Wednesday, August 20, 2008

The Bible and it's parallel to our lives

The call of God on a man or woman's life is amazing. I always tell people that ministry, or the call to ministry is a God thing. It can't always be understood or figured out, it's just a God thing.

When I read the Bible and examine the lives of great men and women, I find so many similarities to my own life, however, I am not in the least bit saying I live up to their standards, or even come close to the dedication and commitment they had to the Lord when they walked this planet. But, I do see so many life experiences that they went through that I find myself going through along this journey. For instance, Elijah, when he stood against 450 prophets of Baal (1 Kings 18) on Mt. Carmel challenging the people of Israel to remove the idol worship of foreign God's and choose the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as their only God. I see in Elijah a dedication and an extreme commitment to bring truth to the people, so much so, that he is willing to stand before the whole congregation and speak things that many do not want to hear. We live in this type of generation today, many people don't want to hear that God is a jealous God, and that He will not compete with idols in our lives. He will be first in our lives and will never play second fiddle to another, because He is God, and to accept anything less would be to reject His own commandment to the nation of Israel, "Thou shalt have no other God's before me". (Exo. 20:3)

After the intense confrontation between Elijah and these prophets, Elijah runs (1 Kings 19:4) into the wilderness asking God to take his life (where did all the boldness go?) after hearing word that Jezebel, who represents an evil spirit that controls weak spirited people, makes threats on his life which causes fear and confusion to arise. No doubt Elijah had right intentions when confronting the prophets. He wanted to see the people of God serve and worship the true God of Israel. His love for the nation gave him the boldness to speak out in tough times. However, right after the greatest victory and demonstration by the hand of God, Elijah finds himself running for his life in fear and doubt.

It is most important for ministers and people called of God to rightly divide the word of God, separating soul (mind, will, emotions) and spirit (the hub of man that God speaks to). This is done by spending time in prayer and the Word. God's Word is "quick and powerful and sharper than any two edged sword..." Heb 4:12. Elijah was a man of God and still dealt with fear and confusion. Attacks will come to the mind. Ministry can be a very lonely place, it was for many of the prophets of God, up to the last O.T. prophet John the Baptist, one called of God to prepare the way of the Lord. His fiery messages didn't impress the religious of the day, but to the lost and hurting, they where a refreshing wind of hope that something better is on the way. I want to be like John, speaking a message that something better is on the way. Jesus Christ is coming soon and we in ministry have a mandate to speak the truth and prepare the people no matter how lonely of a place it may seem to be. We must remember what we preach "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee" Heb 13:5, that apply's to God's messengers as well.

Stay the course, keep up the fight, Jesus is coming for His Bride!