Dedicated To The Men of God
Who Preach the Word of God As It Is To Men As They Are
"Preach The Word"
The Home Going of
God’s Servant
Text: II Ki 2:11-14
Introduction:
Too often
God’s people do not think about what we have
awaiting us in the life to come. There is a place called
heaven.
Things do not end when a Christian dies, it is only the
beginning of much better things to come.
To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord
(2 Cor. 5:8). To be with Christ is glory by the Apostle
Paul is called "far better." It seems like we
often lose sight of all the wonder that awaits us in the
house of the Lord in the heavens. The Psalmists said in
the end of the 23rd Psalm, "And I will dwell in the
house of the Lord, forever."
Jesus said, "I go to prepare a place for you, and if
I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, that
where I am, there ye shall be also" (Jn.14:2).
Our bodies are gradually breaking down and becoming
weaker and weaker--it is become less efficient in what it
was designed to do as time passes on.
Some of our worst grief comes when our loved ones are
taken in death. We live in a very troubled world and we
often ask ourselves, "Is this all God has for his
own? Do we have to all ways face suffering and know the
restrictions of an earthly body?" The answer is
"No."
Paul said in Romans 8:23, "And not only they, but
ourselves also, which have the first-fruits of the
Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting
for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our
body."
We will not always be tied to earthly things. We are
going home one day. We are on the way there now as our
earthly tabernacle breaks down, little by little, and are
travelling on to the land of Fadeless Day, where we will
live forever in the mansions prepared by the King of
Kings and the Lord of Lords.
When Elijah left the earth, it was a very dramatic scene.
He and Elisha were talking about a "double
portion" of the Holy Spirit of God. God during the
times of Elijah’s ministry, worked miracle after
miracle, demonstrating the sovereign might and power of
Holy God.
Elijah did not just died as most people do and the corpse
be laid in the earth. He went up in a whirlwind to heaven
in a "chariot of fire and horses of fire." When
a lot of the New Age Movement people read that, they say,
"Well, a UFO came down and carried Elijah up into
the heavens."
I know there is figurative and symbolic language in the
Bible, but I take the Bible as literally as I possibly
can. The Bible speaks of some kind of chariot and speaks
of horses of fire. If you do not make that as literal as
you possibly can, you will wind up having to accept the
possibility that they were not real chariots and horses,
but some kind of space craft that they could not explain.
Take the Bible as literally as you can, knowing at the
same time there is some symbolic and figurative language
to be found in its pages.
A RULE OF BIBLICAL INTERPRETATION SAYS, "WHEN THE
PLAIN SENSE OF SCRIPTURE MAKES COMMON SENSE, SEEK NO
OTHER SENSE." I have no problem visualizing a
chariot of fire and horses of fire. I believe he spoke of
a glowing chariot and glowing horses. This incident does
not speak of HORSEPOWER, but of HORSES. By the way, if a
space ship took Elijah away, then they had to bring him
back for the time of the Transfiguration of Jesus,
because he was present for that glorious event.
In this passage of scripture we are given some helpful
truths, not only about Elijah’s homegoing, but also
about death, and the here-after. All who know the Lord
will have a glorious and wonderful home-going one day.
Let’s take time to look at some of these valuable
lessons that we can learn.
I. THERE REALLY IS A LIFE TO COME
There is a life
beyond this life. Death does not end it all.
Some folks think when man dies he is like an animal; he
just ceases to exist. THAT IS NOT EVEN RATIONAL. Why
would God create a man in His own image and just let him
live a few brief years upon this earth, let the man
develop his intellectual powers, and then snuff him our
permanently, like one would a candle? No. That makes no
sense at all. Revelation, or God’s word, lets us
know for sure that this life is not all there is. The
Christian enters into a higher, fuller and better life.
When Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, he said,
"We know that if our earthly tabernacle is
dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made
with hands, eternal in the heavens" (2 Cor.5:1).
Death for the believer is simply entering into the glory
of being forever with the Lord.
Death does not even end it all for the unbeliever. I have
heard people talk about suicide and refer to it as,
"ending it all." No one ever ends it all. When
people die they go to heaven or to hell. The Bible says
that men must first die, and then after that there will
be judgment.
Elijah did not die when he went up into the whirlwind.
The Bible tells us not only that he went by a whirlwind
into heaven (v.11), but also hundreds of years later,
when Jesus was on the Mt. of Transfiguration. Elijah,
accompanied by Moses, appeared. He walked with the Lord
and he and Moses was seen by, Peter, James and John.
Elijah was still alive at that time! There really is a
life to come!
II. EVERY SERVANT OF GOD, WHOEVER HE MAY BE AND
HOWEVER IMPORTANT HIS WORK, MUST EVENTUALLY REST FROM HIS
LABORS.
Even a man like
Elijah came to an end of his earthly ministry. Good men
were "scare as hen’s teeth." There were
few real witnesses for God on the earth in that day, but
still Elijah had to go!
Never forget, our earthly ministry is only a preparation
for our service in which we will engage as eternity
rolls.
I think of great men who were here for a while and then
were taken home by God. On and on our list could go.
James Stewart- preacher, missionary and writer.
Charles Haddon Spurgeon - called the "Prince of
preachers."
Maze Jackson - Came to the end of the road.
Billy Kelley - Mr. Camp Meeting
Ray Long - whose ministry I was saved under.
Rev 7:13-15 says this:
13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What
are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence
came they?
14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to
me, These are they which came out of great tribulation,
and have washed their robes, and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb.
15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve
him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on
the throne shall dwell among them.
Those who are saved by the grace of God, in the future
glory world will serve the Lord day and night in His holy
temple.
Rev.22:3 says:
"His servants shall serve Him."
How we serve down here, will determine how He will allow
us to serve when we get home. We are living in a time of
preparation for a heavenly county.
One day I will have to leave and take the trip to heaven.
I want to serve the Lord well here, because I want to
glorify Him in the eternal state as much as He will let
me do.
III. IN THE TRANSLATION OF ELIJAH THERE IS AN
ILLUSTRATION OF THE WAY IN WHICH A GENERATION OF
BELIEVERS WILL BE CAUGHT UP INTO HEAVEN.
As Elijah and
Elisha walked along, suddenly Elijah was swept up into
heaven without having to face physical death (v.11).There
are millions of people who will one day go to heaven
without dying. That is our "blessed hope."
Titus 2:13 says we are, "Looking for that blessed
hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ."
In 1 Cor 15:51-54 Paul speaks of what will happen one
day:
51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed,
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last
trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be
raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and
this mortal must put on immortality.
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on
incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on
immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying
that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Thes 4:15-17
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that
we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord
shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a
shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the
trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up
together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the
air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Elijah did not die, but Elisha did (2 Kings 13:20).
It could be that you will not have to die physically, but
if you do, you will later be raised and we with be
changed with every living believer and so shall we ever
be with the Lord.
Many people are skeptical about this "mystery"
revealed to the Apostle Paul. The college students of
Elisha’s day were skeptical of the way that Elijah
had been translated into the presence of God. They asked
Elisha’s permission to go and look for Elijah. After
they had searched for three days, they had to admit they
had not found him.
The Apostle Paul revealed that there are folks skeptical
today about the truth of Christ’s second coming:
2 Pet 3:3-4
3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last
days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
4 And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for
since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as
they were from the beginning of the creation.
IV. THE TIME, THE MANNER, THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF OUR
HOME-GOING, ARE IN THE HANDS OF OUR LOVING HEAVENLY
FATHER.
Ten years before,
Elijah had actually prayed that he might die.
It is a good thing God does not always do what we ask Him
to do. Elijah was given ten more years to do the work of
the Lord.
It is a good thing that we did not always give our
children what they asked for. You don’t give a small
child a real knife although they may cry, stop and raise
the devil to get what they want. A wise parent does not
give his children anything that he wants. God has given
humans better sense than that.
Have you ever been so discouraged about life that you
prayed to die? If so, you need to forget that and
remember the words of the Bible:Ps. 31:15
"My times are in thy hands."He knows us ,cares
about us, and gives His best to His children.
IN GOD’S TIME, NOT A MOMENT BEFORE AND NOT A MOMENT
AFTER, WE WILL LEAVE THIS WORLD FOR THE JOYS THAT AWAIT
US ON THE OTHER SIDE.
No one can end your life early. You will leave here at
the very time that God has appointed for you to leave.
Anyone who thinks otherwise, is ignorant of the Word of
God.
We may pass through troubles and trials, but at the end,
according to the Bible in Ps.16:11, there are
"pleasures evermore."
V. ALTHOUGH GOD TAKES AWAY HIS SERVANTS FROM TIME TO
TIME, HIS WORK STILL GOES ON.
When Elijah laid
down his mantle, Elisha picked it up, and carried on the
work that God began. There was no time gap, because
God’s way of leading his people is through his
servants.
Note:
Someone told me about a church recently that was looking
for a pastor to lead the flock. They heard about three
men, and they were all agreed to bring the man before the
church. Someone in the church stood up and said, they
needed to wait a while to really find God’s man for
the church. That sounds good, but really doesn’t
hold water when you open your Bible. God can show a
church, his man for the church when they go to hear the
first man they are invited to hear. God does not want a
lag or lapse time, when it comes to the leadership of His
people. God has designed that sheep need a shepherd.
This work that we are in is God’s work. That is
illustrated by the fact that when God took Elijah, and he
passed his mantle on to Elisha, that Elisha took it,
smote the waters, and said "Where is the Lord God of
Elijah?" When he smote the waters and said that, the
waters parted, proving to the school of the prophets that
the work did not have to cease because Elijah had died,
God had someone prepared, primed and ready to step in and
lead God’s people. THEY SAW THAT THE SPIRIT OF
ELIJAH RESTED ON ELISHA AS WELL. They said, "He
seems to be able to do the same things that Elijah did,
through the power of God."
There are great men all around who are dying and retiring
and folks say, "How will the work of God go on when
they are taken from the scene?" That is God’s
business, because we are in God’s work. Man did not
start the church, it is the Lord that builds His church.
That is why the gates of hell cannot prevail against it!
There is not a one of us that is indispensable. You might
ask, "What will happen if I am taken?" God has
someone to carry on the work. He is raising up young men
and young women who will step in and carry on when we are
gone, and shouting up and down the streets of transparent
gold.
Somehow God made it before we were even born. Some folks
think God cannot get along with us, but God did not have
to have you and me. He just chose to call us and use us
for His glory. God was doing fine before I came on the
scene, and He will do just fine on the earth, when you
and I are in glory.
VI. SOMETIMES GOD’S PEOPLE HAVE CERTAIN
INDICATIONS THAT THE END OF THEIR EARTHLY LIFE IS NEAR AT
HAND.
Elijah knew in a
short time God would take him away.
Elisha and school of the prophets students at Jericho and
Bethel knew as well (See v.3 &5)).
As the years slip by, we need to realize the time of our
sojourning on earth is getting shorter. Every day is one
day less that we will live. By the law of averages, some
who are young and energetic may have to soon leave this
earth. Many others because of old age leave this world,
due to sick bodies and failing powers. We know our days
are numbered.
You say, "Preacher, that is morbid." No, that
is reality. There is nothing morbid about the thought of
going to heaven.
You might say, "If I have to walk through physical
death, it will not be pleasant, there will not be
anything joyful about it." Well, in Christ’s
work on Calvary he conquered death and now he says,
"Let not your heart be troubled, ye believe in God
believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many
mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go
to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a
place for you, I will come again and receive you unto
myself, that where I am, there ye may be also."
Jn. 14:1-3.
We will leave from this life to the next so fast that at
one moment we will be in the body and in the next moment,
we will be with the Lord. Not only with the Lord, but
"forever with the Lord."
VII. WE SHOULD ANTICIPATE OUR HOME-GOING AND GET READY
FOR THE JOURNEY
There is no doubt
in my mind that Elijah knew that he was living in the
last moments of his earthly life. The time of his
departure was drawing near. How did he act in those kind
of circumstances? What did he do and how did he spend his
last hours on the earth?
A. Desire for Solitary Communion
Three times he asked Elisha to leave. Maybe Elijah just
wanted to be alone with God in prayer. There is a time
that human company is a benefit, but at times you just
want to be alone with God, spending quality time with
Him.
What better time to spend the last hours of your life
than to be in close communion with the one who loves you
more than anyone else. He always cares for you.
B. He carried on his daily work in the normal
way.
If you read 2 Kings 2:1-11, you will discovered that
Elijah just went on a step at the time, walking in
communion with the Lord, seeking to do His will, and
being ready when the call for him would come.
There was no panic or alarm on the part of Elijah. I am
not sure that he knew that his earthly life was going to
end the way that it did, without him having to die, but
he did know the end was near.
Note:
Some of you here may just think you know that you are
leaving this earth soon, and that it will be by death,
but who knows, you may be like Elijah and not have to
undergo physical death. The rapture may take place at any
time. Be here and immediately there.
C. He was determined to do all the good he could
in the short time that he had left on earth.
He visited the Bible colleges, he encouraged the students
in the things of God, and spend his time helping others.
Ill
At times I get discouraged about teaching at the
Preacher’s School in Lenoir, but I believe the
coming of the Lord is drawing nigh, and we must do all we
can do, that the Lord wants us to do for Him. We do not
have long to do God’s will in this world.
In Ephesians 5 Paul says to "redeem the time."
That simply means to make the most of every opportunity
for the Lord Jesus Christ while we live in these physical
bodies.
What a blessing to help missionaries, to assist in
training young preachers preparing for the ministry, or
to encourage other preachers!
D. His faith and trust in God was as necessary
and as needful at the end of his earthly life as at any
time before.
Just before he retired and went up, Elijah took his
mantle, and divided the Jordan River with it. He then
passed over.
When a servant of God retires he cannot get slack. We
must be on the job, ready to do what we can for the Lord
Jesus Christ and for His church.
E. He longed to leave a blessing behind him.
He asked Elisha, "Ask what I shall do for thee
before I be taken away from thee...."
All of us will leave a legacy when we leave this world.
We should leave one of love, kindness, and Christian
faithful Christian living. Those are things we should not
just leave behind but give them out now, while we live in
this present world.
Illustration
The Bible says in Mark 14:8 that Mary had taken an
alabaster box of ointment of spikenard, and anointed the
head of Jesus. Critics spoke up and said, "Why was
that ointment wasted? It could have been sold for 300
pence and given to the poor." Christ speaks up in
defence of her, because she had come to do a good work
for him. Jesus said, "You will always have the poor,
but you will not always have me. Then he said, "She
had done what she could, and has come aforehand to anoint
my body to the burying."
Lets do what we can now in our actions, and our
attitudes, to leave behind a blessing for someone else.
CONCLUSION
What a glorious and
wonderful homegoing Elijah had when he left this earth. I
pray it will be glorious and wonderful for everyone here
when the time comes to leave, whether through the vale of
death, or through the rapture, being caught up to be with
the Lord in the air will be a rapturous event!
Some of us may not have to die physically, but probably
some of us will. We have to be prepared when the time
comes to leave this world.
I will tell you what Paul said to that desperate
Phillipian jailer, who asked, "What must I do to be
saved?" He answered and said, "Believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved"(Acts
16:31).
What a trip it will be when we go to our eternal home.
WHEN I MOVE TO THE SKY,
UP TO HEAVEN ON HIGH, WHAT A WONDERFUL TRIP THAT WILL BE,
I’M ALL READY TO GO, WASHED IN CALVARY’S FLOW,
THAT WILL BE THE LAST MOVE, FOR ME.
From Dr.Tom Walker- Zion Hill Baptist Church
Marion, NC
Site created by
Tom Walker