1 Kings chapter 18, and we're going to read from verse 41. 1 Kings chapter 18, and reading from verse 41. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of abundance of rain. So you'll remember that we've had this account of the sacrifices that were offered to God and how that the sacrifice of the Baelish false prophets was not successful, but the sacrifice of Elijah was successful and the fire from God fell upon his sacrifice and was consumed. Thereafter, Elijah took all the prophets of Baal, 450 of them, and put them to death by the brook Kishon. And then we read these words. And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of abundance of rain. So Ahab went up to eat and to drink, and Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, and he cast himself down upon the earth and put his face between his knees, and said to his servant, go up now look toward the sea and he went up and looked and said there is nothing and he said go again seven times and it came to pass at the seventh time that he said behold there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea like a man's hand And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not. And it came to pass, in the meanwhile, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he girded up his loins and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. Amen. May the Lord bless to us this reading from his word. It must have been late in the day when the judgment of the Baelish priests was ended. And what a slaughter it was. And yet Ahab, the king of Israel, remained at the scene until all of Israel's enemies had been slain. Perhaps he wondered what would become of him He had been trying to kill Elijah for years. And now the prophet of God had him at his mercy. No doubt this was a sobering moment for Ahab. I'm sure he realised how helpless and vulnerable he was. Whether by fire from God, or the sword of the people, or by the hand of Elijah himself, he could easily have been slain there and then. However, when Elijah spoke to him, it was kindly, It was in an advising, careful manner. It was to tell him to prepare for the deluge that was coming into the land after these three and a half years of drought. In God's mercy, Ahab would have what he desired, rain for the land, with what that meant for the growth of crops and fertility and wealth and food for the people. So Elijah advised Ahab to eat and drink something. Likely the king had not eaten all day as the drama of the sacrifices unfolded. And now he needed strength for his journey back to Jezreel. Elijah showed both respect and mercy for the king. Ahab had tried to destroy Elijah, but it was not Elijah's place to harm the king. And there's a lesson for all the Lord's people here. A nation's leaders, whether they be good or bad, are placed there in their position by God. And whether they are good or bad, they deserve our allegiance and they deserve our respect. When the time is right, God will bring them down and he will raise up whom he will place in their place. It was not Elijah's role to rid Israel of this wicked man. Even when the opportunity to do so arose, He'd just slain 450 false prophets according to the law of God. But there, Elijah's role ended. And we may not like the actions of our leaders or approve of their policies, but in the providence of God, we are subject to those that God has placed in authority over us. Peter says in his little epistle, honour the king, honour the king. Good king, bad king, honour the king. Paul tells us to pray for the king and those in authority. And this was true for Elijah and it is true for us as well. Ahab was the worst king Israel ever had. But Elijah nevertheless showed him respect for the position that he held. And we can condemn sin without hating the sinner. Knowing what was about to happen, Elijah advised the king to eat some meat, to drink some water, perhaps some wine, and prepare for the deluge that was about to come. As the king dined, as the king had his meal late in the day, Elijah climbed higher on the mountain in order to pray. He was praying for the rain that he had prophesied was about to come. And this too, I think, is very interesting. Despite the Lord telling Elijah that he would send rain, and despite Elijah's confidence that God would send it, the prophet was nevertheless led to pray for its arrival. Furthermore, his prayers were persistent. While he prayed, Elijah sent his servant to look for signs of rain. And time after time, the servant returned to Elijah and said, I can't see anything. And time after time, Elijah told him to go back to the top of the hill and look out over the sea. It was not until he had looked seven times that the first indication of the coming downpour was to be seen. And even then, what the servant saw was just a small cloud on the horizon. He says it was about the size of a man's hand. So I guess that means that he held his hand out in front of his face and it covered the little cloud that he could see on the horizon. That was all that there was. The skies were still blue, or if it was getting dark, then maybe the light was starting to fade. But all he could see was that little cloud on the horizon. He went back to tell Elijah. And that was enough to tell Elijah that the Lord had begun the process of blessing the land as he had promised. And we can tell two things, at least, from this. First, when the Lord tells us in his word that he will do something, it is our role to pray for it to happen. That's what Elijah is teaching us here. Yes, the rain would come. God had promised it, it would certainly come. God doesn't fail to fulfil his promises. But it would not come until Elijah had prayed and waited for the evidence of God's promise fulfilled. It is true that the Lord had decreed whatsoever comes to pass. Yet he has also ordained that his people should ask of him and wait eagerly for what he has promised. I say wait eagerly, also to wait patiently for what he has promised and what he is determined to do. Let me give you some examples. God will judge sin. He will take vengeance on his enemies. He will gather his people. He will save his church. He will preserve us through all the hardships of life until he takes us to be with him in heaven. and the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back. Christ has told us that he will give us grace and he will give us glory. And yet, all these things and more are to be prayed for. Our God waits to be gracious. Yet for all these things he will be inquired of by the house of Israel. He will be prayed to by his people to do it for them. So here's some advice for you. If you ever find yourself wondering what you should pray for, pray for what the Lord has promised and you can't go wrong. The second thing that Elijah's prayer teaches us is that he teaches us to take small beginnings as evidence of fulfilment. Elijah might have thought when his servant came to him, Elijah might have thought, hmm, a cloud the size of a man's hand, I better wait to make sure But he didn't do that. Once he saw the Lord was bringing about what he had promised, he took that as God's signal to begin his next task. This day's work was done. Now Elijah had business in Jezreel and that is where he would go. He sent his servant to inform Ahab to get home speedily before his chariot got bogged down by the rain. And meanwhile the prophet girded up his loins. That's a strange phrase, girded up his loins. It simply means that he wrapped up his long robes and tucked it into his belt. And then he ran ahead of the king all the way to Jizreel, about 17 miles or so. So I imagine that he ran in the rain. Certainly it must have been getting dark. What might we learn from all this? Well, we learn that ultimately all that happens is the Lord's work. Elijah preached the glory and the power of God and prayed for fire from heaven and the Lord sent fire from heaven. Then he prophesied or declared or spoke to Ahab of a sound of abundance of rain. He prayed for rain and the Lord sent the rain. As the Lord's servants, which is what we are, we who trust in him, as the Lord's servants, we do not personally do God's works, but we anticipate them by announcing them and by praying for them. And we honour the Lord by believing that he will do what he has promised in his word. Here are another couple of applications that I just want to draw from these few verses and then we'll be done. The little cloud was a very small sign of the huge deluge that was to come. And this rain would bless the land once more with rivers and streams and lakes and fertility. The earth would give forth its crops. It's good practice for you and me to note the small blessings God gives us from time to time, because these little blessings will form into larger blessings as God's will unfolds. Fire fell from heaven in an instance Showing God's judgment can be swift, but grace often unfolds slowly. Just as the rain clouds that water the earth gather and build up over time, that's how God's grace often unfolds to us. But either way, whether it is swiftly, whether it is quickly, or whether it is slowly, over time, our Lord's purpose is being accomplished and His promises are being fulfilled. Maybe you think you're too young, too small, too unknown. to make much difference or contribute much to the Lord's work. That's not true. No matter how insignificant we feel ourselves to be, the Lord makes much of what is offered to him in faith. Zechariah speaks of the day of small things. And even as young people, we can pray and thank the Lord for his goodness. Another thing we learn from these verses is this. Faith and worship are beautiful qualities in Elijah's life. This had been a momentous day for the prophet, a great success for the prophet. And yet he at once took himself away from the crowd, away from the king, and bowed himself low before God. Let us remember to give the Lord all the honour that is due to him for his grace and for his goodness. If the Lord is willing to use us to serve his purpose, no glory comes to us. Like Elijah, we are only tools employed in his hand. It is the craftsman who receives the praise, not the instrument that he uses. All any of us can truly do for the Lord is to bring our trust and our worship to him. And finally, let us move on from Elijah to think about the Lord Jesus. We read in verse 45, the heaven was black with clouds and wind and there was a great rain. This great rain was God's mercy and blessing upon the earth. Our God promises to pour out his grace like showers of blessing upon those who hear the gospel and come to the Lord Jesus Christ. In the gospel, God freely supplies spiritual blessings. Blessings of grace such as peace with God and pardon for sin and forgiveness and justifying righteousness and everlasting life. The rain that fell on Israel that day was an outpouring of God's goodness and mercy and a token of his covenant love to his people. That mercy, that covenant love is still to be found in Jesus Christ by all who come to him for peace with God. And pardon for sin is to be had from our Saviour. God's blessings of grace are available to be asked for and sought after. We mentioned Zechariah a few moments ago. Let me mention him again. He was another one of the Old Testament prophets. He says this, Rain in the time of the latter rain. Or ask of the Lord blessing. Ask of the Lord mercy. That's what Zechariah is saying here. Ask ye of the Lord rain in the time of the latter rain. So the Lord shall make bright clouds and give them showers of rain to every one grass in his field. We can paraphrase that and say this. to everyone's spiritual life and growth and blessing in our hearts. May the Lord give us grace to seek the Lord Jesus Christ and his blessings today. Amen.