#94: When Numbers Should Have Mattered

Yet I have reserved 7,000 in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him. I Kings 19:18

A couple of weeks ago, over 2.2 billion Christians celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus in what is called Easter. That is a staggering 1/3 of the world population. Today we have the most number of people identifying with the body of Christ than any other generation. But the world is still in a mess. Corruption everywhere. Immorality is the order of the day. What could be the problem? I enjoin you to follow me through scriptures to see what God has to say about it.

Elijah lived in a day as corrupt as ours. The temple of God was deserted and turned to a temple for idol worship. Everything was upside down. The evil of the day was beginning right from the palace to the populace. This made Elijah seemingly uncomfortable and he confronted the evil in his generation. He had just finished showing how powerful YHWH is by bringing fire down from heaven at Mt. Carmel and just when it seemed he was at the threshold of seeing a revival in the land, the Queen threatened him and he fled.

He complained to God that he felt he was the only one zealous to see righteousness becoming the order of the day. What surprised me is what God replied him. "I have reserved 7,000...". That was a large crowd. But what happened that there were 7,000 such righteous people and iniquity was the order of the day? What happened that there were 7,000 such people and Elijah felt lonely in his assignment?

While that question is hanging, God told Elijah to go and anoint 3 men (I Kings 19: 15-17) who would work with him in the mission field at their respective offices and assignment. I am guessing these 3 would be part of the 7,000. But why would God look at a crowd of 7,000 believers and choose only 3 for His kingdom mandates? This is the crux of the issue today.

It is obvious they were righteous. They were religious, but for one reason or another they were not affecting their generation. It can be said today that Christians are a third of the world and the world is still this way because the body of Christ has not stood up to responsibilities. There are Christians in political positions, but they are not attacking the corruption there. They are just making sure their hands are clean. If every believer on earth would stand up to responsibility or perhaps stand for righteousness in their various facets of life, God would begin to move on the Earth and change lives.

God is ready to move in this generation. He has the most number of persons at His disposal but how many Believers are matured enough to handle kingdom matters? How many will not make a shipwreck of their calling? Can God use You? Or if God were to reckon with you He would say you are just one of the 7,000 (and He is still looking for whom He will use). God is calling us today to stand up for the course of the Gospel anywhere we are.

THOUGHT: We are the salts of the Earth. We are to give savour to the Earth. Why is the Earth still bitter and we are not bothered, and we are minding our business?