No Turning Back

“Are you all in, or are you all out?” In a culture of fence riding, this question brings definitiveness to the equation. Think of the last time you had to be either all in or all out of a situation. Elijah was sent by God to anoint new kings, and to anoint Elisha to succeed him as prophet. In today’s verses, Elijah comes upon Elisha who was plowing the fields. The fact that Elisha had so many oxen indicates that Elisha had some measure of wealth. So, when Elijah throws his cloak around Elisha, he is in essence asking, “Are you all in?” The cloak or mantle represents Elijah transferring prophetic authority to Elisha. Hence the modern saying of passing the mantle gets its roots. When I assumed command of a squadron when I was in the Air Force, part of the change of command ceremony included the passing of the guidon (a small flag). It was the passing of authority from one to another. And in that case, it was done in front of the entire squadron, so everyone knew who was now in command. So, Elijah puts the cloak on Elisha and Elisha immediately leaves his oxen. This is the first indication that he is all in. He then tells Elijah that he wants to go kiss his parent’s goodbye. There are varying viewpoints on Elijah’s response of “Go back, what have I done to you.” It is generally agreed that his response was perhaps a test of commitment on Elisha’s part, or a granting of permission. In other words, who am I to tell you no? The important thing is that in the end, Elisha's response came down to one thing; “No turning back.” Elisha left the security of his job, family, and wealth, so that he could go with Elijah. There is a parallel that mirrors Christ’s command to Matthew; “Follow me.” And just like Elisha, Matthew gave up wealth and security for the sake of following Jesus. Our walk with Christ is no different. Just like a woman can’t be “sorta pregnant,” so too the Believer can’t be “sorta saved.” It’s an all-in proposition. Can the believer backslide? To be sure, but does that absolve us of our commitment to follow Him? Absolutely not. When we ask Jesus to come into our hearts and be our Lord and Savior, that proverbial mantle is placed upon our shoulders. Are you riding the fence of eternity or have you committed to not turning back?