Pounding Arrows: A Teaching from Jim Gallagher
During the November 2025 Calvary Chapel Association (CCA) International Pastors Conference, experienced leaders delivered powerful teachings to build up and encourage attendees fulfilling the legacy left by Pastor Chuck Smith. Featured here is one from Jim Gallagher, senior pastor of CC Vero Beach, FL. View the archived teaching at the end.
“I hope you’re not thinking, How could God ever use me? [But] I hope you are thinking, … What part do I play?”
Jim Gallagher, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Vero Beach, FL, challenged pastors and leaders as he closed his address at the CCA International Pastors Conference in November 2025. He taught from 2 Kings 13:1-20, which tells the story of Israel’s spiritual decline, great oppression and military defeat from Syria, and the death of the prophet Elisha.
He described the passage as a story of transition. “It’s not a traditional one,” such as Moses passing leadership to Joshua, Eli passing on his prophetic ministry to Samuel, David the kingdom to Solomon, and Elijah passing on that voice of calling people back to God to Elisha. “[Rather] this is more of a transition of how it is that the work of God transitions from one generation to the next … when one group ages out.”
Israel has continued doing evil in the sight of the Lord, following the sins of its first king, Jeroboam, who invited idolatry to the nation and chose to abandon God and shape Him in his own image. God’s anger is roused against Israel, as He delivers them to Hazael, king of Syria, and his son. When King Jehoahaz pleads with God, He listens and sends a deliverer. Despite that rescue, Israel still repeats the sins of Jeroboam through the reigns of Jehoahaz and his son, Joash. The nation is weakened, and the army is wrecked.
Pastor Jim believes the context implies that the deliverer, who is not named, was Elisha. “He simply had the Word of God, used to deliver Israel out of the threat of the Syrians.” He continued, “It would be wonderful if the story ended there. Unfortunately, … what happens in the text is what happens in the modern world as well. That is, tragedy happens and people turn to the Lord; but as soon as the tragedy subsides, [they] turn right back to their sinful actions.”
Beginning in verse 14, Joash is now king, and Elisha is dying. Joash visits him, weeping at the sight of “this ailing, aged prophet … passing from this life into eternity.” The king recognizes that “the real strength of the nation is not their chariots, … their horsemen, … their army. It’s this prophet. … What he’s saying is that when Elisha passes away, [they] have no hope. This is a sad moment.”
But this is where the story is filled with application for our lives, Jim confirmed. “Elisha is going to teach Joash where Israel’s real strength lies, and he’s going to invite Joash to carry the work of God forward.”
Elisha asks the king to take a bow and some arrows, open the east window, and shoot the arrows. In the process, Elisha puts his hand on the king’s hand, helping him to pull back the bow, encouraging Joash: “The arrow of the LORD’s deliverance … from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians … till you have destroyed them” (2 Kings 13:17b). “This is symbolic. God is promising to place His hand on King Joash in the same way that He placed His hand on Elisha. He will enable [Joash] to carry forth the work of God … for what God called Joash to. God will continue to do His work through willing vessels.”
Then Elisha instructed Joash to strike the ground with the arrows. So he struck three times and stopped (v. 18b). “He wasn’t told to stop. We’re told here that it invoked anger in Elisha.” Elisha responded in verse 19, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! But now you will strike Syria only three times.” Jim explained, “That’s all that Joash [got] because he failed to strike the ground.”
Pastor Jim left the passage to describe people in the Bible and throughout history whom God used to accomplish great purposes—"how they struck the ground with their arrows.” This included missionaries and men from the Calvary Chapel movement. “Hopefully there will be a stirring in us to do the same. I hope this passage is invoking in you a desire to pick up arrows and pound them on the ground.”
However, Jim noted, there may have been a reason Joash only struck the ground three times—continued sin. “It seems Joash continued in the sins of Jeroboam. Something’s keeping him from being able to strike those arrows, from being able to engage in that which he was being invited into by Elisha to carry forth the work of God.”
Jim exhorted the pastors, “If there’s something in your life that’s keeping you from being able to pick up those arrows, pound them on the ground, and step into the call of God to participate in the work He’s doing, get [it] off your shoulder. Let’s see God release you into the call that he has for your life.”
Thank you for reading! If this story inspired you, we invite you to partner with us in continuing the ministry God started over 26 years ago. We appreciate your prayerful consideration in joining us to reach more souls for Jesus.
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