Eli\u00adjah is in deep cri\u00adsis. Nevert\u00adhel\u00adess \u2013 or pre\u00adcis\u00ade\u00adly becau\u00adse of this \u2013 he takes the long way through the desert to the moun\u00adtain of God under his feet. He wants to see God and expe\u00adri\u00adence who He is. When he rea\u00adches his desti\u00adna\u00adti\u00adon, he expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adces the grace of the holy God in an inde\u00adscri\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly impres\u00adsi\u00adve and gent\u00adle way. Alt\u00adhough he is cor\u00adrec\u00adted in a loving way by God\u2019s Word, he expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adces full accep\u00adtance at the same time and gets a new per\u00adspec\u00adti\u00adve on the future.<\/p>\n
Just recent\u00adly someone wro\u00adte me the fol\u00adlo\u00adwing lines: \u00abI would be so hap\u00adpy if I could expe\u00adri\u00adence God in all of this as the loving father he is sup\u00adpo\u00adsed to be. I feel very aban\u00addo\u00adned by him right now.\u00bb This is a deep\u00adly human expe\u00adri\u00adence. In dif\u00adfi\u00adcult moments, when we would be gra\u00adteful for divi\u00adne impul\u00adses, we feel not\u00adhing at all from Him. Eli\u00adjah pro\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly felt the same way after his migh\u00adty tri\u00adumph on Mount Carmel. \tEli\u00adjah walks the long way through the desert. What does \u00abdesert\u00bb mean in our ever\u00ady\u00adday life? What hap\u00adpens in a desert? Eli\u00adjah is in a deep cri\u00adsis. Nevert\u00adhel\u00adess \u2013 or pre\u00adcis\u00ade\u00adly becau\u00adse of this \u2013 he takes the long jour\u00adney through the desert to the moun\u00adtain of God under his feet. He wants to see God and expe\u00adri\u00adence who He is. Once he rea\u00adches his desti\u00adna\u00adti\u00adon, he expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adces the grace of the holy God in an inde\u00adscri\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly impres\u00adsi\u00adve and gent\u00adle way. Alt\u00adhough he is\u2026<\/p>","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":7522,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","wpfc_preacher":[23],"wpfc_sermon_series":[90],"wpfc_sermon_topics":[],"wpfc_bible_book":[],"wpfc_service_type":[12],"class_list":["wpfc_preacher-matthias-altwegg","wpfc_sermon_series-heilig-heilig-heilig","wpfc-sermon-single","post-7507","wpfc_sermon","type-wpfc_sermon","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","wpfc_service_type-gottesdienst"],"acf":[],"sermons_blog_filters_topics":"\t\t\t\t
\nThe path to God\u2019s glory
\nIn his gre\u00adat dis\u00adap\u00adpoint\u00adment, Eli\u00adjah deci\u00added to go to the moun\u00adtain of God. It is the same place whe\u00adre Moses had been allo\u00adwed to see the glo\u00adry of God a few hundred years ear\u00adlier. Eli\u00adjah wan\u00adted to see who God real\u00adly is. To do so, he accept\u00aded a jour\u00adney of 40 days and nights through the desert. He was pre\u00adpared to go into soli\u00adtu\u00adde and endu\u00adre the silence.
\nSome\u00adti\u00admes we think that the peo\u00adp\u00adle in the Bible were con\u00adstant\u00adly expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adcing God and hea\u00adring His voice. But when was the last time you sought God\u2019s face so inten\u00adse\u00adly? This sum\u00admer I had the pri\u00advi\u00adle\u00adge of see\u00adking God in simi\u00adlar peri\u00adods of time. It\u2019s not easy to endu\u00adre so much silence and soli\u00adtu\u00adde while deal\u00ading with your own naked\u00adness, vul\u00adnerabi\u00adli\u00adty and shame. Desert times in which we have to reflect on our\u00adsel\u00adves prepa\u00adre the ground for God\u2019s encoun\u00adters. Whe\u00adre we lea\u00adve our emo\u00adtio\u00adnal com\u00adfort zones, the\u00adre is a spe\u00adcial poten\u00adti\u00adal for God to act. The desert is the place of puri\u00adfi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon and chan\u00adge, the place of gre\u00adat strug\u00adgles and encoun\u00adters with God \u2013 the place of our redemption.
\nEli\u00adjah expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adces divi\u00adne inter\u00adven\u00adti\u00adon ear\u00adly on in his jour\u00adney. He was touch\u00aded by God through the angel and given bread. Howe\u00adver, he pro\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly did not regis\u00adter this as a divi\u00adne act becau\u00adse it was an ever\u00ady\u00adday pro\u00adfa\u00adne event. Could it be that we are often trap\u00adped in our thought pat\u00adterns and do not rea\u00adli\u00adse that God has been at work for a long time?
\nDo you also have a deep desi\u00adre to see more of God, to under\u00adstand Him bet\u00adter? The pri\u00adce for this is a stay in the desert. And admit\u00adted\u00adly, it is not that easy, but it is rewar\u00adding, trans\u00adforming and joyful! It is very simp\u00adle, but it cos\u00adts us everything.
\nThe reve\u00adla\u00adti\u00adon of God\u2019s glory
\nWhen Eli\u00adjah arri\u00adved at Mount Sinai, he spent a night in a cleft. It is assu\u00admed that Moses was alre\u00ada\u00addy the\u00adre. The next mor\u00adning, the LORD<\/span> said to him: \u00ab \u00abGo out and stand on the moun\u00adtain befo\u00adre the LORD<\/span>, for the LORD<\/span> will pass by. At first a vio\u00adlent storm came befo\u00adre the LORD<\/span>, split\u00adting the moun\u00adta\u00adins and shat\u00adte\u00adring the rocks. But the LORD<\/span> was not in the storm. After the storm, the earth shook, but the LORD<\/span> was not in the ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke. And after the ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke came a fire, but the LORD<\/span> was not in the fire. And after the fire the\u00adre was a gent\u00adle sound\u00bb (1 Kings 19:11f NLB<\/span>).
\nThe mes\u00adsa\u00adge here is not that the Lord is never in the storm, the ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke or the fire. God meets Moses (Exodus 3:2) and Abra\u00adham (Gene\u00adsis 15:17) in fire, the apost\u00adles at Pen\u00adte\u00adcost in a storm (Acts 2:2) and Moses at Sinai in an ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke (Exodus 19:18). But here the Lord reve\u00adals hims\u00adelf in a gent\u00adle whisper. God is very careful and gent\u00adle with Eli\u00adjah. I am fasci\u00adna\u00adted by how the holy God reve\u00adals hims\u00adelf in a sur\u00adpri\u00adsin\u00adgly dif\u00adfe\u00adrent way than Eli\u00adjah pro\u00adba\u00adb\u00adly expec\u00adted. The holy God is quite dif\u00adfe\u00adrent and some\u00adti\u00admes strange.
\nThe mes\u00adsa\u00adge asso\u00adcia\u00adted with this is: Eli\u00adjah, you have put me in a box! When God asks twice what Eli\u00adjah is doing here, he ans\u00adwers twice: \u00abI have been very jea\u00adlous for the LORD<\/span> God of hosts\u00bb (vv. 10+13 ELB<\/span>). Eli\u00adjah con\u00advicts hims\u00adelf with his own words. With the\u00adse words he means: \u00abI have car\u00adri\u00aded out the right plan per\u00adfect\u00adly. What is wrong with you?\u00bb
\nThe reason for Elijah\u2019s depres\u00adsi\u00adon is that he put God in a box. He knew exact\u00adly how God should act. His idea was: I\u2019ll orga\u00adni\u00adse the com\u00adpe\u00adti\u00adti\u00adon on Mount Car\u00admel and then God has to con\u00advict Ahab and Jeze\u00adbel spi\u00adri\u00adtual\u00adly or phy\u00adsi\u00adcal\u00adly. It was not God who cau\u00adsed Eli\u00adjah to fall, but his own plan cau\u00adsed him to fall. He iden\u00adti\u00adfied God with his plan. When we think God will show hims\u00adelf in fire, he does it in a whisper. The holy God says, \u00abI am not a tamed God. You should\u00adn\u2019t put me in a box.\u00bb God is so gent\u00adle and pati\u00adent, but he makes it clear that Eli\u00adjah hims\u00adelf is respon\u00adsi\u00adble for his disappointment.
\nIn addi\u00adti\u00adon to his despon\u00adden\u00adcy, this had ano\u00adther con\u00adse\u00adquence. Elia lost touch with rea\u00adli\u00adty. On the one hand, he was too opti\u00admi\u00adstic and rus\u00adhed straight to the capi\u00adtal as a per\u00adson with a boun\u00adty on his head. On the other hand, he was too pes\u00adsi\u00admi\u00adstic and declared twice that he was the only one who had not bowed his knee to Baal. In all love, he is now cor\u00adrec\u00adted by God: \u00abBut I will spa\u00adre 7,000 peo\u00adp\u00adle in Isra\u00adel: all tho\u00adse who have never bowed down to Baal and kissed him\u00bb (1 Kings 19:18 NLB<\/span>).
\nSome\u00adti\u00admes we think that God has no plan becau\u00adse it is dif\u00adfe\u00adrent from ours. But the\u00adre is also a divi\u00adne plan in this sto\u00adry: \u00abThen the LORD<\/span> said to him, \u00abGo back the way you came, through the desert to Damas\u00adcus. When you get the\u00adre, anoint Haza\u00adel king of Aram. Then anoint Jehu son of Nim\u00adshi as king of Isra\u00adel, and anoint Eli\u00adsha son of Shaphat from Abel-mehola as pro\u00adphet in your place. Whoe\u00adver escapes Haza\u00adel will kill Jehu, and whoe\u00adver escapes Jehu will kill Eli\u00adsha!\u00bb (1 Kings 19:15\u201317 NLB<\/span>).
\nEli\u00adjah is to anoint Haza\u00adel as king. Haza\u00adel was a pagan king. The\u00adre is no indi\u00adca\u00adti\u00adon that he was or beca\u00adme a belie\u00adver. Nevert\u00adhel\u00adess, he is part of God\u2019s plan that leads to the goal. God is big\u00adger than our ima\u00adgi\u00adna\u00adti\u00adon. Some\u00adti\u00admes we may think \u2013 like Eli\u00adjah \u2013 that we are so few peo\u00adp\u00adle in Switz\u00ader\u00adland who fol\u00adlow the holy God. Yes, Eli\u00adjah play\u00aded a role in God\u2019s plan, but he is far from being the only one.
\nGod\u2019s words from His glory
\nThe\u00adre is no other chap\u00adter in the Bible in which the holy God reve\u00adals hims\u00adelf in so many ways. An important mes\u00adsa\u00adge for Eli\u00adjah is that the spec\u00adta\u00adcu\u00adlar natu\u00adre of Car\u00admel is not what can chan\u00adge hearts. What can pene\u00adtra\u00adte our hearts? It is the quiet and unob\u00adtru\u00adsi\u00adve voice of God! Some want to expe\u00adri\u00adence God in natu\u00adre, others in mira\u00adcles and healings or mys\u00adti\u00adcal expe\u00adri\u00aden\u00adces. The only way to ensu\u00adre that our expe\u00adri\u00adence is not ima\u00adgi\u00adna\u00adry is through His Word. If we want to know God and be chan\u00adged, we must read the Word of God, the Bible, as the voice of God. Not an ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke, not a fire, but the Word of God, the Word of grace.
\nThe \u00abgood\u00bb king Ahab wan\u00adted to go to war with Jehos\u00adha\u00adphat, the king of Judah. Jehoshaphat\u2019s ans\u00adwer was: \u00abFirst ask for the word of the LORD<\/span>!\u00bb (2 Chro\u00adnic\u00adles 18:4 LUT<\/span>). In other words: ali\u00adgn your own plans with God\u2019s plans and not the other way round.
\nThe LORD<\/span> chal\u00adlenges Eli\u00adjah: \u00abThen the LORD<\/span> said to him, \u00abGo out and stand on the moun\u00adtain befo\u00adre the LORD<\/span>, for the LORD<\/span> will pass by [\u2026]\u00bb \u00bb (1 Kings 19:11 NLB<\/span>). Eli\u00adjah did not do so and let the storm, ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke and fire pass. \u00abWhen Eli\u00adjah heard it (the gent\u00adle sound), he pul\u00adled his cloak over his face, went out\u00adside and stood at the mouth of the cave\u00bb (1 Kings 19:13 NLB<\/span>). Ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adkes and fire were also signs of jud\u00adge\u00adment. Eli\u00adjah hid behind the rock that was smas\u00adhed by the storm. The rock is a pic\u00adtu\u00adre of Jesus. On the Mount of Trans\u00adfi\u00adgu\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon, both Moses and Eli\u00adjah will meet the rock in per\u00adson (Luke 9:30).
\nIn Pro\u00adverbs 11:29 the\u00adre is an inte\u00adres\u00adt\u00ading phra\u00adse that shows that \u00abinhe\u00adri\u00adting the wind\u00bb is an expres\u00adsi\u00adon of cur\u00adse. Jesus inhe\u00adri\u00adted the wind, He took the cur\u00adse upon Hims\u00adelf so that we can have the gent\u00adle whisper of God\u2019s breath. When Jesus Christ died, the\u00adre was an ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke as a sign of jud\u00adge\u00adment. Jesus took the jud\u00adge\u00adment upon Hims\u00adelf so that we can expe\u00adri\u00adence for\u00adgi\u00adve\u00adness, grace and res\u00adto\u00adra\u00adti\u00adon. Eli\u00adjah, despi\u00adte his fail\u00adure and obvious sin, was not struck by jud\u00adge\u00adment thanks to God\u2019s grace. Sin is not a word that cate\u00adgo\u00adri\u00adses peo\u00adp\u00adle as rela\u00adtively \u00abgood\u00bb or \u00abbad\u00bb. It descri\u00adbes man in rela\u00adti\u00adon to God and sees him as sepa\u00adra\u00adted from God. Sin means that the\u00adre is some\u00adthing wrong bet\u00adween peo\u00adp\u00adle and God. In this sta\u00adte, peo\u00adp\u00adle can be evil, unhap\u00adpy and fear\u00adful. Or they can be vir\u00adtuous, hap\u00adpy and pro\u00adspe\u00adrous. Jesus Christ inhe\u00adri\u00adted the wind for Eli\u00adjah, you and me and suf\u00adfe\u00adr\u00aded judgement.
\nThrough the gent\u00adle whis\u00adpe\u00adring, he heard God\u2019s voice and rea\u00adli\u00adsed what appli\u00ades to all of us: in mys\u00adelf I am more sin\u00adful than I could ever have belie\u00adved, but in Christ I am more loved than I could ever have hoped. This is also true for you, even if you feel very aban\u00addo\u00adned by God right now. Per\u00adhaps God will show Hims\u00adelf to you as an angel who cooks for you and tou\u00adch\u00ades you. May\u00adbe He shows Hims\u00adelf in the wind, ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke or fire. Per\u00adhaps you hear a gent\u00adle whisper and recei\u00adve gent\u00adle and sen\u00adsi\u00adti\u00adve direc\u00adtion. In any case, in Christ you are more loved than you could ever have hoped for!
\n
\n
\nPos\u00adsi\u00adble ques\u00adti\u00adons for the small group
\nRead the Bible text: 1 Kings 19:8\u201318<\/p>\n
\n\tEli\u00adjah put God in a box and con\u00adfu\u00adsed his own plan with God. Have you also had the expe\u00adri\u00adence of kno\u00adwing exact\u00adly how God should act, but it tur\u00adned out differently?
\n\tWhat is the mes\u00adsa\u00adge of God being in the quiet whisper? Why not in the storm, the ear\u00adth\u00adqua\u00adke or the fire?
\n\tWhat is the place of God\u2019s Word in your life? Whe\u00adre does it get space?
\n\tWhat impul\u00adses from the sto\u00adry of Eli\u00adjah do you want to trans\u00adfer into your life?<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"