There are two stories going on in your life – the Upper Story and the Lower Story. We all live in and see life from the perspective of the lower story. No matter how hard we try, we can only see so far down the road because humanity’s viewpoint is linear, horizontal, limited. All our decisions require some sort of faith or trust in what we cannot control around the corner. The Upper Story is how the things look from God’s perspective. His viewpoint is panoramic, vertical, unlimited. Not only does he see around the next bend in the road, he sees it all from beginning to end. The goal is to align our Lower Story to God’s Upper Story because when we do, God promises it will be a good story.
SUMMARY
Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse, it does. Israel sank deeper and deeper into the cesspool of idolatry under the royal wickedness of Ahab and Jezebel. They led the people further into idolatry and disregarded the God who had made them a nation. The people of promise had broken their promises. But YHWH is a jealous God who would not sit idly on His heavenly throne and allow worthless non-gods and their followers to go unchecked. So He called prophets who would speak on His behalf and demonstrate that there is no God but Himself. Sounding the alarm, these prophets warned faithless Israel that her unbelief would march her right into captivity.
Elijah warned Ahab that Israel would experience a 3-year drought because of their worship of the pagan god, Baal. The shriveled up land seemed a fitting picture of Israel’s desiccated hearts and shrunken worship. Ahab had gone so far as to build a temple for Baal in the capital city of Samaria. Then, atop Mount Carmel, the supposed sacred dwelling place of Baal, Elijah challenged the idolaters to the ultimate smackdown—YHWH vs. Baal. Baal failed to show up but the LORD made a dramatic statement when He consumed the water-logged sacrifice with fire. Elijah then put to death the 450 prophets of Baal. Ahab’s wife Jezebel, the Queen of Mean, threatened to kill him so Elijah fled into the desert. Fatalistic, fearful and not without some Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Mount Horeb. God revealed Himself there to Elijah, much like He had done nearly 600 years earlier to Moses at Sinai. He told Elijah that he had kings and prophets to anoint – one of whom was his successor, Elisha. Once again, as with Moses and Joshua, God was passing the baton to the next generation of leaders who would speak for Him.
While the two prophets were traveling together, Elijah parted the Jordan by striking the water with his cloak – another throwback to Moses. As they continued on, a whirlwind took Elijah up to heaven in a chariot of fire. The cloak fell to Elisha whose authority was confirmed when he too divided the Jordan. Similar to Elijah before him, Elisha performed many miraculous feats for the benefit of the faithful remnant in Israel. He promised a barren Shunammite woman a son. When the boy suddenly died years later, Elisha brought him back to life. When the Aramean king sent his troops to capture the man of God, Elisha prayed. He asked God to open his servant’s eyes so he could see the angels who were standing guard around them and to blind the Arameans. The prophet then led his captives to Samaria where he asked the king of Israel to prepare a feast of friendship in lieu of execution. This unconventional act of grace established peace between Israel and Aram.
Even with the powerful ministries of Elijah and Elisha, the deeply embedded idolaters remained
powerful, numerous, and unrepentant in Israel. God sent Amos, a herdsman from the southern kingdom of Judah, to warn the northern kingdom of Israel that her prosperity, injustice, and sinful ways would soon be judged. He promised them that if Israel did not repent, they would be taken captive. God also sent Hosea to Israel as a living object lesson of His faithfulness and Israel’s unfaithfulness. Israel refused to hear the pleas of God to return to Him.
God’s holiness demands judgment against rebellious men, but His redemptive love always provides a way of escape. Whether it’s a mountaintop showdown, a boy raised from the dead, a vision of guardian angels, or a prophet commanded to marry a woman who would become unfaithful, God is always telling His Upper Story of redemption and compassion through His messengers.
QUESTIONS
- When you were growing up how did your parents warn you that you were in trouble? Was there a special word or phrase that they used?
- Baal worshipers believed their god made rain and storms, and during the dry season he needed to be brought back to life. Mount Carmel was his supposed sacred dwelling place. What was the point of God taking the battle to enemy territory? Look up Deuteronomy 13:1-5. Why does God take idolatry so seriously?
- Elisha’s spiritual insight allowed him to know the plans of the king of Aram and to see God’s angelic armies. What are the forces at work in our world today that we cannot see (p. 211-212)? What did this teach you about spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:12)?
- What role did prayer play in Elijah’s life? Look up James 5:16-18. What made Elijah’s prayer effective? What makes you righteous and your prayers effective? (See 2 Corinthians 5:21 and Galatians 3:6 for further insight.)
- Do you see any similarities between the prophecies of Amos and Hosea and our world today? What do you think they would say to the Western culture? Our church?
- Hosea wrote, “A spirit of prostitution is in their heart; they do not acknowledge the LORD … They are unfaithful to the LORD; they give birth to illegitimate children” (Hosea 5:4, 7). What is he getting at? How can this be applied to us today?
- Evaluate the prophets’ ministries. On what basis would you judge whether or not they were successful? How should we evaluate our own success for the kingdom?
- The prophets must have struggled greatly to keep ministering despite feeling that their efforts were not changing a thing. What are some ways we are called to be ‘truth tellers’ in the corrupt culture of the 21stcentury, even if we can’t see the effects of our labour? What sphere of influence or what person in your life needs the truth spoken in love?
TAKE-AWAY
It’s easy to get lost in the weeds—in the Lower Story of the details, mess, and chaos of daily life. But if we are to be the truth-tellers of our generation, let’s resolve to step back, get some perspective, and see the big picture. Let’s resolve to make it our mission to display Christianity as deliverance from a life of bondage, rather than a weapon to beat people up with. Let’s resolve to speak the truth in love to a bewildered, dazed world that doesn’t just need to sober up, try harder, dream bigger, or believe in themselves a little more. The world needs a clear, compelling message of grace, hope, and freedom found only in Jesus. Speak up and tell the truth.
PRAYER
Thank you for being a God who is faithful to never let us go, but to always correct us and call us back home. Thank you for the messenger prophets, the truth tellers, you have placed in our lives who always point us back to you and your ways of grace and truth. Through Your power, help us step up as your messengers, that we might be your witnesses under our roofs, in our marketplace, and to the uttermost parts of the earth. Amen.
