“What Will You Do When the Mantle Is Dropped On You?”

Scripture: "So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. "Let me kiss my father and mother good-by," he said, "and then I will come with you." "Go back," Elijah replied. "What have I done to you?" So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his attendant." -1 Kings 19:19 - 21, NIV

As a eighteen year-old freshman at North Carolina A&T State University, I watched the 1998 NBA All-Star Game that was in New York City at the world's most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. This particular game had meaning to it because at this particular time, it was the last All-Star game appearance for one of the greatest players in league history, Michael Jordan. As Jordan and his Eastern Conference All-Stars completed the game against the Western Conference All-Stars, he embraced the then "new kid on the block" in Kobe Bryant. Many pundits within the basketball world considered this moment as a "passing of the torch/mantle" of greatness from one player to another. Since then, Bryant has emerged as one of the league's best, winning four NBA titles, a league MVP, a NBA Finals MVP, and three All-Star Game MVPs. Just as the mantle was dropped on Bryant by Jordan, there are times where you yourself may receive a mantle/torch. This mantle may be a greater anointing from a seasoned saint, may be the mantle to do bigger things than what your ancestors did, or may be taking over a particular spot within your family to serve them on a greater level. At the end of the day, I pose the question: what will you do when the mantle is dropped on you? Today's text provides a prime example of how someone answered this question.

Our main scripture for today is found in the book of 1 Kings, one of the twelve Deuteronomistic History (written to discuss Israel's obedience/disobedience to God) books of the Old Testament. This book was said to be written between 560 and 540 B.C. and though the book does not name a specific author, scholars state that it was written by the Prophet Jeremiah. From 1 Kings, we learn about the reign of King Solomon, other kings after him, the eventual split of united Israel, and the use of prophets. One of the prophets used within this book was Elijah. You remember Elijah, the one who stood against 450 of Baal's prophets in the dual of the gods between God and Baal. Elijah, the one who had to run because Jezebel wanted him dead. However, within today's text, he was along his journey and met a man by the name of Elisha, the son of Shaphat. With their encounter, we obtain some clarity to today's topic question.

When Elijah met Elisha, Elisha was working. He was plowing with his twelve yoke of oxen and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. As Elisha was working, Elijah threw his cloak (mantle in the King James) around Elisha. What a powerful moment here! Have you ever been in a situation where God's anointing has hit you and it caused to stop what you were doing and give Him a praise? Have you ever been in a place where His anointing rested on you so much that you were paralyzed and could not do a thing? Well, after having the mantle dropped on him by Elijah, Elisha stopped what he was doing and ran after Elijah. The text reveals to us that Elisha told Elijah "let me kiss my father and mother good-by and then I will come with you". In other words, the anointing/mantle of Elijah was so strong that it caused Elisha to make a life-changing decision and leave his parents and his riches there. Has God's anointing ever hit you to make you re-think some things and think about re-locating?

Continuing on in the text, we find that Elijah told Elisha "Go back, What have I done to you?" This portion of the text showed us that Elijah did not want Elisha to come just to be coming. He wanted Elisha to be sure in his mind what he was doing and realize the kind of sacrifice he would be making. There are/will be times in your life that when you accept the mantle that you have to do a "self assessment" to make sure you know that this is the right thing to do and to make sure that it's in the will of God. After hearing this statement, Elisha went back home. After going back home, we find out how serious Elisha was about following Elijah. He took his yoke of oxen and killed them. He burnt up his plowing equipment to cook the meat, gave the meat to people to eat, and then he went to serve Elijah as his attendant. If the mantle of greater anointing has dropped on you, then let nothing or no one stop you from receiving that greater anointing! If the mantle of financial success has been dropped on you, then let nothing or no one stop you from achieving the greater financial success! If the mantle of good health has been dropped on you, then let nothing or no one stop from having good health! Whatever mantle has been dropped on you, do not let anyone or anything stop you from getting what God has for you!