Seek the cure! – 2 Kings 5:1-3, 9-15a
Seek the cure! – 2 Kings 5:1-3, 9-15a
By Pastor Lee Hemen
September 23, 2018
Our background can and does influence our lives today. How we were raised, educated, and how we were taught about morality, religion, patriotism, and such makes a huge impact on our lives. However as we can later decide for ourselves how we will relate to our world and others, that’s how we grow and mature or degenerate and digress. The choice is ours to make.
Chapter 5 of 2 Kings reveals Elisha was a man of God. We are now introduced to Naaman a commander in his king’s army. He was a man of prominence, power, and influence. He was not used to taking order from those he thought inferior to his status in life. He commanded others but this man of power was also sick with a disease that would have precluded him from being everything in his life he could have been. He could be cured but he would need to do just one thing: seek the cure! Let’s find out what happens…
READ: 2 Kings 5:1-3, 9-15a
God can and does use different people in our lives in order to bring us closer to him. We discover that Naaman was no different. We discover that…
I. When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen! (Vv. 1-3)
Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy. Now bands from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
1. In these verses we discover Naaman who was the commander of the army of Aram under the unidentified Aramean king. Aram was another name for the nation of Syria. Naaman was a great man, second in power under the king. He was highly regarded by the king because the Lord had given military victories to him. We learn that “He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy.” The word for “leprosy” can mean any form of skin disease. Whatever it was it would have been a problem for Naaman because any form of skin disease was seen as a curse or at best something or someone who had it was to be avoided. Yet little did Naaman suspect that within his life there were others he never would have thought would be able to help him. It began when “bands from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife”. This young Israelite captive slave girl would change a prominent warrior’s life forever. Evidently Naaman and his wife were kind to this slave girl because she sought Naaman’s welfare. Naaman could obtain physical and spiritual healing from God through Elisha if he listened to and obeyed good advice. She possibly had heard of Elisha since she was an Israelite captive. Apparently she assumed he could cleanse leprosy in view of his supernatural power. No leper in Israel, though, was healed in Elisha’s day, but Naaman would be if he was willing to listen. The young slave girl tells her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” To experience God’s salvation from sin, a person must hear the message of salvation and respond to God’s call to come to Jesus for salvation. When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen!
EXAMPLE: My mother used to ask us, “Did you hear what I said to you?” when she wanted to know if we were actually listening or not. My dad would remind us that we had better listen to our mother for our own sake. Often when we know we should listen and respond we don’t do so. Naaman learned that when God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen!
Interestingly the slave girl’s faith in the Lord may have been an indirect rebuke to Israel’s King Joram who had no faith in God. Naaman had a choice to make and in this we learn that…
II. When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision! (Vv. 9-12)
So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.” But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.
1. We find out that Naaman was a man willing to listen and “So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house.” The journey Naaman had to make was longer than the Bible shares. It would have taken him days to go to Israel and then to find Elisha, but he does just that. The King of Israel thought he was being set up and tears his robes in anguish and fear. However Elisha tells him to buck up and have Naaman come to him and then he would know “there is a prophet in Israel” (v. 8). So here is Naaman the great commander of Aram outside of the door of Elisha the scruffy prophet and what does Elisha do? “Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, ‘Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.’” Would Naaman do as he was asked? Would he humble himself? “But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.’” When he was asked to do something easy like find a prophet, Naaman was willing. Most people are more than willing to seek easy answers to their problems. Have them light a candle, walk on bended knees, make absolution, or do something good for another then they will do that; but ask them to trust in something they cannot see and their pride gets in the way. Naaman’s did and he pridefully declares, “Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” The answer is “no” he could not he had to do what God asked him to do through his prophet. “So” like so many prideful people “he turned and went off in a rage.” When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision!
EXAMPLE: Change can be hard in our lives if we try to do it on our own but with the help of God we can do all things. Naaman made known his disgust that he had to dip himself in the river Jordan. He was offended, he was angered, and he knew he had a decision to make. Scripture teaches that when a person obeys God’s call and comes to him through Christ in repentance and faith, that person needs to confess Christ publicly. New believers need to tell others of their commitments, make their public professions of faith in church services, follow the Lord in believers’ baptism, and begin living lives of faith and service. When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision!
Knowing what to do and doing it are two different things. With the help of others Naaman begins to realize that…
III. When we are shown the cure we must seek it! (Vv. 13-15)
Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy. Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. Please accept now a gift from your servant.”
1. Sometimes the people God places around us are wiser than we are. “Naaman’s servants went to him and said, ‘My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, “Wash and be cleansed”!’” Now isn’t this little fact interesting. When others know what we need to do and come to us are we willing to make the right choice and accept their advice and do what we need to do? Sadly this often isn’t the case. Either we humble ourselves or allow our pride to dictate to us what we should do. Humility can go a long way in helping us become the person God desires. Calling Naaman “father” was a term of respect and endearment his servants reasoned with him that he would have done some great thing if Elisha had so instructed. Therefore, why not do as the prophet said and wash himself in the Jordan? Naaman had good advice from a Hebrew slave girl, Elisha’s servant, and then from his own servants. We learn that finally Naaman “went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.” Naaman was not made clean the first time he submerged himself, nor the second time, or the third time and on to the sixth time he still was not cleansed. Did he feel foolish, was he getting angrier at his humiliation as a warrior dipping himself in a river in a conquered country in front of his servants and fellow soldiers? Naaman overcame his initial rejection of Elisha’s command and followed through with faith, trusting Elisha’s instructions. He is then completely cleansed. He then had to do one more thing: “Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him humbled and said, ‘Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. Please accept now a gift from your servant.’” Repentance requires faith in action. When we are shown the cure we must seek it!
EXAMPLE: Every country had gods. Phoenicia had Baal, Moab had Chemosh, Ammon had Moloch, Babylon had Bel, and Egypt had Ra. But these gods were only idols—none of them were real, living gods. Rimmon was the Syrian version of Baal, a god of fertility, storms, and rain. Rimmon was also known as Hadad. Only Israel worshiped the true and living God. Because of what the Lord God had done for Naaman, he renounced loyalty to the Syrian god Rimmon and trusted in the true God alone. Naaman confessed, “I know Israel’s God is the only God.” Naaman knew this—not because he had heard the confession of someone else but through his personal experience with God. Through faith in God, Naaman was made whole physically and spiritually. Like Naaman when we are shown the cure we must seek it!
Conclusion:
When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen! When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision! When we are shown the cure we must seek it!
----
This article is copyrighted © 2018 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
By Pastor Lee Hemen
September 23, 2018
Our background can and does influence our lives today. How we were raised, educated, and how we were taught about morality, religion, patriotism, and such makes a huge impact on our lives. However as we can later decide for ourselves how we will relate to our world and others, that’s how we grow and mature or degenerate and digress. The choice is ours to make.
Chapter 5 of 2 Kings reveals Elisha was a man of God. We are now introduced to Naaman a commander in his king’s army. He was a man of prominence, power, and influence. He was not used to taking order from those he thought inferior to his status in life. He commanded others but this man of power was also sick with a disease that would have precluded him from being everything in his life he could have been. He could be cured but he would need to do just one thing: seek the cure! Let’s find out what happens…
READ: 2 Kings 5:1-3, 9-15a
God can and does use different people in our lives in order to bring us closer to him. We discover that Naaman was no different. We discover that…
I. When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen! (Vv. 1-3)
Now Naaman was commander of the army of the king of Aram. He was a great man in the sight of his master and highly regarded, because through him the LORD had given victory to Aram. He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy. Now bands from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
1. In these verses we discover Naaman who was the commander of the army of Aram under the unidentified Aramean king. Aram was another name for the nation of Syria. Naaman was a great man, second in power under the king. He was highly regarded by the king because the Lord had given military victories to him. We learn that “He was a valiant soldier, but he had leprosy.” The word for “leprosy” can mean any form of skin disease. Whatever it was it would have been a problem for Naaman because any form of skin disease was seen as a curse or at best something or someone who had it was to be avoided. Yet little did Naaman suspect that within his life there were others he never would have thought would be able to help him. It began when “bands from Aram had gone out and had taken captive a young girl from Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife”. This young Israelite captive slave girl would change a prominent warrior’s life forever. Evidently Naaman and his wife were kind to this slave girl because she sought Naaman’s welfare. Naaman could obtain physical and spiritual healing from God through Elisha if he listened to and obeyed good advice. She possibly had heard of Elisha since she was an Israelite captive. Apparently she assumed he could cleanse leprosy in view of his supernatural power. No leper in Israel, though, was healed in Elisha’s day, but Naaman would be if he was willing to listen. The young slave girl tells her mistress, “If only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” To experience God’s salvation from sin, a person must hear the message of salvation and respond to God’s call to come to Jesus for salvation. When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen!
EXAMPLE: My mother used to ask us, “Did you hear what I said to you?” when she wanted to know if we were actually listening or not. My dad would remind us that we had better listen to our mother for our own sake. Often when we know we should listen and respond we don’t do so. Naaman learned that when God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen!
Interestingly the slave girl’s faith in the Lord may have been an indirect rebuke to Israel’s King Joram who had no faith in God. Naaman had a choice to make and in this we learn that…
II. When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision! (Vv. 9-12)
So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.” But Naaman went away angry and said, “I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy. Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” So he turned and went off in a rage.
1. We find out that Naaman was a man willing to listen and “So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and stopped at the door of Elisha’s house.” The journey Naaman had to make was longer than the Bible shares. It would have taken him days to go to Israel and then to find Elisha, but he does just that. The King of Israel thought he was being set up and tears his robes in anguish and fear. However Elisha tells him to buck up and have Naaman come to him and then he would know “there is a prophet in Israel” (v. 8). So here is Naaman the great commander of Aram outside of the door of Elisha the scruffy prophet and what does Elisha do? “Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, ‘Go, wash yourself seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.’” Would Naaman do as he was asked? Would he humble himself? “But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.’” When he was asked to do something easy like find a prophet, Naaman was willing. Most people are more than willing to seek easy answers to their problems. Have them light a candle, walk on bended knees, make absolution, or do something good for another then they will do that; but ask them to trust in something they cannot see and their pride gets in the way. Naaman’s did and he pridefully declares, “Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than any of the waters of Israel? Couldn’t I wash in them and be cleansed?” The answer is “no” he could not he had to do what God asked him to do through his prophet. “So” like so many prideful people “he turned and went off in a rage.” When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision!
EXAMPLE: Change can be hard in our lives if we try to do it on our own but with the help of God we can do all things. Naaman made known his disgust that he had to dip himself in the river Jordan. He was offended, he was angered, and he knew he had a decision to make. Scripture teaches that when a person obeys God’s call and comes to him through Christ in repentance and faith, that person needs to confess Christ publicly. New believers need to tell others of their commitments, make their public professions of faith in church services, follow the Lord in believers’ baptism, and begin living lives of faith and service. When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision!
Knowing what to do and doing it are two different things. With the help of others Naaman begins to realize that…
III. When we are shown the cure we must seek it! (Vv. 13-15)
Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” So he went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy. Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. Please accept now a gift from your servant.”
1. Sometimes the people God places around us are wiser than we are. “Naaman’s servants went to him and said, ‘My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, “Wash and be cleansed”!’” Now isn’t this little fact interesting. When others know what we need to do and come to us are we willing to make the right choice and accept their advice and do what we need to do? Sadly this often isn’t the case. Either we humble ourselves or allow our pride to dictate to us what we should do. Humility can go a long way in helping us become the person God desires. Calling Naaman “father” was a term of respect and endearment his servants reasoned with him that he would have done some great thing if Elisha had so instructed. Therefore, why not do as the prophet said and wash himself in the Jordan? Naaman had good advice from a Hebrew slave girl, Elisha’s servant, and then from his own servants. We learn that finally Naaman “went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had told him, and his flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.” Naaman was not made clean the first time he submerged himself, nor the second time, or the third time and on to the sixth time he still was not cleansed. Did he feel foolish, was he getting angrier at his humiliation as a warrior dipping himself in a river in a conquered country in front of his servants and fellow soldiers? Naaman overcame his initial rejection of Elisha’s command and followed through with faith, trusting Elisha’s instructions. He is then completely cleansed. He then had to do one more thing: “Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God. He stood before him humbled and said, ‘Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel. Please accept now a gift from your servant.’” Repentance requires faith in action. When we are shown the cure we must seek it!
EXAMPLE: Every country had gods. Phoenicia had Baal, Moab had Chemosh, Ammon had Moloch, Babylon had Bel, and Egypt had Ra. But these gods were only idols—none of them were real, living gods. Rimmon was the Syrian version of Baal, a god of fertility, storms, and rain. Rimmon was also known as Hadad. Only Israel worshiped the true and living God. Because of what the Lord God had done for Naaman, he renounced loyalty to the Syrian god Rimmon and trusted in the true God alone. Naaman confessed, “I know Israel’s God is the only God.” Naaman knew this—not because he had heard the confession of someone else but through his personal experience with God. Through faith in God, Naaman was made whole physically and spiritually. Like Naaman when we are shown the cure we must seek it!
Conclusion:
When God brings others into our lives we need to be willing to listen! When God confronts us to make changes we must make a decision! When we are shown the cure we must seek it!
----
This article is copyrighted © 2018 by Lee Hemen and is the sole property of Lee Hemen, and may not be used unless you quote the entire article and have my permission.
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