Faithful and Afflicted
1 Kings 19:11-21
July 20, 2025 anno Domini
It is often the case that the greatest afflictions are laid up for those who display the greatest faithfulness. Hear that again. It is often the case that the greatest afflictions are laid up for those who display the greatest faithfulness. Those words come from a sermon in a preaching textbook published in 1895.
What was true in 1895 is true in 2025 and was true in the Old Testament for Elijah. Elijah was a faithful prophet called by God to preach to King Ahab. When you read about the Kings of the Old Testament you will read one of two statements – So and so did what was right in the eyes of the Lord or so and so did evil in the sight of the Lord. When you read about King Ahab you read, Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him.”
I’m sure Elijah was overjoyed that the Lord sent him that call, to bring God’s Word to Ahab. Elijah brought God’s Word of judgement to the king. It wasn’t going to rain until Elijah said so, until the Lord gave him the word. Elijah didn’t make another visit to Ahab for three years. Now, if Elijah is like the pastors I know, he was glad not to visit the King. It is unpleasant to tell people they are wrong or sinning. For those three years Elijah enjoyed being a prophet, living in Zarapheth, getting fed by the widow, raising her son from the dead. All of us, preachers included, prefer glory to suffering, peace to affliction. Then the honeymoon ended – the Lord commanded Elijah to leave his comfort to make a most uncomfortable house call on Ahab.
Ahab greeted Elijah with, “Is it you, you ‘troubler of Israel?” Elijah returned the greeting with a challenge – send out your 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah to meet me on Mount Carmel.
The battle of the Gods on Mount Carmel always makes the Sunday School curriculum. It’s like David vs Goliath. In this corner numbering 850, the pleasing, popular, and perverted prophets of Baal and Asherah. In this corner, with all the odds in Vegas against him, dressed in animal skins and a leather belt, the wild and wimpy man of the wilderness – Elijah the troubler of Israel.
God gave Elijah the greatest victory of his prophetic career. At the end of the day, 850 false prophets were dead, the heavens opened up, and Elijah got to proclaim the Lord’s victory to Ahab. Your gods lost, the Lord God of heaven won. He alone is the true God. Ahab and his wife Jezebel did not take the news well.
It is often the case that the greatest afflictions are laid up for those who display the greatest faithfulness. The very same day Elijah’s faithfulness was rewarded with the Lord’s victory, Jezebel swore on her false gods that she would kill him within a day.
Affliction follows faithfulness. Let’s talk about those two words for a moment – faithfulness and affliction.
Elijah was faithful because he believed the Lord’s Word and he did what the Lord told him to do. The classic Lutheran definition of faith is threefold. Faith is first to know the Lord’s Word, second to believe it is true, and third to trust in it. The Devil has two-thirds of faith – He knows the Lord’s word very well and he absolutely believes it is true. He just doesn’t trust it. It’s not for him. Simon in today’s Gospel reading is faithful. Most of you who have taken me fishing know that some preachers are lousy fisherman, but Simon takes Jesus at His word, and trusts that word to be true. He throws the net over the side of his boat and catches more fish than you’ll ever catch with me in the boat.
Faith is to know God’s Word, to believe God’s Word is true, and to trust it. Faith for you is to know that Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, born of Mary, who suffered, died, and rose again. Faith is to believe that those events actually happened in history, especially that on a certain Friday outside Jerusalem, a man who was at the same time God, died on a cross having been crucified by the Romans. Three days later He rose again. Faith is to trust that He did that for you, so
- When you sin, you confess your sins
- when your sins pester you, you declare, I’m forgiven
- when evil assails you, you fight for what is good
- when people lie, you speak the truth
- when something new and exciting comes along, you first consider is this god-pleasing
- when you’re tempted to be faithless, you’re faithful by word and deed
- when the world says, “live for yourself,” you live in faith toward God and in love toward neighbor
- When death visits, you confess, I will not die, but live
You’re faithful because Christ Jesus is the Son of God, born of Mary – He suffered, died, was buried, rose, and ascended into heaven. You’re faithful to all of God’s Word, because all of God’s Word points to Christ.
When you are faithful, you are going to suffer affliction. Elijah spoke the truth to the power of Ahab and Jezebel and they issued a death sentence. Peter confessed his sin and his Savior and within moments lost his fishing business. Afflictions because of sin, but those afflictions are also under God’s hand. While the Devil may bring trouble into your life to tear you away from Christ – the Holy Spirit will be pulling you toward Christ by the same affliction.
Ahab and Jezebel hoped to silence Elijah. Perhaps Elijah could have saved his life had he compromised, had he not “troubled” Ahab and Jezebel with God’s Word. Instead, Elijah faithfully delivered God’s Word, and when affliction came he ran toward God, toward God’s mountain, to Sinai, also called Horeb. So, it was also with Simon. He loaned Jesus his boat, heard Him preach, trusted His command, caught that boatload of fish. He could have won that season of Wicked Tuna. He could have fished and been rich but the Lord called him. How would Peter provide for his family? What did he know about preaching or Jesus or God’s Word? Fishing is safer than preaching. All those questions could have afflicted Peter for being faithful. He left everything and followed Jesus.
So how does this look in your life?
How many of you have family or friends who think our church is judgmental or strict or old-fashioned because we believe what God’s Word says about who should take communion or what constitutes a marriage or that the government should stay out of the murder business of abortion and assisted suicide?
How would your grandchildren react if when they had a Sunday morning sports event you said, “I won’t be there. Going to church is more important than you.”
How would the family gathering go, if instead of being silent in the face of some lie or sin, like the news that your god daughter is living with her boyfriend, or your nephew wants to be your niece, you spoke the truth to the lie, or the law to the sin?
You are God’s faithful people. You know God’s Word. You believe it is true. And You trust that for Christ’s sake your sins are forgiven and you are God’s own dear child now and forever. It is often the case that the greatest afflictions are laid up for those who display the greatest faithfulness. You might not even get to the parking lot this morning without being afflicted. The Devil hates that you are here. Affliction is going to come. What will you do? Continue to be faithful like Elijah and Simon, who wrote in today’s Epistle, what he learned from leaving his boat and and following Christ. Even if you should suffer for righteousness sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy. Be faithful in affliction and you will be blessed in the name of Jesus. Amen.