“with all thy might…”
“Whatsoever thy hand finds to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest” (Ecclesiastes 9:10).
“Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. And Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over his face, and said, O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof.
And Elisha said unto him, Take bow and arrows. And he took unto him bow and arrows. And he said to the king of Israel, Put thine hand upon the bow. And he put his hand upon it: and Elisha put his hands upon the king’s hands. And he said, Open the window eastward. And he opened it. Then Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot.
And he said, The arrow of the LORD’S deliverance, and the arrow of deliverance from Syria: for thou shalt smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou have consumed them. And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stopped.
And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it: whereas now thou shalt smite Syria but thrice” (II Kings 13: 14-19).
The Prophet Elisha was bringing Joash words from the mouth of God.1 Joash must have been aware of the authority of the Spirit of God which was being shown through Elisha, just as he knew of the power of the Spirit that had been in Elijah. Yet when the prophet told him to smite with the the arrows he did not strike with all his might.
“The mystery of iniquity does already work: only he who now lets will let,2 until he be taken out of the way [at the end of the seven year tribulation period]” (II Thessalonians 2:7).
The message for Christians in the passage quoted is this; the Spirit is working in the world today; but, there seems to be a lack of knowledge of what the work of the Spirit is and how He does it in churches. Making people “feel good,” or giving them riches and fame is the least of God’s powers and gifts to Christian men and women.
God, through the Prophet Ezekiel said; “I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 11:19).
Jesus, before he left this earth told his disciples; “The Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you” and “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter [paraclete]3, that he may abide with you for ever”(John 14:16,26).
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you(John 16:7).
“Behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high” (Luke 24:49).
Obedience to God’s law leads to the moving of the Holy Spirit. It is this power that moves the planets in their orbits and keeps the galaxies from colliding in space. This is the power behind the laws of physics that keep the planets from flying off in space. God’s power is infinite, God is truth and His word is fixed in the heavens.
“Not one jot nor one title shall in no wise pass away” until all is fulfilled. When a Christian is praying in the Spirit and the Spirit is moving in him, he should pursue until the Spirit ceases. “Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26). Stay in the Spirit and in truth and don’t quit until the Lord does.
- “It came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me” (II Kings 2:9). See also verses 10-14
- “Let” in King James’ era actually means the direct opposite of what it does today, i.e., let to day means “to permit;” in the KJV more often than not means “to stop.” The verse quoted here speaks of the Holy Spirit and speaks of the Tribulation when He will not stop the works of Antichrist until prophecy is completed. It is the Holy Spirit who only allows the forces of Satan to go so far; He, the Holy Spirit is in essence “letting” in the sense of old English in the world today. He keeps the mystery of iniquity in check.
- Greek- Paraclete English translation “one alongside”. “Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it sees him not, neither knows him: but ye know him; for he dwells with you, and shall be in you” (John 14:17).
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