Broken Down Altars # 4

Broken Down Altars # 4

It always thrills me to the end of my toes to see how bravely the old prophet of God stood up before that jeering, howling, sneering, blatant, blaspheming mob of licentious, adulterous, degenerate cutthroats who stood there and defied him. How utterly indifferent he was to the tremendous odds that were against him! And judging by appearances, all were against him.

It didn't look as if God were within a hundred miles of that meeting on top of Mount Carmel. The whole country was reeking and stinking with filth; and as the old prophet of God stood up and scanned the blackened plains - turned black because no rain or dew had fallen on them - there wasn't a green thing in sight. As he looked into the brutal faces of that mob of blasphemers, jeering and sneering upon him, nothing but unshaken confidence in God could have kept him from stampeding and hitting it for the woods. But his faith held him!!

Oh, faith is a mightier force than dynamite and electricity! Elijah helped many as he stood there alone. And if science and discovery can take the Bible from us, then the sooner they do it, the better. If the Bible came from God, you can no more hurt it by anything blatant blasphemers can say than the waves of the ocean can be stopped by blowing a tin whistle against them. If the Bible came from God, nothing you can do can hurt it, anymore than you can dam Niagara Falls with toothpicks, any more than you can knock a Gibraltar down by shooting green peas against it with a popgun!

And if the preacher has no faith, it becomes apparent when things go wrong. If he undertakes to hold a meeting and it rains the opening night, it chills his marrow. He is sure that it isn't God's set time to work. If those whom he counted on are sick or away from home, or if they knock him and won't come near him. How anxious he is if the janitor goes over to the side of the devil and the building is too hot or too cold. And he concludes that God has forsaken him if the organist gets on her high horse and won't come out and play, and if there is nobody present to lead the singing. Think of Elijah. In spite of all that was against him, he could stir up the opposition to do their worst. He said to them, "Cry louder!" as they cried for old Baal. "Cry louder; perhaps he's asleep! Or maybe he's gone off to hunt or fish; cry louder and awaken him!"

Elijah Urged Immediate Decision

He addressed himself to the conscience of the people. That is my aim when I preach. He urged immediate decision according to their honest conviction. You do the same! If everyone would act according to his or her conviction, there wouldn't be a sinner left on God's earth! He said, "if the Lord be God, follow Him" - appealing to their conscience and reason. Now he have the people to understand that God would manifest Himself in a God-like way.

In these days we are prone to belittle the work of the Holy Spirit. We depend too little on God and too much on the kitchen, or the choir loft, or something or somebody. Miraculous work of grace must be expected and prayed for God is still the wonder-working God and He always will be. The salvation of a sinner is as much a miracle as the raising of the dead.

Human Conditions Must Be Met

God has spiritual laws that are as positive in their working and as subject to conditions as the natural laws. The laws of faith are just as certain as the laws of steam and electricity. There are laws of spiritual growth and fruitage, just as thee are laws that govern the growth of a potato or a hill of corn. And to secure spiritual results, human conditions must be set.

The man who plows with a forked stick gets all the crop that he deserves. And the man who prays the same old rat-eaten prayer is on the same par with him. Get something new! To have God's help in obtaining a crop, the farmer has to do certain things, at certain times, in certain ways; if he doesn't, there will not be a potato for him to stick his fork into, nor a loaf of bread for him to cut. If one doesn't work in harmony with God, than he can have nothing to eat.

There are, I say, spiritual laws in this old world, just as there are natural laws. And to have God's help in spiritual things one must put himself in right relationship with God. The farmer must put himself in right relationship with God and in right relationship with the ground and nature by plowing and preparing it, then by planting the seed.

You must put yourself in right relationship with God or He can do you no good. You have to put yourself in right relationship with the physician by taking his medicine and following his directions; else all the skills on God's green earth will never drive the disease away.

There are natural laws to follow. There is common sense in everything. The prophet used it when he prepared the broken-down altar. He knew it was a waste of breath to pray for God to answer by fire if he did not do his part. It is absolutely useless to ask Him to save and bless this city if the church and preacher do not do their part. Elijah was smart enough to know that. And before you can pray right, you must begin to live right. Whatsoever is wrong must be righted. Even if it is as valuable to you as your right eye or arm, get rid of it if it is wrong, if you want God's blessing and favor and partnership with you. When this kind of repentance takes place, then the step from death to life is a mighty short one.

~Billy Sunday~

(continued with # 5)