2Ki 2:9–12, 9 And Elisha said, “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me.” 10 And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you, but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” 11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more. (ESV):
“Preaching is the chariot that carries Christ up and down the world,” Richard Sibbes.
It was time to pass the mantle on from one preacher to another. Elijah would soon be ushered by God to heaven in a miraculous way. Elisha longed for the elder preacher not to leave him, for he desired to stay by his side ever learning from Him. But if he must depart then he wanted what his seasoned preacher and mentor had. What was it that he desired?
Dale Ralph David states “Elisha’s cry in verse 12 indicates the esteem in which Elijah was held. By the ‘chariotry of Israel and its horsemen’ Elisha is probably referring to Elijah himself. Chariots and horses were military material. To have Elijah was like having the army of God. He was the true defense system of Israel.” The spirit of Elijah would rest upon Elisha and was recognized to be the case by the sons of the prophets (v.15). It’s interesting that this Literally means, “mouth of two,” an idiom for two parts. Elisha recognized that without divine aid he could not conduct the ministry before him. The power of God didn’t only flow through his master Elijah, but was also available to flow through Elisha. He needed His mouth saturated with God’s Word and power, if he was going to carry out the ministry God had called him to.
Preachers today need the same power that raised Elijah by horses and chariots of fire and the same power that raised Jesus from the dead to dwell within them (Rom 8:11) to empower them (Acts 1:8) and to saturate their mouths with God’s Word. “Preaching is the chariot that carries Christ up and down the world,” (Richard Sibbes).
Soli Deo Gloria: Do you have this power dwelling in you, as you live and preach the Word of God? Do you preach to equip and edify God’s people in the church, and evangelize and bring conviction of sin in a world filled with darkness to find hope in Christ alone?