Herds of Goats

"Herds of Goats" - 1 Kings 20:27

A year later, Ben-Hadad marched again against Israel. Israel's army looked like two herds of goats compared to the hosts of Syria. The man of God told Ahab that Jehovah would teach Ben-Hadad that He was both the God of the valleys and the God of the mountains. In "the battle" the Israelites killed 100,000 of the Syrians in a single day. Those who "fled" tried to defend themselves on the walls of "Aphek", but the walls fell down killing twenty-seven thousand more men."

I. It makes it possible for God to use weak instruments to achieve great results.

A. God's resources.

1. A resource is a means used to achieve an end.

2. (Exodus 4:2) The rod in his hand is the object (material, inanimate, person or thing that is directed to an action or thought) of the first miracle.

3. Take it by the tail, not by the neck, which the tamers grasp by the neck, as simple as the authority of God.

4. (Judges 15:15) The Spirit of Jehovah came upon him.

5. Finding a donkey's jawbone, he slew a thousand Philistines.

6. It is to be wondered at why the Lord gave such a great victory by means of such an improbable weapon.

7. (1 Samuel 17:40) When Saul saw David, he had doubts about the boy's abilities.

8. David had experienced the power of God at work in him when he defended his flock against the "lion" and the "bear."

9. He had tasted God in private; now he could depend on God in public.

10. (1 Kings 17:12) A handful of flour and a little oil.

11. It was, for him, the first cake: by doing this, she was in effect giving God the first place.

12. Her jar of flour and her pot of oil were never missing.

13. (1 Kings 18:44) A small cloud in the distance.

14. The prophet advised Ahab to eat because he would soon have to flee Mount Carmel to escape the rain.

15. As Ahab sat down to eat, Elijah went to pray.

16. Prostrating himself on the ground with his face between his knees, he prayed fervently that the Lord would keep His word by sending rain.

17. He continued to pray until "his servant" warned him that there was "a little cloud" in the distance.

18. Elijah was satisfied with him, so he immediately sent word to Ahab to go quickly to Jezreel.

19. (Zechariah 4:10) Those who despised the day of trifles, that is, those who "scoffed at the possibility of God doing something great, would see the plumb line in Zerubbabel's hand, that is, they would see 'the day' when Zerubbabel would finish the structure.

20. (Matthew 13:32) The mustard seed.

21. The church has grown.

22. That is to say, it has spread, even though there is so much evil in itself and so much pain for the fakers.

23. God's resources (1 Corinthians 1:27-29) A means used to accomplish an end.

24. God chose the foolish thing in the world (ignorant individual who has no knowledge (set of information) of what he should or could know) to shame the wise; and God chose "the weak of the world" to shame the strong.

25. Paul adds the vileness of the world and the despised and what is not.

26. By using such unpromising materials, God "nullifies" "what is."

27. In other words, He likes to take people who are not esteemed in the eyes of the world and employ them to "glorify Himself."

28. These verses should serve as a rebuke to those Christians who cultivate the favor of "prominent" and "famous" people and who show "little or no" regard for God's humblest saints.

29. (29) God's purpose is to choose those who are thoughtless in the eyes of the world, that all the glory should go to Him and not to man.

30. Because salvation is all from Him, He alone is worthy of praise. Amen.