Sunday-Weekday Connection for Today “When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.” But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.” So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean. Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company; he came and stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel; please accept a present from your servant.”~2 Kings 5:7-15 1) Naaman, as a great leader, expects the prophet Elisha to come and greet him and treat him with honor and respect, putting on an impressive show as he heals him. Instead, Elisha sends a messenger to tell him to go wash in the Jordan River seven times, leaving the commander disgusted at the lack of special treatment. How would you respond if someone famous and/or powerful were to come to you for help? Would you treat them differently than you would treat someone else? Why or why not? 2) Naaman’s pride is nearly his undoing in this text as he begins to stalk off in disgust at the simple instructions he is given. Fortunately, he is willing to listen to reason and humble himself enough to try the cure Elisha suggests. When has your pride gotten in the way of common sense? What was the outcome? What have you learned as a result?
Posted on: Tue, 08 Oct 2013 10:30:00 +0000