My God Is Salvation [2] "Where Now is the Lord?"

Songwriter and singer Sufjan Stevens has written these words in one of his songs: Oh God, where are you now? Oh Lord, say somehow. The devil is hard on my face again. The world is a hundred to one again. Have you ever felt that way? Ever asked that question: O God where are you now?
We find the prophet Elisha asking the same question as his mentor and friend Elijah was taken away from him: Oh God, where are you now? Read: 2 Kings 2.1-18

Though Israel was idolatrous and corrupt (though they were faithless), the Lord was faithful and raised up His prophets to be His presence in their midst. When Elijah was taken up to heaven, Elisha asked the question: “Where now is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” And what was the answer? The answer was given in the miracle that followed: Elisha struck the Jordan River with the cloak of Elijah and, as it had parted for Elijah, so it parted for Elisha. So the answer was that God was still powerfully present with His people through His prophet.

The authority, power and spirit of Elijah were transferred to Elisha as his heir. Elisha had asked to inherit a double portion of Elijah’s spirit (the amount given to ones heir). Elijah told him this was a difficult thing to grant, because the Spirit was not really Elijah’s to give. It was up to God. But God granted that request and filled Elisha with His Spirit.

As we consider this theme further, I want us to look at this story in three different ways: in terms of discipleship, presence and power and prefigurement.

First, Discipleship. Elisha was a disciple to the end. He was faithful to his call. For Elijah, knowing that the Lord was going to take him away, told Elisha three times to stay behind. However, all three times, Elisha declared, “As surely as the LORD lives and as you live, I will not leave you.” Elisha was faithful to his calling and his promise to follow. As they journeyed from Gilgal to Bethel and then to Jericho, they were met by the ‘company of the prophets’ in each city who warned Elisha that the Lord was going to take Elijah away. But Elisha was not dissuaded. He persistently followed Elijah. And therefore Elisha fulfilled the purpose of discipleship, which is to be like the one you follow. Elisha is an example to us of what it means (and looks like) to be a disciple. A disciple learns, serves, imitates and eventually does the work of the master.

Next, I want us to look at the story in terms of Presence and Power. Elisha received a double portion of Elijah’s spirit. By the power of the Spirit, Elisha was able to stand up to kings (since his authority was above theirs); and he was able to minister to those in need – healing, feeding, providing for the helpless. After taking up the fallen mantle of Elijah, Elisha became the primary prophet of the Lord. But he wanted to be sure that he had been empowered and so he returned to the Jordan and, standing by the flowing waters of the river asked, “Where now is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” And when he struck the water with the cloak and, as it did for Elijah, the water divided to the right and the left and Elisha crossed over. This was convincing proof (to both Elisha and the company of the prophets who were watching). And notice how and where this event took place: Elisha re-entered the Land just like Joshua and the Israelites did (by crossing the Jordan River which had been parted by the Lord), and at the same location – Jericho. Elisha then entered the land like a second Joshua. And his ministry was a sort of conquest. His ministry was to claim the land and the people for the Lord. And so he ministered mercy and brought judgment.

I also want us to consider this story in terms of Prefigurement. To prefigure is to show or represent beforehand by a figure, type or model; to foreshadow. And the stories of Elisha clearly prefigure our Lord Jesus Christ and His gospel. Jesus showed His disciples how all of Scripture speaks of Him. We see that clearly in this passage. And so, let’s look at the story in terms of a cast of characters.
- In one sense, Elijah is a type of John the Baptist – a lone voice in the wilderness. Jesus
even refers to John as being Elijah. As John baptized Jesus and then faded from the scene,
so Elijah anointed Elisha and soon was taken away. Elisha then is a type of Jesus. Elisha
was surrounded by disciples and had a ministry of life-giving miracles (cleansing a leper,
raising a dead son, multiplying bread, providing for the helpless).
- In another sense Elijah is a type of Christ and Elisha represents the disciples. As the
disciples left their fishing nets and family to follow Jesus, we saw last week how Elisha left his
family farm to follow Elijah. As the disciples carried on the work of Jesus, so Elisha carried
on the work of Elijah. As Elisha was given Elijah’s spirit, so the disciples were all filled with
the Holy Spirit.

And so, we can see hints of the Gospel here in these stories. But does it really matter? Yes. It does matter - a lot. Because without Jesus, the significance of this story collapses. If God was only ever present in the great figures of Israelite history and not ultimately in the Word made flesh, God incarnate, the Messiah Jesus, then these might be good stories, but that is all they are. Elisha’s question “where is the Lord?” is not only significant because it resonates with our human experience, but because it looks forward to the ultimate Answer. Where do we find God? We find God when we see Jesus (see: 2 Cor 4:6 and John 1:18). The Lord was powerfully present with His people through His prophet. But even more than that - through the life of this prophet, God foreshadowed how He would be even more intimately present with His people through His Son. Elisha’s ministry was but a foretaste of that of Jesus. The presence and power of the Spirit in the life of Elisha was a foretaste of the presence and power of the Spirit in the lives of Jesus’ followers.

So, we have looked at this story in terms of discipleship and seen that Elisha was FAITHFUL TO THE CALL. We have looked at it in terms of presence and power and seen that Elisha was FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT. And we have looked at it in terms of prefigurement and seen that the story of Elisha is FOCUSED ON CHRIST.

What do we learn? We learn that God is present with His people and the strength of His people when His people (like Elisha) are: FAITHFUL TO THE CALL, FILLED WITH THE SPIRIT, and FOCUSED ON CHRIST.

The people of Israel, in the days of Elisha, could rightly wonder where the Lord was. They felt His absence and they felt how vulnerable they were to hostile nations around them, because they were faithless in terms of their calling; they had rejected the voice of God’s Spirit in the mouths of the prophets; they had rejected God’s way of salvation. We too may feel God’s absence. We too may feel far away from God and vulnerable to the hostile forces of this world. Sometimes, that’s simply the result of life being hard. But often that feeling is the natural result of us:
- Being more faithful to the pressures, expectations and ways of the world than to the call of
God in our lives.
- Filling ourselves with anything and everything other than the Spirit of God.
- Being more focused on ourselves (our own wants, desires, felt needs, assumed rights,
entitlements, lusts, addictions, ambitions) than on Christ and His Way.

The prophet Isaiah wrote this: “Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear. For your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips have spoken lies, and your tongue mutters wicked things” (Isaiah 59:1-3).

When we sense the Lord’s absence maybe it is because we need repentance. The arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. God is there. He is ready and willing to save, to hear us, to help us. But your iniquities have separated you from your God. We allow sin and self to come in between us and God. We allow the stuff of the world (the noise, lies, perversions, distractions, temptations) to corrode and clog our spiritual arteries blocking the flow of God’s presence from us.

We need the witness of Elisha and the conviction of the Spirit who filled him to draw us back and give us repentant hearts
- That we would turn from faithlessness and be faithful to the call of God in our lives.
- That we would empty the junk out of our lives so that we can be filled with the Holy Spirit.
- That we would allow “the things of earth to grow strangely dim” as we turn the focus of our
lives upon Jesus.
Then we will know the presence and power of the Lord. Then He will be our strength. Then, when we are faithful, filled and focused, we can answer the question, “O God, where are you now?” with the ultimate answer: He is here; He is with me because I am in Him.

The world in Elisha’s day needed to see the presence and power of the Lord. Our world does as well. And when we are faithful to the call, filled with the Spirit and focused on Christ, we not only experience God’s presence and power personally, we display it for the world to see.

Where now is the Lord?

My God is Salvation [1] "A Burning Decision"

Please Read 1 Kings 19.15-21

In this passage, we learn about the person, the call and the response of Elisha.

First, the PERSON of Elisha. Elisha was a prophet in the 800s BC. He lived and prophesied mostly in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It seems that he came from a somewhat wealthy family (12 yoke of oxen and the workers to use them) and was called to ministry when he was still young, for according the Bible, his prophetic ministry lasted over fifty years and extended through the reigns of six kings. Elisha was the disciple and successor of Elijah and, like Elijah, stood against the idolatry and corruption of his generation. Elisha’s life was one of faithful, fearless following after God. Elisha was among those whose knees had not bowed down to Baal and all whose mouths had not kissed him. In the midst of a faithless, corrupt generation that had, for the most part, turned from the Lord to follow other gods, Elisha was one who remained faithful. Though king Ahab and his wife Jezebel led the nation into idolatry and though the majority followed like lemmings, Elisha was one who stood firm, resilient to the cultural pressures, and worshipped the Lord alone.

Next, we learn about the CALL of Elisha. When Elijah found Elisha he was out plowing the fields. Elijah “passed by him” and threw his cloak around him. That is the same phrase used before when the Lord passed by Elijah on the mountain. It appears then that God passed by Elisha as well, calling him to follow and be His prophet. Elijah threw his cloak around Elisha to confer a new role and responsibility upon Elisha and to mark him as his successor.

Finally, we see the RESPONSE of Elisha. Evidently Elijah didn’t linger but kept on walking so that Elisha ran after him to stop him. And when he had caught up to him he said, “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye and then I will come with you.” Now the jury is still out on whether this was a positive or negative response (see Luke 9:61-62). But Regardless of Elisha’s initial response, his overall response is clear and decisive (see 1 Kings 19:21). Elisha’s actions marked a clear break with his former life. How did Elisha make a living? Farming. What do you need to farm? Oxen and plowing equipment. And here Elisha breaks apart his plow and makes a bonfire out of it and then slaughters his oxen and cooks them over the fire. Talk about burning your bridges! Elisha left himself no means of return. This was no experiment. He was not trying out the life of a prophet to see if he liked it or not. He committed himself completely to following the Lord as he served Elijah. There was no going back.

This reminds me of the story told about the Spanish conqueror Hernando Cortez. In the year 1519, he anchored his 11 ships off the Yucatan Peninsula in an ambitious attempt to conquer the Aztec empire. He was vastly outnumbered and was separated from home and reinforcements by thousands of miles of ocean. Even so, after his men went onshore, he ordered for all of his 11 ships to be burned. Now, you can rightly condemn Cortez for many things, but one thing is certain: he was totally committed. But even more was Elisha totally committed. Elisha made a burning decision out of a burning desire to serve the Lord.

So what do we lean from this story of Elisha’s calling?

1. We learn that Israelite culture was idolatrous and corrupt. Israel had rejected their covenant with the Lord, killed his prophets and worshiped other gods, such as Baal and Asherah. Their king and leaders were corrupt, leading them away from the Lord.
2. We learn that God did not give up on them. He still spoke to them through His prophets. God preserved a remnant of those faithful to Him and sent His prophets to call out to them and to serve as a witness of His presence, power and authority over them.
3. And we learn that Elisha was:
a. willing to be apprenticed. An apprentice learns, serves, imitates and eventually
does the work of the master craftsman. And that is what Elisha did. He let go of
his former life in order to commit himself as a disciple of Elijah; to learn and live a
new life.
b. willing to be marked. At this time, Elijah was at the top of the ‘Israel’s Most
Wanted’ list. He was a marked man and considered an enemy of the state. King
Ahab hated him and Queen Jezebel was actively trying to kill him. Elisha then was
risking his life in obeying the Lord and following Elijah. But he was ready and
willing to do so.
c. was willing to be used. Like Elijah, Elisha would stand up to kings; would stand
against his corrupt culture; would speak God’s message, show off God’s power
and follow God’s leading. His was not an easy life, but it was an obedient,
powerful, God-glorifying life and therefore a compelling life.

But what do we learn about us? How do we fit into this story? How does it shape us? Like Elisha, we live in an idolatrous, corrupt culture. We may not worship Baal and Asherah, per se, but we have a host of other gods and goddesses that we bow down to, the foremost being the chief god of Self. We have broken our relationship with the Lord and turned our hearts away from him. Like Elisha’s culture and like the world Paul refers to, we live in a ‘crooked and depraved generation’. But God is patient and faithful. He does not give up, but continues to speak through His servants and use His servants to “shine like stars in the universe as [we] hold out the word of life.” God continues to carry out His plan of redemption through the men and women He calls to follow Him.

And so, we, like Elisha, are called to be:

Apprenticed. We are called to leave behind our former life (what we knew and what we were) in order to commit ourselves as disciples of Jesus Christ – to follow and learn from him. We are called to learn, serve, imitate and do the work of our Master Craftsman. We are called to let go of our former life in order to learn and live a new life.

Marked. Sometimes being marked is a difficult thing. It means you have to live differently. It means some people may resent and hate you because you live differently. You will experience some cultural friction. But our lives should clearly display our allegiance to Jesus and His claim over us.

Used. We are called to stand up against our corrupt culture; to stand up even in the face of kings and rulers; to speak God’s message, show off God’s love and power and follow God’s leading. The Christian life is not an easy life, but it is a joy-filled, hope-filled life. And an obedient, authentic, loving, God-glorifying life is a compelling life.

Elisha had the mantle of Elijah thrown upon Him. We however, have had Jesus say to us, “Follow Me”. But what is our response? Is it like those who, when Jesus called them to follow, came up with excuses and ways of stalling? Is it like the son, in the parable of the father who asked his sons to work in his vineyard, who said yes but didn’t go? Is it like the rich young man who decided that following Jesus cost too much? Or is it like that of Elisha who dropped everything, burned his ships and set out to follow?

Are we totally committed to Jesus or only mostly or partly of kind of? With Jesus, it is all or nothing. We can’t hold anything back. Jesus is not merely Lord of our “spiritual lives” while we run our physical and professional lives. Jesus is not Lord over our private life while we take care of our public one. He is Lord of all – all of us, every part of us.

With Jesus, it is all or nothing. And so, there is no returning. We must burn our ships. We must give ourselves totally to Him. We make a clean break with the old way of doing things (the way of the fallen world). We give those things up. And though that sounds like a lot, its really nothing. We give up nothing and gain everything.

We have a burning decision to make. Will we choose the plow and oxen over the call and keep on doing what we’re doing – the seemingly safe and steady thing, ‘our thing’? Will we chose th plow and oxen or will we light it up, throw a farewell party and follow our Lord and Savior on the adventure of being His disciple?

Anybody got some matches?