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Elijah on Mount Carmel - The Book of 1 Kings · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

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  Speaker 1: Let us pray. And when all the people saw it,
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  Speaker 1: they fell on their faces and they said, The Lord,
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  Speaker 1: He is the God. The Lord, He is the God.
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  Speaker 1: 1 Kings 18.39 Lord, I want you to know that
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  Speaker 1: you can trust me with challenging and difficult assignments. When
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  Speaker 1: I am faced with having to stand strong in my
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  Speaker 1: faith and to stand on the side of godliness, I
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  Speaker 1: will not waver. to gain the acceptance of the masses,
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  Speaker 1: like the king and prophets in 1 Kings 18. Instead,
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  Speaker 1: I will stand side by side with you, Lord, awaiting
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  Speaker 1: your directions and guidance. I confess today that I am
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  Speaker 1: not afraid to be the only one. I'm not afraid
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  Speaker 1: to be the only one to operate with integrity. I'm
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  Speaker 1: not afraid to be the only one who follows your
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  Speaker 1: word when others choose compromise. I'm not afraid to declare
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  Speaker 1: your mighty works in a world who wants me to
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  Speaker 1: take credit for what I have. When there is doubt
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  Speaker 1: in the lives of your children, I will rest in
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  Speaker 1: your power to speak boldly and to point them back
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  Speaker 1: to you so that they can flourish once again. I
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  Speaker 1: hear the sound of rain in the distance, and I
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  Speaker 1: thank you in advance for refreshing the dry areas in
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  Speaker 1: my life. In Jesus' name. Amen. Thanks for making prayer
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  Speaker 1: a priority in your life. To hear the Bible come
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  Speaker 1: to life, stay tuned for the Bible in a Year.
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  Speaker 1: Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
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  Speaker 2: Elijah on Mount Carmel.
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  Speaker 3: In our last story, we learned about the faithful provision
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  Speaker 3: of God in Elijah's life. A great drought filled the
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  Speaker 3: land of Israel, yet God continued to meet Elijah's needs.
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  Speaker 3: The drought was a symbol of Israel's spiritual state. They
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  Speaker 3: had strayed away from the Lord and worshipped other gods.
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  Speaker 3: As a result, they were destitute. In this story, Elijah
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  Speaker 3: showcases the mightiness of God against the false gods of Israel.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah stands in direct opposition to the prophets of Baal
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  Speaker 3: in a cosmic battle of nature, inspired by the book
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  Speaker 3: of 1 Kings.
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  Speaker 4: Hello, I'm Pastor Jack Graham with today's episode of the
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  Speaker 4: Bible in a Year podcast. In our previous time together,
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  Speaker 4: we saw God provide miraculously for Elijah in the midst
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  Speaker 4: of a drought that was devastating Israel. God's people were
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  Speaker 4: experiencing the judgment of a righteous and holy God from
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  Speaker 4: whom their hearts had turned as they worshipped Baal, the
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  Speaker 4: false gods of the pagans. The Lord had used this
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  Speaker 4: period of need and provision in Elijah's life to strengthen
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  Speaker 4: and deepen his faith as he prepared for many battles ahead.
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  Speaker 4: And today, we'll hear how the clash between God and
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  Speaker 4: the prophets of Baal and Asherah leads to an amazing
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  Speaker 4: display of God's power at a place called Mount Carmel.
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  Speaker 3: The country of Israel was scorched and forsaken. For three
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  Speaker 3: years the soil received no rain. The land was parched,
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  Speaker 3: and the people of Israel were lost in a daze
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  Speaker 3: of thirst and misery. King Ahab was forced to govern
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  Speaker 3: Israel in dire circumstances. Deep down, though he would not
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  Speaker 3: admit it, he knew that it was the Lord who
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  Speaker 3: kept the rain from falling. One morning the Lord spoke
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  Speaker 3: to Elijah. The Lord spoke as if giving a commission
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  Speaker 3: and a warning.' Go to King Ahab,' he said.' Tell
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  Speaker 3: him that rain is coming.' So Elijah took off. Ahab
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  Speaker 3: had been seeking out Elijah for quite some time, for
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  Speaker 3: he knew that Elijah was someone who could entreat of
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  Speaker 3: the Lord to send rain. Elijah knew he would not
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  Speaker 3: receive a warm welcome from the king. Meanwhile, back in Samaria,
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  Speaker 3: a deathly famine was spreading throughout the land. King Ahab
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  Speaker 3: sent his most faithful servant, Obadiah, to search for sources
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  Speaker 3: of water. Obadiah was a faithful follower of the Lord
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  Speaker 3: and had a proven past of bravery in the midst
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  Speaker 3: of great distress. One time when the wicked Jezebel tried
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  Speaker 3: to kill one hundred of the Lord's prophets, Obadiah hid
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  Speaker 3: them safely in caves and Night and day he tended
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  Speaker 3: to their needs and kept them safe. Obadiah was well
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  Speaker 3: known for his compassion and bravery. Ahab commissioned Obadiah to
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  Speaker 3: find springs of water. Obadiah went one way and Ahab
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  Speaker 3: went the other. As Obadiah was on his search, he
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  Speaker 3: saw Elijah walking towards the palace. Obadiah stopped dead in
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  Speaker 3: his tracks. Quivering with excitement and fear, he fell at
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  Speaker 3: Elijah's feet and said, Is that really you, Elijah? Elijah smiled.
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  Speaker 3: He was happy to see a friendly face. He helped
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  Speaker 3: Obadiah to his feet and said, Yes, my friend. I
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  Speaker 3: have come to see the king. Go and tell him
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  Speaker 3: I am here. Obadiah shook his head and grabbed Elijah
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  Speaker 3: by the shoulders.
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  Speaker 2: No, he shouted.
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  Speaker 3: If I go and tell Ahab you are here, he
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  Speaker 3: will harm me for letting you get away. He has
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  Speaker 3: been searching for you for months. He blames you for
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  Speaker 3: the drought. Obadiah composed himself and forced a smile. If
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  Speaker 3: I go and tell the king you are here and
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  Speaker 3: you do not show up, he will surely kill me.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah tried to reassure Obadiah that all was well, but
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  Speaker 3: Obadiah shook his head again and said, Ahab's wife Jezebel
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  Speaker 3: began an inquisition of God's prophets. I had to hide
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  Speaker 3: them in caves. You are not safe here, Elijah. Elijah
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  Speaker 3: planted his feet firmly in the ground and took Obadiah's hand.
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  Speaker 3: He looked him in the eye and said, I swear
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  Speaker 3: by the Almighty, I will.
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  Speaker 2: Be there shortly. Take courage.
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  Speaker 3: Obadiah clenched Elijah's hand and let out a sigh. A
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  Speaker 3: slight grin came upon his face, a grin that could
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  Speaker 3: only come from a man with true.
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  Speaker 2: Faith in God.
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  Speaker 3: He nodded his head and left to go tell King
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  Speaker 3: Ahab of Elijah's return. Elijah did not get far before
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  Speaker 3: Ahab and his men came out to meet him. The
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  Speaker 3: king came with a large crowd behind him. Rumors of
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  Speaker 3: Elijah being the cause of the drought had spread throughout Israel.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah could feel their glares burning through his skin. Ahab
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  Speaker 3: sat upon his camel. He was a taller man, muscular
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  Speaker 3: and handsome, yet three years of drought and conflict had
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  Speaker 3: aged him rapidly. Weariness could be seen from under his eyes.
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  Speaker 3: Ahab glared down at Elijah.' Ah, it is the troublemaker Elijah!'
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  Speaker 3: Ahab said with a slight slur. Ahab was unsteady and volatile.
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  Speaker 3: He and his wife Jezebel already proved they were capable
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  Speaker 3: of intense violence. Yet something in Elijah gave him boldness
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  Speaker 3: to speak truthfully. I have made no trouble, Elijah exclaimed.
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  Speaker 3: He projected his voice so everyone present could hear. He
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  Speaker 3: pointed to Ahab and said, You and your family have
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  Speaker 3: brought this on yourself. You worship the gods Baal and Asherah.
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  Speaker 3: They have brought you only pain. Elijah held his arms
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  Speaker 3: open wide. Summon all of Israel to join me at
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  Speaker 3: Mount Carmel. Bring with you the 450 prophets of Baal
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  Speaker 3: and the 400 prophets of Asherah. We shall see whose
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  Speaker 3: god is worthy to be praised. The next morning Ahab
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  Speaker 3: summoned thousands of people to watch Elijah stand against the
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  Speaker 3: 850 prophets of Baal and Asherah. Elijah looked at the
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  Speaker 3: sea of people. He loathed that there had to be
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  Speaker 3: a spectacle to show them the error of their ways.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah found a large stone to stand on so he
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  Speaker 3: could be seen by every man and woman present. He
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  Speaker 3: raised his hand into the air and shouted, You waver
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  Speaker 3: and hobble between two masters. First you serve God, and
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  Speaker 3: then you serve Baal and Asherah.
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  Speaker 2: No longer.
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  Speaker 3: If the Lord is worthy, follow him. However, if Baal
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  Speaker 3: shows himself to be God, then follow him. The people
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  Speaker 3: were silent at Elijah's words.
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  Speaker 2: They waited. They needed proof. They needed a show.
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  Speaker 3: It was truly ironic. Baal was supposed to be the
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  Speaker 3: god of fertility and weather, yet the heavens closed and
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  Speaker 3: gave no rain. All the people's prayers to Baal were
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  Speaker 3: never answered. Elijah stood among the people and said,' Here
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  Speaker 3: Baal has four hundred fifty prophets. The Lord has only me.
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  Speaker 3: Bring two bulls forth.' The people brought two bulls and
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  Speaker 3: killed them for a sacrifice. Elijah continued, saying,' The prophets
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  Speaker 3: of Baal may choose whichever bull they think is best.'
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  Speaker 3: We will lay our bulls on the wood for sacrifice.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah lifted his staff in the air and yelled, Call
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  Speaker 3: upon the name of your God and I shall call
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  Speaker 3: on mine. Whoever answers with fire upon the altar shall
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  Speaker 3: be the true God. Elijah's words rolled like thunder. He
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  Speaker 3: stepped down. His eyes did not leave the false prophets.
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  Speaker 3: His righteous anger burned deep. Elijah allowed the prophets of
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  Speaker 3: Baal to go first. They prayed from morning until noon.
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  Speaker 3: They shouted, sang, and danced around the altar. Elijah watched
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  Speaker 3: them as they hobbled on one leg, fell on their
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  Speaker 3: faces towards the ground. Hmm.
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  Speaker 4: Hmm.
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  Speaker 3: Hmm. You may have to shout louder, Elijah scoffed. Perhaps
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  Speaker 3: he is lost somewhere daydreaming, or perhaps he is relieving
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  Speaker 3: himself out back.
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  Speaker 2: It could also be that he is away on a journey,
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  Speaker 2: or asleep. Maybe if you shout louder, you could wake
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  Speaker 2: him up. The prophets continued their shouts.
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  Speaker 3: As was the custom, the prophets took out their blades
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  Speaker 3: and swords and began to cut themselves on the altars.
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  Speaker 3: Blood gushed from their arms and legs, spilling out onto
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  Speaker 3: the floor. They writhed in pain, rolling around in their
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  Speaker 3: own gore. The sun was beginning to set, and Elijah
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  Speaker 3: could take no more of their nonsensical idol-worshipping.
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  Speaker 2: Clouds slowly crept.
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  Speaker 3: Into the sky, making their way over the people down below.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah drew people towards the altar. He set up twelve
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  Speaker 3: stones to represent the twelve tribes of Israel, and dug
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  Speaker 3: a large trench around the altar. The people filled the
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  Speaker 3: trench with three gallons of water. They poured more water
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  Speaker 3: over the wood.
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  Speaker 2: Again, Elijah said.
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  Speaker 3: So they drenched the wood again with water. Again, Elijah repeated.
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  Speaker 3: So again, they dumped more water over the wood and offering.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah knelt before the sopping wet altar. The whole area
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  Speaker 3: was silent, listening in on Elijah's prayers to God. Lord,
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  Speaker 3: God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Prove yourself today. Answer
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  Speaker 3: me and answer these people. Make them understand your deliverance.
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  Speaker 3: As Elijah was speaking, a great flash of lightning fell
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  Speaker 3: down from heaven. The altar erupted into flames, sending ash
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  Speaker 3: and debris flying into the air. The offering, the wood,
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  Speaker 3: and the stones were ground into a powder, and the
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  Speaker 3: water evaporated into the intense heat of the flames. The
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  Speaker 3: might of God had descended upon the altar. The same
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  Speaker 3: God that sent fire spilling from heaven against the Egyptians
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  Speaker 3: had proved himself to be just as present as before.
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  Speaker 3: The people of Israel fell onto their faces and began
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  Speaker 3: to repent before the Lord.
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  Speaker 2: The Lord! He is God! The Lord is God! they shouted.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah looked at the bleeding and babbling prophets and pointed
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  Speaker 3: to them. Take these prophets away! Do not let a
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  Speaker 3: single one of them escape! So the mob of people
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  Speaker 3: took them. The false prophets were dragged into the Kishon
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  Speaker 3: Valley and slaughtered for their wickedness.
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  Speaker 2: Their blood painted the valley red.
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  Speaker 3: That day, Baal did not answer them. Thunder began to
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  Speaker 3: roll in through the clouds. Elijah looked up to heaven
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  Speaker 3: and then looked down again to King Ahab. Elijah smiled
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  Speaker 3: and said, You better go home and eat. Seems to
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  Speaker 3: be a rainstorm coming. So Ahab and the people of
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  Speaker 3: Israel retreated back into their homes. But Elijah climbed to
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  Speaker 3: the top of Mount Carmel. Ahab stayed a while and
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  Speaker 3: watched as Elijah climbed. There, high above the city, Elijah
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  Speaker 3: bowed among the clouds. Thunder surrounded him in every direction.
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  Speaker 3: Thick black clouds covered the skies. Elijah prayed on his
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  Speaker 3: knees to God with his face held high to heaven.
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  Speaker 3: Elijah turned back to his servant and said, Go and
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  Speaker 3: tell Ahab to retreat on his chariot before the rain
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  Speaker 3: catches him.
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  Speaker 2: The winds became.
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  Speaker 3: Violent, and soon it was difficult to stand upright. Elijah
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  Speaker 3: tucked his cloak into his belt and began running. The
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  Speaker 3: Lord gave him special strength to run faster than the
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  Speaker 3: rain and Ahab's chariot. Behind him, the rain began to
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  Speaker 3: consume the dry and thirsty valley.
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  Speaker 4: As we open today's scripture, Israel is still plagued with drought.
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  Speaker 4: Rain had not fallen for three years. King Ahab, a
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  Speaker 4: wicked king, ruled the land in this challenging time, and
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  Speaker 4: rather than turn to God, Ahab continued in his wickedness,
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  Speaker 4: letting the worship of false gods destroy the land. The
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  Speaker 4: people had suffered greatly for their unfaithfulness, just as God
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  Speaker 4: through Elijah had told King Ahab it would. But now
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  Speaker 4: it was time for the rains to return. Now is
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  Speaker 4: a time for revival. So the Lord spoke to Elijah
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  Speaker 4: and told him to go to Ahab saying God would
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  Speaker 4: send rain. So Elijah went off to see the king. Meanwhile,
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  Speaker 4: Ahab was desperately looking for solutions to his big problem.
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  Speaker 4: He sent his servant Obadiah to look for grass and
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  Speaker 4: water for the animals. The king took a search party
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  Speaker 4: in one direction and Obadiah went the other way. Now,
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  Speaker 4: unlike the king, Obadiah feared God and had protected God's
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  Speaker 4: prophets when Ahab's wife Jezebel, a very wicked woman, was
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  Speaker 4: hunting them down to kill them. When Obadiah encountered Elijah,
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  Speaker 4: he was thrilled to see him. But when Elijah told
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  Speaker 4: him to go tell the king he was coming, Obadiah
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  Speaker 4: was terrified because Ahab was evil and violent, and if
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  Speaker 4: he returned without Elijah, he was sure to have his head.
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  Speaker 4: In other words, Obadiah compromised. But Elijah reassured Obadiah that
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  Speaker 4: the Lord would protect him. So he did finally go
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  Speaker 4: away to tell the king. When Ahab and Elijah finally
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  Speaker 4: met up, rather than acknowledge his fault in the drought,
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  Speaker 4: Ahab deflected the blame. He called Elijah a troublemaker. But
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  Speaker 4: Elijah told Ahab that he was the troublemaker, that he
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  Speaker 4: had brought judgment upon Israel. The worship of all the
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  Speaker 4: false gods would certainly bring ruin upon God's people. Elijah
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  Speaker 4: told Ahab to summon the 450 prophets of Baal and
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  Speaker 4: 400 prophets of Asherah to Mount Carmel. It was time
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  Speaker 4: for a showdown. It would be a battle of the gods.
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  Speaker 4: Now I want you to picture this scene. Thousands of
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  Speaker 4: people gathered on a mountain for a battle of belief,
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  Speaker 4: a battle of faith between 850 false prophets against one
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  Speaker 4: lone man standing for God, the man Elijah. Elijah was
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  Speaker 4: full of faith. He was confident. He knew God would
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  Speaker 4: come through just as he promised, and he knew the
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  Speaker 4: people had a choice to make. So in 1 Kings 18, 21,
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  Speaker 4: this is what Elijah says to the people. How long
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  Speaker 4: will you go limping between two different opinions? If the
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  Speaker 4: Lord is God, follow him. But if Baal, then follow him.
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  Speaker 4: And the people did not answer him a word. In
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  Speaker 4: other words, they refused to make a decision. He then
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  Speaker 4: had two bulls brought, one for God and one for
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  Speaker 4: the false idols. The prophets of Baal could choose the
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  Speaker 4: bull they saw fit. Then each bull would be killed
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  Speaker 4: and laid on the wood and be sacrificed. The challenge
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  Speaker 4: was a simple one. Each party would call on their
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  Speaker 4: deity to bring fire upon the altar and consume the animal,
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  Speaker 4: and they would see which God answered, because the God
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  Speaker 4: who is God would answer with fire. The prophets of Baal,
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  Speaker 4: of course, failed because their God was a non-existent God.
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  Speaker 4: He was indifferent because he did not exist. They began
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  Speaker 4: to cut themselves and bleed on the altar and to
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  Speaker 4: cry out and to shout, but to no avail. The
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  Speaker 4: gods that Israel had given their lives to, turning from
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  Speaker 4: the Lord to follow after these Baals, were powerless and silent.
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  Speaker 4: Just a word of application here. The false gods of
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  Speaker 4: our own age are powerless to meet the deepest needs
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  Speaker 4: of the human heart. Never give your energy or your
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  Speaker 4: devotion or your faith to what does not really exist.
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  Speaker 4: In the end, as is always the case, the false
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  Speaker 4: gods would never come through. And then it was Elijah's turn.
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  Speaker 4: A mere fire wouldn't do. The people needed a sign
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  Speaker 4: that they could not reject or ignore. So he had
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  Speaker 4: gallons of water dumped on the altar, drenching the bull
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  Speaker 4: and the wood. Why did he do this? I like
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  Speaker 4: what someone said. A God who cannot burn wet wood
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  Speaker 4: is not a God at all. So the wood is wet.
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  Speaker 4: But Elijah prayed a prayer to remind everyone that God
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  Speaker 4: is God. The God of their forefathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
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  Speaker 4: And when he called upon the Lord in prayer to
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  Speaker 4: show his power, a great explosion took place. A great fire,
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  Speaker 4: like a nuclear attack, fell from heaven and consumed everything, beast, wood, stone,
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  Speaker 4: and water. The people then fell on their faces, praising God.
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  Speaker 4: Elijah then had every last prophet of Baal put to death.
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  Speaker 4: He knew that their evil deception could not remain in
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  Speaker 4: the land. The cancer had to be cut out. Our
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  Speaker 4: passage closes with rain gathering in the skies. Elijah tells
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  Speaker 4: King Ahab to run back to Jezreel before the rain came,
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  Speaker 4: and Ahab takes his chariot and rode away. God then
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  Speaker 4: strengthened Elijah with supernatural strength, and he sped to outrun
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  Speaker 4: Ahab's chariot and arrive in Jezreel ahead of the king,
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  Speaker 4: ready to serve as God's counsel to a king who
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  Speaker 4: needed to turn the nation back to God. Would Ahab
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  Speaker 4: change his ways? And what would happen to Elijah who
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  Speaker 4: had killed Jezebel the terrible queen's prophets? We'll find out
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  Speaker 4: in our next reading. Dear Lord, we are reminded from
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  Speaker 4: this powerful story just how much we need revival in
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  Speaker 4: our world today. We ask that you would send the
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  Speaker 4: fire to your people and your churches, the fire of
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  Speaker 4: your spirit that it would Ignite us in true devotion
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  Speaker 4: to you. May we tear down the false idols of
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  Speaker 4: this world, and may we worship you and you only
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  Speaker 4: with our whole hearts. Lord, help us not to limp
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  Speaker 4: between two opinions, believing one thing one day and another
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  Speaker 4: thing the other, but may our strength and our convictions
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  Speaker 4: be strong as we walk with you. In Jesus' name, amen.
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  Speaker 4: Thank you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.
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  Speaker 4: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas. Download the Pray.com app
• 20:42
  Speaker 4: and make prayer and Bible study a priority in your life.
• 20:47
  Speaker 4: If you enjoyed this podcast, share it with someone you love.
• 20:51
  Speaker 4: Share it with a friend. Pass it on because this
• 20:53
  Speaker 4: podcast can make a huge difference in people's lives. I'm
• 20:57
  Speaker 4: hearing wonderful stories of the impact of God's Word as
• 21:01
  Speaker 4: a result of listening to Bible in a Year. And
• 21:04
  Speaker 4: if you want more biblical resources, resources from God's Word
• 21:09
  Speaker 4: that will enable you and assist you in your walk
• 21:11
  Speaker 4: with God, then be sure to visit jackgraham.org. That's jackgraham.org.
• 21:18
  Speaker 4: God bless you.