March 8, 2014 Cherith—A Special Place (1 Kings 17) Cherith, which means “cut off, or cut down,” was a special place where God cut Elijah off from distractions and cut him down to size. Notice in verse 4 that Cherith was a specific place. God used the word “there” to separate Cherith from all other places. Cherith was the place where God would provide for the needs of Elijah. There was no other place for him to be. Elijah was in the middle of nowhere, by himself, daily watching the brook get smaller and smaller and eating the food delivered to him by scavenger birds. What part of this sounds enjoyable? How many of God’s people would “sign up” for Christian service if they thought that they were going to be sent into conditions like these? Cherith was a great opportunity for Elijah to grow in the presence of the Lord. Sometimes God’s people decide to escape from the troubles they face. Jonah became known as that boat hopper from Gathhepher because he was unwilling to submit to the will of God. Running from God resulted in going to “Cherith” in a whale’s belly. After being regurgitated and deciding that he would go ahead and preach God’s message to Nineveh, he had to recycle right back into “Cherith” under the shade of a lonely gourd. God was working on Jonah as much as on the people of Nineveh. He used the stress, depression, and anxiety in Jonah’s life to make him a better man for His glory. Remember Abraham, the friend of God? God told Abraham to go to Canaan and there, in Canaan, God would bless him and make him a great nation (Gen. 12:1-3; 7). Canaan was the place whereat the Lord wanted Abraham to be. God promised Abraham that he would make him a great nation, bless him, and make his name great. So why did Abraham decide to go to Egypt when the drought arrived. Canaan was about to become a “Cherith” for Abraham. God did not send him to Egypt He wanted him right there in Canaan. Read Genesis 12:11-20 and take note of the fact that in Egypt this patriarch of old lied, stopped worshipping God (How many altars do you read about in the text?), caused a terrible plague to fall on Pharaoh’s house, and tainted his good name. Then, when he left Egypt he left with some baggage that was going to cause great hardship in his life—Hagar the Egyptian (Gen. 16:1). Habakkuk the prophet really had a hard time with the fact that God chose the Babylonians to punish His people. How could God as a tool of correction against Judah, use a nation that was more evil than Judea? Habakkuk also had issues with his “Cherith.” When he finally came to the point of submission he said: “The LORD God is my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, and he will make me to walk upon mine high places” (Hab. 3:19). This is a wonderful statement of faith in God. Habakkuk realized God was not going to remove the rock wall that was before him, so God was going to bless him with the feet of deer so that he could climb over the obstacle that was before him. Who likes to be in a difficult place? Who likes to suffer hardship, sickness, financial issues or oppression? God’s people need to learn that when they are at their Cherith, they are really at a good place, a place that is designed to build faith and Christian character. The answer is to always use situations like this to commune with God and find comfort in His presence. When we are at Cherith there are two routes we can take. We can fight against the situation and continue to stunt our spiritual growth only to have to face it again, or we can do like Elijah who “went and did according to the word of the LORD” (V.5), and submit to God’s craftsmanship: “That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 1:7). Cherith is a special place! [Soft Answers are short reads designed to help people with their daily study needs. The reads are designed to help people who struggle with the issues of life find comfort and hope through the Word of God. It is sent out freely to those who wish to receive it. To subscribe send an email to darrell.broking@gmail. Your email address will be kept confidential. “A soft answer turneth away wrath; but grievous words stir up anger” (Prov. 15:1)]
Posted on: Sat, 08 Mar 2014 06:10:20 +0000
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