2 Kings 2:11-16: a reflection

11As they continued on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12Elisha saw it, and he cried, “My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” He saw him no more. Then he took hold of his own clothes and tore them in two pieces. 13He also took up Elijah’s mantle that fell from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan. 14He took Elijah’s mantle that fell from him, and struck the waters, and said, “Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” When he also had struck the waters, they were divided apart, and Elisha went over. 15When the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho facing him saw him, they said, “The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha.” They came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. 16They said to him, “See now, there are with your servants fifty strong men. Please let them go and seek your master. Perhaps the LORD’s Spirit has taken him up, and put him on some mountain or into some valley.” He said, “Don’t send them.”

When Elijah is taken up to heaven in a whirlwind, his disciple Elisha is left behind to carry on the work. He takes up the mantle that had fallen from Elijah, comes to the Jordan, strikes the water, and asks a searching question: Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah? And when he strikes the water, it divides, as it had for Elijah; the same God who had been with Elijah was now with Elisha. The great prophet was gone, but the God who had worked through him remained, and now worked through Elisha. The work went on, not because Elijah was irreplaceable, but because the God of Elijah was still there, still with his servant.

Notice Elisha's question and its answer: Where is the God of Elijah? He is here still. Elijah, the great prophet, was gone; and Elisha might have thought the work impossible without him. But he took up the mantle and asked where the God of Elijah was, and found that the same God was with him too. The power had not been Elijah's own; it was God's, and God remained. The work could go on, carried by the same God who had been with Elijah, now with Elisha. The one who had gone was not the source of the power; God was, and God did not leave. Where is the God of Elijah? Still present, still with his servant, still able to work.

That is worth taking to heart, for when those who have led us are gone, the same God remains, and the work can go on. When those we have depended on, mentors, leaders, those who went before us, are taken from us, we can feel the work is impossible without them, that the source of everything has gone; but the God who worked through them remains, and can work through us. The God of Elijah was still there for Elisha. When those who led you are gone and you must carry on, do not despair as though the source had gone; ask where the God of Elijah is, and find that the same God is with you. Carry on the work after those who led you are gone, trusting that the same God who worked through them is with you still, as Elisha took up Elijah's mantle and found the God of Elijah still present; for the power was never in those who went before us but in God, who remains, and the same God who was with them is with us to carry on the work.

Lord, when Elijah is taken up to heaven in a whirlwind, his disciple Elisha is left behind to carry on the work. He takes up the mantle that had fallen from Elijah, comes to the Jordan, strikes the water, and asks a searching question: where is the LORD, the God of Elijah? And when he strikes the water, it divides, as it had for Elijah; the same God who had been with Elijah was now with Elisha. The great prophet was gone, but you, the God who had worked through him, remained, and now worked through Elisha. Show me Elisha's question and its answer: where is the God of Elijah? He is here still. Elijah, the great prophet, was gone; and Elisha might have thought the work impossible without him. But he took up the mantle and asked where the God of Elijah was, and found that the same God was with him too. The power had not been Elijah's own; it was yours, and you remained. The work could go on, carried by the same God. The one who had gone was not the source of the power; you were, and you did not leave. Take that to my heart, for when those who have led me are gone, you, the same God, remain, and the work can go on. When those I have depended on, mentors, leaders, those who went before me, are taken from me, I can feel the work is impossible without them; but you who worked through them remain, and can work through me. When those who led me are gone and I must carry on, keep me from despairing as though the source had gone; help me ask where the God of Elijah is, Lord, and find that you, the same God, are with me still, to carry on the work.