Naaman

II Kings 5:1-17 Naaman I. Naaman's Prestigious Position 1 Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour,

1. He was a Virtuous Citizen. captain of the host of the king of Syria,

2. He was a Valued Counsellor was a great man with his master

3. He was a Victorious Captain. by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria

4. He was a Valiant Commander. he was also a mighty man in valour,

II. Naaman's Painful Problem v.1 but he was a leper.

Everything looked great on the outside, yet there was a problem on the inside. Notice that little three-letter word "but." - "But he was a leper."

a rich man, Luke 12:19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

III Naaman's Precious Preacher 2 And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife. 3 And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.

Her Position a little maid, Her Placement and she waited on Naaman’s wife, Her Profession Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.

IV. Naaman's Perilous Presumption 5 And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.

A. He Presumed God Could Be Blinded He went to the wrong place with the wrong price to talk to the wrong person? B. He Presumed God Could Be Bought and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment. equivalent of two million pounds.

C. He Presumed That God Could Be Bribed 7 And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.

Humpty Dumpty All the king's horses and all the king's men could,nt put Naaman together again. V. Naaman's Powerful Prophet 8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.

A. He Was A Man Of God 8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God

(a) He was a Faithful Man. He sends word to the king and says, "What Naaman needs is not a politician. What he needs is a prophet and a preacher. (b) He was a Fearless Man. 9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, (c) He was a Forthright Man

Naaman wanted to be heard. to be honoured, but he needed to be healed. Elisha paid no attention to his position, his power, his prestige, his possessions. . B. He Had A Message From God 10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean. A Simple Message Go and wash, A Saving Message and thy flesh shall come again to thee A Sure Message and thou shalt be clean A Solemn Message Go and wash in Jordan (Take the sinner's place) C. He Was Motivated By God 11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place, and recover the leper.

Spurgeon said, Give him more line, let him spend his strength, and then we will land him and he shall belong to Christ forever."

VI. Naaman's Paralyzing Pride 11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away.