Go Get the Boy

19 So he departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, while he was plowing with twelve pairs of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth. And Elijah passed over to him and threw his mantle on him.

20 He left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again, for what have I done to you?”

21 So he returned from following him, and took the pair of oxen and sacrificed them and boiled their flesh with the implements of the oxen, and gave it to the people and they ate. Then he arose and followed Elijah and ministered to him.

Introduction

Ephesians is a book about unity (chapter 4:11-14)

Talks about maturity (this is where you want to stay for a bit)

Maturity demands you act in wisdom (find scripture in Proverbs)

Maturity demands you understand your assignment (Find scripture)

Maturity causes you to realize you must serve this assignment eventhough it has nothing to do with you but your reward comes from the success of others and even more than that your reward is based off of your obedience.

We must take all of this and be honest and realize that being anointing is an inconvenience to the flesh

When you’re anointed, you don’t control your path

You must ask God to help you prioritize your life

If he is at the center than everything will follow suit

But have we done more complaining about our assignment than we have perfecting our flow?

Have we become so engulfed in our dreams that we no longer have time for vision?

Have we ignored our times with God because we had to make sure our routine which used to include him must be followed?

Convenience is a glory-blocker

But if you can submit to the inconvenience of the anointing you will soon realize that the inconvenience becomes convenient and life flows much better because you’re finally on track with God’s providential schedule for your life.

But you can’t get there by murmuring and complaining about the assignment

We meet Elijah in our text after defeating the prophets of Ba’al on Mount Carmel and Ahab goes and tells Jezebel that her plan didn’t work

She sends a messenger to Elijah to give him a threat (whiches are not confrontational)

She tells Elijah that by this time tomorrow you will be dead like the prophets he killed on Mt. Carmel.

She must have never read Proverbs 14:11 “The house of the wicked will be destroyed, But the tent of the upright will flourish.”

Tell your neighbor “Their end will not be your end”

Because there’s more to my story, I gotta get to the boy!

Elijah meets us under a juniper tree after a mighty victory, now at his lowest point in life (The enemy waits in the recess of the battle) in other words, he waits until your guard is down because he knows you move in the strength of God so has to catch you when you operating in your own strength.

This is apparent because in verse 5 he is so exhausted from his complaining he falls asleep while complaining

My Problem is you have exhausted yourself and everyone around you complaining because God’s hand is on your life and he wants you to pray at 5 in the morning

You’re complaining because God has you fasting more than usual

Could it be that you’re not exhausted from the assignment because you’re graced to tha

But you’re exhausted from fighting against the will of God

Life gets easier when you go with the wind and stop fighting against the wind

Tell somebody go with the wind

Here he is sitting in pettiness and an angel tells him how to recover from warfare

Tell somebody REST/AWAKE/EAT/REPEAT

It’s ok to rest after warfare so you have strength for the next assignment.

Because your directions come when your well rested, tell somebody rest is necessary

God says something extremely interesting that I missed for the last 20 years of reading this pericapy of the text.

God says in verse 15 - GO BACK THE WAY YOU CAME THROUGH THE DESERT TO DAMASCUS

Which causes me to wonder if somewhere during his complaining and walking he passed by his next assignment, and now he must backtrack

Which means he exerted more energy than God intended because of his heart posture

But are’nt you glad God will give you a chance to go back and still fulfill what you missed the first time?!?!

But now we must look at another piece to this puzzle…

Elisha is not alone because one man cannot manage 24 oxen by himself, not only is he working with other farmers but he is at the back of the plow line (scripture says he’s with the 12th out of 12), this is why if you want to be used by God you must be seen already working. God doesn’t call you from a lazy position but he calls those who show him before he calls them that they are willing to put in the work.

Elijahs life was changed because he was in the right position, there’s nothing wrong with being put at the end of the line, I know it seems like you are always overlooked, always given the easy task when you know you can do more, but being last put him in a first position to be picked out by Elijah. (Work this more how it doesnt say he asked who he was, how did he know which farmer he was?)

You cant quit, because youve got to go get the boy. etc.