Introduction and Background

The point: Plow on with the prayer that God the Holy Spirit will give you insight to that portion of the word. Do not chronically omit the reading and meditation upon any portion of the word of God. If you do, you will do so to you…

The scriptures are likened to a well-balanced diet, containing all necessary vitamins and minerals for spiritual health. Omitting any part leads to spiritual malnutrition or anemia, just as omitting physical nutrients harms the body.

First of all, then, why study the life and ministry of Elijah, the prophet? And in answer to that question, I would give you a general, a general answer and then a more specific answer. The general reason, of course, is based upon the statement of the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 3, verses 16 and 17. Having reminded Timothy of the great privilege he had of exposure to the scriptures from childhood, he then speaks, Paul does, concerning the scriptures in verse 16, All scripture is inspired of God, and is also profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, t...

5:21 - 6:44 Read in full sermon

The point: Plow on with the prayer that God the Holy Spirit will give you insight to that portion of the word. Do not chronically omit the reading and meditation upon any portion of the word of God. If you do, you will do so to you…

Elijah's fervent, persistent prayer for rain on Mount Carmel, sending his servant seven times, vividly demonstrates the duty to pray without ceasing and the power of effectual prayer.

an example of the believer in all things. The same admonition is given to Timothy. So you see, example is a powerful instrument in the complex of sanctifying influences ordained and owned of God. It's one thing to read in the scriptures our duty to pray without ceasing. But what a tremendous thing it is to see the example of fervent, persistent prayer when the prophet bows his head between his knees upon Mount Carmel, and he pleads for rain, and then he asks his servant, Go and see, and he comes back, I see nothing, and he prays, Go again, until the seventh time, and he comes back and says, I ...

11:07 - 12:04 Read in full sermon

The point: Plow on with the prayer that God the Holy Spirit will give you insight to that portion of the word. Do not chronically omit the reading and meditation upon any portion of the word of God. If you do, you will do so to you…

Elijah's weariness in well-doing, leading him to pray for death under the juniper tree, illustrates the danger of spiritual exhaustion. His journey to be sustained by a destitute widow demonstrates taking no anxious thought for the morrow.

not weary in well-doing. It's another thing to see the example of a mighty man who becomes weary in well-doing, and to see how crippled he becomes by this weariness in well-doing until he prays, Oh God, it is enough. Take my life, I've had it. And he wallows in the form of self-pity, becoming weary in well-doing. It's one thing to read the words of our Lord, Take no anxious thought for the morrow. It's another thing to see a man who is told to go down and be sustained by a helpless, destitute widow in the midst of a famine, and yet he goes, taking no anxious thought. I say the life of Elijah i...

12:04 - 13:13 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin provides a general reason (all Scripture is profitable, 2 Timothy 3:16-17) and three specific reasons (example, demonstration of God's character and kingdom, and parallels…

Jezebel's gruesome death, with her flesh torn by dogs, serves as a vivid demonstration of the biblical truth that 'the wages of sin is death' and 'the way of a transgressor is hard.'

Isaiah tells us, when the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall raise up a standard against him. You see, these are statements not so much concerning God's person and His ways, but concerning the reality, the extent, and the nature of His kingdom. Now, rather than confront us with statement upon statement in abstraction, God is light, God is holy, God loves righteousness, hates evil, the scriptures are filled with vivid demonstrations and amplifications of those great principles, both with reference to God's person and His ways, and with reference to God's kingdom. You...

14:46 - 16:12 Read in full sermon

Driving home: So that when we read the history of Israel at any point, we're reading the history of redemption. Messiah must come through that nation.

A football game, with its huddles, plays, quarters, and ultimate goal of winning the championship, is used to illustrate how every small incident in Israel's history has significance within the larger context of God's redemptive plan to bruise the serpent's head.

Now, that's the larger context of Israel's condition. And every time you read a specific incident, never forget that. You see, it's like a football game. A lot of individual things go on in a football game.

26:52 - 27:05 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin draws striking parallels between Ahab's Israel and contemporary society, noting the official repudiation of God and aggressive attacks on biblical truth. He then…

The profound wickedness at the end of 1 Kings 16 is described as 'inky black velvet' upon which God sets 'the diamond of my life, My grace and my sovereign intervention,' highlighting the dramatic contrast of Elijah's appearance.

God won't even let us pause on the base note at the end of chapter 16. He says there's more to come. I've spread this inky black velvet upon which to set the diamond of my life. My grace and my sovereign intervention.

48:22 - 48:39 Read in full sermon

In this part of the sermon: Martin draws striking parallels between Ahab's Israel and contemporary society, noting the official repudiation of God and aggressive attacks on biblical truth. He then…

Elijah's sudden appearance is likened to God bringing him down from heaven in a chariot of fire, carrying out a 'fiery mission,' and then throwing the whip on the steeds, emphasizing his dramatic and divinely empowered entrance.

Let's cut through all irrelevancies. One man said, it's as though God brought him down from heaven with a chariot of fire. And while the steeds stamped with impatience, he carried out his fiery mission. And when he's done, God threw the whip on the neck of the steeds and says, this whirlwind of a man who just appears on the scene.

49:20 - 49:45 Read in full sermon