2 Kings 2:1-2(KJV) 1And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. 2And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
(This week we had Pastors Tom and Joy Collins from Detroit, Michigan with us. They blessed our church with some wonderful words and some great ministry. You can find their messages on the web at www.Livingwordgreene.com in the media section of the web site. I will be commenting on their messages in this week’s blog.)
Pastor Joy Collins ministered in our church on Saturday night. She spoke to us concerning transitions. In Today’s scripture, we see Elijah about to leave the scene and pass his mantle to Elisha. Elijah called Elisha many years before this point in time. For all of those years Elisha was Elijah’s servant. This did not mean he was a “co-prophet” or a prophet under Elijah. The word implies menial servant. Elisha’ job was to care for Elijah’s physical needs.
Now the time has come for Elisha to take his place as the prophet to Israel. Elijah has done all that God intended for him to do. There is always a time of transition. One generation must take up the mantle of the previous generation. Too often in the history of the church, this becomes a time of competition and sadness. The second generation must begin all over again because there is a separation with the first generation. This was not the case with Elijah and Elisha.
There is a journey involved in the story of Elijah and Elisha. The journey involves three cities and a river. Each of these places represents something in our own journey of transition. Whether you are the younger generation or the older generation, you are in transition. Those of us who have been around for a while need to realize that if or work is going to be truly affective it must pass to the next generation. If it does not than we have failed.
To be considered a great man or woman of God, only to have our “greatness” end with our passing is not true greatness. If we are never known by the world, but we are able to pass on to our physical and spiritual children a mantle that becomes greater in their generation, we are truly successful.
Conversely, if we are the younger generation and want to make our mark in the world, we will lose what the generation that went before us accomplished. It has too often been the case that the next generation had to “re-invent the wheel”, so to speak, because they wanted to get the older generation out of the way.
The key is for those that are older to pour into the younger and hold nothing back. The younger must glean from the older as long as they can. Do not be in a hurry to replace them. The burden they carry is heavier than you think. You will need their wisdom to successfully carry this burden yourself. Elijah and Elisha found the key to transition. As a result, the ministry of Elisha was greater than that of Elijah, and the world was better for it.
Elijah and Elisha began their journey in Gilgal. This city was very important to Israel. It is the place where the second generation, who had not been circumcised by their parents, underwent this rite. Circumcision was the mark of the covenant of Israel. It was an outward sign of their dedication to God. If we are going to be successful in our generational transition, we must begin it with absolute dedication to God, his plans and his purpose. Neither generation can be concerned about their plans or agenda. God’s plans and agenda must be what is paramount in our thinking.
The second city was Bethel. Bethel means the house of God. If we are going to be successful in our transition, we must do it in the house of God. Jesus established the Church. The universal church is expressed in the local church. The local church is the true house of God in our lives. If we are going to see a successful transition, I believe we must give attention and attendance to the house of God. If we neglect the house of God, it will lead to a negative and ineffective transition.
The last city they traveled to was Jericho. Jericho was the gateway to the Promised Land. In order for Israel to go any farther into the promise of God, they had to deal with Jericho. Although we could look at a number of things Jericho represents, I like what Pastor Joy had to say. She said Jericho represents Time. Time is a great obstacle to generational transition.
Both generations tend to feel they are running out of time. The old know that they will not be around forever and want to hold on as long as possible. The young want to get going. They do not want to lose any of the time they have. Pastor Joy said that if we want to be successful we must make friends of time. Time is in God’s hands not ours. We are not guaranteed anything but today. If we simply do with today what we should, time will take care of itself.
The final obstacle was the Jordan River. This river represented Israel’s commitment to walk into the promise of God. They had to cross over this river in order to have any of what God intended them to have. They were not certain how God was going to deal with the problems they would face. They had to step into Jordan by faith, trusting that God would make the way.
We must both end and begin our journeys by faith. If we are the older generation, we must continue to press into the promises of God until we leave earth and enter our reward. To do anything less would be a disservice to the Lord and to those who will follow us. I do not believe in our American idea of retirement. We do not see it in the Bible. Over and over again we see the great men of God moving in the power of God until they “were gathered to their ancestors.” There was no retirement. There were no “golden years” of unproductively. They did mighty things by faith to the very end. Then they turned over the mantle with faith in God for the next generation
On the other hand, we must begin the journey by faith as well. We must trust God that he will make a place for us. We must be willing to allow God to work in us to develop the kind of faith we see in our fathers and mothers. Hebrews makes a powerful statement.
Hebrews 13:7(KJV) 7Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.
Paul exhorts us to remember those who rule over us. They do go before us and they occupy a place of authority. We should respect and honor them as long as they are with us. However, we are not to follow their personality or their knowledge. We are called to follow their faith. A successful transition means we “hit the ground” running with the faith that those who went before walked in. Faith is the key.
More tomorrow.
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