NAAMAN’S HEALING

The story of Naaman is a beautiful story of hope and transformation. There are characters in this story from whom we can learn a good deal. We shall be looking at them one by one.

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SERVANT GIRL

2 Kings 5:1-5
Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper. And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman’s wife. Then she said to her mistress, “If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy.” And Naaman went in and told his master, saying, “Thus and thus said the girl who is from the land of Israel.” Then the king of Syria said, “Go now, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.”

The first character is the servant girl of Israel. The story introduces us to a servant girl in Syria who actually came from Israel. She was captured in one of the raids of Syria and ended up a servant to Naaman’s wife. Naaman was the great commander of the Syrian army who must have been responsible for this raid that made her a captive. She offered counsel to her mistress that Naaman should go to the prophet in Israel for his healing.

One gets to appreciate this servant girl and her counsel when we consider her background. We are told that she was taken captive as a young girl. This means that at an early age she was taken from her loved ones and her homeland. That must have been a painful experience. Furthermore, she was brought to an unknown land where everything was foreign. The culture, place, and language were different. She also had no relatives and friends there either. Plus, it was the enemy’s territory. The very people responsible for her capture and most likely the destruction of her community lived there. These people also took away her liberty. They made her a slave. For a young girl, even for an adult for that matter, her experiences must have been very heartbreaking. It must have also been very fearful.

Yet it appears that her tragedies did not defeat nor destroy her. The story suggests that she was able to be victorious over her situation. She did not end up bitter towards the Syrians. She did not end up miserable either. She must have done well as a servant, enjoying a good reputation from her masters, because when she offered up counsel, they listened to her. The great commander of Syria listened to a servant girl.

When difficult circumstances come our way we truly have a choice on how we will respond. May we choose to respond in light of these truths.

Romans 5:3-5
And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

The servant girl became a messenger of hope because hope was worked out in her by her tribulations. Her response to her tragedies ultimately gave her a hope that now she was able to give to others.

Romans 8:18
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

The servant girl had a sweet spirit that made her accept her circumstance with meekness. She was able to embrace her situation. And the result in the end was truly glory as her life has become part of the Bible.

Romans 8:28
And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

God really intended her circumstances to work out for her good as she became an instrument to the healing and transformation of a notable man. Naaman, the great commander, could not be won over in natural battles by the strongest of enemies. But a servant girl won him over to the Lord.

Romans 8:35
Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written:
“For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Naaman, her master, was a conqueror of lands but at that point that he met the servant girl, he had yet to conquer a difficulty in his personal life. The servant girl, on the other hand, was conquered in the natural but in the spiritual she was clearly more than a conqueror who triumphed over her personal difficulties through the love of God. The Scripture tells us that the love of God does not eradicate difficulties - it gets us through it. Difficulties have an important work in our lives. Because of this she had a capacity to care for others despite her own personal circumstances. She was not consumed by her personal needs or situation. She could actually care for the well-being of the very enemy responsible for her tragedies. That is true victory!
As a result, this servant girl’s counsel would gain the attention of Naaman and more than that, the king of Syria. If human kings are made to listen to the meek, all the more does the King of kings delight to hear the voice of the meek! May we respond as excellently as this servant girl in whatever ordeal or circumstance we are at.

Lastly, it is also very important to note that the fact that the girl was a servant and was kept nameless really speaks to us of how God truly uses the base things of the world to shame the wise.

NAAMAN

2 Kings 5:6-15
So he departed and took with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. Then he brought the letter to the king of Israel, which said,
Now be advised, when this letter comes to you, that I have sent Naaman my servant to you, that you may heal him of his leprosy.
And it happened, when the king of Israel read the letter, that he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to kill and make alive, that this man sends a man to me to heal him of his leprosy? Therefore please consider, and see how he seeks a quarrel with me.”
So it was, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, “Why have you torn your clothes? Please let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.”
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.” But Naaman became furious, and went away and said, “Indeed, I said to myself, ‘He will surely come out to me, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place, and heal the leprosy.’ Are not the Abanah and the 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. And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” So he went down and dipped seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
And he returned to the man of God, he and all his aides, and came and stood before him; and he said, “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel; now therefore, please take a gift from your servant.”

Now we come to another major character in this story and that is Naaman, the commander of the Syrian forces. He is introduced as a great and honorable man in the eyes of his king because he was responsible for the conquests of Syria. However, despite his victories in the battlefield, he had personal struggles. He was a leper.

His situation underscores the fact that every person, regardless of their standing, needs God. One can be a mighty commander like Naaman yet would still be of need of God. No one can truly ever be complete without God.

So he and the king of Syria heeded the counsel of the servant girl. Naaman went to Israel and there he had an encounter with Elisha. He stood at the door of Elisha’s house but Elisha did not come to meet him. Instead, he sent a messenger to tell him that he needed to go to the Jordan River to wash there seven times to be healed. Upon hearing this, Naaman got furious.

He was upset because for one, Elisha did not come out to meet him. He was offended. After all, he was the great commander of Syria. He must have thought he deserved the respect of Elisha. Second, he was disappointed because he had an expectation of how his healing will take place. He thought Elisha will simply call on the Lord and wave his hand on the leprosy and he will be healed. Third, he was insulted at the instruction of Elisha. It is said that the Jordan River had murky waters. He thought it was not becoming of a man of his stature to wash there. He was offended, disappointed and insulted.

God was surfacing issues in his life. God in his mercy towards Naaman wanted to deal with his greater maladies. His outward leprosy was nothing compared to his proud heart. Pride will lead a man to get offended, disappointed towards unmet expectations and insulted towards seemingly degrading treatment. It would have been possible for God to simply heal Naaman’s leprosy without dealing with his heart issues. However, God sought more than just healing for Naaman. He wanted him to be whole. God does not simply heal. He can also make us whole.

It was not Elisha who decided the manner by which Naaman will be healed. After all, he was only a prophet, a messenger of what God had to say. It was God. Definitely God could have chosen for Elisha to simply wave his hand over the leprosy and heal it. However, God must have ordained these circumstances for Naaman’s healing because He was wanting to do more. He wanted Naaman to overcome pride which is a major hindrance to anyone coming to know God.

Going back to the story, Naaman refused to do as Elisha told him. But fortunately he had wise servants who counseled him to do otherwise. How important it is that we listen to what others have to say particularly from those who give wise counsel regardless of their stature. Proud as he was, Naaman had a good quality, he could listen to those under him. His servants told him that if Elisha told him to do something great, he would have done it. How much more now that he is simply asking Naaman to wash and be clean.

The pride in Naaman’s heart was keeping him from following God’s way because it seemed too simple, trivial, and degrading for a man like him. And somehow we encounter the same tests as well. There are times when we are praying for something but then God speaks to us that the answer will come upon a step of obedience. And sometimes the step of obedience God requires is something we personally do not want to do. Maybe what God is asking for sounds embarrassing. To some, God can call them to make an apology for a wrongdoing. To some, it can be to share the Gospel. To others, it could be to correct a wrong done by another. To others, it can be to do something that seems very trivial.

But we see from the example of Naaman that after he heeded the Lord and obeyed His instruction of washing himself in the murky waters of the Jordan, his healing came. Jordan by the way means descender. How we need to descend from the high places of self-confidence and reputation in order for God to move in our lives. While pride and stubbornness withhold God’s favor, humility and obedience release the power and blessings of God.

James 4:6
But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:
“God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”

Naaman was instructed to dip in the Jordan River seven times. Seven speaks of completion. Naaman’s healing was not instant. He had to go down into the water seven times. This can speak to us of how there are situations as well where the victory or breakthrough we are desiring for does not come instantly. At some point between those seven dips, he could have looked at himself and wondered if he was truly going to get healed. But he kept on. He persevered in faith. We too must press on until we receive the fullness of God’s victory. Naaman’s step of faith was complete and in the end he received completeness or wholeness as well. We must not settle for partial obedience as well as partial victories in our lives. We must always seek to receive the fullest of victories, fullest in our relationship with God, fullest of God’s promises. This is the way to receiving the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. May we not be content with a mediocre or so-so Christianity but seek that God will complete His work in us.

In the end, Naaman received, healing, salvation as well as the outworking of humility.

Here we also see the mercy of God. He truly shows mercy to whom He so pleases. Naaman was an enemy of Israel and more importantly he was not a believer. As a non-Israelite, he was a pagan worshipper. He later on mentions the god of the Syrian king, Rimmon. For this, God could have chosen not to heal him. Yet, in His mercy, He healed the man so that he may turn to the Lord and become His worshipper.

ELISHA AND GEHAZI

2 Kings 5:16-27
But he said, “As the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will receive nothing.” And he urged him to take it, but he refused.
So Naaman said, “Then, if not, please let your servant be given two mule-loads of earth; for your servant will no longer offer either burnt offering or sacrifice to other gods, but to the Lord. Yet in this thing may the Lord pardon your servant: when my master goes into the temple of Rimmon to worship there, and he leans on my hand, and I bow down in the temple of Rimmon—when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord please pardon your servant in this thing.”
Then he said to him, “Go in peace.” So he departed from him a short distance.
But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared Naaman this Syrian, while not receiving from his hands what he brought; but as the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from him.” So Gehazi pursued Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him, and said, “Is all well?”
And he said, “All is well. My master has sent me, saying, ‘Indeed, just now two young men of the sons of the prophets have come to me from the mountains of Ephraim. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of garments.’”
So Naaman said, “Please, take two talents.” And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and handed them to two of his servants; and they carried them on ahead of him. When he came to the citadel, he took them from their hand, and stored them away in the house; then he let the men go, and they departed. Now he went in and stood before his master. Elisha said to him, “Where did you go, Gehazi?”
And he said, “Your servant did not go anywhere.”
Then he said to him, “Did not my heart go with you when the man turned back from his chariot to meet you? Is it time to receive money and to receive clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male and female servants? Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and your descendants forever.” And he went out from his presence leprous, as white as snow.

Elisha, the prophet, was instrumental in the healing of Naaman. This was a big miracle that just took place to a notable man no less. Yet, we see the attitude of the prophet. He did not show himself to Naaman when he sought healing nor did he receive the reward Naaman wanted to give him. Elisha did not run after rewards or reputation. He simply sought to serve God.

This was a striking contrast to his servant Gehazi’s attitude. When he saw Elisha did not accept any reward from Naaman, he was disappointed. He felt the prophet should have gotten something from the miracle done. So he deceived Naaman to give him some of the reward. The greed in his heart surfaced. But truly no sin cannot be hidden from God. His end was tragic. He became a leper and he no longer served Elisha. It is sad to consider how a man like him, someone who was in close proximity to the prophet of Israel, who heard God’s voice, was not victorious over his own battles against greed.

The account of Naaman’s healing is truly rich in lessons and precious truths. The servant girl’s life speaks to us of how God can use even the nameless and faceless ones when people respond excellently to life’s difficulties. Naaman’s life on the other hand demonstrates the great mercy of God regardless of our background. His healing also reveals the heart of God, that He desires not only to heal but to grant us victory over our spiritual maladies. Finally, Elisha and Gehazi’s responses to Naaman distinguishes for us the true and false servants. Elisha sought only to give glory to God but Gehazi coveted riches. This story gives us both hope and warning. We can be Naaman’s and Gehazi’s today with issues in our lives that God wants to deal with. May we respond like Naaman, with humility and meekness that we may be led to a good end as he was. For those who will be like Gehazi, having a form of godliness, being servant to the prophet yet having an unchanged heart, will only be led to destruction.