Word of Salvation – October 2026

 

Elijah And Obadiah

 

A sermon by Rev. John Westendorp on 1Kings 18:1-20

Bible Readings: Matthew 10:16-20; 1Kings 18:1-20

 

Theme: The revelation of God’s grace in the person and faith of Obadiah, God’s man in an ungodly place.

 

Introd: I don’t know about you but I get annoyed at times about TV weather reporters.

They often speak as if they are bringing the sunshine and the rain.
”Today we are bringing you some showers as the cold front moves across the State.”

At other times they speak as if all the weather patterns just happen totally by chance.
”Let’s just keep our fingers crossed for some rain”.

 

I like to think of Elijah as Israel’s ‘weatherman’… except that Elijah knows who controls the weather.
And Israel is being taught that in this very powerful lesson of a 3½-year drought.
It is God who sends sunshine and rain… although often he does that in response to our prayers.
James, in the N.T, reminds us of that:
Elijah was a man just like us.  He prayed earnestly that it would not rain,
and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years.  Again he prayed,
and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. (5:17,18).

So in this 3½-year drought God shows us the powerless of man and of idol gods over nature.
It is all in the Lord’s hands.  He brings sunshine and rain.  He brings good times and drought.
And He does it to work out His own sovereign purposes.
All we can do is bring those things before God in prayer.

 

In our text God is preparing to again send rain on the land of Israel.

But we’ll see here not only God’s sovereignty over the weather but also over the lives of people.

But then the focus here is not Elijah… and it’s not Ahab… but it’s this humble man named Obadiah.

 

A]       THE PERSON AND FAITH OF OBADIAH.

 

1. We’re not told a lot about Obadiah.

We have more than 5 chapters featuring Elijah, but we have less than 15 verses on Obadiah.

And of course, next to the powerful figure of Elijah anyone else is always going to seem insignificant.

 

These chapters even present a rather stark contrast between Obadiah and the prophet Elijah.
Elijah repeatedly appears as the fearless prophet of God in these chapters.
He’s not scared to tell King Ahab some home truths.
I have not made trouble for Israel… but you and your family have.
You have abandoned the Lord’s commandments and followed the Baals. (v.18).
Elijah even has the audacity to order Ahab to gather the people together with the Baal priests.
Over against that there is this rather fearful and timid man, Obadiah.
Twice he expresses the fear that Ahab will put him to death.

 

It’s also instructive for us to look at Obadiah through Elijah’s eyes.
Elijah’s treatment of Obadiah is a little patronising… almost disdainful.
Elijah almost seems to treat him as his messenger boy: Go fetch king Ahab…!
We also notice that Obadiah defers to Elijah as the greater and the more important.
When Elijah appears he bows down to the ground before him.
Obadiah even addresses him as ‘master’: Is it really you, my lord Elijah?

 

Two chapters later in 1Kings 19 (vs.10) it even seems that Elijah has forgotten Obadiah exists.
Or that he has rescued 100 prophets from Jezebel’s clutches.
Elijah there complains to God that he alone is left of all God’s servants.
And we ask: Really Elijah?  What about Obadiah?  What about those one hundred prophets?
It’s tempting for those called to special ministry to be patronising towards others.
It’s easy to overlook and forget the work of the ordinary Obadiah’s in the church.

2. It seems fairly safe to assume that Obadiah had devout parents who worshipped the true God.
   We come to that conclusion especially when we think of this man’s name.
   They had named him Obadiah… and Obadiah means: ‘Servant of Yahweh’.

 

Think about that in context of this nation presently ruled by Ahab and Jezebel.
In Israel in those days it was not politically correct to name one’s children Obadiah.
They’d be much more likely to call him Obad-baal – servant of Baal.

And even if Obadiah had been born before Ahab and Jezebel, those times weren’t much better.
Because Ahab’s father was Omri… and of him the Bible says:
But Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord and sinned more than all those before him.
It just wasn’t a good time to be giving God-honouring names to one’s children.
But it seems Obadiah was brought up trusting God from birth.

 

We’re also told Obadiah remained faithful at a time when others abandoned true religion.
In vs.3 he is spoken of as being ‘devout’ (vs.3).  In fact, very devout…!
Literally the Hebrew text says that Obadiah feared the Lord greatly.
In addition we notice how Obadiah speaks about his own relationship with the Lord in vs.12.
He has worshipped the Lord since his youth.  So a believer since childhood!
Again literally: I, your servant, fear the Lord since my youth.

 

I read that and it strikes me that I’m not inclined to speak about my relationship to God in those terms.
We’re people who believe in the Lord.  We are followers of the Lord.
We may even say that we love the Lord.
But when did you last describe yourself as a God-fearing person…?
It’s a way of talking about ourselves that puts the glory where it belongs – with God.
It highlights that He is the one of whom we ought to stand in awe.

 

3. Notice further that Obadiah’s faith was a living faith… it’s seen in action.

He doesn’t just coasts along, merely going through some routine rituals of worship.

 

No… this man expresses his faith in compassion and in some rather amazing hospitality.
Jezebel has gone off on one of her ‘get rid of Yahweh’ binges.
By the way: it is specifically said that that was Jezebel’s doing… not Ahab’s.
But while Jezebel was killing off the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah had hidden 100 of them.

That’s an extremely courageous act for a timid man like Obadiah.
And he had hidden them in two caves and supplied them with food and water.
Just stop and think about the logistics of that….
Bed and breakfast for one hundred people… and that in a time of famine…?
With the utmost generosity he feeds them food and water, day after day.
That’s hospitality on a decidedly large scale.
And if he’d been caught at it by Jezebel’s spies, he would have paid for it with his life.

 

I mention all this because today we’re inclined to envy people like Elijah for his courage and boldness.
We can even be hard on ourselves because we’re not fearless preachers like Elijah.
But now in Obadiah we’re reminded that God not only uses Elijah type people in His Kingdom.

We now see that God also works through timid and fearful Obadiahs.
There’s no story here of a spectacular conversion.
There is no prominent ‘in-your-face-Ahab’ style of confrontation.
Just a very ordinary man brought up in a very ordinary God-fearing home.
And he works in a highly secret way – behind the scenes – without anyone knowing.
And he does a wonderful thing for the Lord… keeping 100 of his prophets alive.

 

What’s more… now even the bold Elijah has to depend on this timid man, Obadiah.
And so this man, in his own quiet way, plays a role in the making of sacred history.
God has a purpose for Elijah… but also for those who work unobtrusively behind the scenes.
So you don’t need to be envious of Elijah – just let your light shine in your small corner.

 

B]       GOD’S AGENT IN AHAB’S PALACE.

 

1. There is another reason why it’s good for to pause and think about this man Obadiah.

Many of us know first-hand what it’s like to work in a non-Christian or anti-Christian environment.
Sometimes Church members have told me they are the only Christian in their workplace.
The boss has got no time for religion… but at least he’s quiet about it.
But your workmates give you a hard time whenever the subject comes up.
It’s tough being a Christian… especially when you work in anti-Christian environment.

 

But now spare a thought for Obadiah… working there in Israel’s royal palace.
Can you imagine the difficulty of being in Ahab and Jezebel’s court as a believer?
Here is a time when Yahweh worship was just not politically correct?
Worse: people were actually getting killed for preaching and practicing biblical religion.
Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets.

 

When I think of that then I don’t want to be too hard on Obadiah.

Okay… he’s a little timid… in fact, he’s rather fearful.

But what about you who work as Christians in a non-Christian environment?  You can relate to that.
In fact, this contrast between Elijah and Obadiah makes me want to make some allowances.
Elijah didn’t have to please Ahab; he only had to rebuke him in God’s name.
Obadiah had to honour and respect Ahab as his boss.
Elijah only had to front up… speak his message… and disappear again.
Obadiah had to turn up for work with Ahab day after day after day.

 

2. Of course in some ways it’s rather puzzling that Ahab should employ a man who feared the Lord.

Jezebel was out to destroy Biblical religion and Ahab certainly let his wife do it.  He supports her.
So here, in the palace at Samaria, is the centre of Baal worship.
And yet Ahab employs a devout Israelite who takes God’s covenant with His people seriously.

It’s hard for me to believe that Ahab didn’t know that Obadiah was a god-fearing man.
Surely that would have come out in many different ways.
When the royal court participated in Baal rituals Obadiah didn’t join in.
When Ahab and Jezebel mocked the God of Israel Obadiah didn’t laugh.
Nor did he share the loose morals that went hand in hand with Baal worship.

 

So why does Ahab employ this man who fears Yahweh the God of Israel?
His most trusted employee… and he’s a man who has worshiped the Lord since his youth.
Imagine: a devout servant of the Lord holds the highest position of manager of the palace.
And if Jezebel had ever protested about it Ahab obviously hadn’t sacked him.  Why?

 

I recall a story that illustrates the reason why.
A man from our church had an important job with a godless boss.
This boss was a hard-headed business man with no time for God.
But when the Christian employee retired his boss asked if he knew a Christian needing work.
He was adamant that he wanted to employ another Christian.
Why?   Because he liked that Christian’s work ethic.
Because he had learned that Christians generally have high moral standards.
He especially wanted another man he could trust in that responsible position.

 

Look at it from Ahab’s angle and you see that the king showed wisdom in employing a “God fearer”.
Obadiah had been brought up believing that God had given His law;
That there was a moral code that we humans are required to live by.  That served Ahab well.
So while King Ahab had no time for the religion of Yahweh…
he found it profitable to have as his senior man –
a trustworthy fellow who lived by Yahweh’s moral code.

 

Ahab was like so many people today:
They don’t want Biblical religion but they do want the blessings that flow from it.

 

3. We see then that Obadiah was God’s man in the court of Ahab and Jezebel.

That reminds us that we are not just looking at Obadiah the man.
We’re not here first of all today to do a character study of Ahab’s senior manager.
Rather, we are here to see how God works in history.
And when we do that we learn some wonderful truths.

 

Especially this: that God never leaves Himself without witnesses.
Even in the court of these evil rulers God has a trusted man on the inside.
When I think of that I remember so many other times where God did that.

I think of Joseph in Pharaoh’s palace in Egypt.
I recall Daniel in Nebuchadnezzar’s court and Mordecai with king Xerxes at the time of Esther.
Even in high places in enemy territory God has His agents.
He places them there to work out His wonderful purposes for His Kingdom through them.

 

And then I realise that nothing has really changed.
When I now think of that young man who is the only Christian at work, I am amazed.
He’s, the only Christian among two-dozen workmates.
But he’s there as God’s agent in enemy territory… to serve the Kingdom of the Lord Jesus.
And I want to say to him: Wow, God has entrusted you with twenty-four men…!
You are His representative in that business.  How great is that?
So let’s not complain when we find ourselves in situations like that.
Let’s rather see ourselves as placed there by Jesus for His glory and for His Kingdom.

 

C]       GOD’S REVELATION THRU OBADIAH.

 

1. Let me say again: This Scripture passage is not there just to tell us about Obadiah.

Okay, it is instructive to learn from the life of this man… but this is not a biography.

This is the Bible… and the Bible is what we call God Special Revelation.
So we study this text first of all to learn about God and His ways.
And especially how He is working in history to keep the true faith alive till Jesus comes.

 

So when we read this story as revelation from God then there are three special things to notice.

First of all there is the setting.
God is showing how far people can drift away from Him.
In the story of Obadiah God is revealing how bad things had become in Israel.
It’s a revelation of the sad condition of God’s people at that time.

 

God’s servants the prophets were no longer respected as God’s messengers.
Instead they were regarded as fair game by Jezebel and slaughtered.
Keep in mind that in Israel (the Ten Northern Tribes) there were no priests and Levites.
They had been expelled and sent back to Judah by an earlier king.
So there took place the rise of groups that were called the “schools of the prophets”.
But now even these are being slaughtered by Jezebel.

 

Not only that but Ahab and Jezebel have hunted in all the neighbouring countries for Elijah.
For Jezebel any follower of Yahweh is fair game.
Persecution of God’s servants always reveals how sadly things have deteriorated in a nation.
And that’s a sobering thought in our present day.  We are expected to be very careful.
We must not offend Muslims and Hindus… but Christians, it seems, are fair game.

 

2. Secondly: this passage is also a wonderful revelation of how God guards and keeps His people.

We’re see that even more clearly later… in chapter 19:
There God tells Elijah that there are still 7000 who have not bowed the knee to Baal.

 

But not only does God guard and keep His people in those situations.
He also uses them so that in various ways they serve Him.
Whether that be as His spokesman, like Elijah.
Or whether that be as someone simply showing care and hospitality, like Obadiah.

 

So… yes… it’s a bad time for the nation.
And it’s a bad time for all those who follow the Lord.
The condition of believers at the time is well represented by Obadiah.
They are fearful, apprehensive and cautious.
Obadiah has been shaped by the circumstances into a very cautious person.

 

But then I think of the words of Jesus when he sent the disciples out into the world in Mat.10.
He told them that he was sending them out as sheep among the wolves.
And then He called them to be as shrewd as snakes and as harmless as doves (Mat.10¹⁶).
That’s the way Obadiah was used of God in the court of Ahab.
Wise… in that he became a highly trusted employee.
Harmless… in that he used his position for the protection of a hundred prophets.

In this way we are encouraged in our timidity and fearfulness in hostile surroundings.
If God could guard and guide Obadiah in the court of Ahab…
then He can guard and guide you in your most challenging circumstances.

 

3. Above all this story reveals to us the wonderful grace and mercy of God to the nation.

Israel had become an incredibly evil place under Ahab and Jezebel.
But God doesn’t destroy Samaria… as He had once destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.
Instead He even leaves His witness in the very heart of enemy territory.

God protects Obadiah in that cauldron of evil… and He does that for a purpose.
So that Obadiah can be a blessing there for the Kingdom.
God has still not given up on this nation… God is patient with His people.

I like to think that Obadiah often used this important position to advantage.
Maybe he had contact with some of the 7000 who hadn’t bowed the knee to Baal.
In any case he was there as one who knew the promises of God’s coming Messiah.
And in that sense Jesus was already present there in the person of Obadiah.

 

I see that same mercy and grace of God to Israel in the preparations for the coming rains.
Elijah now comes to Obadiah and through Obadiah contact is made with Ahab.
And then in such a way that Ahab does not immediately destroy Elijah.
And in this way we will soon see God’s grace in drought-breaking rain.

 

So let me conclude by saying again that this is not just a story about Obadiah.

This is the story of a gracious God… a God who wants to draw a wayward people back to Himself.

And He still wants to do that today – now by us calling people to fear God by trusting in Jesus.

And the wonderful thing is that God uses ordinary people like you and me to grow His Kingdom? Amen.