The Disease Humanity Can’t Cure

The Disease Humanity Can’t Cure

2 Kings 5

WATCH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikQdDgOgoSk

With all our scientific and medical advancements and breakthroughs there still exists a disease that humanity cannot find a cure for.

As I began to think about this, and the story I will be sharing, the 6th episode of season one of “The Chosen,” came to mind. It was when a leper came to Jesus asking to be healed. Speaking to Jesus the leper said, “Please don’t turn away from me.” To which Jesus said, “I won’t.” And then the leper asked that if Jesus was willing, He could make him clean. And Jesus said, “I am willing, be cleansed.” And the leper was immediately cleansed of this awful disease.

Today, I’d like to share with you the story of the Syrian captain, Naaman. It is found in 2 Kings chapter 5.

“Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.” (2 Kings 5:1 NKJV)

Before we continue, I’d like to share what we know about Naaman.

When it says that Naaman was a great and honorable man, that means that he was distinguished above all others. He was held in high esteem and respected by both his peers and the King of Syria. But it would also seem that by his nature and character, the Lord also esteemed him and thus through him Syria was able to gain great victories as it says, “By him the Lord had given victory to Syria.” Further, it describes him as a mighty man of valor.

And so, what we could say is that Naaman had a great reputation, with a great responsibility, and a great leader of men.

It would seem, therefore, that Naaman had everything that a person would want, including wealth, recognition, honor, and power. “But!” “But!” What a powerful and telling word that is. But, Naaman suffered from one thing, and that is, he was a leper, meaning he had a contagious, incurable skin disease that would eventually cost him his life.

Leprosy is an infection caused by a slow growing bacterium. It affects the nerves, skin, eyes, and the lining of the nose. The nerve damage may result in a lack of ability to feel pain, which can lead to some disfigurement or the loss extremities from repeated injuries or infection through unnoticed wounds.

In ancient times, leprosy instilled fear and avoidance because of the physical disfigurement that would often accompany it. But now, with early diagnosis and treatment, the disease can be cured, and people can continue to work and lead an active life during and after treatment.

And so, seeing that leprosy today is curable, then you’ve probably figured out that leprosy isn’t the disease that humanity can’t cure. So, what am I talking about, which is the $100,000 question, or in my case, the 10¢ question?

So, if it isn’t leprosy, then why did I bring up the story of the leper and Jesus, and then using as our text, the Old Testament story of Naaman? You see, in the Old Testament there are types and shadows, that is, something that symbolizes something else or has its full meaning through something yet to come.

We see this in what Paul describes in his letter to the Colossian Church in Colossians 2:16-17. “So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.” (Colossians 2:16-17 NKJV)

And so, this story of Naaman is much more than a story of the miraculous power of God to heal, or of a man’s pride being humbled, or even a man’s journey to be healed. Instead, it is a story, a type, a shadow of something greater, as it was written as an example, that which we can learn a vital lesson from.

Paul said in his first letter to the Corinthian Church. “Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11 NKJV)

And so, with this clearly stated, what we can say is that leprosy is a biblical type or shadow of sin.

They Spoil Life

Consider Naaman, he was a great and honorable man, captain of the armies of Syria, a mighty man of valor, and through him Syria won many victories. You could say that Naaman was a remarkable man, someone with great abilities, but then comes this word, “but,” he was a leper.

And this brings us to the first thing we get from our passage, and that is, just as leprosy spoils life, so then does sin.