God's Sabbath

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E NTERING INTO G OD ’ S S ABBATH R EST

sins, and that God desired that they be given relief from the desperate conditions to which they had been reduced, the prophet went to pray. In a very humble attitude he supplicated the throne of grace. “... Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.” 1Kings 18:42. Six times the servant was sent to observe the heavens and every time he carried back the message: “There is nothing there.” 1Kings 18:43. But Elijah refused to desist from his prayerful pleadings un til the blessing had manifested itself. Elijah must have been a man of large faith so that the Lord could use him in this grave crisis. When at last the servant saw just a tiny cloud on the horizon, Elijah’s faith immediately grasped in that small token the full realization of the promised outpouring of rain: “The seventh time the servant reported, ‘A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.’ So Elijah said, ‘Go and tell Ahab, “‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.”’” 1Kings 18:44. The great faith of this man of God is revealed in the following paragraphs: “As he prayed, his faith reached out and grasped the promis es of Heaven, and he persevered in prayer until his petitions were answered. He did not wait for the full evidence that God had heard him, but was willing to venture all on the slightest to ken of divine favor. And yet what he was enabled to do under God, all may do in their sphere of activity in God’s service... “Faith such as this is needed in the world today—faith that will lay hold on the promises of God’s word and refuse to let go until Heaven hears. Faith such as this connects us closely with Heaven, and brings us strength for coping with the powers of darkness. Through faith God’s children have ‘subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.’ Hebrews 11:33, 34. And through faith we today are to reach the heights of God’s purpose for us. ‘If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.’ Mark 9:23. “Faith is an essential element of prevailing prayer. ‘He that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a reward