Following Elijah 3
(week 18/03)
Olubi Johnson
In last weeks article we looked at following the present day prophetic Elijah ministry by attitude, obedience and imitating their godly conduct and example.
In 2 Kings 2: 1-15 we have the account of how Elisha followed Elijah from Gilgal to Jordan and then crossed the Jordan with him to see him taken up by a whirlwind to heaven and so received the mantle and consequently the double portion anointing.
II Kings 2:1-15(KJV): And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel. And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho. And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace. And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan. And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over. And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.
In this article we will see prophetically what Gilgal, Bethel, Jericho, Jordan and the whirlwind mean to us in this 3rd. day in the New Testament Church.
Gilgal represents the place of the 2nd. circumcision (Joshua 5.2, 8-9). It is a place in which the mind has been made up to no longer live to the lusts of men but to the will of God (1 Peter 4.1,2), knowing that it is Gods will for us to enjoy all things richly in His time.
(1 Timothy 6.17, Ecclesiastes 3.11).
This state of mind is arrived at by a decision based on a revelation of the fact that whatever you deny yourself of in order to do the will of God, God will give it back to you a hundredfold in this life (Mark. 10.29-30). Consequently, our sufferings to do the will of God are only temporary, and not to be compared with the glory that we will experience both in this life and that which is to come (Romans 8.18, 2 Cor4.17, 1 Timothy. 4.8). In fact, the sooner you deny self: die to self, to obey God the sooner you will spend your years in pleasures and days in prosperity (Job.36.11).
Bethel represents the place where you receive a revelation of the true nature and purpose of the house of God (Gen.28.17-19). Bethel is where you begin to have a clear comprehension of Gods intentions for his house to be a perfect Church (1Timothy. 3. 15), both as a corporate body and also for the individual saint (Colossians.1: 28). The revelation received here is one of inspiration to see that perfection is possible and to aspire to attain it.
Jericho represents the place of fragrance or spiritual prosperity. Here you receive more revelation of perfection, with greater clarity of instruction of how to attain it. The revelation received here is more of information of detailed instruction, rather than just inspiration as it was at Bethel.
Jordan represents the place of using the revelation received at Bethel and Jericho to actually die to self in daily conduct, based on the decision made at Gilgal.
Crossing Jordan is actually experiencing death to the lusts of the flesh, the eyes and the pride of life (1 John. 2. 15) in daily conduct (Luke 9. 23).
When Jordan has been crossed Elijah is taken to heaven by a whirlwind.
The whirlwind represents God’s judgement in the Church that will separate the righteous from the wicked, those that serve God and those that serve themselves (Jeremiah. 30.23-24, Psalms. 58. 9, 10, Malachi. 3.15-4.2).
We are now in the season in which this whirlwind is about to hit the Elijah ministry, taking them to heaven (John. 3.13): separating them from the earthly, and imparting to them the Spirit without measure that was on the Lord Jesus Christ. This will cause them to operate as overcomers from thrones (Revelation. 3. 21) in heaven (while still living on earth ;John.3: 13), and do the works Jesus did and greater (John. 14.12).
The Elishas who see this whirlwind and how it translates Elijah to heaven will partake of this same anointing and together, the transformed Elijah ministry and the Elishas or children who have followed them from Gilgal to Jordan, will do great signs and wonders (Isaiah. 8. 18) that will turn the world upside down (Acts. 17. 6).
