“Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God follow him.” But the people said nothing.
I love all of my daughters. One of them had some hard times and it all started with hanging out with wrong crowd. Once her “clean friends” started to rebuke her for her behavior, she went off and found other friends that were less judgmental. Leaving the “clean friends” she started to hang out with the other crowd that accepted her behavior and championed her rebellion. For a while, she would not listen to better judgment. The wrong crowd had turned away from the Lord. Today, she is doing wonderful and now she has a great testimony on how the Lord has brought her through some rough stuff. Praise the Lord.
This is the famous story of Elijah and the 400 prophets of Baal. In short, Elijah, directed by God, prepares a show down with two alters. The 400 prophets of Baal fail to consume the sacrifice but when Elijah calls out to the Lord, fire comes down and consumes the sacrifice.
Side note: There is no war between Satan and God. Jesus won the war when he rose from the dead. Satan has been trying to tempt God’s creation even since the Garden of Eden. So when the prophets of Baal failed to see any fire consuming the sacrifice, it is because Satan is no match for God. He lost and has no place of authority. Jesus tells us in Revelation that He owns the keys of death, hell, and the grave. The victor is king Jesus. So if you believe in the Lord and Jesus is your savior, then you have that same victory because he has given all that authority to us as believers. The prophets of Baal had no chance against God and Elijah knew it. God never picks a fight he can’t win. He always wins, period!
Elijah then goes and kills all 400 prophets of Baal. BTW, those prophets were chosen by the wicked queen Jezebel who was married to Ahab. This was picking a fight with the queen for sure. Verse 21 comes before all that. The Bible says that Elijah went before the people and asked them “how long will you waver?”
If you find yourself in a period of wandering from one belief to the next, you might want to consider what Elijah said. God will always try to wake you up before you go ahead with sin. Just as Elijah did, God will speak through the Holy Spirit and ask you “how long will you waver?” In the Israel’s case, “the people said nothing”. Very chilling. Sometimes silence says it all.
The question is will you say nothing? Maybe it is time for you say something, turn towards God, and follow His ways. In verse 37 Elijah says “Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.” All the Lord wants is your heart. He may not create a spectacle like the one in chapter 18 but He still wants your heart devoted to Him. Jesus said that he has his arms open, ready to receive you. How long will you waver? What are you worshiping? Maybe things need to change?
Prayer: Father, help us to realize that you are the same yesterday, today, and forever more. Satan is no match for you oh Lord. He is always crouching at the door of believers and non-believers waiting for a spot to jump in and tempt us. Help us be aware of his tactics and have discernment from the Holy Spirit to identify those evil spirits tempting us. We take ahold of them and cast out of our lives and out of our heads in Jesus name. I pray that we will walk in victory and assurance of your presence with us just like Elijah did. In Jesus name we pray, amen.
Let It Go 
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