It is worth remembering that after Solomon died what we know as Israel was divided into two nations.
(1) The northern kingdom was called either Israel or Ephraim. It was the wealthier of the two and contained 10 of the 12 tribes of God’s people.
(2) Even though the southern kingdom had the temple and Jerusalem, it was the poorer of the two. It was called Judah.
At this time in history, Asa was the king of Judah. Omri was the king of the northern kingdom. He continued a consistent theme, recorded in 1 Kings.
Omri did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; he did more evil than all who were before him.
For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in the sins that he caused Israel to commit, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger by their idols (1 Kings 16).
Omri is best known as the father of one of the worst leaders in Israel’ history. Omri slept with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria; his son Ahab succeeded him (1 Kings 16:28).
Ahab did not break the story of evil in Ephraim. Ahab son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all who were before him (1 Kings 16:30).
The author of Kings made it a point to describe the transgressions of the king.
And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, he took as his wife Jezebel daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians and went and served Baal and worshiped him.
He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal that he built in Samaria. Ahab also made a sacred pole.
Ahab did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than had all the kings of Israel who were before him (1 Kings 16:31-33).
Just as Solomon’s heart was turned from of the one and only God to devotion to his many wives, Ahab preferred his Phoenician wife over service to Yahweh.
Samaria ultimately became the capital city of Israel, the northern kingdom. While Asa was insuring the worship of Yahweh in the temple in Jerusalem, Ahab was constructing an altar to Baal in their capital city.
Baal is a fertility god that was worshiped in various forms by the Canaanites. Asherah was the female consort of Baal. Ahab constructed an altar for Baal and a sacred pole for Asherah.
There are times when the only way God can reach rebellious people is through calamity. God sent His prophet to announce judgment on Ahab and Israel for the sin of apostasy.
Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word” (1 Kings 17:1).
Ahab was unfaithful to God and led the people under his care to worship false deities. Who or what a nation worships is such a serious matter that God must intervene. It is an act of God’s mercy to turn the nation back to Himself.
The king and his subject wrongly believed that service to Baal and Asherah would provide rain and fertility for the nation. By controlling the weather, Yahweh would demonstrate who was the one and only God.
Willis and Blackaby on Revival
Avery Willis and Henry Blackaby are two of Southern Baptist’s outstanding leaders for my generation. Many years ago the two men produced a series of lectures that helped form my understanding of revival.
When I was a young preacher, churches had revival meetings taking place often in the spring and the fall. Those meetings were often aimed at evangelism and many of the conversions that took place in the year happened at that time.
Willis and Blackaby pointed out that while revival meetings are helpful, that is not what revival actually is.
They taught that revival is something you do to something that is in danger of dying. When the work of God is in peril, revival is necessary.
Blackaby recounted times in history when the church would come together and plead for God’s mercy and a revival of His work in the midst of the church and community.
When these events took place, God’s people knew it was time to meet in a corporate setting and call on God to once again bring to life His work.
- Disasters, such as earthquakes, fire, tornadoes, hurricanes, drought, and floods
- Violence and mass killings
- Corruption
- Moral decline
- War
When God brings calamity and God’s people respond in repentance and faith, He will revive His work in their lives. Below are some of God’s promises that we can use in our prayers for revival in our midst.
“If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, pray, seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
“Yet even now, says the LORD, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;
Rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the LORD, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and relents from punishing” (Joel 2:12-13).
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep.
Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into dejection. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you (James 4:8-10).
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 