Category: pagan idolatry

Only One Left? #5

Sunday, February 20, 2022

“And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (1 Kings 19:14 KJV).

Was the Prophet Elijah really “the only one left?”

As King James Bible-believing, Pauline dispensationalists, it is quite easy for us to grow discouraged. After all, not many church members—even genuine Christians (!)—are interested in learning what we have to teach them from the Scriptures. Precious few are willing to question or abandon their long-held religious traditions. We exclaim, exasperated, “No one wants to listen to me share the truth with them!”

Though we, like Elijah, may feel we are “the only ones left,” there are countless Bible-believing, grace-oriented Christians just like us all around the world. They also understand God’s Word rightly divided. We just have never heard of them, and they have never heard of us. Although we are mutually unfamiliar with each other, the LORD knows us both—just as He saw those 7,000 believers in Israel in 1 Kings 19:18 (of whom Elijah was unaware). With the advent of the internet and social media, we “stranded grace believers” have been connected for several years now. Our studies here reach thousands of interested people. I am not alone. You are not alone. Always bearing this in mind will guard us against self-pity.

Dear dispensational friend, it is important never to focus on self. “I am the only one with the truth. I am the LORD’S last remaining preacher or teacher.” No, that was Elijah’s assumption (verse 10 and today’s Scripture). Almighty God promptly corrected him: “Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.” We do as the Lord’s grace enables us in our little realm, but we let Him watch over the global outreach of His words of grace. He does not need our help, but He does invite us to “preach the word” (2 Timothy 4:2), that we share His delight by valuing what He does. It is His ministry, not ours….

Only One Left? #4

Saturday, February 19, 2022

“And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (1 Kings 19:14 KJV).

Was the Prophet Elijah really “the only one left?”

The Bible always tells the truth—even about its heroes. Whereas Elijah was spiritually victorious in chapter 18 because he relied on JEHOVAH God, by the time of chapter 19, he was terrified of unbelievers because he was depending on his flesh. God had taken care of him for years prior, protecting him in chapter 17, but once he doubted the LORD he started wallowing in self-pity and became depressed, his spiritual life disintegrating. He actually asked the LORD to kill him (19:4)!

Elijah started focusing on himself. “I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts…. I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (verse 10). Again, “I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts…. I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (verse 14, today’s Scripture). The LORD responds, “Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him” (verse 18). Paraphrased, “Oh, Elijah, though you find it difficult to comprehend, I have 7,000 other Jewish believers just like you on My side. You do not know about them, but they have neither kissed nor genuflected/bowed before Baal’s statues.”

Paul summarizes in Romans chapter 11 about a believing remnant in Israel, “[2] …Wot ye not what the scripture saith of Elias? how he maketh intercession to God against Israel, saying, [3] Lord, they have killed thy prophets, and digged down thine altars; and I am left alone, and they seek my life. [4] But what saith the answer of God unto him? I have reserved to myself seven thousand men, who have not bowed the knee to the image of Baal. [5] Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace.”

Now, let us see a modern parallel….

Only One Left? #3

Friday, February 18, 2022

“And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (1 Kings 19:14 KJV).

Was the Prophet Elijah really “the only one left?”

Having put the prophets of Baal to death in chapter 18, Elijah now flees for his life in chapter 19: “[1] And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. [2] Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. [3] And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.” After his glorious mountaintop triumph on Carmel (northern Israel), fearful Elijah absconds, down through southern Israel, all the way to Mount Horeb/Sinai some 300 miles (500 kilometers) away (verses 4-8)!

Today’s Scripture in context: “[9] And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? [10] And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away…. [13] And it was so, when Elijah heard [a still small voice], that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? [14] And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”

Elijah is terribly mistaken….

Our latest Bible Q&A: “Who are the ‘confectionaries’ in 1 Samuel 8:13?”

Only One Left? #2

Thursday, February 17, 2022

“And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (1 Kings 19:14 KJV).

Was the Prophet Elijah really “the only one left?”

Go back to chapter 18, Elijah’s “Who is God?” test: “[23] Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: [24] And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.” Read verses 25-35 for other details.

“[36] And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. [37] Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. [38] Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. [39] And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. [40] And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.”

Queen Jezebel will be most angry and vengeful when she hears about this….

Only One Left? #1

Wednesday, February 16, 2022

“And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away” (1 Kings 19:14 KJV).

Was the Prophet Elijah really “the only one left?”

King Ahab and Queen Jezebel were definitely the Northern Kingdom’s evilest, most idolatrous leaders. Israel, the 10 tribes of the north, underwent extensive spiritual reform as Baal worship was declared the official state religion. See 1 Kings 16:29-34, and 1 Kings 21:25,26. In chapter 17, the Prophet Elijah announces God will bring drought and subsequent famine in response to this widespread Satan worship among His people (cf. Deuteronomy 11:16,17).

After three and a half years, Elijah meets Ahab again. The Bible provides these words in chapter 18: “[17] And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? [18] And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father’s house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim. [19] Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel’s table. [20] So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel. [21] And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. [22] Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.”

Imagine, there are several hundred false religious leaders (Baal preachers) in Israel, contrasted with lone Elijah who is still loyal to JEHOVAH God! Moreover, Elijah proposes a test to see if Baal is God or the LORD is God. Let us see the results….

Our latest Bible Q&A: “How can God have ‘horns’ coming out of His hand?”

Idols in the Heart #3

Thursday, January 27, 2022

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?” (Ezekiel 14:2,3 KJV).

Look at their heart problem!

Reread the main thought of today’s Scripture and its context: “…these men have set up their idols in their heart, Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart,… every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart…” (verses 3,4,7).

Before sin becomes a physical action, it is a heart attitude. Jeremiah 17:9 explains: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Our soul is naturally wicked, spiritually darkened and inclined to believe and do everything contrary to our Creator’s will. “Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:21). “This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness” (Ephesians 4:17-19). After a pattern of poor thinking, poor conduct follows.

The conversion of a soul dead in trespasses and sins, to new life in Christ, is far more than forcing people to give up physical trinkets and other religious paraphernalia. It involves a humble heart willing to finally give up on self and admit all that “performance” in religion is not worth bragging about. In light of Jesus Christ’s finished crosswork as sufficient payment for our sins, all else is “but dung” (Philippians 3:8). Once we in our heart come to trust in that Gospel message—and that alone—our idols in our heart will be removed and now we remove our idols from our shelf! 🙂

Idols in the Heart #2

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?” (Ezekiel 14:2,3 KJV).

Look at their heart problem!

Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar invaded Judah and Jerusalem on three occasions during a 20-year period. The Prophet Ezekiel began his ministry between the second and third attacks, circa 593 B.C. Judah, the Southern Kingdom, had engaged in heathen religion for centuries. Now, the Fifth Course of Chastisement was underway, the curses of the Law of Moses falling upon these two southern tribes of Judah and Benjamin. (It had already resulted in the Northern Kingdom, Israel’s other 10 idolatrous tribes, being taken captive to Assyria more than 100 years prior.) If necessary, see Leviticus 26:27-39.

In the context of today’s Scripture, the “elders” or aged men leading Israel approach Ezekiel, but, as we can see, the LORD is greatly displeased with them. The nation is apostate, turned from the truth, because those in power have caused it to be thus. God is not interested in listening to what they have to say (for they “have set up their idols in their heart”), but He does want them to pay attention to His message to them!

Keep reading: “[6] Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations. [7] For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself: [8] And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.”

The Israelites must “repent,” change their mind by remembering the Hebrew Bible—particularly the Law of Moses. Only then will they abandon their idols in their hearts….

Idols in the Heart #1

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?” (Ezekiel 14:2,3 KJV).

Look at their heart problem!

Decades ago, a pastor friend was doing missionary work in a foreign country, among a people steeped in heathen religion and superstition. He and his ministry companions happened upon a house wherein they found one lost man who was most eager to hear what they had to tell him concerning “Christianity.” As they began sharing the Gospel of Grace with him, he responded quite enthusiastically, “Oh yes, I will believe in Jesus!” However, when they explained to him “Jesus” was not “just another statue” he could put on his shelf, but that Jesus was supreme and would not “share his shelf” with other “deities,” the man invited these Christian missionaries to leave his home. When we think critically about his situation, his problem was not idols on his shelf but rather idols in his heart. The idols in his heart (the sickness) led to the idols on his shelf (the symptoms).

Now, let us read today’s Scripture in context: “[1] Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me. [2] And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, [3] Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them? [4] Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols; [5] That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.”

Remember, Israel’s problem is not idols in their hands but rather idols in their hearts….

The Accursed Thing! #8

Friday, January 21, 2022

“But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel” (Joshua 7:1 KJV).

Just what is this “accursed thing?” How will it affect the Israelites here in “time past?” What does this say about their fate in “the ages to come?”

Recall Achan’s sin was judged in “the Valley of Achor [trouble]” (verses 24,26), an area due south of Jericho, roughly halfway between the city and the Dead Sea. This area is significant in prophecy, for it is one of the regions to which Israel’s believing remnant will flee as they escape the Antichrist. Whereas the nation Israel was steeped in idolatry in the Old Testament and will be even more so with the Antichrist, there is a group of saints within the nation who will be preserved from Satan’s policy of evil. Achor will not only be a place of judgment and trouble, but also one of salvation and hope.

Hosea chapter 2: “[14] Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her. [15] And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt. [16] And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi [‘husband’]; and shalt call me no more Baali [‘lord’]. [17] For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.” Also, Isaiah 65:10: “And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks, and the valley of Achor a place for the herds to lie down in, for my people that have sought me.”

Here, Israel is purged of pagan idolatry, including Baal worship, and is triumphant over all Satan’s policy of evil, ready to become God’s kingdom of priests in God’s land at Jesus Christ’s Second Coming to meet them!

The Accursed Thing! #7

Thursday, January 20, 2022

“But the children of Israel committed a trespass in the accursed thing: for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the accursed thing: and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel” (Joshua 7:1 KJV).

Just what is this “accursed thing?” How will it affect the Israelites here in “time past?” What does this say about their fate in “the ages to come?”

In Scripture, Babylon (near modern Baghdad, Iraq) is notable for its pagan idolatry. “…Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the ground” (Isaiah 21:9). “Declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard; publish, and conceal not: say, Babylon is taken, Bel [Babylonian deity] is confounded, Merodach [another Babylonian deity] is broken in pieces; her idols are confounded, her images are broken in pieces” (Jeremiah 50:2). “Therefore, behold, the days come, that I will do judgment upon the graven images of Babylon: and her whole land shall be confounded, and all her slain shall fall in the midst of her” (Jeremiah 51:47).

Dear friends, never should we see the Bible as “dead history,” things of the past, events never to be repeated. These passages of Scripture are not only historical, they are also prophetic. What happened then loops forward to what will transpire in the future. While these Old Testament Prophets were foretelling the short-term destruction of ancient Babylon by Persian King Cyrus the Great in 536 B.C. (Daniel 5:30-31), they were also providing a glimpse of the long-term destruction of new Babylon under the Antichrist beyond our day. You can read about future Babylon in Revelation 14:8, Revelation 16:19, and Revelation chapters 17–18. Satan’s monstrous political-religious system will finally and permanently be annihilated at Christ’s Second Coming!

Also, consider the evil religion and devils in Zechariah 5:5-11, with “the land of the Shinar” (verse 11) being the site of Babylon and the Tower of Babel (cf. Genesis 10:10; Daniel 1:1,2)—this is the Whore of Babylon and all her attendant spiritual harlot “daughters” (religions, cults, denominations) corrupting Israel and the nations. Thankfully, for believing Israel, however, the Valley of Achor will provide an escape….

Our two latest Bible Q&As: “What does ‘All hail’ mean in Matthew 28:9?” and “Can you explain ‘God speed’ in 2 John?”

NOTE: Happy 42nd Spiritual Birthday to my Mom, who will no doubt read this!