Our study tonight presents such a scene. Elijah has just been taken and Elisha and the sons of the prophets have some big changes dropped in front of them. They respond differently and there are some things to learn from that.

2. The mantle of Elijah spoke of the prophetic office and gift, and of God’s call of Elisha to this ministry and responsibility. For Elisha this meant responding to God’s call on his life. It meant carrying on and taking Elijah’s place as the head of the schools of the prophets, a daunting task to say the least.

3. Note that the text says, “He took up also . . .” The words I want us to focus on are the words “also” and “went back”. Though he had experienced pain at the loss of his good friend and teacher, this did not neutralize him or make him bitter or feel that all was hopeless. Rather, Elisha saw this as a call to move forward and carry on the work that Elijah had been engaged in. We cannot fill another person’s shoes after they are gone, but we can pick up where they left off and continue the work God was doing through them.

4. “And stood by the bank of Jordan.” Now let’s not miss the picture here. The water had returned to it’s original movement after Elijah and Elisha had passed over. Now looming before Elisha was the Jordan once again, which stood as a barrier to his entrance back into the land where the other prophets were also waiting for his leadership. Isn’t this interesting? Before he could begin, God put Elisha on the other side of the Jordan. Historically and biblically, the Jordan River was representative of the barriers and problems of life which would stand in the way of Elisha’s ministry.

5. Not every endeavor the Lord calls us to is paved with gold bricks! There are quite often obstacles in the path of doing God’s will. We should not assume that it is not the Lord’s will for us to do something the first time we encounter an obstacle in the path of what we believe the Lord is leading us to do. There may come a point when an obstacle can be a sign that this is not God’s will, but He will make that clear to us.

1. This verse tells us that Elisha took Elijah’s mantle, smote the water of the Jordan River, and called out to God. There are several things we can learn from Elisha actions here.

2. First, the best way to prove the power of God’s grace is in the use of the gift He has given to us. Elisha didn’t just throw the mantle over his shoulder and wonder if God could use him like He had used Elijah. No, in faith he smote the water with the mantle. The word “smote” is used much in the OT to describe the striking of another person in such a way that they are killed. It seems to me that Elisha smacked the water quite vigorously with the mantle. It doesn’t seem like he bent down and weakly splashed the edge of the mantle on the edge of the water. He came to the water in the boldness of faith, even as he had seen Elijah come boldly to the edge of the water and smite it with the same mantle.

3. Elisha had also been promised by Elijah that if he saw him taken he would have a double portion of his spirit in his own ministry for the Lord. In faith he tests that as soon as he could. What if he had not even considered being so bold and had wondered if Elijah had really meant what he told him? He may not have passed the first test of his new ministry and accepted second best in the service of his Lord. Use the gift God has given to you. Exercise yourself in that gift given to you at salvation. If we will do so we will know God’s power upon us.

4. Second, Elisha prayed: Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” Elisha realized that the mantle was of little help in parting the waters if the Lord God was not at work. By this prayer he was not questioning God’s presence or actions, but demonstrating three things:

5. After Elisha had smitten the water the waters parted and he walked across on dry ground. This demonstrated that the Lord was truly with Elisha as He had been with Elijah.

6. Application: Elisha was a gifted and capable man. In addition, he had excellent training as the apprentice of Elijah. He may have had many other exceptional qualities mentally and physically, but being blessed, gifted, and well trained in the best schools or churches is simply not enough--essential as that is. So what does this mean?

1. Here we see the effect of reality in a man’s life. The prophets recognized he was Elijah’s successor and truly qualified to become their leader. Elisha had proven the reality of his walk with the Lord and demonstrated he was qualified for the ministry he was called on to do.

2. It is never enough for us to make claims to giftedness or qualifications for ministry. People need to see the reality of this in our daily walk over a period of time which tests us in the ups and downs of life. It’s far too easy to fake it and play the game of religion, but if we are authentic in our walk with the Savior, in time, the reality of our walk with God will show through as we are faced with the tests of life. This is why Scripture warns us against laying hands suddenly on someone without prior knowledge of their faithfulness or without the time needed to test their qualifications and the quality of their walk with the Lord.

3. Their bowing before him was not an act of worship but rather an act of submission to him as their new spiritual leader and guide.

1. Some have wondered what the prophets were thinking in saying that a search party needed to be sent out to find Elijah even though they seemed to have known that Elijah would be taken that day (2:5). Two ideas have been suggested:

2. Elisha finally relented after being made ashamed by the prophets that nothing was being done to seek for his master Elijah. This does not mean that Elisha had changed his mind about what had happened to Elijah, just that they had put such a guilt trip on him that in order to settle the issue once and for all, they would need to learn for themselves that Elijah was truly gone.

3. They searched for three days and came back empty handed. I like what Elisha told them, “Did I not say unto you, Go not?” Don’t you just love it when somebody tells you, “I told you so.”? I wonder how many times such a scene will be played out after the Rapture takes place? Many will be thinking that their Christian loved one simply wandered off and just needs to be found. Let’s not be too hard on these men, for they loved and respected Elijah and simply wanted to find him. On the other hand they needed to trust the word of the new man of God, Elisha, when he spoke.

1. It is hard to determine if a person is qualified for ministry when they are sitting on the sidelines. Elisha was a man who was involved and his involvement provided opportunity for both his growth in the Lord and for the manifestation of his gifts and his godliness.

2. One of the most harmful and debilitating diseases in the church today is what some have called spectatoritis. Sometimes people are afraid to get involved because they are afraid of making mistakes or they are afraid of failure. But we all make mistakes and we all fail. Often failure to get involved is the product of a wrong view of the church, of ministry, and of the pastorate, or what people expect of a pastor.

3. God wants us to pick up the mantle that has been dropped in front of us, to face the Jordan-like barriers that may stand in the way of ministry (our fears, ignorance, indifference, lack of training, finances, etc.) and cross over by the power of God to serve Him.