Stay Faithful to the Call God Gave You by Tim Ferrara

What is God calling you to do? Where is God calling you to go? If you can’t answer that, you need to pray. God is always looking for a willing vessel who can say, like Isaiah, “Here am I; send me!” (Isaiah 6:8 KJV)

In 1 Kings 13, Jeroboam was a wicked king (there seemed to be no shortage of them when you read the Old Testament). God called a prophet out of Judah to go to Bethel. The Jewish historian Josephus called him Yadon, and I will too for the purpose of this story.

God called Yadon for a purpose, to travel to another city and to boldly rebuke the King, facing a probable death for doing so. When he got there not only did he miraculously prophesy about King Josiah (which wouldn’t happen for about three centuries later) but he also destroyed the pagan altar through an earthquake! (13:5) When the King pointed at him to have his guards seize him, instantly his hand became paralyzed, and he couldn’t pull it back (v4).

Now the evil King Jeroboam asked the man of God (Yadon) to pray for his hand to be restored and it was. The King then tempted the prophet to come and eat, drink, and stay in his palace, but Yadon was strong in his conviction since the Lord told him, “you must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came” (v.9).

This was a powerful confrontation that Yadon had; almost as powerful as Elijah calling down fire on the prophets of Baal. I don’t know the mindset of Yadon but I would have breathed a sigh of relief. Not only was I not killed by the wicked King, but God showed up in miraculous signs and the King actually wanted to treat me to a royal dinner. I can imagine he was pretty famished from the long journey with no food and water; now was the time to relax—or was it? Yadon resisted the pressure and remained true to what God was asking him to do.

But that was not the end of this story. The rest of this story is about an “old prophet,” who is unnamed, who sends his sons to find Yadon. Once he was found, the old prophet rode out to meet Yadon. He asked, “are you the man of God who came from Judah” (v.14)? No doubt word of his confrontation with the King spread like wildfire through the town. He invites him back to his house to get some food and drink, but again Yadon replies about how God told him not to eat or drink anything until he returns to his hometown. The same answer he gave the King.

Now, this part is fascinating…

But the old prophet answered, “I am a prophet, too, just as you are. And an angel gave me this command from the Lord: ‘Bring him home with you so he can have something to eat and drink. (v18)’” The next verse even says the old man was lying, but the peer pressure, the fatigue, and/or the camaraderie of another prophet got to Yadon and he went back with the old man to eat and drink.

Now think about this for a minute, God called Yadon out of his hometown to go to Bethel to deliver a mighty message to the king. Why didn’t he call this old man? He was a prophet, conveniently located in the same town as the king. We know this old man had no problem lying, and God knew his heart as well.

So back to the story, the old man and Yadon were eating a meal back at the house and the Spirit of God speaks through the old man, aka the liar! “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have defiled the word of the Lord and have disobeyed the command the Lord your God gave you. You came back to this place and ate and drank where he told you not to eat or drink. Because of this, your body will not be buried in the grave of your ancestors.’” (v21-22)

I feel bad for Yadon. After this meal, he saddled his donkey and rode off to an awaiting lion that killed him (v.24). A mighty victory for God turned into a crushing defeat because he did not obey the word of God; he listened to a false prophet who got him to sway off course. He fell into peer pressure from a fellow prophet. A prophet who said he heard from God, nonetheless!

I find it interesting that God still spoke through the old prophet at the dinner table. You see, God can use anyone and anything for His glory, but that doesn’t mean the prophet was trustworthy or following the will of God.

God can speak through anyone, but that doesn’t mean you need to go to their church, to read their books, or follow them if they are not fully obedient to the Word of God. There’s a lot of truth out there being mixed with deception. God can reach people even among prosperity preachers and twisted denominations.

We need to have the discernment to align all things against the Word of God and hold fast to what is true.

But on a personal level, if God is calling you to do something, don’t be swayed by what another preacher, teacher, pastor, or priest tells you. God wants you to hear His voice so clearly, you don’t need a second opinion.

God would rather you be faithful to what He is calling you to do than chase after dreams and aspirations that don’t align with that calling. After all, are you building your kingdom or God’s?

Be bold, be courageous, God can use you to accomplish His will on this earth if we are faithful and obedient for the glory of God and God alone. Amen!

Tim Ferrara

Tim Ferrara has grown up in the church and has held various leadership positions, both in business and in the church. Tim is currently the Executive Pastor at LifePoint Church in Arizona. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing from Arizona State University along with an MBA from the University of Phoenix. He has had a career in business management for over 20 years and has worked as Faculty for two different colleges.

Tim started the ministry of Discerning Dad (www.discerning-dad.com) to write and encourage Christians to grow in discernment and make better decisions that honor God. He has written a book called Everyday Discernment: The Importance of Spirit-Led Decision Making as well as multiple YouVersion Bible Plans. Tim lives with his wife Jamie and their two children in Arizona.