2 Kings 2:13-14
“13 Elisha picked up Elijah’s cloak, which had fallen when
he was taken up. Then Elisha returned to the bank of the Jordan River. 14 He
struck the water with Elijah’s cloak and cried out, “Where is the Lord, the God
of Elijah?” Then the river divided, and Elisha went across.”
Judges 15:15
“Then he found the jawbone of a recently killed donkey. He
picked it up and killed 1,000 Philistines with it.”
When it comes to the heroes in the Bible, Elisha and Samson
were very different kinds of men, but they did have two things in common.
1.
Both of them were used mightily by God
2.
They both had what they needed within their
reach, but they had to pick it up.
You can have all the power sitting right before you and all
around you, but it won’t change your life or the lives of anyone around you until
you reach out and pick it up. Lying on
the ground Elijah’s cloak was just and old used piece of clothing, but once it
was picked up by Elisha it became a powerful tool that led to many miracles and
many lives being touched. On the ground
it was just an old bone, but once Samson picked it up, it became a weapon of
mass destruction against his enemies.
Two ordinary items, or so it seemed, that became useful for God’s glory,
but they had to pick them up.
I have decided that no matter how bad it gets, I’m not going
to whine and complain about how bad the economy is, I would like to say that I’m
not going to criticize our government or pass judgment on our present
administration, but everyone that knows me would know I was lying; however I’ve
decided to try not to spend so much time focusing on the evil they’re doing. There’s a lot of evil things happening in the
world, but I choose not to focus on them.
People may say that you can’t just bury your head in the
sand, I’m not burying my head in the sand, I am burying my heart in the word, I’m
lifting up my eyes to the hills where my help comes from. I want to tell you that the Devil is not in
charge! I don’t care what’s going on
around us in the world, or what it feels like or sounds like all around us, God
is still in control.
In the name of Jesus I speak against the spirit of fear and
dread and I bind the spirit of hopelessness and despair. We are not going under! I don’t care how high the price of gas and
eggs go, it doesn’t matter how bad the health care system gets, and it makes no
difference whether Social Security goes bankrupt, or if you can get a government
bailout. God is still in control and the
greatest bailout of all time took place over 2,000 years ago on a cross at the
top of a hill, and it wasn’t Capitol Hill!
Just like God had Noah build the ark so that when he flooded
the world and when the waters began to rise the ark rose above the water. The waters rose until they covered the highest
mountains, but the ark rose with them, in the worst of the storm the ark rose
to its highest place. The Church of
Jesus Christ is just like the ark.
This can be the finest hour for the church! We have been chosen by God to live in these
difficult times, if God has chosen us to live in this season, it is because he
has a plan for us. God is on our
side! God placed the prophet Ezekiel in
a valley full of Dry bones because God knew that Ezekiel possessed the power to
transform the bleak situation he was faced with. One lone man, armed only with the sword of
the Spirit, spoke the Word of the Lord and that valley of dry bones was
transformed into a mighty army.
You may be the only Christian in your family, you may be the
only Christian on your job, in your class or in your neighborhood. But what you need to do is quit pouting and start
praising! If you are the only believer
there, it’s because God has confidence in you.
Enough of God’s people walking around with their heads down, their backs
stooped, stepping on their bottom lip and crying about how bad it is, enough I
say!
I am not trying to say that things in this world right now
aren’t terrible, that our government isn’t doing a terrible job, and I am not
unaware of the terrorists that are causing havoc all around the world right
now. What I am saying is, Greater is he
that is in me than he that is in the world!
I am saying that I know whom I have believed in and am persuaded that He
is able! I am saying that if God is for
us, who can be against us! We are
citizens of an unshakable Kingdom, which is built upon an unshakable
foundation, and ruled by an unshakable King!
Praise God!
Ps 46:1-7 (NLT)
“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in
times of trouble. So we will not fear
when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea. Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters
surge! A river brings joy to the city of
our God, the sacred home of the Most High.
God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed. From the very break of day, God will protect
it. The nations are in chaos, and their
kingdoms crumble! God’s voice thunders, and
the earth melts! The Lord of Heaven’s
Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress.”
Even while all these bad things are happening David says, “There
is a river that is making glad the city of God.”
In the midst of all the ugliness that is taking place in our
world, despite the natural disasters that seems to be increasing in magnitude
every year, in the face of economic uncertainty, God is pouring out His Spirit
and His power: This is our time to shine!
Isaiah 60:1-3
“Arise, Jerusalem! Let your light shine for all to see. For the glory of the Lord rises to shine on
you. Darkness as black as night covers
all the nations of the earth, but the glory of the Lord rises and appears over
you. All nations will come to your
light; mighty kings will come to see your radiance.”
In other words we should not be surprised by the things that
are going on, God said it’s going to get real dark in the world, but He is
going to put His spotlight on the Church.
And when He puts His spotlight on us and they see the glory of the Lord
on the Church, they will be drawn to His glory.
Listen to me children of God: this is not the time to tone
it down, this is not the time to quiet our praise, and this is not the time to
worry about being politically correct or socially acceptable. This is the time to arise and shine, to stand
up and stand out, and it is the time to speak the Word of God with boldness,
authority and power!
It is time for those in the Church to declare ourselves:
·
Moses demanded in the book of Exodus, “Who is on
the Lord’s side, declare yourself, make your choice clear.”
·
Joshua demanded it, “choose this day whom you
will serve”
·
Elijah demanded, he told the Israelites to choose
one side or the other, either serve God or serve Baal but quit limping back and
forth between the two.
·
Jesus also demanded it: He said, “He that is not
for me is against me, and if you are not gathering with me, then you are
scattering abroad.”
Let me put it to you another way, we can either be part of
the solution or we can be part of the problem, there is no in between.
The spotlight is on you.
Do you have the Power? The mantle
has fallen at your feet, are you going to pick it up? Are you filled with the Holy Ghost? If not, it’s right there at your feet, pick
it up!
Do you have what you need to heal the sick? Are you bold enough to speak the words of
truth? Are you courageous enough to pick
up that mantle or are you satisfied with being a wannabe?
You can look at it, dream about it, preach about it, shout
about it, sing songs about it, write books about it, but nothing will happen
till you pick it up.
Mordecai told Esther, “Who knows but that you are come into
the kingdom for such a time as this.”
But the Words that cut like a knife were these, “If thou
altogether hold thy peace at this time then shall there enlargement and
deliverance arise to the Jews from another place, but thou and thy fathers
house shall be destroyed.”
In other words he was telling Esther that if she didn’t pick
up this mantle of responsibility, God would use someone else, and you, your
generation, and your family will suffer for it.
God said to tell you Church, the mantle has fallen during
this hour at your feet, if you don’t pick it up, and if you’re not willing to
answer God’s call and pay the price then someone else will. Someone else will walk in the anointing that
you could have been yours. Someone else
will heal the sick and cast out devils and work signs and wonders, and someone else
will possess the presence, the glory and the power of God.
As for you, you will deprive your generation of your
ministry. Your family, your loved ones,
and people that live around you will be robbed of the anointing and the power
that God reserved for you. Someone that
should have been healed may die sick, someone that should have been delivered
and set free may continue to live in bondage, and someone that should have known
the joy of salvation may be eternally lost.
You will miss the blessing of being a good and faithful servant.
Arise! Shine! It’s at
your feet, will you pick it up?
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