Sermon Snippet – One of the Few – Part VI
INTRODUCTION – During the reign of evil Ahab and Jezebel, the prophet Elijah thought that he was the only person of faith in all Israel, but God assured him otherwise (I Kings 19:14, 18). This tiny minority of believers included the godly governmental official Obadiah (I Kings 18:1-16), the prophet Elisha (I Kings 19:19-21), an unnamed prophet (I Kings 20:1-30), a smitten prophet (I Kings 20:35-43), and Naboth (I Kings 21:1-16). The prophet Micaiah (not to be confused with Micah) was another one of the very few (I Kings 22:1-18).
1. DON’T TAG ALONG AND EXPECT TO THRIVE
(verses 1-4) – Ahab’s plan was legitimate. He wanted to recover part of Israel, a city of refuge as ordained by God in Deuteronomy 4:43. As the great preacher Vance Havner commented, “It was a case of a bad man doing a good thing in the wrong way.” Sadly, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, joined in this endeavor. Overall, he was a good king and a godly man, but he was too easily influenced by Ahab. The Bible warns of such entangling alliances on the personal level. James 4:4b makes this absolute statement: “The friendship of the world is enmity with God.” I John 2:15a cautions, “Love not the world, neither the things in the world.” Romans 12:2a commands, “Be not conformed to this world.” Jehoshaphat lost more than a battle; he tarnished his reputation by affiliating himself with godless Ahab. Churches and individual Christians cannot go along to get along.
2. DON’T TURTLE
(verses 5-12) – When my wife and I coached youngsters in basketball, we taught them not to “turtle,” to hunch over and hold the ball. The prophets here were not connected to the idolatrous worship of Baal; for if they were, Jehoshaphat would not have listened at all. However, they were siding with Ahab and thus were part of a state religion (which inevitably leads to the state controlling the religion). Not one of these 400 or so men dared to stick his head out and speak the truth; each one turtled. They became yes-men, rubber stamps, always saying what wicked Ahab wanted to hear. The truth sometimes hurts and sometimes tells us, “No!” “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful” (Proverbs 27:6). Our current culture is postmodernist, denying the existence of truth and emphasizing feelings. God’s people must not ignore this powerful movement (don’t turtle); rather, we must combat it and insist upon Biblical truth in our churches and in our lives.
3. DON’T TRUST THE ODDS-MAKERS
(verses 13-18). 400 to 1 – the betting man would not have sided with Micaiah, and that man would have lost his bet. The true prophet’s words in verse 15 were clearly sarcastic, as Ahab’s response in verse 16 confirms. The bleak outcome predicted in verse 17 comes to fruition, and Ahab is killed in battle (verse 37). Micaiah’s message is not heeded; most people will not listen to Christians, either. Micaiah’s faithfulness, his refusal to retaliate (verses 24-25), and his willingness to suffer for his convictions (verses 26-28) all remind us that Christianity is not a popularity contest. Peer pressure and psychological blackmail are real (“Everyone else is doing it”), but we cannot succumb to these pressures. Because there are so few of us, each one of us has important work to do.
CONCLUSION – Years ago, I heard a gifted preacher say to a large group of young people, “What are you doing running with the turkeys when you should be soaring with the eagles?” (His comments were based on Isaiah 40:31.) Through a simple faith in Jesus, each one of us can be assured of eternal salvation: one day, we will soar into heaven! As we await that blessed day of the fullness of our redemption, may we increasingly appreciate the relatively few believers in our lives, and may we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them.