Seven Thousand Knees and Mouths
Devotions for Growing Christians
Seven Thousand Knees and Mouths
1 Kings 19:18 - Yet I will leave 7000 in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.
What's significant about 7000 pairs of knees and 7000 mouths? The significance is not in what the knees and mouths did, but in what they did not do! The knees did not bow down to any of the heathen gods named Baal, and the mouths did not kiss the image of the baals (1 Kings 19:18). Since this fact is significant enough in God's mind to be recorded in Holy Scripture, let's not miss the lessons He has for us in this little verse. There’s something here for our benefit: "For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, that through perseverance and encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope" (Romans 15:4).
Background
Let's back up and take a quick look at the historical setting. For the entire story, read all of 1 Kings 16-19. At this particular time in Israel's history it was not the "in" thing to be a believer in the Lord God. Notorious King Ahab and wicked Queen Jezebel ruled the land, and the country was given over to immorality and idolatry. Religious prostitution accompanied the pagan worship of the baals. Many true prophets had been openly murdered by Jezebel's forces. There was no public outcry by any group within the nation. In fact, an individual's life would have been at risk had he spoken out against these corrupt conditions.
Against this dark background the prophet Elijah suddenly burst on the scene with a dramatic announcement of judgment. He dared to speak out publicly against the moral and spiritual decay that had overrun the country. He preached his fiery sermon of judgment to King Ahab himself. God miraculously protected, preserved and provided for His faithful and courageous prophet. And God has many ways of taking care of His people who are willing to stand up and speak out against sin-even today, and even you!
Elijah fearlessly forced the prophets of Baal into a major showdown between their false gods and the God of Israel. At Mount Carmel, in an awe-inspiring display of power, the Lord showed Himself to be unquestionably supreme over the baals and the pagan prophets. Many of the prophets of Baal were seized and eliminated. Then the Lord sent a long-delayed rain as a sign of His blessing. For a few fleeting hours it appeared that Israel was on the verge of a national revival.
But revival did not come. In fact, Elijah himself ran away! Queen Jezebel personally threatened his life because of his victory at Mount Carmel. For the first time we read that Elijah was afraid (19:3). If a great prophet of God like Elijah could lose his determination and courage so quickly, let's realize that we are also vulnerable! Our strong witness and fearless faith today is no guarantee that we are immune to downfall tomorrow. We must constantly depend on the Lord for His strength and His courage.
After hearing Jezebel's threat on his life, Elijah hightailed it as fast as he could to the extreme southern end of the country and beyond - all the way to Mount Horeb in the Sinai peninsula. Here, far from Jezebel's clutches, he had it out with God. Elijah was convinced that he was the only faithful believer in Israel (19:10, 14).
Have you ever felt like that? Maybe you've tried so hard to serve the Lord but you just don't seem to get any support, especially in times of crisis. Sometimes, for a brief moment, things seem to be going well, but then the bottom falls out - again! Your brothers and sisters in the Lord seem to disappear just when you need their help the most. In your discouragement you feel that surely you must be the only true believer on your campus or at your job - or even in the church you attend!
But Elijah was wrong! He was not the only one who had stayed true to the Lord. There were still 7000 faithful men and women in Israel who had not bowed the knee to Baal, nor kissed the pagan image of one of the baals. The Lord's reminder of the faithful 7000 appears to be a mild rebuke to the prophet.
Other believers are sprinkled around!
Elijah may have had some good reasons for thinking that he was the only "evangelical" around, but God still had other faithful believers throughout the country. That secret "Seven Thousand Club" still exists today. Be very careful before you jump to the conclusion that you are the only believer in your job or neighborhood. The Lord still has other believers sprinkled around.
Certainly the 7000 secret believers should have been more outspoken and more publicly supportive of Elijah's ministry. They had the responsibility to stand up and be counted as believers. But at least they were hanging in there! They hadn’t bowed the knee to the pagan image, and the Lord knew that, and He counted them! Although they were unwilling to be counted in public, they were known by exact number to God.
This should be an encouragement to us, especially those of us who tend to be "quiet Christian" type. You know you should be more outspoken about your faith. You can remember scores of occasions when you had a chance to say something for Christ but you blew it out of fear or embarrassment. But at least you haven't denied the Lord. You've resisted the temptation to "bow” to the all-too-available office affair or sex on campus. You've refused to let down the barriers and "kiss" the ungodly films and websites that pervade our culture. Take heart and be encouraged. God takes note of you! You are one of the "7000"!
It may be significant that 1 Kings 19:18 does not say that the 7000 believed in their hearts. No. They actively did not bow the knee or kiss the image. God is looking for evidence in our actions for the faith that is in our hearts. You may not be an up-front and outspoken Elijah, but God still expects that evidence of your faith will be worked out in your life. So continue to resist the temptation to just believe secretly in your heart. This is one of Satan's most successful tactics in getting growing Christians to compromise - especially silent-type Christians. You may never be one of those dynamic Christian leaders who have all kinds of charisma, but that shouldn't cause you to settle for an "in-the-heart-only" belief. Even if you can't find the courage to be very vocal about your faith, continue to be one of the faithful 7000 with unbending knees and undefiled mouth.
Keep your eyes on the Lord - not on the Elijahs!
Another dangerous tendency of believers in the "Seven Thousand Club" is to look too much at the "Elijahs." This can be a problem because present-day Elijahs have running-from-Jezebel times as well as their Mount Carmel times! Just about the time you become convinced that a certain pastor or Christian leader is the perfect spokesman for God, you hear something about his life that reminds you of Elijah's failure of faith. How discouraging! What a disappointment! Remember - keep your eyes on the Lord, and not on the Elijahs, or you will be disappointed again and again.
There is also a message here for those of us who sometimes find ourselves in Elijah-type roles. Think of how greatly the faith of the 7000 must have been encouraged and bolstered by Elijah's courageous stand on Mount Carmel! Just maybe, some of those secret 7000 believers would have come out of the woodwork if Elijah had not run away so suddenly.
What an awesome responsibility the "Elijahs" have! We may never know how many secret believers are encouraged and helped along the way by the outspoken testimony of an Elijah, or how many are stumbled and hindered and turned off when the Elijahs "throw in the towel" and give up. So, Elijahs - remember that the 7000 are watching!
The Scriptures don't give us much information about most of the 7000, but we do have a few details about some of them. There was Obadiah (not the Obadiah who wrote the book of the Bible) and the 100 prophets of God whom he hid from Jezebel (1 Kings 18:3-16). There was Elisha, who was being prepared to take Elijah's place (1 Kings 19:20-21). There were the prophets of God who are mentioned in 1 Kings 20:13, 28 and 35. There was Naboth, who refused to let his family inheritance fall into the hands of King Ahab because God's law forbade such transactions (1 Kings 21). And the prophet Micaiah would be among the 7000 (1 Kings 22).
Some of the 7000 were more outspoken and less secret than others - in fact, Micaiah would later become as fearless and outspoken before Ahab as Elijah had been! Some of these 7000 may have had significant short-comings. Obadiah, for example, was involved in the service of King Ahab, when perhaps he should have separated himself from the corrupt affairs of the royal court.
But regardless of the wide differences in their courage and commitment, they had one thing in common: they had not deserted the Lord God. They had not bowed the knee to Baal nor kissed his image! Every growing Christian today should be at least as committed as the 7000. Can God count on you?
- Dave Reid