Not in the wind

[rlvaughn]

"And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice."

In 1 Kings 19:11-12 the text tells us of three dramatic demonstrations to Elijah -- a wind breaking rocks, an earthquake, and a fire -- but each time tells us God was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire.

It seems pretty obvious that these were demonstrations of the power of God, so what does the text mean by saying God was not in them?

Your thoughts?

 

[PastoralMusings]

I've always assumed that the voice of God was not in them, as it was not until he heard the quiet voice that he actually heard from God.
It is interesting to read this in light of the fact that so many people are looking for God in major upheavals and ecstatic experiences, and all the while are missing Him in the quietness of daily life.

 

[just-want-peace]

This layman's view says that God will not be found in "busyness", but by quieting your mind and truly wanting to connect with Him. The day-to-day brouhaha of texting, messaging, anxiously following politics or the DOW, general "social" noise etc. just keeps you so disconnected from Him that until you slow down and actually THINK about your relationship with Him you'll never connect!!
Not set in stone, but my take on this passage of Scripture.

 

[rlvaughn]

It is interesting to read this in light of the fact that so many people are looking for God in major upheavals and ecstatic experiences, and all the while are missing Him in the quietness of daily life.

That is a good and interesting point. Too often we look for the big things and miss the little things (which are really the big things).

 

[agedman]

James gives this, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.”

When listening to the voice of God, it can be distinguished from all other impressions and oppressions by heading the source list of James.

Does the Scripture ever give a time when God shouted?

 

[rlvaughn]

Maybe these:
Psalm 47:5 God is gone up with a shout, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.
Luke 23:46 And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

 

[Jerome]

Jn.11:43 "He cried with a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come forth!'"

Hallelujah!

 

[The Archangel]

"And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice."

In 1 Kings 19:11-12 the text tells us of three dramatic demonstrations to Elijah -- a wind breaking rocks, an earthquake, and a fire -- but each time tells us God was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire.

It seems pretty obvious that these were demonstrations of the power of God, so what does the text mean by saying God was not in them?

Your thoughts?

Our knowledge of God is not in the spectacular--signs, etc. Our knowledge of God is in what He has said of Himself. In Elijah's case (since he's on Mt. Sinai) God is saying the knowledge of Him comes through the Law--that which He has already spoken.

ETA: God clearly causes these spectacular occurrences--earth quakes fires, etc. But He is not known through them. The false gods of the day, Baal, etc., cannot speak and would have only been known though natural disaster-type events. The One, True, and Living God, on the other hand does speak and can only be rightly known through His own self-revelation.

Israel was not left to wonder what God was like; He had told them through self-revelation. What is more, the spectacular signs didn't seem to help Israel--the generation that walked through the Red Sea on dry ground was also the generation that made the golden calf and refused to go into the promised land.

Blessings,

The Archangel

 

[Dave G]

In 1 Kings 19:11-12 the text tells us of three dramatic demonstrations to Elijah -- a wind breaking rocks, an earthquake, and a fire -- but each time tells us God was not in the wind, the earthquake, or the fire.

It seems pretty obvious that these were demonstrations of the power of God, so what does the text mean by saying God was not in them?

Your thoughts?

He dwells in secret places, and manifests Himself secretly ( Job 4:12-17 ).

In the stillness He dwells, and performs great things that come forth in great ways ( Zechariah 4:1-7 ).

He tells His children to be still ( Psalms 46:10, Isaiah 41:1 ).

He tells His children, when they pray, not to do it as the religious do ( Matthew 6:2-8 ).

His children are commanded to work quietly ( 2 Thessalonians 3:12 ).


Look for passages that the Lord commands how we should work, and pray to Him and to conduct ourselves as believers.

I dare say that you will not find a one that tells us to do things noisily and with much "fanfare" or shouting, except perhaps to declare His grace and mercy to us to others in the company of His saints ( Psalms 68:3, Psalms 118:15, Matthew 10:27 ), and then only in an orderly manner and with reverence.