ALL IN - Elijah

ALL IN • Sermon • Submitted 2 years ago • Presented 2 years ago • 30:14

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The prophet Elijah had a moment of losing faith when he thought his whole world was falling apart. God restores Elijah’s faith; God can restore our faith too.

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Maybe you’ve heard the term tailspin before. When an airplane goes into a tailspin, it means the plane starts twisting in the air in a way in such a way that can be very difficult for the pilot to recover. It happens when one of the wings reaches a stall point at a different rate than the other wing; so, the plane tips and starts spinning as it loses altitude. We use the term tailspin in other ways too that have nothing to do with aircraft. Anytime we see a person whose life seems stuck in a destructive pattern from which they just cannot break free, we will sometimes say that person is living in a tailspin.

It is interesting how people seem drawn to give attention to destructive patterns. Psychologists refer to this as negativity bias. There is something about destructive patterns that draws our attention to find out more. I have my suspicions that this explains why people watch hockey or NASCAR. We’re just waiting to see the fight or the crash. It is the reason why the Weather Channel has shows about tornados and hurricanes. Nobody would ever watch a show on the Weather Channel about perfectly pleasant sunny days. Our attention is always drawn to the negative; we cannot take our eyes away from a tailspin.

In recent years, however, this has given way to a new term which follows the same negativity bias, but is showing itself to have far deeper personal impact: doomscrolling. In a day when so many people consume their information from the internet, studies are showing the way in which our natural pattern of pursuing negativity bias means we tend to click more often on social media links with news that is bad or depressing or alarming. Social media companies make their money off advertising, and their advertisements make more money when you and I keep clicking. So, these companies give very detailed attention into creating algorithms which will always keep placing more-and-more of the same content right in front of you. And before you know it, your consumption of information over the internet is in a tailspin. The kinds of stories and videos which pop up on your screens do only one thing; they suck you deeper and deeper into a nosedive which is almost impossible to pull out from. That’s called doomscrolling.

This brings us to the next Old Testament example we are going to look at in our series examining the life of faith. It is a story about the prophet Elijah. Let me give just one piece of background to this passage. This story happens immediately after Elijah has demonstrated the majesty of the Lord in a showdown in Mount Carmel between the Lord and the Canaanite god Baal. It is a great victory for Elijah, and you can read all about it in 1 Kings 18 if you do not know the story. But today I am picking up the story with Elijah right after that confrontation on Mount Carmel occurs.

1 Kings 19:1–18 NIV

1 Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.” 3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep. All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. 7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” 11 The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13 When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” 15 The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16 Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17 Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18 Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”

algorithm takes over in Elijah’s head and before you know it all his brain can click on are the darkest and most depressing thoughts which keep popping up

Doomscrolling; that’s what Elijah is doing in this passage. He opens one bad email from Jezebel and it sends him into a tailspin deeper and deeper down into pattern from which he cannot recover. The algorithm takes over in Elijah’s head and before you know it all his brain can click on are the darkest and most depressing thoughts which keep popping up in front of him. We see these words from Elijah repeated twice in this passage for emphasis in verse 10 and again in verse 14.

1 Kings 19:14 NIV

14 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”

all that it takes for Elijah’s anxiety to get the better of him is the repetition of those same lies

Everyone has rejected me; everyone has turned away; I am all alone; they’re after me now too. Elijah is doomscrolling these words again and again in his head to the point where he actually believes it to be true. That’s the thing about doomscrolling; truth is not necessary, all that it takes for Elijah’s anxiety to get the better of him is the repetition of those same lies—and before you know it, Elijah begins to believe it.

result: Elijah’s faith has disintegrated

What does Elijah do? He gives up and walks away. We see in the story that Elijah leaves his servant in Beersheba. This is not a wait-for-me instruction for his servant; it is a this-is-as-far-as-we-go instruction. Beersheba is the last town on the edge of the Sinai wilderness. Elijah’s intention is to go into the desert and never come out—he wants to die there. In other words, Elijah’s faith has disintegrated. His hope is gone. Even though the whole Mount Carmel event demonstrated a great victory for the Lord, Elijah’s doomscrolling anxiety has taken all of that away. His faith is in a tailspin.

What does your doomscrolling look like?

Elijah’s story is not all that unique. The anxiety of our world presses in on us as well. There are moments when it maybe looks like everyone else has the perfect life except for you. There are moments in which hope for a bright future seems gone. What does your doomscrolling look like? Maybe it is the teenager who sees all the perfect pictures of all the other beautiful girls and cannot help thinking she just doesn’t measure up to that standard. Maybe it is the young man who sees the career advancements of others which comes along with the newer house and the fancier car and cannot help thinking his wealth will never be enough to be satisfied. Maybe it is the couple who sees the happy family photos of others and cannot help thinking that their own family seems to be falling apart. Maybe it is the older individual who sees the retirement travels of others and thinks to themselves that their own chronic health issues and illnesses will never let them enjoy anything like that. Or maybe it is a host of other issues which press their way constantly in front of us: political division, pandemic setbacks, wars around the world, climate crisis and environmental pollution. We live in a world full of doomscrolling.

when Elijah’s faith is at its weakest is exactly where God shows up and provides what Elijah needs

But look at this: God does not wait for Elijah to pull himself out of that tailspin. God comes to Elijah right in the middle of it. When Elijah’s faith is at its weakest is exactly where God shows up and provides what Elijah needs. Let’s look at what God does here.

The first thing we see is some quiet rest and refreshment. Out in the empty desert wilderness of Sinai, God sends an angel with food and drink; God sends a space for Elijah to stop and experience a little bit of Sabbath quiet. Elijah is on the run and ready to give up and call it quits; and God comes and says, take a little break for a bit—have a few moments of quiet silence. It is necessary in order for Elijah to break out his doomscrolling algorithm. There had to be some room for Elijah to power off his smartphone, log off the internet, turn off the TV, and quiet the anxieties of his own heart.

God’s question: what are you doing here?

And then, once Elijah completes the journey to Sinai, God reveals himself and gives instruction to Elijah. God gives direction and purpose to Elijah’s steps of faith once more. But God does not reveal this to Elijah in the pounding hectic parade of wind and earthquake and fire. Rather, it is in the silence which follows where God shows up. Once again, it is a repeated phrase which the author uses to focus the attention of the reader in this passage. Twice God asks a question to Elijah. “What are you doing here?”

Elijah’s answer: reveals pattern of anxiety and self-pity

There are a couple different levels to this question. First, it is a question of location. Elijah ran far away from the land of Judah. God is asking Elijah why he left and came to this place. But second—and more importantly—it is a question of purpose and direction. What’s up with the doomscrolling? Can’t you see that this is getting you nowhere? Don’t you recognize that this pattern of anxiety and self-pity is sending your life into an endless tailspin? Why is your faith in such a tough place right now?

God’s response: space to be refreshed space to hear the word of God

It is notable that there is no condemnation or rebuke from God to Elijah. I could very well imagine it going that way. I could imagine God chewing out Elijah by reminding him of the awesome miracle he just witnessed in the way God revealed himself to everyone on Mount Carmel. I could imagine God telling Elijah to grow up and snap out of it—to pull himself together, be tough, and get back to work. But there is no harsh rebuke. Instead, it looks as though God gives Elijah an encouraging correction which is meant to energize Elijah’s faith, and God gives Elijah a game-plan for the next few tasks in front of him.

God ensures Elijah that he is not alone. Elijah is not the only one left in Israel to serve the Lord. The story says that there are 7000 others who have not turned from the Lord. We need to recognize that this is a symbolic number in scripture—it is not meant to denote an actual numerical value. It is the combination of seven and one thousand. Seven is symbolic of God’s perfection and divine activity within the creation. And one thousand is symbolic of a very large number—a number larger than anyone can count. In other words, there is no way God is at all in danger of losing those he calls and gathers to be his people.

Maybe the question that God repeats to Elijah is a question we need to hear more often too. Whenever you or I have those moments of wavering faith, when we get stuck in a doomscrolling pattern that sends our brains and our emotions on a tailspin, that might be just the right time to hear God asking, “what are you doing here?” What is your life doing in this place where the algorithm of everything that is wrong in the world dominates your attention and your thoughts and your feelings? Maybe, like Elijah, the thing our faith needs most is that space to pull back for a bit and be refreshed, that space to quiet ourselves from the noise of this world so that we can listen for the calm, still voice of God speaking to us through his word.