Servant of God

 

There are basically two options open for people. 

 

1. Either we will seek to serve ourselves, a choice that nullifies our capacity to live as disciples, 

 

2. or we will learn to live as servants out of a faith relationship with God through Christ. 

 

In Matthew 6, the Lord stated it this way, “No one is able to serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. 

 

No one is able to serve God and possessions” (Matt. 6:24). When we serve money, we are really serving ourselves and our own desires for what we think money will purchase like significance, power, pleasure, security, or status. 

 

Money is not evil and having it is not evil, but if it becomes our master, it controls our values, priorities, and pursuits rather than God, and that is evil

(see 1 Tim. 6:8-10).

 

A Girl Helps a Mighty Man

 

DO YOU know what this little girl is saying? She is telling the lady about God’s prophet E·liʹsha, and the wonderful things that God helps him to do. 

 

The lady does not know about Jehovah because she is not an Israelite. Let’s see, then, why the girl is in the lady’s home.

The lady is a Syrian. Her husband is Naʹa·man, the chief of the Syrian army. The Syrians had captured this little Israelite girl, and she was brought to Naʹa·man’s wife to be her servant.

 

Naʹa·man has a bad sickness called leprosy. This sickness can even cause some of a person’s flesh to fall off. So this is what the girl is telling Naʹa·man’s wife: ‘

“I wish my master could go to God’s prophet in Israel. He would heal him of his leprosy.’ Later this is told to the lady’s husband.

 

Naʹa·man wants very much to be healed; so he decides to go to Israel. When he gets there, he goes to E·liʹsha’s house. E·liʹsha has his servant go out and tell Naʹa·man to go wash in the Jordan River seven times. 

 

This makes Naʹa·man very angry, and he says: ‘The rivers back home are better than any river in Israel!’ After saying this, Naʹa·man leaves.

 

But one of his servants tells him: ‘Sir, if E·liʹsha told you to do something hard, you would do it. 

Now why can’t you just wash yourself, as he said?’ Naʹa·man listens to his servant and goes and dips himself in the Jordan River seven times. When he does, his flesh becomes firm and healthy!

 

Naʹa·man is very happy. He returns to E·liʹsha and tells him: ‘Now I know for sure that the God in Israel is the only true God in all the earth. So, please, take this gift from me.’ 

 

But E·liʹsha answers: ‘No, I will not take it.’ E·liʹsha knows that it would be wrong for him to take the gift, because it was God who had healed Naʹa·man. 

 

But E·liʹsha’s servant Ge·haʹzi wants the gift for himself.

So this is what Ge·haʹzi does. After Naʹa·man leaves, Ge·haʹzi runs to catch up with him. ‘E·liʹsha sent me to tell you that he would like some of your gift for friends who just came to visit,’ Ge·haʹzi says. This, of course, is a lie. 

 

But Naʹa·man doesn’t know that it is a lie; so he gives Ge·haʹzi some of the things.

 

When Ge·haʹzi returns home, E·liʹsha knows what he has done. 

 

God has told him. So he says: ‘Because you did this bad thing, Naʹa·man’s leprosy will come upon you.’ And it does, right away!

 

What can we learn from all of this? 

 

First, that we should be like the little girl and talk about God. It can do much good. 

 

Secondly, we should not be proud as Naʹa·man was at first, but we should obey God’s servants. 

 

And thirdly, we should not lie as Ge·haʹzi did.      2 Kings 5:1-27.