Religion’s Perfect Family
Written by Jarred Rushing
(4 minutes)
Ahab son of Omri began to rule over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of King Asa’s reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria twenty-two years. But Ahab son of Omri did what was evil in the Lord ’s sight, even more than any of the kings before him. And as though it were not enough to follow the sinful example of Jeroboam, he married Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians, and he began to bow down in worship of Baal. First Ahab built a temple and an altar for Baal in Samaria. Then he set up an Asherah pole. He did more to provoke the anger of the Lord , the God of Israel, than any of the other kings of Israel before him. (1 Kings 16:29-33)
On Sunday, Pastor Tim introduced us to religion's perfect family, Ahab and Jezebel, and to Yahweh's prophet, Elijah, who pioneers and lays a foundation that Christ can build upon.
Elijah represents something that Ahab and Jezebel hate and resist with everything in them. Most people who are under the influence of the spirit of religion hate and resist it - true, spiritual authority... spiritual fathers.
Ahab and Jezebel's names give us a hint as to the spirit within them.
Ahab means "father's brother." So we're basically talking about Uncle Ahab being in charge, not a real father. My uncle may look like my father, but just because he's similar doesn't mean he's the real thing.
Jezebel means "without cohabitation," or more specifically, "without a husband." That's interesting because Jezebel was married...but not in her heart. Jezebel takes an inner vow to never be controlled or co-labor with a man ever again. If we could get a glimpse into Jezebel's past, we would probably find some sort of trauma or abuse brought on by a father, or the lack thereof. One thing is for sure and Pastor Tim echoed this in Sunday's message: you don't have a Jezebel without having an Ahab. They travel together.
Another thing that gives us insight into religion's perfect family is the false gods that they bring into the home.
Jezebel brings the false god, Baal, into the marriage. Baal is all about being in control, having power, and being the owner of all. Ahab brings the false god, Asherah, into the marriage. Asherah stands for "staying ahead" and "being happy." Both of these false gods direct our focus to what we can produce for ourselves (personal destiny). The worship of Baal and Asherah required two things: sexual immorality and child sacrifice.
This tells us everything we need to know to paint an accurate picture.
Religion's perfect family consists of a weak-minded, look-alike father whose primary goal is being happy and staying a couple steps ahead, and a controlling, independent-at-all-costs woman who seeks control through manipulation and emotional outbursts. And the gods they worship permit sexual immorality and the sacrifice of children on their altars.
I don't know about you, but the above statement seemed to define our current culture quite well. Wouldn't you say?
And the one thing that ended up being completely repulsive to this family was spiritual authority.
Spiritual authority offended them.
It got on their last nerve.
It aggravated all their senses.
And they spent a lot of energy and effort resisting what spiritual authority was trying to establish in the earth: hearts of fathers being turned to the children, and the hearts of children being turned to the fathers.
This week, we're going to take some walks with Abba and invite Him into this conversation. I'll be honest up front: this one has the potential to pull down some significant strongholds in our heart. How we respond to spiritual authority has everything to do with how we respond to Abba. Some of us may find out through Abba's grace-filled walk that we're connected to spiritual authority externally but, like Jezebel, we're "without husband" or without spiritual authority in our own heart.
This could be some of the most important conversations with Yahweh that we have.
Why would I say that? Because how the widow responded to Elijah had major implications in her life. Pushing spiritual authority and true fathers out of our life could be us signing the death certificate of the next generation.
Abba, we want the real thing, so "spare nothing as you make me your fruitful garden" and "hold nothing back until I release your fragrance."
You can go back and listen to Sunday's message here.
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Worship: "Real Thing" by Maverick City Music
Honor: Give Online to The Wilderness Place
Share With Us: We would love to hear how you're encountering Abba in your daily walks. Don't hesitate to share what you're hearing, seeing, or sensing in His presence. Email us here!
