Believers in Christ, each of us has four major seasons to go through in this life. Elisha traveled with the senior prophet Elijah from Gilgal to Bethel to Jericho to Jordan before Elijah was caught up in a whirlwind/chariot of fire.
(1) The Gilgal season: where you experience God "removing the reproach of Egypt" off of you. At one point you were in bondage to sin in "Egypt" (the world), but then you experienced the circumcision of your heart like the Hebrews experienced physical circumcision before going into the Promised Land. You get your flesh dealt with as God will not allow any flesh to have glory before Him. The Holy Spirit is invited in to take over.
(2) The Bethel season: Abraham had built an altar there, but then went to Egypt, where no communion with God took place. What happened? How do we go from spending quality time with God to going to a place where we don't communicate with God at all? What is it about the world that attracts us back to it even after we get saved? We've got to get back to the place of worshiping God in spirit and in truth.
(3) The Jericho season: After Joshua and the army was victorious in battle at Jericho, if anyone were to have rebuilt the walls of Jericho, then he was to be considered cursed. Jericho is a cursed place, where demonic activity takes place against you to try to keep you from becoming what God has called you to be. (See 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Ephesians 6:12.) Get out of Jericho!!
(4) The Jordan point: You've gone through everything you've need to go through before crossing over to the place God has called you to be in. When the Hebrews crossed the Red Sea, it was in the context of be killed by Pharaoh's army or cross over. So it was really no choice in the matter. But at the Jordan point, crossing over is voluntary. You've made up in your mind that you truly want this, and nothing is going to stop you from reaching this goal. You've died to yourself and you're ready to live for Christ. "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death" (1 Corinthians 15:26). To cross over this Jordan you need resurrection power! Death cannot win against Christ's resurrection power!
So go forth in these seasons knowing that victory is in Christ Jesus!
(Inspired by Bishop J. Donald Edwards, Jr. from his message "Traveling Through These Seasons")
(1) The Gilgal season: where you experience God "removing the reproach of Egypt" off of you. At one point you were in bondage to sin in "Egypt" (the world), but then you experienced the circumcision of your heart like the Hebrews experienced physical circumcision before going into the Promised Land. You get your flesh dealt with as God will not allow any flesh to have glory before Him. The Holy Spirit is invited in to take over.
(2) The Bethel season: Abraham had built an altar there, but then went to Egypt, where no communion with God took place. What happened? How do we go from spending quality time with God to going to a place where we don't communicate with God at all? What is it about the world that attracts us back to it even after we get saved? We've got to get back to the place of worshiping God in spirit and in truth.
(3) The Jericho season: After Joshua and the army was victorious in battle at Jericho, if anyone were to have rebuilt the walls of Jericho, then he was to be considered cursed. Jericho is a cursed place, where demonic activity takes place against you to try to keep you from becoming what God has called you to be. (See 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Ephesians 6:12.) Get out of Jericho!!
(4) The Jordan point: You've gone through everything you've need to go through before crossing over to the place God has called you to be in. When the Hebrews crossed the Red Sea, it was in the context of be killed by Pharaoh's army or cross over. So it was really no choice in the matter. But at the Jordan point, crossing over is voluntary. You've made up in your mind that you truly want this, and nothing is going to stop you from reaching this goal. You've died to yourself and you're ready to live for Christ. "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death" (1 Corinthians 15:26). To cross over this Jordan you need resurrection power! Death cannot win against Christ's resurrection power!
So go forth in these seasons knowing that victory is in Christ Jesus!
(Inspired by Bishop J. Donald Edwards, Jr. from his message "Traveling Through These Seasons")