Elisha’s Ministry - The Wolf At The Door - Lust When It Has Conceived Brings Forth Sin - Gehazi 2kings 5:20-27 Part 2 Of 2 Series

ELISHA’S MINISTRY - THE WOLF AT THE DOOR - LUST WHEN IT HAS CONCEIVED BRINGS FORTH SIN - GEHAZI 2Kings 5:20-27 PART 2 OF 2

SERIES – MESSAGES ON ELISHA – HIS LIFE AND MINISTRY Number 16

THE TIME OF RECKONING. There is a saying of man which is, “Beware, your sin will find you out.” That is not always the case in this increasingly sinful world. Only those who get caught, get found out, and if it is a public figure, they offer the most lamentable apologies, not in sincerity, but because they got caught. However, the sins of men and women are nearly always concealed and they go to the grave with them. However they are not forgotten because the great white throne looms ever closer for the judgement of the sins of every individual who is not covered by the blood of Christ.

2Kings 5 v 25 [[but he went in and stood before his master, and Elisha said to him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” and he said, “Your servant went nowhere.” 2Kings 5:26 Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Is it a time to receive money and to receive clothes and olive groves and vineyards and sheep and oxen and male and female servants? 2Kings 5:27 Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cleave to you and to your descendants forever,” so he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.]] In Gehazi’s case, his sins were disclosed by the Lord Himself to Elisha. Verse 25 was a lie. Verse 26 discloses his sin for God told Elisha. Verse 27 is God’s verdict on sin. Gehazi went out a leper, and a leper had no contact with civilisation but had to live apart, even though we meet up again with Gehazi in Aram.

I feel sorry for Gehazi. He lived a great deal of his life with Elisha. He travelled with him, he stayed in the Shunamite’s house with him. He ministered to him, and witnessed all the wonderful miracles Elisha did through the power of the Lord. What went wrong? How did he slip up? Are we capable of going that way as well? The answer is, “Yes”. I’d like us to consider the great warning in these verses - Hebrews 3 v 12 “Take care, brethren, lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart in falling away from the living God, Heb 3:13 but encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

Sin is deceitful and too great for any one of us. However we are in Christ and we have His resources. Move our eyes off the Lord, and we do fall into sin.

The deceitfulness of sin is very powerful, and the man who thinks he stands untouchable, take care lest you fall. Sin often takes advantage of the exact situation at the exact time. In other words without warning it has pounced on you and all your barriers are down and then you fall.

There is such a thing as premeditated sin where people scheme and plan some evil – bank robberies, terrorism, a careful undermining of a person’s position etc. but all too often when God’s people get caught out by sin, then it is the wolf that pounces, almost before the person can reason it all out. Caught out in the devil’s snare. I was intrigued at the way birds were caught in the Old Testament days by people called “fowlers” and it was by snares and nets, so much so that I wrote a poem about that:-

BEWARE THE FOWLER

Beware the fowler in the way,

The schemer with his traps adept;

That cunning trickster who will lay

Ensnaring nets where he has crept.

The fowler knows his craft so well -

Each habit and routine discerns.

The ways of birds expertly tell;

Entrapment plans so well he learns.

To map his prey so cunningly,

And plan with subtle art his haul,

The fowler works strategically.

An expert he, the best of all.

Now Satan has his fowlers trained -

His followers in his control,

Whose traps are set, the cords are strained,

To catch God’s children, is their goal.

Each subtle means will be employed:-

The lust of flesh, the lust of eyes,

To cause God’s work to be destroyed;

To capture saints by wicked lies.

Beware the fowler’s changing guise;

His trickery is most refined.

On every cunning trick relies

To cause God’s own to be maligned.

Deliver us from fowlers’ snares.

On every path these nets are laid.

Direct us, Lord, for our God cares.