Seeking Jesus First - June 14, 2023
What do you do when you have an important word from God? Do you have to do anything to see that it is fulfilled? It seems to me that there are at least two kinds of prophetic words from God…
There are unconditional words from God and conditional words from God.
Unconditional prophetic words from God are those words that God will fulfill without your knowing participation. When He needs a man or woman involved to complete this type of word, He will pick someone who will not tell Him no.
Ex: Abraham and Mary and the bloodline that connected them. God somehow honors their initial faith and overcomes their later mistakes and disobedience in order to complete the promise no matter how long it takes.
Ex. Moses prophesied a deliverer for Israel before he died, but Jesus was not manifest in the earth for about 1400 years. God could/would not start the process over even though He thought about it. God watched over Israel! God had made the unconditional seed of promise to Abraham and watched over it all the way to Mary to fulfill it. And how many times did Israel and Judah turn away from God? Even splitting into two nations. But God kept His promise.
Conditional prophetic words depend on the faith participation of the individual. “If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you.” (John 15:7, NKJV). In the conditional, there is an expectation of cooperation - co-laboring with God in order for it to be accomplished.
Remember that Jesus has accomplished all that is needed for salvation to be freely given, and yet, salvation requires our faith participation in order to receive it. There is so much available to every believer through what Jesus Christ accomplished, but the word must be mixed with faith if we wish to enter into the rest of it.
If God tells me to do something in order to help or bring deliverance to someone and I sit home watching TV, God will need to use someone else in order to touch that person.
If God tells me to get a certain education or license or certification because He wants to elevate me in a certain area of business or government, and I fail to move forward in that, there will be significant delay and maybe even forfeit of that promise or promotion.
Let’s take a look at this passage:
“Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.” So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.” Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.’ ” Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. Then the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.” (1 Kings 18:41–46, NKJV)
Elijah had prophesied a drought that lasted three years and Ahab was trying to have him killed. God told Elijah to go see Ahab and prophesy that the drought would be ended. You may remember that Elijah had just challenged and killed 400 priests to Baal and 400 to Asherah, who had been appointed and supported by Ahab’s wife, Jezebel. Elijah had to trust God when he went to meet Ahab.
Ahab listens to him and they go to look at the sea together. Elijah kneels down and prays with his head between his knees. Then Elijah sends his servant to look at the sea. Nothing is there. He does this seven times and on the seventh time, there was a small cloud. That little cloud produced a tremendous rain and ended the drought.
The Bible does not say what would have happened if Elijah had stopped before the seventh time. One can only imagine. Elijah is obeying the word of The LORD and praying for rain, and his life I might add. So he prayed unto change took place. As soon as he saw the change that was taking place, he got up and started acting out of his faith. He told Ahab to hurry and get in the chariot and leave because the rain would be huge.
We don’t have all of the details of the word of The LORD to Elijah. “And it came to pass after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth.”” (1 Kings 18:1, NKJV). Elijah did more than what was written here. He acted on his faith that God was with him. God said “present yourself to Ahab and I will send rain.” Elijah slew the priests of the false gods. Then he knelt and prayed until the cloud showed up. Elijah clearly did more than what the revealed Word of The LORD had spoken but Elijah did not doubt that he had the authority and the power to do what he did.
Was this conditional or unconditional? If Elijah had not gone, would the drought have ended? When Elijah met the condition, the promise could not be stopped, but he still humbly knelt and prayed until God’s part had started.
Got a promise from God? It doesn’t matter if it is unconditional or conditional. Trust and obey and keep praying in faith until you see God move. Then get up and move with God. And as Dutch Sheets said, June 14-16, 2023, in Give Him 15, celebrate while you work.