Tell God To Go With You by Archbishop Benson Idahosa: MP3 Download & Sermon Notes

People Who Choose to Expand

In 2 Kings 6:1-7, a group of prophets spoke to Elisha with a spirit of determined progress. The place where they dwelt had become too small. Rather than complain about cramped conditions, they said: let us go to Jordan and build a larger place.

When everyone talks down, they talked up. This is the spirit of a people who refuse to be limited by their circumstances. They said each man would take a beam and build. Their prophet heard them and said, "Go." But one of them, with wisdom, said: do not just send us. Come with us.

The wisest thing anyone can do before taking the next step is to ask God to go with them.

"I pray thee, come with thy servants." And Elisha answered: I will go. So he went with them.

Things do not change by themselves. People change things. And people who have a prophet with them, people who have God with them, can move forward when everyone else is standing still.

Why God Must Accompany Every Journey

The time of self-sufficiency and personal capability is a dangerous time. Look at the nations that once stood tall in history. The Roman Empire is gone. The British Empire has weakened. There were four superpowers; now there is one, and it struggles. Every nation and institution not anchored in God will eventually fall. Riches will not sustain.

President Mobutu was once the eighth richest individual in the world while his nation was among the sixteen poorest on earth. He died of cancer not long after. He made money but did not make God. If a billionaire goes to hell with all his cash, what then of those who are poor and still proud?

Time has come to say: God, I will not go unless you go with me.

Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. It is visible in the way people live. When anything is done in the world, crowds gather. But when God calls for service in his house, not one friend shows up. That reveals where the treasure is.

Money will not save. Position will not save. Riches cannot buy what matters most. What will happen when Jesus returns and asks for an account? Only what is done for Jesus will last. This life is given temporarily to see how well it can be used for God.

The Axe Head That Fell

As one of the prophets cut a beam at the Jordan, the axe head fell into the water. The man cried out: "Alas, master, it was borrowed."

In his weakest and most embarrassing condition, who was standing by him? The man he had begged to accompany him.

Elisha asked: "Where did it fall?" The man showed him the place. Elisha cut down a stick and cast it into the water, and the iron swam.

In signs and wonders, iron can float.

Everything that is not anchored in God will fall. But when the master is standing by, even iron can be recovered from deep water. Elisha said: reach out and take it. And the man put out his hand and took it up.

When the miracle appears, do not disappear. Stand by the spot. Reach out and take what God has restored. God has already provided; the believer must respond.