There’s an obscure little passage within the Previous Testomony, tucked away within the ebook of II Kings, that tells of the loss of life of the nice prophet Elisha. Between the final reference to the lifetime of Elisha and this story of his loss of life, there’s a 43-year interval of silence. So, the occasions surrounding his loss of life had been apparently deemed essential sufficient to God to make sure that they had been recorded.
Elisha was affected by an sickness, and the king of Israel went to see him. Seeing Elisha on his deathbed, the king instantly realizes that Elisha, as a prophet of God, has been the important thing to Israel’s army success – over and over – much more so than the army itself! He instantly sees that with out God concerned, there may very well be no hope of gaining floor, of going additional.
In response, Elisha offers the king a remaining alternative for his blessing in relation to constructing the dominion. He tells the king to get a bow and a few arrows and has him take them in his hand. Then, Elisha places his arms on the king’s arms. When he does that, he’s making it clear that what he’s about to do will likely be stuffed with religious symbolism, significance and blessing.
Right here’s the story:
Elisha mentioned, “Get a bow and a few arrows,” and he did so. “Take the bow in your arms,” he mentioned to the king of Israel. When he had taken it, Elisha put his arms on the king’s arms.
“Open the east window,” he mentioned, and he opened it. “Shoot!” Elisha mentioned, and he shot. “The Lord’s arrow of victory…,” Elisha declared. (II Kings 13:15-17, NIV)
With the intention to ensure that the king knew that what God would do can be linked to what he was prepared to do, he then mentioned, “Now, take the arrows, and strike the bottom.” This second act was to replicate the function that the king would play in God’s plan for victory. It was meant to be symbolic of the king’s willingness to take up the duty at hand, to hitch with what God was prepared and eager to do by him.
Once more, the Scriptures:
Then he mentioned, “Take the arrows,” and the king took them. Elisha informed him, “Strike the bottom.” He struck it 3 times and stopped. The person of God was offended with him and mentioned, “You must have struck the bottom 5 or 6 occasions; you then would have defeated [your enemy] and fully destroyed [him]. However now you’ll defeat [him] solely 3 times.” (II Kings 13:18-19, NIV)
Then Elisha died and was buried.
That little story has caught with me for a really very long time. The king was given a possibility for blessing, an opportunity to hitch with what God was prepared to do. Every thing was in place. There was a God of wonders able to work wonders. The king believed in what God may do (which is why he went to Elisha within the first place). He was clearly aligned with God’s will when it comes to establishing the dominion of Israel in opposition to its enemies.
So the place did all of it break down? The quantity he picked. What he was prepared to do. In placing the bottom 3 times, he revealed he was solely reasonably smitten by all of it. He was solely prepared to go thus far, to increase himself a lot, to spend money on what it might take to maneuver ahead in solely a restricted manner. He had extra arrows that might have been shot, however he took it upon himself to shoot solely three.
However by solely capturing the bottom 3 times, not even utilizing every little thing at his disposal, he revealed the shortage of zeal, the shortage of dedication he had for giving every little thing he needed to the accomplishment of the mission. He didn’t do every little thing he may. And that brought about God to withhold His full hand of blessing, the total measure of what He was prepared and in a position to do.
In your life, you’ll have numerous alternatives introduced to you, by God, to do one thing important on this world together with your life. At numerous factors and occasions, God will inject moments into the ebb and circulate of your life to do one thing life-changing, even world-changing. These will likely be moments in time which might be divine in nature, supernatural in potential and everlasting in significance. The Bible even has a phrase for them—they’re referred to as kairos moments.
That is an concept that’s usually misplaced in our world, but it surely was keenly felt in ages previous. The traditional Greek language had two principal phrases for time. One was chronos, the place we get our world “chronological.” This referred to calendar time—days, weeks, months, years. Then they’d a second phrase for time – Kairos – a phrase that meant one thing radically completely different.
One thing deeper.
In reality, we don’t even have an English equal for it. Kairos has to do with the standard of time. It’s a second pregnant with everlasting significance and chance. It’s a second after we are confronted with a selection, a choice, or a possible motion that holds the deepest stage of significance for who we’re, who we have gotten, and what our life affect will likely be.
This sense of time stuffed with alternative runs deep all through the biblical supplies. For instance, when the prophet Jeremiah talked in regards to the lifetime of the nice Pharaoh of Egypt, he spoke of him as being a king who was solely a loud noise, and nothing extra, as a result of he had missed his kairos—he had missed his second.
After which there may be the scene towards the tip of Jesus’ life the place He involves a ridge overlooking the town of Jerusalem, and the Bible says that He breaks down and weeps. Why? As a result of they didn’t acknowledge the time – the Kairos – of God’s coming to them.
In some ways, your whole life on this planet is a kairos second.
The query is whether or not you will notice the chance of it that God has introduced your manner.
Simply be sure you don’t go away any arrows within the quiver.
James Emery White
Editor’s Be aware
This weblog was initially printed in 2020, and the Church & Tradition Crew thought that you’d get pleasure from studying it once more.
Sources
Tailored from James Emery White, A Traveler’s Information to the Kingdom (IVP). Now out there as an e book on sale at Church & Tradition.
