Getting Experience from the Cave

In 1 Kings 19:9-18 (NKJV), we see a very fearful Prophet Elijah on the run from his assignment. We can certainly understand when we are under great persecution, the temptation to run, hide, murmur, and complain because of our fears and weaknesses. How can we learn a lesson from Elijah's cave experience. The text is as follows:

9 "And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

10 So he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

11 Then He said, “Go out, and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces 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 a still small voice.

13 So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts; because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. I alone am left; and they seek to take my life.”

15 Then the Lord said to him: “Go, return on your way to the Wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king over Syria.

16 Also you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.

17 It shall be that whoever escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and whoever escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill.

18 Yet I have reserved seven thousand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

What lessons can we learn from Elijah's with the Lord inside the cave?

1) Be careful of observing your own zeal. Elijah began to tell the Lord how he maintained a zealous attitude. We must be careful that we don't become entangled in our own zeal and fire when doing the work of the Lord; then the trap is set for us to lean on our own works and our own understanding and not on God's strength. This is a complete distraction from the assignment.We take away from God's glory when we try to make our works greater than God's. It is God who enables us to succeed and complete the assignment. Remember who gave you the assignment; remember who enables you to have fire for the assignment; and remember who gives you the anointing to complete the assignment.

2) Be careful that when you observe the sins of others, you don't compare them to your own righteousness. In Isaiah 64:6 (NKJV), the word declares "But we are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; we all fade as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away." Once we gain spiritual confidence in God's powerful abilities in us, we have a tendency to lapse into a thought process that we are responsible for others righteousness and unrighteousness; as if we have control over their hearts. W need to constantly be reminded that we can neither control men's hearts/minds and we must depend on God to keep OUR hearts clean and righteous primarily. We must resist the temptation to compare how righteous we think we are to where someone else is.

3) Be careful of observing how many people are around us completing the same or similar assignments. Elijah very pointedly stated to God, "I alone am left" as if he was seeking other prophets to measure himself against. This sounds like the all too familiar story of the rabbit and the tortoise.“Once upon a time a Tortoise and a Rabbit had an argument about who was faster.They decided to settle the argument with a race. They agreed on a route and started off the race. The rabbit shot ahead and ran briskly for some time. Then seeing that he was far ahead of the tortoise, he thought he'd sit under a tree for some time and relax before continuing the race. He sat under the tree and soon fell asleep. The tortoise plodding on overtook him and soon finished the race, emerging as the undisputed champ. The rabbit woke up and realized that he'd lost the race.” The slow and steady wins the race-this is how god wants us to approach any task that He gives us with thoughtfulness and consistency. He wants us to complete the assignment not compare ourselves to how we fair against others while doing it or who is not left in the lane with us while running the race.

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