SLIDE: Cave
> Elijah’s ordination of 3
Last view of Elisha’s life, many of the events go back to the early ministry of his mentor, Elijah, finally coming to fruition.
I want to begin at a cave. Elijah traveled 40 days and 40 nights to get to this cave.
He came here because he was running away from a terrible queen named Jezebel.
He had just had that incredible showdown on the mountain with the 450 prophets of Baa.
God was the clear winner of the contest, and Elijah called on the people to put the prophets of Baal to death so they’d quit spreading their idolatry.
But Queen Jezebel was a very dedicated follower of Baal, and rather than acknowledge that God was the true God, she set out to kill Elijah.
And so here he was, hiding in this cave. He was feeling sorry for himself.
Outside of the cave entrance, there were a series of incredible things that came by.
Strong winds, earthquakes, fire…but God wasn’t in any of those…he came
in the form of a quiet voice.
Elijah said, “I’m the only one that still cares about following you, God.”
God says, “Nonsense. There are 7,000 others like you. What are you doing down here?
You have work to do!
This is very early in Elijah’s ministry, and God assigns him three people to seek out and to anoint. These three will eventually be like the three horsemen of the apocalypse for Ahab and Jezebel’s family.
Anoint Hazael - King over Syria
Jehu - King over Israel
Elisha - to be prophet in your place
He began by anointing Elisha.
SLIDE: Milk and honey
> Elisha’s Completion
How could we describe Elisha’s ministry?
He’s a faithful servant of God who was trying to create a zone of milk and honey in a land now flowing with death and bloodshed.
The kings these days are nothing like King David. They might not mind some worship and observation of the Law, but they’re even more interested in impressing the nations of the world, chasing after those other gods. It’s made them violent.
In 2 Kings 9, we are near the end of our records of Elisha’s ministry.
Now it was finally time to complete the work that God had first given to Elijah, all those years ago in the cave. It was time to go out and anoint the others who would bring judgment on Ahab’s household.
Presuming he was getting older, Elisha sent a son of one of the prophets to anoint Jehu to be King over Israel.
It is clear that Jehu understands what he has to do.
Ahab had been so wicked, and had done so much violence toward God’s people, God had promised to wipe his descendants from the face of the earth.
SLIDE: Jehu Battle
> Jehu’s Crusade
Based on what Jehu does in response to his anointing, he knows what Elijah and others had said about what was to be done to the household of Ahab.
2 Kings 9 reads like an action revenge novel.
One after another, Jehu hunts down and assassinates some of the crooked leaders from Ahab’s family.
He begins with King Joram.
As he rides, up, the King sends out different groups to ask him, “Who are you and why are you approaching so fast?” Every time he says, “I’m not here for peace. Fall in behind me and ride with me!” By the time he gets to the gates, he’s acquired several of the King’s own soldiers into his army.
King Joram hops on his chariot and flees for his life, so Jehu gets out his bow.
It says he pulls it back with his full strength, and shoots him through the back right into his heart.
He took him to Naboth’s vineyard and buried his body there. It’s clear that he is visiting punishment of previous sins on the descendants of Ahab.
SLIDE: Death of Jezebel
> End of Jezebel
Everything really comes to a head at Jezebel’s palace.
She sees him coming, and suspects why he approaches.
She takes the time to put on makeup and pretty herself up.
A proud woman until the end, she calls Jehu a murderer and an assassin, and taunts him.
Jehu calls out to some of the Eunuchs who were serving her and said, “Are any of you guys with us?” So they took her and threw her out the window. She went splat.
Following this, Jehu and the others celebrated their victory, and left her body in the street, intending to return for it later.
But when the men came back to bury her, only her skull, feet, and hands were left. The dogs had eaten the rest of her.
SLIDE: 1 Kings 21:23-24
It is really important to the writer of Kings that we make the connection between what Elijah said and what actually happened…
1 Kings 21:23-24 23 And of Jezebel the Lord also said, ‘The dogs shall eat Jezebel within the walls of Jezreel.’ 24 Anyone belonging to Ahab who dies in the city the dogs shall eat, and anyone of his who dies in the open country the birds of the heavens shall eat.”
SLIDE: Ghosts in the house
ILLUS: Lost a parent or grandparent…
Absence can be a very intense form of presence.
Everywhere instead of just one place.
Wise words take on special significance.
SLIDE: Elisha bones miracle
> Elisha’s After-Death Miracle
After Elijah’s death, Elijah’s words were confirmed as words from God. Everything he had said…it stayed with them. It became even more important.
ILLUS: After Elisha’s death, something completely unexpected happened.
Bands of Midianites would raid Israel in the Spring time. One day there were some people working on burying a man, and they saw a band of Midianites coming, so they threw his body into a random tomb…it happened to be Elisha’s tomb.
When the body touched the bones, he rose to life again.
I don’t know what they did about those Midianites approaching, but this was shocking.
I’m not even sure the ancient Israelites could make full sense of some of the amazing stories from Elisha’s life…and in this case…his remains.
SLIDE: Look to future
> Living from a Future Tense Perspective
Resurrection is a firmly rooted New Testament source of hope.
Christ is called the first fruits of those who fall asleep.
Whatever happened to him after he died, if we are united with him, it will happen to us, too.
Paul spoke often about his great desire to be part of that resurrection of the righteous.
But as people of faith, when we think about the future, we remember that death doesn’t have to be final.
What we witnessed in Jesus’ life, and even in the life of several people around Elisha is that occasionally, the future breaks into the present. Sometimes resurrection happens now.
When a person becomes a Christian, new creation is happening. The old is passing away, and the new has come.
The Christ whom we serve is the Living God. The Great I AM. He’s a God of resurrection, hope and new life.
SLIDE: Word of God will Stand
> God’s Word will Stand
As Christians, we have to immerse ourselves in the word of God, because we believe that the Word of God will stand.
One of the things I enjoy about so many prophecies in the Old Testament is that even as things are predicted, they are spoken of in the past tense.
This is in part because in Hebrew, there is not a future tense in the sense that we have one. But there is a great finality when we speak of what God will do as if it has already happened.
Elisha had ascended on that chariot of fire a LONG time before anything ever happened to Jezebel.
But from the day he delivered the news of what God had promised to do, it was absolutely going to be the case.
It didn’t matter how many years it was. Once God pronounced that Ahab’s family would be removed from ruling, and that Jezebel would never be buried, you would be wasting your time to try and buy her a cemetery plot, or to win favors with his family for future political gain.
Whatever God has promised, we might as well start living as if it is a done deal. Going to happen.
Jesus taught us to pray that God’s will would be done on earth as it is in heaven.
As people of faith, we know that God’s will WILL be done.
So even now, we live as the church as if we are already in the presence of God.
The things we believe we’ll be doing for eternity, we try to start reflecting
now.
SLIDE: Open Eyes for Steady Hearts
> Resurrected Living - With Open Eyes
I titled this series on Elisha Open Eyes for Steady Hearts.
Over and over again, Elisha has invited us to see that regardless of how violent or ungodly culture becomes. We aren’t limited to the world’s options. There’s always another way.
On many occasions while people around him were despairing, Elisha would have to open their eyes to what support God was really providing.
Nations of the world always think they know better than God what is best for them.
Israel was becoming just as idolatrous as all the people God had helped them to drive out.
Ahab’s family had tried to reunite the Kingdom…but under the worship of Baal.
The other nation’s armies were always threatening with death, famine, seige and starvation.
Even so, God’s people were called to stay focussed, and to be true to the values handed to them by God.
This was probably never more clear than in 2 Kings 6
The Syrian Army came to take out Elisha. His servant ended up in a panic.
2 Kings 6:15 When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” 16 He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” 17 Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
We have a God who provides for us, regardless of what the world thinks about supply and demand.
We need to open our eyes to this God that we serve.
Whatever it is that is stressing you out. Whatever it is that is making you afraid.
Whatever it is that you feel inadequate to handle…
If we live with eyes open to what God is capable of…it helps us to be brave. It helps our hearts to be steady.
SLIDE: James 5:7-8
James 5:7-8
7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
When we live as people of the resurrection:
- We share what we have, because God supplies our needs.
- We gather and worship with the community of faith.
- We accept people as God would, not by other standards.
We open our eyes, and allow God to establish our hearts. Jesus is coming soon.
