Seeking Truth in a Crowd of Lies
1 Kings 22:7
And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might inquire of him?
Out of 400 prophets, Jehoshaphat couldn’t even find one to shoot it to him straight. We see here a 400 to 1 ratio. 400 prophets prophesying lies, and then there’s Micaiah. Now Micaiah is the hated one. Why do you think he wasn’t hanging with the rest of the prophets? The truth was, Micaiah had already prophesied truths to the King that he didn’t want to hear, so needless to say, they didn’t keep him around the throne for a daily devotional!! However, not being satisfied with the 400 prophets’ advice, they sent for Micaiah. This proves a mighty point; when you KNOW you are being fed a pack of lies, regardless of how sweet they sound to your ears, and regardless of how many people are echoing them to you, they will never satisfy your soul. Lies always leave you empty on the inside searching for more. So, there comes a day when truth must be called upon and weighed once again. This was that day for Jehoshaphat and King Ahab. Having heard nothing to satisfy their hungry souls from the lips of 400 lying prophets, they called on the only one they knew would tell them the truth, regardless of the consequences.
And, at first, even Michaiah came in prophesying under the influence of a lying spirit, just like the rest of them, but the king wouldn’t have any of it. What was so interesting to me was that out of 401 prophets, only one discerned what was actually going on. Only one had the inside scoop; that a lying spirit was commissioned by The Lord to convince the king through all the prophets to go into battle so that he could be slain. It was all a divine plot to fulfill an earlier prophecy spoken by the prophet Elijah. So, since the king pressed Michaiah for the TRUTH, Michaiah “spilled the beans” so to speak, but only because The Lord granted him permission. Michaiah truly was a man who sought only to speak that which The Lord allowed him to speak.
Now, this brings us to our application today; let us endeavor to speak NOT what everyone else is speaking, but ONLY what The Lord is speaking. Furthermore, if there were a King Ahab today, searching for TRUTH, would there be even ONE that he could call on for a straight up answer? Or, would he find amongst all the preachers of the land, only those who would speak blessings and prophesy success over him? Where are the prophets…the men of God…that will stand up and declare the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, even if it isolates him, gets him cast out of society, out of the preacher’s fellowship, and into prison?
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might inquire of him?
Out of 400 prophets, Jehoshaphat couldn’t even find one to shoot it to him straight. We see here a 400 to 1 ratio. 400 prophets prophesying lies, and then there’s Micaiah. Now Micaiah is the hated one. Why do you think he wasn’t hanging with the rest of the prophets? The truth was, Micaiah had already prophesied truths to the King that he didn’t want to hear, so needless to say, they didn’t keep him around the throne for a daily devotional!! However, not being satisfied with the 400 prophets’ advice, they sent for Micaiah. This proves a mighty point; when you KNOW you are being fed a pack of lies, regardless of how sweet they sound to your ears, and regardless of how many people are echoing them to you, they will never satisfy your soul. Lies always leave you empty on the inside searching for more. So, there comes a day when truth must be called upon and weighed once again. This was that day for Jehoshaphat and King Ahab. Having heard nothing to satisfy their hungry souls from the lips of 400 lying prophets, they called on the only one they knew would tell them the truth, regardless of the consequences.
And, at first, even Michaiah came in prophesying under the influence of a lying spirit, just like the rest of them, but the king wouldn’t have any of it. What was so interesting to me was that out of 401 prophets, only one discerned what was actually going on. Only one had the inside scoop; that a lying spirit was commissioned by The Lord to convince the king through all the prophets to go into battle so that he could be slain. It was all a divine plot to fulfill an earlier prophecy spoken by the prophet Elijah. So, since the king pressed Michaiah for the TRUTH, Michaiah “spilled the beans” so to speak, but only because The Lord granted him permission. Michaiah truly was a man who sought only to speak that which The Lord allowed him to speak.
Now, this brings us to our application today; let us endeavor to speak NOT what everyone else is speaking, but ONLY what The Lord is speaking. Furthermore, if there were a King Ahab today, searching for TRUTH, would there be even ONE that he could call on for a straight up answer? Or, would he find amongst all the preachers of the land, only those who would speak blessings and prophesy success over him? Where are the prophets…the men of God…that will stand up and declare the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, even if it isolates him, gets him cast out of society, out of the preacher’s fellowship, and into prison?
~ Pastor Gary Caudill