Have you guys ever had a moment when someone
suddenly handed you a responsibility that you
were not expecting? Maybe you didn't want it
even? You didn't feel like you were equipped
or ready to handle that responsibility? Or maybe
you just felt like, man, why are you handing
me this responsibility? This is not my responsibility.
This doesn't belong to me. More than a couple
years ago now. It was probably six or eight years
ago my great uncle he was on his deathbed and
He's at the hospital and they had they could
potentially save him and It would require life
support so my family long story short They didn't
have this organized yet. Nobody knew what they
were gonna do and we had half of the people were
like you know, let them pass on. The other half
were like, hey, put them on life support. And
so they're in disarray and Gabby and I, we go
to visit, to be there to support, to say our
goodbyes or whatever the case may be, not really
knowing what was going on. And we get there,
we walk into the room and they're in this like
family council, like eight people, eight couples
really just like talking this out and we walk
into the room and it was like they all looked
at us in unison and we're like, hey, What do
you think we should do? And we're like, wow.
We're by far the youngest people in the room.
We're like 20 to 22 at the time. And we're feeling
like, man, how did we get this responsibility?
But we didn't plan for that. We didn't plan to
make that decision. We were called on it. We
were called upon to make that decision. And looking
back, we kind of took all the I'm not gonna give
you all the details, but we took all the details
into account, and we casted our vote, I guess,
and they went with the vote that we did, and
I think we made the right decision. I think my
uncle got saved that week. He died shortly after,
but it gave him another opportunity to hear the
gospel and to get saved, and so that was kind
of our main thinking when we made the decision,
but back to being called to do things, just like
my uncle's bedside moment that we had, God sometimes
calls us when we're least expecting it. And that's
what we see going on in Elijah's life tonight.
Tonight we're gonna be starting a new series
in Elijah, talking about Elijah, seeing God's
hand at work. And our session tonight is called
God's Call to Service. And so the amazing thing
about God is that he extends a divine invitation
to each and every one of us. God calls us to
himself. through his son, Jesus Christ. And in
Christ, he calls us to join in his work, to reach
the world in various capacities, right? And the
God of the universe, he doesn't necessarily need
us, but he chooses to call us into his work.
And now we know when God calls us, we don't all
respond the same way. We don't all say yes immediately
to God's call. Some of us hesitate, some of us
negotiate or even run the opposite direction,
right? I mean, Jonah did it. I'm sure somebody
in here has done that before. And some people
just say, hey, God, that's not my job, right?
I don't know how many of you have done all three
in your life, but you've said yes to God calling
your life. You've tried to find a way around
God's calling your life, or you just completely
neglected it. I don't know how many people have
done all three. I know I've done all three in
my life. And I sometimes wonder, man, What would
life be like if I just responded with a yes every
time I felt God's call in my life? Have you guys
ever wondered that? If I did what God called
me to do, I would be in full -time ministry by
now. I'd be a pastor. I would have led X amount
of people to the Lord, because I would have been
faithful to his call in my life. My kids would
be like this. My marriage would be like this.
Who knows what God could do with our lives if
we all did what God called us to every time he
called us, right? What nobody knows what that
would be like. But that's not the case in our
lives. And so there's no reason to necessarily
dwell on missed opportunities. If you're alive
right now, you have an opportunity to respond
to God's call today. And God can use you and
he can use those experiences that you've went
through to equip you for what God has called
you to right now. And so if you're a believer,
God's called you to join in his work. And tonight
through Elijah's story, we're gonna discover
three steps that show us exactly how to respond
to God's call to serve him. And so here's the
objective statement. Every believer can join
God's work by following Elijah's pattern of response
to God's divine calling. And so just a little
bit of context, under King Ahab's leadership,
Israel is at like an all time low. The scripture
tells us that King Ahab did more to provoke the
Lord, to anger than any other king before him.
And so this is the place where God has called
Elijah and Elisha, who we're gonna be talking
about tonight, to serve. We know the story of
Elijah. He had just experienced the highest high,
the greatest triumph of his life. defeating the
prophets of Baal, and then he went through the
deepest sorrow in his life where he fled from
Jezebel's threats, right? And then God goes to
the mountain, meets him there, he comforts him,
and then he gives him a new mission, and his
mission is to go anoint kings over Israel and
Syria, and then God says to anoint Elisha to
be his successor. In 1 Kings 19, 16, it says,
And Jehu, the son of Nimshi, shalt thou anoint
king over Israel, and Elijah, the son of Shaphat
of Abomahola, shalt thou anoint to be the prophet
in thy room. And so Elijah is gonna anoint Elisha.
And Elisha is, he was a man of faith, but he
was just a normal man. He's a farmer by trade.
He loved the Lord, but he wasn't a priest, he
wasn't a prophet, he wasn't a king, and yet God
called him to leave behind his trade and to join
in God's work. And in response, his response
serves as an example for all believers of how
we should respond to God's call and how we can
be used by God in his mission to reach the world
with the gospel. And so throughout Israel's history,
prophets like Elijah and Elisha were called to
call Israel to holiness, to reveal God's will
to them and to challenge injustice and to prepare
their hearts for Jesus. And that's kind of like,
they were kind of like spiritual forerunners
to the mission that believers are called to today,
to carry out, to reach the world with the gospel.
And so just as God strategically positioned prophets
for that specific purpose in their time, God
continues to call ordinary people like us to
extraordinary service in his redemptive plan
for humanity. And so, again, the objective tonight,
what I want everybody to leave here knowing is
that every believer can join in God's work by
following Elijah's three -step pattern of response
to God's divine calling. And step one we're gonna
look at is decisive response, and we're gonna
pick up in... First Kings 19 verse 19 First Kings
19 says So he departed thence and found Elisha
the son of Shaphat who was plowing who was plowing
with the 12 yoke of oxen before him and he with
the 12th and Elijah passed by him and cast his
mantle upon him and he left the oxen and ran
after Elijah and said "'Let me, I pray thee,
kiss my father and my mother, "'and then I will
follow thee.' And he said unto him, "'Go back
again, for what have I done to thee?' And he
returned back to him and took the yoke of oxen
and slew them and boiled their flesh, and with
the instruments of the oxen he gave unto the
people, and they did eat. Then he arose and went
after Elijah and ministered to him." And so we
see that Elijah, he obeyed God's call in his
life, and he goes and he finds Elijah, he anoints
him, and he kinda does it in a funny way, at
least I thought it was funny. He casts his mantle
on him, his way of kinda saying, hey, you're
next. The mantle is like a cloak, but it symbolizes
Elijah's prophetic authority, and so it symbolizes
that God's with him. And when he casted the mantle
on him, could you imagine kind of how that must
have felt? I thought it would be kind of like
if Pastor Ben's preaching and he comes over to
Justin and he's like, you're next, right? And
how many people would be like, wow, what is going
on here, right? I don't think I'm ready for that,
right? I mean, I definitely don't know if I would
be prepared to just pick up the mantle and go.
But it seems like Elisha knew exactly what Elisha
was doing and what he meant by this. Because
he doesn't really ask any questions. It seems
like he understood what he meant. But I know,
even if I understood what was going on, even
if I knew, okay, Pastor Ben is giving me the
microphone, he wants me to go up there. I still
would probably be like, hold on, hold on, hold
on, I'm not ready, I didn't prepare any notes,
I don't know what's going on, right? That wasn't
Elijah's response. Elijah immediately abandoned
his former life and he answers God's call. And
now when I say that, somebody may be like, hold
on Damon, that's not what happened. He went home,
he kissed his mom and dad goodbye. And isn't
there a verse where Jesus rebukes somebody for
doing that same exact thing? In Luke 9, Luke
goes through these three conversations where
Jesus conveys a proper understanding of what
being called entails. And in Elijah's case, what
taking up that mantle meant, right? Right after
these conversations that Jesus has with these
disciples, he sends 70 disciples away. And so
the purpose of these conversations, I don't think
they were to rebuke anybody, they were. they
were to help those disciples understand what
the calling meant. And they also help us to understand
Elijah's response to his own calling. And so
the first conversation Jesus has in Luke nine
is found in verse 57. And it says, and it came
to pass that as they went in the way, a certain
man said unto him, Lord, I will follow thee whithersoever
thou goest. And Jesus said unto him, foxes have
holes and birds. of the air have nests, the son
of man hath not where to lay his head. And so
we see this really eager man come to Jesus, and
he's like, Jesus, I'll follow you anywhere you
go. And Jesus, he doesn't discourage him, but
I think he ensures that he has a right understanding
of discipleship, of what discipleship means,
and it may mean sacrifice, right? You might have
to sacrifice your comfort and security. And so
Jesus himself, he says, had no permanent home,
and following God's call, it's not always gonna
be comfortable, but that shouldn't stop us from
our responding to it, right? We must not have
a fictional, so we can't just have this fictional
concept of what the calling is gonna be like,
though. We can't think, man, God is gonna take
care of us, right? But our walk's not gonna be
perfect, and I think that's what Jesus was. was
trying to tell this guy, it's not gonna be easy
all the time. I don't have a permanent place
to lay my head, and you, as you follow me, you
might not. And so, he wasn't trying to discourage
him, but the man was very eager, and he was trying
to give him a right understanding of what following
Jesus was gonna entail. The second conversation
we see is in the next few verses. In verse 59,
he said, and he said unto another, follow me.
But he said, Lord, suffer me to go first or to
go and bury my father. Jesus said unto him, let
the dead bury their dead, but go thou and preach
the kingdom of God. And so the one guy says,
hey, I'll follow you anywhere. And Jesus says,
hold on, let me tell you what this really means.
This next guy, Jesus says, hey, follow me. And
he says, you know, I wanna bury my father. Most
people agree that and believe that this man wasn't
just asking, hey, can I go to my dad's funeral
really quick? What he was actually asking is,
hey, my father's gonna die eventually, and I
wanna be here when he goes. And so he was just,
he was postponing the call indefinitely. He was
saying, hey, I wanna follow you, but whenever,
it's gonna have to wait until this takes place
first. And so Jesus, he gives a seemingly harsh
response, but he makes this vital point that
nothing should delay our response to God's call.
God's mission, it can't just wait until we feel
like obeying God's call because souls hang in
the balance, right? He said, go thou and preach
the kingdom of God. People need to hear that.
And that leads to the third conversation that
he has in the next two verses. In verse 61, it
says, and another said, Lord, I will follow thee,
but let me first go bid them farewell, which
are home at my house. And Jesus said unto him,
no man having put his hand to the plow and looking
back is fit for the kingdom of God. And so, this
situation here, it's the one that most closely
resembles what we read about in Elijah's calling.
The man, he wants to say goodbye to his family,
which is a reasonable request. Like, if Jason
and Angela were going to be missionaries in some
far -off land, I would hope that they would come
give me a hug and a kiss, right? Like, that seems
reasonable. But Jesus, we see here, he alludes
to the plowing, just like Elijah was doing when
he was called, and he warns about divided commitment.
So unlike the previous guy who said, hey, when
this happens, then I'll follow you. This guy,
he really wanted to follow Jesus, and he planned
to follow Jesus, but he wanted to say goodbye
first. And so Jesus here, he's not forbidding
farewells. He's not saying, hey, You don't need
to say goodbye to your family. He's just emphasizing
that following God and God's call, it requires
our undivided focus. It divides our whole heart
behind it. We don't necessarily know what that
guy did, but we do get to see what Elisha did
in his own life. He says goodbye to his family,
and then he sacrifices his 12 yoke of oxen, which
I don't know. Matt Bam's not in here, but I don't
know how much that would cost, but in my studies,
it seemed like that was a significant, that was
worth a significant amount of money to have 12
yoke of oxen. That's 24 oxen, and he sacrificed
them all. He burns his equipment to cook them,
and then he never looks back, right? And this
is the kind of decisive response that I believe
God's looking for in his people. Think about
Abraham. When Abraham was called, In Genesis
12, verse one it says, now the Lord said unto
Abraham, get thee out of thy country, and from
thy kindred, and from thy father's house, and
unto a land that I will show you. And then in
verse four it says, so Abraham departed as the
Lord had spoken unto him, and Lot went with him,
and Abraham was 75 years old when he departed
from Haran. So God said go and Abraham left,
right? I'm gonna be honest with you, it's hard
to follow God's call like that as a 28 -year
-old. I can't imagine doing that at the age of
75, right? Abraham was 75, it says. But that's
the kind of response to God's call that Abraham
had. He trusted God had a better plan for him
than what he had for himself. And think about
the disciples, right? When Jesus called Peter,
Andrew, James and John, they immediately left
their fishing nets and followed Jesus. They demonstrated
that same decisive abandonment of their lifestyle,
of their livelihood, for faith. And that's the
same thing Elijah did. And man, we all know that
is much easier said than done, right? It's much
easier said than done. But that's why Elijah,
he said to Elijah, go back again for what have
I done to thee. So remember, Elijah had experienced
the highest of highs and the lowest of lows being
a prophet, right? We talked about his depression
in our emotions series, right? He was depressed.
He was ready for God to take him out. He had
experienced it all. He called down fire from
heaven and then he was ready to go. So he knew
the depth of what this calling meant for Elijah,
for Elisha's life. And so he wanted him to have
this full understanding, kind of like we see
Jesus in those conversations, clearing up the
idea. Because Elijah, he was called to this thing,
and so he says, for what have I done to thee?
He knew what he had done to Elijah, and Elijah
needed to understand that. But I think Elijah
did understand that, and we see that by his response.
So today, We know that God calls all believers
to take part in his mission, to spread the gospel
to the world. Whether you get paid for full -time
ministry or not, we all face this temptation
to not follow our call, right? It's so much easier
to not do what we're called to do. And sometimes,
It's not comfortable. Sometimes it means that
we have to give up things Sometimes it means
that we have to trust in God instead of our riches,
right? It's so much easier to do that But we
can trust in the Lord and I and when I was doing
this I was thinking about the guy or family that
we had recently The missionaries that were going
to Guatemala They they told their testimony in
their testimony. They basically said hey, we
had we had the American dream We had it all and
and then they gave it up to be about the Lord's
work, and they went to a whole new country, and
that testimony I felt like was super encouraging
to hear. Now God, he doesn't call us all to leave
the country to go learn a new language, but he
does call us all to participate in his work,
and sometimes that means leaving our families,
sometimes that means we're simply called to reach
our families, right? Which, that can be difficult
at times. or maybe just to reach our community
in Findlay, Ohio. Right now, personally, I believe
that I'm called to reach young adults in Findlay,
Ohio. You guys know why I believe that? Because
I'm a young adult in Findlay, Ohio. And so that's
my demographic. That's who I should reach. And
then on top of that, I feel like God put a stamp
on it because I teach a young adult Sunday school
class where I have the opportunity to minister
to young adults every week. And so I think that's
where God has called me right now. Where or who
has God called you to reach, right? And then
are you committed to living out that call in
your lives, or do you have oxen and a plow that
you need to get rid of? Are you holding on to
something that's keeping you from a decisive
response to follow God's call? Again, for some
it's financial security, for others it's fear
of unknown concerns, what others might think.
what might happen if I do this, if I follow God
in this way. Whatever it is, I think Elijah shows
us that complete commitment to the Lord's call
is really the only appropriate response for us
to have to God's divine invitation. And so if
you're willing to respond with a decisive yes
to God, I believe he's gonna use you, and he'll
use that. And if you ask, he will empower you
for the work that he's called you to do. And
that's what we're gonna see in our next point.
Elijah's decisive response, it sets him up on
this path of ministry, but responding was just
the first step. He faithfully served alongside
Elijah for a while, and he recognized God's calling
was gonna require more than just human effort.
He would need God's empowerment if he was gonna
fulfill that call the way that God wanted him
to. Just as we need God's power to fulfill God's
calling in our lives, Elijah knew that he needed
the... God's divine strength if he was gonna
do what God was calling him to do in fulfilling
and taking up that mantle. So that brings us
to our second step, which is a bold request.
Bold request, and that's gonna be, we're gonna
skip a couple chapters. We'll be in 2 Kings 2,
verse seven. And verse seven we're gonna pick
up. And 50 men of the sons of the prophets went
and stood to view afar off, and they too stood
by the Jordan, and Elijah took his mantle and
wrapped it together and smote the waters, and
they were divided hither and thither so that
they too went over on dry ground, and it came
to pass when they were gone over that Elijah
said to Elisha, ask what I shall do for thee
before I be taken away from thee, and Elijah
said, I pray thee, Let a double portion of thy
spirit be upon me. And he said, thou hast asked
a hard thing. Nevertheless, if thou see me when
I am taken away from thee, it shall be so unto
thee. But if not, it shall not be so. And so
the time had come for Elijah to be taken up to
heaven. And we know that he didn't go the way
that most of us go, right? We're gonna see in
the next point that he was taken up in a whirlwind.
He was lifted up, he never died. and that's amazing.
But Elijah, he knew it was time for him to go,
and so in the context, we didn't read this part,
but he tries to get Elisha to stay behind, and
Elisha, he's determined to stay with his mentor
until he was gone, and so we see Elisha allows
him to do that, and as they're walking along,
they're followed by this entourage of men, the
sons of the prophets, and they're watching them
from a distance as they cross over the river,
and they see Elisha, Elijah, rather, hit the
water, part the river, and they observe this
last moment between this mentor and his mentee,
or the prophet in training, the prophetic intern,
if you will. We see that, and again, he smites
the water, and they cross on dry ground, just
like Moses and Israel in the Red Sea. Then Elijah
asks him, What shall I do before I be taken away?
And I think that's a huge invitation. And Elisha
doesn't miss the opportunity, right? Have you
guys ever been asked, like, hey, I'll give you
whatever you want. And you ask for something
really, like, lame that you could have. You're
like, wait, I could have asked for it. I didn't
know you really meant anything I wanted, right?
That happened to me one time when I was younger.
My grandmother, she asked me what I wanted for
Christmas. And I asked for something. Just normal,
small. And she responded, that's all. And my
eyes were open that day. She shouldn't have done
that. As I got older, I realized, man, my grandma,
she really does want to bless me. She wants me
to make bold requests. Maybe not as bold as I
got, but she took joy in fulfilling. these requests,
right? Like she loved to get me things and that
was nice, but I learned not to hold back when
I made requests, right? I'm like, hey, I would
like a PS5 and five games and a 50 inch TV and
I need a spare controller. I didn't get all that,
but it was worth a try. Elisha, he courageously
asked for spiritual empowerment. Elijah gave
him that option. Like my grandparents, I believe
that God, he invites us to make these bold requests,
and when our requests align with his purposes,
he's gonna help us fulfill our calling in our
lives. He delights in granting our requests when
they align with his purposes, and it's a beautiful
thing. We see this in this instance with Elijah
and Elisha. He doesn't necessarily promise, hey,
whatever you ask, I'll give it to you. He asks,
what should I give you? He responds, he goes,
man, that's a hard thing. If you're here with
me, I'll give it to you. If you're not, I won't.
But just like, I think that's kinda like God
and my grandmother. They didn't necessarily promise
to give us everything we ask for, every single
thing we ask for, but he makes the opportunity
known to him, and we see that the Bible tells
us, often that we should be making our requests
known to God. James says, you have not because
you ask not. And we know that Elijah had proven
that he was faithful. And when he made this,
well finish that James verse, or you ask amiss,
right? You have not because you ask not, or you
ask amiss. We know that Elijah was proven to
be faithful. And so when he asked, he didn't
ask amiss. And Elijah, then saw greatly how the
Spirit of God was gonna work in his life. He
saw in Elijah's life, and he wanted the same
for himself, and he asked for a double portion.
And so the idea of a double portion here, it
points to the way that Israel would have handled
their children's inheritance. Think back to Jacob
and Esau. You guys remember how Jacob stole Esau's
birthright? Esau was the firstborn, and at that
time, the firstborn, he would get He would get
a double portion. You're right, he sold it to
him. But that's not what Esau said, right? But
the firstborn at the time would get a double
portion of the father's inheritance and they
would get the responsibility to steward it. And
so for Esau, what that meant, there was only
two boys, so what that meant was Esau was gonna
have it all. But Jacob tricked him, he stole
it, he bought it, however you wanna. However
you wanna say it, for Elijah what this meant
though was that he wanted to undertake Elijah's
ministry as opposed to those other 50 sons of
the prophets that we're observing. So Elijah,
he wasn't necessarily being greedy, but he recognized
that as Elijah's spiritual firstborn among those
prophets, he was gonna need all of God's power,
all of what Elijah had, and some, to carry on
that mantle, to do what God had called him to
do. And so he asked for the double portion, not
just about, that wasn't just about power, but
about responsibility. He needed those spiritual
resources. He needed God's strength to do what
he was called to do. And so we know that scripture
confirms that God honored that bold request.
Elijah, we see in his ministry, and we're gonna
probably see in the next few, on Wednesday nights
that Elijah performs almost twice as many miracles
as Elijah did. And so if you remember, he had
already been given the mantle once, and so now
he wasn't just asking for this double portion
so he could be awesome. He knew that Elijah was
gonna be gone and that he would need God, God's
strength and God's power as he was gonna live
out this calling. And so that's what he asked
for. He could have asked for anything, but that's
what he asked for. And it reminds me of Solomon,
right? When Solomon is asked by God, hey, what
would you like me to give you? And he asked for
wisdom. He could have asked for anything. He
could have asked for riches, but he asked for
wisdom. And God blessed him, said, because you've
asked for wisdom and not riches, I'll give you
both. Elisha, I don't know if he was that fortunate
to have both. I don't think Scripture necessarily
outlines that, but God did take care of him,
and God did give him what he asked for. And so,
we're gonna see that Elijah remained faithful,
and he saw what God had promised him come to
fruition. I think the Bible is full of all kinds
of people who make bold requests, and they remain
faithful, and they receive great blessing from
it. I think throughout the Scripture, we see
this as a pattern. of bold requests that align
with God's purposes, and God blesses that. Look
at Moses. Moses asked to see God's glory, right?
And God blessed that. Hannah requested a son.
She said, I'll dedicate my son to you if you
give me a son. And God blessed that. And when
our requests align with God's will for our calling,
I think he delights in that. I believe he does.
And he wants to empower us for his work. When
we make these bold requests to God and stay faithful
while we wait, it shows our faith is true, and
he blesses that as it accomplishes his will in
our lives. And that's why we can make these kind
of bold requests in relation to our call. When
Elijah asked for the double portion of Elijah's
spirit, he was essentially saying, God, give
me your spirit to empower me. And we see God
did that, and of course God wanted to do that.
In the New Testament, we see this principle amplified
when God, in Acts one, he says, but ye shall
receive power after that which the Holy Ghost
has come upon you, and ye shall be witnesses
unto me. God wants to empower his people to do
his work in the world. And so just as Elijah
needed the power of the Holy Spirit to fulfill
his prophetic calling, we need the Holy Spirit
today. we need that empowerment to fulfill our
calling as witnesses for Christ. It's not just
about our ability, it's about his power working
through us, and so I think it's important as
we're talking about this to just know that salvation
is a free gift, right? It's conditionless, and
that's an amazing thing, and we all need Jesus,
we all need to put our faith in Jesus to be saved.
But growth and sanctification and spiritual empowerment,
that often comes when we ask and when we remain
faithful to what God's called us to do. And so
I think that Jesus, think about that clear invitation
that Jesus gives us in Matthew seven verses seven
and eight. He says, asking it shall be given
to you, seeking you shall find, knock, and it
shall be opened unto you. For everyone that asketh,
receiveth, and he that seeketh, findeth, and
to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. Jesus
isn't suggesting we might ask. He's commanding
us to ask boldly, right? God wants us to make
these bold, request to Him, not being presumptuous.
We're not being presumptuous when we do that.
When we ask God big things, we're not being presumptuous.
We're acknowledging, God, I need you. I need
your strength. I need your power. If I'm gonna
be able to do what you called me to do, we're
dependent on Him, and that's what we're acknowledging
when we make those bold requests. And that's
the very foundation of our relationship with
God. That's where it starts. God, I need you.
I can't save myself. I need you to save me from
my sins. And it continues like that. I need your
strength to do what you've called me to do. And
so when we pray, God I need you, we're admitting
we can't fulfill his calling on our lives in
our own strength. And so like Elisha, we need
that supernatural power to accomplish God's will.
And so when we make these bold requests in faith,
then God empowers us just like he empowered Elisha
to stand ready to do his will. And so remember
Elisha, Like Elijah, we need God's empowerment.
So don't be afraid to ask big questions. Don't
be afraid to ask, to make big requests to God
for his strength, for whatever you're going through.
God wants to help you through those things. And
be prepared to walk faithfully, though, as you
wait. I know there's such a temptation to make
these big requests and not see it come to fruition
today and then say, man, God's not gonna answer
this prayer. or for some people it's, man, is
he even there? God is there, he wants to answer
those requests, but he also expects us to be
faithful while we wait on his response. It's
not enough to make bold requests. After Elijah
courageously asked God, then we see that he actively
received what God. We're gonna look at how Elisha
claimed and exercised his spiritual inheritance
in these next few verses. And in step three,
which is active reception. Pick up in verse 11.
Verse 11, and it came to pass, as they still
went on and talked, that behold, there appeared
a chariot of fire and horses of fire. and parted
them both asunder. And Elijah went up by whirlwind
into heaven. And Elijah saw it and cried, my
father, my father, the chariot of Israel and
the horseman thereof. And he saw him no more.
And he took hold of his own clothes and rent
them in two pieces. And he took also the mantle
of Elijah that fell on him and went back and
stood by the bank of Jordan. And he took the
mantle of Elijah. that fell on him and smote
the waters and said, where is the Lord God of
Israel? And when he had also smitten the waters,
they parted hither and thither, and Elijah went
over, and when the sons of the prophets which
were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, the
spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they
came to meet him and bowed themselves on the
ground before him. And so man, that is quite
a dramatic scene, right? We see, heavenly chariots
of fire appear between him and Elijah as he swept
away in this whirlwind. And then we see Elijah,
he cries out, my father, my father, the chariot
of Israel and the horseman thereof. When he did
that, when he said that, he was recognizing that
Israel's true strength, it wasn't in their military
might, it wasn't in their wealth, it was in God
ultimately, but it was through their man of God,
Elijah. And so because God, God was empowering
Elijah to fight on his behalf, to combat the
idolatry that was going on in amazing ways in
his story. And so when that disappeared, the
natural feeling that Elijah must have been feeling
was, no, our man of God is gone. My mentor is
gone. What are we gonna do now? And in grief
it says he tears his clothes, which is basically
an expression of deep distress. I think. In our
culture, in our society today, that's just kind
of weird though. Could you imagine if every time
you were in deep distress, you just, ah! Just
straight Hulk Hogan. You go to McDonald's and
you get your fries and they're cold and you're
like, no! And then your shirt, yeah, it's terrible.
It would be so weird. People would look at you
so strange. Nevermind. That's more or less what
happened though. Elijah's mentor is gone, the
prophet is taken away from the earth, but notice
what happens next. He doesn't just stand there
like the disciples when Jesus was taken up, and
he's like, hey, why are you guys still standing
here? You have a work to do. He grabs a mantle,
he picks it up off the ground. This is the same
mantle that symbolized his calling in the beginning,
and now it's gonna be a token that, man, the
prophetic authority that Elijah had is now on
Elijah, and he picks it up. actively receiving
what God had offered him, that calling that he
had given him. That mantle that rested on Elijah's
shoulders was now on his, and so he goes from
the prophetic intern to being the prophet now,
right? And I think this would be kind of like
if Pastor, he was gone now, Justin's got the
lapel, and he starts going, you know, he puts
it on, you're not dismissed, you're sent. You're
not dismissed, you're sent. You're not dismissed,
you're sent, right? Like he's the guy now. Now
he's the person leading. His mentor's gone and
he's the one preaching the sermons. He's the
one shepherding the flock. The mantle is on him.
And so notice what Elisha does immediately after
putting on the mantle. He goes right to the river,
right to the Jordan River and he faithfully did
what he was called to do and what he was taught
to do. Just as he saw Elisha strike the water,
he strikes the water. and he calls on God, he
says, where is the Lord of Israel? And the water's
part, proving that God's power was now with him.
And so, he actively, he didn't take the mantle
and frame it, he didn't put it away, he actively
used what God, or what he had been given, what
God had called him to, and he did what God would
have him to do, and God confirmed his calling
in the sight of all these other prophets. And
so in our context today, actively receiving God's
calling, it might look like finally saying yes
to teaching in children's ministry or something
of that nature. It might look like initiating
spiritual conversations with our friends, family
or coworkers. It might look like stepping into
a ministry opportunity that you've been considering
or like at least pursuing that. Some of us have
received God's calling in our lives and we need
to move away from that contemplation, like the
disciples when Jesus left, to that action that
we see Elisha doing there. This is a critical
lesson, I think, for all of us to learn because
it's not enough just to receive God's calling
on our lives. We have to actively step into it
and exercise the gifts that he's given us to
fulfill that calling. The sons of the prophets,
they recognize that the spirit of Elisha was
now with Elisha because they saw him doing what
he was called to do. And so what gifts or what
callings has God placed in your life that you
need to actively receive and exercise? The mantle,
it falls on useless ground until somebody picks
it up and puts it into action. And so God's calling.
It can come in many forms in our lives. Some
are called to ministry roles, pastoral leadership,
or missions, or teaching, but everyone, every
single one of us, if we put our faith in Jesus,
is called to service through evangelism, through
hospitality, through encouragement and generosity,
and just using our gifts for his will and for
the furthering of the gospel. We're all called
to that, and so maybe you've sensed God's call.
Maybe you've even, ask for his empowerment like
Elijah, but now comes that final step. You have
to actually walk with the Lord and put that into
play. You have to pick up that spiritual mantle
and use it, and when you step into your calling
with the Spirit empowering you, people are gonna
not see your talent, they're gonna see God's
glory through that, right? God is gonna be glorified
because of your faithfulness to him, and it's
gonna be amazing for people to see. Elijah, we
see that he didn't just observe Elijah's ministry
and study his methods. He actively stepped into
God's rule that God prepared for him in the same
way our faith has to move beyond just acknowledging
God or just having knowledge about God to following
God and to walking in our calling. We have to
receive and exercise our spiritual inheritance
in Christ. Through Elijah's example, we discover
three steps. We discover a three -step process
of answering God's call and we see complete commitment.
We see courageously asking God for empowerment
and active participation in his work that he's
prepared us for. And I believe that every believer,
every single one of us, if we put our faith in
Jesus, we can join in God's work. We can do that
when we follow Elijah's pattern, when we make
that decisive response, when we see Elijah, He
immediately abandoned his former life to answer
God's call, right? When we make that bold request,
how Elisha courageously asked God to be empowered
for that calling. And when we have an active
reception, when we go from just knowing what
we're called to, to actually living it out, to
picking up that mantle, to exercising our gifts
in the Lord. And so, I don't think this is just
a pattern. for Elijah's life. I think this is
a pattern that could be in all of our lives.
We see responses like that throughout scripture.
We see Abraham left his homeland. We see Moses
asked to see God's glory and we see the disciples,
they left their nets and they picked up Christ's
mantle and they're carried on his mission and
that's how we heard the gospel, right? That's
what we're even called to do today. And so time
and time again we see people of faith show us
what it means. to answer God's call with these
three responses. And if you're here tonight and
you don't know Christ, God's calling you to have
a decisive response. Jesus Christ came to the
earth. He lived a perfect life on your behalf.
He died for your sins. And the right response
is faith. And so if you're here tonight and you
don't know the Lord, will you make that decision
to follow Christ tonight? If you know Christ,
then you've been called to live a life that honors
God, that glorifies him, and primarily we're
gonna see that done through the advancing of
the gospel. And we know that we have free will,
right? You can respond to God however you want.
You can deny the faith altogether, that's your
decision. You can believe but refuse to live
a life of obedience, right? Lots of people do
that. But I think we can all agree that the best
way and the way that we should respond to God's
call is the way that God would have us to respond
to God's call, right? Yet many believers, we
hit barriers that keep us from responding to
God's call that way. Some people fear rejection.
Some people feel inadequate. Some people are
just comfortable where they are. They don't want
to change anything. They don't want to get out
of things that are comfortable for them. Others
maybe are distracted from the busyness of life.
I think I've been all of those things at some
point, maybe even this week, right? But we hit
these barriers and they may seem unique to us
in our context, but I think these are the same
obstacles that people have hit all throughout
history. And so tonight we see Elijah, he overcomes
those barriers in a dramatic but effective way.
He literally used them to build an altar, or
not to build an altar, but he used them to, barbecue
his oxen and then he left. He left everything
to follow God. And so though these barriers,
they can feel insurmountable, we can overcome
these barriers as well when we follow God's call.
And again, like I said, we had the guyers in
here recently and they really exemplified this
following of God's call. They made that, they
made a, a decisive response to leave behind everything
they had, the American dream. They boldly requested
God's empowerment for their work and they actively
received their calling and stepped into ministry
or to missionary service. That was their testimony,
right? And that was a beautiful thing to hear.
But something else they said in their service
was they challenged us to give God our yes. And
essentially what they were saying was, hey, are
you willing to just say, hey God, whatever you
want for my life, I'm willing to do it, yes.
And after they said that, they shared their concern
with missionaries, how there's fewer and fewer
missionaries being sent today, and they asked
a really powerful question, I thought. Is your
church sending missionaries? And then they gave
this dramatic pause, right? And you're like,
huh. And then they said, why not, right? I think
that question strikes at the heart of our discussion.
The answer isn't that God stopped calling people,
right? The Bible says that he who is faithful
with little will be faithful with much. And I
believe the reason fewer and fewer people are
being sent today is because many believers aren't
giving God their yes in the general calling that
we all have, the fundamental obedience of living
lives of faith and engaging in evangelism. And
if we're not faithful in those foundational things,
then how can we expect God to entrust us with
greater responsibilities? Elijah, he was faithful
in his response and God used him mightily. So
what about us? I want you to just take a moment
and ask yourself, man, where am I in responding
to God's call? Have I decisively responded like
Elijah, leaving behind what holds me back? Have
I boldly requested God to empower me for the
work that he's called me to? And have I stepped
into my calling, picking up the mantle that he's
placed before me? If you haven't, decisively
responded to God's call. Make a conscious decision
this week to give God your yes. I don't know
what that looks like in each of our lives, in
each of your lives, but maybe it's sharing your
faith with a coworker, maybe it's serving in
a ministry team. If you're unsure, maybe it just
starts by asking God what that might be, right?
If you... No, then perhaps you need to make a
bold, if you know what God's call is for your
life, maybe you need to make a bold request like
Elijah for God to empower you to do that calling.
And if you've done those two steps, then maybe
you just need to take some initiative and do
what you know to do until you know what to do.
The mantle, it falls on useless ground until
someone picks it up and puts it into action.
And I can't imagine, or I can't help but imagine,
man, what would... What would this room look
like if everybody in this room followed God's
calling to a T, followed this pattern that Elijah
sets for us to a T? What would our church look
like? What would our town look like, right? God,
he doesn't just work through pastors and missionaries.
He works through all of his believers. He's called
us all to follow him in that way. And so God
has made this divine invitation to each and every
one of us tonight. And so will you, like Elijah,
pick up that mantle? that God's placed before
you and give God your yes to his call so that
you can see him work in your life. We're gonna
go into a time of prayer and then we'll have
our brother come up and lead us in our Wednesday
night prayer list. Thank you Lord for your faithfulness
to us. We thank you that you call us to salvation,
that you call us to works, that we could bring
glory to your name, that we could. participate
in leading others to you, Lord. And I just pray
that you would give us courage to walk out your
calling in our lives, that you would help us
to respond decisively, that we could leave behind
the things that are holding us back and be faithful
to you, that you would give us the wisdom to
seek you when we need to seek you, to seek your
strength and to walk in it on a daily basis,
Lord. We love you and we pray this in Jesus'
name, amen.