There were a number of kings who
came and went and there were a number of events that Elijah or Elisha were
involved in. When we come to our story
for Sunday, Joram was king of Israel and Jehoram was king of Judah and
neither of these kings followed in the ways of the Lord.
As we consider this particular story, there
are a number of things that may stand out to us. First, the main characters in this story are
Elijah and Elisha. They were prophets,
but they were not the only prophets of God during that time.
Second, we see a recurring
theme here. As we have read through the
Bible, this is not the first time that we have read of waters dividing and
people crossing on dry land, is it? The
people of Israel crossed on dry ground as the Egyptians pursued them and the
Red Sea parted. And this is not the
first time that we have read of the waters of the Jordan dividing and people
crossing, is it? After their forty years
in the wilderness and under the command of Joshua, the people of Israel crossed
into the Promised Land as the waters of the Jordan were parted.
Now we read of
first Elijah and then Elisha crossing the Jordan on dry ground. We know that history is cyclical, that the
sons often repeat the sins of the fathers.
But more than that, we also see that God works through his people in new
and fresh ways but also in familiar and recurring ways.
Third, we see the need for fatherly mentors in our lives. Elijah was not Elisha's father and yet in this story, Elisha refers to him as such. And it is clear that Elijah was a significant mentor for Elisha. We still need those fatherly (whether biological or not) figures in our lives and that is part of what we celebrate on Father's Day.
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