God Has Left the Building: 2 Kings 5:1-15 Healing Naaman

    In this week’s story we see the power of God to heal across borders and beliefs. Naaman is a commander of the Aramean army—one of the enemies of Israel (we met this army a couple weeks ago in the “Chariots of Fire” story from 2 Kings 6). While he is a mighty warrior, he suffers from leprosy, some sort of skin condition (not the same as what we know today as leprosy, but a more general term). He hears about a prophet in Israel’s capital, Samaria, and goes there for healing. Sent by his king, he first approaches Israel’s king, who does not have the power to heal and fears he is being provoked to war when he surely fails to meet the king of Aram’s conditions (to heal Naaman). However, Elisha the prophet intercedes—by message, not in person—providing a space for God to show up and heal Naaman.




Things to note:     
  •    The Arameans and Israelites are neighbors (see map) and are often attacking one another, perhaps for control of borders or land; yet the king of Aram does not hesitate to send his top military commander to the king of Israel for a favor. What does that say about the way we think of “enemies”?
  • ·        Naaman approaches the king of Israel and then the prophet Elisha with a sense of entitlement to the healing, either in exchange for the extravagant payment (some sources think this gold and silver would be worth well over $1.5 million today; one talent = 9 years’ labor!) or because of his rank and importance to the king of Aram. Elisha is unimpressed, and doesn’t even go out to meet him personally, but sends a messenger, which irritates Naaman even further.
  • ·        Not being an Israelite, Naaman presumably does not worship the God of Israel. However, because of this healing, he seems entirely converted to monotheism, proclaiming “Now I know there is no God in all the earth except in Israel” (v. 15). Although he was reluctant to obey the prophet’s instruction to wash—perhaps he figured he could have done that at home and saved the trip—it is this very simple thing that results in his healing, and his conversion. What might it mean for Naaman to return home loyal to a foreign God, the God of the enemy? What might it mean for the people over whom he has influence, or even the king of Aram?

original art by Cody F. Miller  codyfmiller.com 


    A student was talking to me this week about a news story she heard about conspiracies, and how it’s hard to accept a simple solution to a large problem, so conspiracy theories are developed to create a more complex answer. Naaman seems to be acting this way—he can’t believe that the cure that will change his life, improve his capability to work, and remove his shame could be so simple. His servants rightly point out that if the command had been difficult and maybe even dangerous, he would have gladly taken the challenge; so why not do a simple and quick thing? I think we sometimes approach our relationship with God this way. We expect it to be hard, complicated, or beyond our reach; we doubt our ability to be faithful; we question or despair at God’s commands and invitation. But I actually believe that when we follow God’s ways of love, peace, and justice, we are living the way God created us to be, so it should be “natural” for us to do so. Perhaps the healing and peace we seek is easier than we think. To what might God be calling you today? Can you hear, and trust, and obey, whether it’s hard or easy?

    The Rev. Kerri Parker of the Wisconsin Council of Churches recently made a connection between this story and our current situation. We’re not being asked to do something valiant, complicated, or dangerous during this pandemic, but something very simple and effective—WEAR A MASK! And yet so many people are reluctant to do so…

    This story tells us something important about God: the grace of God, seen here in the healing of Naaman, is not limited to a particular group of people. Naaman proclaims there is only one God in all the earth, the God of Israel, and we see that God’s blessing and lovingkindness extend beyond any borders to all creation.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Sermon: Daniel 7-8 August 11, 2019

Image
Daniel is different from other prophetic books— less messenger and more fortune teller, predicting future events based on the visions from God. In the first half, Daniel interpreted dreams of the king; now he is having the dreams himself, and we’ve jumped ahead about 500 years. The visions point to a time when four kingdoms will rise, then be overthrown: Babylonia, Media, Persia, and Greece— but  then God will enter history and establish God’s kingdom forever.  This is what makes Daniel apocalyptic literature, stories about the end times: the world as we know it will be completely destroyed, and God will usher in a new reality through “spectacular divine intervention”. Why is apocalyptic literature in the Bible so confusing, and so intriguing?   It seems to be a secret code, describing events we can’t decipher. I mean, life is pretty good for us, white, middle-class Christians living in the US--we don’t need our reality replaced.   But
Read more

Gospel of Matthew, chapters 14 & 15

Image
Background:  These chapters include several large segments of story: we learn that John the Baptizer has been killed, and how and why; there are two stories of thousands of people being fed by Jesus; Jesus walks on the water in a storm (and Peter tries); Jesus is challenged by the Pharisees and scribes about keeping tradition; and Jesus learns a lesson about God’s grace when he meets a mother whose daughter needs healing.  While these stories may seem like unrelated episodes, there are some common themes.  We see abundance , in the feeding and healing of so many people, Gentiles and Jews alike. God’s grace goes everywhere, spilling out past the borders to include all creation.  Jesus goes places that are hard to get to , like walking on water during a storm, spending time in the wilderness and remote areas, and crossing borders and seas to get to “the other side”. This perseverance is increasing as he seems to learn and focus more on how God’s grace is made real and less on what other
Read more

Gospel of Matthew, chapters 10-11

Image
Background:            In these chapters Jesus gives instructions to the Twelve and sends them out. Honestly, it doesn’t sound like a job one would desire, and if we are expected to be disciples (ones who  learn) or apostles (ones who are sent out), where would we start? Healing the sick, raising the dead, cleansing lepers, and casting out demons are not in the average America Christian’s wheelhouse. And he warns that it won’t be easy work– people won’t like what they have to say, they’ll have to rely on the hospitality of strangers to be fed and housed. And at the end of chapter 11, Jesus says this yoke is easy, the burden light!  Some things to notice:  There are 12 disciples, matching the 12 Tribes of Israel  They are sent only to the Jews, not to Gentiles, yet  John is likened to Elijah, the prophet who was the forerunner of the Messiah. Elijah was taken up in a whirlwind by God (2 Kings 2:1-12) and is still awaited, since he didn’t die. At a Passover Seder, an empty chair and plac
Read more