2 Kings 5:2-3
“Then Naaman went with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha’s house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, ‘Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean.’”
Yesterday I wrote about the faithfulness of a young slave girl who demonstrated love for her captors by suggesting a prophet in Israel who could heal a proud Syrian general of his leprosy. It is a disease that damages the nerve endings and eventually can lead to the loss of fingers or even limbs. Swallowing his pride, the general acted on the suggestion of this unknown maiden of Israel and journeyed to Samaria to be healed.
Naaman not only suffered with leprosy, but also with pride. The prophet Elisha did not even come out to meet him but sent his servant out to Naaman with directions in order to receive his healing.
At first the general balked at the idea of dipping in the Jordan seven times. It was only at his servant’s urging that he agreed to follow Elisha’s direction and humbled himself. When he emerged from the water after the seventh dipping, his skin was like a baby’s.
Sometimes we insist on doing things our own way instead of listening to the Lord. Pride is more devastating than leprosy. It causes us to lose the spiritual nerve endings by which we can be led by the Lord. God wants us to deal with the ugliness of our sin. Don’t give up. It may take being abased before we can abound.
May God richly bless you as you bless others by your words and actions!
– – – Pastor Cecil