Don’t Play With The Fire
Praying Powerful Prayers – Part 2
9. Then the king sent to Elijah a captain of fifty with his platoon of fifty soldiers. The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king says come down.”
10. Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.
2 Kings 1:9-10
Fire Power From God
As we observe the Prophet Elijah’s life, we find that he was both a man of faith and a man who faced fear and anxiety. Despite his frailties, God used Elijah to mightily proclaim the Truth to the idolatrous Northern Kingdom of Israel. His prophetic message was first directed at the evil that King Ahab and his wife Jezebel had committed. God gave Elijah incredible ability to speak a word over the weather and it would not rain for three and a half years. Then he prayed again and the rains returned. What incredible power. But here is the caution, power must be used responsibly. We recognize how God gave Elijah the extraordinary ability to pray powerful prayers that yielded amazing result. When you pray right, Heaven belongs to you.
Elijah recognized that prayer was a gift that accomplishes Divine results. During the reign of Amaziah, Ahab’s son, we find that the nation was still worshipping the pagan god Baal-zebub (lord of the flies). According to scholars, this was only one of the many fertility gods of that region. As the Scripture account goes, Amaziah suffered a debilitating injury and sent his officers to inquire of Baal-zebub, whether he would recover. Elijah the praying Prophet, received a message from God that Amaziah was inquiring of a pagan god. He interrupted the delegation and told them to tell the King, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending messengers to consult Baal-zebub … therefore you will not leave your bed … you will surely die.” The actions of the king were without a doubt, an insult to the Living God and a clear violation of the Holy Covenant that commanded Israel to not have any gods before the God of Israel.
The delegation relayed God’s message back to King Amaziah, and immediately, the king wanted Elijah apprehended. The king sent a platoon of men to find Elijah and bring him in for questioning. The first captain, along with his fifty men arrived at the hill and gave the king’s order for Elijah to come down. Elijah (Yahweh is God), responded, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men. Just like that, fifty men plus one of the king’s army perished in the fire. Rather than heeding the warning and protecting his troops from harm, Ahaziah (Jah has seized) sent another platoon of soldiers to bring Elijah. Well, the same thing happened to the second fifty men. Elijah responded, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.” Well, the king sent another platoon of men. At this point, the third captain realized that his life and the life of his soldiers was on the line, so rather than approach the man of God in a demanding way, he humbled himself and recognized both God’s Prophet and God’s Power.
How this third captain responded speaks to the tremendous ability to make intercession and get results. Remember, Elijah prayed and got results. By this time, he was on a roll with calling down fire. He had the script down and was ready for the next group of soldiers to show up. Only this time, God would listen to the captain of the soldiers making intercession for himself and his soldiers.
Fighting Fire with Prayer
We remember the passage from James 5:17, Elijah was a human being, even as we are … He prayed earnestly. Let’s observe how this captain, who was feeling very vulnerable, prayed and got results. What is even more amazing is the fact that the captain does not know God, has probably never called on God before, and had done absolutely nothing to deserve an answer to prayer. As a matter of fact, he was not even calling on God directly, but got results anyway. 2 Kings 1:13-15,
So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. “Man of God,” he begged, “please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants!” “See, fire has fallen from Heaven and consumed the first two captains and all their men.” “But now have respect for my life!” Then the Angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So Elijah got up and went down with him to the king.
Here was a pagan captain that did not know the worth of prayer but engaged in prayer for the first time and got instant results. We first observe that the right attitude of prayer is humility towards God and His anointed ones. The first two captains went in the same spirit of the king. They had no regard for God and even less regard for God’s representative. As a result of irreverence, the first two captains, along with one hundred soldiers, died.
Just how important is this attitude of humility in prayer? Later in the life of Elijah’s student, Elisha, we read about a group of young guys who decided they wanted to have some fun and harass the new Prophet with verbal assaults. 2 Kings 2:23-24. While they made fun of Elisha’s physical appearance, he turned and called down a curse on them in the Name of the Lord. In no time, two she bears came out of the woods and mauled forty-two of the young men of Bethel. They disrespected God’s Prophet and therefore had no respect for the Word of God. It is true today that those who disrespect God’s Word and also God’s servants, will face punishment. How in the world do we expect to pray to God without first having respect for those who serve God? Humility in prayer is a priority.
Not only is humility and respect toward God essential, but we also find another aspect of prayer in the third’s captain’s confession. This man positioned himself for serious prayer as he got on his knees. For a high ranking soldier, this would be considered a dishonorable act of cowardness. Before the Commander of Heaven and Earth, this was an act of true strength and dignity. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. It could be argued that the modern Church has developed this cavalier attitude about recognizing the presence of God. As I have read the Bible, time after time, those who have encountered the presence of God have either been on their knees or prostrate before the Lord in recognition of His Supreme Power. This captain, as a first-time prayer, far exceeded many seasoned saints of God. So, what does getting on your knees and laying on your face before God prove? It is not so much the physical condition as it is an indication of what is going on in the heart. This captain was broken and keenly aware that he might not leave that hill alive. He was done with the arrogant approach to speaking to the Prophet, so he approached the Prophet differently. No one told him “get on your knees.” It was that position and that attitude that changed the outcome. This captain emerged with his own life and the fifty men who followed him.
O that the saints of God would take this attitude on the battlefields of life! This war is not about you and your stuff. This battle is the Lord’s. Quit thinking that you are tough and rugged and can stand any pressure. All it takes if for a storm, a sickness, or a calamity to force you to your knees. You have to get down on your knees BEFORE you are forced to your knees by the trials of life. One Gospel artist said, “In order to get up – you got to get down.”
There is a third lesson that is implied with this message that must be shared with the Saints. Be careful with God’s fire. Don’t just call down fire upon every person who disagrees with you or who disrespects you. While God permitted Elijah to call down fire on the first two captains and their platoons, God was not giving Elijah free reign to use the fire at his discretion. Notice, the Angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah and told him, The Angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” In other words, Elijah was about to ‘light him up,’ but God stopped him. Maybe the Saints of God would get more results from “Lord, change my enemy” versus “Lord, get my enemy.” You think? Didn’t Jesus say, “pray for those who despitefully use you and say all manner of evil against you falsely for My Sake?” Matthew 5:44. While we can call down fire, I think the Spirit of God would have us to call down Grace and Salvation instead.
It is interesting how this attitude of calling down fire impacted two of Jesus Disciples who had been turned away from ministering in a Samaritan village. When they were turned away by the citizens, they asked Jesus, “Lord, will it that we may command that fire to come down from Heaven and consume them as Elijah did.” But Jesus rebuked them according to Luke 9:54-56. They did not realize that calling down fire was not the answer to the situation but rather calling on God to guide them was the correct response. We must be careful with God’s fire. What we may want to burn up that which God intends to use.
Finally, the key point in this passage is to state and restate your need. This captain was clear on his request. He wanted the Prophet to spare his life and the life of his men. The third captain said … “Man of God,” … “please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants!” …“But now have respect for my life!” This was not a rehearsed prayer; this was an urgent prayer. This captain wanted the fire of God to stay in Heaven and not be called down on them. You must know what you are praying right before you pray, if you are to get God’s attention. Many saints are not prepared for prayer because they are not sure what they need nor are they clear on how to ask for help. If that is the case, we need the aid of the Holy Spirit to help us mightily in prayer. In Romans 8:26 it speaks of our infirmities that will prevent us from praying the correct prayer. Take heart, God does not leave us in that pitiful condition.
God, the Holy Spirit, prays for us. Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses; for we do not know what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit Himself, makes intercession for us with groanings that cannot be put in words. We should abuse the support of the Holy Spirit in prayer by becoming lackadaisical in our approach to prayer. We should not leave all the work to the Holy Spirit because the verse says The Spirit helps us. If we never initiate the powerful prayer, we are being disrespectful of the Holy Spirits presence.
In conclusion, we should have confidence that God will hear our prayers and that we are praying the powerful prayer with the Lord’s help. Respect the presence of God. Position your heart to speak to Heaven and also to hear from Heaven. Do not abuse the Power of Prayer by making unnecessary and vengeful requests. Finally, make sure that you know what you are praying for and ask with confidence. The third captain spent time on his knees and arose with an answered prayer. That is powerful prayer.