As the Lord lives

And Elijah the Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab,"As the LORD God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word." – 1 Kings 17v1

Things were getting worser and worser for Israel. In all the history of the divided kingdon they did not have one single good and godly king.

In about 860 BC King Ahab came to the throne. He was married to Jezebel. As king he ‘did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.’ He ran headlong into the worship of Baal. Baal was seen as the ‘life-giver’ and his worship included prostitution and child sacrifice. Children were killed and their bodies placed in the walls of cities or buildings as a way of seeking Baal’s blessing.

One could be forgiven for thinking that God had died or at least forsaken the land. The leader of God’s people was one of the most wicked men who ever lived.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, as I Kings chapter 17 opens we read this – ‘Elijah said to Ahab, as the Lord God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, it will not rain for three years unless I say so.’

Boom! In one fell swoop we find out who is in charge. The entire nation would soon realise that no matter who the leader is or how powerful he seems God still lives. The entire economic and political stature of the nation was no longer contingent on the king, but instead depended on the One who holds the heart of the king in His hands.

There is comfort here. Sometimes we have rulers come to power that we think are as bad as it can get. We can think that our leaders are really in charge.

Lets remember one thing though; the Lord God of Israel is as alive today as He was in Elijah’s day. It is He who is in control!