The Next Prophetic Shift-Part 2

      Once the Church is in Heaven as the immortal government of God, the result of the gathering, someone has to continue the Lord’s earthly ministry. As the new-born saints of God still on the earth, Israel now takes over that mantle for the rest of the final 1,000-year Day.
      We now know the answer to the question the disciples asked of Jesus just before He ascended (Acts 1:6). “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”  The Church had to first fulfill its commission under the early rain outpouring. That commission shall then be reassigned to the revived Jews under the latter rain outpouring.
        The newly rechristened Jewish saints shall minister God’s truths to all the people left behind at the rapture, as well as those born during the last Day. We know that God  desires all people to be saved, even at this stage in His prophetic plan of redemption.
      We also know that the rest of the people still have the natural, fallen nature of sin. They still have a will, which means they still have a choice as to whom they will worship and serve. As always, this choice must be made by faith and not by sight.
      This pivotal shift was foreshadowed in the unique relationship between the prophet Elijah and his protégé, the prophet Elisha as recorded in 2 Kings 2. The school of the prophets were following their elder statesman, Elijah. They knew that the time of his ministry was about to end, so they followed Elijah to Gilgal, then Bethel, and then Jericho. Elijah told Elisha to remain behind with the others while he crossed over the Jordan River. Elijah point-back refused to be left back. So the elder prophet relented and allowed Elisha to follow him.
      There was one problem. The river was raging with the seasonal floodwaters. Elijah removed his mantle, a type of cloak symbolizing his position as God’s anointed prophet, and slapped the water with it. The water miraculously held back, making a dry path for the two to cross through to the other side.
        Elijah then turned to his protégé and said, “Ask! What may I do for you, before I am taken away from you?” Quick on his feet, Elisha asked for a double portion of his elder’s spirit. He had asked for a hard thing, but Elijah responded that if the younger man saw his elder taken up to heaven, Elisha would receive the double portion. 
         Suddenly a chariot of fire separated the two prophets and Elijah was taken up by a whirlwind into heaven. In the process, Elijah’s mantle fell back to the earth. Elisha picked it up, walked back to the swollen Jordan River, smacked the water with the mantle as Elijah had done and the river dried up again so he could pass over and join the rest of the school of the prophets. The chapter then goes on to record the miracles Elisha did using the double portion anointing allotted to him.
         End-Time Lesson: Elijah is a type and shadow of the Church, taken to heaven in the literal whirlwind of the rapture. Elisha is a type and shadow of the revived Jews who witnessed this timely event. When they shall see Jesus and His Body, the Church, taken back to heaven, this shall trigger their acceptance of the Messiah.
          Heb. 11:6 reminds us that it is impossible to please God without faith. “For he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Because the reborn Jews do so, they receive the Church’s mantle to preach the Gospel and be lights in the world. They receive the latter rain outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They will need this to fulfill their calling. They will need it for what comes next—the hour of trial (Rev. 3:10) and the snare of that Day (Lk. 21:35). That is, the wrath of that Day and the battle for Jerusalem.
         As with Elijah, those “left behind” on the earth, including the revived Jews, will not see Elijah (who symbolizes the Church) again. Nor will the people see Jesus or His Church again. This pulls down the high place on God’s prophetic highway that the Church must come back down to the earth, as is taught in the two most popular man-made end-time views. Why would we need to come back to rule when we are seated in God’s third heaven, ruling and reigning with Christ from the place of all authority both in heaven and on the earth? Why would we need to, given the fact that God has already revived the Jewish remnant and commanded them to take over the earthly commission?
         Equally important is that salvation and one’s relationship with Christ is always a faith issue. If Christ and His Body were to come back to earth and are visible in our glorified bodies, faith would not be required. Faith is believing without having seen first. Which brings us to one final important detail in the prophets’ saga.
         It is interesting to note that before Elisha picked up Elijah’s mantle, he took off his clothes and tore them into two pieces. The number two in Scripture symbolizes that standard of truth and witness. Why did he do this? So he could take up the mantle, the clothing of his new assignment. Elisha’s action symbolized putting off the old man and putting on the new man (Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10).