Elijah and Elisha: Living for God’s Testimony — Overview

The Heart of God

Our life is not about spiritual victories. Victories are not enough to substantiate our growth. Rather, God will bring us through more experiences to make us more mature. Elijah and Elisha were not raised up for spiritual victories but to stand for what was on the heart of God.

Elijah and Elisha: Living for God’s Testimony by Titus Chu presents God’s desire in a simple way–that the right man would live in and occupy the land (the earth), ruling upon the earth with God’s expression. Through Abraham, God gained a man, and through David, He gained the land. However, the history of His people became one of failure. In turn, God raised up Elijah and Elisha to live and operate, in different ways, according to His desire and economy.

Elijah’s Life with God

The majority of this book (chapters 2-9) focuses on Elijah, who was used by God to turn the people’s hearts back to Him. Elijah was able to be useful to the Lord because He was willing to give himself and pay a price to stand for the Lord’s testimony. In this experience, no “victory” was the end of the process. The Lord wanted Elijah to grow and mature, so each victory was followed by a period of humbling and speaking from the Lord, meant to cause Elijah to grow. Throughout Elijah’s life, his absolute consecration allowed him to trust God, and God took care of him in many practical ways. This relationship eventually matured–Elijah restfully stood with God, and God protected Elijah. This was manifested in their mutual care and standing for God’s people and name/reputation (chapter 7).

Elisha’s Operation

Elisha was like Elijah outwardly (carrying his mantle) but was different on the inside. More than Elijah, Elisha operated according to the principles of the New Testament, and his experiences show us principles of operating in the church life today. In the final three chapters, Titus looks at fifteen stories involving Elisha: five stories of his fine humanity meeting man’s need, five stories of resurrection in the church life, and five stories of fighting for God’s kingdom.

On page 96 is a helpful passage that summarizes both prophets. Both were burdened for God’s testimony, yet they cared for it in different ways–Elijah to turn from idols to Jehovah, and Elisha for the content and substance of the testimony.

Who is it for?

While this book certainly has a lot about God’s heart (desire), it is really filled with the story of God’s relationship with two men to stand for His heart. It is a very good book for someone who wants to be useful to the Lord, especially for them to realize that it is not just about their victories, but about who they are before both God (Elijah) and their spiritual fathers (Elisha).

You can download and read this book online or purchase a copy for your personal library here.