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Episode 604: In this episode, Chris and Jeff dive into the fascinating story of the prophet Elijah, exploring the emotional and spiritual highs and lows he experienced after a monumental victory over the prophets of Baal. They discuss how Elijah, despite his incredible triumph, finds himself fleeing for his life after being threatened by Queen Jezebel. They reflect on the psychological aspects of Elijah's journey, noting how he goes from a mountaintop experience to a deep valley of despair. The hosts emphasize that even great figures like Elijah can struggle with feelings of isolation and depression, highlighting the importance of mental health awareness.
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You're listening to the Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk about the Bible in fun in practical ways. Welcome on and everybody, or good evening, depending on when you listen, or good day, good day, good night, good day, sir, good afternoon. Have you seen spirited with Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, Yeah, it's an insult. Yeah, it's an insult, he said, He goes, oh, it's a serious burn back in the eight it's so funny. Well, hey, listen whenever, whatever part of the day it is. We want to welcome into the Bible guys. And I'm Chris, this is Jeff, and we are just a couple of guys who opened the Bible. And in fact, we're in the middle of a series. We haven't talked about this in a long time. We're in the middle of a series where we're going through the milestones of the Old Testament. That's correct. Yeah, all the highlights, all the highlights, as many of them as we can fit in. Yeah. Sure. And we are before we get into that, we are in her into a dad joke competition, which did I tell you love these? Yes? And your daughter loves them? And I'm going to share her her joke after we read our. Okay okay, yeah, yeah, and we can figure out is that like a bonus that's going to be bonus bonus? Okay, bonus? Right, So you want to if I have five and you have five, we're gonna figure out who's the best jokes. Yes, And it really depends on where have you ever asked Desiree? Where does she get her sources at? I have not, Like, does she just google them? Does she get them from a book? Well? I think she's just full of dad jokes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's. Right, it does not. All right, you want to go first. A mummy covered in chocolate and nuts has been discovered in Egypt. Archaeologists may believe it may be Pharaoh rochet. I don't get it. The phero rochets, the little chocolate candies and. The gold foil, that's what they're called. You've never had one. No chocolate with macadamia nut right in the middle, with a chocolate truffle on the inside. I don't love. Then it has a crispy like cookie thing, and then it's covered in more chocolate with macadamia. Because I didn't know the name of that chocolate is that a funny joke. It's funny enough. Okay, pharaohche if you knew, pharaohsche Okay, Actually, I'm kind of glad you don't know what they are. More for me, more for you. I love them. Those are those I'm telling you. There aren't many things I love them more in life. Really, I love them. I love them. I can't walk past them. I tell you that, I can't have them in my house or in my office. Wow. Yeah. I had three of them on Sunday because they were in the green room and I walked by the little thing and there were four in there, and I walked by my Oh, Pharaohshet. I love them, so I grab one. I ate it, and then I walked past again. I went, I shouldn't. I'm gonna have it, so I went, and then I felt guilty taken the third one, but I couldn't take the last one, so I left one. Well, good for you, yea. Go, Yeah, it's bad. It's three for you, one for the rest of the entire band. But let me tell you what I'm ashamed of. In between the third and fourth service on Sunday, I went back looking for it and it was already gone. Somebody else had already gotten it, so I would have eaten the fourth one. Yeah, yeah, yeah, so I love them all. Right, here we go. Here's mine. I once had a conversation with a dolphin. We just clicked. I like that. That's a good one. Okay, we just clicked. Okay, here's another one. A good wife will always be by your side during bad times, mostly to remind you that none of this would have happened if you just listened to her. There you go, which is probably true. Okay. My second joke is this. I grilled a chicken for two hours. It still wouldn't tell me why I crossed the road. Okay, that's pretty good. Okay, I like mine. Minor winning for sure. You can't tell puns to kleptominis. They take things literally. Oh that's good. That's super clever. Yeah, it's super clever. Yeah, it's good. I love that one, very good. That's my favorite one so far. That one in the click click click click. Okay, here we go. Let me really clicked. My boss said he was going to fire the employee with the worst posture. I have a hunch it's going to be me. I have a hunch it's going to be me. You needed you needed a pause there. Yeah, that's right. I have a hunch it's going to be that's very good. Okay. Do you want to hear a joke about paper? Oh? Never mind, it's terrible. It's terrible, terrible, Oh terrible. Yes, you have to read. You have to read that one. That's terrible. That's good. I like it. It's clever. Number four. My kids put the together a PowerPoint presentation explaining why we should go to the water park. It has several slides. Okay, that was I'm going to give you a on that one. Okay, all right, okay. Did you hear about the man arrested for having a compass, protractor and calculator. They charged him with possessing weapons of math instruction? Wow? I like that one math instruction. That's really good. I like it. Yes, all right. Then finally, my last one is My best childhood memory was falling asleep on the couch and waking up in bed. I miss teleporting. It never happens to me anymore. You teleported to bed. Let me read that again. Yeah, try it again. My best childhood memory was falling asleep on the couch and waking up in bed. I miss teleporting. It never happens to me anymore. Yeah, so you, as an adult, you believe you teleported from the couch to the bed and you miss it. Now, that is literally one of the most awful we have ever. Okay, but can I share Toris please? Okay? Hopefully it's better than that one. Yeah, it's definitely better that one. Okay, okay, let me show you get this right? Uh, what do you what do you call it when you lose twenty five percent of your roof? I don't know. Oof oof? Yeah, roof is r four letters. Yeah, it was twenty percent of that. Now you only have three letters. I was in Florida and she called me, left me a voicemail and shared that you share. I think you played it for me. I didn't remember the joke, but I remember her laughing when she was telling you the joke. Yes, yeah, and she thought it was the funniest thing ever. I should have just did this, dude, I. Just heard a brilliant ten joke. Are you ready? What do you say when you lose twenty five percent of your roof? Oh my gosh. That's so good. I should just pay That's what you should have done. That's funny. I sort of blew it. But isn't that funny? That's funny. So I don't know what's the best joke. Hers is pretty good. Yes, I I like my. Your dolphin joke. The dolphin was pretty good, but I like yours, though. I think the kleptomaniac joke is the best joke. They take things literally. I think I'm gonna I think I'm gonna vote that one. Yeah, okay, yeah, I thought the pause, the one that you needed the pause on was funny too. Yes, that's good. Okay, Well, there we go talking about funny things. Elijah was not laughing when he had to run from Wow, that's really bad. You know funny things. You know it's not. Funny running for your life? Wowa. Well we have accomplished the worst dad joke and the worst transition from dad jokes in the same segment, same day. Hey, what an episode that you have tuned in for? Yes, just think if you had have missed it. I can't only imagine how great it is for our listeners to this. You're like, oh man, that was the best eight minutes of my life. I told you my wife doesn't like the terrible trick. Yeah yeah, well yeah, well okay, well people like him, Liz, Wow, people like him. That's so funny. Okay, we actually have people send in comments about it. Really yeah, they said the truth said that they like them. Yes, it's incredible. They appreciate the right. He didn't say they're funny, they just said they're okay. So anyways, here we go. Elijah had confronted Ahab winds up executing eight hundred and fifty prophets of bail after God sends fire from heaven and sha and yes and a shrif, and then he tells aheb, you better get home. It's about to rain, right, and it does rain. Yes. When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel everything Elijah had done, including the way he'd killed all the prophets of bail. So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah. May the gods strike me and even kill me if by this time tomorrow I have not killed you, just as you killed them. Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba town in Judah, and he left a servant there. Then he went out alone into the wilderness, traveling all day, he sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. I've had enough, Lord, he said, take my life, for I'm no better than my ancestors who've already died. Then he laid down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him get up and eat. He looked around, and there beside his head was some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. Then the angel the Lord came again and touched him and said, get up and eat some more, for the journey head'll be too much for you. So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the Mountain of God. And there he came to a cave where he spent the night. But the Lord said to him, what are you doing here, Elijah. Elijah replied, I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty, But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they're trying to kill me too. Go out and stand before me on the mountain, the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such terrible blasts that the rocks were torn loose, But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire. Was not in the fire. And after the fire there was a sound of a gentle whisper. And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, what are you doing here, Elijah? He replied again, I have zealously serve the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken the covenant with you, torn down your altars, killed every one of your prophets. I'm the only one left, and now they're trying to kill me too. Then the Lord told him, go back the same way you came and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, annoint Hazael the King to be to be King of Aram. Then annoint Jehu, grandson of Nimshi, to be king of Israel, and Annoy Elishah, son of Sheefat, from the town of abel Mala Meholah, to replace you as my prophet. Anyone who escapes from Hazel will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jayhu will be killed by Elisha. Yet I will preserve seven thousand others in Israel who will never bow down to bail or kissed him. Yeah. Wow, Well that's a heck of a heck of a scripture passage, right, So let's start with the fact that Jezebel threatens Elijah. And because of her reputation and because of you know, her being known to be a very very strong woman, she doesn't probably she's probably not known for making idle threats. And so she says, mark my words, may may the gods even kill me? And and and you know, even though that the gods that she's that she's referring to small g by the way, the gods that she's referring to, they're not going to strike her down because of this oath, because they're not real. But that's not the point. The point is is that she is saying, ah, I I promise you that you're going to die, even to the point to where the gods that I believe in, I'm willing for them to kill me. That's how passionate and that's how much rage she felt. And so it's quite possible that that could be one of the strongest statements that Jezebel maybe ever even said. And so when when when somebody that powerful and that crazy, you know, makes a threat like that, it's it's a little understandable why Elijah ran. But the thing that the thing that confuses me is that Elijah had danger like that the whole time eight hundred and fifty had God not shown up, he had eight hundred and fifty prophets versus the royal kingdom and everybody else who would have turned against him, and he was by himself. And so it's interesting because I've preached this message before, and I've talked about the fact that it sounds like Elijah's depressed to the point to where the Angel has to come and and and literally say you have to eat, and you have to drink. And he asked, and he asked to sit there and do that three more times, two more times, because because Elijah won't even get up from sleeping underneath this tree. And you know what, sometimes when we talk about mental health, it's hard to relate because there's not a lot of scripture in the Bible that talks about mental health. It doesn't say, hey, you know, let's talk about chemical imbalance, or let's talk about depression to such a degree that thou shalt do this in the face of depression. Like you know, sometimes people rever really really really hard time because there doesn't seem to be a black and white scripture that speaks directly into those things. But I believe that Elijah models for us that it is possible to have a mountaintop experience one day and then to have the lowest valley experience the next day. And that sounds a lo like somebody who goes from manic to depression and to the point to where those around him have to literally say, I will have to physically encourage you to eat this food, like get up and eat this food and drink this water, or else you're not gonna make it. And for those who have ever cared for somebody who's depressed, that sounds an awful lot like caring for somebody who's depressed you're right, right, so let me you know, so if you struggle with depression, and you struggle with imbalance or bipolarism or whatever it is, you know, just know that even the best of them, right, somebody like Elijah was not without his share of struggles. And he didn't have anybody. He didn't have anybody, so. He didn't feel like you had anybody. Well, I mean, I mean physically with him under the tree, right, he certainly had. Would God say, Hey, I'm gonna send you over this place. You're gonna annoy somebody, You're gonna annoint somebody else. And guess what I'm going to replace you. There's other people, Elijah, and then I'm going to consecrate seven thousand people who have never once even worshiped bail right. In other words, Elijah, you're not alone. You feel like you're alone, You're not alone. Well, this was the answer God gave him as a matter of fact. So he'd already sent Obadiah, and Obadiah said, I'm a follower of God, and I know a hundred more. But Elijah feels like he's the only one. He goes by himself and confronts the prophets, which he was told to great, well, he was told to go, not by himself, he was just told to go. Yeah and right, But then. That doesn't explain I'm going somewhere. Yeah yeah. So then he does this thing and it's an incredibly high spiritual moment, and it's not uncommon after you have a super high spiritual moment to have a spiritual crash. Those things are fairly common even today. Yeah, and I've seen it many times. Somebody finally has the courage to get up and give their testimony and then life blows up the next week. Right, I've seen it after time. It just happens. And so the spiritual warfare happens a lot. So then he crashes alone. God says, okay, then you need to head down to Sinai and you're gonna have an encounter with me. And he's alone during the whole time. He wants to die, like you said, God has to raise him up and get him some food and get him to drink something, or he's gonna die. And you need your strength because you've got a journey. And God gives him another journey, another mission, and he pushes forward on that. Then he has this incredible encounter with God, wind, lightning, thunder, earthquake, and then the whisper of God. Right, and God's not in all those big things like we always think God's in the whisper. And in the whisper, he says, listen, I've got three people I need you to do, and I need you to point anoint this king. I need you anoin this king and needs you to go get Alisha. God's answer was Alisha right right. He was isolated and the loane and could not find his way out, and God's like, you need other people, and that that's what that was. God's answer for this low point in his life was I have a purpose for you. I've got another mission. Go to this king, anoint him. Go to this king, anoint him. And then, man, you need Elisha. And this is when the first time that he tells him to go get a partner, right, And a lot of times that's what God does is God will use his whisper in your life. That's through his word that you know, faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. And then God will also nudge you I've got a mission. You need to get back up because I got something else for you to do. And so you just got to get back up and you got to go do your mission. And then he's also going to send people. Right, those are the three ways that he winds up kind of helping restore you and pull you back out of the right the depths of depression and isolation. Yeah, And the thing I was going to say, remember that when I was trying to interrupt you. Yeah, what I was going to say is, no, don't. It doesn't account. It doesn't acount with the fact that I was reporting your point by saying. Elijah himself voluntarily said multiple times I'm alone. Yes, yeah, and God says that you're not alone. There's seven thousand more, right right right. I keep letting you know there's seven thousand more. So the reason why I said hey is because my adhd, I forget where I'm going sometimes with things on that. So then when he gets to this point where he said there's there's seven thousand more, just like you, you're not alone. It's interesting to me there's a touch of narcissism in Elijah where it's just me. It's only me. I'm the only one. How come nobody nobody ever does anything around this house. Nobody ever does it. It's me me, me, me, me, me me me. Yeah, right, and there's a little bit of that, and so God kept having to pull him back and go, it's not just you. There's seven thousand just like you. So you're not the only one. But you're alone and that that's a big part of your problem. You're alone, and you need you need a mission, go nineties, you need a buddy. We'll get Elijah Elisha. And it's funny Elijah and Elisha, these two guys have like almost exact same. Name names, which which God does. Sometimes he does it it makes it confusing. So what I was gonna say is, uh, isn't it interesting as well that this wonderful story of of the you know of him? Actually you don't let me back up a second. So he flees, He flees to the to the town of what it say, where's this math that I was looking at? This math that actually. Points out, well, he flees to Jezreel and from Jezreel down to Jerusalem, Jerusalem to Beersheba Shiba. Yeah, okay, yeah, she goes down to Beersheba. And so that's that's like you know, Mount Sinai, And so anyway, he goes to Beersheba, that's where he gets fed, and then he goes all the way down down to Mount Sinai. Well, first of all, before I talk about the whisper, let me just say that Mount Sinai he fasted forty days and forty nights. It's is that when the angel gave him food, it said that was enough to sustain him for forty days and forty knights to get to Mount Sinai. Well, guess what who else fasted forty days and forty nights. Jesus and centuries before him, Moses. And then he goes to Mount Sinai, which centuries before him, that's where God spoke to Moses. And so God speaks to Elijah on the mountain. And then and then years later, what do we find. We find Moses, Elijah, and Jesus are all on the mountain together at the transfiguration. Yeah. I didn't put that together. That's awesome. Yeah. And so anyway, and it's not that mountain for Jesus right for the transfiguration, but it is a mountain right. But anyway, all that to say that's significant. So he's on Mount Sinai and then the thing I was going to say about the whisper is that it starts with a question. And so God sometimes asks questions that he already knows the answer to, right, but he doesn't ask him for getting knowledge. He asks them for the benefit of the of the hearer. Like you remember when remember when Adam and Eve were in the garden, and then uh, and then and then they hear he is, where are you? You know? And then he says, have you eaten of the tree? As if God did not know where they were? And as if God did not know did they eat from the tree. God asks questions sometimes for our benefit, because he wants Adam to be able to say, I'm confessing that I hid because I knew I was naked. Blah blah blah blah. Well, he's asking Elijah the questions they already knows the answer to, but he's asking it so that Elijah can come to his own conclusion. So he says, what are you doing here, Elijah, almost implying you shouldn't be here? Right like like you know, you're you're, you're running, you're you're hiding, you're afraid, you're you're you know, and you've come all the way amount and believe me. There's a reason why Elliga went to Mount Sinai. There's a reason he wants to hear from God. And God's like, why did you have to come all the way over here? Like like I just sent you an angel back in Beersheba, right, why you have why'd you have to come all the way over here? But nevertheless, I'm going to demonstrate myself to you because You've come all this way. But my question is, why do you have to come all this way for me to hear from you? Why are you here? And then and then you know, God got to you know, doesn't demonstrate himself in the flashy things. God's in the whisper. And then what does he say? Again, why are you here? Elijah? And Elijah is the same exact response, because he's so desperate, He's like, I'm all alone? And then what does God say? You're not alone? You're not alone, Elijah? You never were, right, and that's just amazing, right, So God, God's in the whisper. You know, sometimes we say, God, show me a sign, right, But we don't need a flashy sign. We don't need a miracle or God to demonstrate himself. What we need is We need the problem us as of God. We need the whispers that we know are true in the back of our minds, the promises that we've always known. Those are the promises that are still true. We don't need the flashy sign. All we need is you know, the word of God right where we're at. It's great. Yeah, that is great, so cool. Wey, that is our time, so we will see you hopefully next time tomorrow. On the Bible Gus