DEFERENCE AND DEFIANCE
Elijah was the greatest prophet in the Old Testament history and with good reason. His life was one of raw faith in God and unquestioned obedience to him. While the nation of Israel around him wilted away from God under the stewardship of Ahab and Jezebel who sold themselves to do evil, Elijah was often the lone voice of defiance, keeping the lamp of God alive in the midst of ever-increasing darkness. Elijah would not be perturbed by the persecution unleashed on the godly. Rather, he spoke out against Ahab and repeatedly confronted him, ultimately culminating in one of the greatest spiritual battles recorded in the Bible on Mt Carmel.
However, in 1Kings 18, we also read the account of another servant of God, Obadiah, who served as a senior official in the court of Ahab. While defiance characterized Elijah’s personality, Obadiah demonstrated deference. We see no inclination in him to be confrontational, rather with tact and patience, he deals with both king Ahab who he served and Elijah who he deeply respected as a greater man of God. Obadiah is introduced to us a devout believer in the Lord (v3) and it is evident that his faith and primary allegiance to God motivated him to do all he did through his life. While Elijah was the voice of defiance, Obadiah was the voice of reason and deference. And while Elijah served God in a demonstrative manner, Obadiah also served God in his own unique way.
Obadiah’s deference and sincerity to his work in the palace was evident. Ahab despite being at odds with God throughout his life, valued Obadiah, a servant of God and placed him in charge of the palace. When they set out as a party in search of fodder and water for the animals in the midst of famine, he splits the team and leads one team and places Obadiah in charge of the other indicating that perhaps Obadiah was as high as the second in command in Israel. And while on one hand Obadiah served Ahab with deference and sincerity, he also utilized the resources available to him to serve God. While Jezebel was killing off the prophets of God, Obadiah was able to hide a hundred of them in remote caves and feed them to keep them alive. And so here we see a difference between Elijah and Obadiah. While Elijah was on the run most of his life hiding from Ahab and Jezebel, barely being sustained himself, Obadiah was able to stay in the palace and take care of the other prophets and do what Elijah would not have been able to accomplish.
There are different ways of serving God. One is called to be a voice of defiance in the desert, the other is called to be a voice of deference in the palace. Each in his own unique way is commissioned by God to do his bidding and accomplish his work here on earth. Neither could do what the other was called to do. And so, it is critical for every believer to understand his place here on earth, not compare himself to others, rather faithfully serve God and complete what has been assigned to him.
Neither defiance nor deference by itself has value, but when borne out of a primal devotion to God, become powerful instruments in the hand of God.
