2 Kings 5: 1-14
Naaman Healed of Leprosy
Naaman was the
commander of the army of Syria. He was a great man and in high favour with his
master because through him the Lord had given Syria great victories. But life
is never perfect. Even though he was a mighty warrior, Naaman suffered from
leprosy.
Naaman had captured a
little girl from Israel and made her a maid of his wife. And this little girl
told Naaman's wife, “My lord can go to see the prophet in Samaria! He would
cure my lord of his leprosy.” (v.3)
She was merely a
nameless maid of a defeated nation Israel, could what she said be reliable? And
if the prophets of Israel were so powerful, would Israel be defeated?
However, Naaman gave
it a try.
Naaman first sought
consent from his king, the king of Syria. The king loved Naaman so much, and he
sent Naaman away with a letter of recommendation to the king of Israel. So Naaman went to Israel, taking along with
him money and treasures.
The king of Israel,
after reading the letter from the Syrian king: “I have sent to you Naaman my
servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy”, immediately tore his clothes
and said, “How could I cure a man of his leprosy. I think he just wants to
create trouble.” (v.7)
Though Israel had a
prophet from God, its king ignored him, not seeking God through the prophet.
Alas it was the Syrian king who took Naaman seriously and Naaman sought God
through the prophet Elisha!
When Elisha heard
that, he sent a message to his king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes?
Let him come now to me that he may know that there is a prophet in Israel.
“(v.8)
So Naaman came with
his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha did not
come to meet Naaman, but sent a messenger to tell Naaman, “Go and wash in the
Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.”
(v.10)
Elisha’s not coming
out to greet Naaman demonstrated that the prophet was not subjected to Naaman's
request, but Naaman had to humbly listen to the words of the prophet.
Naaman was angry and
went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and
stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the
place and cure the leper. And are not the rivers of Damascus better than all
the waters of Israel. Could I not wash in them and be clean?” (vv.11-12)
Of course, the Jordan
River was no magical river. Jordan’s water could heal because the healing power
came from God’s words and man's obedience to God's words.
Today, God's free grace
is for everyone. It is up to you if you are willing to submit yourself to God.
Here, apparently,
Elisha not only wanted to heal Naaman of leprosy but also of his
misconceptions. Naaman had two pre-conceived ideas: (i) unhappy with Elisha
seemingly dishonouring him; and (ii) God must heal in the way he thinks fit.
So Naaman turned and
went away in a rage. But his unnamed servants came near and said to him, “My
father, if something great the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it?
Now that he said “wash and be clean” which is a simple thing to do, so you
should give a try.”
So Naaman reluctantly
went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the words
of Elisha. And now we see, what happens?
Naaman's flesh was
restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean! (v.14)
The whole healing
episode revealed an army commander being forced to humble himself and be
obedient to the word of God. Only then the healing could take place.
Even more
importantly, healing took place not in a gradual manner, but instantly after
seven times of bathing. Old skin was peeled off, the flesh was transformed, and
leprosy rolled away, a new life as that of a pure child came into being.
The Hidden Power of God
We can discover an
interesting contrast of scenarios in the narrative.
|
High and Significant
|
Low and Hidden
|
|
Syria was victor
|
Israel was defeated
|
|
Naaman is commander of victory
|
Elisha is from a defeated
nation
|
|
Israel king was not seeking God
|
Little, unnamed captive servant
sought God
|
|
Damascus rivers are grand
|
Insignificant Jordan River
|
|
Prayed standing and waving upon
the place
|
Washed in Jordan River seven
times
|
|
Commander who had leprosy
|
Transformed to Pure flesh and
skin of a child
|
From this comparison,
we can induce that the “low and hidden” is superior to “high and significant”,
and the "low and hidden" redeems "the high and
significant".
Naaman was the
commander of the mighty Syria, yet he had to go to the defeated nation Israel to
seek healing. The unnamed young little girl had faith in God, and it was her
words that gave her master an opportunity to be healed. However, the king of
Israel ignored his own God.
Here we see that God
can use humble people to preach His Word. No matter where God places you, you
are to find the opportunity to speak forth the Word. As the Scripture says,
"If no one preaches, how could people hear the word and believe?"
Naaman walked away in
anger, but his wise and unnamed servant persuaded him to bathe in Jordan River.
The Jordan River is filthy and humble, but it is a place of healing, not the
spectacular rivers in Damascus.
Treatment method is
simple and boring washing, because it needs to be repeated seven times; no
provocative standing and waving of hands upon the inflamed place.
The conclusion is
that, God's power is hiding in the low, ordinary and implicit. And through
these places, God touches us in the most unexpected ways.
Today, we often look
down on the low, insignificant and ordinary. We tend to give high regard to the
spectacular; glamour and highly applauded. We turn our focus on charming
leaders with charismas or spectacular churches, thinking that, that is the only
venue where we could find God’s power and working.
But to our surprise,
paradoxically, God's power is hiding in the lowly places. And through humble
characters and seemingly insignificant ways, He gives us His healing touch.
Let us ponder over
the Theology of the Cross:
The emblem of
salvation, the cross, is also the emblem of suffering and shame. Christ was
humiliated and defeated dying on the cross, but that was God's saving power to
save whosoever believeth in Christ.
Paul in I Corinthian
1: 18-24, said:“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are
perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For
it is written: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of
the discerning I will thwart.
Where is the one who
is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not
God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God,
the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of
what we preach to save those who believe.
For the Jews demanded
signs and the Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a
stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are
called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom
of God.”
Today we have to let
go of our pre-conceived ideas; and obey God’s command so that we can be touched
by God.
You ask for sickness
to be healed, but God might just give you love and care through family members
and church members. You pray for wealth and great achievement, but God may be
sending you to remote places as a missionary.
You think only
glamorous churches radiant in the city have the anointing, but God places you
in a lowly, small church, to minister and experience his workings.
We must believe that
God's ways are higher than ours. We cannot fathom His way, but as we remain
humble and obedient to him, we will be blessed by God.
Meeting God in the Ordinary and Boring
Routines
"Wash in Jordan
seven times" is an intriguing act!
Jordan’s water is not
clean, and bathing seven times is repetitive and boring. But Naaman submitted
himself to such a command from God and completed the dull and repetitive act of
washing seven times.
Then and only then,
he suddenly found himself transformed into a child's skin delicate white as
snow! This illustrated that a new life, as pure as that of a child, has been
born, in contrast to his old life which was arrogant and presumptuous and
unclean due to leprosy.
Today we worship and
serve God in church. These could be dull and repetitive things. As a matter of
fact, there is no never-ending excitement of “happy hours”, or retreats, or
talk shows, or frenzy of miracles.
We must humble
ourselves before God, and obey God's command to worship Him and serve Him in
our everyday lives, in the ordinary way, with diligence, seeking God seven
times or seventy-seven…….
There will come the
"moments" where we suddenly find ourselves being peeled off in the
spirit, returning to the childlike purity and godliness. Our lives then take on
a great leap forward in many ways!
Prayer meetings,
small groups, Bible studies and singing praises can be routine and boring.
However, we must persist in them. Hearing God’s words and ministering may look
unfruitful for a period of time, but we have to attend every week.
Just like after
decades of being married to each other, the romance between couples may fade
away but we must strive to love each other as we had pledged ourselves in the
marriage vow.
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