“And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.” (2Ki 5:8 AV)
So, what is going on here? Naaman was the chief of staff to the king of Syria. Naaman was also a leper. Through a Jewish servant girl, they had learned there was a prophet in the nation of Israel who could heal lepers. The king of Syria sent a letter to the king of Israel seeking the healing of his chief of staff. It was very brief. It was a brief letter to a fault. The king of Israel felt the letter was a means to find occasion against Israel, justifying armed conflict. Because the letter was so brief, we cannot discern what the true motive of the king of Syria was. The king of Israel may have been correct in his assessment. Or not. We simply do not know. What we do know is how the king reacted and the answer to that reaction, as stated by the prophet. We tend to see adverse situations as more dire than they are. We tend to see adversity as nothing more than something that is against us for no other reason than to cause issues. What we need to contemplate is that perhaps adversity is just one more way in which the LORD can show Himself strong on our behalf. Perhaps the reason we have trouble is so that others can see the reality of a God whom they do not know. Maybe, just maybe, what we face is more about God than it is about us.
The death and resurrection of Lazarus as well as the man born blind in John chapter nine have a common thread. Although all things Jesus did were for the glory of the Father, the two aforementioned events specifically mentioned miracles performed strictly for the glory of God and for no other reason. These two miracles were evidence of the deity of Christ so that others may come to trust in Him. One thinks of the parents of the man born blind or Martha, sister to Lazarus, who needed additional evidence in order to trust in the Messiah. We know of Martha and Mary. They become believers. We never hear of the blind man’s parents again. What we do know is that hardship came to these people so that God could do something unexpected. Blindness came because God wanted to show He could heal it. Lazarus died so that Jesus could prove He was the resurrection and the life. No doubt they would often ask of the reason why these things had come upon them. In fact, Mary stated that had Jesus come when bidden, Lazarus may not have died. But he did. Adversity came because God wanted to show Himself in a greater way than they had ever known Him before.
The same was true of the letter sent to the king of Israel. It may or may not have been a means to an end. Perhaps the king of Syria knew it was a long shot and was looking to pick a fight. Or maybe he simply wanted Naaman healed and believed if there was a cure, it would only come from Elisha. Again, it matters not. What matters is there is a prophet of God in Israel and all hope is not lost. The fact of the matter is, God is always on His thrown. He has never, and will never, abdicate it. God allows or causes all things. Directly or indirectly, our sovereign God has it all in His hand. All things He does is for His glory first. We humans need God to manifest Himself in ways that faith can become a reality. For Naaman, it was the healing of his leprosy. If God can do that, He must be the one and only true God. This is exactly what happened. Naaman became a proselyte of the Jewish faith. All because instead of seeing adversity in the light of how it affects self, the king of Israel and Elisha decided to see it as an opportunity to show who God is and what He is capable of. If we see our trials in this way, it will radically change how we react. Our faith and strength will increase. And who knows? Perhaps there might be a soul saved along the way.
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