The Book of Revelation

Revelation 11:10 and those who dwell on the
earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because
these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth.

 

These two witnesses are
simply two prophets of the Lord.

These two individuals
known as the two witnesses and are mentioned eleven times in the entire bible
and yet they play a major role in the end times.

 

Let see the truth from
the word of God, the word speaks clearly to us. lets go see what it says about
these two witnesses.

 

___________________________________

 

Revelation
11:3-13 And I will grant authority to my TWO WITNESSES, and they will prophesy for
1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”

4 These are the two olive trees
and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them,
fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them,
this is how he is doomed to be killed.

6 They have the power to shut
the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they
have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with
every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished
their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit  will make war on them and
conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie
in the street of the great city that symbolically  is called Sodom and Egypt,
where their Lord was crucified.

9 For three and a half days some
from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead
bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the
earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because
these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half
days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet,
and great fear fell on those who saw them.

12 Then they heard a loud voice
from heaven saying to them, “Come up here!” And they went up to heaven in a
cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was a
great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were
killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God
of heaven.

___________________________________

See as we read they were
chosen by God to be on earth for  a three and a half year period, during
the end times. They are 2 olive trees and candle sticks that stand before
God. In Zechariah it tells us of an angel talking to Zechariah.

_______________________________

Zechariah 4:1 And the angel who talked with
me came again and woke me, like a man who is awakened out of his sleep. 2 And he said to me, “What do you
see?” I said, “I see, and behold, a lampstand all of gold, with a bowl on the
top of it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips on each of the lamps that are
on the top of it.

3 And there are two olive trees
by it, one on the right of the bowl and the other on its left.” 4 And I said to the angel who
talked with me, “What are these, my lord?” 5 Then the angel who talked with
me answered and said to me, “Do you not know what these are?” I said, “No, my
lord.”

6 Then he said to me, “This is
the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might,
nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. 7 Who are you, O great mountain?
Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain. And he shall bring forward the top
stone amid shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’”

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 9 “The hands of Zerubbabel have
laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also complete it. Then you
will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. 10 For whoever has despised the
day of small things shall rejoice, and shall see the plumb line in the hand of
Zerubbabel.

“These
seven are the eyes of the Lord, which range through the
whole earth.” 11 Then I said to him, “What are
these two olive trees on the right and the left of the lampstand?” 12 And a second time I answered
and said to him, “What are these two branches of the olive trees, which are
beside the two golden pipes from which the golden oil  is poured out?” 13 He said to me, “Do you not
know what these are?” I said, “No, my lord.” 14 Then he said, “These are the
two anointed ones who stand by the Lord of the
whole earth.”

_________________________________

Here we see the angel
showed him a vision. The vision was of a candlestick of gold with the bowl upon
the top of it, with seven lamps and seven pipes. It it had two “olive
trees” on either side of it. Zechariah asked the two angels what the two
olive trees stood for. What the symbols represent.

The angel responded in (v
14) these are the two anointed ones that stand before the Lord.

So, it represent that God
has two spirits that He places into humans to fulfill His will.

This is done though two
witnesses.

Lets go back to Revelation
which says … if anyone tries to hurt these two Witnesses, that person must
die in the way they try to hurt the two Witnesses.  

These two spirits
have the power to keep it from raining for three and a half years.

Elijah was given the same
power from God.

1
Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe  in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As
the Lord, the God of Israel, lives,
before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by
my word.”

Which makes many to
believe that the one of the Two Witnesses is Elijah. But think about what Jesus
said… He said that John the Baptist was Elijah.

Matthew 11:11-14 Truly, I say to you, among
those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet
the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. 12 From the days of John the
Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and
the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the
Law prophesied until John, 14 and if
you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.

______________________________

Which means that John the
Baptist must have had the spirit of Elijah, because we know that John the
Baptist was born of Elizabeth.

So, John the
Baptist  had the spirit of one of the olive trees.

These Two Witnesses also
have the power to turn water into blood and to cast plagues.

Now many say Moses did
the same thing when dealing with  Pharaoh, so one must be Moses.

Again it is God’s power.

It is two spirits that
stand before the Lord that are placed in humans, by God.

When these Two Witnesses
are completed with their three and a half year ministry, Antichrist will kill
them. People dance in the streets because they are so glad that these Two Witnesses
will not be able to ” ‘torment” them and longer by their preaching
about Jesus. Their dead bodies lie in the streets of Jerusalem for 3 and a
half days.

 But… after the 3
and a half days are over, God puts life into them and many hear a voice say…
Come up here and they raised to Heaven right in front of many. Then comes a a
great earthquake and a tenth of the city falls. Seven thousand of those
watching die and the rest are afraid and praise God.

Lets go to the timing of
the End Time of the Two Witnesses .

Many get confuse of this
because of the way John wrote the book of Revelations… You see like many
books we read, one must often times do “flashbacks” as to be able to
reveal specific acts of specific people during the same time period.

Chapters 11,12, and 13
are all the same time period.

The last three and a half
years of the End Times which is forty two months which is one thousand two
hundred and sixty days ( Jewish months are only 30 days).

 The Two Witnesses

Revelation
11:3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for
(1,260 )one thousand two hundred and sixty days clothed in sackcloth.”

The Woman in the Wilderness Hidden.

Revelation
12:6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by
God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.

The antichrist Reign of Terror

Revelation
13:5 And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words,
and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months.

All three occur during
the same time period. But.. how would John have told them all at the
same time? So he wrote it as he did.

These events must occure
during the Trumpets as one of the Trumpet lasts 5 months…

 Revelation 9:5 They
were allowed to torment them for five months, but not to kill them, and their
torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings someone.

And the great tribulation
only lasts three and a half years. So the Two witnesses ministry was
during the Trumpets.

Further proof of this is
just after Two witnesses  rise to Heaven, the seventh Trumpet blows…

Revelation
11:14-15 Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in
heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord
and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.”

The seventh Trumpet
reveals that the  The Kingdom of this world are become the kingdom of our
Lord, and of His Christ: and shall reign for ever and ever…. this means it is
DONE.

The antichrist does not
start his 3.5 years reign of terror after this if the kingdom of this
world are become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign
for ever and ever… Two chapters  earlier ..

So chapter 12 and 13 are
a flashback to another event that happens during that same 3.5 years.

This is proven again
because  antichrist kills the two witnesses ..

Revelation
11:7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the
bottomless pit  will make war on them and
conquer them and kill them,

If antichrist is
introduced in chapter 13, how did he kill two witnesses in chapter 11.. Unless
it is a flashback.

S ooooo… The Two
Witnesses  are killed by antichrist just before the seventh Trumpet which
means their 3.5 year Ministry was during the Trumpets.

Behold.. God’s Two
Witnesses are here as written when the End Times near.

Keep your eyes out for
these Two, for what they share will be….

Explosive !!

 Let just take a peek at Elijah Spirit and his message.

Lets just read thru Matthew Chapter 11 and Luke
7:19-35

Matthew 11 When Jesus had
finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and
preach in their cities.

2 Now when John heard in prison
about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are
you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” 4 And Jesus answered
them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: 5 the
blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers  are
cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good
news preached to them. 6 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

7 As they went away, Jesus began
to speak to the crowds concerning John: “What did you go out
into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? 8 What
then did you go out to see? A man 
dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who wear soft clothing are in kings’
houses. 9 What
then did you go out to see? A prophet?Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet.
10 This is he of whom it is written,

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

who will prepare your way before you.’

11 Truly,
I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than
John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater
than he. 12 From
the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered
violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and
the Law prophesied until John, 14 and if you are willing to
accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. 15 He who has ears to hear, let
him hear.

16 “But
to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the
marketplaces and calling to their playmates,

17 “‘We
played the flute for you, and you did not dance;

we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’

18 For
John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’ 19 The Son of Man came eating
and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of
tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds.”20 Then he began to
denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they
did not repent. 21 “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works
done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago
in sackcloth and ashes. 22 But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for
Tyre and Sidon than for you. 23 And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be
brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in
Sodom, it would have remained until this day. 24 But I tell you that it
will be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom than for
you.”

25 At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden
these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little
children; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.  27 All things have been
handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and
no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to
reveal him. 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly
in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and
my burden is light.”

_______________________________

Luke 7:19-35 calling two of
his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to
come, or shall we look for another?” 20 And when the men had come to him, they
said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to
come, or shall we look for another?’” 21 In that hour he healed many people of
diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed
sight. 22 And he
answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard:
the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers  are
cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news
preached to them. 23 And
blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”

24 When John’s messengers had
gone, Jesus began to speak to the crowds
concerning John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to
see? A reed shaken by the wind? 25 What then did you go out
to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, those who are dressed in
splendid clothing and live in luxury are in kings’ courts. 26 What
then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a
prophet. 27 This is he of whom it is written,

“‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face,

who will prepare your way before you.’

28 I tell
you, among those born of women none is greater than John. Yet the one who is
least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 29 (When all the people heard this, and the
tax collectors too, they declared God just,having been baptized with the
baptism of John, 30 but
the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not
having been baptized by him.)

31 “To
what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they
like? 32 They
are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another,

“‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;

we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’

33 For
John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say,
‘He has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at
him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 Yet
wisdom is justified by all her children.”

_______________________________

Malachi 3:1 “Behold, I send my
messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek
will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you
delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of
hosts.

 

Matthew 11:12 From
the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered
violence, and the violent take it by force. 13 For all the Prophets and the
Law prophesied until John, 14 and if
you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. 15 He who has ears to hear, let
him hear.

 

Let us look at the last paragraph and figure out just what it
means.

 

Since
John the Baptist arrived, there is violence in heaven and the violence
take it by force?

This
is a hard thing to imagine isn’t it?

We
think of heaven as the most peaceful place we can imagine. Maybe the next
sentence will help us out.

13 For all the Prophets and the Law
prophesied until John,

Okay
we know that in the Book Of Job  satan  stands in line with the
angels as to accuse Christians whenever he tricks us in to anything he
wants to tackle on us to God, so we know that there is fallen angels and devils
that had or have access to Heaven.

But
up until John the Baptist arrival, they did not know how much time they had to
do as much damage as they could to as many souls as they could. As long as John
wasn’t  born yet, the clock was still ticking with no end in sight.

 

Well
now that John  has entered the picture, they know that he is paving the
way for Jesus and now the alarm on their time clock is set. Their time is
limited. Whatever they heard from the prophets up until now, was about to come
to pass.the devil had 4000 years so far to be prince of the earth. Now the
Prince of Heaven has come to stir things up a bit.

Brethren
another thing to remember, is that the devil knows scripture and so he has know
about the time of the Jewish people and the time of the Gentiles  and he
can do his math too, so he must be a little annoyed  that his time is now
limited.

 

Violence in Heaven?

You
better believe that all of satan’s  angels are not quietly standing in
line anymore since they got the news, Nope they are pushing and shoving and
cutting in line and putting up a big fuss as you can imagine.

Not
only is their time limited, but now they’ve got this Jesus to deal with which
really cramps their style when it comes to the soul stealing game.

 

Lets
take the next sentence. 14 and if you are willing to
accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.

 

The spirit of EliJah  was in John the
Baptist.

 

If you can recall, when
John the Baptist started preaching the people asked him if he was Elijah.

The reason they asked
was because in Malachi 4:5 “Behold, I will send
you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

And he will turn the hearts
of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest
I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

 

This is also what the
angel of the Lord  told  Zacharias in Luke 1:17.

An interesting study
for how God uses spirits to enter the souls of human’s  that He is
using. We see that as we study the  Two Witnesses.

 

The next sentence is one
that Jesus says many times He that hath an ear to hear let him
hear. Usually, He say this when He’s speaking in parables. He is
telling us to figure out what He means.

 

How many times have you
read something in the bible and you didn’t understand it so you just give up on
it in frustration?

 

On occasions when you
persisted or at a later time when you figured something out, you can’t believe
that it wasn’t clear the first time because now it seems as plain as the nose
on you face ( or the ear on your head).

 

Isaiah
6:9-13 also explains that the Lord closed understanding of those who choose not
to believe. So Jesus is saying if you have it in your heart to understand
, hear this.

But
what would you liken this generation to?

 It’s
like children sitting in the street and calling to their friends saying, we’ve
played music for you but you haven’t dance, we’ve cried for you but you haven’t
regretted.

 

 See John came
neither eating or drinking ( not doing anything that might make people question
his righteousness), yet they say he is possessed  by a devil.

 

The
son of man ( Jesus ) came eating and drinking and they say, Look a glutton and
a drunk a friend of a tax collector and sinners.

 

In
other words, Jesus is saying it doesn’t matter to this generation  if God
Himself comes and tell you that He’s here and salvation is right in front of
you, you’re not gonna believe it. But wisdom is justified by her children –
Wisdom is shown true of all her children – The wise will believe it.

Jesus
accused the cities where most of His miracles were done because John and Jesus
preached repentance for salvation and they didn’t repent. Then Jesus said I
thank you Oh Father and earth because you’re hidden in these things from the
wise and the prudent and have revealed them to children because it seemed right
to you.

 

All
things are giving to me from my Father and nobody knows the Son, but God and
nobody knows the God except the Son, and whosoever the Son shows Him to.Come to
me, all you that toil and are burdened and I will give you rest.

 

Hear
my message and learn from me, for I am meek and lowly in  heart and you
will find rest for your soul. What I ask of you is easy and the burden is
light.

 

Again what Jesus said in just a few words has so
much more meaning than anyone else’s few word ever could.

________________________________________

This story effects everyone of us in our Christian walk.

 

1
Kings 18:21-22 And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will
you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if
Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. 22 Then Elijah said to the
people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450
men.

 

How would you feel
if you were Elijah?

Surrounded by haters and
those who follow a false god, but God call you to go and share Truth, so
you do.

So Elijah asks the people
how long will you continue to live as thou they have two gods. There was just
him representing the Lord at this gathering and 450 prophets of the false
god baal.

 

He was out numbered but not overpowered. He had
Faith.

 

1 Kings 18:23-25 Let two bulls be given to us, and let them
choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but
put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and
put no fire to it. 24 And
you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and
the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is
well spoken.” 25 Then
Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and
prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put
no fire to it.”

 

Elijah challenges these
wanna be prophets of a false god to a contest of sorts to see who the real God
is.

He
suggested he prepare an animal sacrifice for the Lord and they sacrifice one to
their false god and see who responded.

 

1 Kings 18:26-29 And they took the bull that was given them,
and they prepared it and called upon the name of Baal from morning until noon,
saying, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And
they limped around the altar that they had made. 27 And at
noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god. Either he is
musing, or he is relieving himself, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is
asleep and must be awakened.” 28 And
they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances,
until the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And as
midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation,
but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.

 

So
Elijah lets the 450 false prophets go first.  they chanted and carry
on,but it was no show by their gods. Elijah mocked em and said maybe your god
is busy talking with someone else or on a journey or maybe sleeping. They began
to cut themselves in a vain attempt to grab their false god’s attention, but to
no avail, cuz he was not there.

 

Right
about now, we can imagine the hopeless look on their faces of the false
prophets.

But
what about the followers?

How
do you think they felt right about now when their false god did not answer?

 

1
Kings 18:30-35 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all
the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones,
according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of
the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall
be your name,” 32 and with the stones he built
an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about
the altar, as great as would contain two seahs of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order
and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars
with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” 34 And he said, “Do it a second
time.” And they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time.” And
they did it a third time. 35 And the water ran around the
altar and filled the trench also with water.

 

Elijah prepares his
offering to the Lord. As you can imagine everybody and their mother was
watching to see what would happen. Would God really respond? Had they really
been following a false god and abandoned the only true God?

 

1
Kings 18:36-39 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the
prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and
Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your
servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. 37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people
may know that you, O Lord, are God, and that you have
turned their hearts back.” 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt
offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that
was in the trench. 39 And when all the people saw
it, they fell on their faces and said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.”

 

God answered in an
awesome display and before the eyes of al the people. At the word of His
prophet, God performed and suddenly the people knew who the one and only God
truly was. Imagine the ambience of that very moment in the hearts of the
people.

Imagine
the Joy that Elijah must have felt to see His God react in this manner.

 

1
Kings 18:40-42 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not
one of them escape.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the
brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.41 And Elijah said to Ahab, “Go
up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” 42 So Ahab went up to eat and to
drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. And he bowed himself down
on the earth and put his face between his knees.

 

The false were killed.
Then Elijah  told  Ahab that it would rain. this is after a
three and a half year drought that Elijah had prophesied three and a half years
earlier.

 

1
Kings 18:43-46 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.”
And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go
again,” seven times. 44 And at the seventh time he
said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” And he
said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain
stop you.’” 45 And in a little while the
heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab
rode and went to Jezreel. 46 And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he
gathered up his garment and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

 

 

AGAIN…
God responded to the word of His prophet. God brought forth a cloud shaped as a
man’s hand and did rain.

 

NOW… What of this cloud shape hand?

Where else in the bible do we read about a hand being
seen without a body attached to it?

 

Daniel 5:5 Immediately the fingers of a human hand appeared
and wrote on the plaster of the wall of the king’s palace, opposite the
lampstand. And the king saw the hand as it wrote.

Daniel said it was a hand sent by God.

Daniel
5:24 Then from his presence the hand was sent, and this writing was inscribed.

The king lost his kingdom and died that very
night.

Do you think that man and those who bore witness
did not fully understand the following?

Hebrews 10:31 It is a fearful
thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

ONE MORE LIL TIDBIT .. Ezekiel had a vision of
Cherubims  ( angels ) having a mans hand under their wings.

Ezekiel
10:8 The cherubim appeared to have the form of a human hand under their wings.

 

So whatcha  think the cloud shaped as a
man’s hand in our story today,

the hand that wrote of the demise of a king and
the hand under the wings of these Cherubims ?

It is the power of God .

It is the Spirit of God.

Ezekiel
8:3 He put out the form of a hand and took me by a lock of my head, and the
Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me in visions of God
to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the gateway of the inner court that faces
north, where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy.

 

Let’s return to the story of Elijah.

Now there comes the interesting part…

1
Kings 19:1-2 Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed
all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger
to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this
time tomorrow.”

So king   Ahab
goes back and tells the queen Jezebel what Elijah did and this angered her and
she sent a message to Elijah saying I am  gonna  get  ya. One
would think he would say, Yeah right bring it on lady especially after what
just happen and what he had seen the Lord do for him.

But Elijah did not react
that way.

1
Kings 19:3-4Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came to
Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.4 But he himself went a day’s
journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he
asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am
no better than my fathers.”

 

Elijah ran and hid in
fear and ask God to allow him to die saying enough is enough. We all know just
how he felt at times in our own lives.

We all get weary of the
trials and tribulations that we are to endure even after we have seen the
Miracles that God  has performed  for us in our lives during our
past, and just like God will be there for you again and again…. He came to
Elijah’s rescue yet again.

 

1
Kings 19:5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree. And behold, an angel
touched him and said to him, “Arise and eat.”

 

Of course God was still
there for Elijah as well and sent an angel to hook him up with some food and
that meal lasted him 40 days and nights.

 

Ever get lost like Elijah
did in fear, doubt,  pride or any other overwhelming emotion finding
yourself feeling alone and useless and yet as undeserving as we are, awake to
find that God is still there in spirit nudging you to carry on?

 

Now
these next verses have an essential ingredient you may wanna partake of. You
will hear of a voice, but will you hear what the voice said? Most get caught up
in the essence of the sound of the voice itself. but fail to capture the
message from the voice. …

 

Here we go…….

 

1
Kings 19:9-12 There he came to a cave and lodged in it. And behold, the word of
the Lord came to him, and he said to
him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He said, “I have been very
jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the
people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and
killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek
my life, to take it away.” 11 And he said, “Go out and stand
on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and
strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And
after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake a
fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And
after the fire the sound of a low whisper.

 

1
Kings 19:13-14 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and
went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice
to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 He said, “I have been very
jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts. For the
people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and
killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek
my life, to take it away.”

 

 Now  lemme get this straight

After the Lord asks what
he is doing there and Elijah answers it, the Lord answered him in a still
small voice and it says that Elijah heard the still small voice yet went
out and stood at the mouth of the cave. A voice  repeats the original
question and Elijah repeats his answer.

 

Why/ Why was he asked a question
by the word of the Lord. He answers, but then a still voice tells him something
so he walks away  to the mouth of  cave and a voice asks again what he is doing
there? Elijah repeats his answer?

What do you think is
going on?

 

Perhaps he was
overwhelmed by his own thoughts. His own fears defended him. He could not
comprehended the meaning of the words of the still small voice. So, here comes
the Lord to clarify.

 

1
Kings 19:15-18 And the Lord said to him, “Go, return on
your way to the wilderness of Damascus. And when you arrive, you shall anoint
Hazael to be king over Syria. 16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi you
shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the son of Shaphat of
Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. 17 And the one who escapes from
the sword of Hazael shall Jehu put to death, and the one who escapes from the
sword of Jehu shall Elisha put to death. 18 Yet I will leave seven
thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth
that has not kissed him.”

 

What is the Lord saying
to Elijah?

He is telling Elijah to
get up and get back to work and  that He (God) have everything under
control.

Brethren the point of why
I am sharing this story is to show you that we are all just humans.  Even
those who God chooses to serve Him and gives great spiritual gifts are just
humans that are chosen and used as His body of Christ to reach and teach others
who are so very lost, deceive and troubled.

 

We would really like to
be in control of everything and know what is going on behind the scenes, but we
just do not. We must trust in the Lord that He has it all in check.  That
He is in control and we put our faith in Him not us.

I would like  for
you to consider this truth every time you fall down and are convinced by the
whisperer from the enemy from your own guilt and shame and /or from others that
saw the fall and bring on humanistic convictions making you  feel you are
not worthy to serve the Lord.

 

We are just human and
thou we strive to do our best, we fall and it always seems someone is there to
point it out for us.

We all fall short. We
all  have faults. We all have our vices. We all sin. We all fall down as
we sojourn down this very difficult Christian path being renewed within day by
day. Even Elijah fell.

 

But Why?

Why would God have us to
endure these trails and tribulations which we fall victim to and fall?

 

The Christian walk is a
healing process from our past and the original sin that dwells within us. It is
not a quick fix but rather an eternal healing of the soul. We are being
perfected by God. One day at a time.

 The trials and
tribulations which have us fall, teach us patience for the next trial.

 

Romans
5:3 More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering
produces endurance,

 

But Brethren the cool
thing is like with Elijah ,often times sends His angel to uplift us. God also
often time uses His children (humans) to be that angel. We also have each other.
We can always offer to reach out for another instead of stepping on their
heads.

We can chose rather to be
the angels that come and share the spiritual food( word of God) to replenish
their weary souls.

 

Galatians
6:1 Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual
should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you
too be tempted.

 

 

We are our brothers keeper.