THE GOOD MAN GOES TO HEAVEN
[1 Kings:19:19-21 [19] So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him. [20] 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? [21] And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him. ] [2 Kings:2:1-15 [1] And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. [2] And 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. [3] And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. [4] And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho. [5] And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. [6] And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. [7] And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan. [8] And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. [9] And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. [10] And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. [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 a whirlwind into heaven. [12] And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. [13] He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; [14] And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. [15] 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 to the ground before him. ]
“Surely I come quickly” (Revelation 22:20).
Elijah’s Faithfulness
Elijah had been a faithful servant of God. He had warned the people that it was wicked to worship idols. He told the people to worship God; and on Mount Carmel he had shown them the difference between worshiping the true God and worshiping dumb idols.
God had been good to Elijah and had protected him from his enemies. He had fed him when water and food were scarce. God had planned to take Elijah to Heaven to be with Him and the angels.
Another Man of God
Elijah had a very dear friend who was also a prophet of God. He loved God and wanted to work for Him. This prophet’s name was Elisha – almost the same as Elijah. Elisha was a farmer, and one day while ploughing with twelve yoke of oxen, Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle on Elisha. He immediately left the oxen and ran after Elijah. Elisha went back home, killed a yoke of oxen, boiled the meat and gave it to the people. Then he returned to Elijah and followed him wherever he went.
The Chariot of Fire
Elisha stayed very close to Elijah. He wanted to be near him when he would be taken to Heaven. He wanted to be even twice as strong to work for God as Elijah had been. And Elijah had told him that if he would see him when he went to Heaven, he would receive what he had asked for; so Elisha followed Elijah very closely.
Three times Elijah asked Elisha to remain where he was while Elijah went on. But no! Elisha was not going to miss seeing his master taken up into Heaven. One day as they were walking along together and talking, there came from Heaven a chariot of fire with horses of fire. Elijah was taken up into Heaven by a whirlwind.
The Wonderful Mantle
Elisha did not see his master any more; but he received the mantle that fell from him as he went up. Elisha took the mantle and went to the river Jordan. Did the spirit and power of Elijah rest upon him now? We know it did, for when he smote the waters of Jordan they divided and he crossed over. This was the first miracle Elisha did, but we shall learn that he did many other wonderful things in his work for God.
We believe that Elisha was saved and sanctified. When he received the mantle of Elijah, he received the power to work for God as we receive it when we are baptized with the Holy Ghost and fire. Jesus wants us to seek for and receive these three experiences, so that we may be ready to meet Him when He comes to take His children Home.
Following Jesus
There is a good lesson in this for us. We must follow very closely in the “footsteps” of Jesus, as Elisha followed in the footsteps of Elijah. Of course, we know that “the sands have been washed in the footprints” of Jesus on the shores of Galilee; but by giving us the Bible, His Holy Word, He taught us how to live. We can learn from the Bible what is necessary for us to do in order to make Heaven our home. By going to Sunday School and learning from the Bible at home, we may know how to be saved from sin, and then we, too, can follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
1. Where was the Lord going to take Elijah? [2 Kings:2:1And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
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2. Did Elisha follow Elijah closely? [2 Kings:2:2And 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.
], [2 Kings:2:4And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.
], [2 Kings:2:6And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.
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3. What request did Elisha make of Elijah? [2 Kings:2:9And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.
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4. Did Elisha see Elijah when he went to Heaven? [2 Kings:2:12And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
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5. What did Elisha do at the river Jordan? [2 Kings:2:14And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.
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