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Sunday, June 26, 2016

“He Took the Mantle…”

A Sermon based Upon 2 Kings 2: 1-14a
By Rev. Charles J. Tomlin, D.Min.
Flat Rock-Zion Baptist Partnership
Year C: Proper 8, 6th Sunday After Pentecost, June 26th, 2016

14He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?”  (2 Kings 2:14a)

An interesting debate took place in the English parliament early this year.  They were debating whether or not to allow businessman Donald Trump to be able to travel in and out of Great Britain.  In other words, just as George Washington would not have been welcomed in 1776, neither would be Donald Trump in 2016.  But the reasons were very different.  George Washington hated British “Taxation without Representation’ upon the America colony waged war with Great Britain.  Donald trump was accused of being a ‘hate preacher’ whose speech was not only dangerous for England, but for the whole human race. www.washingtonpost.com/ world/british-parliament-set-to-debate-banning-donald-trump/2016/01/18/7351d87a-ba14-11e5-85cd-5ad59bc19432_story.html).  

I found this whole idea of Donald Trump being accused of being a ‘hate preacher’ fascinating.  Many years ago, when traveling in London, I was amazed that ‘street preachers’ were still allowed to stand on a ‘stump’ in the city and preach.  (Today they even have ‘Street Pastor’s in England whose whole ministry is conducted on the streets).   This kind of thing has almost disappeared in America, but ‘street preaching’ is still allowed in London.  But there was a catch, I guess.  The preacher would not preach hate, but had to preach love.   Because England is still officially a Christian nation, under the command of Queen and Cross, the preacher is allowed to preach, but his message must be ‘in tune’ with the core of the gospel, interpreted by Jesus once and for all as “For God so loved the world…..” 

When we think of the necessity of preaching filled with love and not hate, following God’s divine spirit, and not our own human feelings, we need to consider today’s final text from the ministry of Elijah.  Elijah is about to ‘depart’ but he needed to leave his mission and mantle to his younger apprentice, Elisha.  Realizing that his spiritual leader is about to leave, Elisha desired not to have a single blessing, but to have a ‘a double share of his spirit’ (v.9).  This was not something Elijah could promise, but after Elijah ascended, Elisha picked up his mantle and struck the water asking “Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?” With one single tap the waters ‘parted’.  Now, the ‘spirit’ would work through Elisha, which was even more miraculous than even his amazing master and predecessor (but who’s counting).

WHERE IS THE LORD
The story of Elijah leaving his ‘mantle’ for Elisha is an important story for all- time, because the succession of power and authority is as much a question today as it ever was.   It is always important for any family, any business, or any institution to be able to ‘pass down’ the things that have been accomplished or learned to the next generation.   But it’s never that easy is it?   

All of us can think of children inheriting the wealth of their parents to their own detriment and ruin?   We can also think of how privilege and power is risky business, especially when it is not earned or appreciated.  In our time, when many younger folks question authority or established institutions and much of what is is being questioned or unappreciated today, how important is it that a ‘mantle’ be passed down at all?  Why not just discard everything that has been and start everything over fresh and new.  

As we started with the questions Donald Trump’s approach to politics has been, as an outsider, today’s text has something important to say because one of the things that drew many people toward that wealthy Businessman is that he said that he would not take up a political ‘mantle’ and was NOT like all the other politicians in Washington.   I recall a discussion I had with a couple of friends in Statesville, who were telling me that they were probably going to vote for Trump, if he was nominated, because they said he was saying things that needed to be said and he was promising to do things needing to be done.   “Yes, he was a bit extreme, they admitted, but they implied that even with his ‘rhetorical flaws’ (as one nicely put it), he was better than what we now had in Washington.  As a preacher I told them that I understood their frustration, but then admitted, “But how can I as a preacher of what is good and right, agree with so much of his speech of anger and hate?”  How can we just, at this moment, write off or suspend all the proper ways of being human or being a national leader, to think that by doing this, we will find someone who will ‘save’ our country?

“Where is the LORD God of Elijah?” Do you see the implications of Elisha’s question?  When Elisha asked this he was hoping he would have God’s blessing for facing the future.  But he also realized that to have God’s blessing, he had to build upon what God had done that was right in the past.  Elisha could not move ahead, without also having Elijah’s blessing, which meant remembering, realizing, and building upon the right that went on before.  

This is also our question, and the question of each new generation: How do we balance the spiritual, national, moral and political needs we have in this moment, so that we do not forget or neglect the good values and principles we have learned in the past?  This is question of every age, not just Elijah’s, but also ours.  It is not only the question of politics, but it is also the question of prophetic or spiritual leadership.  In order to move on to do what God is leading us toward, how much do we need to think, reflect, consider, and weigh from the past to build the future that is still to come?  If we don’t link these two, then it may not just be personal ‘inconsistency’, but also social ‘instability’ that becomes norm.   I recall a teacher I had from a Seminary in Richmond, from another denomination, whose named was “Charlie Brown”, warning us pastors to remember how ministry is unpredictable and that we will need God’s spirit be our strength and our guide.   He told of how he had learned this the hard way.  He had worked for years, even to the point of burn-out, trying to lead his church to do some things they needed to do in the community.  He had put his own life on the line many times trying to move them forward.  But do you know what happened as soon as he retired?  A new preacher was called who led the church not only to undo all their recent ministry accomplishments, but to move the church’s ministry in a completely different direction.  They not only did not build on their past, but they moved toward a completely different future.  They would not allow the ‘mantle’ of one pastor to be carried forth to influence the spiritual ministry of the next.   His point to us was clear; “Pastors, don’t lead your church where it doesn’t want to go.  If your church doesn’t what to go where you are going, then find another church so you are not wasting your time.”

If we don’t have a vision that connects your future to what has been done in the past, then how can you know that you are moving in the right direction--in God’s direction---the only direction that is not just striking out in your own direction, which could eventually be a ‘road that leads nowhere’?  Elisha did not want his future ministry to go nowhere, but he wanted to connect what God had been doing with what God would still do.  Elisha wanted his ministry to make a difference for the future, because it connected with everything God had done in the most recent past.  

A DOUBLE SHARE OF YOUR SPIRIT  
With his eye on the future, Elisha kept following Elijah around and would not let him out of his sight, not even for one moment.  It’s even comical how it all unfolds. 

On their way to Gilgal together,  Elijah tells Elisha to ‘stay’ behind, while he goes on to Bethel, but Elisha will not let him go.  “I will not leave you” Elisha says (v.2).  Again, Elijah tells Elisha that he must go down to Jericho, but again, Elisha will not let him go.  “No, I will not leave you” (v. 4).  Finally, for a third time, Elijah tells Elisha that he has to make a trip to Jordan, but again, Elisha insists on going with his master (v. 6).  Elisha will not let Elijah out of his sight, nor will he let anyone dissuade him (as different prophets attempted to do, vs. 3, 5) because he feared Elijah would leave without granting one last request (v. 9).   This request became known when Elijah enabled them to cross the Jordan river, by touching it with his mantle, and parting the waters, after which he turned to Elisha and asked: “Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you."   With this question Elisha gave the most awaited request: "Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit" (2 Ki. 2:9 NRS).   

Do we want what Elisha wanted?   Do we want to build on the ministry of the past and make our ministry even better for the future?  Elisha realized that he would not only lose what had been accomplished, but he would also lose what could be accomplished, unless there was some kind of connection between the to.  The question for us how do we make this connection happen?  How do we make sure that there is not only a ‘double portion’ for the future, but that we don’t disregard and the past and destroy the future that depends on the accomplishments of the past?  

Several years ago, a large church near mine, was growing leaps and bounds.  It had be able to develop a youth ministry that continued to grow so much, that the church not only had to go to three different worship services to accommodate all the newcomers, but also decided to turn the middle worship service into a completely ‘youth’ oriented worship---with a style all its own.  Of course, this was happening with the blessing of the pastor and the church as a whole, and it did start out that way.   But as the youth continued to explore and express their own style of worship, the church began to raise questions.  The questions were so harsh to the existing youth leadership, that one day, without warning the youth pastors decided to move the ‘youth worship’ not only out of the church, but they found an abandoned ‘church’ building down the road and pulled over 700 people out of the existing church of about 2,000.  In other words, because they now had a mind of their own, they felt that they did not need the church that had established them in the past. 

Most of us can’t imagine anything like that happening in our church, but it is something that seems to be happening in the church world today, as many churches have experimented with new worship styles that ended up in ‘worship wars’, and sometimes youth verses adult wars, that have done more to divide than to establish the ministry of the church for the changing world around us.   How do we ask for ‘a double share’ of God’s spirit upon the future generation?  How do we pass on this ‘double share’ so that the God’s work has continuity, stability and newness, but not shallowness, instability, and recklessness, which may lead to heartbreak, brokenness, division and loss of ministry to all kinds of people, young and old, and not just to a limited ministry to a select few, while losing our witness in the world?
I WILL NOT LEAVE YOU
The heart of ministry is not following fades, nor is it limited to finding new trends and angles; but the heart of ministry needs to include, just like it was in Elijah and Elisha’s day, the passing on of the ‘mantle’ of ministry from one age of people to the next generation.   We should never be content to limiting God’s ministry by making it only ministry for and to ourselves, but we have to continue to enlarge, to expand, and to encourage God’s ministry by finding ways to mentor and pass the work down to the next generation.  

But this is something that churches have not always been good at, is it?  Too often, because we need ministry ourselves, we tend to focus the ministry on us in the moment, not toward those coming up next.   We have often understood the ministry of the church to be a ministry for children and seniors, but we have not been as good at developing church for those in the middle, or for those who are coming of age in a new age.  As a result, churches have often become places where the twenty to forty somethings go missing unnecessarily, because they go AWOL--- MIA, or worst, DOA.  This has happened because we have overlooked a story of the Elijah passing the mantle down to Elisha and have not been as good at connecting the church of the past with the church of the future.

So finally, what should we learn from this great story?  In other words, what must we learn so that the ministry today can be even more effective for the future than it has been in the past?   This story suggests two very important lessons: The Elijah Church—the church of the past and present must learn to ask the church of the future:  “What do you want me to do for you?” and the Elisha Church---the church of the future must also dare to ask the Church of the present:  “Give me a double share of your spirit?”

We don’t have time to unpack what this might mean, but we must see one answer that makes these two questions both ‘askable’ and ‘answerable’.  In the past, the church has run its ministry mostly based upon occasional, open-ended or volunteer relationships.  In other words, we have hoped for the church to have a future based upon the people coming up and ‘accidently’ taking over someday.   We have done this without any real, specific, or intentional relationships that could help make the future of the church happen.  We just expected this to happen, so were content to do the same things, trusting that our little Elisha’s would someday catch on, or assume their responsibility for the church of the future. 

Unfortunately, this isn’t happening.  It isn’t happening either because our youth are moving away, have less interests, or have gone another way, which is not the way we have gone.   One thing for sure: if we keep doing the same things, in the same ways, expecting ‘a double share’ of continued ministry without intentionally passing the mantle down to them, we and they are headed for a rude awakening.  The future of any kind of ministry in a future that is much less church oriented, will depend on some kind of intentional ‘mantle passing’, programed ‘mentoring’, or intentional ‘disciple’ programs within the church of today.   The challenge is that for this to happen, the young Elishas must ask for it and the older Elijahs must offer it.  

Brent Younger, tells about Bob Hammond, a very talented artist came to his church in 1967 and was the activities director for almost 30 years.  Bob loved and led family nights, mission trips, summer camps, square dances, basketball leagues, softball teams, golf tournaments and, most recently, a Parkinson’s exercise class.  At his funeral on people told funny stories about sandwiches made with toothpaste instead of mayonnaise, toilets at the desks of new staff members on their first day, and a plan for ping pong balls in the trumpet pipes of the organ.

Bob always had a twinkle in his eye, but the fun was a cover for the way he had a heart for young people.  Bob gave himself to helping teenagers grow into Christian adults.  At his funeral, there were fifty-year-olds who wouldn’t have been part of a church, had it not been for Bob.  Younger wrote, because of his heart for ministry and mentoring, ‘the ripples from his ministry will continue for generations’  (From Brent Younger’s sermon, “What do you want?”).


Having a church that continues boils down to having young Elishas who are willing to say to the older Elijahs “I will not leave you…” just as it also depends on an older Elijahs who are willing to openly ask, “What is it that you want me to do for you?”  It is this kind of open, genuine, and honest engagement that builds bridge from a ministry of the past to the ministry of the future.  For until the older are willing to dare to ask the younger ‘what is it you want’ and the younger are willing to say to the older ‘we will not leave you’, there is no promise for a future that ‘doubles’ or ‘betters’ what has come before.  But if, we are willing to find ways to work together, share the vision,  be mentors and receive mentoring, so we can pass on the mantle of spirit,  the we can all achieve what we need, and realize what the church needs for its ministry.   As we all should know, there is always enough of God’s spirit to go around to each and every generation.  There is always enough, that is, if some are willing ‘offer’ and others are willing to ‘ask.   Amen.  

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