“But Naaman went away angry and said, ‘I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy.’” (2 Kings 5:11, NIV)
Most of us are familiar with the story of Naaman. He was one of the mighty and brave commanders of the Syrian king Aram and played a decisive role in the great success of the Syrian armed forces. The Bible suggests that he was not only popular with his superiors but also enjoyed a good reputation in his private life. However, this could not conceal the fact that there was something beyond his control: he suffered from a (then) incurable disease, leprosy.
The story of Naaman clearly shows us that since humans were expelled from the Garden of Eden, illness and death have been part of human life. First of all, there is nothing unusual about us becoming ill. Even though God can use illness to speak to us, to correct us, to set us on a different path, to make us think and pause, and yes, sometimes even to make us feel the consequences of sin, illness is not necessarily attributable to God’s active instigation. We humans sometimes simply become ill—sometimes seriously ill—as a result of poor nutrition, an unhealthy lifestyle, or harmful environmental influences.
What is striking about Naaman’s story is a young girl (some translations refer to a little girl) who had been captured by the Syrians on one of their raids in Israel and was now a servant in Naaman’s house. We do not know how old she was, but this young girl became, in a sense, an “angel of the Lord” for Naaman. It is remarkable that she was friendly and benevolent toward the people in her foreign home. But that is not the only thing that strikes us. There is also the matter-of-factness with which she speaks of the prophet of the Lord in her homeland of Israel, saying that if Naaman went to the prophet Elisha in Samaria, he would cure him of his leprosy. She leaves no doubt about this, and it almost seems as if every child in Israel knew: God heals! What a testimony from the mouth of this child! But how did she come to know this? Was she taught it? Did she experience it personally in her own young body? Did she witness God performing these miracles on other people through His servant, the prophet Elisha? We do not know. The most likely explanation is that before her captivity, she had a home where faith in a God who heals was exemplified and thus omnipresent. Did not the Lord introduce Himself to His people in this way: “For I am the Lord who heals you” (Exodus 15:26)?
We as Christians in a godless world can learn much from this little girl! Do we mean well toward the people in our (unbelieving) environment? Do we consciously notice when our coworkers become ill? Do we share testimonies with our neighbors about how the Lord has healed us or others? Do we offer to pray for them and share their concerns with the church? Sometimes it would simply be appropriate to pray for your coworker when they call in sick and then tell them when they return that you prayed for their recovery. The same can be done with your classmates. For the little girl, it was an opportunity to share her faith. The outcome of the story shows us this very clearly. But there is something else. It is the matter-of-fact way in which the little girl talks about healing sick people. Isn’t that remarkable? What do our children learn in our families? How strong is the idea that God heals, that healing sick people is part of the gospel? This certainly does not preclude our children from experiencing a visit to the doctor, but do they know above all that God still heals today? May God protect us from any kind of fanaticism that demonizes the blessings of medical advances, and may God protect us from relying foremost on human help instead of on Him, and also help us to remember that even those medical advances ultimately come from Him, and that if He chooses to heal us through medical means, we still need to give Him the glory.
Back to Naaman. The girl’s message struck a chord with him. He had probably already tried many things to cure his illness and longed to be healthy. And here was an option he had not yet considered: the God of Israel! Naaman did not hesitate for long and set off to travel to Israel. There, after a few detours, he arrived at the house of the prophet Elisha and waited for him to come out and intercede for him before God. After all, he was not just anyone, he did not come empty-handed—he saw himself as a special and important “patient.” But Elisha did nothing of the sort. Instead, he sent his servant to the door and told Naaman: “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored to you, and you shall be clean” (2 Kings 5:10). Not more, but also not less.
What was now required of Naaman was faith. This faith would prompt him to do what Elisha had told him to do, and then he would be healed by the God of Israel. Naaman was anything but convinced by this approach; on the contrary, he was completely indignant. He had expected something completely different. He began to express his displeasure: “I thought….” He had expected Elisha, and ultimately God, to act as he had imagined. Disappointed and angry, he turned away and decided to return home.
At this point, the Bible draws our attention to something we must take seriously: God is sovereign! Once again: God is sovereign! Even when we are sick and suffering and long for His intervention, it is always the Lord who decides HOW He does it, WHEN He does it, and IF He does it! As contradictory as it may sound: Ultimately, healing our sickness is not about us but about God being glorified! The Lord decides how He can be most glorified. But we can trust Him completely. It is remarkable that in Naaman’s case, God decided not to heal him “just like that” through His word – which He could undoubtedly have done – but expected an action from Naaman. God knew his heart. Naaman’s indignation revealed where the problem lay: his pride had to be broken. Only then could the Lord perform this miracle. And so it can also be in our lives that there are things that prevent God from performing the miracle of healing, things between us and God that need to be cleared away. If this is the case, God will not leave us in the dark but will be specific. He loves us. And for us, too, He has thoughts of peace, not of evil, to give us a future and a hope (Jeremiah 29:11).
How fortunate Naaman was to have good advisors. His servants bluntly laid out his problem once again: “If the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it?”
Often there are spiritually mature people in our circle who support us in our concerns before the Lord and become good advisors, people who mean well and from whom we are willing to accept advice. Naaman listened to these words and went to the Jordan and did what the Lord expected of him—and he experienced the miracle of his healing. When Naaman realized this, he could not help himself; he went back to the house of the prophet Elisha and—? He went inside! He no longer stood outside and waited for someone to come out to him. No, his pride was broken, he had been healed, and now he gave glory to whom glory belongs: “Indeed, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, except in Israel” (2 Kings 5:15b).
May God help us today to achieve such breakthroughs in faith—to His glory!
Niko Ernst
Herford, Germany
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