Decision Time pt 1

Read - 1 Kings 18: 16 -40

Emphasis - 1 Kings 18:21 "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."

Have you ever pretended to think one thing while really believing something else? At one time or another most of us have tacitly agreed with the persuasive person simply by failing to disagree. Or we've looked the other way and nodded knowingly while the red flag went up in our minds. It's a difficult and even dangerous balancing act attempting to please people on both sides of a controversial fence. The only remedy for avoiding such a precarious position is to decide which side of the fence really matters and then get down from the fence and take a stand.

The prophet Elijah confronted the people of his day and demanded they choose whom they would serve - the true God of Israel or the false gods of the pagan nations surrounding them. He basically challenged them, "Get off the fence! You can't have it both ways. Either live your lives in a way that is pleasing to the one true God.......or not."

Most of us have never been put in a position in which we had to choose between worshipping the true God or bowing down to statues made of wood or stone. Yet we often find ourselves tempted to try that balancing act while living in a spiritually and morally bankrupt culture. We may compromise our lifestyles, going to places or doing things we really know we shouldn't. We may even justify our behaviour by saying we don't want to offend anyone. Or we neglect to say the things we know we should and then excuse ourselves by saying we will let our faith be seen in our actions rather than heard in our words. At times these may be legitimate claims, but at other times they may be nothing more than convenient excuses so we don't have to risk rejection.

Elijah wasn't concerned with rejection when he challenged the false prophets and called the people to serve the true God. He put it all on the line - even his life. The prophet refused to compromise or put himself in the precarious position of riding the fence; as a result, God vindicated him in the sight of his enemies. He was caught in the act of standing up for God. May this be said of us too!