Jonah Albrecht

August 11th, 2024

Pentecost 12

1 Kings 19:1-8

Arise and Eat: God’s Food For Your Journey

Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” 3 Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came 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 asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers.” 5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.” 8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.

Peace to the brethren, and love with faith, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

In the name of Him Who provides us with the necessary food for our journey through this life, dear fellow redeemed:

There is a tv show called Alone where the premise is a number of contestants are dropped off in the wilderness, far enough apart so that they will not come in contact with each other. They only have 10 items to bring with them and they must build shelter, find food, endure deep isolation, physical deprivation, and psychological stress all while filming their experience. The contestants are free to tap out whenever they’d like, but the last one standing wins 1 million dollars. As winter fast approaches, the difficulties and the psychological impacts from loneliness and the physical weakness from an unbalanced diet, sees many contestants reach their breaking point.

As tough as that may sound, now imagine being thrown into that situation, but at the same time, knowing that someone was hunting you down trying to kill you. Well, that is the exact situation Elijah finds himself in in our text this morning. See, Elijah had just become the enemy number 1 to the most powerful and wicked person in the land: Queen Jezebel. Jezebel was the wife of King Ahab in Israel and she was the one who had promoted Baal worship amongst Israel. How did Elijah become her enemy number 1? Mt. Caramel.

If you remember the account, Elijah challenged over 400 prophets of Baal to a contest to see whose God was the true God. The test was simple: Build an altar, but call on your God to bring down fire and ignite the altar. The prophets of Baal cried out with all their might, even going so far as to hurt themselves. All this was in the hope that their god might hear them. Elijah mocked them, knowing full well that Baal does not exist, by saying “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.”

When it was Elijah’s turn, he made sure there was no doubt whatsoever that Jehovah is the true God. Elijah poured water all around the altar so that it was soaked, even filling a trench that surrounded the altar. He prayed to God, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. 37 Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”

I’m sure you know what happens next. God sends fire down and evaporates every drop of water and everything on the altar, proving that He is God. This doesn’t seem worthy of making Elijah an enemy of the queen though, does it? Well, Elijah did not let the false prophets get off scot-free. The people of Israel that were there rounded them up and killed them. This is what got Elijah on Jezebel’s number 1 enemy list. This is what made her put a bounty on Elijah’s head.

To Elijah, this was the straw that broke his back. He had been so zealous for the Lord and thought that this episode at Mt. Carmel would be the catalyst to the nation return to the worship of the true God. Finally, after all his hard work, the people would listen to God. But what happens instead? The people stay rooted in their Baal worship and he gets a bounty put on his head.

Is it any wonder that Elijah runs off to the wilderness; that he asks God to take his life? Exasperated, depressed, and alone. Some feelings transcend time, don’t they? Whether it was Elijah in the 9th century B.C. or Christians in the 21st century, these feelings make their appearance more often than we would like them to. Even as a congregation, we can feel outcast and alone. We live in a nation that is continually despising Christianity and among a people that has no time for the God of the Bible. Or maybe our loneliness is in the fact that the nearest congregation in our fellowship is 5 hours away. Isolation can be a killer emotion. It can cripple the strong and eviscerate the vulnerable.

And what about you? Do you feel isolation, exasperation, depression? Maybe there is a cloud that has been hovering over your life for the longest time and you have learned to live with it. Or maybe you feel isolation from your family. Children move far away; those who were once close have broken contact; you can’t find the emotional support that you desperately need. There are countless other ways that we feel isolated or depressed in our personal lives. Each and every one of you is different and have your own struggles that you deal with the best you can.

But as different as we all are, we find ourselves in the same position as Elijah. Spiritually, we often let our tanks dwindle down to empty. Whether that comes from avoiding church, or not reading the Bible, or letting the Word go in one ear and out the other. So often we let the circumstances of the world around us and even our responsibilities outside of the church dominate our time and our minds rather than making sure the new flesh given to us by God is fed.

Elijah relied so much upon the awesome, miraculous power of God that when it didn’t produce the outcome he wanted, he didn’t think there was anything else that could possibly work. That is when God comes to him and sets the record straight.

5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.” 6 And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again a second time and touched him and said, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.”

Two times the Angel of the LORD, the preincarnate Son of God came to Elijah and instructed him to arise and eat. Why? Because the journey is too great for you. Now, the LORD was preparing Elijah for his 40-day journey to Mt. Horeb, the mountain of God. Being the only meal he ate between this point in the wilderness and Mt. Horeb, it is certain that God worked a miracle to preserve this food for Elijah that he might make the journey. Left to his lonesome, he certainly would have collapsed from exhaustion before making it very far.

Here we see how God first lets Elijah know that he is not alone. God shows His continued provision for His servant. Over the last 3 and a half years, God had brought a drought upon the land as a judgment for the people’s idolatry. But the whole time, God made sure to provide for Elijah. He brought him food via a raven and made sure the Brook Cherith did not dry up. The Angel of the Lord coming and inviting him to arise and eat serves as a reminder to Elijah how God never forgot him. Instead, God had been providing for and preserving him the entire time Elijah was a prophet.

But the real provision the Lord gave to Elijah we find in the words, “Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you.” Yes, the journey to Mt. Horeb was too great for Elijah to do alone, but so also is Elijah’s journey as the Lord’s prophet. There is not a single prophet of the Lord that had an easy life. They were continuously rejected and persecuted because they preached the Word that people did not want to hear. As such, it was a job that some, like Jeremiah, felt unworthy to partake in.

The Lord’s words to Jeremiah ring true for all of His prophets, including Elijah. “Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, declares the Lord.” God knew what His prophets would face in their lives and the extremely difficult situations both of body and mind. Because of that, God did not send His prophets out alone. He went along with them every step of the way. He simply needed to remind Elijah of that fact in his direst moment.

We find God’s reminder in the later part of chapter 19. When on Mt. Horeb, God sends before Elijah a rock-blasting wind, an earthquake, and a fire. In each of these tremendous acts of nature, God’s presence was not in any of them. This was to show Elijah that God does not rely on great, miraculous acts to further His kingdom. While they provide a great testament to the truth of the nature of God, it is not what God uses to bring His peace and salvation to the earth. That comes from the still small voice that followed the wind, earthquake, and fire.

The still small voice is the message of the Gospel that reached out to Elijah and reminded him that he is backed by the Almighty God. His life and mission is in the hands of the one who saves him from his sins. The One who is more powerful than Jezebel or any other agent of the devil who wants to quash the kingdom of God.

In the same way God invited Elijah to feed his soul on His Word, He also invites you to eat of the bread of life. Receive for your soul the sustenance that you need to finish the journey God has set before you. God says to you, Arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you. In our Gospel lesson, Jesus proclaims Himself as the bread of life, the Word made flesh. He is the source of everlasting food that does not waste away, it does not perish, but it lasts until the end.

It is that food that He invites you to eat from: the Gospel. In the Gospel God shows you how you are never truly alone. He has preserved millions of Christians around the world who still confess faith in the one true God and Jesus Christ whom He sent. He has fed you every step of your journey in life. Not just in the days that you had plenty and were full, but even in those days where you had nothing; and especially in those days where you have felt all alone. God never once left your side.

How do I know for certain? Because He died for you. He was willing to come to earth and die on the cross in your place. He went through hell so that your sins could be forgiven forever. He loved you when you had nothing worthy of being loved for. God has done for you exactly what He did for Elijah. He has shown you His love and promised that love will continue to carry you to heaven.

God knows your life’s beginning when He formed you in your mother’s womb. God knows your life’s end when He will call you home to be with Him. In the meantime, God also knows your life’s mountains and valleys. Hear now the call the Lord makes to you, the same call He made to Elijah. Arise, and eat. Yes, your journey is too great for you. But do not be afraid, I am with you, I have called you by name, you are Mine. Amen.