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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Thursday, 25 September 2025:
1 Kings 18:1-2 — After many days the word of the LORD came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth.” So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria.
After three long years of drought, God sends Elijah back into the public eye, promising that rain will come. The famine was a judgment on Israel’s idolatry, but it was also a test of faith for Elijah, who had been hidden and dependent on God’s provision at Cherith and Zarephath. Now, in obedience, Elijah steps forward to confront Ahab again, trusting that the same God who sustained him in obscurity will vindicate him in the open. When God speaks, His servants must obey, even if it means walking directly into danger. Faith grows in secret but proves itself in public.
Elijah did not go anywhere on his own initiative but rather waited on direction from God. Jesus said that He operated the same way. Why do you do what you do? Notice that the word of the Lord came to Elijah, “after many days.” Until then, Elijah simply remained faithful to what he had already been told to do, without using God’s silence as an excuse to quit endeavoring. Are you willing to obey God’s clearly written word right where you are, doing what you normally do, without requiring some special revelation?
1 Kings 18:3-4 — And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly, and when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave and fed them with bread and water.)
Here we see a man of faith working quietly within a corrupt system. Obadiah served in Ahab’s household yet feared the Lord greatly, risking his life to preserve God’s prophets from Jezebel’s massacre. Not all faithfulness looks like Elijah’s bold confrontation; some, like Obadiah’s, is hidden, costly, and sustained over time. God places His people in different roles, some to confront kings, others to protect quietly in the shadows, but all to preserve His work and glorify His name. Both kinds of courage are needed.
Obadiah not only feared God, he also prepared for famine when no one else had. Therefore, he was able to care for God’s prophets. Faithful followers of Christ don’t hoard wealth or save for a future of unproductivity, but they do save so that they can provide for themselves and others during lean times or times of trouble. Are you saving up for retirement so you can finally relax? If so, your plan will ruin you.
1 Kings 18:7-9 — And as Obadiah was on the way, behold, Elijah met him. And Obadiah recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is it you, my lord Elijah?” And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your lord, ‘Behold, Elijah is here.’” And he said, “How have I sinned, that you would give your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?”
Obadiah’s fear is real: reporting Elijah’s return could cost him his life if Elijah vanished again by God’s Spirit. Obadiah’s faith had already been tested in hiding the prophets, but now it was tested again in trusting Elijah’s word. Faith is not the absence of fear; it is obedience in the midst of fear. Obadiah models faith under pressure, showing that God’s servants wrestle with fear yet move forward in obedience.
1 Kings 18:17, 18 — When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father’s house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the LORD and followed the Baals.”
Ahab shifts blame, calling Elijah the troubler of Israel, when in truth it was his idolatry that brought God’s judgment. This is a timeless tactic of sin, accusing the righteous of causing the very troubles brought on by rebellion. Elijah refuses to accept the false charge, boldly speaking truth to power: the real source of Israel’s trouble is idolatry. To follow Christ faithfully will often mean being misunderstood and maligned, but we must remember that faithfulness to God, not the approval of people, is what matters.
Sinners will blame and despise God’s messenger. The messenger is an easy target. The word “martyr” is Greek for “witness.” Jesus experienced that persecution started within the “church” as his teachings threatened church tradition, church leadership, and the position of compromise the church had established with the State and secular society. Today the church is largely silent in the face of dramatic social deviation. Speak the truth boldly, and discover the Greek word for witness. In the midst of persecution, God’s servants must continue to proclaim truth. Are you willing to be hated by the world to proclaim God’s message? Christians are not the judge but rather the messenger of the Judge. Never hold back from speaking the truth in love thereby denying your life mission and purpose.
1 Kings 18:20-21 — So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word.
This challenge cuts to the heart: Israel’s problem was not outright rejection of God but divided loyalty. They wanted to serve both Yahweh and Baal. Elijah calls them out of compromise: you cannot limp between two gods. Jesus echoed this truth when He said, “No one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24). Silence from the people shows their hesitancy, their unwillingness to fully commit. But indecision in matters of faith is itself a decision, lukewarmness that God rejects (Revelation 3:15-16).
You too must choose between fidelity to God or fidelity to the world. You cannot be faithful to both. If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice. Much like the people of this account, today, the Church remains largely silent in the midst of rapid social decay due to compromise. Following God is an all or nothing proposition. Jesus Himself said that He had no use for the lukewarm Christian. You cannot follow and not follow at the same time. You cannot partially obey and still be obedient. You cannot remain silent before the sins that God abhors and remain in a growing love relationship with Jesus.
1 Kings 18:25-29 — Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” … They called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made.
The prophets of Baal put on a frantic show, crying out, cutting themselves, and exhausting themselves, but no one answered. Idols always promise power but never deliver; they consume their worshipers and leave them empty. Psalm 115:4-8 reminds us that those who make idols become like them, deaf, blind, lifeless. Elijah allows their futility to be exposed, showing that false gods are powerless, no matter how passionate or desperate their worshipers.
“And at noon Elijah mocked them, saying, ‘Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.’” Elijah did not show respect for false religions.
“No one answered; no one paid attention.” The world is full of passionate people who very sincerely believe lies to be true. No matter how much someone wants to believe a lie, the truth remains the truth. Jesus said he came to “testify to the truth.” We have been entrusted with the message of truth which challenges many sincerely held beliefs in the world.
1 Kings 18:30-32 — Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been thrown down. Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, “Israel shall be your name.”
Before calling down fire, Elijah repairs the altar of the Lord, symbolizing the restoration of true worship. The twelve stones remind Israel of their covenant identity, one people under one God, even though they were divided as nations. True revival always begins with repairing the altar: restoring devotion, repentance, and worship of the living God. Before God sends fire, He calls His people back to covenant faithfulness.
1 Kings 18:36-37 — And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”
Elijah’s prayer is simple, reverent, and God-centered. Unlike the prophets of Baal, he does not need theatrics. He appeals to God’s covenant name, God’s glory, and God’s mission, that the people may know Him and turn back. True prayer is not about manipulating God to act but about aligning with His will for His glory.
1 Kings 18:37 — Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that you, O Lord, are God.
God answers our prayers as we desire when what we desire is His will be done. Your prayer life is powerful when it is aligned to God’s will rather than simply your desires. God’s intent is always to bring glory to Himself. All that we desire should be to glorify God.
1 Kings 18:38-39 — Then the fire of the LORD 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. And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God.”
God answers with overwhelming fire, consuming everything, even water and stones, proving His absolute power and exposing Baal’s impotence. The people finally confess the truth: “The LORD, he is God!” The purpose of the miracle was not Elijah’s vindication but God’s glory and the people’s repentance. Miracles serve to turn hearts back to God, not to elevate the messenger.
1 Kings 18:41-45 — And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. And he bowed himself down on the earth and put his face between his knees. … And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” … And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain.
Elijah prays persistently for rain, even after fire has already fallen. He humbles himself, head between his knees, showing dependence and intercession. Seven times his servant checks before a small cloud finally appears. This is a picture of persevering prayer: waiting, trusting, asking again until God fulfills His word. God keeps His promises, but His timing teaches us to trust.
“Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” Success can distract you as you seek to follow God’s will. Elijah’s primary assignment was to announce when a drought would begin and end (1 Kings 17:1). God had told him to proclaim to King Ahab that the drought was an act of judgment upon a people who worshiped idols rather than God. In the middle of Elijah’s assignment, a spectacular thing happened. Elijah confronted the prophets of Baal and called fire down from heaven, putting hundreds of priests of Baal to death. This was one of the most awesome displays of God’s power recorded in Scripture. Elijah could easily have focused strictly on that event. Fire falling from heaven is much more spectacular than a rainstorm!
When something spectacular happens, we can easily be sidetracked. If Elijah lived today, he might have begun a “Calling Down Fire from Heaven” ministry! The dramatic is far more appealing to us than obedience to the mundane. Destroying hundreds of Baal’s prophets would appear to be a climactic victory for any prophet of God. Yet Elijah persisted in his assignment. He announced the coming rain. This had been his primary message, and he delivered it.
If you aren’t careful, you may become so distracted by the successes you experience that you never complete what God originally assigned you to do. Will your success today cause you to disobey tomorrow?
1 Kings 18:46 — And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah, and he gathered up his garment and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
God strengthens Elijah supernaturally, enabling him to outrun Ahab’s chariot. The same prophet who once hid in obscurity now runs ahead of the king, empowered by the Spirit of God. When God calls and equips His servants, He provides not only the word to speak but the strength to fulfill the mission.
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 25 September 2025: 1 Kings 18 calls us out of divided loyalty. Elijah’s challenge on Mount Carmel is still God’s challenge today: “If the LORD is God, follow him.” We cannot limp between the world’s idols and wholehearted devotion to Christ. Today, identify one area where your allegiance is split — a place where you trust in Baal-like idols of money, approval, comfort, or control — and surrender it fully to God. Repair the altar in your heart by repenting of compromise, renewing your devotion in prayer, and asking God to reveal His power in your life so others may see and confess, “The LORD, he is God.”
Pray: “Lord God, forgive me for limping between two opinions, for trying to serve both You and the idols of this world. Repair the altar of my heart and turn me back to wholehearted devotion. Teach me to pray simply and persistently, trusting in Your word and timing. Send the fire of Your Spirit to consume my divided affections, and let my life testify to Your power and truth. May others see and confess through me: The LORD, He is God. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
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