Readings: 2 Kings 5:1-15a | Romans 12:16-21 | Matthew 8:1-13
Text: 2 Kings 5:1-15a
There are many things which are remarkable about the interaction between Naaman and the prophet Elisha. First of all, we think that the Old Testament is just about Israel, and what’s this gentile doing in the story? Secondly, it’s a story of God’s grace that comes in spite of Israel’s national disobedience. Finally, it’s a story of the contrast between the pomp of those who are powerful in the world behind humbled by the God of the Universe.
But there’s even more to it. In this account, we find four messengers who are misunderstood.
First, consider the slave girl of Naaman’s wife:
Now the Syrians on one of their raids had carried off a little girl from the land of Israel, and she worked in the service of Naaman’s wife. 3 She said to her mistress, “Would that my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.”
Naaman and his wife were desperate for healing, because his condition could be fatal. He was renowned and valued by his king, but he had this dreadful condition.
They listened to the report of this girl who was their slave. There were so many reasons to write her off, but they acted on her report.
Next is the king of Israel:
5 And the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So he went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. 6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you Naaman my servant, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” 7 And when the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Only consider, and see how he is seeking a quarrel with me.”
The king of Israel heard this and he was suspicious and insulted. What kind of chicanery is this, sending the commander of a rival army for healing? Not only did the king of Israel personally not look for healing from God, but he saw Elisha the prophet as a nuisance [2 Kings 6:24-33].
Because of these assumptions, the king of Israel despised the message that came with Naaman and his entourage. Thankfully, Elisha caught wind of the king’s outburst and got in touch with Naaman.
Then, there’s the servant of Elijah:
9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha’s house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 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?” So he turned and went away in a rage.
The servant of Elijah, though not as humble as the Israelite slave girl, was still looked down upon by Naaman. And why? Because this means of delivering healing didn’t fit into what the great commander thought it would look like. Perhaps he sought some kind of mystical experience in a special pool, or a rare salve, or any number of marketing tricks that are still employed today against those who are desperate for relief.
He despised the message from Elisha’s servant because he didn’t believe it was the real deal.
But then last of all, there’s the servants of Naaman himself:
“His servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.”
Even though they were but servants, they knew something that Naaman was blind to: the word of the servant is as good as the master who sends him. So, the lesson for us is that faith focuses instead on the message that is proclaimed, on account of the gracious God who sent His Word. Our Lord explains this economy by saying to His apostles, sent out with His authority, “40 “Whoever receives you [the apostles] receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent me [the Father].” (Matt. 10:40)
Ultimately, faith is grounded in Christ Himself. Isaiah 53 explains, “He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief” (Isa. 53:2-3). Jesus was born in lowliness and poverty. He doesn’t appeal to our eyes, and yet He is able to save the whole person. He is in the flesh, yet “in Him, the fulness of deity dwells bodily.” The Prophets Elisha and Elijah demonstrate that His Word, spoken even by lowly and despised men, proves true.
Have you ever thought about why there are all these signs of drought, victory, and rescue in the history of Israel? It’s because the Lord is demonstrating to us that what His Word says is true—even if it’s delivered through a lowly instrument. St. James explains this in the context of prayer,
“The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.” (James 5:16-18)
So, where is it that the Lord is declaring a “great word” to you? When, according to our Lord’s command, the pastor declares that your sins are forgiven by His saving Name. You might think the robes are special, but in reality, he is a lowly servant, like Elisha’s unnamed page.
This also holds true with Baptism. Here at Bethlehem, because it’s nothing elaborate about our font, perhaps that highlights that the efficacy lies in the Word, not in the messenger or the setting. There’s nothing wrong with more ornate baptismal fonts, living waters, or greater ceremony—so long as we learn the lesson of Naaman that it is the Word of the Lord which is doing the great thing.
All of this is to receive the Word of God in faith. St. Paul at last explains:
“18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”
Let it be done for you as you have believed the Word of God. In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.
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