There are MANY lessons that we can learn from the prophet Elisha. This is the second of series focusing on the life of this great prophet.
“As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them apart.” (2 Kings 2:11-12)
When I recently reread this familiar story, many things that I had never considered before caught my attention. One of them was this curious statement Elisha made as Elijah was being drawn up into Heaven: “The chariots and horsemen of Israel!”
In Biblical days, chariots and horsemen were symbols of war, and the statement “chariots and horsemen of Israel” would have, no doubt, brought to mind an image of power and protection. This is what Elisha saw. He saw chariots and horsemen, and it brought to his mind the image of power and protection. Could it be that this represented leadership?
But the text says that Elisha made this statement when he could no longer see Elijah. Why would he have made such a curious comment just when his teacher and mentor was being drawn from his view?
Elisha lived in perilous times in Israel’s history, littered with difficulties from the Syrians and others. Thoughts of war would have been foremost on many of the minds of Israel. The kingship lay in the family of Ahab, the king who is known for having brought Baal worship into Israel (see 1 Kings 16:30). In Elisha’s day, the very thing that was supposed to be there to represent power and protection served to separate Israel from the One True God.
Just like the chariots and horsemen separated Elisha from his mentor, the leadership of Israel served to separate the people from their God, and when Elisha could no longer see his teacher, he cried out: “The chariots and horsemen of Israel!”
Do we have any “chariots and horsemen” in our day and age? Do we have anything that was designed to lead and protect us, that, indeed, serves to separate us from God?
I would like to suggest that we do. I would like to suggest that our modern “chariots and horsemen” can be none other than the church itself. The church, put there to lead us to Christ, to redirect us when we have gone astray, to protect us and help us to not fall into the traps of the enemy.
But just like Ahab abused his kingship and, in the long run, served to separate people from God, religious institutions can also keep people from know the true God. So many Christians hold on blindly to what their church teaches without stopping to verify that it is in accordance with Truth. Some churches promote the writings of mere human beings to the same level as the Holy Scriptures, even going so far as to allow the human writings to interpret the Bible. Many people look no farther than their pastors and leaders for Truth. Most go to church out of tradition, feeling that somehow, if they just go to church often enough, somehow they will get a few steps closer to Heaven! Some churches drill certain so-called doctrine into the minds of their followers, totally forsaking the “sound doctrine” that Paul tells us to teach (see Titus 2). Often churches get so caught up in arguing certain areas of doctrine — what day to worship on, what version of the Bible to use, whether or not women should wear pants, etc. — that they forget the Great Commission altogether!
The good news, my friends, is that in Elisha’s day, God didn’t forsake Israel! Nor has He forsaken His church of today. Yet, just as He called Israel to repent of their false gods, to stop blindly following their leaders and follow Him instead, He is calling us to come out of our organized religions. To take our eyes off of our church leaders. To stop blindly believing what the church teaches, without bothering to check with Truth. He calls us to “sound doctrine” — that of living of godly lives (see Titus 2). He’s calling us into a personal relationship with Truth Himself: The Lord Jesus Christ!
The chariot. A vehicle to God, or a vehicle away from God. What will it be for you, my friends?
Love in Christ,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Moderator, The Nugget, Scriptural Nuggets ( www.scripturalnuggets.org ), Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org , ]]>
(To access the entire “Lessons From Elisha” mini-series, please click here.)