Since the beginning of the Church Age in Acts chapter two, Christianity has been under attack by the forces of evil.
American Christians can be thankful that we have been blessed to have freedom to worship and evangelize non-Christians for several centuries.
However one of the greatest threats to Christianity has come when so-called believers have succumbed to false gods and false religion.
This was an issue with Israel in the Old Testament in 1 Kings chapters 16 through 18.
King Ahab led Israel down the path of false worship by building an altar and a temple for Baal in Samaria. The result was that Israel began to bow the knee to Baal and engage in wicked practices.
God would judge Ahab for his sin. God raised up the prophet Elijah who had the courage to challenge King Ahab. In his confrontation, Elijah told Ahab that there would be a drought in the land (that would last 3 1/2 years).
Dale Davis made these comments about this period of Israel’s history: “The government is pumping raw paganism in the Israel and it looks like Baalism will win the day and extinguish Yahweh’s remnant…Satan’s throne has been installed in Samaria, but at the height of the triumph of evil, God will be there ready with his man.”
This was a direct confrontation between Yahweh and Baal. Which God would win out and be more powerful? Yahweh or Baal whom they claimed was the god of rain and fertility.
If Yahweh withheld the rain, it would prove Baal to be powerless.
Elijah made it clear in 1 Kings 18:18 that the drought was the judgment of God on Ahab because he had abandoned the commandments of the Lord and followed Baal.
God did not let Israel get away with their sin and unbelief. The Lord turned to His people essentially saying, “Since you look to Baal, the god of fertility and rain. I will stop the rain. I will show who the real God is!”
God will not tolerate when His people serve other gods. Israel chose to look to Baal for life, yet He alone gives life. Where do we look for our life, our sustenance, our security and our success? Do we look to God or to another?
There is only ONE GOD! The Bible is clear that those who turn to Jesus Christ with sincere repentance of their sins (Acts 3:19) and faith in Him alone will be saved (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Ultimately God won the war of the gods in that day. He will win the battle against the false gods in any age.
He proves over and over again in Scripture the impotence of all man-made gods. In the end, God wins. He won on Calvary! And He will win for all eternity.
Philippians 2:8-11 makes this point very clear as it speaks of Jesus Christ, 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
The Rev. Glen Currie is pastor pf Maranatha Baptist Church.