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The rise of the house of Elisha, part 2

God is never in a hurry. In fact, He is always late, but always on time. Our mortality limits our days on the earth and is the source of all impatience. But God suffers from no such limitations. His plan moves on, grinding through many generations. Each generation has its impact, however small, before passing the torch to their children or their successors.

From 2006-2007 we were uncertain as to what direction the plan of God would take. Then at the Tabernacles conference in Hilo, Hawaii in 2007, God finally initiated His plan for us in the coming years. As we will see later, He revealed the birth of “Elijah,” which we soon understood was actually “Elisha,” telling us to wait another year (2008) for this to manifest in the earth.

Patience was again required. After waiting a year, we discovered that we would have to wait another six months until Passover of 2009. More patience was required. James 5:7, 8 says,

⁷ Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains. ⁸ You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near.

The word georgos is translated “farmer” in the NASB above. The KJV renders it “husbandman.” The Greek word is a compound word: ge (pronounced “gay”) means earth; ergon means “labor.” Hence, georgos means “earth laborer.” God is the ultimate earth laborer. He labored six days at creation and then rested from His labors, but Jesus also spoke of “the works which the Father hath given Me to finish” (John 5:36 KJV). Once the Father began to rest from His labor, He assigned the work to the Son to finish.

Baptism at the Headwaters

The water poured out in Babylon, NY on October 7, 2006 initiated a 40-day cycle of rain (ending on November 8), followed by another 150-day “flood” cycle, where the waters prevailed over the earth (Genesis 7:24). This 190-day cycle ended on April 15, 2007.

On this day about 30-35 people drove to the headwaters of the Mississippi River at Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota to prophesy and mark the full end of the 150-day cycle.

The group from Sacramento, California felt led to hold their quarterly meeting in Minneapolis on April 13 and then rent a 15-passenger van to take us to the headwaters on April 15. Recall that the waters of Noah’s flood were 15 cubits above the mountains (Genesis 7:20). The number 15 is the biblical number of “new direction,” even as 8 is the number of “new beginnings.”

The Mississippi River begins at Lake Itasca, where the river is only about 25 feet wide, narrowing quickly down to about 10 feet across. There is a log over that part of the river, where one can cross from one side to the other.

Meanwhile, Ken had gone to Jericho, NY to pray while we were at the headwaters. He discerned that our river work was like crossing the Jordan into the plains of Jericho. Because the priests bearing the ark stood in the Jordan River to dry up the river (Joshua 3:13) and allow the people to cross on dry land, he felt that we should stand in the river, get our feet wet, and pray. Meanwhile, the people were to remain 2000 cubits back while the priests carried the ark into the dry riverbed (Joshua 3:4). God’s instructions prophesied of 2000 years from Christ’s baptism at that location to the general baptism of the people.

The Sacramento group thus discerned that Ron Oja and I should be baptized there at the headwaters. We saw this as a fulfillment of the law of baptism in Leviticus 14:7,

⁷ He shall then sprinkle seven times the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy [symbol of mortality/death] and shall pronounce him clean and shall let the live bird go free into the open field.

The law of the cleansing of lepers in Leviticus 14 gives us the main purpose of baptism, which is a symbol of passing from death to life. Leprosy is a biblical symbol of our slow death which we call mortality. Hence, the law of cleansing lepers teaches us the manner in which we come into immortality. It requires two doves. The first is to be killed, the second is to be dipped (smeared) in the blood of the first dove and released into the open field.

This portrays Christ’s death and resurrection. On a longer time frame, it also portrays the two comings of Christ, for He came the first time to die and will come a second time with His robe dipped in blood (Revelation 19:13).

We discerned that at the headwaters Ron and I were representing the two doves as well as the lepers themselves who were being healed—believers being healed of their mortality. So we were sprinkled seven times with water while standing in the river, as prescribed in the law. This should also be connected to the prophetic word that was spoken over the people at the previous feast of Tabernacles: “Lazarus, come forth!”

The baptism on April 15, 2007 marked the time of a “new direction” in prophetic history. We would soon understand that this new direction marked the true start of the rise of Elisha, whose calling, in part, was to heal Naaman, the leper from Syria (2 Kings 5:1). Naaman, too, was told by the prophet to wash in the Jordan seven times (2 Kings 5:10), according to the command in the law in Leviticus 14:7. He was then healed of his leprosy (2 Kings 5:14).

Discipling the Nations

This was Elisha’s tenth miracle-sign, representing the gospel of the Kingdom going beyond borders. It was a prophetic type of the apostolic mandate in Matthew 28:19, 20,

¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

This apostolic mandate is being repeated on a greater scale today in conjunction with the second work of Christ. Recall that in late March 2001 God began to raise up “effective apostleship.” In October 2006 the Lazarus word was given at the feast of Tabernacles. In April 2007 the headwaters prophecy marked the beginning of the rise of the house of Elisha, foreshadowing the gospel of the Kingdom going out to the nations.

Each step in the sequence brought us closer to this prophecy becoming a reality in the earth.

On April 5, 2007 the well-known prophet, Kim Clement, prophesied in Redding, CA,

“Yet we heard the sound of victory throughout this nation. Some would hear the sound of defeat, others would hear the sound of negative words and energy . . . But yet intertwined between this, I have set a standard—you are that standard….

“For there is a sound of humility that is rising amongst My people. I have waited for it and waited for it. And the Spirit of God said, ‘This year—2007—you shall see this cloud the size of a man’s hand, and it shall fill the sky. Yes, yes, yes, it shall fill the sky.’ And the Lord says, ‘It shall come to pass that you will outrun the chariots of Ahab, and you will outrun the chariots of Jezebel.’ And God said, ‘Those that have taken the land that belongs to My people and the land that belongs to My house, the inheritance that they have stolen—shall now be returned to My people,’ says the Lord….

“Something that this Nation and the world has not seen in Christ is about to be manifested through you and I. It is going to shake the nations.

“God seeks a fresh new vessel—unlearned and has no religious training whatsoever.

“God said, ‘I’m going to touch cities, and I’m going to start in the United States of America, where barrenness will be changed overnight—spiritual barrenness will be changed overnight by recognizing where God is and the fact that He’s about to do His greatest work in this Nation.”

By quoting Clement, I am not endorsing all he said, nor even all his prophecies. I do not bear witness to some of the things he prophesied, especially about “Israel.” As is the case with so many prophets in the church today, he needs a better understanding of the Word and the history of Israel in order to fulfill his calling better.

Nonetheless, when the Lord spoke through him, I must honor every word that God has spoken. However, I do not have to agree with their interpretation of the prophecies. When He spoke about Israel, he assumed that God was speaking about the modern Jewish state, but God was actually speaking about His true Israel.

The year 2007, he said, will see “the cloud the size of a man’s hand, and it shall fill the sky.” This is a reference to 1 Kings 18:44, where Elijah saw the coming flood of the Holy Spirit.

The “fresh new vessel” in his prophecy is the Tabernacles vessel, as distinct from Pentecost. It is about the overcomers, not the Church. Kim Clement did not really understand this yet, because, to my knowledge, he did not have a clear understanding of the prophetic difference between Pentecost and Tabernacles.

He spoke of these people being “unlearned,” having “no religious training whatsoever.” This does not mean that these new vessels are ignorant. Far from it. In fact, they have a fresh revelation of truth that exceeds that of modern seminary graduates and theologians. I believe this referred to those who have had to “unlearn” all the wrong things that their religious training had taught them. That was my experience as well.

That is alright. Pentecostals will take part in this work on their own level, but they will have their own role to play that will be different from the Tabernacles people and their work.

The church as a whole still relies upon the anointing of Pentecost, which was sufficient for the Pentecostal Age. But the overcomers are seeing a new anointing, a greater anointing, which comes through the feast of Tabernacles. Likewise, the church looks for the coming of Elijah, whereas the overcomers look for the coming of Elisha and his double anointing that is necessary to finish the work that the Father gave to the Son.