Last week, we saw Elijah at one of his lowest points. Fresh off the victory over Baal’s prophets on Mount Carmel, he spiraled into fear and despair. He ran from Jezebel, collapsed under a broom tree, and told God, “I have had enough... I alone am left.”
Elijah’s ego—his belief that he was the last faithful one—was wounded. And yet God didn’t rebuke him harshly. God whispered to him, nourished him, and restored him. He reminded Elijah that there were 7,000 in Israel who had not bowed to Baal, and He gave Elijah a new purpose: anoint kings, and call Elisha.
In his final week, Elijah is not acting out of ego but out of faith. The man who once ran away is now walking steadily toward heaven. And alongside him is Elisha—the quiet, faithful disciple—who has walked with him since that day God called him from behind a plow.
1. The Test of Faithfulness – and the Grace of Companionship
As Elijah journeys from Gilgal to the Jordan, he tells Elisha three times, “Stay here.”?Each time, Elisha refuses.?“As surely as the Lord lives, and as you live, I will not leave you.”
Perhaps Elijah was testing Elisha’s resolve—wanting to know if this apprentice had the perseverance for prophetic ministry. But perhaps it was more than a test. Perhaps it was also Elijah’s way of offering Elisha an easier path—a gentle release before the pain of goodbye.
But Elisha won’t leave.?And here’s where many of us can relate.
Some people in our lives walk with us all the way to the end. Even when we say, “You can go now,” they stay.?They show up, hold vigil, carry burdens. They don’t leave.?And other times, we are the ones who don’t want to let go. We say, “Let me come with you.” We sense a change coming—a loss, a transition—and we try to hold it off by staying close.
Maybe Elisha was hoping that if he just kept walking with Elijah, he might have more time. More wisdom. More life from his mentor. Maybe it wasn’t just about loyalty, but longing—“Don’t go just yet.”
But what Elisha received was far more than more time.?By walking in faith—not just with Elijah but with trust in God—he received what he never could have dreamed: a double portion of the Spirit.
He thought he was walking with Elijah.?But he was really walking with God.?And that made all the difference.
2. The Double Portion: A Bold Ask, A Father’s Gift
When Elijah asks Elisha, “What can I do for you before I am taken from you?” Elisha doesn’t hesitate.?He replies, “Let me inherit a double portion of your spirit.”
That was not a request for fame or spiritual power. In ancient Israel, the "double portion" was the rightful share of the firstborn son (Deut. 21:17). It meant full inheritance, full responsibility, and full blessing. Elisha was saying, “Make me your heir. Let the Spirit that lived in you rest on me, because I want to carry the work forward.”
I confess—this part of the story touches something personal in me.?There are days when I feel like Elisha, looking at the life and legacy of my father, Bishop Nimrod Christian.?I know I am his heir in name. But sometimes I wonder if I am worthy of a double portion of his faith, his humility, his boldness.?He was pious and grounded in ways I still strive toward.
And maybe you’ve felt that, too. Looking at the saints, the mentors, the spiritual giants in your life, thinking:?"How could I ever ask to carry what they carried?"
But Elisha shows us something liberating: He asked.
He did not let his sense of inadequacy keep him from asking for more.?And neither should we.
We forget that our heavenly Father delights to give.?Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you… for your Father in heaven gives good gifts to those who ask him.”(Matthew 7:7, 11)
What if we dared to simply ask??Not for our own glory, but so that we might serve faithfully, love more deeply, and live more fully into our calling?
Elijah, the fire prophet, performed nine recorded miracles.?Elisha, who asked for the double portion, performs eleven.
Not because he was better—but because he trusted God to give what was needed.?He simply asked—and God did more than he imagined.
So ask. Ask for the Spirit. Ask for strength. Ask for healing. Ask for power to do the work set before you.?You are a child of the Most High. And your Father delights to give more than you dare to request.
3. The Tearing of the Robe: A Prophetic Death and Rebirth
When Elijah is taken up in the whirlwind, Elisha stands watching, stunned. The one he followed, learned from, clung to—his spiritual father—is gone. And in that moment of grief, Elisha tears his robe in two.
In ancient Israel, the tearing of garments was more than emotional expression. It was a sacred act of mourning. It symbolized irreversible loss, the shattering of life as it was. We see it throughout Scripture:
Jacob tears his robe when he believes Joseph is dead (Genesis 37:34).
David and his men tear their clothes when Saul and Jonathan fall in battle (2 Samuel 1:11).
Job tears his robe and shaves his head upon losing his children (Job 1:20).
It is a physical sign of inner devastation.?But it is also more.
In the prophetic tradition, tearing the robe can signal a rupture in history—the end of one era, and the beginning of another. And in Elisha’s case, it’s as though he is shedding his former identity—no longer the assistant, the follower, the observer.
Something dies in that tearing.?But something new is about to begin.
Elisha lays down his robe—his identity, his grief—and picks up Elijah’s mantle.
This is the true moment of transformation.?This is not just succession—it is resurrection.
He doesn’t just put on Elijah’s cloak; he steps into Elijah’s calling.?And what confirms that? Not a title. Not applause. But action.
He strikes the waters and cries,?“Where now is the Lord, the God of Elijah?”
And the Jordan parts.
Not because of the fabric. Not because of Elisha.?But because God honors Elisha’s faith.
The robe was torn, but the Spirit was given.?The grief was real, but the power was greater.?The prophet was taken up, but the Word of the Lord had not departed.
In this moment, the people of God are reminded:?The cloak may fall, but God remains.
Conclusion: From Elisha to Jesus—More Than a Double Portion
Elisha’s anguished cry—"My father, my father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!"—is a deep confession: that the strength of the people of God does not lie in swords or kings, but in those anointed to speak God’s Word.
By calling Elijah “the chariots and horsemen of Israel,” Elisha proclaims that real victory comes not through might, but through God’s Spirit working through faithful servants.
Elisha takes up the mantle and carries forward the prophetic mission. He crosses the Jordan as Joshua once did. He speaks to kings, heals the sick, raises the dead, feeds the hungry, and turns hearts back to God. Elisha performs more miracles than Elijah—eleven to Elijah’s nine—perhaps even embodying that "double portion" he so boldly requested.
And yet, even Elisha points forward.
Like Elisha, Jesus came after others—after Moses, Joshua, Elijah, and John the Baptist.?Like Elisha, Jesus picked up a prophetic mantle.?But unlike Elisha, Jesus didn’t just inherit a portion of someone else’s spirit—He came full of the Holy Spirit from the beginning, conceived by it, baptized in it, and overflowing with it in power and mercy.
Elisha means “God saves.”?But Jesus—Yeshua—means “Yahweh saves.”?Elisha was God's prophet.?But Jesus is God in the flesh—prophet, priest, and king.
Elisha parted the Jordan and brought healing to the land.?Jesus parted the grave and brought salvation to the world.
Elisha followed in Elijah’s footsteps.?Jesus fulfilled the law and the prophets, and on the Mount of Transfiguration, Elisha’s entire lineage bows to Him as the Father says, “This is my Son... listen to Him.”
So today, when we ask for a double portion—?It is not just for power or position,?But for the Spirit of Christ Himself—?To live, serve, and witness in a world still struggling against idols and injustice.
Like Elisha, we may feel unworthy.?But like Jesus said, “Ask, and it shall be given to you.”?The mantle of the Spirit is not earned—it is received.?And we receive it not because we are ready, but because God is faithful.
So let us be people who ask boldly, walk faithfully, grieve honestly, and serve courageously—?Knowing that the Spirit who once empowered Elisha now lives in us,?Because of the One who went to the cross, rose again, and gave us His Spirit without measure.
Thanks be to God.?Amen.
