From early on to this moment, the vast majority of those who have called themselves God’s people have rebelled against Him at some point.  In every instance He has raised up a spokesman–one of their own–who proclaimed His Words to those who were rebelling against Him.  Ironically, His spokesmen proclaimed the very Words against which His detractors were rebelling.  In every instance of rebellion, the people did not reject the Lord personally, but rather His Words.  During Old Testament times those who bucked the tide were called “prophets” whom He called upon to fight against overwhelming odds–usually millions to one.  Such was the case with Elijah during the time when Ahab was the king of Israel–the 10 northern tribes who claimed the area called Samaria as their geographic homeland and the city of Samaria as their capital.  The “Jews” that comprised the 3 southern tribes–Judah, Benjamin and Levi–called the land of Judea their homeland with Jerusalem as their capital.  By this time the House of Israel consisted of 13 tribes, the reason being that, on his deathbed Jacob, whom God had renamed “Israel,” designated Joseph’s two sons–Ephraim and Manasseh–as THE TWO TRIBES WHO, FROM THAT TIME ON, WOULD BE KNOWN AS “ISRAEL” (Gen. 48:16).  Thus, Ephraim became the 13th tribe.  In Genesis 48:19 Jacob/Israel prophesied that Ephraim’s descendants would become a “company (commonwealth) of nations” who would later found the British Empire while Manasseh’s descendants would become a “great (the world’s greatest) nation” who would found the United States of America.  Read Who and Where is Israel Today?  Key word–Today.

Elijah was God’s prophet to the nation of Israel whose king was Ahab, one of the most men the nation had ever produced.  His wife, Jezebel, was even more wicked than her husband in that she, a heathen, brought her religion (Baalism) to Israel after her arranged marriage to Ahab.  Though she was a manipulator who routinely bent her husband to her will, he was the legitimate king and therefore the leader of the nation.

A social rule that has remained in force throughout history concerns the fact that the people of a nation tend to adopt the moral character of their leader.  As both Biblical and secular history reveals, the rule is still in effect to this day.  The Old Testament tells us that Israel followed the rule religiously.  Because of her two vile leaders, the nation had sunk into deep apostasy by the time Elijah appeared on the scene.  Our first knowledge of him is found in 1 Kings 17:1 where it is written: “And Elijah the Tishbite of the inhabitants of Gilead said to Ahab, ‘As the Lord God of Israel lives, before Whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word.'”  Ahab obviously knew that Elijah was a man of God, otherwise he would not have taken him seriously.  Ahab was obviously aware of his incredible power which, he obviously knew, had to come from God.  Because of his appearance at this historical time in the history of Israel, we can assume that the prophet was God’s righteo0us answer to the Ahab’s evil designs for the nation.  Jezebel, with Ahab doing her bidding, had sunk the nation into heathenism.  Now they were trying to erase even the memory of God from the minds of the people.  It was at this critical time that Elijah made his dramatic appearance.  The timing could not have been coincidental.

Elijah was God’s man of the hour.  He had all of the traits necessary for a true man of God.  He was radical, dramatic, fearless, bold, fully aware of his God-given powers and had no fear of using them.  He spoke boldly to those in power, pointing out their sins.  He challenged their heathen god Baal.  He would bring rain and drought with the words of his mouth.  He would confront the people for her sins and call them to repentance.  He would expose the personal sins of those in high places.  Elijah was exactly what God needed when dealing with His backslidden people whom He had raised up to be His light to the rest of the world.  Elijah was the perfect example of the type of spiritual leaders God needs today as the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh follow in the footsteps of their Satan-serving ancestors.  The backslidden nations being addressed in this series are the descendants of Ephraim and Manasseh–the United States and Britain.

In spite of Elijah’s efforts to lead Israel back to God, the nation refused to hear his voice.  In 722 B.C. God sent the nation of Assyria to defeat the 10 northern tribes living in Samaria.  The survivors were taken as slaves back to Assyria from whence they were later scattered throughout the world.  The Judahites (“Jews”) followed Israel’s sinful example and also suffered military defeat, slaughter and the enslavement of survivors at the hands of the nation of Babylon in 586 B.C.  The Prophet Jeremiah had served as God’s voice to the Jews.  His and Elijah’s like efforts resulted in like outcomes–defeat, slaughter, enslavement and scattering.  Which brings us to modern day Israel–America and Britain–whom God raised up to be His light to the rest of the world.  Come, let us reason together.  Could there be a positive correlation between the sinfulness of ancient Israel and the sinfulness of modern day Israel?  And could there be a positive correlation between what ancient Israel suffered and what modern day Israel will suffer?  God says there is.  Are there true servants off God–Elijah caliber men–on the scene today warning the nations of Israel of the consequences of their evil ways?  Yes.  Ironically, they elicit the same rejection as did Elijah, Jeremiah, Jesus and the early apostles from the people they are warning.  Alas, God tells us that those people will receive the same punishment as did their ancestors–military defeat, slaughter and enslavement in the lands of their conquerors.  And because the Jews from whom Jesus Christ came have also lived in rebellion against God, they will experience the same results as will their Israelite counterparts.

In the next posting we will see how modern day Israel is walking the same downward path of apostasy trod by her ancestors.  We will recall Elijah’s dealings with ancient Israel while comparing her apostasies to that of her modern descendants.  By recalling how God destroyed ancient Israel we will realize what is in store for modern Israel unless there is a mass turning to Him.  This did not happen anciently, and will not happen in these end times.  What we could possibly see is a “church revival” as terrified people return to Catholicism/Protestantism–the very religious organization that led the modern Israelite nations into the religious sewer in which they now wallow.  This “returning to our religious roots” would make the revivalists like the sow that returns to its mire and the dog that returns to its vomit (2 Pet. 2:22).  This will not work, for “Old things must pass away, behold, all things must be made new” (2 Cor. 5:17).  Without true conversion, no amount of religiosity can save modern day Israel.  L.J.