“send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel” (1 Kings 18:19, NKJV)
In the last couple of teachings we looked at what the idolatrous worship of Baal as typology for the New Testament believer establishing his/her high calling means. We are still engaged in the series about the process of mantle formation at the hand of the life of the prophet Elijah, who is “a man with a nature like ours” (James 5:17).
From 1 Kings 18:18 we see Elijah standing up against his evil adversary Ahab, and how he defends his identity and calling in Christ: “And he answered, ‘I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals.’” In the road of faith you are walking, there are often confrontations with adversaries, and these adversaries can be within or without. Those outside of you can be people (Ps. 54:3), or circumstances (“heaps of human obstacles” – Matt. 21:21, Ampl.).
In Elijah’s reaction we can begin to grasp how we need to test our spiritual authority in the mantle that is slowly forming. Authority is not authority if it is only in theory, a promise – it has to be manifested and demonstrated.
An interesting “showdown” is suggested by Elijah in verse 19: “Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
Carmel is clearly not a random choice – it is a strategic space, and thus we need to look at it as a typological space. Where should someone be before he/she can pick up his mantle against the adversary? This in itself makes Carmel the prototypical “appointed place” (Joshua 8:14) where God decided spiritual authority needs to be practiced, literally then “the place which you have appointed for him” (1 Sam. 29:4). If you are prototypically not in this place, you cannot enter into any kind of battle.
Firstly – in Hebrew Carmel means “garden land” (BDB), “fruitful land” (The Complete WordStudy Dictionary), or then: ‘a planted field (garden, orchard, vineyard or park); by implication garden produce: – full (green) ears (of corn), fruitful field (place), plentiful (field)” (Strong). It is derived from the Hebrew root word kerem, which means: “a garden or vineyard”.
Within a New Testament understanding this space is far more than just a place – it is a people! As the mount Zion and the (New) Jerusalem typologically points to not just a geographical space, but to a dedicated group of people (see the teachings of Days 384 and 388), Carmel carries a similar symbolic weight. Carmel is thus also presented as the mountain of the Lord where the Bride lives, in the spirit. It is thus also a place where a group of people (Rev. 21:9) are established in the place of their “high calling” in Christ (Phil. 3:14).
The gardens in Scripture (for instance the garden of Eden) and the vineyards (John 15:4) all point toward the Bride of Christ – this is the only space in which you can position yourself against the adversary!
- Selah: Has this strategic positioning ever been part of your warfare?
- Read: Mark 15; Matt. 27.
- Memorise: Mark 15:35 (try to figure out why).
