The altar, constructed in days past to honor God, was in rubble. Its scattered rocks reflected the
collapsed faith of Israel. So Elijah rebuilt it. Thousands of Israelites and hundreds of exhausted
prophets watched as he reassembled the place of worship. Rock by rock. Stone by stone. Twelve
stones. Not eleven. Not thirteen. The twelve stones symbolized the twelve tribes of Israel, not
divided as they were, but united as God intended. One boulder at a time. Then,
Elijah dug a fairly wide trench around the altar. He laid firewood on the altar, cut up the ox, put it on the wood, and said, “Fill four buckets with water and drench both the ox and the firewood.” Then he said, “Do it again,” and they did it. Then he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. The altar was drenched and the trench was filled with water. — 1 Kings 18:32–35 MSG
The real offering of this sacrifice was not the bull but the precious water the crowd wanted to drink rather than offer to God. They saturated the altar three times so Elijah could make sure that everything was soaked: the wood, the bull, the platform. Why douse the altar with water if you want it consumed by fire? Because God was about to drive a truck onto the field.
We’ve seen this tactic before. It’s one of God’s favorites—showing up and showing off in a way that leaves no doubt who has the power. When the Israelites stood before the towering walls of Jericho, God took the city with a marching band (Joshua 6:1–5). When Gideon faced an army “thick as locusts” (Judges 7:12), God won the victory with three hundred men, a troop of
trumpets, and some flashlights. And when the whole universe buckled under the weight of sin,
God rescued you and me through a dirty manger, a homeless Rabbi, and a horrible death on a cross.
When it was time for the sacrifice to be offered, Elijah the prophet came up and prayed, “O God, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, make it known right now that you are God in Israel, that I am your servant, and that I’m doing what I’m doing under your orders. Answer me, God; O answer me and reveal to this people that you are God, the true God, and that you are giving
these people another chance at repentance.” — 1 Kings 18:36–37 MSG
Elijah didn’t even request fire. But the Lord sent it.
Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood, and the stones and the dust; and it licked up the water that was in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God; the Lord, He is God!” — 1 Kings 18:38–39 NASB
Heaven opened, and a blaze from Heaven fell. It consumed the water, the rocks, the wood, even the dust. All that was left was a charcoal-colored oval on the ground.
The people responded with repentance. Voices echoed off the rugged cliffs and rocky slopes. For the first time in three generations, the nation of Israel cried out to Jehovah. “The Lord—He is God!”
We’d move too quickly if we did not pause at this point and pray, Do it again, Lord. Let the fire of glory fall and convince all people that You alone are God! Soften our hard hearts. Bend our stiff necks. Purge us with Your cleansing flame yet again.
Then there is this: “Elijah commanded them, ‘Seize the prophets of Baal. Don’t let anyone get away!’ They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there” (1 Kings 18:40).
I do not know how a person could read that text without a wince. Most of the popular books on Elijah sidestep this moment. One can understand why. It does not sit well in our modern, westernized mindset to see a man of God brandishing a sword and executing several hundred men.
Except for the fact that these weren’t just men; they were disciples of the devil. They were demonic in their devotion to the cause of hell. They slaughtered infants and stole the purity of teenage boys and girls, all in the name of God. Under their leadership the people of God had abandoned their call. Any hope of a Messiah would soon be lost. God intervened. He wasn’t
going to let the ship called Israel crash into the rocks.
Can you imagine such a moment today?
It will happen. In the final days God will lay “hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and [bind] him for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:2 NKJV).
All of creation will watch as an angel lassos old Lucifer and hog-ties him so he can’t lift his bony finger. And God will “cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more” (Revelation 20:3 NKJV). The unique feature of a bottomless pit is that it is bottomless. The devil will fall for a thousand years, never landing, ever
spinning. The fallen angel will be the falling angel.
Those of us who gave our worship to God will reign with Christ. And we will see a world as God intended. No curse on earth. No chumps or bums from Satan’s cavern. And after a thousand years, Satan and his minions will be cast out into the lake of fire, never to be seen again (Revelation 20:10). History, yes, our history, is headed for triumph. Satan may seem to succeed; he may seduce some prophets here and there. But he is no match for the living God.
Elijah believed this.
Do you?
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