What Is Your High Place? by Brother Curtis Hansen

         Good morning. For the scripture reading we are going to read from the book of 1 Kings chapter 21. We will be reading verses 18-20.

        18 Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria; behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it.

        19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, in the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.

        20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord. 

        A split kingdom, 2 revolutions, and civil war is how you wind up with a King Ahab. What did Ahab allow? In the time of kings, you see a pattern in scripture where God judges them based on what they allow. Leadership is more than your works. It also includes what you allow. What you permit in your life and home is what you're responsible for. In this walk, partial obedience is disobedience. The question I want you to dwell on is who do you call an enemy in your life? Who sent them?

        High places are broken into 3 things. 1) It's what I worship. These are things that take your time away from your relationship with God. 2) Things I refuse to surrender. Unforgiveness will wreck your health. Pride, bitterness, comfort, and control. 3) Things I refuse to confront. Sin at home, compromise, unhealthy relationships and worldly influences.

        Ahab's problem came from his lineage and the evil they had caused. The cursing was set upon Ahab. We can read through these stories and can see some knowledge of God and his commandments.

        Everything in life are seasons. You can't choose righteously if you haven't torn down your high places. God wants chosen from us.

        Conviction is not shame. It's given by the holy spirit to show a better way.  We can see a change with Ahab later on in this chapter of 1 Kings. The whole story of Elijah and Ahab spans for a few chapters and is worth the read this week. 

        To end this message, let's look at the last 4 verses of this chapter.

        25 But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.

        26 And he did very abominably in following idols, according to all things as did the Amorites, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.

        27 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard these words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.

        28 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite saying,

        29 Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house.

        Even as wicked in his idol worship, Ahab still knew that he should become humble before the Lord. No matter how far you have thought you've gone away from your walk, if you too humble yourself, take down your high places, the Lord will hear your call.