“How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word. “

1 Kings 18: 21

The two largest religions in the world today are Christianity and Islam.  There is some similarity, but without a doubt there is a vast difference between the theology, teaching, and example of its two leaders:  Jesus and Muhammad.

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In the time of Elijah, there came a point when the real God “stood up” in a demonstration of power, Jehovah made it clear that He was the One and only true God and that the false gods were the creation of man’s mind and hands.

In the days of Elijah, the false gods  of Baals and Asherah were very popular and growing.  The true God, Jehovah, was sadly declining.  To acknowledge the true God of  Elijah was often met with ridicule and even death.

During this dangerous time for the true believers, the true God (Jehovah) sends Elijah to the wicked king Ahab.  This story is interesting because the differences between the popular gods of Ahab and the God of Elijah were not only very stark, but there is a subtle story behind the drama that helps us understand the true and the false.

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The meeting of Elijah and the false prophets (850 of them) on a mountain top demonstrate the power of the true and only God and it has a message for us today.  As we see the works of the false gods in our world.  It is true, that

“You will know them by their fruits.”

Matthew 7:16

Just as a tree can be recognized by its leaves and the fruit it produces,  the character of a teaching of a god or philosophy can tell us whether it is true or false.   There are other ways to tell the truth from the lies.  This will be our topic in the coming blogs.

We will see in the story of the false prophets of Baal and Asherah more than one way to tell who is the true God and which is the true philosophy.  It is not just about the powerful way the prayer of Elijah is answered or the dramatic way the soggy sacrifice is licked up by the fire sent by God himself, but there is something more.  It is  often missed in this story..

Let’s take a moment and review the event found in 1 Kings 18.  But, before we get there, let’s set up the story from previous chapters 16 and 17.

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Ahab the Israelite king, the son of Omri  was an evil king.

” (He) did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him.

1 Kings 16:30

Omri his father was also evil and  the same is said about him as his son Ahab:

Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and did worse  than all who were before him”

1 Kings 16:25

Both of these kings were kings of Israel (God’s chosen people), but they sinned greatly by…

“(setting) up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a wooden image.”

1 Kings 16: 32, 33

Like Father like son.   They both provoked the true God of heaven to anger. Then there came a day God sent Elijah, the true prophet of God,  to Ahab and proclaimed,

“…there shall not be dew nor rain these years, except at my word.”

1 Kings 17:1

Then Elijah disappeared from the wicked king’s presence.

A drought, as predicted overtook the land.  During this terrible period, God feeds Elijah and provides water for him.  Later, Elijah is cared for by a widow and her son.  Her son falls ill and dies, but Elijah prays earnestly for him to be brought back to life. Despite no answer after two prayers, Elijah continues to plead with God to bring back the young boy.

On the third prayer, the life comes back to the young boy and the mothers admits this,

 “Now by this I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is the truth.”

1 Kings 17:24

She was convinced by the power of the true God to bring back to life her dead son.  Another example of the importance of resurrection.  In the long run, it is resurrection that separates the true from the false.

Anyone can claim to be a prophet or a god, but their actions and their fruit must demonstrate that they are true.

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Now we come to chapter 18 of 1 Kings.  Elijah is being hidden from Ahab, but God tells him to go present himself before Ahab. Elijah obeys and begins the journey to Ahab’s palace.

At the same time, Obadiah (a righteous believer in the true God) and Ahab leave the city and split up looking for grass to feed their mules and horses.  During this search, Obadiah comes upon Elijah and is surprised to see him and falls down to pay him homage.

Elijah instructs Obadiah to go and tell Ahab that

“Elijah is here.”

1 Kings 18: 8

Elijah like Jesus has returned after disappearing.  During this absence, things got worse and worse; dryer and dryer until the vegetation and water was gone.

Obadiah is reluctant to tell Ahab  Elijah was back, fearing Elijah will disappear again and the king will be angry.  But, Elijah gives him his word and Obadiah demonstrates faith and sets up a meeting with them both.

The first words from Ahab’s mouth to Elijah is accusatory:

“Is that you, O troubler of Israel?”

1 Kings 18: 17

Elijah responds quickly and boldly,

“I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals.”

1 Kings 18:18

This time of trouble was over the leadership forsaking the law of God.  God’s law is not be ignored, changed, or explained away.

Elijah makes it clear that the trouble brought upon Israel was because Ahab was disobedient to the law of God and followed after false gods.  Elijah then instructs the King to:

“….send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.””

1 Kings 18:29

The king not only calls for the false prophets of Baal and Asherah, but also the children of Israel.  He is so convinced that his 850 prophets will be shown to be true and powerful.  It will be a big defeat for Elijah and his God.

Ahab is depending on the majority numbers of his prophets, the vast number of believers, and his own intense belief in something that is false.

After everyone is gathered, a simple test is proposed by Elijah.  There are to be two alters built and a sacrifice placed upon both.  One sacrifice is for the false gods and on for the true God.

Whichever prayer is heard and that god sends fire to consume the sacrifice  will be proclaimed the true God.

The people, the prophets, and Ahab were agreeable and up for this test.  They went into it confident their god would do as they prayed.  But they had been deceived.  So much so that they didn’t know it.  This gave them a false sense of faith in their god.

The 450 prophets of Baal went first.

From morning to noon, they prayed,

“O Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.” 

I Kings 18:26

But there was no response.  All was quiet

Elijah gave them all the time they needed.  He also could not resist having a little fun with them.  So he said,

“Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”

1 Kings 18:27

They became desperate and began to cut themselves so that blood gushed out.  They leapt into the air around the altar so Baal would pay attention to them.  Their sincerity of blood and leaping produced no response.

Being sincere is not evidence of truth.

Even though they were getting no attention from Baal, they prophesied or preached until the evening.  Their false words were all they could produce.  It is highly likely that their preaching were filled with excuses for their false god.  They may have used Elijah’s own sarcasm as an excuse.  Baal is busy with something more important perhaps.

Excuses and rationalization will never justify lies.

“But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.”

1 Kings 18:29

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Then it was Elijah’s turn.  He called the people to come close so they could see there was no trickery, but also to see and feel the silent story  he was telling by slowly and deliberately rebuilding the altar.

 Elijah’s actions of carefully rebuilding the altar was meant to soften the hard hearts of those who had been tricked by false prophets.  The people of God were to be reminded of their heritage and God’s love for them.  They would find in the true God mercy, forgiveness, and power to be obedient.

Elijah chose 12 stones, that represented the 12 tribes of the sons of Jacob, to restore the altar.  This act was to remind them that Jehovah is the same today, tomorrow, and forever.  He was also the God of the Fathers.  They had a Godly tradition rooted in the word of God.

Godly tradition rooted in truth is the only acceptable type of tradition.

Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle.

2 Thessalonians 2:15

Jesus went as far to say that traditions and teachings of men was vain worship.

And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men

Mark 7:7

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Once the altar was built, Elijah made a trench to hold water.  The sacrifice was laid upon it, and Elijah called for water to be poured upon both the sacrifice and the altar.  The wood would become soaked.  This was repeated three times so that there was so much water that it began to pour out over the trench.  Try lighting a match to that!

Then Elijah prayed a short and simple prayer for God’s people Israel:

““Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that You are the Lord God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again.””

1 Kings 18: 36, 37

This prayer reminded them that he was praying to the God of their fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Israel.  They same God who had delivered them many times and was gracious towards them.

It was a prayer to demonstrate that this same God is real.  It also demonstrated a great contrast between the false god who required cutting of the flesh and desperate dancing. This did nothing, but make the prophets look foolish and liars.  When their god did not answer them, they thought their lying prophecies would continue to deceive the children of Israel.

Then God came down in great power.

“Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench”

1 Kings 18: 38

Everything was consumed by the breath of God!  Nothing was left! The people’s response was a one might expect:

Now when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!”

1 Kings 18: 39

One might be tempted to say, why doesn’t a prophet like Elijah show up and have the same test between Jesus and Muhammad.  Between Jehovah and Allah

To be honest, I don’t know.   Such a demonstration might be very effective to convince people of the true God. But, this I do know.  There are plenty of “tests” in this story that go unrecognized.  It is not just the dramatic fire falling from heaven.  It it is the contrast between the real God and the false gods and their prophets.  It is the fruits of each religion and the prophets’ demonstration of who is the true God.

It is a gracious God compared to a figment of the false teachers mind.  It is the written history of how God has dealt with His people over time.  This information written in God’s word produces the touch stone for determining truth from error…truth from false.   His  word is

“…the same yesterday and today and forever.”  

Hebrews  13:8

The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever.

Isaiah 40:8

Today, we have the same touchstone preserved for thousands of years.  If false prophets speak today, we can know the truth by comparing it to His word.

The people were lured away from the true God and led by the false teachers to break God’s law, especially the two about building and worshiping idols.

They should have known and embraced Isiah’s council:

“To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.”

Isaiah 8:20

Today, many people do not know God’s word.  Because of this, confusion grips the land.  Because of this ignorance of God’s word, they are fed and accept the word of their teachers and ignore plain teachings from God’s word.  There is no basis for them to know the truth except through a show of force.

One day, the true God will stand up and everyone else will go down on their knees:

Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2: 9-11

Until that day, there are many ways to know that Jesus is all He claimed to be.  Next blog we will begin to explore the many ways we can know that Jesus is true and all else is a lie.

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Below is a chart  produced by Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry and its founder Matt Slick.  It shows the difference between Muhammad and Jesus.

As you look at this, consider the character of each.  By their fruits you shall know them….

	Jesus	Muhammad
Death	Jesus died and rose from the dead.	Muhammad died and stayed dead.
Fighting	Jesus never fought.	Muhammad fought many many times.
Hearing from God	When Jesus heard from God, he went to the desert to be tempted and began his ministry with boldness. (Mark 1:14-15).	When Muhammad heard from God (supposedly through an angel), he cowered, was uncertain, and wanted to commit suicide. (Quran 74:1-5)
Identity	Jesus claimed to be God (John 8:24;8:58) as well as a man. Jesus claimed to be the way, the truth, and the life. (John 14:6).	Muhammad claimed to be a man.
Instructions Received	From God the Father (John 5:19)	Allegedly from an angel
Killing	Jesus never killed anyone.	Muhammad killed many.
Life	Jesus had the power to take life but never did. He restored it.	Muhammad had the power to take it, but he never restored it.
	No one ever died in Jesus’ presence.	Many people died in Muhammad’s presence–he killed them.
Marriage	Jesus never married.	Muhammad had over 20 wives and even married a nine-year-old girl.
Ministry	Jesus received his calling from God directly. (Matt. 3:17).Jesus received his commission in the daylight.	Muhammad allegedly received it from an angel (Gabriel).Muhammad received his words in the darkness of a cave.
Ministry Length	Jesus taught for 3 1/2 years.	Muhammad taught for more than 20 years.
Miracles	Jesus performed many miracles including healing people, calming a storm with a command, and raising people from the dead.	Muhammad’s only alleged miracle was the Quran.
Prophecy	Jesus fulfilled biblical prophecy about being the Messiah.	Muhammad did not fulfill any biblical prophecy except the ones about false teachers (Matt. 24:24).
Sacrifice	Jesus voluntarily laid his life down for others.	Muhammad saved his own life many times and had others killed.
Sin	Jesus never sinned. (1 Pet. 2:22)	Muhammad was a sinner. (Quran 40:55; 48:1-2)
Slaves	Jesus owned no slaves.	Muhammad owned slaves.
Virgin Birth	Jesus was virgin born.	Muhammad was not virgin born.
Voice of God	Jesus received and heard the direct voice of God. (Mark 1:10-11)	Muhammad did not receive or hear the direct voice of God. It was an angel instead.
Women	Jesus spoke well of women.	Muhammad said women were 1/2 as smart as men (Hadith 3:826; 2:541), that the majority in hell will be women (Had. 1:28,301; 2:161; 7:124), and that women could be mortgaged.