Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
The promise of God intrigues God's people worldwide: "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord" (Mal. 4:5).
Elijah did the "impossible." He was the human agency that permitted the Lord to do what nobody thought could be done--turning the apostate "heart" of fallen Israel "back again" in repentance (1 Kings 18:37).
The most difficult achievement on planet earth is "turning" alienated "hearts." All the king's horses and all the king's men can't put Humpty Dumpty together again; hearts can't be "turned" unless souls are crucified "with Christ" (Gal. 2:20), and that means to die the equivalent of the "second death," "with Him." The giving up of everything for the sake of the lost love--can it be done?
Everybody says "No!" "Elijah" says "Yes!"
We don't have to go far in Malachi to find context of the kind of alienations "Elijah" is concerned about. "The Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth. … Let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that He hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts" (2:14-16).
What is "violence"? Forcing heartbreak on someone, for it's violent wrenching against his/her will. When hearts are in the love of "youth," separations wound very painfully. The great Lord of heaven and earth "witnesses" "putting away." It pains Him, for He wants us to be happy.
No one on earth can put Humpty Dumpty together again; let no one try on his own, for he/she can make bad matters worse. The Lord has promised He will "send Elijah the prophet" to do things that are impossible for any of us to try to do. But if Jesus Christ is to come the second time, "Elijah" has to come first. Time to walk softly before the Lord!
--Robert J. Wieland
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 18, 2006.
Copyright © 2012 by "Dial Daily Bread."
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