Between Two OpinionsBy
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Elijah, that boldest of all prophets, challenged four-hundred and fifty of the prophets of Baal in front of a large gathering of Israelites.
He asked them a very important question that we might well ask ourselves today:
And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. (1 Kings 18:21)
We have spoken of the problem of not entirely giving up those things we’ve been commanded not to do, dabbling, as it were, in sin. This is something that we need to overcome and make a decision about.
The voices in the world that tell us we can’t change are numerous and demanding. They mock us and tell us we are foolish for even trying. They gives us no hope and deride our choice as being too sentimental or misguided. Elijah tells us, though, that the percentages don’t really matter.
Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. (1 Kings 18:22)
What truly matters is that God lives. He is real. All of the opinions, reasoning, anecdotal evidence, psychology, political stances, and stubborn refusal to admit God’s reality will not change the fact that he is the author of truth and we must either choose him or by default choose against him.
Concerning Elijah’s question, Elder Neal A. Maxwell penned:
It is too easy for us, if we’re not careful, to rationalize this pleading as coming from an impatient prophet whose own ego, in a sense, was on the line, when, in fact, Elijah’s message has tremendous relevancy today, for all must finally choose between the gods of this world and the God of eternity. It is an act of kindness for prophets to press mankind for a decision, because the absence of a decision to commit is a decision. Of course, indecision does not push us immediately into gross sin, but it renders us ineffective and uninfluential in a world that so much needs committed individuals; as a minimum, we have lost time in terms of the impact we might have had. Therefore, too much time in ‘no-man’s land,’ in a sense, really puts us in the enemy’s camp. One can understand, too, the prophet Joel saying, ‘Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.’ (Joel 3:14.) (Neal A. Maxwell, That My Family Should Partake, Pg.22)
Elijah’s challenge to the prophets of Baal was to invite their respective gods to consume a sacrifice placed on their altars. The priests of Baal, despite their strong influence on the people, had no power to get an answer from their god. They pleaded and cried out loud, stomped on the altar and begged Baal to answer them. Nothing.
Elijah, however, was more certain. He built an altar and a trench around it. He had people dump twelve barrels of water on the altar, the sacrifice, and the wood to burn it. Then, he simply asked the Lord to take the sacrifice and the Lord consumed the altar, the bullock, and the water.
It doesn’t matter how interesting the arguments of the other side, how enticing the life they offer, how much sense they seem to make, or how loud they protest. One thing matters–the truth. One thing will make the difference–choosing the truth.
I have made my decision. No matter what temptations and weaknesses I may have, I know this gospel is the truth, and that those men called to lead us are spokesmen for God. I know that I will always be tempted. Satan will not be bound until the Millenium. Still, I can be happy now, despite the temptations, because I have chosen and my choice stands firm.
And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. (Joshua 24:15)
