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Present Day Fathers - part 2 2 Kings 13:20 (KJV) “And Elisha died, and they buried him. And the bands of the Moabites invaded the land at the coming in of the year. And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band of men; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha: and when the man was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.” Spiritual fathers, Where does their legacy go? Who will carry on when the bones of a father are laid to rest? With the right understanding, the above scripture is a sobering passage. How did Elisha come into his positioning and why did a dead man touching the bones of Elisha come alive? Let’s answer the first question and come back to the second. 1 Kings 19:19 (KJV) “So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him. And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee.” “And I will follow thee.” To embrace a spiritual father is a long term commitment, not a short term. Spiritual father will cause you to walk in longsuffering. Only he who knows where he is going will suffer long. A spiritual son who comes into contact with the mantling of the father can in no way be stopped, for the son sees the mantling, not the suffering. The mantle of the father will produce in the son a passion not felt by others. Elijah cast his mantle upon Elisha who was so passionate about his spiritual father he went from following him to this: 2 Kings 2:11-13 (KJV) “And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him” Now we must address the second question. Why did a dead man touching the bones of Elijah come back to life? Elisha is now holding the mantle, and has the double portion, but where shall it go and who shall carry on after him? We know from the scripture, no one. But why? Elijah had Elisha as his servant, but who was Elisha’s servant? 2 Kings 5:15-22 (KJV) “And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him: and he said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant. But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he refused. And Naaman said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD. In this thing the LORD pardon thy servant, that when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in the house of Rimmon: when I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon thy servant in this thing. And he said unto him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way. But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets: give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of garments.” This is the passage where Elisha had Naaman dip seven times to be healed. We see Elisha’s servant Gehazi miss the mark by choosing to walk contrary to his Elisha’s heart. In doing so, he determines the rest of the story. This servant was given the leprosy that was taken from Naaman. There was no other son to take the mantle farther. The double portion which came to Elisha was destined to be taken to the grave. -John Frost May Newsletter 2003 | Am I Ready to Rule with Christ? | Get It Together part 2 | Present Day Fathers part 2 Pastor's Journal May 2002 | Progress of Maturity part 2 of 2 | Pillars and Posts part 2 of 3 |
Biblical Counseling for Leaders
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