SPIRITUAL GEMS: Week of October 24 to 30, 2022, 2 Kings 1 to 2, Answers.

SPIRITUAL GEMS:Week of October 24 to 30, 2022, 1 Kings 1 to 2, Answers.

Spiritual Gems: (10 mins.)

2Ki 2:11. Where did Elijah go when he "went up into heaven in the windstorm"? (w05 8/1 9 par. 1) .

Elijah did not go to any distant part of the physical universe or to the place where God and his angelic children live, since when it is said that "he ascended to heaven in the windstorm", it means that the chariot of fire transported him to through the atmosphere or to another place on earth and not outside of it. Where he lived for some time and we can be sure of that because Years later Elijah wrote a letter to Jehoram, the king of Judah.

ADDITIONAL COMMENT

We can think that Elijah went to a spiritual region, since the text says that he went up to heaven but it was not like that, proof of this is that after 2 years later he writes a letter in this case he writes to the King of Judah, thus showing that what happened next is that Elijah was just transferred from where he was to another place on Earth.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 

(ANSWERS BASED ON THE BOOK: EXAMPLES OF FAITH, PAGE: 1 (ijwia).

Some religions teach that he was taken up to heaven to be with God. But that is impossible. Centuries later, Jesus Christ said that no one had gone to heaven before his time according to John 3:13. 

So when the Bible says that “Elijah went up to heaven in the windstorm”, what does it mean? The Bible uses the word “heavens” to refer not only to the place where Jehovah lives, but also to the atmospheric region of our planet, that is, where the clouds are and the birds fly .

Jehovah simply transferred his beloved prophet to the nearby kingdom of Judah to fulfill a new mission. The biblical account shows that, perhaps seven years later, Elijah was still there. At that time, the wicked Jehoram was the king of Judah. He was married to the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, so the malevolent influence of this couple was still felt. Jehovah told Elijah to write a letter announcing the sentence against Jehoram. As predicted, Jehoram died a horrible death. And worst of all, the story ends by saying that no one mourned his death.

What spiritual gems have you found about Jehovah, the ministry, and other topics in this week's Bible reading?

2 Kings 1:2. We see that in order to find out about his illness and what the future holds for him, Ahaziah the king of Israel sought the help of false gods instead of turning to Jehovah. This teaches me that if we let ourselves be overcome by despair when we lose our health, we could end up violating Jehovah's standards by resorting to people or medical procedures inappropriate for a Christian, and in this case, what we would put at stake would be our spiritual health and our eternal future.

2 Kings 1:9. He says that they found Elijah on top of the mountain, we can learn a lot from this fact from Elijah. Although we cannot be sure why Elijah was there, we do know that he was a man of prayer, so it is possible that the tranquility of that place will help him get closer to Jehovah. In the same way, we can also look for opportunities to be alone and talk to God using his name while entrusting our problems and worries to him.

2 Kings 1:8. We read how this King immediately identifies Elijah by his clothing, which leads us to the conclusion that today, as then, the way we dress can connect us with certain classes of people. Although we may not practice what they practice or believe what they believe, so we should always dress modestly, typical of God's servants.

2 Kings 2:1,12. He shows that when Elisha found out that Elijah's work in Israel was about to end. he did not want to leave him, because he was determined to stay with his teacher as long as possible, as young people we want to achieve positions of responsibility and goals in the congregation. So from Elisha we learn that we should gladly accept any task that they do not take on, even if it is humble, and we should also see those who lead the congregation as our friends from whom we want to learn.

2 Kings 2:12. It teaches me the kind of friends we should seek, and these are found only among God's people. So let us seek the company of loyal brothers and from whom we can learn, receive their help and thus strengthen our faith.

2 Kings 1:2. It teaches us that we always have the option to consult Jehovah regardless of our situation, since he does not force us to do so. We see that the king suffered an accident in his house when he fell through a grating of his roof chamber which left him sick and seriously bedridden. And you knew as if Jehovah did not exist, instead of asking Jehovah to help him, he inquired of the Philistine God Baal Zebub to see the possibilities of his recovery.

2 Kings 1:3. There are people who know how to do the right thing but don't want to do it. Instead of seeking God, they use magic, spiritualism, so-called experts. Perhaps we think that we would never do that, but what if we do things our way and skip Jehovah's instructions, because if we take freedoms that do not correspond to us would be removing God from our lives and we must be careful of that spirit of independence that we see in this system, which could trap us and make us make many mistakes that we could later regret.

2 Kings 1:7. The way we dress can relate to certain classes of people, although we may not practice what they practice and believe what they believe, people at least assume that we sympathize with the class of people who dress like that, since if we dress like them we will have problems, such as when it comes to obtaining employment or enjoying certain privileges in the Christian congregation.

2 Kings 1:11-14. It teaches us about how to treat others, especially our brothers and sisters in the congregation, for some people it is normal to belittle elders, even make fun of them, but Jehovah's servants can set a good example by treating with respect and good manners to our brothers, We use the please, thank you, and our tone of voice, all this will result in a blessing for the entire congregation.

2 Kings 2:23-25. We can use this verse in preaching to preach to young people and parents, normally we use texts that teach the name of God, Obedience to parents, but it teaches a practical lesson about the importance of educating children correctly, and the blessings this brings to all.

2 Kings 2:6. We see that Elijah trained Elisha. This reminds us of the importance of good training in the congregation. He knew he didn't have much time left on his assignment. For that reason we want to be generous and train those who have the good and right attitude, no doubt. This will significantly strengthen and help the congregation.

2 Kings 2:2. Eliseo wanted to learn from his teacher, he didn't let go. Nowadays there are young people who want to progress in the congregation. If they imitate Eliseo's good attitude and willingly accept any task assigned to them, they see his teacher as a friend and appreciate his efforts. That is how to tell him I will not leave you I want to continue learning from you, that without a doubt is the attitude that we must cultivate.

2 Kings 1:8. Being identified as a prophet was an honorable thing. Similarly, being identified as a Jehovah's Witness is something honorable, we remember that we are Jehovah's Witnesses all the time, not just when we go to meetings. This motivates us to take care of our personal grooming, such as personal cleanliness and our style of dress. 

Personally, reading these two chapters of 2 Kings has encouraged me a lot , because now I want to imitate Elijah more and I have a faith that helps me endure despite the difficulties. And for this I have seen that I must seek friends who love God, and concentrate on spiritual things and pray often from the heart.

2 Kings 1:8. We see that Elijah led a simple life, He focused on serving Jehovah, so it is easy to identify him by the description of his clothes. So Elijah's example reminds us that we must follow Jesus' advice to have a simple eye, that is, to lead a life focused on what really matters, what is our service to God. 

2 Kings 1:9,10. It shows us that when the Israelites did not treat the people Jehovah had chosen with due respect, he disciplined them, from which we learn that we should always respect those in authority over us. We know that those who lead the congregation are imperfect like us, but let us remember that they have been chosen by Jehovah for this work.

2 Kings 1:3,4. It makes me think of a situation, and it is that today it is still very common that when a person is very sick, they go to healers or sorcerers to find out what is happening to the person, but as Christians we should never fall into that trap, because if we do it we would be turning our backs completely on Jehovah and therefore we would lose his approval. 

2 Kings 1:17 . Jehovah teaches me that everything he says will always be fulfilled without fail and even today we see many of his prophecies being fulfilled.

2 Kings 1:2. We can also see that in the same case Ocozias, apparently due to an accident, became seriously ill and instead of seeking help from Jehovah, he resorted to false gods. We could apply this text from another point of view, for example today many people also desperate to recover their health resort to occult practices but this text teaches us that for no reason should we violate Jehovah's rules or else we will suffer the consequences for our sin.

2 Kings 2:23. We see that some children make fun of Eliseo and that brings them death as a consequence. This teaches us as Christian parents we must educate our children well from birth to prevent them from developing inappropriate behavior from Jehovah's point of view when they are older. In this particular case, we must teach them that mockers suffer the consequences of their bad behavior, and that in view of this, it is best to respect all people.

2 Kings 2:9. We see how Elisha asked for two parts of Elijah's spirit, because he was aware that to fulfill his responsibility as prophet of Israel he would need the same spirit of courage and fearlessness that Elijah had. This teaches me that if I ever feel that I cannot handle an assignment, I can also ask Jehovah to instill that spirit of courage in me. That's what Elisha did and he received a double portion.

2 Kings 1:13,14. We see how the third chief of 50 knelt before Elijah and begged him for his life and for the life of his 50 men, since the fire that comes down from heaven devoured the other chiefs of 50 and the men of these. These texts teach me that we should learn from what we see instead of expecting to learn from what happens to us in our own flesh and that a humble attitude can save your life.

2 Kings 2:2,4,6. These texts teach me a magnificent example of loyalty and friendship, which especially the youth of the congregation can imitate in relation to their older brothers, since they show that although Elisha had been Elijah's assistant for more than 6 years, without However, he did not want to leave it.

2 Kings 2:14. He shows that Elisha takes a garment that Elijah had dropped and went to the Jordan River and hit the waters, then he asked Jehovah, Where is Jehovah the God of Elijah? and Jehovah answered him with a demonstration that his spirit was now upon him. This teaches me that Jehovah leads us as a people and blesses our efforts to carry out his work. So we must follow his instructions and actively participate in the preaching and be very attached to his organization through the congregation, if we want to have his blessings and his approval.

2 Kings 2:23,24. It shows that when the Israelites did not treat their prophet with respect, Jehovah disciplined them. This teaches me that we should willingly obey and respect those in authority within the congregation because if we do not we will also receive discipline from Jehovah.

2 Kings 2:11. It shows that Elijah and Elisha continued to converse until the very last moments of Elijah's Ministry in Israel, which makes it clear that Elisha was eager to absorb as much instruction and encouragement as possible from his older and more experienced companions. This teaches me that young people should be willing to have friends and older brothers in the congregation and want to absorb their experience and knowledge from them, and older brothers should also be willing to spend time with their younger brothers in order to give them encouragement and encouragement. instruction.

2 Kings 1:1. This book of Second Kings begins with the declaration that after the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel, this event can be confirmed thanks to Archaeology, since the Moabite Stone was a find of special importance in the area that remains East of the Jordan, discovered in 1868, presents the version of King Mesha about his uprising against Israel, which confirms what the Bible says.

2 Kings 1:3. This story can help us understand, because the name of Beelzebub appears later, a name given to Satan, the prince or ruler of the demons, since it is possibly an alteration of Baal-Zebub, the Baal that the Philistines worshiped in Ekron.

2 Kings 1:7, 8. When the messengers who came to King Ahaziah and reported meeting a man who gave them a certain message, the king asked what the man looked like, when they described his clothing , the king said it was Elijah, this shows that the way we dress says a lot about us, that's why we should always dress in a way that honors Jehovah and his people.

2 Kings 1:18. Ahaziah was the son of Ahab and Jezebel and was king of Israel for two years, Moab took advantage of the opportunity to rebel, Ahaziah made no effort to subjugate the Moabites, perhaps due to the accident he suffered and sent messengers to inquire of the Philistine god Baal- Zebub to recover, Elijah went out to meet him and told them that Ahaziah's sickbed would become his deathbed, then Elijah went down and delivered the death message directly to Ahaziah.

2 Kings 2:3. After about six years, Elisha was already well trained, he was determined to stay with his teacher as long as possible and Jehovah saw Elisha's loyalty and rewarded him by letting him see his master's spectacular game, we can imitate Elisha by accepting gladly any task that they entrust to us, even if it is humble, let us see those who train us as friends and let us tell them that we greatly appreciate their efforts.

2 Kings 2:9. Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah's spirit because he was aware that to fulfill his responsibility as prophet of Israel he would need the same brave and intrepid spirit that Elijah had had, Elisha saw in him a spiritual father and just as the literal firstborn received two parts From his father's inheritance, Elisha asked for and received a double portion of Elijah's spiritual inheritance.

2 Kings 2:14. Upon returning to the Jordan River, Elisha hit the waters with the same garment as Elijah and the waters were divided again, Elisha's first miracle was exactly the same as Elijah's last, this shows that Elisha decided to continue his work as a prophet in the same way as Elijah had been doing it and did not try to do new things, he showed respect for his teacher and thanks to that he gained the trust of his fellow prophets.