Elijah, the Prayer Warrior

The book of 1 Kings has shown us a long list of terrible kings in the Northern kingdom of Israel. On to the scene as Israel endures her 7th and most idolatrous king bursts Elijah the prophet. I am sure that if you aren't an avid Bible reader, his name is the only one familiar to you thus far in the book which speaks to a powerful truth underlying this narrative's message: It is not the powerful kings that move Israel along, it is those prophets who speak for God without fear, who challenge power and let God take care of the rest. But before he was ever a prophet, Elijah was a prayer warrior.

1 Kings 17:1 (ESV) Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 

What we are asked to see immediately is where Elijah is from rather than WHO Elijah is from. All the kings of Israel were identified by their father, even the wicked Ahab. Elijah is from Tishbe in Gilead. These facts are important. Because Elijah is from nowhere. Gilead was farm country on the East of the Jordan and Tishbe is little heard of throughout the scriptures and ancient world. Elijah does not come from an important family or an important place. 

So what gave Elijah the guts to confront a severely pagan king like this? James gives us a clue:

James 5:17 (ESV) Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.

Elijah was a man of prayer. But notice how the references in 1 Kings 17 and James 5 work together. Elijah told Ahab there would be no rain for 3 years but James tells us he prayed for 3.5 years. That means Elijah spent 6 months praying privately before addressing Ahab publicly.

Let us also note that shutting up the rain was judgment upon the sin of the nation. This truth comes straight from the scriptures:

Deuteronomy 11:16–17 (ESV) Take care lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them; 17 then the anger of the LORD will be kindled against you, and he will shut up the heavens, so that there will be no rain, and the land will yield no fruit, and you will perish quickly off the good land that the LORD is giving you.

God said He would shut up the rain to judge His people in order to get their attention and turn them back to Himself. But it only happened when Elijah prayed. So here's what we can deduce from these scriptures working together. Elijah knew the nation was lost. And instead of praying that God would keep them from harm or disaster he prays right in line with the difficult passages of woe spoken over the people through the Word. AND, the answer doesn't come right away just because it was God's Word. No, Elijah has to press through for 6 months to see God come through on His Word. 

Now, this brings up important spiritual truths for us. We need to follow Elijah's lead here. First, we should pray in accordance with God's Word and not our ideas. Second, when sin abounds, we should ask God to do what He said He would do in its regard. In the Old Testament that meant physical forms of national judgment. In our day, sin in the lives of God's people will be punished for the sake of discipline or confessed for the sake of cleansing and healing. Why do we pray for those stuck in sin to be "protected" from harm? Perhaps they need some Fatherly measured harm to wake them up! Finally, just because we pray in accordance with God's Word does not mean it will be instantly granted us. But we must continue praying!

What do you think happened to Elijah during that 6 month prayer time? He learned to know the presence of God so that the presence of Ahab would be of no account to his spirit. He had spent time in the presence of the Heavenly King, therefore an Earthly king carried no fear. Prayer is not just about getting our needs met. It's about getting our hearts rooted in the presence of God so that we can stand in the presence of anyone else!