The great Gospel comfort in our text is that the Lord is not through with us either, and He will not let us die or despair. Instead, He provides everything we need for our journey in life through His Word and Sacraments.
This small text, cut out of a larger part of the Elijah story in 1 Kings 17-19, acts as the introduction to the well-known revelation of God to Elijah on Mount Horeb through “a still small voice” (verse 12). Our text happens during the reign of King Ahab in the northern kingdom of Israel. Ahab’s wife Jezebel, the daughter of the king of the Sidonians, was a zealous follower of the Phoenician fertility god Baal. Sinfully, Jezebel introduces widespread syncretism and idolatry into the Kingdom of Israel, supporting 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah (18:19). Because of Jezebel, Ahab built a temple for Baal and even sacrificed his child on its altar. After God’s defeat of the 850 prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel, Jezebel vows she will make Elijah’s life like one of her slain false prophets (1 Kings 18-19:2). Elijah is “afraid” and flees for his life toward the southern kingdom of Judah, where Jezebel has no authority. Now, we finally arrive at our text for the day.
After fleeing just one day to the south of Judah, Elijah makes his bed under a broom tree. Any desert dweller can tell you that such a spot is a fatal place to lay your head down to rest. There, in that position of death, Elijah prays, but not in devotion. Instead, he wants to leave his prophetic ministry and give up on life all together. Exhausted by his fear and his journey, he falls asleep.
While he sleeps, an angel comes by urging him, commanding him to rise and eat. The sacramental connections here for preaching will not likely be exhausted. God provides for his weary prophet in the wilderness. While he prays and waits for death, God comes to feed him and cares for him. There, by God’s grace and His good provision, he finds a baked cake of bread and a jar of water. So, Elijah eats a little bread and drinks a little water, but immediately lies down again to sleep.
God’s people will be able to relate to Elijah and the weariness we all face in everyday life. Greater still, they will be blessed to see God is constantly giving graciously to His people until the day that we, like Elijah, reach our final destination. Once again, the angel appears to him, telling him to wake up and eat, in order to be strengthened for his journey toward Mount Horeb. Elijah, in the strength of that food, reaches the mountain top where he will meet with God.
When he arrives at the mountain, his desire to abandon his mission is long forgotten. God is not done with Elijah, and he will not let him die in despair. There on Mount Sinai, God speaks to Elijah and tells him to return to the land and set in motion the actions which will lead to the downfall of Ahab and Jezebel’s kingdom to the glory of God’s name.
God is not done with Elijah, and he will not let him die in despair.
The great Gospel comfort in our text is that the Lord is not through with us either, and He will not let us die or despair. Instead, He provides everything we need for our journey in life through His Word and Sacraments. As He provided for Elijah, He gives us the gifts of God which provide Christ for us, so He can be with us every step along the way. The message of our text is, take heart good Christians. God is with you in Christ through Word and Sacrament. God’s purposes were fulfilled for you, not at Mount Horeb, but at Mount Calvary, and then in an empty tomb three days later. God has provided for your every task through Jesus Christ.
The best structure to capture the drama of our text is the Epic Structure:
“This structure utilizes an epic plot form as the progression of experiences in the sermon. The first experience of the epic form is immediate engagement in a conflict leading to a climax that is temporarily left unresolved. The second experience of the epic form involves an abrupt shift to reflection in a broader context (like the history which lies behind the conflict) that serves to intensify the importance of the outcome for the hearers. Often this experience is a movement backward in time from the opening conflict to the history leading up to the conflict. In this second experience, the sermon should offer information that brings the significance of the opening scene into view for the hearers. The hearers reflect on the broader context and realize what is at stake in this struggle. Also, this revelation of a larger framework can offer the hearers a glimpse of how the conflict will ultimately be resolved. It can provide a different way of looking at things which changes how they hear the opening scene and how the story will unfold. The final experience in the epic form involves a return to the conflict in order to move from climax to resolution. The sermon, therefore, ends with the hearer’s experiencing satisfaction as a significant matter is resolved in the sermon.”[1]
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Additional Resources:
Craft of Preaching-Check out out 1517’s resources on 1 Kings 19:1-8.
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching 1 Kings 19:1-8.
Text Week-A treasury of resources from various traditions to help you preach 1 Kings 19:1-8.
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
Lectionary Podcast- Dr. Walter A. Maier III of Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN walks us through 1 Kings 19:1-8.
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[1] https://concordiatheology.org/sermon-structs/dynamic/narrative-structures/epic-form/
