1 Kings 18

At the risk of sounding like a bad flashback from the 80s or 90s, I couldn’t pass this up as the title of today’s blog. This has got to be one of my all-time favorite chapters in the Bible. It seems like I’ve been hearing this story ever since I was a little girl, and it never ceases to amaze me. So, this was a great excuse to sit back and just marvel at God.

First, as a connoisseur of sarcasm, I notice that there is a lot of trash talk going on in this chapter. Ahab’s greeting to Elijah in verse 17 always makes me laugh: "Is that you, you troubler of Israel?" Ahab certainly wasn’t afraid of a little trash talk. But, it seems, Elijah could give just as good as he got. As the prophets of Baal became increasingly frustrated that they couldn’t get a rise out of their god, "Elijah began making fun of them. 'Pray louder!' he said. 'Baal must be a god. Maybe he’s day-dreaming or using the toilet or traveling somewhere. Or maybe he’s asleep, and you have to wake him up.'" (vs 27) Maybe your god is using the toilet. Wow.

But what may be even a little more surprising is that, as we discover, God Himself isn’t afraid of a little Booyah! The way He answered Elijah on the top of Mount Carmel is nothing short of spectacular. First of all, Elijah repaired the altar of the Lord. Then, he dug a huge trench around the altar. After laying the bull on it, he had his assistants pour twelve large jars of water over the altar.

I bet that really infuriated King Ahab. Israel hadn’t seen a drop of rain in three years! Their water reserves must have been dangerously low, yet Elijah was wasting water on this?! But, if he was mad, he didn’t let on. He must have thought Elijah was about to be humiliated in front of all of Israel.

But Elijah was not humiliated. No sooner had he finished his first, unfrenzied prayer to God than fire came down out of heaven and burned up the sacrifice. Since the true God was to answer by fire, there was certainly no doubt that the Lord was God of Israel. However, God didn’t just stop at burning up the sacrifice (which, if you’ll remember, was soaking wet). God wanted to make sure there was no doubt. So, His fire didn’t just burn up the bull. It also burned up the wet wood underneath the bull, the stones of the altar, the soil around the altar, and the water! It vaporized all that water in an instant! Booyah!

What’s really great about the story is the immediate response of the Israelites: "When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, 'The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!'" (vs 39) It’s heartening to see that there were still people in Israel who were open to the truth about God.

God does not remain hidden in the shadows. He is not afraid to dazzle us with His awesome grandeur when the situation warrants it. What more can we do than sit back in awe, soak in the wonder, and respond, "The Lord—he is God!"