Naaman 6 - The Fearless Prophet
2 Kings 5
6 Then he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which said, Now be advised,
when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that
you may heal him of his leprosy.
7 And it happened, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his
clothes and said, "Am I God, to kill and make alive, that this man sends a man
to me to heal him of his leprosy? Therefore please consider, and see how he seeks
a quarrel with me."
8 So it was, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn
his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, "Why have you torn your clothes?
Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel."
NKJV
If the king of Israel went into a panic when he received the letter from the
king of Syria, the Prophet Elisha had a very different response. He saw in this
request an opportunity to bring glory to the God of Israel whom he represented.
It was Elisha's complete faith in God whom he represented that caused him to
respond in this bold manner.
Did Elisha already know what he was going to do when Naaman came to see him?
Maybe not. But he did know that God had used him to work miracles before, and
this was an opportunity God had allowed for Elisha to demonstrate the power of
Israel's God.
A prophet who came after Elisha wrote the following:
Surely the Lord God does nothing, unless he reveals his secret to his servants
the prophets.
(Amos 3:7 NKJV)
Elisha could trust that by the time Naaman came to his home, God would reveal
to him how the situation was to be handled.
In this way Elisha's faith rescued the nation from whatever misguided action the
king planned to take as a result of his fearful thinking.
It is clear therefore that fear and panic causes us to miss God and respond
destructively. Faith causes us to be open to the creative solutions that God
is always willing to give us.
Prayer:
Father, I thank You for the opportunity to trust you and open myself to the
creative solutions that You will give me as I face the challenges of life today,
in Jesus' name
Amen.
