1 Kings 18:30-34 Come near to me!

 “Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” Then with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed. And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.” Then he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filled the trench with water.” I Kings‬ ‭18‬:‭30‬-‭35‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Come near to me: When it was Elijah’s turn to sacrifice, he first wanted to get the attention of the people. This was for their benefit, not his own or really primarily for the benefit of God. They needed to pay attention so they would see that the LORD was a true God, in contrast to the silent Baal.

b. He repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down: Elijah was very aware that he repaired something that once stood strong. There was once an altar of the LORD at Carmel and in Israel in general. Elijah looked to revive something that once was.

c. Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood: In wanting to make a deep impression upon the people, Elijah required more of Yahweh than he did of Baal. Elijah did not even suggest to the prophets of Baal that they wet down their sacrifice once or twice, much less three times. Yet Elijah did this, confident that it was no harder for God to ignite a wet sacrifice than it was for Him to set a dry one ablaze.

i. “There can be no question of trickery, such as the use of naptha [a flammable liquid often used as a solvent] instead of water, or mirrors for ignition as suggested by some scholars. The opposition was observant and close.” (Wiseman)

(Guzik)

Come near to me!

Just as Elijah said Come near to me, God desires the same of us. 

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭11‬:‭28‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Recently I ended up in the hospital with an emergency gallbladder surgery. I had been dealing with blood pressure issues for ten months which turned out to be symptoms from the gallbladder! It was my come near to God moment!

But God doesn’t only want us to “Come to Me” in times of trouble, He wants us  come to Him on a daily basis, in good times and bad!

When do you come to Him?

Blessings