Who Wants Your Mantle?

2 Kings 2:9  And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. 

2 Kings 2:13  He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; 

14  And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. 

I think most Christians have a person in the Bible that we wish we could be like or have their gifts. Ideally, we are to be like Christ, but I think that probably scares most of us because He was perfect and God. We are being created in His image and will one day be fully transformed. Until then those we are attracted to have flaws like us and yet were mightily used by God.

Often preachers in training, like Elisha, long to be like their mentor. In our day of colleges versus apprenticeship it can be tough to pick. In my theology major, the two best liked were Dr. Hoyle Bowman and Dr. Robert Delnay. They were different in their personalities and while both were well loved some students wanted to be more like one than the other.

The danger is that we can become such imitators of men that we lose what God has put into us. We adopt their mannerisms, their phrases and some have even copied the regular clearing of the throat like their mentor. We are not called to be clones of our teachers.

Elijah and Elisha were different in their personalities and ministries, but they both shared the power of the Holy Spirit. Elisha wanted to be used even more than his mentor and like parents want their children to excel way beyond their own accomplishments, Elijah probably wanted the same for Elisha. It is a glorious thing to pass on knowing that God has raised up a man to take your place to use in the next generation.

Elisha’s request for a double portion was out of a sincere heart to be used by God like Elijah and out of respect for his mentor. Elijah knew that only God could answer that request and told him how he would receive it. Whenever Elijah told Elisha to wait somewhere there was no deterring Elisha. He was determined to receive the gift and did not want to let Elijah out of his sight. Can you blame him? How diligent would you be to get a double portion of Elijah?

He did indeed see him leave and was grieved. Too many would have rejoiced because now it was their turn, but Elisha had a different heart. He saw what all God had done for the nation through Elijah. Indeed, he was like a father to Elisha and he knew that Elijah being a servant of God was worth more than earthly military might. God used Elijah for His people more than Ahab could have ever done to protect and prosper the nation. He expressed his grief and would not take his new role lightly.

People like to speculate and it may have been discussed in a theology class or at the student center whether Elijah dropped his mantle for Elisha or God removed it and dropped it. I don’t know if Elisha was concerned about that. That mantle had no power in and of itself. It was just a piece of cloth, but it represented Elijah’s anointing and authority much like a crown on earthly royalty. Indeed, Elijah was a member of the royal court of Heaven so it was far more beautiful than a bejeweled crown.

Elisha picked it up and moved on. He did not build a shrine to Elijah or offer up a sacrifice. God did not ask for it. It was time to move on after the tearing of his clothing to show his personal grief. God’s work goes on no matter how great the man that has passed. Indeed, if a ministry fails to carry on after a man dies something is wrong. Maybe people put more stock in the man than God. Maybe.

Crying out to God was not an act of challenge or disbelief. It was a plea for affirmation of his anointing before he used the mantle as Elijah did. He had seen Elijah leave and he received the mantle, but parting the river would be affirmation that he had received all that he asked. With one strike of the mantle, Elisha the student graduated into Elisha the man of God for his time and he did not look back. He indeed was a mighty man of God even ministering on his death bed! And we think we have a right to retire. He would have disagreed and he would have been right. Our ministry may change into a different form, but our call dies when we do. Only two men in Scripture did not die with their boots on, Enoch and Elijah.