Spiritual lessons from the book of Elijah
The Sunday school class met before regular worship and studied Genesis 30 in the lesson “Blessed,” which was about Jacob and Laban. “God is faithful to bless His people and is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are we owe to Him.”
The congregation was greeted for worship by Doug Cory, and special prayers were requested for the John Elmo Butler family, Jeannette, Linda, Roger, Alesia, and Marlene.
Linda Abercrombie shared a devotional, “Don’t Forget,” and read Luke 22:19. “We forget so many things, but God helps us remember what is the most important: He loves us and what He does for us.”
Rick Lett and Tyrel Lett served as offertory ushers, and Susan Cory and Karen Gardner led the congregational hymns.
Our pastor, Roger Gill, continued in the last sermon in the series, “Spiritual Lessons From Elijah,” with scripture reference from 1 Kings 18:38-46.
He began by telling us that “God is crazy about us. He sends us the sunrise, sunset, and flowers every day. If He brings it to us, He will bring us through it. God’s promise is to be with us. God always keeps His promises.” He referred to verse 1 about the drought in the land, which reminds us that it would only end with God’s command. “God’s word is sure and true in the promise to us. God keeps His word as He did in the scripture to send rain and end the drought. It is a reminder that God is in charge.”
Brother Roger talked about 1 Kings 18, about Elijah’s claim to a promise and told us, “A conditional promise will not be fulfilled until we have done our part. The conditional phrase is ‘if we’ then ‘God will.’
1 John 1:9 says. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Brother Roger said, “God listens to our prayers and does not turn His faithful love from us. Unconditional promises are just that … unconditional, meaning what God has promised will occur in due season, regardless. Philippians 4:19 reminds us of His promise, ‘And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. That is an unconditional promise. The supply is there before our need. Elijah heard God’s promise coming — the sound of rain to end the drought. Have you ever heard the sound of rain coming? As the song says, ‘If you are thirsty and dry, look to the sky.’”
As Brother Roger talked about verses 42ff., he talked about Elijah kneeling on the promise. “He was a man of power, but we have power, too, in God like Elijah. Elijah separated himself and went to Mr. Carmel. We all need a place to get away and get alone with God to be focused. He humbled himself. 1 Peter 5:6 says, ‘Humble yourself, therefore, under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.’ Elijah was specific. God wants us to be specific in our prayers. Elijah was persistent in what he wanted. Do we live our lives knowing the promises of God are coming? God is never late. Elijah was persistent because he knew God’s promises were coming.”
In closing, Brother Roger told us that Elijah was a powerful worker of miracles with his own faults, just like us. “Elijah was of a nature like ours. He had power in God’s word and direction. Elijah wasn’t too powerful to pray, he wasn’t too confident to wait, he was a man of humility, and he served the same God we serve. We can trust the same God that Elijah trusted. God cares. We can live with God’s strength and power in our life just like Elijah if we will ask for forgiveness of our sins and serve Him.”
We invite you to share in the joy of worshiping our Lord and Savior Sunday mornings at 11 a.m. Sunday school begins at 10 a.m. Mill Creek Baptist Church is located 3½ miles east of Noel, just off Highway 90. Everyone is welcome. Come see what you are missing.