Turn with me to II Kings 5. This is a familiar story to many. It is one of those stories I remember from Sunday school when I was a kid. I always thought this was a story of healing, and it is to a degree, but it is more a story of faith and obedience. It’s a story about relying on God and his direction rather than our own inclinations about what we should do. It’s about listening to him and putting his plan into action.
God wants to make himself known to people, and this is a story about one time that he did so, and he wants to do it again.
Read II Kings 5:1-14.
Greatness Isn’t Always What It Appears
“Ernie Davis succeeded at every venue, a three-sport standout in high school, a two-time All-American halfback at Syracuse.
“He led Elmira (N.Y.) Free Academy to a 52-game winning streak in basketball and as a Syracuse sophomore helped the Orangeman gain their only national football championship. As a senior in 1961, he became the first African-American to receive the Heisman Trophy and was the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft.
“And then, stunningly, he was gone. Struck down by leukemia, Davis never realized his dream of playing in the NFL.”
Ernie Davis was an incredible physical specimen. He was an incredible athlete. Perhaps the greatest running back in the history of pro football, Jim Brown, attended Syracuse University a few years before Davis. Davis broke Jim Brown’s school records for rushing yards and points scored. He won the highest award in college football, the Heisman Trophy, and Jim Brown never did that. Ernie Davis met the President of the United States after the Heisman award ceremony. He was the first player selected by any pro football team the year he graduated from college. He signed the largest contract in pro football history up to that point. He was a mighty man. By all accounts he was a decent human being. “BUT!” But, he had leukemia.
Look at verse 1, “Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, BUT he was a leper.”
Naaman was the military genius behind the Syrian army. He was successful. He was mighty. He was big and powerful. People looked up to him. He had servants who waited on him. He was probably the king’s top advisor, at least in military matters. “BUT!” But, he was a leper.
Just because something or someone looks healthy or appears to be great on the surface doesn’t mean that is the case. True greatness has nothing to do with outward appearances.
The same can be said of institutions. Look at Enron and WorldCom. Both companies appeared to be strong viable companies, but both were rotten with the cancer of corporate greed.
Can the same be said about churches? Just because a church is bigger, doesn’t mean it’s better.
Faithfulness is what is important.
Faithfulness of the Servant
We are servants of Christ. We must be faithful to him and his desire to have a relationship with others.
We think of the faithfulness of servants of the Lord like Mother Theresa. She spent her life working in the streets of Calcutta, India with people called “untouchables.” The caste system of India had declared these people sub-human, but Mother Theresa invested her life sharing Christ with these people. She went about her life with little fanfare. Wherever she went, she was the main attraction, but she always tried to duck the spotlight. Hers was a life of dedicated service to the Lord. She was all about doing the work of the Lord among people whom he had created. To look at her, you would notice nothing special about her appearance, outside of the habit of her order. She was not a giant of a person. She was nothing special, other than her faith in God, and her commitment to serve humanity.
This just goes to show that the message of God comes through unusual means sometimes. We would expect God to use the big and strong, but instead he often uses the small and weak.
Look at verse 2-3. The Syrians were engaging in border skirmishes with Israel rather frequently, and during one of the raids, they captured a girl. The girl went to live with Naaman and serve Mrs. Naaman. They probably treated her well, but the fact remains that they had kidnapped her from her home and parents. This little girl could have hated her captors, and no one would blame her. She had concern for her master. She knew of God’s prophet who lived in Samaria. She was concerned enough for captor, that she encouraged him to seek help.
Are we concerned enough for our world? Our world hates us. We need to share Jesus with them.
Unusual Demand
So Naaman was set to head to find this great prophet. He knew what was going to happen. He would pull into the capital city with a great parade. There would be bands and music. The confetti would rain down on him. After all, he was a hero. He was a military genius. Surely all the people of Israel would turn out to see this celebrity. Just to show that he wasn’t stuck up, Naaman would offer gifts totaling about $1 million to the king of Israel. After the parade and fanfare, the prophet of God would be summoned from the side of the stage. He would offer up a loud prayer. He would wave his hands around. The leprosy would vanish. The crowd would cheer. The would sell t-shirts saying, “I saw Naaman healed.” Naaman knew he would be the talk of the town. He would grant interviews to the newspapers. He would tell his story on Oprah, 60 Minutes and 20/20. Everyone would be amazed at Naaman. This would be the best day of his life.
When his caravan pulled up in front of Elisha’s house, Naaman was shocked to find that the great prophet didn’t even bother to come out and see him. Elisha sent a messenger. This enraged Naaman. He was told to go to the Jordan River and dip himself in the river seven times. This was unacceptable to Naaman. Naaman had a preconceived notion about how God should heal him. God doesn’t always use the methods and means we think he should use. Sometimes God makes unusual demands of us.
Jesus said things like, “But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” (Matthew 19:30) That doesn’t make sense to us. We are used to sayings like, “Nice guys finish last.” The life to which God calls us is counter to what the world tells us. We are told to fight for our rights. Jesus says that we are to be servants to all people. Last week we looked at the Apostle Paul’s philosophy. He stated that he became a servant to all people for the sake of the gospel. We are to be servants, even though there may be more attractive options.
Other Attractive Options
There are always things that appear to be a better option. Other things make more sense. We have it all figured out. We demand how God is going to work. We are going to do this and that, and then God will do this and that. And, everyone lives happily ever after.
During the Christmas season, we are often reminded that God sent his Son to be born in a barn. Do you think Jesus went around leaving doors open? Whenever I left the door open, my mom would ask, “Were you born in a barn?”
It didn’t make sense to the people at the time that the Messiah would be born in a barn and put to bed in a feeding trough. That doesn’t make sense. This is the Son of God, and he is lying in bunch of hay that is eaten by cows. It doesn’t make sense that Jesus was put to death. Wouldn’t it have been easier for God to solve the sin issue some other way? He is God, and he could do whatever he wants.
Naaman makes what appears to be a good point. The rivers in Damascus were certainly better water than the Jordan. The Jordan wasn’t a bad river, but the Abana and Pharpar were better. Naaman also perceived this a slight of national background. He also thought that the Jordan River was inferior merely because it was located in Israel.
Some how we are programmed to think, “Bigger is better.”
One of my uncles stopped by to visit a few weeks ago. He asked, “What are your plans for getting new members?” I’m not so concerned about members. I am concerned about people encountering the living God and his power. Church membership isn’t going to get people to Heaven. Membership in God’s Kingdom is the only thing that matters.
Look at drinks at a fast food restaurant. The medium size today is what was a large when I was a kid. But add to that the fact that the large wasn’t big enough, so we now have extra-large. We can “super-size” just about anything. “Bigger is better” is the mantra of our day.
I suggest to you that bigger ain’t always better. I would suggest that faith is what counts. Our commitment to Christ is what counts.
When talking to some people about church, I hear things like, “I’m not used to a church this small.” Large churches often appear to be more attractive. They have more programs and resources. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with a Church based on the size. What counts is the presence of the Spirit and the ministry that flows out of that. It is not buildings, gyms, programs, or anything else. Sure, mega-churches have more cash, better facilities, and more people, but the real resource that matters in building the Kingdom of God is the Spirit. We can do more with the Spirit than we could with a million dollars.
Naaman took about $1 million dollars worth of gifts to the king of Israel, but that did him no good. He was healed when he obeyed, and submitted himself to the will of God. Had he gone back home and dipped in the other rivers, the only thing that would have been accomplished was that he would have been wet.
Our job is to be obedient to God. We have to have the Spirit in a real way, or all this will be for nothing.
I have heard large churches criticized for being nothing more than a social club. It is also possible for a small church to be nothing more than a social club. The size of the church makes little difference. What makes the difference is whether or not we have the Spirit in our lives. Without the Spirit, we are just another organization. With the Spirit we are an agent of the Kingdom of God.
Our commitment is to have the Spirit in a real way that will impact this area. It doesn’t matter the size of our buildings or the number of people. What matters is if we have the Spirit or not.
Are we willing to take our eyes off of what others are doing? Are we willing to be obedient to God?
God has called us, a small church, to reach our area with the Good News. Obedience and faith are the keys to the work of God. It was only when Naaman obeyed that he was healed. When we obey God, he can heal this world in which we live.
If you are willing to be obedient to God, stand up.
Our duty is to run the race.
Benediction.
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” –Romans 15:13
