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Prophets and Kings
Undaunted, Elijah sent him forth once more; and this time the servant
returned with the word, “Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the
sea like a man’s hand.”
This was enough. Elijah did not wait for the heavens to gather
blackness. In that small cloud he beheld by faith an abundance of rain;
and he acted in harmony with his faith, sending his servant quickly to
Ahab with the message, “Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that
the rain stop thee not.”
It was because Elijah was a man of large faith that God could use
him in this grave crisis in the history of Israel. As he prayed, his faith
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reached out and grasped the promises of Heaven, and he persevered
in prayer until his petitions were answered. He did not wait for the
full evidence that God had heard him, but was willing to venture all on
the slightest token of divine favor. And yet what he was enabled to do
under God, all may do in their sphere of activity in God’s service; for
of the prophet from the mountains of Gilead it is written: “Elias was a
man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that
it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three
years and six months.”
James 5:17
.
Faith such as this is needed in the world today—faith that will
lay hold on the promises of God’s word and refuse to let go until
Heaven hears. Faith such as this connects us closely with Heaven, and
brings us strength for coping with the powers of darkness. Through
faith God’s children have “subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness,
obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence
of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made
strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.”
Hebrews 11:33, 34
. And through faith we today are to reach the heights
of God’s purpose for us. “If thou canst believe, all things are possible
to him that believeth.”
Mark 9:23
.
Faith is an essential element of prevailing prayer. “He that cometh
to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that
diligently seek Him.” “If we ask anything according to His will, He
heareth us: and if we know that He hear us, whatsoever we ask, we
know that we have the petitions that we desired of Him.”
Hebrews
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11:6, 1John 5:14, 15
. With the persevering faith of Jacob, with the
unyielding persistence of Elijah, we may present our petitions to the