Ahab is going to kill me
because when I go and tell him that I've
seen you and you're not there anymore, he's
going to wonder, why did you let him get
away? We have been searching for you. Ahab
has been trying to kill you. We've looked
high and low and we couldn't find you.
Speaker 2: And Elijah says, no, listen, go
tell your master. Go tell King Ahab that
Alijah is here and I need to speak with him.
Now in first Kings 18, 15 through 16, Elijah
said, I swear by the Lord almighty and whose
presence I stand that I will present myself
to Ahab this very day. So Obadiah went to
tell a hub that Alijah had come and Ahab
went out to meet Alijah. The second thing we
see this morning in Elijah's life is that
Alijah kept his word. Elijah kept
Speaker 1: His word. This drought was so
severe that Ahab himself and his trusted
servant over Daya were out looking for
Springs and streams and pasture land. When
God arranged this divine meeting between
Obadiah and the prophet, Elijah Obadiah knew
that a habit conducted an exhaustive search
for Alijah. He wanted a lodge, a dead end.
He feared that if he went back to the King
and said, I failed Alijah and a lodge, it
disappeared again. That Ahab punish Obadiah
for letting Elijah get away. But a lie
assures Obadiah that he will meet with a
have Alijah responded to Obadiah's
legitimate fears. He would not make Obadiah
a martyr.
Speaker 2: Well, I just behalf you see
Elijah had every right to be worried. He
knew that
Speaker 1: Blamed him for the drought. He
knew that Ahab wanted him dead. He could
have been scared. He could have changed his
mind and run away. He could have gotten
distracted and went to do something else,
but he didn't. He stayed to meet with a
rehab,
Speaker 2: Right? Then Alijah kept his word.
Speaker 1: God expects us to be true to our
word as well. There is an expectation in the
Bible that God wants us to be true to our
word. We see it in Matthew five 37, but let
your yes. Be yes. And your no be
Speaker 2: No. Sometimes
Speaker 1: I feel like we are so flippant
with our commitments. We're so quick to tell
a lie, instead of just telling the truth or
just doing what is most convenient for us,
let me ask you some questions. When you tell
somebody I'm going to pray for you,
Speaker 2: Do you really pray for him? When
you tell someone
Speaker 1: If they can depend on you to help
them out,
Speaker 2: Can they really depend on you
Speaker 1: When you say you're going to be
somewhere at such a such Tom? Or are you
really there when you obligate yourself to
pay off
Speaker 2: Yet? Do you do it
Speaker 1: Granted? Nobody's perfect. But if
you fail at one of those,
Speaker 2: Do you own up to it? Do you quit?
Speaker 1: Please admit your failure to the
person you promise and refuse to make
rationalizations Alaia kept his word. Even
when his life was
Speaker 2: Steak and God expects us to keep
our word as well. Let's keep going in verse
17. When Ahab saw him, he exclaimed. So is
it really? You, you troublemaker of Israel.
I've made no trouble for Israel, Elijah
reply, you and your family or the
troublemakers for you have refused to obey
the commands of the Lord and have worship
the images of bale and stead number three.
And lastly, today we see that Elijah was
falsely accused. He was falsely accused.
Ahab was easily the worst, most ungodly King
that Israel had ever had yet. He did not
hesitate to blame the entire drought on this
godly prophet, Elijah, if Ahab
Speaker 1: Would at least stop the active
persecution of the people of God, God would
have probably relented in the drought,
Speaker 2: But the wicked
Speaker 1: King found it easier to blame the
godly prophet. You see, according to King
Ahab's theology, it made sense for a Hab to
blame a lot.
Speaker 2: Gotcha. And you have believed in
bail
Speaker 1: So much so that his government
supported and promoted bail worship and
persecuted the worshipers of the one. True
God, a have believed that Alijah had angered
the sky God and therefore bale withheld
rain. A have probably thought that bail
would hold back. Rain until Elijah was
caught and killed.
Speaker 2: But if we go back to Deuteronomy
28,
Speaker 1: We see that God's word promised
that drought would come. If Israel was
disobedient, Deuteronomy 28 verses 23 and
24, the skies above will be as unyielding as
bronze. And the earth beneath will be as
hard as iron. The Lord will change. The rain
that falls on your land into powder and dust
will pour down from the sky until you are
destroyed. That's what the Bible had
promised. This is what God had promised. If
Israel was
Speaker 2: Disobedient, see
Speaker 1: Elijah, Elijah may have been
falsely accused, but Alijah was standing on
God's word. A Hab may have fiercely
disagreed with Elijah, but Elijah was rooted
in God's word. Ahab may have lied to all of
Israel about Elijah, but a lodger was
committed to God's word.
Speaker 2: God
Speaker 1: Instructs us to follow his word
because it ensures our integrity. When we
follow God's word, it ensures and seals our
integrity. Let me ask you a question. Have
you ever been lied about, have you ever been
falsely accused then? You know how terrible
it feels,
Speaker 2: But that's one
Speaker 1: Of the many reasons I try to base
every decision I make and every action that
I take on the Bible, because when I do what
the Bible says, I can look in the mirror. I
can lay my head on my pillow at night and
know that I have lived with integrity
because I follow God
Speaker 2: Word, Elijah. He did not back
down. He did not
Speaker 1: Cower when Ahab a lot about
Speaker 2: Him because
Speaker 1: A lodge and knew he was following
God's will.
Speaker 2: And no
Speaker 1: Knowing that you are following
God's will, will give you great confidence.
Let me give you some examples. When you have
an issue with someone in your life, Don't go
talk about them to everybody else, go
directly to them. It don't. Don't try to
build your case with everybody else. The
Bible says to go directly to the person
who's upset you. Listen. When I have to
address
Speaker 2: An issue with someone in the
church,
Speaker 1: I don't like it, but the Bible
tells me that I will be judged for how I
pastor people. So I want to pastor people in
accordance with God's word so that I can
maintain my integrity. People are going to
lie about you. People are going to talk
about you. People are going to make things
up. There are people that don't like you
anymore because of a lie that somebody is
told about you in the past. But when you
live your life committed to the word of God
and you have integrity, your integrity will
speak for you. God will
Speaker 2: You and God protected. Elijah.
Elijah did not back down to King Ahab, which
set up one of the most captivating stories
in all of the Bible. One of my favorite
stories, a story that we're going to talk
more about next Sunday morning. I hope
you'll join us. I hope you'll be back to
hear what happens next. But before we end
today, I want to share one last story with
you. It's a story about a man named Jesus
Christ. You see the Bible says that God
created the world. He created the first
humans, Adam and Eve, and the world was
perfect. God spent time with Adam and Eve.
He had a relationship with them, but Adam
and Eve chose to disobeyed God. They chose
to try to be their own God. And when they
did sin entered the world and changed
everything. Sin brought death into the
world.
Sin brought disease into the world. Sin
brought disaster into the world and sin
broke the relationship with God. And every
human being from that point forward was born
with sin in their life, a sin nature, where
they were naturally compelled to rebel
against God, to do their own thing in a way
to want to be their own God. I'm a sinner.
You're a sinner. The Bible says that we have
all sinned and fallen short of the glory of
God, but God loves you so much. He did not
want our relationship to be destroyed. He
wanted our relationship to be redeemed, to
be restored and put back together. And so
while we are sinners, God sent his son Jesus
Christ to die for us so that anyone who
believes in him will not have to experience
eternal death in a very real place called
hell no.
They could experience eternal life in a very
real place, heaven. And even more than that,
we could experience an abundant life on this
earth because we get to live our life with
the power of the Holy spirit. God's spirit
guiding us each and every moment of each and
every day, God sent his son Jesus Christ to
live a perfect life. And Jesus did that. And
then Jesus chose to be our substitute. He
died on a cross. He spilled his blood. He
took our punishment. He died so that we get,
I have life. They placed his body in a
borrowed tomb. They sealed it with a stone,
but three days later, the Bible says the
stone was rolled away. The tomb was empty
because Jesus was alive. He had brought
himself back from the dead. And when he did
that, he proved to everyone that he was God
in the flesh and that he had the power to
forgive sin.
And he was a God that kept his promises. And
the Bible says that if we will trust, if we
will place our faith in what Jesus did on
that Ross, that he will save us. The Bible.
He says that he will rescue us from our sin.
He will take our sin from us. As far as the
East is from the West. You don't have to
live your life, paralyzed by guilt and
shame. You can be set free. You can be
forgiven. You can have a brand new life
today. If you place your trust in Jesus. And
I want to give you the opportunity this
morning to do just that. If you say Jason, I
want to make that decision. I want to ask
you just to pray this prayer with me today.
God, I've been going my own direction with
my life. I've been doing my own thing.
And today I realized that I'm a sinner. I
have disobeyed you. I have turned from you
and I've been trying to live life on my own.
But God, I also realize that you have sent
your son Jesus, to save me, to rescue me. I
believe that Jesus died on a cross and I
believe he Rose again from the grave and he
is still alive. And he wants to forgive me
and change me and give me a brand new life.
Today, today, I decide to follow Jesus,
Jesus, you are my Lord. And I love you. And
I want to walk with you for the rest of my
life. It's in Jesus name. I pray. Amen. Now,
if you made that decision to follow Jesus
today, I want to celebrate with you. The
Bible actually says that all of heaven is
celebrating your decision right now, even
the angels are cheering and clapping and
shouting because it is a choice that you
made, but please don't change this channel.
Don't turn off this video without letting me
know, because I want to pray for by name. I
want to send you resources to help you grow
in your faith and become everything that God
has created you to be. And I want to pray
that God will help you find his purpose and
plan for your life so that you can truly
live the abundant life that's available in
Jesus. So if you will go to our website and
fill out the digital connect card, or if
you're online, you can look for the digital
connect card in the post above or in the
comments below. I would love to send you a
free ebook. I wrote called next steps for
new believers that will help you in your new
found. Faith, become everything God has
created you to be. Now at the end of every
service, we know that there are people
watching and listening who are just in need
of prayer.
And we want to minister to you in any way
that we can today. And so if you're watching
and you need prayer, I invite you send an
email to our church post in the comments
below. If you feel comfortable and our
prayer team is on standby to call your name
out to God. Let's worship one last time
together as a church family today. And if
you need prayer, please let us know, God, we
love you so much. And we thank you again. We
thank you God, for this opportunity to
worship you, to be in your presence,
wherever we're at God. I know that there are
people watching and listening today, and
God, they need a touch from you, father. I
pray that whatever situation, God, you would
meet people, right where they're at right
way, where they are right as they are and
God that you would move in a powerful way.
Father. I just believe there are people
watching that need physical healing. Isaiah
says that by your stripes, we are healed
Jesus God. In Jesus name, I pray for healing
in their lives. I know that there may be
people watching and they're dealing with a
financial crisis. Lord, your word says that
you are Jehovah Gyra. You are the provider.
So father in jesus' name, would you provide
an only a way that you can so that you could
get the honor and the glory, God, for those
who are bound up by addiction or bad habits
or strongholds, we know that you are the
chain breaker and the miracle worker. And so
Jesus, we ask that you would break down
walls in Jesus name. Jesus. We love you. And
we give you the honor and glory for what you
do and it's in your name. We pray. Amen.

Speaker 1: Hey, good morning. Refuge Church
family, pastor Jason. Here. It is so great
to see you again this Sunday. Hey, thank you
so much for worshiping with us. We've got
people worshiping in person at our campuses.
We've got people worshiping online with our
online campus and what I love about it is
every one of us. We are family. Hey, we've
been praying for you all
Speaker 2: Week long Refuge family, that God
would move powerfully because this morning
he is giving me the opportunity to teach one
of my favorite stories and all of the
scripture. And I know that God's going to
use it to make a difference in our life. But
before we dive into God's word, like we
always do. Let's take a moment. Let's
prepare through prayer. Let's pray together,
father, God, we love you so much. And we
just thank you again and again for the
opportunity to serve you, God, and we thank
you for your word. God, your word has made
such a difference in our lives, especially
God learning about your servant Elijah
father today is God. We learn about this
incredible showdown that he has with King
Ahab. God, we know that there are principles
that you want to apply to our hearts and our
lives this morning.
And God, I pray that we will walk away,
completely changed by what you do. God, we
open our hearts to the power and the
presence of your Holy spirit. Fill our
homes, God, with your very presence this
morning, we love you. And it's in Jesus's
name. We pray, amen. Hey church, this
morning, we are continuing our series called
the profit. And you know that this month we
have been examining the life of one
particular prophet who is regarded by Jews
and Christians alike. As one as the most
powerful profits in history, a spiritual
giant, the prophet Alijah. I love Elijah so
much. I named my first born after him. And
at the end of last Sunday, we saw that a
logic came face-to-face with King Ahab. Once
again, setting up one of my favorite stories
in all of the Bible. If you have your Bibles
with you, we're going to be in first Kings
18, starting in verse 19. If you don't have
your Bibles with you, don't worry. The
verses will be on the screen for you. It
says now summon all Israel to join me at
Mount Carmel, along with the 450 prophets of
bale and the 400 prophets of Asherah who
were supported by Jezza bell. So Ahab summon
all the people of Israel and all of the
prophets to Mount Carmel, then Alijah stood
in front of them and said, how much
Speaker 1: Longer will you waver hobbling
between two opinions. If the Lord is God
follow him. But if bail is God, then follow
him. But the people were completely silent.
Speaker 2: Verse 22, then Alijah said to
them, I am the only prophet of the Lord who
has left,
Speaker 1: But bail has
Speaker 2: 450 profits. Now, if you're
taking notes, the first thing that I want
you to see from this passage is Elijah
Speaker 1: Was courageous. Uh, Elijah was
courageous, uh, Elijah challenged King,
Speaker 2: A hat together, the idle prophets
of bale and Astra for a showdown, for a
meeting on Mount caramel. This is better
than WWE. There was going to be a fight that
was going to be happening. It was important
for Elijah to confront and eliminate these
prophets of bail. Before God sent rain to
the land of Israel, it was crucial that
everyone understood that the rain
Speaker 1: It came from God and not from
bale. And even though Elijah was yeah,
Speaker 2: The only prophet of the one, true
God that was willing to stand up
Speaker 1: Up for God. He challenged Israel
to make a decision, choose God or choose
bale. Now think about this. Alijah was
surrounded by people who hated him, the
prophets of bale. They despised Alijah. They
loved the favor that they got from King Ahab
and queen Jessebelle.
Speaker 2: They were enthusiastically
promoting the persecution of the followers
of the one, true God.
Speaker 1: But over the last three years,
they had been severely humbled by Alijah and
the drought that was sustained by his
prayers. All
Speaker 2: They're cross to the weather. God
bail were ineffective for three years. They
hated the prophet of God because he had
humiliated them.
Speaker 1: And he showed everyone that their
priesthood was nothing more than a sham.
Elijah was courageous and God also calls us
to be creative. Courageous. God calls us to
be courageous. Even when we are standing
alone, you see as believers in Jesus Christ
as Christians, we need to stand up for what
is right. Even when it's not popular, we
need to stand for the truth of God's word.
Even when others won't stand with us, God
has called us friends
Speaker 2: To be a people of courage
Speaker 1: And conviction. I love what
Proverbs 28 one. This is how it says it. The
wicked run away when no one is chasing them.
But the godly are as bold as lions. The
Bible says church that we can be as bold as
lions. I know for many of us, we don't feel
that way. For many of us, we don't feel very
strong for many of us. We're worried. We're
anxious for many of us. We live in fear,
Speaker 2: But the Bible says you do not
have to be shaken by the opinions of other
people. You do not have to be paralyzed by
fear. You can have the boldness and the
courage of a lion.
Speaker 1: The Bible says, listen, I believe
there is going to be a day when preaching
God's word is going to be considered hate
speech. That what we're doing now, there's
going to be a day when it's not even going
to be allowed on social media. But even now,
because of our friends, because of our
partners, we are working on ways to always
continue to preach. God's word,
Speaker 2: Make God's word available to
anybody who needs it. Okay?
Speaker 1: The internet, we're not going to
stop. We're not going to back down. We're
going to
Speaker 2: Be as bold as lions. We're going
to show courage. We're going to stand on the
truth of God.
Speaker 1: The word, because God's word is
truth and God's word is powerful and God's
word never returns. Void Alijah was
courageous and you can be courageous too.
Let's keep going in. Verse 23, Elijah says,
now bring two bulls. The prophet of bail may
choose whichever one they wish
Speaker 2: And cut it into pieces and
Speaker 1: Lay it on the wood of their
altar. But without setting fire to it
Speaker 2: Just says, I will prepare the
other bull and lay it on the wood on the
altar, but
Speaker 1: Not set fire to it. Then
Speaker 2: Call upon the name of your God.
And I will call the name of the Lord
Speaker 1: Or the God who answers by setting
Speaker 2: Fire to the wood is the true
Speaker 1: God. And all of the people
agreed.
Speaker 2: Then Elijah said that the
prophets of bale, you go first for, there
are many of you choose one of the bulls,
prepare it and call on the name of your God,
but do not set fire to the wood. The second
thing that we see in this passage is not
only was illogical
Speaker 1: Courageous. Elijah was also
confident.
Speaker 2: Elijah was competent in this
proposed test. A lodger was careful to give
the profits of bail. All of the advantages
they pick the two bulls. They pick the one
that they would
Speaker 1: Sacrifice and which one that
Elijah would sacrifice
Speaker 2: The fire wasn't going to come
from the profits or from Elijah. It had to
be supernatural in origin supplied by either
bail or the Lord. Again, Alijah gave plenty
of advantage to the profits of bail. It was
thought that bail was the Scott God, the
Lord of the weather, the cinder of
lightning, which was thought to be fire from
the sky. If bail were really real, certainly
he could send fire from heaven. Elijah was
giving them all the advantages.
Speaker 1: A lodger was confident. He put
God and himself on the line before the
gathered nation of Israel. And that took a
lot of faith and that took a lot of trust.
But remember a lodger learned this faith. He
learned this trust
Speaker 2: Over many months of daily
Speaker 1: Dependence on God,
Speaker 2: Both at Cara, Brooke, back in
chapter 17. And at the widow's health at
zero had confidence in God because he
trusted God. He trusted God because God had
taken care of him. Every moment of every
day, Elijah had plenty.
Speaker 1: They have reasons to have
confidence in God. Why? Well, one,
Speaker 2: Because he was following the
INSPRA instructions,
Speaker 1: The Lord first Kings 1836,
Speaker 2: God tells the logic of what to
do. And a logic is following his
instructions.
Speaker 1: And second
Speaker 2: Elijah knew that from the history
of Israel that God could, and God would send
fire from heaven
Speaker 1: To take up a sacrifice. You see
God supplies us with confidence. When we do
his will, many of us try to walk through
this Christian life. We try to walk through
our faith and we're not very confident in
what we're doing. We're not very confident
in who we are. We're not very confident in
who God is, but when we follow God's will
God will supply us with confidence. Proverbs
three 26. This is the English standard
version
Speaker 2: For the Lord will be
Speaker 1: Your confidence. And we'll keep
your foot from being caught.
Speaker 2: The Lord will be your confidence.
You see the have biblical confidence is to
have the belief that you can rely on God
that our God can be trusted. God didn't
create us. God. Didn't save us to walk
through life full of delts and worry. When
we follow him, when we trust him, we can be
confident that he is with us, that he has
our best interest in mind.
Speaker 1: And that he is who he says he is.
Now. We all know it is our natural tendency
to try to place our trust and other things
in the governance, in finances, in work in
relationships. But the Bible says it is
better to trust in the Lord than to put
confidence in people. Our princes. Now they
prepared one of the bulls and they placed it
on the altar. And then these prophets of
bale, they called on the name of bell from
morning until noontime shouting,
Speaker 2: Oh, bell answer us.
Speaker 1: But there was no reply of any
kind. They danced hobbling around the alter.
They
Speaker 2: About noontime. The Bible says a
lot. You began mocking them. You'll have to
shout louder. Surely he is a God. Maybe he's
daydreaming. Maybe he's relieving himself.
Maybe he's away on a trip. Maybe he's asleep
and you need to wake him up. So they shouted
louder. Following their normal custom.
Speaker 1: They cut themselves with knives
and swords until blood gushed out. They
raved all afternoon until the time of the
evening sacrifice. But there was no sale, no
reply, no response. Then it was a lie, just
turn. And here's what the Bible says happen
in verse 30, then Elijah calls
Speaker 2: To the people he said, come over
here. They all crowded around him. As he
repaired the altar of the Lord that had been
torn down. He took 12 stones, one to
represent each of the tribes of Israel. And
he used the stones to rebuild the altar in
the name of the Lord that he dug a trench
around the altar, large enough to hold about
three gallons of water. He piled wood on the
altar, cut the bull into pieces and laid the
pieces on the wood. Then he said, fill four
large jars with water and pour the water
over the offering and the wood. After they
had done this, he said, do the same thing
again. And when they were finished, he said,
now do it a third time. So they did, as he
said, and the water ran around the altar and
even filled up the trench at the usual time
for the offering of the evening, sacrifice
Elijah, the prophet walked up to the alter
and pray,
Speaker 1: Oh Lord God of Abraham, Isaac and
Speaker 2: Jacob proved today that you were
God in Israel. And I am your servant. Prove
that I've done all this at your command. Oh
Lord, answer me, answer me. So these people
will know that you, Oh Lord our God. And you
have brought them back to yourself. Verse 38
says immediately the fire of the Lord
flashed down from heaven and burned up the
young bull, the wood, the stones, and the
dust that even licked up all the water in
the truck.
Speaker 1: And when the people solid, they
fell
Speaker 2: Down on the ground and they cried
out
Speaker 1: The Lord. He is God. Yes, the
Lord is God. The third thing we see in these
verses is that a lie Jah, experienced
revival. He experienced when it was a lie,
just turned to sacrifice. He wanted to get
the attention of the people. This was for
their benefit, not for his and they needed
to pay attention so they could see that the
Lord was the true God. In contrast to the
silent bail, Elijah was very aware that he
was repairing an alter that once stood
strong and he was looking to revive
something that once was and in wanting to
make a deep impression on the people,
Speaker 2: He required more of the Lord than
of what he required of the bale. Elijah
didn't even suggest to the profits of bail
that they wet down their sacrifice once or
twice or even three times. But a lodge did
this confident that it was no harder for God
to ignite a wet sacrifice than it was for
him to set a dry one,
Speaker 1: One ablaze, the profits,
Speaker 2: It's a bale. They had passion and
commitment and sincerity and devotion. They
had great energy,
Speaker 1: But they didn't have the real
God. A God who answered from heaven with
fire. And when the fire of God fail, its
work was beyond all expectations.
Speaker 2: It would have been merely enough.
If the cut up pieces of bull would have been
burnt up, but God went in more than
vindication. He wanted to glorify himself
among the people. And at this moment, the
people of God were completely persuaded.
There was no more choice to make the Lord
was the one true God. And they fell on their
faces and worshiped him. And they
experienced revival. God wants to revive our
hearts as well. Church like Israel weekend,
get distracted. We can drift away from God.
We can make good things a priority instead
of God things. But God doesn't want just a
part of us. God wants all of us. God is
calling us to live a whole hearted faith in
a halfhearted culture because a half-hearted
faith produces nothing, but a whole hearted
faith produces power. Maybe you're here.
Maybe you're watching today. And you're a
believer in Jesus Christ and you have
drifted away from God. It is not too late to
come back. Jesus is waiting for you. Jesus
is running to you. Jesus is pursuing you,
telling you that there is something
powerful. That happens when we commit
ourselves to a full hearted faith that maybe
you're
Speaker 1: Maybe you're listening. And
there's never been a time in your life where
you have placed your faith. You've placed
your trust in Jesus Christ. Listen, you can
have confidence in Jesus because Jesus loved
you so much. He did the unthinkable. He
stepped out of the glory of heaven. He
became the God man. He lived a perfect life,
never doing anything wrong. And he died on a
cross. He chose to be your substitute. He
chose to be my substitute on the cross. He
took the punishment that was meant for us.
He spilled his blood so that we could be
forgiven and set free. They placed his dead
body in a borrowed grave, but Jesus didn't
stay dead. He Rose again from the grave. He
conquered hell. He conquered sin. He
conquered death so that he could give you a
brand new life so that he could forgive you
of all the sin, all of your past everything.
You've thought everything you've said,
everything you've done. That was wrong.
Everything you've done that is dishonored
God. He said, I'm going to take the
punishment. I want to forgive it. And I want
to set you free from guilt and shame. And I
don't want you to go to hell when you die.
No. I want you to have any eternal life in
heaven with God. But while you're on this
earth, I want you to live in abundant life.
Jesus says the life with me, a light with my
spirit, leading you and guiding you every
way, giving you love and joy and peace and
patience and kindness and goodness. And
self-control everything you need to live.
The abundant life. Jesus wants to give you,
but you have to choose to follow Jesus. It
is a decision that only you can make a
pastor cannot make it for you. A priest can
not make it for you. Your parents can not
make it for you. You have to choose to
follow Jesus. And just like Elijah asked the
people of Israel to choose, choose bale or
choose God. I'm asking you today. Are you
going to choose the culture or are you going
to choose Jesus? Are you going to try to do
things your own way to get to God? Or are
you going to choose Jesus? Are you going to
go through life?
Limping, barely making it through. Are you
going to choose Jesus? You can choose Jesus
today. And if you're watching, if you're
listening, if you can hear the sound of my
voice and you say, Jason, I want to follow
Jesus with my life. I want to ask you, would
you, would you pray this with me today? God,
I choose Jesus today. I'm tired of trying to
do life my own way. I'm tired of trying to
fight what culture has for me. I'm tired of
trying to get to you through things that
aren't working. God, I realized that I need
a savior and that savior is your son. Jesus
Christ. God. I believe that Jesus died on
the cross and I believe that he Rose again
from the grave and that he is still alive.
And he is calling me through his grace
today. Father, would you forgive me?
Would you set me free Jesus, you are my
Lord. And I love you. And I want to follow
you for the rest of my life. And it's in
Jesus name. I pray. Amen. Listen, if that
was you, I want to congratulate you. I want
to celebrate you because that is the
greatest decision that you could ever make
with your life to choose to follow Jesus.
Listen, your faith doesn't stop today. Know
your faith starts today. It starts right now
and we believe that God has a purpose and
plan for your life. And you can be
everything that God has created called you
to be. But please, please do not change the
channel. Do not turn off this video without
letting us know that you chose Jesus today,
because I want to pray for you by name. I
want to send you resources this week, that
will help you grow in your faith.
That will help you become more like Jesus.
That will help you take your name steps. You
can go to our website and fill out our
digital connect card. Or if you're online,
you can look in the post above or in the
comments below for the link to the digital
connect card. Please give me a name and
email address a phone number some way to
reach out so that we can pray for you. And
we can encourage you and celebrate with you
this week. Now, you know, if you've been
with us for any period of time, that like a
lodge, we believe in the power of prayer. We
believe that prayer has power. We believe
that prayer works. We believe that God
listens to our prayers and he answers and
you may be watching or listening right now
and you need prayer. You need to meet with
God because of something that's going on.
Listen, it doesn't matter how big it is. It
doesn't matter how small it is. God cares.
First Peter says that you can cast all of
your anxiety. Doesn't go on God, because he
cares about so we're going to dedicate a
time of this service to prayer. We're going
to worship together one last time. And if
you need prayer for anything in your life,
listen, I ask you, please email us, let us
know post in the comments below. If you feel
comfortable because our staff, our pastors,
our prayer team, we stand ready to call out
your name to Jesus. Jesus loves you. And he
is for you. We love you. And we are for you.
Let's worship and let's pray together. Oh,
he loves us.
Speaker 2: Uh, his portion. He is, uh, drawn
to redemption with the grace in his eyes.
Jesus. We love
In God. We stand in agreement that we are in
need of revival. Like the people of Israel
standing at Mount Carmel. God, we need our
hearts to be revived by you. We need the
fire of heaven in our hearts today. And so
father, I pray for those who have been
following Jesus, but if drifted away, God,
would you give them fresh wind today? Would
you give them fresh fire today? God would
you revive their hearts today in a way that
only you can guys so that they would seek
you so that they would make you a priority
so that they would live their lives with
power. God, I pray for those who gave their
lives to Jesus for the first time, God,
which is just covered them in protection.
And God would you give them everything that
they need to be? Everything that you have
called and created them to be God, I pray
for those who are listening right now.
And God, they are dealing with tough Thomas
father. They are struggling with Dell. They
don't even know if you exist. Father, your
word stands up to any question. Your
character stands up to any doubt. So father,
I pray that even in this moment, they would
feel your presence in such a real and
manifest way. God, that you would work in
their life in only a way that you can so
that they can look and say, it must have
been God, it must have been God and Jesus.
We're going to give you the honor and glory
for what you do. And it's in Jesus name. We
pray and everyone said a

Good morning, refuge, church, family. Welcome to refuge church online campus. It is so good to see you this morning. I hope that you and your family had an incredible Thanksgiving together. Listen, we have been praying for you all week long as we wrap up our profit series this morning that God speaks powerfully into your life powerfully into your home. I believe God wants to do something special in our midst today. Let's pray. And then let's

Jump into God's word together.

Hey church at my house, family, pastor Jason, here, it is so great to see you. Thank you for choosing to worship with us at church and my house. I hope you had an amazing week and we've been praying for you all week long. So no matter where you are in the world, we've been praying, asking God to send his spirit, to speak to your heart, that your heart and your home may be full of his presence. Let's jump into God's word today, but before we do, let's pray and invite the power and presence of God into our hearts.

Jesus,

We love you so much. Thank you for this morning. Thank you for another opportunity to be with our church family online. God, we do pray for each and every person that's watching or listening. God, no matter where they're at, no matter what they're doing, father, that your power and presence would be in our midst. God, would you open our ears? Would you open our eyes? Most importantly, God, would you open our hearts today that we might hear from you? That we might listen to you and God that we might do what you say, father, would you speak to us through this story of a lodge? It's in Jesus name, we pray and everyone said a men, Hey, we're going to finish up our series called the prophet this morning. We are in week four. And what we've been doing this past month, as we've been examining the life of one of God's messengers, who is respected by the Jews and Christians alive is one of the most powerful profits in history, a true spiritual giant.

And that is the prophet Elijah. And as we ended last week Elijah had just battled the 850 prophets of bale and Asherah on Mount caramel. Listen, if you ever have the opportunity to go to the promised land, I would encourage you go to the holy land, go to Israel, see how the stories come to life when you were there. I'll never forget being on Mount Carmel. It was a life-changing experience. Now the Lord showed himself strong in this story and he proved to Israel that he was the one true God. Revival broke out and the entire nation of Israel fell on their face and they worship almighty God. And let's continue this story this morning with the ending of first Kings, 1840 through 46. These aren't going to be on the screen, but I want you to understand what happened next. As we move into this final season of Elijah's ministry that we're going to see in this series, it says just then Elijah said to grab the profits of bail.

Don't let any of them get away so that people captured the profits and took them to the Keshawn river where Alijah killed every one of them. Now that may sound extreme, right? But we have to understand that this was a contest between the one true God, and between the prophet, the false prophet bale in each did, he had to be responsible for their respective results. And what happened here was that the sin was exposed. The false prophet was exposed because king Ahab was sponsoring. The government was sponsoring these false prophets of bail. And these false prophets had the answer and be dealt with. According to the law of Moses, the law was clear that false prophets would be put to death. Not only that the false prophets of bail had encouraged and promoted the killing of the Lord's prophets. And so they were also guilty of murder.

So in this case, this was justice coming to pass. And then after that happened, a lodger told king Ahab, you need to go and get something to eat and drink because there is a heavy rain. That's a coming Ahab left, but Elijah climbed back to the top of Mount Carmel. Then he stooped down with his face almost to the ground. Most scholars believe that he was stooping down in prayer. And he said to his servant look out toward the sea. So the servant left. And when he came back, he said, I looked, but I didn't see anything. A logic told him to look seven more times. And on the seventh time, the servant came back and replied. I see a small cloud coming this way, but it's no bigger than a fist. Elijah told him, tell king Ahab to get his chariot ready and start home.

Now, otherwise the rain was going to stop him. Now, if you'll remember from the beginning of this story, three weeks ago, Elijah went to king Ahab and said, listen, it is not going to rain. There is going to be a drought. I am praying for no rain because the people of Israel have been worshiping this false God king I have because you have promoted this worship of the false God. And so now for three and a half years, the country has been in drought and bail had to be exposed. The false prophets of bail had to be eliminated before the rain would come. And once the official worship was of bail had been defeated. The purpose of the drought had been fulfilled. So Elijah knew that rain was on its way. What's interesting. Here is that as a lie, Jah was in prayer asking God to send the rain.

Again. It took seven times. This wasn't just prayer. This was persistent prayer and a logic. He wouldn't take no for an answer. He had confidence that it was God's will to sin the rain. Now, a few minutes later, the Bible says it got very cloudy and windy and the rain started pouring down. God opened up heaven and unleashed the rain. So a lodger wrapped his coat around him and listen to this. The Lord gave him strength to run all the way to Jezreel and Ahab followed him. Incredible. It began to rain. Listen, the profits would have these long cloaks. He pulled up his cloak. He took off running and he was able to run a head of the chariot almost 20 miles to Jezreel. This was a supernaturally empowered run. Now we don't know why it was so important for God to, to have a Lija reached Jezreel first. Some scholars believe it may be so that a logic could be the first to tell queen Jezza bill, what had happened. But whatever, the reason God tells us that he supernaturally empowered Elijah to run for 20 miles and beat the King's chariot. Now this next part is very important because what we're going to

See in these next passages

Is that sometimes many times we experience our greatest discouragements after experiencing God's greatest miracles. Have you ever noticed that that sometimes many times in your life after God has done something huge, it's almost like immediately, maybe even the next day you experienced some disappointments or some frustrations. We're going to see some of that in a lodges life today. And then we're going to unpack just like we've been doing the past few weeks. It says in first Kings 19, starting in verse one. If you have your Bibles, you can turn there. If not these verses will be on the screen. It says when Ahab got home, he told Jessebelle everything Alijah had done, including the way he had killed all the prophets of bail. So Jessebelle sent this message to Elijah. May the gods strike me and even kill me. If by this time tomorrow I have not killed you.

As you have killed them. Verse three, this is important. It says Alijah was afraid and he fled for his life. He went to town in Judah and left his servant there. Then he went alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. I've had enough Lord. He said, take my life for I'm no better than my ancestors who have already died. Then he laid down and slept under the broom tree. Now let's skip ahead a little bit to verse 10 verse 10 says after God had spoken to him, Alijah replied, I have zealously served the Lord, God almighty, but the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars and killed every one of your profits. I'm the only one left. And now they're trying to kill me too.

So let's unpack this passage for a moment. Remember one of the keys to good Bible study is asking good questions. And so we want to ask the question, what do we see happening here? What's going on in these verses? And there is a lot. First, the scripture says that Elijah was afraid. He became afraid because of what queen Jessebelle said to him. Fear was now in his heart and in his life. And it says he fled for his life. He began to run away from his problem. Have you ever been there? Have you been at a point in your life where something happens and instead of running to God, you run away from God, you run away. You just want to get away from the problem. It also says that he went to Burt Sheba and left his servant there. We see that Elijah begins to push away his relationships.

When we're going through a problem, that's a very difficult and dangerous thing to do to push away the people in our lives who care for us. And then he makes a foolish decision. The Bible says that he went into the wilderness and he didn't take anybody with him. He went into the wilderness alone. That's still advised that that's something we would not do. Even today. It also says that he was physically exhausted. He had been traveling all day. He sat down under a broom tree. One translation says that he collapsed under the broom tree. Then he says to God, God I've had enough. He wanted to give up. He felt alone. He says, I'm the only one left. He began talk bad about himself and have negative. Self-Talk I'm no better than my ancestors who have already died. And he thought that death might alleviate his pain.

He actually prayed to God that he might die. Now, I don't know about you, but sounds like someone that is completely running on empty. Someone who is completely overwhelmed someone who has allowed their emotional tank just to run dry. And maybe you're watching, maybe you're listening today. And you know what this feels like. In fact, you may be dealing with some of the same feelings that Alijah was dealing with in the scriptures. It may be, you know, that you two are running on empty and you're just trying to hold it all together. Let's see what happens next in verse five, it says, but as he was sleeping an angel just him and told him, get up and eat. He looked around and there beside his head with some baked bacon, right on hot stones and a jar

Of water. So he ate and he drank and he laid down again.

And the angel of the Lord came to him and touched him and said, get up and eat some more. Or the journey ahead of you

Will be too much for you.

Now, the first thing we see here is that God took care of Elijah's physical needs. He ministered to Elijah's physical needs. First it's amazing. He was asleep and the angel came and brought him hot bread, brought him water. He took care of the physical needs. First. Sometimes the most spiritual thing that you can do is get enough rest and replenishment. You see, he received rest from the Lord. God allowed him to sleep. And he was also replenish. God gave him what he needed to have physical energy at one quick nap and one quick meal that was not going to be enough for a larger, I love this quote from Spurgeon that I found as I was studying this week. It says the spirit needs to be fed and the body needs feeding. Also do not forget these matters. It may seem to some people that are not to mention such small things as food and rest, but these may be the very first elements and helping a depressed servant of God.

Even Spurgeon said sometimes we can forget about this simple thing. Sometimes we can forget about the easy things like eating and rest. We all know what happens when we get too tired. We, for most of us cannot function when we have not had good rest. And we all know what it feels like to be hangry, right? You, you need that Snickers bar. That's where Elijah was. He was exhausted and he was hangry. And God knew that he needed some rest and he needed some food. He also knew where Elijah was headed. You see many times in our lives, God has a plan and purpose for us, but we don't know where we're going. And Elijah didn't know that he needed the rest. Elijah didn't know that he needed the food because he did not realize that God was going to send him on a 200 mile 40 day journey to Mount Sinai.

What this shows is

That God did not demand immediate

Recovery from Alacha. But what he did do is he allowed a lodger, Tom, to recover from this

Spiritual depression that he was going through.

God took care of a lot, just physical needs. And God wants you to prioritize

Your physical health. Your physical

Can affect everything. Friends, your physical health can affect your emotional health. Your physical health can affect your spiritual health

Health, and you need to get the amount of sleep

That you need to be well rested each

Night, you need

To learn how to take a break, take a vacation or a staycation.

You need to honor the Sabbath.

God said that rest is important

In your life. You also need to be aware of what you're putting into your body. And I'm not just talking about food, but there are other things that can be harmful to us. Sometimes we get so worn out physically that, that we're trying to drink too much alcohol to get to sleep, or you're drinking too much caffeine during the day to stay awake. Those things are not healthy. We need to be aware of what we're putting into our body.

And I would encourage you to do you engage in some sort of physical

Activity? Listen, you don't have to lift weights. You don't have to do CrossFit.

There's nothing wrong with doing those things, but maybe

You just need to get outside every day and take a 20 minute 30 minute walk because exercise releases, endorphins. Exercise is good for your body and it makes you feel better to see what happens next in verse nine. So now Elijah has taken this 40 day journey and in verse nine, it says there, he came to a cave where he spent the night, but the Lord said to him,

What are you doing here?

What does that even mean? What we

Say the is that God gave a lodge to the opportunity

To talk about his frustrations.

God already knew the answer to his question, but it was good for Alijah to be able to speak freely, to be unburdened, to allow the burden off of his heart, to get some relief by expressing his frustration. Strangely, the reasons a lodger provided were actually important reasons for him to remain alive. Listen, sometimes we just need to talk to somebody, a lodged. You just needed somebody to listen to him, a lodge. It just needed to get some things off his chest. And God wants you to be emotionally healthy too. God, doesn't just care about your spiritual, your physical health, excuse me. He also cares about your emotional health and God wants you to be emotionally healthy. You see your emotional health is important, especially

In a season like the season that we've been through recently. And you need to learn how to talk to God. See, what I love about prayer is prayer is communicating with God. Prayer is talking to God and prayer is also

Listening, but there is something

Special about talking to God. There's something special,

Even though he knows everything that's going on with us, there is something special about us getting to talk to the God of

The universe and tell him how we feel. I would also encourage you. If you

Feel out, if you feel overwhelmed, if you feel like your emotional tank

Is empty, talk to someone you trust who has been through

What you are going through. Sometimes we

Need to talk to someone, especially a mature Christian who has already experienced what we're currently experiencing and maybe you're watching or listening. And you're walking through a health situation like cancer right now. One of the most important things you can do is to talk to someone who has already walked through that so that they can help you so that they can almost be your God. They can empathize. They can say me too. I know what you're going through. And I'm telling you, that's two of the most important and powerful words in the English language. Me too been there.

How would I help you? Maybe you need to

Talk to someone that just has a unique perspective. No, a lot of times when people come to me as a pastor and they want to tell me what's going on in their lives, sometimes I can just give them a different

Perspective, help them see something or ask questions to help them think about it in a new light, in a new way. It's sometimes God doesn't want to change our situation or circumstance. Sometimes

God wants to change our perspective or our attitude. And

Maybe depending on what it is, friend, maybe you need to pray about whether now is the right time to seek counseling. I

Know sometimes counseling is taboo and I sure wish it wasn't because

God has called counselors to help us walk through the emotional things that we face in our life. And you may be watching, you may be listening and you need to talk to a professional. That is okay. And

If we can help, please let us know. Let's keep going in verse 11,

It says, go out and stand before me on the mountain, the Lord told him, and as a lot just stood there, the Lord passed by in a mighty wind storm, hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn, worn loose,

But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, there was the sound of a gentle whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and he went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. What we see here is that Alijah has a personal encounter with God. God took care of a largest physical God took care of Elijah's emotional needs. And now Alijah was going to have a personal encounter with God. God knew what the depressed and discouraged profit needed. He needed a personal encounter with God. Listen, there wasn't anything fundamentally wrong with a lot, just

Theology. It wasn't a theological thing. It was an experience thing, a lodge and needed to be in the power and presence of God because when God shows up, things happen, things change, miracles occur,

And God brought his presence before Elijah. But what I love is that it wasn't in

The manifest stations. It wasn't in the wind. It wasn't in the earthquake. God wasn't in the fire.

Elijah was probably looking for God in these dramatic manifestations. And sometimes God appeared there's that way.

But in this moment, God appeared in a gentle whisper.

And I think one of the most important things is that God synced a lot just sense God's presence

And that voice. And he covered his face because he knew he was in the presence of God. I think this is a important reminder

That Tom's, we look for the radical displays of God's power and God's still does those things. But the most powerful thing that God can

Do is speak into the heart of mankind. And that's what we see in these passages. God also wants you to be spiritually healthy,

Like Alijah. You need a personal

Encounter with the Lord. Maybe you're watching, maybe you're listening and you've been a Christian for a long time. Maybe you've drifted away. Maybe you've allowed the things of this world to distort your picture of God. Maybe, maybe you've just gotten to current discouraged and depressed. God wants you to have a personal encounter with him today. And I would encourage you cry out to God, tell God, God, I want to be close to you again. God, I can't do this on my own. God, would you fill me with your spirit? God, can I experience your presence in this moment? The scripture say that if you will draw close to God that he will draw close to

And maybe what you need more than anything. Yes. You need to take care of your physical health. Yes. You've got to take care

Of your emotional health, but maybe you need an encounter God right now, but maybe you're watching. And there's never been a time in your life where you have trusted that you have placed your faith in Jesus Christ. Listen, God loved you so much that he sent his one and only son, Jesus to live a perfect

Life. He, he never did anything wrong. He never said anything wrong. He never thought anything

Wrong. Jesus did not sin so that he could be the perfect sacrifice for you. And for me, God, God came

To earth as Jesus Christ

So that we could always have the presence of God in our life. Jesus lived that perfect life. He substituted himself on the cross for you. And for me, he gave up his life so that we could have life. He died on the cross loss. He was buried

In a borrowed tomb, but three days later, Jesus rose from the dead and he's still alive today.

He is still calling us to himself and he is still changing lives. And the Bible says that if you will place your faith in Jesus, that you will trust and believe that Jesus died on the cross for you and that he rose from the dead. And if you will decide, if you will choose to follow him with your life, you will encounter God each and every moment of each and every day, because God will send his spirit to live inside of you. And he will never leave you. He will never forsake you. You will never be alone again.

And one day when

You die, you'll get to experience heaven

With God. But it's a decision that only you can make. And I want you

To have that opportunity, whatever you're doing, I would just ask you to pause for a moment. And if you're watching and you say, Jason, that's me. I need to give my life to Jesus. I'm going to pray a prayer. And I invite you to pray this along with me today, God, I've been going my own direction with my life. I've been doing my own thing and father in many ways, I've been trying to be my own God and father today. I realize I'm a sinner and I need to be saved. I need to be rescued.

And father, the savior is your son. Jesus, God.

I believe that Jesus died on a cross and I believe he rose again from the grave. And I believe he is still alive and he is calling me to himself right now. God, would you forgive me and set me free? Would you change me Lord? And give me a brand new life today.

Jesus, I love you.

And I want to follow you for the rest of my life. And it is in Jesus name. I

Pray amen.

Now, if that was you, listen, the Bible says that all of heaven is celebrating and we're celebrating with you as well. But please do not change the channel. Please do not get off of this website

Without letting us know, because one, we want

To pray for you by name we to call out your name to God too. We want

To celebrate with you. And three, I want to send you some information this week. Some resources that will help you grow

In your new found faith that will help you become more and more like Jesus. And we'll help you overcome the hurts, the habits, bad habits, and the hangups that you may have in your life. We want you to be

Everything that God has called you to be. So what I wanna ask you to do is click on

The digital connect card either in the post above or in the comments below or on our website. And give us a name and email address

Just some way to reach out because

We want you to know that Jesus loves you.

And so do we

Now at the end of every service, we dedicate time to prayer because we believe that prayer is important. Prayer

Is our priority.

And so in just a moment, we're going to worship together one last time today. And while the worship music is playing, I invite you to

Sing along, to cry out to God, to let God know how much you love and adore him. But I

Also invite you. If you have a prayer request that you want made public, you can put it in the comments below, and I promise you, our prayer team wants to pray for

You, but maybe you have

A prayer request that you don't want everybody to know about. And you just want me to pray over. Listen.

I would be honored to pray with you to agree with you in prayer. And you can

Fill out that connect card that's on our website or on the post. And we would love to be praying with you for whatever it is you're going through. So let's worship and let's pray together as we end our service today.

Jesus, we love you. Thank you for every person watching for every person, listening. God, thank you that no matter where they're at, no matter what they're doing, father, they can experience you. Lord. I pray for those who have drifted away from you, God, for those that are going through tough times, tough circumstances, God, for those who have allowed things to get in the way of their relationship with you, father, I pray in the name of Jesus that you would just allow them to have such a personal encounter with you today. God, that they would feel and know and understand your great love and your great grace and your great mercy and father, your presence in their lives. Father, I pray that you would just wrap them up in your arms right now, God, in a holy hug so that they would know father, that you were aware that you know that you see them, that you love God. I pray for those who walking through tough health situations. Father, your word says that you are the great physician and God, I pray for healing in Jesus name, father. I know that in this season that we're in God, there are many dealing with financial issues. Your word says that you are Jehovah Jara, and God I pray that you would provide for them just like you provided for Elijah and the stories we've read Lord Jesus. I know for some they're dealing with worry and anxiety and your word says that you are the prince of peace.