Sun.’s Devo - Changing of the Guards

Read: 1 Kings 19:1-21; Acts 12:1-23; Psalm 136:1-26; Proverbs 17:14-15
It is hard for me to understand what happened to Elijah but I will give you my thoughts. Elijah stood up against all the prophets of Baal then he followed Ahab back to the palace. I don’t know if he thought he would be given a place of honor or what, but, when he heard what Jezebel said about him he fled as if he had no power. Everywhere he went God asked him what he was doing there. All Elijah could do was defend his honor. The angel gave him strength to go do one last assignment. He was to anoint Jehu king over Israel and Elisha to take Elijah’s place. Elijah complained that he was the only one who followed the Lord and God opened his understanding. God had reserved 7,000 people who had not bowed to Baal.
It is easy when we are a lone ranger to think that we are the only one in the situation we are in or even that we are the only ones doing it right. God always has a remnant and it is better if we fellowship with other like-minded believers to let our iron sharpen theirs and vice versa.
Elijah was taken to Mt. Horeb, the mountain of the Lord. In this mountain range is Mt. Sinai the mountain that Moses ascended to receive the law and probably the same one that Jesus stood on when he transfigured and Peter, James and John saw Jesus talking to Elijah and Moses. I wonder if the transfiguration wasn’t a hologram of these two events.
The first person he met was Elisha who was plowing his family oxen. He threw his mantle on him which was a sign that he was putting his office on him. Elisha asked if he could bid his parents good-bye, but when he realized Elijah wasn’t waiting, he made an altar right there using the wood from his plow and two of the oxen as the sacrifice. He gave the food to the people and left with Elijah, to be his apprentice.
When there is a shift of power in the natural, it is a picture of the shift in the spiritual also. Jehu was to kill in the natural with his sword and Elisha was to kill spiritually. God’s word would be his sword.
In Acts, James was killed and Peter was put in prison again. The first time Peter was put in prison was in Acts 5:18 where he was put in the common prison which is an open prison that the public can see. God set him free from that one so this time they put him under the charge of sixteen Roman soldiers and chained him to make sure he didn’t escape. That night as they were sleeping, the angel of the Lord came and woke Peter and told him to stand. The chains fell off his hands. He was told to put his sandals on and get his clothes. He followed the angel out of the prison which just opened before them. Once he was a block from the prison, the angel left. Peter realized it wasn’t a dream and went to Mary’s house, then James’, Jesus’ brother.
There was such a commotion in the jail the next day. They looked everywhere for Peter and when they couldn’t find him, Herod had the soldiers in charge of Peter killed.
That same day, Herod met with the men of Tyre and Sidon. When Herod came out to them they praised him as a god and immediately the angel of the Lord killed him for taking God’s glory to himself.
When God begins to move in manifested power on the earth, his judgment comes also.
Lord, cleanse our hearts and make us ready for what is coming.