THE LORD GOD HAS A PLAN

PROCLAMATION

“The Lord God said unto him, ‘Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus.  And when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael to be king over Syria.  And Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place.’ ”  1 Kings 19:15-16 (KJV)

 

EXPLANATION

These words were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  The human author is unknown although some Bible scholars attribute this book to the prophet Jeremiah.  King Ahab told his wife Jezebel what the prophet Elijah had done with the sacrifice and how he killed all of the prophets of Baal with a sword.  Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to tell him that she was going to do the same thing to him.  Elijah feared for his life and ran away to Beersheba and hid in the wilderness.  Things were so bad he even wished that he could die. (1 Kings 19:1-4)  He went to sleep under a tree and was awaken by an angel who told him to eat and drink.  There was bread and water near his head and he did eat.  Afterwards he went back to sleep and the angel woke him up again and told him to eat.  Then he walked for forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God. (1 Kings 19:5-8)  There he found a cave and lodged in it.  The word of The Lord came to him asking, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”  He answered that the people have forsaken His covenant and killed His prophets.  He said that he was the only one left and they wanted to kill him. (1 Kings 19:9-11)  The Lord God told him, “Go, return … to the wilderness of Damascus and when you arrive anoint Hazael king over Syria, and anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel.  Then you shall anoint Elisha to be the prophet in your place.” (1 Kings 19:14-16)  The Lord God also told Elijah that he was not the only one left, and that He had seven thousand men in Israel who had not bowed to Baal. (1 Kings 19:18)  Elijah left there and found Elisha plowing the field.  Elijah passed by Elisha and cast his cloak upon him.  After they ate, Elisha followed Elijah and assisted him. (1 Kings 19:19-21)

 

APPLICATION

When things go bad for us, we often think that we are all alone.  At times some of us even wish that we were never born or dead.  We should not rely on our own limited understanding and knowledge. (Proverbs 3:5)  What we don’t understand is that God has a purpose and a plan, things happen for a reason, and that all things will work out for our good. (Romans 8:28)  If we put our trust in The Lord God, we will endure. (2 Chronicles 20:20)