Submitted by Lara Cook
The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.” 2 Kings 13:19
The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram and completely destroyed it. But now you will defeat it only three times.” 2 Kings 13:19
Recently Brother Van preached a sermon series on the book The Last Arrow by Erwin McManus. The book is based on the story of King Jehoash in 2 Kings. Elisha is old and dying but he has one last thing to do before he dies, he has to prophesy to the king.
Jehoash is the king of Israel when the kingdoms of Israel and Judah are divided and at war against one another. During this “family feud”, his kingdom is being threatened by the armies of Amaziah, King of Judah. Elisha has been a source of protection and resource for Jehoash. At this point, he calls out to Elisha to help him with the most recent threat against Israel. Elisha tells Jehoash
Take a bow and arrows." So, he took a bow and arrows. Then he said to the king of Israel, "Put your hand on the bow." And he put his hand on it, then Elisha laid his hands on the king's hands. He said, "Open the window toward the east," and he opened it. Then Elisha said, "Shoot!" And he shot. And he said, "The LORD'S arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory over Aram; for you will defeat the Arameans at Aphek until you have destroyed them." Then he said, "Take the arrows," and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, "Strike the ground," and he struck it three times and stopped. So, the man of God was angry with him and said, "You should have struck five or six times, then you would have struck Aram until you would have destroyed it. But now you shall strike Aram only three times." 2 Kings 13:14-19 NASB
Elisha was frustrated with Jehoash because he could have had complete victory. Elisha told him to take the arrows and strike the ground, but Jehoash struck the ground with only three and then he stopped. He would only know victory against Aram three times instead of completely destroying them. What made him stop? Why wouldn’t he, in desperation, be slamming those arrows into the ground as hard and fast as he could? Why would he nottake the victory Elisha was trying to give him?
How many arrows are you holding in your hand today? How many arrows are you refusing to strike on the ground? What about the arrow of your marriage, the arrow of your kids, your career, or your health? How bad do you want the victory? We hold tight to these things and refuse to give them to God and get the full victory that only He can give. We will never have complete victory in any of those areas unless we submit them to God. God wants to give us the victory like Elisha was trying to give to Jehoash but we have to strike the ground – as much as we want the victory. Strike the ground and let the splinters fly! Let God have total victory in all the areas of your life today.
Scripture to Claim:
For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory. Deuteronomy 20:4
