Be Spiritually Bold - Excerpt Chapter One 
WHERE IS  GOD?
This chapter is about succession in a spiritual sense. The word succession refers to what follows after something or someone has already set a precedent. The prophet Elisha succeeded the prophet Elijah. He took his place after Elijah completed his mission on earth. To follow in the steps of Elijah was a pretty tall order. It was Elijah who brought down fire from heaven to consume a sacrifice to prove the reality of the God of Israel. He also multiplied oil and meal, raised the dead, and even caused it to rain to end a serious drought. But he did something else: he smote the waters of the Jordan river that was in his path and they parted before him. Then a chariot of fire appeared and carried him alive into heaven. Elijah’s supernatural experiences are recorded in the books of the Kings of Israel. He was indeed a prophet who could make things happen.
It should be of great interest to those who believe in God and who want to make things happen in their lives, to consider the series of events that brought the same power of Elijah into expression in the life of Elisha. When Elijah was coming to the end of his ministry and had fulfilled the divine purposes for which he had been called; God told him to anoint Elisha to be the prophet to succeed him. He found Elisha and anointed him, and Elisha followed him and attended to his needs on a daily basis. When the time came for Elijah’s departure: I say departure, rather than death or retirement because the conclusion of his prophetic ministry was indeed a departure from this life into the life beyond.
The events unfolded like this: Elijah told Elisha: “The Lord hath sent me to Bethel,” Elisha followed and refused to leave him. This exchange of words continued from Bethel, to Jericho, to Jordan. At each point in the journey, Elijah said the Lord had sent him to the next place; and Elisha responding with these words, “I will not leave thee.” There seems to have been a strong sense in the mind of Elisha that the time of Elijah’s departure was near; and being aware of this impending event, Elisha wanted to be with him to the end. It became clear later that there was also a desire by Elisha to obtain some favorable blessing before the great prophet was gone forever.
When they reached the waters of the Jordan river, Elijah took his mantle from his shoulders and: “smote the waters and they were divided” before him, and he and Elisha walked across on dry ground. When they reached the other side; Elijah asked Elisha what he could do for him before he was taken away. The young, yet unproven and inexperienced prophet asked for a double portion of the, “Spirit” that was upon Elijah to be upon him. Elijah responded by saying it was a hard thing that he was asking, but he would have it if he saw him when he was taken away.
They continued walking together and suddenly; a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two men and a whirlwind lifted Elijah into the Heavens and his mantle fell from him down to the ground. What happened next still thrills the souls of the believing ones : Elisha cried out: “my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof,” then he tore apart his garment and took the mantle of Elijah which had fallen from him and went back to the Jordan river. As he stood there with his future before him and his mentor forever gone from him, “he smote the waters,” and cried out with these words, “ Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” and the waters parted before him.
This was the beginning of the miraculous ministry of Elisha. Many other miracles would follow. He would multiply oil, pronounce fertility upon a barren woman, raise the dead, heal leprosy, and manifest power over natural elements on numerous occasions. We might use the expression I mentioned earlier - he could make things happen; but let us remember that it all started with him demanding that God show his power and prove his presence when, “he smote the waters.” What happened for Elijah, Elisha expected to happen for him also. Here are the key elements for bringing the supernatural into the natural. First, a reach for the ultimate power of the universe, God himself, then an act of faith, expecting a response. Some men relish living in the past, speaking of things that use to happen, or that some great men made happen; Elisha is an example of one who lived in the present expecting that what had been accomplished in the past by another, could also be accomplished by him. He expected no less, and God honored his expectations.
What are we to make of these things? I believe they were written for us to ponder and come to conclusions that will help us in our spiritual journeys. As Jesus once said: “he that hath ears to hear let him hear.” And there is much to hear if we pay attention to what the young prophet said and did that brought forth the most astounding response from the Most High. Elisha in no uncertain terms asked the question of the ages; “Where is God?” and he further strongly intimated, ‘Show Me.’ I believe most people would concede that there must be a God somewhere; otherwise, where did everything we see around us come from? When we consider even our own existence, we know we came from some power greater than our parents. But we are usually content to let the Holy One stay in his realm and we in ours. Even the most religious among us are quite passive when it comes to making demands on the creator of all things. We almost think it blasphemous to expect the Almighty to enter our circumstances and manifest himself and his power according to our expectations.
It is sad but true, we are prone to draw back from God rather than approach him with any semblance of boldness. But if we were to use one word to characterize Elisha, that word would be, “ boldness.” Now here is where you see a mixture of - believing to see - and the need to see to believe. It was indeed a challenge to the God of the whole earth to show himself in no uncertain terms. Now there’s the rub; when we dare think of being bold in our approach to God a flood of emotions enters our mind; fear, uncertainty, and that startling voice from our deeper human consciousness which asks the question, “who do you think you are?” There’s the problem: Who do we think we are? I believe the answer to that question begins to unfold when we remember where we came from. We came from God himself. There is a definite connection between God and man. As mentioned in the preface, and supported by the scriptures, we are made in “the image of God.” We are like him. We are also identified in the scriptures as, “the offspring of God,” that is why when we pray, we often say, “Our Father.” We came from him, and we are ‘like him’. Although our lives have been marred by many personal failures and much wrong doing, the fact remains that our being and God’s being are eternally related. Therefore we have the right to approach God, to speak to him and even expect him to respond to our cry.
It was Frederick Douglass who said “Power concedes nothing without a demand.” That is still true - It is written: “he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a rewarder of those that diligently seek him.” Stop for a moment: who does “he” refer to? obviously, man. It is man or mankind that has the right to come to God with great expectations. God is the greatest power and it has become evident that those who place the greatest demands, (or expectations) upon him, receive the greatest response from him. Elisha expressed the thought many of us have had at some time in our lives, “Where is God?” The difference between Elisha and most of us is, he actually said it, loud and clear. The wonder of it all is that it didn’t seem to make God angry, nor did it cause him to be unresponsive. He responded powerfully to Elisha’s question and allowed his smiting of the waters to trigger the invisible forces that opened the way before him. It is reassuring to know that we alone determine how we will approach God, and with what words we shall express our expectations. No one had ever approached God in exactly the same way with exactly the same words as Elisha. But God honored his request and his faith.
We need to keep in mind that this whole thing was about ‘succession.’ The young prophet was to succeed one of the greatest prophets of the ages, and he had to know that his own power and authority would be verified by God. In a sense, we are also a part of a succession of people who have been encouraged to believe God for great things; and we also have the right to boldly ask God to show himself in the midst of our lives, especially in defining moments of our human experiences. But alas, the collective consciousness of the religious today is timidity, hesitancy, and an unwillingness to make demands on God. Of course, there are entreaties, petitions, and supplications, but few bold requests for clear demonstrations of God’s immediate presence and undeniable power in our lives. It is interesting to note that when Jesus came on the scene, his words and his actions were accompanied by immediate expressions of power. Now I know that some will say; but, that was Jesus – he was the son of God. Yes that is true: but we are also sons of God. It was John the apostle who declared emphatically, “Now are we the sons of God.” Sons have privileges conveyed by heritage. If God is Father and we are sons, we have the right to ask what we will. This is why Jesus said, “ask and it shall be given you.” There is something else that Paul said that is extremely important for us to know. He said, “all things are yours.” Why say it if it is not true? How shall we find out? The same way Elisha found out his status and the fact that God would respond directly to him. He made an explicit demand and received an explicit answer from God. He did something that a previous prophet had done and expected the same thing to happen for him. From that point forward the young prophet used the authority and power he now knew was with him and performed many miracles. I believe there is an underlying principle in Elisha’s remarkable experience of God’s power—his personal uniqueness. We might say it another way—his spiritual individualism.
Ask yourself the question: Was what he said and did anticipated? Not really: in fact the unfolding of the account catches us by surprise. How dare he speak to God in that tone of voice and make such a clear demand that God show himself. We might say that Elisha was a bit unorthodox, a bit out of the expected norm of how to speak to God. There is such a danger of laying down hard and fast rules in what our relationship with God should conform to. If something needs to be said loud and clear, it is this: our relationship with God is personal. It is a matter between ourselves and God and no one else. Too much in the church of today is dictated, indoctrinated, and extrapolated into our lives as absolute and unchallengeable. Jesus said it so well, “One is your master.” What others may say should not dictate how you relate to God in your personal life. Am I saying that we should just ignore what is of a righteous nature and do anything we want to do or say anything we want to say? No, what I am saying is, your faith and expectations of God is personal, and no one should be able to control it or tell you how to use it or what you can or cannot say to God. Let us linger on this thought of ‘spiritual individualism’ for a few moments. When the prophet Elijah ‘smote the waters’, no one had ever done that before. But someone will say, aha, you are wrong! Moses parted the red sea, and Joshua parted the Jordan. Yes, you are right, they did. But the difference is; in both instances it was for the people to reach the next stage of their journey. In the first case, it was Moses leading the children of Israel out of Egypt. In the second case, it was Joshua leading the people into the promise land. Now in Elijah’s case, it was for his own personal journey and the expression of his own personal spiritual power and authority. The young prophet Elisha followed suit and wanted to duplicate what Elijah had done and have his own personal spiritual power and authority confirmed. Those two words, “he also” are of great importance for our instruction. It was when, “he also had smitten the waters,” and expected a response to his cry, “where is the Lord God of Elijah,” that the waters parted and he walked across on dry ground. It appears that if we want to see the works of God, “we also” must express our faith in a bold and expectant way if we want to see great results. There are so many instances in the scriptures where faith was expressed in unusual and definite ways and God answered in unusual and definite ways. It is of utmost importance to us that we consider the faith of others who brought forth great things if we ourselves through our faith seek to bring forth great things also. Elijah and Elisha have laid a foundation of insight and encouragement for us, and our spiritual individualism can chart a course for our own experiences with God. Jesus said, “if thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.” Did he really mean that? What was his intent in saying those words? Obviously, to raise our expectations and encourage us to prove the truth of his words. Dare we lay a claim and cry out, “Where is the Lord God of Jesus?” Jesus gave many exhortations on ‘faith’, and some of those we will consider in the continuing chapters of this book. Now I know that when we enter into a discussion of faith; not faith as a doctrinal position but faith as an active and powerful expression from within us, we leave the plain of the natural and with some trepidation tip toe into the realm of the supernatural. We hesitate to jump right into the waters, we tend to stay on the shoreline and maybe touch the edge of the waters very gently and with some hesitation. We know that we are dealing with things invisible and our uncertainties seem to dominate our minds. But as much as I would like to say, just tinker around a little bit, it doesn’t work that way. Some commitment of boldness and expectation is required. One line of thought that might help us is taken from the words of the writer to the Hebrews whom I have already quoted. He said: “the things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.” He was speaking about this thing called faith. He was trying to turn our attention away from the natural back to “origins.” We are accustomed to seeing things as they appear to our physical senses. We like to be able to touch things and feel their substance. This is how man creates in the natural. He works with substance that he can see, feel and touch and from them he creates; homes, cars, computers, airplanes etc. The writer reminds us that this is not how everything began: everything began in a spiritual way, or invisible way and then appeared in its completed state. God said….. and what he said took shape and form and became a reality. Did God believe that what he said would appear? Of course he did. We might reverently say that what was in his imagination he declared it to be and the, “Spirit of God moved,” “and it was so.” This same writer tells us of this immaterial substance that is apparently a part of God’s nature, ( he calls it faith,) is also a part of mans nature and this is why God expects man to use it. He said,: “faith is the substance of things hoped for the evidence of things not seen.”
This is the substance that the writer wants us to learn to work with, to create with, to bring into the natural from the supernatural. He then gives us a long list of people from the old testament archives who used this substance to bring forth their wishes and desires into their earthly experiences. I might add a bit of a footnote here, we actually already use this power to some degree because it is the beginning of everything we do and create. We imagine, we feel an inspiration, we express a talent or unique ability. We feel it and somehow lay hold of it from within. An artist, an architect, a sculptor, a scientist, they visualize and lay hold from within themselves and then express what they have felt in what they produce. The difference between the two forms of faith is, one uses natural means to produce, the other uses supernatural means. One is working with the substance he can see, the other is working with the substance he cannot see. When we are focused on what our circumstances dictate, and not on what can create entirely new circumstances, we miss the reality of divine possibilities.
I would like to go a little further with this ‘substance’ called faith. Although it is not visible, it can bring invisible things into our world of reality. It is clear that it has an “essence.” Perhaps we can liken it to some extent to electricity. We know how to generate it because we have discovered the laws behind it. But we have not actually seen it. We have harnessed its effects but we are still unable to substantiate it with the natural eye. Also, we know that “magnetism” is a definite force, we cannot see it but we can observe its workings. Just take a magnet and watch the invisible power draw to itself some metal object. Some magnets attract and others repel, but the power that is expressed cannot be seen, only observed by its effects.
If we could learn to live more by this substance called faith we would see more of its results made visible. It appears that faith is a part of the spiritual nature of man. It can be a dormant power unexpressed, or a dominate power expressed in many ways. From the teachings of scripture and the discoveries of some who have pursued the use of faith, it is perceived as a multidimensional substance. There is the everyday faith we use in our daily life. There is also the faith that we use when we ask God for something specific that we desire or have need of. Then there is the faith expressed by the prophets, Elijah and Elisha; the faith to “make things happen.”
Jesus spotlighted this dimension of faith when he said: “verily I say unto you, that whosoever shall say unto this mountain, be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith.” Notice the words, whosoever and whatsoever. There are no restrictions on who may accomplish these things, nor what things can be made to happen. Now I know we are in deep water now, but since Jesus said it, we should not be afraid to repeat it. Not only should we repeat it, we should seek to prove for ourselves the truth of what he has said. That is really what Elisha was doing when, “he smote the waters.” He was seeking to prove for himself the divine possibilities of the use of faith and spiritual authority. Now I know someone reading these words will say; I am not Elisha! No, you are not Elisha, but you are as Jesus said – whosoever. Just to hopefully make this a little clearer, remember, we started this chapter with an emphasis on ‘spiritual succession.’ We talked about someone following another and expecting to have the same authority and power that his predecessor had while he occupied that position.
The successor would expect to use his authority and expect no less recognition of that authority when he stepped into the same role. He would look for things to happen for him as had happened for the other. Before completing this chapter, I would like for us to remember that Jesus also said of his followers: “the works that I do shall he do also, and greater works than these shall he do.” Now he said that; and I am only repeating it to bring back to our minds that there is so much more for us to reach for in this thing called spiritual succession.
Now at this point in our discussion let us remember that these things are for the spiritually minded among us, those whose hearts and minds long for that which is from the realm of the supernatural. We only learn things in the natural realm of life by searching and exploring and observing and applying the principles we have discovered. Obviously, to learn things of a spiritual nature there must be a similar pursuit. Someone once said, “faith is a journey, not a destination.” We need to ask ourselves from time to time, where are we in our spiritual journey? What discoveries have we recently made in the realm of the spirit? When was the last time we exercised the dominant aspect of faith and experienced a miracle? When was the last time we took command of circumstances and used the power of faith to change them? What stands in front of us that keeps us from going forward that needs to be parted before we can move on in our God given purposes? Perhaps we too need to smite the waters.