Many people recognize the association between Elijah and John the Baptist. Jesus made it plain:” John himself is Elijah who was to come.” But just as the the Bible parallels Elijah and John, so it also compares those they preceded: Elisha and Jesus.
“Elisha” means “God is salvation,” and “Jesus” means “The Lord is salvation.” Both men performed many similar miracles: They multiplied bread (2 Kings 4:42-44; Luke 9:12-17), healed the leper (2 Kings 5:1-14; Luke 17:11-14) and defied gravity on water (2 Kings 6:1-7; John 6:16-21). Each raised a dead boy to life in the Jezreel Valley (2 Kings 4:35; Luke 7:11-16)
Even more remarkable, Elijah passed his prophetic ministry to Elisha after parting the Jordan River near Jericho. Tradition holds that John baptized Jesus at this same site, transfering the prophetic mantle once again. But this time, instead of the Jordan parting and the spirit of Elijah coming upon Elisha, the heaven parted and the Spirit of God rested on Jesus. God used names, prophecies, miracles and even geographyto underscore what John cried out: “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes awaythe sin of the world! . . . This is the Son of God” (John 1:29, 34). Think about your own journey to Jesus. Didn’t the Father use mora than one friend, conversation, Scripture, preacher, or happenstances to introduce you to His Son? Doesn’t He continue to use a variety of means to encourage our daily walks?
Eventually, we begin to recognize the Lord uses all things, with nothing wasted, to draw us closer to Him. All things point to Him and to our need to walk closely with Him (Rom 11:33-36)
Your servant,
David Gunardi