Sat.’s Devo - Defeating the Enemy

Read: 1 Kings 18:1-46; cts 11:1-30; Psalm 135:1-21; Proverbs 17:12-13
During the third year of the famine, God told Elijah to present himself before Ahab. Ahab had been searching for him all this time to make him take the famine away. Ahab’s second-in-command was a devout follower of God. (Don’t ever think you can’t work for a non-Christian…it just might be your destiny. Joseph and Esther did it also.) Since Obadiah was in the palace, he was able to know what the king was doing and save all the prophets Ahab was determined to kill. Ahab and Obadiah went searching the kingdom for water when Elijah met Obadiah. He told him to tell Ahab he was ready to meet. Obadiah took some encouraging to believe it but he did. Elijah commanded a meeting with all the prophets of Baal and all of Jezebel’s advisors. You know the story. The prophets of Baal were not able to bring down fire but when it was Elijah’s turn, he dug a trench and had them pour three barrels of water on his altar…during a drought. He waited for the time of the evening sacrifice then in one prayer the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the soil and all the water. That was some powerful fire to burn up the stones. Then Elijah had the people grab the prophets of Baal and bring them to the Kishon Valley and slaughter them. Once the people realized that the prophets of Baal had no real power, they weren’t afraid of them. Once we realize that the demons that oppress us and our family and our nation have no real power we will rise up and slaughter them ourselves.
Elijah had now gotten rid of the source of the famine so he could intercede for rain knowing God would send it. Once Elijah heard there was a small cloud, he knew he had broken through and he ran faster than Ahab’s chariot for the palace.
In Acts, Peter returned to Jerusalem and was met with criticism for eating with Gentiles. Peter told them the whole story and they praised God that the Gentiles had become believers also.
After Stephen had been stoned many believer scattered all over the land and took the gospel with them. One town that received the good news was Antioch so Barnabas took off to find Paul and go there to build a church. They coined the name Christians as the name of the believers. The church was being birthed. How fitting that one of the first things they did was to give to help their brothers in Judea. That is how the church acts!
Lord, help us to see the weakness of our enemy and stand up against him and kill him. Let the rain of your spirit fall on us in the midst of a drought.