Run for Your Life — Carter Conlon

Run for Your Life — Carter Conlon

Word for the nation this afternoon. My wife Teresa brought a prophetic word, I would have to call it such, for the individual, honest, heart-seeking Christian. And tonight the Holy Spirit has given me a word for the Church of Jesus Christ.

Now, by that I mean the body at large, everyone who calls themselves by the name of Jesus Christ, who would have the testimony of saying, I am by virtue of the atoning blood of Jesus Christ on Calvary saved.

Everyone who defines their Christianity that way, this message is for them. Now, Father, I thank you for the anointing, I thank you for the quickening power of the Holy Spirit. I ask you, Holy Spirit, to animate me tonight.

I ask you, Holy Spirit, that what I would speak and how it would be spoken, that you would organize my thoughts and even the intonations of my voice would be the heart of God. I truly tonight ask you for the grace to disappear, that you may appear to back away, that your glory may be seen.

I ask that the church you've gathered tonight not be aware of any human vessels here, but just be aware of your presence, Lord, just be mindful of your word and stand in awe of your mercy. My God, let there be a spirit of repentance come unto your church.

Israel’s Compromise with Baal

I ask this in Jesus' name. Now, 1 Kings chapter 18 was a time of great spiritual conflict. Once again, the children of God, the heritage of God had strayed from truth. They had fallen far, far, far away from the victorious days of Joshua.

When God's heritage first went into the promised land and under Joshua and his leadership had conquered, albeit they hadn't conquered entirely through their own neglect, but nevertheless, those still were victorious days.

But now, terrible tragedy had happened to the children of God, and it was because of the refusal to separate themselves from the gods of the society round about them. You recall Moses speaking to the people and telling them, the gods that you don't drive out are going to be a snare to you.

They're going to be thorns in your sides. They're going to rob you, in a sense, of the true heritage of God that he desired to give you because you refused to separate from them. They're going to swallow you up, and that's exactly where we are years down the road in 1 Kings chapter 18.

The people of God were captivated by a false god called Baal. Now, Baal was the god of personal increase and prosperity, and his worship included immoral practices and sensuality. In other words, the people were captivated by the desire for personal increase.

That means anything that could build themselves, as it were, anything that could prop up self, anything that could make them prosper, and it included an allowance to be immoral and yet still have a sense that they were in the presence of God.

It was a licentious religion, a very wicked, very immoral, very sensual. The people walked only by their senses. If it rained and the crops were good, then by their natural senses they would say that God, Baal, is pleased with us.

He's pleased to send us increase. He's pleased to send us prosperity. Obviously, the sensuality, because that was the very core of their so-called worship, led them into immorality and led them into horrid and immoral practices.

Elijah’s Challenge to a Compromised People

In the midst of this immoral religious practice, God raised up a voice of truth, because, beloved, in every generation and among every people, God Almighty has never left without a testimony. Never. He will always have a testimony.

There will always be a word. It may not be popular, it may not be the majority, but His voice will still be heard. He is God. He did create the universe. He does govern the world. He does hold every one of us tonight in the palm of His hand, and He will speak to anyone who wants to hear.

Verse 19 and 20, Elijah issued a challenge to a wicked king called Ahab, who was ruling at that time, and he said, Now therefore, send and gather unto me all Israel unto Mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal, 450, and the prophets of the groves, 400, which eat at Jezebel's table.

Now, these are prophets that have a connection, as it is, to power. That was their lust. That's where they ate. That's where they lived. Jezebel, as it is, was the queen. She had access to all the wealth, perhaps, and the prosperity of the nation.

And these men lusted for it. That's the table. They didn't want the table of God. That's the table they wanted to eat at, and so that's where they ate. And Ahab said unto all the children of Israel, verse 20, and gathered the prophets together unto Mount Carmel.

Now, Mount Carmel was very significant because Mount Carmel was the place where Joshua had previously defeated one of the Canaanite kings. So technically, Elijah was trying to draw them back to a place of remembrance.

This is what the Holy Spirit will always do with the people of God. He will always woo. The Holy Spirit doesn't come to condemn the church of Jesus Christ, in spite of how apostate she may have become.

The Holy Spirit still comes and tries to draw back that which is alienated from the heart of God, that which is in league with immoral leaders, that which is also lusting for power and provision and all these other things that society has to offer.

Elijah, verse 21, says, Elijah came to all the people and said, How long will you halt between two opinions? If the Lord be God, follow him. But if Baal, then follow him. Now, the Holy Spirit is speaking to Elijah.

There was an indecisiveness in the heart of the people. There was a mysterious, as it is, inner knowledge that this is really not God. It's fun. And our senses are being touched and there's a sense of provision, but it's not God.

And that's why the indecision, that's why they they could go, but they could not fully yield to Baal, because there's a deep inner knowledge. This is not the altar of God. How long will you halt? He said.

The word in Hebrew for halt means, listen very carefully, says to hop, to skip over, to spare or to dance as a lame man. Elijah is saying to the church of his time, how long will you continue to skip over the truth?

How long will you continue to spare yourself any deep dealings and deep callings of God? How long will you continue to worship as a lame man when you could behold? How long, Elijah? Why do you halt between two opinions?

Why do you stop at this place of halfway to heaven and halfway to hell and you cannot make up your mind where you're going to live, which side you're going to commit yourself to? And the scripture says, and the people answered him, not a word.

Now, that's an incredible thing. He is issuing them a challenge. They know this is a man of God. They know they would have a testimony if they left that place that particular day. The people would walk away.

I'm not now talking about the prophets of Baal. I'm talking about the people that were gathered. They would walk away if somebody were to mention the name Elijah. Without hesitation, they say he is a man of God.

Wherever he goes, the fire of God goes. Wherever he is, there's a sense of awe. There's a sense of God that goes with this man that travels with him. Oh, yes, he is a man of God. Yet when this man of God puts the question before them of who is it that you're going to serve?

They don't answer. They can't answer. And you know, strangely enough, that's the way it is even sometimes here. Times Square Church, men of God will stand before you, clearly cutting between soul and spirit, joint and marrow, and going right to the thoughts and intents of the heart.

And yet people sit, no response. And the question is always the same. God says, will you come back to me? Will you come to that place of remembrance? They answer, not a word. No response. Hoping perhaps the conviction will just go away.

The Divided Heart and False Religion

You see, the people knew in their hearts that Baal was not God. That's why they could neither yield to him nor answer. And we ask ourselves the question, well, why? Why this mysterious silence? Now, firstly, some people genuinely felt that they had been touched there at this altar.

And false religion does offer a comfort, folks. I want you to know that. It does. False religion can make you dance. False religion can make you happy. False religion can give you a sense that you're prospering.

Oh, yes, false religion can can make you happy. It can give you a sense of satisfaction. People do it all over the world. And some places, they're having a lot of fun doing it. And they felt perhaps they've been genuinely touched there.

And in the heart saying, well, do I really? I know it's not God, but I've been touched there. And so should I leave this Elijah to go with you? I mean, Elijah, all these prophets can't be wrong. Eight hundred and fifty, they can't be wrong.

Elijah, you're only one man, you're only one voice. They can't all be wrong, and I've been touched there. I've heard that so many times, I've tried to counsel people over the years that have been involved in ludicrous foolishness in the name of Jesus Christ.

And their answer is always the same. You try to open the Bible, you try to show them some things, and they push away the word of God and say, but you don't understand, I've been touched there. I've been touched there.

You see, but folks, they inwardly do something. The hesitation always says something. I always know when a man is in adultery or fornication, because when I meet him with the woman he's with and say, is this your wife?

He hesitates before he answers me. It's true. He wishes that she were his wife. He has found what he thinks his needs met there, but she's not his wife and he knows it. And so when you ask him, he hesitates.

And then he says, well, yes, and his very answer gives away his heart. Jeremiah chapter five, if you keep a marker in First Kings 18, so you don't have to look for it again. Jeremiah chapter five, prophet of his day, Jeremiah cried out to God with a deep burden in his heart.

Verse 23, Jeremiah was a man who thundered from heaven and brought a word. Folks, how many times does history have to repeat itself before the church will begin to cry out and say, God, please don't let history repeat itself in my life.

Don't let me be another in the long lineage of apostates that have held to bail and wouldn't let go. Jeremiah says, this people has a revolting and a rebellious heart. They are revolted and gone. Now, the word gone in Hebrew means they've already left in their heart, they're gone, they're standing, they're listening to Jeremiah.

But the Lord is speaking to Jeremiah and he's saying to Jeremiah, they're already gone. You may be looking at them, you may be preaching to them, but they're gone. And folks, that's a tragedy because it repeats itself throughout history.

And there are people who call themselves by the name of Christ today, but they're gone. They're gone. They're long ago in their heart have left him. They don't know him. They know little or nothing about him anymore.

They do know that what they're in is not God. But in their heart, they have left the one that they do know is real. And neither, he says in verse 24, say they in their heart, let us now fear the Lord our God.

There's no desire for the fear of the Lord. That's old fashioned. That's old school. That's long ago Pentecost in America. We're of a new generation now. There's a new thing happening in our midst. We have a new God now.

They're already gone and neither say they in their heart, let us now fear the Lord our God. We don't want the fear of the Lord. We don't want talk about the fear of the Lord. We want to be able to come to our altar.

We want to be able to have sensual worship, practice immorality. We don't want any fear of God in our lives. Let us now fear the Lord our God. They don't say this. That giveth rain both the former and the latter in this season.

He reserveth unto us the appointed weeks of the harvest. Verse 25, he says your iniquities have turned away these things. In other words, you would not lay down. There was a deep dividedness in your heart and you wouldn't lay it down.

And because you wouldn't lay it down, it took away your desire. I hope tonight, if anything, you see how dangerous it is to live with a divided heart. A divided heart, especially if you're aware of it, will take your desire for God away from you.

It'll take it away. It's like a barrel full of oil and there's a hole. Somebody drills a hole in the bottom. It takes a while, but it will go. Your desire will go. Your discernment will go. And your sins are withholding good things from you.

Prosperity Preachers and Corrupt Spiritual Leadership

For among my people. Now, here it is. Verse 26, we're starting to get to the key. Among my people are found wicked men. They lay wait, as he that set snares, and they set a trap, and they catch men. I can hear the thundering cry of Jeremiah, saying, Oh, that the church of his day would wake up and see that they were warned.

They were being warned by the word of God that there are wicked men that lay wait like somebody snaring a rabbit, hiding in the bushes and setting a snare for the unwary. Setting a snare for those who are not yielded to God, who are still living by unbridled lusts in the very depths of their soul.

They're not yielded to God. They're halting between two opinions. And here are these men setting their snares and setting their traps for the unwary. As a cage is full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit.

Therefore, they have become great and are waxen rich. That is always, always a warning sign. Those that are always focused on money. Always talking about money. Always coming up with new gimmicks to get money.

This is exactly what Jeremiah is talking about. They're dirty birds in a dirty house. And they've become great only in the sight of men, not in the sight of God. And they've become rich by deceiving the people.

They're waxen fat, verse 28. They shine. They shine. You can tell them by their shiny, glossy advertisements. They shine. Folks, this is not funny. This is not funny. You read some of today's Christian magazines, especially the charismatic ones.

And it's like reading Jeremiah in this chapter. You look at them and you see exactly what Jeremiah is talking about. Fat, rich, shining, false prophets. And they are permeating the church of Jesus Christ today.

Killing the house of God with their filth. Yet they overpass. Here's what they do. They overpass the deeds of the wicked. They judge not the cause. The cause is the fatherless, and yet they prosper. And the right of the needy do they not judge.

That verse really means this. They care nothing about the plea of those who are in genuine spiritual need. They care nothing about anybody but themselves. Now, verse 29. Here's the Lord speaking now to Jeremiah.

Shall I not visit for these things, saith the Lord? Shall not mine soul be avenged on such a nation as this? A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land. The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means.

By their means means by their natural strength. They are preaching a gospel of natural strength. They know nothing about the covenant keeping power of God. They know nothing about the surrendered, crucified life, or the exchange life as it's been called in the past.

They know nothing about the Holy Spirit coming and enabling a man or woman to live for God. Because that's not the focus of their message. They bear rule. In other words, they lead the people with a gospel of natural strength.

And Jeremiah says, and my people love it to have it so. And people love it. I've been dumbfounded in the last several years to see the absolute ludicrous foolishness that has permeated the church of Jesus Christ in North America, and watching the people, and they love it.

They're being led down a garden path to hell, and they love it. And what will you do in the end thereof? The word end in Hebrew means in the last days. What will you do? What will you do? In other words, you've been led in a gospel of natural strength.

What will you do when all hell breaks out in the face of the earth? What will you do? What will you do in the last days? Go back to 1 Kings, please, again. Now, listen to me. I'm not mad at anybody here tonight, so I don't want anybody thinking that.

I have a burning in my heart. It's been a burden that God has placed on me for years now. I'm pleading for the church. I'm not condemning anybody. I plead for every, even for every leader. If they can turn, if they can still hear, I plead for them.

Elijah Rebuilds the Altar

I'm not here to condemn anybody. I'm not here to call down fire on God's house. I'm talking about judgment fire. I'm here to plead. Now, we go back to 1 Kings, chapter 18. Then verse 22, Then Elijah said to the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord.

Now, we know that wasn't completely correct. There were 7 ,000 others that hadn't bowed their knee to success and prosperity. But Baal's prophets are 450 men. Verse 23, Let them therefore give us two bullets, that's two sacrifices, and let them cut the one bullet for themselves.

Choose one. In other words, choose your sacrifice. Cut it in pieces and lay it on wood and put no fire under. I will dress the other bullet and lay it on wood and put no fire under. And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord.

And the God that answers by fire, let him be God. Now, I want you to mark that in your spirit, because we're going to talk about that fire. That fire is not what you might think it is. The God that answers by fire.

Fire is not a feeling. Fire is not a presence. Fire is not a tingling. Fire is not some sensory experience. There is something else that Elijah here is talking about. Mark it in your mind, because we'll be back to it later.

And the people answered and said, It is well spoken. That's a good idea. Okay, we'll lay out our sacrifices and the God that answers by fire is God. And Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, You choose one bullet for yourselves and dress it first for your many.

In other words, you choose your sacrifice and you prepare yours first. And call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under. In other words, yours is a quicker work than mine, Elijah was saying. Yours takes no time at all.

Yours starts with a survey on the block. What do people want? To come to God's house. Then you purchase a building and then you arrange for some corporate financing, because the corporate world is not offended by your gospel.

They will buy into it readily. The unsafe will buy into it because they can feel very comfortable there and they can still prosper and live immoral lives and never be challenged by the word of God. It's a quick work.

You see, folks, that which is not of God always has no durable foundation. Not only in the church, but in the individual Christian life. You don't live the Christian life. We don't grow as a Christian by running from one take to another, one sensory experience to another.

There is a building that goes on. There's a cornerstone we must fall on. And Jesus said we must be broken on that cornerstone. The brokenness means we must be fashioned and made into the image of that stone.

If we're not exactly as the stone is, then the wall, as it goes up, will be crooked. It will start off one degree. By the time it gets to the top, it will fall over. And that's why many of these so-called churches of Jesus Christ rise up so fast and seem to go so high, so far.

False Fire and Superficial Spirituality

And you look down the road 15, 20 years and you just have a trail of disillusioned people and an empty building full of unclean birds. Now, here the prophets of Baal begin to attempt to call down the presence of God.

Verse 26 says, They took the bullet which was given them. They dressed it. They got it prepared. They called on the name of Baal from morning till noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered.

And they leaped upon the altar which was made. That's very significant. They had made an altar, and every man took his turn, as it were, and leapt on the altar, perhaps a display for the other prophets of Baal.

Look how holy I am. God's going to answer me. Look at my dedication to God. I'm on the altar. Look at me, folks. Look at me. You see, that's the very heart of men who don't know God. Look at me. They leapt on the altar.

That means they rose above the crowd as it is. And for a moment they shone. Then they either jumped off or got knocked off, and the next person took his turn, leaping on the altar, calling out to a God that doesn't exist.

And it came to pass at noon that Elijah mocked them and said, Cry aloud, for he is a God. Either he's talking, or he's pursuing, or he's in a journey, or for adventure he sleeps and must be awakened. And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lances till the blood gushed out on them.

Oh, they were so sincere. I remember speaking to one couple and trying to caution them about what they were involved in. Trying to caution them about the gospel they were beginning to associate with. And they said, Oh, but Pastor, you don't understand.

The leaders are so sincere. They're so sincere. They really believe in what they're doing. Oh, folks, it's not enough to be moved by sincerity. There's got to be truth behind it. There has to be truth behind it.

Even careful man looks insincere as long as he's preaching the truth. And it's touching my heart and convicting my life. Superficial cutting. Crying aloud. Little cuts in the flesh. Oh, another dealing of God.

Oh, look at this. Look at this. Look at what God's done here. Oh, look at that. You see, the Bible says the word of God is quick and powerful. And it doesn't produce superficial little cuts in our body.

The word of God goes right in soul, spirit, bone, marrow. Right to the heart. Right to the thoughts and intents of the heart. The word of God is not a little superficial cut. The word of God is a two-edged sword, and it's very sharp, and it cuts very deep.

And those who really love God and know God, the word of God comes and, as a surgeon does, just takes the cancerous nature out of us, the old nature, and replaces it with the nature of God. That just doesn't happen because we come to an altar.

It happens because we agree with what God says. And we trust Him for the power to change. Verse 29,. And it came to pass, when midday was past, that they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.

In other words, they worked themselves into a position of exhaustion. Not enough to leap on the altar, but now they begin to prophesy. Now, the word prophesied in the Hebrew is nava, and here's what it can mean.

It can mean to speak or sing as a prophet by divine power. So it has a positive, as it is, application. But it can also mean, and it does in this case mean, to rave, to play the madman, to act insane through agitated, spasmodic movements, which are often applied to false prophets.

Now, that's right out of Zodiacity's Hebrew-Greek dictionary. In other words, they were acting abnormally, and they were shaking through spasmodic bodily movements, which are always applied to false prophets.

Saul’s False Prophecy and the Spirit of Rebellion

I'm going to prove it to you. Go back in your Bible. Keep your 1 Kings a marker. Go back to 1 Samuel. You're going to see something here. Chapter 18. I'll show you what happens to a man who knew God and walks away from Him, and still is leading the people.

The Bible tells us clearly that Saul was anointed of God. He was called to lead. It tells us the Spirit of God came upon him. He prophesied. There was a time in his life when he really did prophesy. The Spirit of God came upon him.

He began to lead the people. The Bible says he was turned into another man by the Spirit of God. He had every chance that you and I have today. But there was a stubbornness in his heart. He was unwilling to yield his life to the Word of God.

That's why Samuel wept for him for, I believe, quite a long time after God rejected him. So finally the Lord said, Stop weeping for him. I've chosen another man after my own heart. In 1 Samuel chapter 18 verse 10.

I want you to picture this Saul now. Called to lead. Anointed. Touched with the Holy Ghost. He's now sitting as king. He's a leader. Chapter 18 verse 10 it says, It came to pass on the morrow that the evil spirit from God came upon Saul.

Now I'm not going to get into the theology of did God send an evil spirit. But I'm going to tell you something. God allowed an evil spirit to come upon his life. On the morrow the evil spirit from God came upon Saul.

And he what? Prophesied in the midst of the house. Now here's Saul prophesying it's an evil spirit that is upon him now. The word prophesied is nabba. Same word. It means to rave, to play the madman, to act insane through agitated spasmodic movements applied to false prophets.

An evil spirit came upon him and he prophesied in the midst of the house. And David played with his hand. Now here's Saul prophesying. Here's David just worshiping God. And there was a javelin in Saul's hand.

Folks this is really significant. I'll tell you why it's significant. David was worshiping God. Saul is prophesying. Now the whole thing looks holy. If you were to walk in you'd say, oh look here's one man prophesying.

And it doesn't mean what he's saying is necessarily wrong. Here's one man prophesying. Now normally it's gibberish. It makes no sense. It doesn't follow the Bible. If you follow it long enough it deviates.

It may start in truth but then it takes a strange twist. It eventually leads the people to follow it right outside of the written word of God. So here's David worshiping. Here's Saul prophesying. But there's something in this that the understanding eye doesn't see.

The man prophesying is full of rebellion. He's full of envy. He's full of self-ambition and hate. And he hates the true anointing and worship of God. There's a javelin in his hand. And the javelin is there because he could never surrender.

There was a recent movement in America and Canada and throughout the western world where the leaders were saying, purporting itself to be revival. It was characterized by much prophesying. But with the prophesying came condemning threats against anyone who put it to the scrutiny of scripture.

You're going to die. Anybody that resists this, you're going to die. God's going to kill you. Does it sound familiar? There was a javelin in his hand. Prophesying, looking so holy, but looking to kill the anointed of God.

The Unified Altar and the Sacrifice of Christ

The true that exposes the false. Now let's go back to 1 Kings 18 again, please, if we will. Verse 30. And Elijah said to the people, come near to me. And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.

And Elijah took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the son of Jacob. Now listen, this is significant because at this time Israel was split into two kingdoms. And God says, if it's my altar, there's no division.

There's no division between black and white and brown and red and yellow. There's no division if it's my altar. If it's the altar of God, if it's the place where I'm going to send my fire, my presence, there is no division at this altar.

The fact that he took twelve stones was a virtual slap in the face for those who were constantly saying, we are the righteous side. They are the unrighteous. We wronged them. They wronged us. We have a history that goes back a long way.

We're all here, but we're divided. He took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name. And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord.

And he made a trench about the altar as great as would contain two measures of seed. I did some research on that. And I found out the trench was about three feet wide. Actually, one translation actually puts it as he made a trench three feet wide, three feet wide all around the altar.

Thirty-six inches, that's quite a trench. All the way, he dug a trench. This took a long time. He was in no rush. That's why he told the other prophets, you go ahead, you do your quick sacrifice. Do your quick thing.

What I'm going to build is going to take a while. It would have taken a while to dig a three foot trench all around this altar and to rebuild it with the proper number of stones. And he put the wood in order.

You see, beloved, at the center of all Christianity, there's some wood that has to be dealt with. It's some wood that God himself planted on a mountain called Calvary two thousand years ago. And on that wood, he laid his sacrifice.

And it really depends on how we look at that sacrifice as to whether or not we will ever grow as a Christian. If we comprehend what was done there and begin by faith to lay hold of the complete, absolute victory that was won for us on Calvary and trust the Holy Spirit to begin to make it a reality in our lives.

He put the wood in order and cut the bullock in pieces. The Apostle Paul tells us clearly that we are to present our lives as a living sacrifice. Once we get back to the cross again, once we yield our lives to the purposes of God, we can say like Paul, I am crucified with Christ.

That means my will, my plans, my ambitions. But nevertheless, I live. Yet not I, but Christ lives in me. Paul goes on to say, I live this life by faith in what Christ did for me. That's the source of my life.

I've come to Christ. I've taken Paul, or God has taken Paul and put him on the cross. And Paul is dead. But I live because I have faith in what was purchased for me on Calvary. And I trust God to give me the life that He has promised me.

Hallelujah. Thanks be to God. He put the wood in order and cut the bullock in pieces and laid him on the wood. And folks, there's a time we have got to lay our lives down for the purposes of God. This is not a Sunday School picnic at the Church of Jesus Christ.

This is not an invitation to have continuous good times. This is a war for the souls of men. And he said, fill four barrels with water and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood. The truly yielded life to God.

The truly yielded man lays down his life as it is for the purposes of God and says, Cut me in pieces if you have to. Cut me. Not just little superficial scratches and a little bit of oozing blood to somehow give somebody around me a sense that I'm holy.

But cut me. God, cut me deep. Go to the core of who I am without you and get it out of my life. Pour water on it. And then when you've done it, do it again. And when you've done it, do it again. That's what Elijah said.

Do it again the second time. And they did it the second time. And then he said, do it the third time. And they did it the third time. That is the continuous cry of a genuine Christian. Do it again. God, every time you show me something and I get free, there's just a new sense of life and intelligence comes into me.

God, do it again. Do it again. Cut me deep and wash that filth out of me with the water of your Word. Wash it out of my life. Cleanse me. Cleanse me and change me. And the water ran down about the altar and filled the trench also with water.

In other words, the sacrifice was soaked in the Word of God. I thank God that when I was a young Christian, I opened this book. Oh, I thank God I love this book. Thank God I read this book even when I didn't understand.

I read it and read it and read it, trusting the Holy Spirit to open it to me. I thank God that He soaked my life at a young age in His Word. When the false came, I knew what was false and I knew what was real because I had been soaked in this book.

The Fire of God Transforms the Believer

I knew the difference. And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that's the end of the day as it is, that Elijah the prophet came near. Now, he came as near as he could come.

You see, there was a three-foot trench of water round about the altar that was full. He had dug it there on purpose because no man can share the glory of God. The prophet of Baal leapt on the altar for public exposure, public acclaim, God's men of the hour, anointed servants of the Lord.