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Monday, 3 August 2020
Double portion

Question of the day: How did Elisha answer Elijah, when Elijah asked him, "Ask what I will do for you before I am taken from you." (2 Kings 2:9b)

Answer: The answer is found in the rest of the same verse ... 2 Kings 2:9c "Please, let a double portion of your spirit be upon me."

Every lesson in the Bible is established by God to strengthen our walk with Him. How does this lesson strengthen us? We need to learn something about asking God ... Jacob (James) 4:2b-3 "You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives so you may spend it on your passions."

God is love! (1 John 4:8b) and He is always love motivated. We also, made in His image, must be love motivated to inquire of God with a right motivation.

Ahhh! And the double portion. Let's look at the places in this chapter. Beth El is the house of God. The story starts and ends at the house of God. Too bad for the 42 mocking boys. (I hope they learned their lesson.)

This was a "round trip." Both Elijah and Elisha went down from Beth El to Jericho and on to Jordan, but only Elisha returned. In each of these places, on the way home, Elisha deals with issues and problems that were present earlier, but were not dealt with when both Elijah and Elisha were together.

On the way back, Jericho, the place of sweet aroma (that's what "Jericho" means) the waters were bitter, but Elisha added salt and prayed and the waters became sweet. God turns bitter into sweet with salt, and in doing so turns death into life. That's the power of the double portion.

Elisha does receive that blessing. And that blessing is available to us if we ask with a love motivation. The double portion is first promised to the first born (Deuteronomy 21:17). We are a "first fruit" people. The Lord is going to receive a worldwide harvest through revival, but we are believers now as a "first fruit" unto the Lord. The first born receives a double portion.

Israel also receives the promise of a double portion. Isaiah 61:7 "Instead of your shame, double portion, instead of disgrace they will sing for joy. Therefore in their land they will inherit a double portion; they will have everlasting joy."

Even Job, after his trial, receives a double portion of what he had before. Job 42:10 "So Adonai restored what Job had lost, after he prayed for his friends and Adonai doubled everything that Job had before."

There is also a "double portion" that we don't want ... Revelation 18:4-6 "Then I heard another voice from heaven saying, Come out of her, my people, lest you participate in her sins and receive her plagues! For her sins have piled up to heaven, and God has remembered her crimes. Pay her back just as she has paid out, and give her back double for her deeds! In the cup she has mixed - mix a double dose for her!"

What's all this talk about the double portion? Yeshua intimates that we should forget the double portion. He'll up that to 100 times more ... Matthew 19:28-29 "And Yeshua said to them, Amen, I tell you, when the Son of Man sits on His glorious throne in the new world, you who have followed Me shall also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or property, for My name's sake, will receive a hundred times as much, and will inherit eternal life."

Now that's livin'! Shalom and love, R. Michael.

Posted By Rabbi Michael Weiner, 10:00am Comment Comments: 0