Saved By Grace

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Tuesday, June 9, 2015

God endorses laughter

When I read my Bible sometimes I find myself snickering.
Like that time when the main event at Mount Carmel brought out 450 idolatrous prophets on one side…
and Elijah, all alone, on the other.

You remember the story (1 Kings 18). Baal vs. Jehovah. Big altar, prayer for fire. The One who "answers by fire" Will have the one true God.
From morning until noon the prophets of Baal called on their "deity". Those guys got so anxious that they "leaped about the altar which they made."
Elijah became amused at their antics and started mocking them, possibly the 1st recorded case of talking trash: (Jacob Diesselhorst) "Call out with a loud voice, for he is a god; either he is occupied or gone aside, or is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and needs to be awakened" or Baal may have "gone to the bathroom." "snicker snicker" Come on, :-) smile; it's okay.
 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of Jehovah came, saying, Israel shall be thy name.
32 And with the stones he built an altar in the name of Jehovah; and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it on the wood. And he said, Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt-offering, and on the wood.
34 And he said, Do it the second time; and they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time; and they did it the third time.
35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening oblation, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, O Jehovah, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
37 Hear me, O Jehovah, hear me, that this people may know that thou, Jehovah, art God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
38 Then the fire of Jehovah fell, and consumed the burnt-offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
Much love, Dennis  

1 comment:

  1. This was one of my favorite flannel-graph stories from my childhood. Imagine my delight to visit Mt. Carmel on my two trips to Israel and to be near the place where this happened. My favorite part of the story was after God set the offering on fire, the prophets fell to their knees and shouted "The Lord, He is God. The Lord, He is God"! That should be our shout today as well.

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