Read: 2 Kings 5:19
“Go in peace,” Elisha said.
Here we find one of the greatest miracles of the Bible. Naaman is healed of Leprosy. It is a feel good story that makes us all warm and fuzzy inside. We can read it, feel blessed, and move right along to the next story when Elisha causes an axe head to float, right? Wrong! Samaria, we have a problem!
We find here a phrase in Scripture that we might read over without giving it too much thought. Elisha simply says, “Go in peace.” It may seem, at first, the phrase “go in peace” is just a really wonderful thing to say to someone. We could go on without any further thought about it. The Apostle Paul once challenged the phrase, “go in peace,” but at that time it was when pagans spoke it to him after they gave him a wrongful beating and then tried to send him quietly on his way. (Acts 16:36)
Here we find the phrase “go in peace” spoken by Elisha, the great man of God. Elisha is the prophet who did more miracles than anyone, except Jesus. We would not ordinarily call to question Elisha the man of God but here Elisha’s use of the phrase, “go in peace” seems really out of place.
Elisha has just spoken these words to the army commander of Aram. This Aram army commander has been a fierce invader of Israel. The Aram army that Naaman commands is the army that killed the father of the reigning king of Israel.
Naaman the army commander has just traveled to Israel, not for invasions, but to receive healing from the prophet of God. Praise God, It happened! Naaman has just been healed of leprosy and has also embraced God, the true Jehovah God. So far so good! By all means Naaman, “go in peace.” But wait, Naaman has just told Elisha that he will be going back to his Pagan land and will be visiting a Pagan temple of the god Rimmon and that he will bow down right smack in the midst of active idol worship in the temple. Wow! He is going to bow down in the temple of an idol. Elisha has told Naaman, “go in peace,” in response to that?
Let’s back up and try to find out more of what is going on here so we can really understand why, in this circumstance, Elisha would tell Naaman “go in peace.” Here is how the scripture describes Naaman to us, “Now Naaman was a 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.” (II Kings 5:1)
Here was a man that had so much honor poured onto him. He was a victorious commander of his nations army. Naaman had the favor of the king, and no doubt the respect of his whole nation. But something was robbing Naaman of his great honor. It was the dreaded disease of Leprosy. This leprosy could take Naaman from the heights to the depths, from honor to disgrace. Naaman needed healing! He needed a miracle of God to save him.
Naaman’s leprosy made him open to anything or anyone who might help him rid himself of this affliction. The suggestion for help came from a very unlikely source. The servant girl of Naaman’s wife had a suggestion. She believed she knew who could help Naaman. The irony is that this servant came to Aram from Israel as a captive from the raiding bands of Aram into Israel.
Here was a servant girl in Aram who must have had a remarkable faith in God to be able to suggest a cure for Naaman’s leprosy. If only Naaman would see the prophet in Israel he would cure him. The idea that Naaman’s wife and even Naaman would listen to such a suggestion from a servant girl highlights just how desperate Naaman was. It also speaks to how this servant girl must have had a kind of sustaining faith that made her suggestion seem like it just might be credible.
Naaman went to the king of Aram with this suggestion. The king was positive toward the idea of the servant girl from Israel. The king of Aram sent Naaman, but he did not go to the prophet of Samaria who the servant girl suggested. Naaman went instead, taking a massive amount of silver and gold, to the king of Israel.
Really, what does Joaram, king of Israel know about the Lord? His mother Jezebel and father Ahab had left him a heritage with the gods of Baal. King Joaram did not follow the gods of Baal, but he exchanged Baal for other pagan gods. He was hardly the person Naaman needed in a time like this. He is recorded as a king who “did evil in the eyes of the Lord.”
No wonder the King of Israel tore his clothes when Naaman showed him the letter from the king of Aram. The only time the king had called on Elisha previously, Elisha asked him what they have at all in common? He even advised the king to, “go to the prophets of your father and mother.” (II Kings 3:13) The king of Israel had no connection to the true God who could cure Naaman of leprosy.
King Joaram tore his clothes when he read the letter.
When Elisha heard about all this between the king of Israel and Naaman he asked for Naaman to come to him, so Naaman would know there is prophet in Israel. Naaman went to Elisha along with all his horses and chariots. Elisha sent a messenger to him with the instructions, “Go wash seven times in the Jordan and your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed.” (II Kings 5:10)
When you think of what is happening here with Naaman and compare this to what happens when Hindus are presented with the Gospel there are some striking comparisons. You see Naaman went away angry. He was insulted. The filthy Jordan stream is nothing to the two mighty rivers of Aram, the Abana and Pharphar. We see the same reaction that Naaman had when we share Jesus with Hindus. They say “We have a great religion in our own land that pre-dates Jesus. We have the Ganges River and the Vedic Scriptures that give great detail to cleansing.” It is insulting for the Hindu to have all these great religious peaks and then be told he must turn to Jesus to be cleansed of sin.
Naaman started to walk away from one of the greatest miracles of all times. It was only because Naaman’s servants pleaded with him to follow the instructions of Elisha that he went to dip himself in the Jordan. “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.” (II Kings 5:14).
Naaman was healed of leprosy and he was overcome with joy! Naaman went back to Elisha to praise the Lord God who had healed him. “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except Israel.” (II Kings 5:15) Naaman had brought what would be the equivalent of millions of dollars and offered Elisha an exorbitant gift. Elisha refused the money and in doing this he let God receive all the glory and honor for Naaman’s miracle.
Now is where things get really interesting in the story of Naaman. Elisha allowed Naaman, even encouraged him to go back to his own country to worship God. To his country Aram that is filled with pagan worship.
Let’s again compare this to what often happens when a Hindu comes to Christ. Often a new Hindu believer is extracted from his community and reestablished in a new Christian community. Elisha did not practice this kind of extraction evangelism. Elisha did not ask Naaman to separate himself and live on his compound and remove himself from any possible influence regarding the permeating paganism of Aram. Elisha did not ask Naaman to stay in Samaria and live with him as the company of prophets did. (II Kings 6:1) Too often when a Hindu accepts Christ they are counseled to cut themselves off from everything of their past. Sometimes they are even told to avoid family and the friends they have loved for a lifetime.
Naaman was going to practice his newfound relationship with the living God right smack in the middle of his family and in the context of his community. Naaman asked to take everything he needed to worship God in his home in Aram. “Please let me, your servant, be given as much earth as a pair of mules can carry. (II Kings 5:17a) Naaman was preparing himself for a life long pursuit of worshipping his newly found God.
Can you imagine a little community of faith there in Aram? Can you just picture Naaman and his wife’s servant who both love the Lord and worshipping with who knows who else? It seems that Naaman’s servants who talked him into dipping himself in the Jordan would serve God too. Why not Naaman’s wife who already seemed to know the faith of her Israelite servant was the real thing? You can just imagine a community of faith that is vibrant and spreading to others around them.
There was a catch regarding Naaman’s worship back in Aram. There was this whole thing about the temple of Rimmon. If Naaman is going to worship God in his own community it will mean he is in the midst of pagan worship. It may look really bad at times. When the king of Aram his master bows to Rimmon he will be holding Naaman’s arm and this will cause Naaman to bow down before Rimmon too.
Isn’t Naaman expressing a wishy-washy idol worshiping kind of faith? Isn’t this a syncretism that tries to accommodate to incompatible systems? God said have no other gods before me. One minute Naaman is at the altar of the Lord and the next he is bowing in the temple of Rimmon.
We need to pay attention to everything Naaman has said. He has declared an unwavering commitment to the Lord. He states his conviction, “For your servant will never again make burnt offerings and sacrifices to any other god but the Lord.” (II Kings 5:17)
If Naaman is going to stay in his community and if true worship is going to take root in Aram it is going to be messy. Elisha the prophet of the Lord realizes the reality. Elisha knows that worship is not where you are, but a matter of the heart. Naaman has genuinely told Elisha that he will be true to the Lord only. It is in understanding this that Elisha can tell Naaman, “go in peace” even though he will at times be found in the Temple of Rimmon.
If we can understand why Elisha would tell Naaman to go in peace it will help us tremendously when we work with Hindus. We do not need to council a Hindu to separate from his family, but to stay right there with his family members who worship Ganesh or Hanuman. It may be messy when they live in a home where there are idols and the other family members do puja. But the Hindu believer in Christ who worships none other than the Lord can be and should be salt and light right in the midst of his or her own family.
Since we find true worship of the Lord in Aram, then why not in the Hindu community? If we are sensitive as the prophet Elisha was, then we can give the Hindu who truly meets God the same, “go in peace” council that Elisha gave Naaman.
The other interesting action of Elisha besides telling Naaman, "go in peace" is that Elisha never organized a follow up visit. If Elisha visited Naaman in Aram all those who knew Naaman could write off his worship of the Lord as a foreign religion. But Naaman was a son of the Aram soil worshipping in Aram. He was the man who needed to lead worship in Aram and to tell his community of the true God, not Elisha or anyone else from Israel.
It would be tempting for Naaman to invite Elisha to come and share with his community people. Elisha had studied under Elijah. He would seem to be more qualified. The responsibility for leading worship in Aram is left with Naaman. He must testify that the Lord healed him and demonstrate that the Lord he worships is the true God. In this way the truth passes from one Aramite to the next Aramite.
Too often when a Hindu accepts Christ everything happens differently than what we find Elisha has done. Worship only happens when the evangelist, who has been to Bible School, shows up. Instead of having the new believer lead the worship among his own community people in his home, an outsider comes as the worship leader. Elisha encouraged Naaman, as a brand new believer, to go back to set up an alter and be the spiritual leader. An outsider who leads worship for the new Hindu believer will hinder the progress of the Gospel not accelerate it.
God is working in so many unlikely places. Aram is only one of countless surprising places we find our Lord at work. We should commend Elisha for being open to see the Lord’s blessing move outside his own community people. Not everyone is always as open to God’s work in other peoples as Elisha was. Some people resent seeing the knowledge of the Lord spread to another community people rather than there own.
When Jesus preached his first sermon the whole synagogue was in awe of him and spoke well of him. (Luke 4:22) There was Jesus, preaching his first sermon and the people were in awe as he declared that he is the one who fulfilled the Scriptures. He is the Messiah. Suddenly Jesus shifted gears. God’s desire is to work in the unlikely places. God delights to see His name praised among every nation, tribe, people and language.
Jesus used the story of Naaman in his sermon as an example of the way God works among people outside the established community of faith. The synagogue people who had stood in awe now became furious. When Jesus mentioned the example of Naaman his sermon came to an end because when he mentioned Naaman they got up to kill Jesus.
We need the wisdom of Elisha. We need to encourage the Gospel to flourish in unlikely places like the man of God, Elisha did. We should learn to sensitively encourage Hindus who have come from an idol worship background and embraced the True and Living God. These new believers need to be salt and light and lovingly live out the gospel among their family. We also need to understand that these new believers will be, at least at first, surrounded by idol worship. When we recognize that a new believer is to be in the world and not of the world we can council the Hindu who comes to faith in Christ, “go in peace.”
