3/6/2011 7:48:44 AM
SPIRITUAL DIARY
My Worship Time Focus: Obadiah meets Elijah
Bible Reading
& Meditation Reference: 1Kings 18:1-16
Message of the verses: “1 ¶
Now it happened after many days that the word of the LORD came to Elijah
in the third year, saying, "Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send
rain on the face of the earth." 2
So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in
Samaria. 3 Ahab called Obadiah who was
over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly; 4 for when Jezebel destroyed the prophets of
the LORD, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave,
and provided them with bread and water.) 5
Then Ahab said to Obadiah, "Go through the land to all the springs
of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we will find grass and keep the horses
and mules alive, and not have to kill some of the cattle." 6 So they divided the land between them to
survey it; Ahab went one way by himself and Obadiah went another way by
himself. 7 Now as Obadiah was on the
way, behold, Elijah met him, and he recognized him and fell on his face and
said, "Is this you, Elijah my master?" 8 He said to him, "It is I. Go, say to
your master, ’Behold, Elijah is here.’" 9
He said, "What sin have I committed, that you are giving your
servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death? 10 "As the LORD your God lives, there is no
nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you; and when they
said, ’He is not here,’ he made the kingdom or nation swear that they could not
find you. 11 "And now you are
saying, ’Go, say to your master, "Behold, Elijah is here."’ 12 "It will come about when I leave you
that the Spirit of the LORD will carry you where I do not know; so when I come
and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant
have feared the LORD from my youth. 13
"Has it not been told to my master what I did when Jezebel killed
the prophets of the LORD, that I hid a hundred prophets of the LORD by fifties
in a cave, and provided them with bread and water? 14 "And now you are saying, ’Go, say to
your master, "Behold, Elijah is here”‘; he will then kill me."
15 Elijah said, "As the LORD of hosts
lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today."
16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told
him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.”
It
was now time for Elijah to move again as it has been over three years since he
spoke to Ahab, one at the creek, and two with the widow and her son, but now
the Lord told Elijah to go to the king and tell him that it would rain
again. On his way to meet the king he
runs into a man named Obadiah whose name means “servant of Jehovah). Dr. Wiersbe points out that some scholars do
not believe that Obadiah is a true servant of the Lord, but this does not seem
to be the case as he points out that Obadiah feed 100 prophets whom he hid from
the king and that it is said of him that he feared the Lord.
Obadiah
feared his life when Elijah came upon him, for he first bowed to Elijah and
told him what he did for the prophets and then after Obadiah was told to go to
find the king he greatly feared for his life.
The reason that he feared for his life is that he thought Elijah would
disappear again like he seemed to when the king searched all over for him. Elijah assured Obadiah that he would indeed
see the king.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: In his commentary Dr. Wiersbe points out that
there are servants of the Lord who are in the public eye and there are servants
of the Lord who are not, such was the case for Obadiah. I can take heart in this statement as it is
my desire to serve the Lord in any way that I can whether talking to someone
about their need for salvation or when given opportunity to teach or to speak
to a group that I would be willing to do so.
I want only to fear the Lord, but I must admit that there are time when
I am a bit fearful of circumstances, which I know that I should not be.
My Steps of
Faith for Today:
1.
Trust the Lord to give me the ministry that He
desires for me that will bring honor and glory to Him.
2.
Give myself to the Lord for worship and service.
3.
Continue to learn contentment.
4.
Trust that the Lord will land us in the church He
wants us to serve in.
5.
Remember that I am in a battle and in need of the
Spiritual armor.
3/6/2011 8:17:39 AM
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