THE L.I.F.E. PLAN ELISHA BLOCK 2 THEME 9 - THE PROPHETS LESSON 3 (71 of 216)
BLOCK 2 THEME 9: THE PROPHETS LESSON 3 (71 OF 216): ELISHA LESSON AIM: Present the life and ministry of the prophet Elisha. SCRIPTURE: (2 Kings 2:9) 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. The Bible is an amazing book filled with many wonderful stories of people and places. It seems that no matter which book from which we read, or whose life we read about, that each book and story and person becomes our favorite, at least during the time of our reading that particular story. When we read of the life and ministry of Elisha, we certainly come away with this feeling. He is without a doubt, one of the most interesting and colorful prophets of the Old Testament. His story contains one amazing episode after another, making him one of the most interesting Bible characters to read about. The life and work of Elisha is told in 2 Kings, chapters one through thirteen. He served during a troublesome time and during the reigns of four kings in Israel. The study of Bible characters affords us the blessing of many lessons from which we can learn and apply to our life. From the Bible characters, we usually have enough information to make a character sketch of the person at hand. Elisha was a man of exceptional character and one that we can use as a great example to follow. Beginning from his first appearance in the Bible when Elijah invited him to follow him, we begin to learn the kind of man he was. When he was called by Elijah, he was working in the field, plowing with oxen. As he was given time to make his decision about joining in the work of the Lord with Elijah, he asked if he could go back and let his family know what he was doing. This love for his family gives us a glimpse into the heart of Elisha as a man of affection, loyalty, and faithfulness to his home. It also shows us that he would not allow something that he loved so much to stand in the way of his doing the work that God was calling him to do. He was at work when God called him through Elijah, but he understood that he was being called to a greater work. He would not let even those things which were dearest to him to become an obstruction to his service to the Lord and to Elijah. We can also see that there was the indispensable quality of humility in the character of Elisha. This is a character trait which is always needed in the lives of those who work for the Lord. Humility helps us keep our perspective that we are the servant and not the one to be served. It helps us put the work and others before ourselves, and it helps us understand the things that happen to us as the servants of the Lord. Elisha had this kind of humility. The Bible states immediately that after he left his home, he began to minister unto Elijah. Later in the Bible, when the king was seeking a prophet of God from which to inquire of the Lord, Elisha was described as the man who had poured water on the hands of Elijah. This was recognized as the work of a man of servanthood and humility. Elisha was also a man who had a single focus in his life. He kept his eyes on the Lord and upon the work which God had given him to do. He was not one who could
be pulled away from this purpose for his life. He had opportunity to cash in on his position as a prophet but he would not do it. After he had helped Naaman to be cleansed from leprosy, he was offered a huge payment for his services but he refused. He could have received it but chose not to. His servant, Gehazi, received payment instead and was severely rebuked and chastened by Elisha for doing so. Elisha s focus was on the Lord for whom he worked and not on how prosperous he could become by exploiting his position as a prophet of God. A study of the life of Elisha also reveals much about his prophetic ministry and of the miracles which he performed. Each of these veins of study provides many riches to the Bible student who will excavate them from the Scriptures. His prophetic ministry was extensive, concerning both Israel and the surrounding nations, Syria in particular. His miracles ranged from private ones which he performed for common citizens to miracles performed on the public and high profile stage of the political scene of his day. The miracles of Elisha are many, perhaps the most recorded of any prophet in the Old Testament. There are at least two good explanations for this. First, when Elijah was taken to heaven, he asked Elisha what he could do for him before he went away. Elisha asked that he be given a double portion of the spirit of Elijah from which he could do his work for the Lord. As Elijah went away, his mantle fell upon Elisha and he was granted his request. The Bible records some twenty miraculous events which occurred through the work of Elisha, giving evidence of this double portion of Elijah s spirit upon him. Another explanation for Elisha s extensive miraculous ministry is found in Bible typology. The ministries of Elijah and Elisha in the Old Testament are types of the ministries of John the Baptist and Jesus respectively in the New Testament. Elijah mirrored the ministry of John as the forerunner to the Christ, and Elisha, as a type of Christ, spoke of the miracle-working Jesus who was to come to be the Savior of the world. Among the miracles of Elisha are some of our favorite Bible stories. We read of how he parted the waters of the Jordan River by striking them with the mantle of Elijah. He healed the waters of Jericho by pouring salt into them. He spared the lives of his students from death when they had eaten poison pottage by adding meal to the pot. Again, among his school of the prophets, was the miracle of the swimming axe head. As a student cut wood with a borrowed axe, the axe head came off and fell into the Jordan. Elisha retrieved it by throwing a stick into the water in the area where the axe head had fallen and it swam to the top of the water where the student took it up in his hand. Perhaps the greatest miracle of Elisha was the cleansing of Naaman, the Syrian army commander, from leprosy. He told him to go and dip himself in the Jordan River seven times and he would be healed of leprosy. Naaman opposed but later consented to Elisha s instructions and was cleansed. Jesus mentioned this miracle during his ministry in the New Testament. Another great miracle associated with Elisha came after Elisha was dead and buried. The body of a dead man was hastily thrown into the grave of Elisha. When the body touched the bones of Elisha, the man came back to life again. Such was the power of God in his servant, Elisha. As a final note, the relationships between Elijah, Elisha, and Gehazi is one of the Bible s models of spiritual reproduction. In this we see three generations of disciples, illustrating the multiplying work created when one disciple invests his life into another disciple. These as well as many other things that God did through Elisha are a testament to the dedication and devotion of this man to Jehovah. His life shows the kind of things that are possible when one lives his life for the Lord.
LESSON OUTLINE BLOCK 2 THEME 9: THE PROPHETS LESSON 3 (71 OF 216): ELISHA I ELISHA S CHARACTER A. Family man B. Humble servant C. Single focus II ELISHA S MINISTRY A. Prophecy B. Miracles C. Model of spiritual reproduction SCRIPTURES TO BROADEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING 1. Elisha s call 1 Kings 19:16-21 2. Elisha s ministry 2 Kings 1-13 LINES OF THEOLOGICAL CONNECTION 1. THE DOCTRINE OF GOD God s call to ministry Miracles 2. ANTHROPOLOGY Answering God s call to ministry Godly character 3. THE DOCTRINE OF THE SCRIPTURES Typology in Scripture 4. DISCIPLE-MAKING Scriptural models of disciple-making in the Old Testament LESSON GLOSSARY 1. Pottage A thick soup made from vegetables, sometimes with meat added.
QUESTIONS ANSWER KEY 1. What was Elisha doing when he was invited to follow Elijah? Plowing in the field with oxen 2. List three things about the character of Elisha. Family man; humble; focused 3. What request did Elisha make of Elijah before he went to heaven? That he would have a double portion of Elijah s spirit 4. For which miracle is Elisha best known? For the cleansing of Naaman, the leper 5. Which one of Elisha s miracles is outstanding to you? Student response 6. How do we learn of disciple-making from Elisha? Elijah discipled Elisha; Elisha discipled Gehazi 7. What do Elijah and Elisha represent in the New Testament? John the Baptist and Jesus 8. What happened when a corpse touched the bones of Elijah in the grave? The corpse came to life
BLOCK 2 THEME 9: THE PROPHETS LESSON 3 (71 OF 216): ELISHA QUESTIONS TO INSPIRE THOUGHT 1. What was Elisha doing when he was invited to follow Elijah? 2. List three things about the character of Elisha. 3. What request did Elisha make of Elijah before he went to heaven? 4. For which miracle is Elisha best known? 5. Which one of Elisha s miracles is outstanding to you? 6. How do we learn of disciple-making from Elisha? 7. What do Elijah and Elisha represent in the New Testament? 8. What happened when a corpse touched the bones of Elijah in the grave?