Oh, When the ‘Buts’ Butt In!

“So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.” 2 Kings 5:9

I love this story. It is soooo human! I think we all can discover a little Naaman in ourselves when we face an insurmountable hardship or difficulty. As a man of prominence and captain of the host of the king of Syria, there wasn’t much that Naaman hadn’t accomplished and couldn’t master himself, but… he was a leper. Oh, when the ‘buts’ butt in, how the mighty will seek any available cure. As for the cost? Naaman was certainly willing to pay and could pay. In fact, he expected to pay—even as we do when we find ourselves up against that proverbial ‘but.’ Why is that? Our pride demands it! To get something of value for nothing? “Really? That cannot be! Don’t you know that I would feel obligated to do whatever was asked?” Of course, we do that with men as Naaman intended to pay Elisha, but with God? Now that’s a different story today. Today, we want cheap grace but high value. Unfortunately, all cheap grace will get you is a bargain basement, hell of a deal.

Nonetheless, isn’t what happened to Naaman so true of us? We might be the pillars of the community, masters of our lives and careers, talented and able; gifted in ways beyond our wildest dreams; possessing fame and fortune— but! When something unexpected comes along: cancer, HIV, drug addiction, job loss, a broken relationship, death of a family member—you name it because the list goes on and on, but then what? What is the next thing that happens? We hear about someone or of something that might help. That is what happened to Naaman when he heard by way of a little Israeli maid that his army took captive that there was this prophet, whose name was Elisha. At this point, you truly must read the story in 2 Kings 5:1-27. Nonetheless, Naaman showed up at Elisha’s front door with his chariot and horses. Oh, yes, we will all show up in a show of our grandeur but what then? What did Naaman learn that we must learn also?

• Not everyone who possesses authority has the power to do what we’re seeking; such was the King of Israel who rent his clothing and said, ‘Am I God to heal?’ We often turn to man first; God last. Thus, we must go directly to the One who is able to heal us, and as directed, next to men.

• We must recognize that it was God who brought Naaman to His servant Elisha by having Elisha notify the King of Israel to have Naaman sent to him (vs. 8). He draws us to Himself and prepares the way: little Israeli maid taken captive, tells mistress of the Samarian prophet, word gets to Naaman, the King of Syria writes to the King of Israel, the King of Israel thinks he’s getting set up, Elisha finds out and then sends for Naaman.

• While God works on our behalf, He does so for His glory and in accordance to His plan; e.g., “He (Naaman) shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.”

• We go humble, trusting God in whatever He leads us to do. Do not become prideful and enter into rage, as Naaman, when we—

  • Are not greeted as expected; e.g. Possessing an immediate sense of God’s comfort or presence. We wait upon the Lord,

  • Learn that what God asks of us we do. It is not up to us to determine or say how something must be done; e.g. Naaman thought that Elisha would simply call on the name of the Lord, he would be cured and that would be that, and

  • Accept that our trust and obedience may lead us where we are not familiar, e.g., To the Jordan River; not to those of his country. Often we expect God to work within our comfort zone.

• True friends encourage us in faith, not in wrath or rage.

• What God does is without expectation of payment; such as providing our salvation based on justification by faith alone in the  blood of Christ. It is at this point where many religions and false teachers are exposed. However, they often take advantage of those who prefer to pay. That way, they deceive themselves into believing that they do not have a higher call or duty to God.

• There is a reality of the world in which we live, and God pardons it where our heart remains close to Him; e.g. Naaman seeking pardon for going into a false place of worship because it was his duty to the King of Syria.

• Finally, we learn that the religious frauds, such as Gehazi, will lie to obtain material benefit; even using the name of the Lord in justifying their sin. But their end will be plainly visible to all when judgment is pronounced as was true of Gehazi, who bore Naaman’s leprosy.

In summary, there is much to be learned about whom we are from this story. May the Lord take each lesson learned and apply it through the Holy Spirit to our hearts, and where we have sinned, let us confess our sins to God and one to another.