The Mantle - 6.29.25 The Rev. Vincent Pizzuto, Ph.D.

Third Sunday after Pentecost

Old Testament: 2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

¹Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. ²Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. ⁶Then Elijah said to him, “Stay here; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. ⁷Fifty men of the company of prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. ⁸Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, until the two of them crossed on dry ground.

⁹When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, “Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you.” Elisha said, “Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” ¹⁰He responded, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.” ¹¹As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. ¹²Elisha kept watching and crying out, “Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

¹³He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. ¹⁴He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” When he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.

Psalm: Psalm 77:1-2, 11-20

¹ I will cry aloud to God; *
        I will cry aloud, and he will hear me.
² In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord; *
        my hands were stretched out by night and did not tire;
        I refused to be comforted.

¹¹ I will remember the works of the Lord, *
        and call to mind your wonders of old time.
¹² I will meditate on all your acts *
        and ponder your mighty deeds.
¹³ Your way, O God, is holy; *
        who is so great a god as our God?
¹⁴ You are the God who works wonders *
        and have declared your power among the peoples.
¹⁵ By your strength you have redeemed your people, *
        the children of Jacob and Joseph.
¹⁶ The waters saw you, O God;
    the waters saw you and trembled; *
        the very depths were shaken.
¹⁷ The clouds poured out water;
    the skies thundered; *
        your arrows flashed to and fro;
¹⁸ The sound of your thunder was in the whirlwind;
    your lightnings lit up the world; *
        the earth trembled and shook.
¹⁹ Your way was in the sea,
    and your paths in the great waters, *
        yet your footsteps were not seen.
²⁰ You led your people like a flock *
        by the hand of Moses and Aaron.

Old Testament: 1 Kings 19:15-16, 19-21

¹⁵Then the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram.¹⁶Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place.

¹⁹So he set out from there, and found Elisha son of Shaphat, who was plowing. There were twelve yoke of oxen ahead of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle over him. ²⁰He left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, “Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” Then Elijah said to him, “Go back again; for what have I done to you?” ²¹He returned from following him, took the yoke of oxen, and slaughtered them; using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out and followed Elijah, and became his servant.

Psalm: Psalm 16

¹ Protect me, O God, for I take refuge in you; *
        I have said to the Lord, “You are my Lord,
        my good above all other.”
² All my delight is upon the godly that are in the land, *
        upon those who are noble among the people.
³ But those who run after other gods *
        shall have their troubles multiplied.
⁴ Their libations of blood I will not offer, *
        nor take the names of their gods upon my lips.
⁵ O Lord, you are my portion and my cup; *
        it is you who uphold my lot.
⁶ My boundaries enclose a pleasant land; *
        indeed, I have a goodly heritage.
⁷ I will bless the Lord who gives me counsel; *
        my heart teaches me, night after night.
⁸ I have set the Lord always before me; *
        because he is at my right hand I shall not fall.
⁹ My heart, therefore, is glad, and my spirit rejoices; *
        my body also shall rest in hope.
¹⁰ For you will not abandon me to the grave, *
        nor let your holy one see the Pit.
¹¹ You will show me the path of life; *
        in your presence there is fullness of joy,
        and in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.

Epistle: Galatians 5:1, 13-25

¹For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

¹³For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. ¹⁴For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another. ¹⁶Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want. ¹⁸But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law. ¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, ²⁰idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions,²¹envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²²By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, ²³gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. ²⁴And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.

Gospel: Luke 9:51-62

⁵¹When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. ⁵²And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; ⁵³but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. ⁵⁴When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, “Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?” ⁵⁵But he turned and rebuked them. ⁵⁶Then they went on to another village.

⁵⁷As they were going along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” ⁵⁸And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” ⁵⁹To another he said, “Follow me.” But he said, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” ⁶⁰But Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead; but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”⁶¹Another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” ⁶²Jesus said to him, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”