Sat.’s Devo - Finishing Our Course

Read: 1 Kings 19:1-21; Acts 12:1-23; Psalm 136:1-26; Proverbs 17:14-15 Ahab returned home to Jezebel and told her the events on Mt. Carmel. If he was thinking she was going to be happy about all her prophets being killed, he was wrong. She sent word to Elijah that he would be dead by tomorrow. Elijah had outran Ahab to Jezrel. Maybe he was expecting to be made the king’s prophet until he heard Jezebel’s response. Then he ran for his life. He had stood up to the 850 false prophets and killed them and seen God answer with fire, yet he ran from the threat of a single woman. Elijah fled to the wilderness and sat under a broom tree ready to end his life. He finally went to sleep and was awaken twice by an angel who told him to eat and drink the food he had prepared for him because he would need its strength to finish his course. He traveled forty days and forty nights on that nourishment. He finally came to Mt. Sinai where Moses received the law of the Lord. He spent the night in a cave. God asked Elijah what he was doing there. God told him to go out of the cave and stand on the mountain. Elijah saw the Lord pass by. He was followed by a mighty windstorm, an earthquake and a fire but God did not speak through any of them. After the fire, there was the sound of a gentle breeze. God spoke and asked Elijah again what he was doing there. Each time, Elijah’s response was that he had served the Lord while the people of Israel continually broke their covenant with Him. He was the only living prophet and they were trying to kill him. God told him to retrace his steps - like undoing what he had done. God gave him three assignments and then he would be free to die. The first was to anoint Hazael king of Aram. The second was to anoint Jehu grandson of Nimshi to be king of Israel. And the third was to anoint Elisha from Abel-meholah to replace him as his prophet. And for his information, God had preserved 7,000 other prophets who had not bowed to Baal. Interestingly, he did number three first which was not the closest one to where he was. He went and found Elisha plowing a field with 12 team of oxen. Elijah threw his cloak over his shoulders and walked away. Elisha ran after him, leaving his oxen and told him that he needed to kiss his father and mother good-bye and then he would follow him. Elijah told Elisha for him to consider seriously what being a prophet like him would cost him. Elisha returned and killed his oxen and took the wood of the plow and made a fire where he offered all he had on the altar. He had counted the cost. He gave the meat of his oxen to the people of the town and left with Elijah. In Acts, King Herod took over Saul’s persecution campaign and began persecuting believers. They arrested Peter during the Passover celebration. Jesus paid Peter’s debt on Passover years before and now Peter was going to demonstrate freedom from sin. Angels came and unlocked Peter’s prison cell and led him out of the city. Peter woke up to find it wasn’t a dream. The believers were at Mary’s house praying for Peter when he knocked on the door. What an answered prayer! Needless to say, there was a great commotion in the prison when they couldn’t find Peter who had been fastened with chains to two soldiers. The soldiers were interrogated and sentenced to die. Herod then went to Caesarea. Herod was unhappy with the people of Tyre and Sidon so they sent men with a peace treaty to him. Tyre and Sidon was dependent upon Herod for food. The men from Sidon won the favor of Herod’s personal assistant so Herod agreed to meet with them to hear the conditions of their peace treaty. When they did, Herod put on his royal robe and say on his throne. He gave a speech and the crowd hailed him as a god. He received their praises and God instantly struck him with sickness and he died consumed with worms. Lord, help us to number our days and realize that this is not our home. We are here on assignment. May we complete our assignment and enjoy your presence during the process.