Title: Refresh Your Mind, Heart and Soul
Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 19:1-13
19 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.
2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.
5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.
6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.
7 And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.
8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.
9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?
The refreshing of the mind, heart and soul is not only for the godly Christian. Actually, more often than not it is for the lowest of Christians and the greatest of sinners.
Refreshing means restoring strength, energy and vigor. It even means, restoring soul, life and the spirit.
Physical refreshing can also come, for example, from sleep, rest, or exercise.
Refreshing can also come about as a second wind.
Many Christians need a new strength or energy to continue something that is laborious or an uphill.
In the story of Elijah, we need to note that he had gone through traumatic experiences when he stood before that altar at Mount Carmel.
For many of us, when we are given a ministry, or a task or responsibility, we have unwittingly believed it is just another task, maybe just harder. But it is a spiritual as well as a physical task. Elijah would never have run away from Jezebel if he had not been exhausted, spiritually and physically.
Then there is also the psychological factor involved in this situation. Perhaps Elijah suffered as the psychologists say, from depression.
Then there is another group. You have messed up big time in your life.
- The Word of God
1 Kings 19:5-7
‘And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.
6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake Baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.
7 And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.’
Elijah needed rest. He also needed some good food.
It was our Lord who comforted Elijah, fed him, the first time, the second time and told him: ‘The journey is too great for you.’
The psalmist writes ‘My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word.’
1 Timothy 3:16 says, ‘All scripture are God breathed.”
The Juniper tree represents a place of renewal, rejuvenation, a place of healing, and a place where we will be made whole again.
- The Presence of God
1 Kings 19:11, ‘So He said, “Go forth and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by!’
The phrase ‘the LORD was passing by, refers to YHWH’s personal presence: that is theophany. It is the manifestation or appearance of God to a person; in this case to Elijah.
Some of you today, you need the personal presence of God to appear before you. Notice the powerful phenomena that were present, like at Moses’ receiving the Law on Mount Sinai:
- A great and strong wind
- An earthquake
- A fire
These are natural phenomena. And the purpose of the powerful phenomena was God revealing Himself to Elijah. God knew what the depressed and discouraged Elijah needed. He needed a personal encounter with God.
Elijah was definitely like the Psalmist who wrote: ‘My soul is downcast within me. Yet I call to mind and therefore I have hope. Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassion never fail.’
Acts 3:19-20 says, ‘Repent, then, and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord and that He may send Jesus the Christ who has been appointed for you.’
Repentance does not describe being sorry, but describes the acts of turning around.
And ‘be converted’ is God’s work of bringing new life to us. Bible commentator says ‘be converted’ is better translated ‘turn to God, or even better, flee to God.’ When we do that, we will experience times of refreshing.
- The Voice of God
1 Kings 19:12-13: ‘And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What does thou here, Elijah?’
The King James Version describes the voice of God as ‘a still small voice.’
NASB describes it as ‘a sound of gentle blowing.’
The TEV calls it ‘the soft whisper of a voice.’
Another version defines it as ‘a light murmuring sound.’
Why the still small voice? It was to encourage Elijah.
Charles Spurgeon says, ‘This lesson has to be learned over and over by us all: ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord.’ It is to be lamented that most of believers obstinately cling to the fatal effort of looking for displays of power of one kind or another.
This morning, maybe you can identify with Elijah. You are worn out by life. Thus far, life has been like a wilderness. You are exhausted and wished to die. God has heard your pain, groans and death wish. He is not going to grant you your request for death. No! He has come to help you.
How?
Jesus, our Greater Elijah, did not lay and sleep under a juniper tree. Instead, he was hung on the tree not to sleep but to die. No angel touched him. No angel said to Him, Arise and eat. There was no cake baked on the coals for Jesus while he was hung on the cross. No cruse of water was given to him to drink. Instead, Jesus became the cake himself, baked by the hot wrath of God. He thirsted on the cross. He was left alone on the cross. For what? So that today when you are weary, drained and worn out, Jesus can become The Bread of Life, the Living Water, the Voice and the abiding presence of God in you – to refresh your mind, heart and soul so that you can continue with this long journey called life.
When Jesus was resurrected, He breathed into you His very life, that can sustain you and make you victorious. He assures you that you are not alone from this day onward when you battle with life again because He will be with you even unto the end of this world. You are given His power to battle in life, His spirit to sustain Life and His presence to be not afraid of life anymore.
