In this passage the author of 2 Kings portrayed for his people the passing of the torch in a race that continues today.  Let us pray.

I never imagined when planning this series of sermons on Roadside Attractions that I would experience so many in the process of preaching them. The Great Pyramids of Giza were some of the latest roadside attractions and I can assure you, they did not disappoint. Two weeks ago as we drove into Cairo on a Sunday afternoon, we caught our first glimpse of the trio of pyramids in the suburbs of one of the largest cities in the world. Let me see if I can put these structures in perspective for you.  The first and largest of the pyramids of Giza is called Cheops or Khufu, depending on which language you choose.  It is about 4500 years old and until 500 years ago stood as the tallest building on the face of the earth.  That means for 4,000 years it held the record.  I remember when the Sears Tower (now the Willis Tower) in Chicago was built and became the world’s tallest building.  It held the record for 24 years.  No building since has held the record that long.  The pyramid Cheops took over 100,000 workers more than 20 years to build the massive structure intended to serve as the eternal home for the Pharaoh.  If this altar were a limestone block, it would weigh about 2 ½ tons.  That is the average size of the 2,300,000 blocks used to build this massive pyramid.  We are not sure what all this structure contained in the narrow rooms inside.  It turned out, placing dead Pharaohs in large structures made it easy for grave robbers to identify and loot.  Nevertheless, scholars are quite sure that these houses for the dead were filled with lots of stuff.  This is so that the spirit would have things to do and to sustain it while waiting for the reunion of body and soul.

The closest thing we come to a pharaoh’s resting place intact is the tomb of King Tut discovered about 80 years ago.  King Tutankhamen lived about 1200 years after the Great Pyramids were built.  He was nine or ten years old when he became the Pharaoh of Egypt and reigned for only nine years until his untimely death.  Needless to say, he was a minor king in Egypt’s illustrious history.  His tomb had escaped the notice of grave robbers for centuries, because another tomb had been built over it.  There is an entire wing of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo dedicated to the contents of this 2700 square foot tomb.  Inside the tomb were three sarcophagi, four burial boxes, and more gold, silver, and platinum than I have ever seen.  There were also thirty jars of wine, fifty changes of clothes, furniture, canes, jars of grain and perfumes, and a box of twinkies.  OK, there were no twinkies, but the other stuff was there. My guess is that King Tut’s collection would pale in comparison to what once filled these pyramids.

Last week I mentioned that Michael Slaughter wrote in his book, Change the World, “Understanding your life purpose is discovering why you are alive and knowing the contribution that you want to leave behind.”  Looking at the pyramids of Giza and listening to the story of Elijah, I would recommend that you invest in people rather than pyramids.

Last week we discovered the fearless prophet going through a mid-life crisis, facing burnout, or experiencing severe depression.  The Lord assured Elijah that it was never his job to do it all.  He was instructed to recruit and equip his successor, which he did in the person of Elisha.  There were three steps to this development of a successor revealed in this passage.  There is the connection to a person, the commitment to a purpose, and the continuance of ministry. Let’s look at those rather quickly.
 

Step One: Connection to a Person

Elisha had become quite connected to his mentor.  Three times Elijah encouraged Elisha to stay behind as he went on ahead, and three times Elisha refused.  He asserted, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.”  The company of prophets in Bethel and in Jericho knew that Elijah was on his way out and wanted to visit with Elisha about it, but Elisha did not want to talk about it.  He was connected to Elijah as a devoted son is to a loving father.  When Elijah was taken into heaven in a whirlwind, Elisha grasped his clothes and tore them in two pieces.  This is a sign of mourning and grief.  He was going to miss those times with his mentor that helped form him into the man he was that day.

Who have been your mentors and role models?  Who is it that embodied the avocation or vocation that you hold dear?  I think of Carroll Fancher, Bob Waters, Charles Williams, and others who have shown me what it takes to be a pastor who loves God and people dearly.  I am not sure if I would have ever continued into the path of ministry if it not been for the mentors that God placed in my life, people to whom I could connect.  To whom are you a mentor?  There are people who need someone to nurture them in their faith and their calling.  There are husbands and fathers who need to talk with other husbands and fathers about the stress and strain of life.  There are women trying to juggle faith, family, job, chores, and find time to sleep who need another woman to talk to and see how it can be done.  We even have organized ministries for mentoring in Adopt and Aggie and Elijah Partner.  To whom are you a mentor?  Take my advice – invest in people not pyramids.
 

Step Two: Commitment to a Purpose

Elijah asked Elisha what he wanted and Elisha was clear that he wanted to inherit Elijah’s office as prophet of God, he wanted to commit to the purpose that got Elijah up every morning.  Elisha asked for a double share of Elijah’s spirit.  I read about a half a dozen of commentaries on this passage and while the scholars cannot agree on exactly where Gilgal is, they are unanimous in interpreting Elisha’s request as a matter of inheritance.  Elisha asked for the privilege of the oldest son who would receive a double share of the inheritance, since it was his responsibility to carry on the family business.  Elisha wanted to carry on the family business.  He went beyond being connected to a person; he was committed to a purpose.

I have a friend who has had a wonderful ministry as a United Methodist pastor.  One Sunday, about this time of year, he was leaving the congregation that he loved.  He had been appointed to another church, which is always a difficult transition for a church and the pastor and his or her family.  He spoke from his heart, just as Lindsay Kirkpatrick did a few weeks ago, and told the church how much they meant to him.  He was moving to a church that was not that far away and he cautioned the members about following him to that church.  He told them that whenever a personality outshines a ministry, there is the danger of idolatry.

I realize that the role of the pastor, and especially the preaching pastor, is an important one.  I would be lying if I told that you that when a person says it is the preaching that attracted him or her to consider joining this church I feel anything more than joy over those words of affirmation.  However, I am convinced that while it may the pastor who leads someone into a church, it is the people who determine whether or not they will stay.  Is there a purpose being lived out in the church that is both clear and contagious?  Our purpose statement is to invite and equip followers of Jesus Christ, but are we doing that in a way that communicates commitment to a purpose?
 

Step Three: Continuance of Ministry

Elisha saw Elijah ascend up in a whirlwind and he knew he was gone.  He cried out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!”  Chariots were the tanks of Elijah’s day – a weapon of defense against invading armies.  Typically he who had the most chariots won.  Elijah was the chariot of Israel, their secret weapon.  His prayers and proclamation of the Word of God kept Israel safe in God’s care, but with the chariot taken away who would carry on the ministry?  Then Elisha looked on the ground and saw the mantle.  This was the outer garment of clothing that had become as associated to the ministry of Elijah as the staff of Moses was to his ministry.  Elisha picked up the mantle and just as his mentor had done earlier, he now did.  He struck the waters, called upon the power of God, and the waters parted.  He then began to continue the ministry that he had witnessed in his mentor.

Last Tuesday evening I had the chance to have dinner with and serve communion to one of our Disciple Bible Study groups.  I had a great time and am so proud of this church for its Bible studies.  I told them that the last thing some people need is another Bible study.  I don’t think anyone here is so saturated with the Word of God that they don’t need to read it or study it anymore.  However, I do think that if studying the Bible is taking the place of doing the things that are in the Bible then we may just be building a pyramid of certificates of completion.  At some point you have pick up the mantle, strike the water and make a difference in the world.

What is the mantle at your feet?  What is it that God is calling you to do, but for some reason you are hesitant? 

The pyramids were not the only roadside attraction of the dead that we visited on our recent trip abroad.  We also saw two different tombs that claim to be the place where the body of Jesus was laid.  One of them, the most recognized, has the Church of the Holy Sepulchre around it.  The other is set in a garden.  Both of them are inspiring, but there was no sarcophagus, no gold jewelry, no wine.  There was only one stone and it had been rolled away.  Of course, Jesus only needed the tomb for a few days.  He spent most of his time investing in people rather than pyramids.  As I result we are not quite sure where his tomb is, but we are living testimonies of where his spirit is.

The last pyramid to be built in Egypt was constructed over 3500 years ago, but I maintain that they are still being built today all over the world.  Whenever we are more worried about accomplishing everything on our calendar than the person next door, we are investing in pyramids.  Whenever we are directing our resources lavishly for our comfort and scarcely for God’s children, we are investing in pyramids.  It is easy to fall into the pattern of spending our entire adult lives investing in pyramids.  Invest in people rather than pyramids.  Amen.