Hate (John 15:18-27 Jeff Kliewer)

Deuteronomy’s Call to Total Devotion

And I want to say good morning, it is awesome to be together. Scripture gives us certain insights into the heart of God and how our relationship with God is really driven by our heart. One of them is in Deuteronomy 10 -12.

Now it's an exhortation to the nation of Israel, but I think it directly applies to us, his children today. And so I want to read this passage to you and there's an emphasis on the extent and the depth of what he's calling for.

Deuteronomy 10 -12. And now Israel, now cornerstone believers, brothers and sisters, What does the Lord your God require from you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve Him, the Lord your God, with all your heart and with all your soul?

This proclamation, this exhortation for us to be following Him, it applies to us and it can't be taken, I don't think, casually, cavalierly. It is looking for a dedication to God. There are four imperatives in there.

The first one is to fear the Lord. We are given an exhortation to put Him above all else. The world has so many options out there. We are to fear the Lord. Pastor Jeff's going to talk to us on how that applies to life, regardless of some of the circumstances that get thrown to us.

Walk in His ways, it says. We are to choose His way above all other ways. The ways that we can go, the things that we can do, the enjoyment, the pleasure, we are to walk in His ways and we are to love Him.

Those things that call for our attention, that call for our affection, we are told to love Him. We should give Him our heart above everything else, above all else. And then we are told to serve Him. Give Him your allegiance above everything else.

The extent of the obedience that God desires from us, He requires from us, is the totality of our heart and the totality of our soul. That's why we're here this morning. I want to give you a couple of announcements.

Some things are coming up, but before I get into the rest of the announcements, if somebody saw or noticed a set of keys, the Thompsons are looking for their keys. Somewhere between the sanctuary and their car, they could not find their keys.

If anybody found them, you have permission to get up and walk out and give them to the Thompsons. We have baptism coming up in a couple of weeks. After second service, it's on the 19th or 17th, it's in two weeks down the shore.

It is, as I understand, the class has got a significant number of people wanting to publicly proclaim their relationship with God in the waters of baptism. If you're one of those, praise God, we are excited that you are.

But the rest of the church family, make it your desire that day to go down the shore and to experience this testimony of baptism. It's going to be out in the public for other people to see. What an amazing time.

In a couple of weeks after that, we're going to have another starting point class. We do this usually a couple of times a year. If you are new to our church, if you are new to the Evangelical Free Church, if you perhaps desire membership, we give you a three-week class, an introduction to our church.

We encourage you to be part of that. It will be taught during second service. You don't have to sign up, you can just show up. You can let me know, Jeff, somebody up here, one of the elders, that you'd like to do it.

We would love to get you involved. The Marriage Matters class, which is starting in about a week and a half, I understand it's actually filled up. This is an amazing answer to prayer because just a few weeks ago, there was only one family and they had the class, and now the class is filled.

So there, praise God for that. Pray for the class, and I'm sure that it will be offered again. So that's out there. The study that we hold Wednesdays at noon, we're studying the book of Daniel. We'll be resuming.

We took the summer off, Jeff and I. We both were away for a while. You were really away for a while. Anyway, we're going to be resuming, but it's not this Wednesday with Labor Day weekend. It will be next Wednesday, the 13th.

We will resume our Wednesday noon study. So we look forward to that. The men's breakfast is not going to occur tomorrow. Tomorrow is Labor Day. It will be the following Monday. So the men's breakfast would be on the 11th.

That's not true. Yeah, it is. It's going to be 9 -11. Guys, we're going to have to have some special prayer on that morning. If you're following the book, it's Retractions chapter 4 and 5. So join with us in that.

Worship, Communion, and the Call to Confession

Let's turn to prayer. Lord, we come to you this morning in worship, not because we're worthy of it, but because we are called to be your children. We've been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. And so, Father, we come to you in worship of who you are, all you do.

Lord, we surrender ourselves. Lord, we choose you above all else that we may have an opportunity to follow after. So we follow you above all. You give us the way of truth. And we serve you, Lord, above all.

There is no other master in our lives. Father, we pray that your church will flourish around the world, that your church will have an impact as the light and the salt, the ministry of the Holy Spirit, and that we here at Cornerstone, your church here in Mount Laurel, that we will remain true to your word and that we will be able to impact lives through your word.

For Pastor Jeff, we pray that you watch over him and his family and that today, Lord, as you've prepared Jeff with your words, we anticipate them, that you would open our hearts, that we would have a time of worship given to you and genuine and pleasing in your sight.

We thank you, Lord. We come before you in Jesus' name. Amen.

I want to make sure everyone has a lyric sheet this morning. If you need one, just raise your hand real quick. If you can stand with me. Servants of creation, praise the name of the Lord. Night and morning, sing his glory.

Now and forever before. Praise the name of the Lord. None as holy, none as worthy. Now and forevermore. Creation, creation, who is like the Lord our God? Who is like the Lord our God? It says in Colossians 2, 13, 14, you were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away.

Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all of our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. Lord, we stand here before you, before your throne, humbly singing songs to you in your name because of your power.

The power and love that you told us from the very beginning that you would send us a redeemer. Thank you, Lord, for sending us your son to forgive us. Of the darkest day, I stoned the road to became. It's been on your buried upstairs, bitter evil deed.

Crowning your bloodstain on the ground beneath. Quakes at his maker, bows his head. Finish the victory. Crown this the power of your son to live. It was 1491 BC.

Israel had been in captivity for a long time in Egypt. Things were about to change. Taking it back 400 or so years ago, it's recorded that Joseph, in speaking to his brothers, said these words, you intended it for evil, but God meant it for good.

And so the family was protected and they flourished. Then they became captives and they became slaves in Egypt for a long time. Fast forwarding, the people of Egypt had become so numerous that the fear of them overrunning the Egyptians, there was a decree to kill the newborn child from the Hebrews.

And a woman, led by God's sovereignty, took her baby, placed him in a basket, put him in the water in the reeds, and Pharaoh's daughter found him, raised him. So Moses was given this privilege, but he fell.

He murdered. And so he ran, he fled out into the wilderness. And it was there some years later that he encountered a bush that was burning, but not consumed. And as he approaches the bush, he's told, take the sandals off your feet, you're on hollow ground.

And it's there that he heard the voice, I am. Then he was told to go to Pharaoh so that his people, God's people, could be set free. And so Joseph went and he pled with Pharaoh, but Pharaoh said no and there were plagues.

And Joseph pled again and there were plagues. Seven times, until finally, God had his people murdered. An innocent lamb, and that blood was shed. And that blood was placed on the lintel of the door and on the doorposts, so that in the middle of the night when the angel of death came by, that blood would be the protection, that blood would be the deliverance for the people who stayed inside the house.

And they shared a meal that night and it became known as the Passover. And it was a remembrance that when that blood was shed and placed on the door and on the lintel, the angel of death passed by and they were released from captivity.

Forwarding in time, the Messiah told his followers, prepare a room, we are going to celebrate the Passover. And so they go into the upper room and there Jesus washes their feet and he teaches them many things.

And he tells them that I must go to the cross, I must die, my blood must be shed. And they said, no, don't, can't be so. And he said, it must be so. But if I leave, I will send you another, a comforter.

And there they shared the meal. Jesus was taken, willingly. They did not overrun him, he went willingly, obediently to the father. And so he was beaten, he was scourged. And he takes the cross up the Via Dolorosa and the blood shedding down from his brow falls down on that cross.

As he's walking and he stumbles and he falls and the guards grab a man, help carry it up there because he is in such bad way. They lay him down, they nail his hands and his feet to the cross. They raise that cross and they drop it into that hole with a thud and there he hangs.

Not taken, but willingly and obediently. And his blood is now shed on that cross for you, for me because my brothers and sisters, we're sinners and we deserved punishment. But as he hung on that cross, my sins, your sins, the sins of all time were on that cross.

This was foreknown since before time that this would happen. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? As Jesus knew at that instant in time that he carried sin and the father cannot look upon sin. But he obediently did it and then he yelled, to Telestai, it's finished.

The payment for our sins complete. This was all foretold in that upper room as Jesus sat with his disciples and told them and they shared the elements, the bread. The wine represented of his blood. And it's there for a remembrance for us.

It's one of the ordinances that we partake in. To remember. The blood that was shed on the lintel and the doorposts had to be done over and over and over again as they celebrated the Passover. But as Jesus went to the cross, it was once for all.

But we get to do it over and over as a remembrance of what he did for us. And we're about to take these elements. But before we do that, I think we are given exhortation by Paul who records the events that took place.

And it says in chapter 11, starting in verse 27, whoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup.

For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. As we come to this table, let's turn to prayer. Let's confess our sins. Let's have our hearts turned to him.

Let's pray. Lord, I don't even have to go past this morning to realize that I've sinned against you. I can't hide my sins. They're against you. You, as the all-knowing God, as the all-holy God. You knew of my sins from before the foundation of the world, and you knew my inability to pay the penalty in love you sent your Son, who obediently went to the cross.

We come to you, Lord, confessing our sins, repenting of our sins, celebrating you, remembering you, saying thank you. As we take these elements, Lord, we do so in obedience to you. We pray these things in Jesus' name.

I'm asking the servers to come forward, please. I can only imagine the thoughts of the men that sat there with him at that meal. This Passover was a tradition, but this was different. This was different, because Jesus made a proclamation to them that made it different.

For I have received of the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, that same night in which he betrayed, took the bread, and when he had given thanks to the Lord, he said, take, eat, this is my body, which is broken for you.

Do this in remembrance of me. Take this element in remembrance of Jesus' broken body. Take, eat, in remembrance of the body of Christ, broken for you. Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins.

Jesus goes to the cross, and he died for my sins. His blood was shed. Jesus, after the same manner, he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the New Testament in my blood. This do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

And we take this element in remembrance of his blood. Take, drink, in remembrance of the blood of Christ, shed for you.

Of the cross that cannot come, perfect Holy One, crushed your son. Reserved for us, washed away my sin. Jesus, thank you. The Father's wrath, completely satisfied. Jesus, thank you. Once your enemy, now seated at your table.

Jesus, thank you.

Persecution, Hate Speech, and the Christian Response

Gracious Heavenly Father, thank you so much for giving your one and only Son, that we who believe in Christ would have eternal life. Thank you for the body broken, and the blood shed, for the forgiveness of sin, and eternal life.

We pray now, Lord, as we open your word, that you would nourish us by your word. Give us strength to endure. Change the way we think. Make us more God-centered in our thinking. And Lord, teach us to love.

We pray that you would remove any anger and bitterness in us, Lord, because these things do not achieve the righteousness of God. Make us slow to anger, quick to listen, slow to speak. Help us to be loving, for you are love.

In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Persecution of Christians has gone on since the first century. And when we think of martyrs and the persecution that Christians undergo, it's very often associated with the Muslim countries.

There are 41 Muslim countries in the world. Voice of the Martyrs tells many stories of Christian persecution around the world. But very often we think that persecution won't touch us here in the United States of America.

It won't come to the West, because in many ways, Christianity has restrained the evil of mankind and given us protection from many of those things. But there are many in the culture who hate the rule of God.

There are many who hate the Father's rule. And there is a rising movement against God's holy word. The nation of Finland was a Reformation nation, very much touched by Lutheranism. And there is a state Lutheran church in Finland.

One would not expect that Finland would see the persecution of Christians. But just on Thursday and Friday of this week, a parliament member named Pavi Rosonen, 62 years old, a grandmother of 10, and a medical doctor, very well-spoken woman, was brought on charges due to a tweet from 2019 in which she questioned the state Lutheran church celebrating Pride Month.

Her tweet did nothing more than post an Instagram picture of a Bible verse, Romans chapter one, and verses 24 to 27, which speak against these LGBTQ movements. All she did was post a Bible verse and she was called up on charges on the grounds of a hate crime.

She was actually charged for agitation against a minority group under the provision that falls under war crimes and crimes against humanity. Her first trial was in 2022 and she was seemingly acquitted, but now she was brought back up again here in 2023.

The prosecutor said that she has bad speech, alleging that the use of the Bible in speaking of sin is hurtful to people. It can be harmful to people. In fact, this prosecutor even compared the Bible to Mein Kampf, written by Hitler.

And the state prosecutor said, the point isn't whether or not it's true. The point is that it's insulting. She granted that you can cite the Bible, but you cannot speak words that would be viewed or felt to be insulting.

Her quote was, you can cite the Bible, but it is Rosanen's interpretation and opinion about the Bible verses that are criminal. This particular Rosanen did well to speak the truth of God's word. And she was also very careful not to be insulting or demeaning of individuals.

She simply said, what I am preaching is, or teaching is the common Christian sexual ethic, which has been understood for two millennia. Nothing has changed and nothing more. But she said, listen, now is the time to speak because the more we are silent, the narrower the space for freedom of speech and of religion grows.

Now is the time to speak because if we're silent, the window for speaking the truth will be closed. It will become narrower and narrower. I would like for us to pray for the verdict, which will come out in November because it will affect her life, but it will also affect precedent for Western countries.

Will the Bible be regarded as hate speech? Now the great irony in this charge brought against this woman is that they are accusing her of the very thing that's in their heart. This woman is actually filled with joy and speaks with triumphant victory and happiness as she communicates the truth of God's word.

She doesn't come across as a victim. She's not embittered. She trusts God's sovereignty and she speaks joyfully and yet they accuse her of hate speech. Well, of course, very often, people who are perpetrating crimes against others accuse the very people of the thing that they're doing.

We see this more and more in our culture. People will accuse others of what is actually in their heart. And as we turn now to John 15, 18 to 27, this is precisely what we are to expect. Christians will be hated on account of our obedience to the word of God and the rule of the Father, on account of the word and account of the name of Jesus Christ.

We're going to read John 15, verses 18 to 25 this morning. Before we read it, remember what has happened so far in John 15. Jesus so lovingly compares Christians to branches that are connected to him who is the vine.

The analogy of vine and branches. And then he goes on to explain what deep love he has for his disciples. He had just washed their feet and now he tells them that greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

He's telling them that he will die for them. And he says, I no longer call you servants because a servant does not know his master's business. From now on, I have called you friends. He treats them as friends and he reminds them that they did not choose him, but he chose them.

God the father had chosen them before the foundation of the world. Jesus will lay down his life for them and then the spirit will make known to them because servants don't know their master's business, but friends know the heart of the one that loves them.

This passage is about love. And so now as we begin to read, notice the sharp contrast with verse 18. Suddenly he's talking about the opposite of love and that is hate. You are loved infinitely by God.

Expect then to be hated in the world by those who reject the love of God. Let's read it. If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own.

But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, a servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.

If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name. Because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin.

But now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not be guilty of sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my father.

But the word that is written in their law must be fulfilled. They hated me without a cause. Clearly this passage is about hate. The hate that the world will have for us as Christians, but that hate is not because of us, it is actually because of him.

The one with whom we identify. When we are hated, as we should expect to be, we draw nearer to Christ. Look at verses 18 and 19. Having knowledge of where this hate comes from actually helps us draw nearer to Christ in the middle of this persecution.

If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. If you are of the world, the world would love you as its own. But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.

There is a hatred directed against Christians that is on account of the name of Jesus. Hate directed against Christians not because of what we have done or who we are. The world would love you if you followed in the path of the world.

But as soon as you go down under the waters of baptism, identifying with Christ, being baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, identified with him, now you are reckoned as he is. And how was he treated?

The world did not receive him, did not love him, but rejected him and sent him to the cross. The word of God is precious to us at this point in time because without knowledge of why we are hated, we would be unable to endure it.

But this word, notice in verse 18, if the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it has hated you. Know, God has told us ahead of time what we are to know, what knowledge from his word will change our perception.

Our worldview, when it is through the lens of scripture, will change how we see everything and how we interpret things that happen to us. The hatred we experience is on account of the name of Jesus. And when we understand this point, that hatred actually draws us nearer to him.

Remember what Paul said in Philippians 3? I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings. You can know Christ through suffering. Jesus had said in Matthew 5, blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.

Rejoice and be glad for your reward is great in heaven for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. How can we rejoice when being hated? That joy comes from knowing that we are identifying with Christ and valuing him, upholding him, and that is the reason for the hate that we receive.

It draws us into closer fellowship with him. We know him more in the suffering. I recall a time in my life when I was a missionary in inner city Philadelphia. And there was a tradition in the city, it still goes on to this day, of holding block parties.

A block party would clear the street. Everybody would get their cars off the street and then the kids could ride bicycles. If the block party was happening during the day, it was usually a really fun kind of thing.

But at night, it was usually kind of the opposite. Well, at this particular block party on Orleans Street, I was a bit late removing my car because I didn't know that this was happening. And I was driving slowly off the block and I rolled down the window and began to speak to a friend of ours who happened to be the block captain who lived there.

And just then, one of her friends who had seen me and was very angry at me, I think knowing that we were Christians and why we were there, she came up to me and pushed her friend aside with a beer in her hand, angry yelling at me and threw her beer in my face.

And it drenched my shirt. I was soaked in her beer. And so I didn't know really what to do. Her friend scolded her for doing that, so she came to my defense. But I just sort of rolled up my window and pulled slowly down the street on Orleans Street.

And as I took the parking spot and began to look in the rear view mirror, I began to pray and say, Lord, help me understand what just happened. What am I to take from this? See, my flesh would not have responded like that.

And I'm sure each of you can kind of imagine if someone just threw a beer in your face for no reason, without cause, what would you want to say to them? Everything in me was angry, just indignant. Who would do that and why?

And so there I sat when the word of God came back to me. I began to pray, and I looked in the rear view mirror, and as clear as day, I heard God say, not audibly, but just in a thought, calling to remembrance, words of scripture, they are like sheep without a shepherd.

And as I was looking in that rear view mirror, I remember seeing children riding their bicycles and seeing that group of friends, the one who had thrown her beer, and all of them carrying on. And I thought they were like sheep without a shepherd.

And I began to pray, and the Lord gave me an idea in that second. He said, you should throw a block party for the name that is above every name. You should throw an evangelistic festival. And so within that year, we took out a permit and had a block party on Orleans Street.

And we had friends come from different churches, and we brought in inflatables with water slides and all kinds of fun games for the kids. And then we sat down and one-on-one shared the gospel with whoever came to the block party.

And many dozens and dozens of people said that they believed in Christ. And so we continued to do this, and we started taking out larger and larger streets, Allegheny Avenue. And before long, we would have thousands of people coming to these block parties.

We would get the Christian rappers out there on the stage, which included me at one point. I was a Christian rapper. You don't want to hear how that went. No, I didn't do it at the block party, but I would rap for the teens a little bit.

So we would entertain and we would have fun, but then we would sit with each person who was willing to sit down and share the gospel of Jesus Christ. And sometimes we'd have a stack of 300 decision cards of people that say they prayed to accept the Lord.

Now, I'm sure many of those were false conversions, but many of them were genuine. Point being, when we know what Jesus is saying here, that the hatred of the world against Christians is actually against Christ, and it is a privilege to share in his sufferings, a little wet shirt can be resolved by taking a shower and changing your clothes.

But when we see the world through the lens of God's sovereignty and his love, his plan, it changes our entire worldview. I want you to see something profound here in verses 20 and 21. And that is that this hatred that's in the heart of the world against Christians will come out in persecution.

In certain countries, parts of India and China, and certainly the 41 Muslim countries, there will be violent physical persecution of Christians. Here in America, it might be a family member that despises you without cause.

It might be your own brother or sister or mother or father, or even a child that begins to despise you and have hatred towards you. And you wonder, where is God in all of this? This passage teaches us that we are to expect persecution.

Let's read it. 20 and 21, remember the word that I said to you. Listen, you need to remember this church so that you're not taken by surprise. Do not be surprised by the fiery trial that has come upon you.

Peter will tell us, a servant is not greater than his master. You are a friend of the king. You are a servant of the king. And the king, the master, was discarded like trash. He was hung up on a cross.

He was beaten beyond recognition. And it should be within our purview, our worldview, that we will be treated like this at some point in our lives. You are not above your master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you.

They will. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. Had they been receptive to the word of God, then they would listen to what you have to say when you come preaching. But expect when you go preaching the gospel to see diametrically opposed responses.

Some will receive it as the aroma of life, others as the aroma of death. When Phil and I go to Princeton, we notice that the professors that we've spoken to are indignant and angry, and they persecute.

They will say harsh things. I know why you're here. I know what you're doing. Get away from me. Be quiet. Get out of here. They're very harsh and angry because they're more hardened in their sin. They've been rejecting the light, and now they've come to hate the message of the gospel.

We are to expect this. If they kept my word, they will keep yours. But all these things they will do to you on account of my name. The more aggressive you are as an evangelist, the more you will experience the persecution of the world.

Everyone who desires to do the will of God will be persecuted, we are told. Turn with me to 1 Kings 22. I want to share with you just an amazing story. I love this story. One of the best in the Bible as far as interesting events taking place.

1 Kings 22. Here the king of Israel, whose name is Ahab, has it in mind to go conquer Ramoth-Gilead, which used to be a part of Israel but is now overrun by the Syrians. So he calls on the king of Judah, that's Jehoshaphat, to join with him, and Jehoshaphat says, yeah, I'll go with you into war.

Hey, my horses are like your horses. My people are like your people. We're gonna go take this if that's God's will. But call on a prophet. Call the prophets to tell us if this is God's will because Jehoshaphat knew the Lord.

Ahab, the northern king, was wicked. So he goes along with his friend Jehoshaphat, they call the prophets, and all of them say the same thing. Yeah, God's gonna give it to you, you're gonna win. But Jehoshaphat smelled something funny with how these guys were prophesying.

Maybe it was this Zedekiah guy who put on some horns of iron and started to say, with these horns of iron, you're gonna ram them out of your town. And he acted like a holy prophet, and yet he was lying.

Now listen, Jehoshaphat said, isn't there another prophet around here? Somebody else that seems more credible? He wasn't really buying the prophecies of these men. And look at verse eight. The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, yeah, there's yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micaiah, the son of Imlah, but I hate him.

I hate him. I hate that guy. For he never prophesies good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, let not the king say so. Don't talk like that. He's a prophet of God, you need to listen. Church, you will be hated as Micaiah was hated to the degree that you speak the truth.

Now, when they called for him, this is verse 13, the person seeking Micaiah said, listen, all the prophets are saying the same thing. You're gonna conquer. Why don't you just go in and speak favorably?

But Micaiah said, I will speak only what the Lord tells me to say. That's very instructive to you, church, and to me. The world will say to you, why don't you just go along with what everybody else is saying?

Everybody is affirming of this new thing. Why do you have to be the stick in the mud? What is it to you? Why can't you just go along with things and stop speaking against all the time? But Micaiah says, look here with me at verse 14, as the Lord lives, what the Lord says to me, that I will speak.

We will speak the word. We will tell people what God says from his word. And here he has direct revelation because he's a prophet. We then have the written word and can affirm everything that God has already said.

In verse 15, when he came to the king, the king said to him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth Gilead to battle or shall we refrain? And he answered him, go up and triumph. The Lord will give it into the hand of the king.

Now, hold on. The true prophet just said what those crazy false prophets said. How could this be? Look at the next verse. Verse 16. But the king said to him, how many times shall I make you swear that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?

King Ahab knew right away, based on his response, that Micaiah was speaking sarcastically. Sarcasm is a rhetorical device. We don't know the tone of his voice from here, but from the context, we can understand what he's saying.