Confronting Truth: The Real Source of Trouble in 1 Kings 18:17
1 Kings 18:17
And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
Don’t blame the preacher! After all, it was King Ahab himself who took Jezebel (a God-hater and later a true Prophet-slayer) to be his wife, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him, as if it was a light thing (see 1 Kings 16:31). The TRUTH was that it was the sins of Ahab himself that troubled Israel. Had he not done so wickedly in the sight of the Lord, this famine would not have come on the land to start with. But alas, Ahab did what lying politicians do best; he placed the blame on someone else.
However, regardless of how King Ahab felt about the Prophet Elijah, only Elijah had the power with God that was needed in order to open up the windows of Heaven to release rain and to end this long famine. So, this begs the question; why is King Ahab riding Elijah’s case when Elijah alone has the power to end the famine? It looks to me like we have a conflict of interest here. It appears as if Ahab wants the best of both worlds, so to speak. He wants it to rain blessings upon the earth, while he continues to serve his false gods. But, it just doesn’t work that way with God!
Oh, the folly of such a mindset, and yet we find it even so amongst all of society even today. Many a people have rejected the preaching of God’s Word as well as the preacher who delivered God’s word, because they were troubled by the message. Kind of like the rich young ruler, to whom Christ commanded to sell all he had, and to give to the poor, who then walked away in sorrow because that wasn’t what he wanted Christ to tell him. He was troubled because he was in trouble with God, and he didn’t like the only solution that could fix it, which was repentance.
So it is today. Many today are troubled by true Bible preaching because it reveals to them how much trouble they are in with God because of their sins, but yet they are unwilling to do the ONE thing required to make things right with God; repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Oh, how it pains the fighting sinner to let go of his sin, but let me warn you dear reader, oh, how it pains the fighting sinner even more to hold on to his sin. For one day, we shall all reap what we sow, and the scriptures teach us in Galatians 6:8a, “For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption;” In other words, if you choose to live in your sin, you are also choosing the fatal consequences of dying in your sin, and you have no one to blame but yourself. Not the preacher, not the church, and not even the hypocrite. Your only solution is to turn to Christ in repentance of sin!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
Don’t blame the preacher! After all, it was King Ahab himself who took Jezebel (a God-hater and later a true Prophet-slayer) to be his wife, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him, as if it was a light thing (see 1 Kings 16:31). The TRUTH was that it was the sins of Ahab himself that troubled Israel. Had he not done so wickedly in the sight of the Lord, this famine would not have come on the land to start with. But alas, Ahab did what lying politicians do best; he placed the blame on someone else.
However, regardless of how King Ahab felt about the Prophet Elijah, only Elijah had the power with God that was needed in order to open up the windows of Heaven to release rain and to end this long famine. So, this begs the question; why is King Ahab riding Elijah’s case when Elijah alone has the power to end the famine? It looks to me like we have a conflict of interest here. It appears as if Ahab wants the best of both worlds, so to speak. He wants it to rain blessings upon the earth, while he continues to serve his false gods. But, it just doesn’t work that way with God!
Oh, the folly of such a mindset, and yet we find it even so amongst all of society even today. Many a people have rejected the preaching of God’s Word as well as the preacher who delivered God’s word, because they were troubled by the message. Kind of like the rich young ruler, to whom Christ commanded to sell all he had, and to give to the poor, who then walked away in sorrow because that wasn’t what he wanted Christ to tell him. He was troubled because he was in trouble with God, and he didn’t like the only solution that could fix it, which was repentance.
So it is today. Many today are troubled by true Bible preaching because it reveals to them how much trouble they are in with God because of their sins, but yet they are unwilling to do the ONE thing required to make things right with God; repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Oh, how it pains the fighting sinner to let go of his sin, but let me warn you dear reader, oh, how it pains the fighting sinner even more to hold on to his sin. For one day, we shall all reap what we sow, and the scriptures teach us in Galatians 6:8a, “For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption;” In other words, if you choose to live in your sin, you are also choosing the fatal consequences of dying in your sin, and you have no one to blame but yourself. Not the preacher, not the church, and not even the hypocrite. Your only solution is to turn to Christ in repentance of sin!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill