coddling the prophets of Baal



The Old Testament closes with a final word of prophecy ~ one that is intimately connected with the return of Jesus Christ.  Jesus himself referred to that prophecy and thus confirmed its significance.  Following, are the words of that prophecy:

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and dreadful day of the LORD: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.  (Malachi 4:5,6) 

But why Elijah?  There were many prophets both before and after him.  Why would God single out that one man to be the forerunner, the herald and preparer of the way for the coming (return) of Jesus Christ?  We may learn something of the answer to that question, by considering the character of another who came in that same spirit of Elijah ~ according to the testimony of Jesus concerning . . . John "the baptist".  What was it about John that bespeaks the spirit - and the ministry - of Elijah? 

radical separation from the world
Elijah and John the baptist both demonstrated, by their lifestyle, radical separation from the world.  They did not live as hermits, having nothing to do with the world of men.  But Elijah and John both rejected the cultural 'norms' of their own day; their dress and manner of living would have been considered as being crude and socially unacceptable.  Neither did Elijah nor John seek the praise of men, but their whole desire was to honor the God whom they served.

Especially, did Elijah and John both renounce the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of their own people.  John's renunciation of the Jewish priesthood, of his time, was absolute in every way.  When the Pharisees and Sadducees came out to see and hear John, he answered them thusly: "O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee the wrath that is to come?" (Matthew 3:7).  Some of those men, doubtless, were John's former classmates in the priesthood (which John once was part of).  Yet, John came to a point, sometime early in his life, when he thenceforth refused to be identified either with them or with their pseudo-religion.

jealous for holiness
Elijah and John both were jealous for God's holiness.  They demanded ~ firstly, of their own selves ~ holiness of life, that is to say, wholehearted devotion to the will of God.  Only so, could those prophets then boldly denounce all compromise in the lives of those who professed to be the children of God.  The Apostle Paul explicitly described that spiritual principle, as follows:

For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:...casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God;...and having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Corinthians 10:3-6)

With regard to that well known passage just quoted ~ which is probably the best known passage describing "spiritual warfare": I have NEVER heard that passage quoted, much less taught, together with the inclusion of the words above written in red; notwithstanding, those words are integral to the passage as it is written in the text of Scripture!

fearlessly withstood against false prophets
Elijah and John knew their calling in God.  They understood that God had called and prepared them to be TRUE 'shepherds' to the people of Israel.  They took that calling seriously.  Accordingly, they perceived the DANGER to God's people, in the false doctrines and the deceptive lies that were being promulgated by so many false prophets in Israel.  Neither did Elijah nor John, apparently, focus much upon the false religious teachings then popular among the nations surrounding Israel.  Rather, Elijah as well as John evidently believed their respective ministry was appointed to serve God's own people, Israel.  Thus, those prophets bravely, even publicly ~ exposed and refuted whomsoever dared to attempt to subvert the people of God by means of false teaching.  Elijah, notably, went much further even than that: he personally killed many such false prophets; hundreds of them, in fact.

God said He's going to send Elijah, again ~ just before the coming of the Lord.  Not only did Elijah please the Lord.  But God furthermore emphasized, in His Word, the NECESSITY of an Elijah-type spirit and ministry; necessary, I say, to PREPARE THE WAY for the coming of the Lord to His people. 

God also made it clear that the prophecy in Malachi, regarding the coming of Elijah, does not necessarily mean that Elijah himself must return prior to Jesus's coming.  For, Jesus himself said that John the baptist came in the spirit of Elijah and, so, John could have been the fulfillment of Malachi's prophecy ~ if the people of Israel had received Christ as their Messiah.  (See, Matthew 11:14.)

What does that then mean for me and for you?  I am certain it means that God is wanting US who profess to be Christ's disciples ~ especially, we who are living in these very last days before the return of Christ, to come in the spirit of Elijah and in the Name of the Lord, to . . . to . . .  to do what?

• Walk softly toward the many false prophets who ~ in the name of Jesus ~ are deceiving MULTITUDES of young men and women?
• Withhold from naming the names of those false prophets, lest anyone may be offended?
• Refrain from publicly exposing and refuting the deceptive teachings of those false prophets?
• Keep our mouth shut even though, with all confidence by reason of our diligent research and well-considered judgment in the sight of God, we perceive dangers to the flock of God; to keep our mouths shut, I say, because no one else in the church (including the pastor) seems to have an issue with such-and-such youth conference, or with evangelist so-and-so?  (Rarely in Israel, I suppose, did anyone dare to speak out against the Pharisees and Sadducees....)
• Keep our own beliefs to ourselves, in order to protect ourselves against the backlash of opposition to the truth?

Neither was Elijah nor John 'popular' among the people.  Indeed, they were frankly hated by the religious leaders of their own, respective time.  No doubt, those religious leaders warned the people against associating with the likes of Elijah and John the baptist.  It is no different, today.

Nor should we expect that it will ever be any different.  Yet, far too many ~ who assuredly know the difference between the Spirit of Christ and the spirit of antichrist, sit week after week in the church pews, brewing with frustration at the confusion in the church; steaming with anxiety over the seemingly unopposed infiltration of false doctrine in the church; boiling with angst at the unchallenged hypocrisy of church policies and practices; perpetually wrestling with themselves about what they ought to do about the steadily worsening situation....

It has gotten so bad that, now, many actually do not know the difference between demonic rituals and Revival.  Jesus did not one day send forth his own disciples to preach and, the next day, send Simon the Sorcerer.  The early leaders of the churches did not one week invite the Apostle Paul to preach and, the next week, invite Demas (though he was formerly a companion of Paul).  The confusion that has flooded the churches has not abated!  The floodwaters of deceit have not receded.  Why not?

People -- seemingly good people -- fear to be wrong.  Or, far more often it is the case that they fear the disapprobation of their friends and family.  Which, fears, the Bible warns against:

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone.... (Revelation 21:8)

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Thanks be to God! the Lord Christ is moving to rectify the situation.  He is moving to restore the Truth of God, in the lives of those who truly want to know God.  He is raising up an army of individuals whom God has called them to: forsake the world ~ as did Elijah and John; consecrate themselves to holiness of life ~ as did Elijah and John; "study [desire and seek] to shew [themselves] approved unto God"; "resist the devil"; and, boldly proclaim Jesus Christ as he is in truth ~ as also did Elijah and John.

Revival did come to Israel ~ but, first, God sent Elijah to prepare the way.

Revival did come to Israel ~ but, first, God sent John the baptist to prepare the way.

Revival, I trust, will come to us ~ but, first, God is seeking to send us forth in the spirit of Elijah to prepare the way.

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TO PASTORS:  You (we) have a special accountability, both to God and to God's people, to be always on the watch for every threat to the spiritual well being of God's flock.  If, as I have heard many say, they "don't have the time to do research;" then, I wonder whether such persons ought to be entrusted with the oversight of the Church of the living God.  At the very least, those in leadership must not be supposed to have the right to withhold information (knowledge) from the people.  It is one thing if they themselves (leaders) are without knowledge; but, it is a different thing altogether, in the case that they may presume to withhold or otherwise suppress knowledge that is relevant to the spiritual well-being of the Church.

It is high time that things must change.  Change, they will....  For, the will of God in those whom He has strengthened, is a power that cannot be resisted.