Standing on the Shoulders of Giants by Steven Brooks Read Free Book Online Page B

angel of the Lord appeared to him
, standing on the right side of the altar of incense (Luke 1:11).
    Notice the position of where the angel appeared to Zacharias. It was at the right of the altar of incense where Elijah’s mantle was believed to have been stored. Many Jewish scholars believe that as John the Baptist grew into a young man and headed into the desert to prepare for his ministry of being a forerunner for the Lord, that his father took the original mantle of Elijah from the temple and gave it to John. Onething is for sure, John the Baptist walked in the spirit and power of Elijah. The Lord will find, call, and develop those whom He desires to mantle with heavenly authority.
E LIJAH AND J OHN THE B APTIST
    Concerning John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit foretold through the prophet Malachi saying:
    Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord
(Malachi 4:5).
    Jesus also spoke of John during his earthly ministry:
    The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. But I tell you
, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him,
but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.”
Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist (Matthew 17:10-13 NIV).
C ONNECTING IN THE S PIRIT
    Mantles are very interesting because they allow you to connect in the Spirit with perhaps someone you have never met or seen in person. John the Baptist could not have met Elijah because Elijah lived hundreds of years earlier. Yet John received the mantle of Elijah. It is important to understand that there is no distance in the spirit realm. The presence of the Holy Spirit upon one’s life demonstrated through thesymbolic representation of a mantle allows a person to identify with the one who originally wore the mantle. The identification can sometimes be so strong that it will even influence the way a person may dress. For instance, have you ever wondered why John the Baptist wore the same kind of clothing that Elijah did? The following two verses speak about this.
    Then he said to them, “What kind of man was it who came up to meet you and told you these words?” So they answered him, “
A hairy man wearing a leather belt around his waist .
” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite”
(2 Kings 1:7-8).
    For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah, saying;
    “The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
    ‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
    Make His paths straight.’ ”
    Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey
(Matthew 3:3-4).
    Did you notice how Elijah and John both had the same style of clothing? That is because it is the same Holy Spirit that was upon each of them. The same Spirit that anointed Elijah as a mighty prophet also anointed John the Baptist to be a prophet and a forerunner of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Although the personality that God gave you is unique, it is possible for a mantle to influence certain areas of your life in a similar way that it influenced the previous person.
    Both Elijah and John wore rough clothing. I don’t know how they did it without wearing a tee shirt underneath. Theitching and rubbing of coarse camel hair would drive me crazy. I couldn’t preach in camel clothes because I’d be too busy scratching my back and chest! I guess after a while a person would get used to it, but I’d hate to go through the transition process. But that is what their calling required, and to them it was most likely enjoyable and invigorating.
    The similarities that can occur between two individuals when a mantle is passed on can be quite amazing. In my own life when I received the first mantle that the Lord had for me, which was worn by a