The story of Naaman in the Old Testament is a rich one, full of meaning and lessons that are relevant to modern readers, even though Naaman isn't one of the big, easily recognizable names from the Bible. Naaman is a wealthy, successful general. He seems to have everything going for him, except for one thing - he suffers from leprosy. Leprosy was a feared, horrifically disfiguring disease without a cure. In biblical times, people who suffered from leprosy were cast out of their community and forced to live apart, usually reduced to begging in order to survive. Leprosy was a slow, painful death sentence.
Although Naaman is a Gentile (i.e. not a Jew), he learns from a Jewish servant girl in his household that a prophet in Israel (Elisha) may be able to help him. Naaman reaches out to Israel for help, and Elisha sends word to Naaman to wash in the Jordan river to be cured. One would think that Naaman would be overjoyed, but instead he's upset that Elisha hasn't come to him in person to heal him. Naaman's servants convince him to wash - after all, they reason, if Elisha had given him a difficult task to complete in order to be healed, Naaman would have gladly done it. He has nothing to lose - why not try washing in the Jordan to be healed? Naaman grudgingly agrees and is healed, just as Elisha promises.
After he is healed, Naaman's eyes are opened and he praises God for restoring his health. He wants to give Elisha a gift to show his gratitude, but Elisha refuses. He is not the one who healed Naaman - it was God's power alone. However, one of Elisha's servants - Gehazi - thinks this is foolish and chases after Naaman to claim the gifts for himself. Elisha knows immediately that Gehazi has been greedy and has lied. As a punishment, Gehazi now has Naaman's leprosy, in addition to the gifts he claimed for himself.
The story of Naaman reminds us, first of all, that we shouldn't dismiss opportunities to serve God, just because they are easy. We often fall into the trap of thinking that if a task isn't difficult, that it doesn't "count" as serving God. Opportunities spread God's love are everywhere - bringing donations to church for the local food pantry, allowing another car to go first and merge on the Beltway, or taking 10 extra minutes in the grocery store to talk with someone who says hello. Naaman almost missed out on a wonderful blessing, because he didn't want to wash in the Jordan River. How many blessings do we miss out on in our lives, because we reject them as too simple or too easy? It's also interesting that Israel's king nearly misses the opportunity in adversity to witness to Naaman. (In fact, he is upset that Naaman is asking him for help - he worries that Naaman is going to get angry and attack Israel if he isn't healed.) It's the servants in the story, not the powerful general or king, who have faith in God's ability and convince Naaman and Israel's king to trust and take that leap of faith as well. Finally, as Naaman is cleansed with water from the Jordan, it reminds us that our own baptism washes us clean from sin. God doesn't demand that we walk over hot coals or punish our bodies to be free from sin - simply washing with water and accepting the Holy Spirit is enough. God loves us so much, he did the difficult part for us, and makes it easy for our sins to be washed away.
Next, Naaman's story reminds us that God's love and healing power are available to everyone - not just for a set of selected, chosen people. Naaman wasn't a Jew - in fact, he was actually perceived as a threat to Israel. Naaman didn't know Elisha or know God - and yet by listening to his servants and taking a chance to accept God's amazing love, he was healed. In the New Testament as well, there stories again and again about how Jesus reaches out to people that aren't part of the "right" crowd - prostitutes, tax collectors, Samaritans. In the reading from Luke, Jesus uses the story of Naaman to remind his followers yet again that he comes to save all people - and that, in fact, he is often more accepted by the "wrong" crowd, rather than by his own Jewish people. In our own lives, we need to remember that everyone is a part of God's family. We don't determine who is "in" and "out" - God welcomes and loves all. We need to guard against passively feeling that, because we call ourselves Christians or because we go to church, we are part of the "in" crowd with God. As the New Testament illustrates again and again, the "in" crowd - Pharisees, Sadducees, and the like - often didn't recognize the manifestation of God's love, even when He was right in front of them.
Finally, Naaman's story reminds us of the dangers of claiming God's gifts and blessings for our own enrichment. The world often praises the virtue of being a "self-made" man or women - but as Christians we recognize that there's no such thing. The abilities and qualities that we may prize in ourselves - intelligence, physical strength, good health - all come from God. When we recognize that these things are gifts, not earned or deserved, it becomes easier to freely share them with others, rather than keeping them to ourselves.
To God be the glory!
2 Kings 5
The Healing of Naaman
5Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favour with his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. 2Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. 3She said to her mistress, ‘If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.’ 4So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. 5And the king of Aram said, ‘Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.’
He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. 6He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, ‘When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy.’ 7When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, ‘Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.’
8 But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, ‘Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.’ 9So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. 10Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, ‘Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.’ 11But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, ‘I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! 12Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?’ He turned and went away in a rage. 13But his servants approached and said to him, ‘Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, “Wash, and be clean”?’ 14So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.
15 Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company; he came and stood before him and said, ‘Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel; please accept a present from your servant.’ 16But he said, ‘As the Lord lives, whom I serve, I will accept nothing!’ He urged him to accept, but he refused. 17Then Naaman said, ‘If not, please let two mule-loads of earth be given to your servant; for your servant will no longer offer burnt-offering or sacrifice to any god except the Lord. 18But may the Lord pardon your servant on one count: when my master goes into the house of Rimmon to worship there, leaning on my arm, and I bow down in the house of Rimmon, when I do bow down in the house of Rimmon, may the Lord pardon your servant on this one count.’ 19He said to him, ‘Go in peace.’
Gehazi’s Greed
But when Naaman had gone from him a short distance, 20Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, thought, ‘My master has let that Aramean Naaman off too lightly by not accepting from him what he offered. As the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something out of him.’ 21So Gehazi went after Naaman. When Naaman saw someone running after him, he jumped down from the chariot to meet him and said, ‘Is everything all right?’ 22He replied, ‘Yes, but my master has sent me to say, “Two members of a company of prophets have just come to me from the hill country of Ephraim; please give them a talent of silver and two changes of clothing.” ’ 23Naaman said, ‘Please accept two talents.’ He urged him, and tied up two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of clothing, and gave them to two of his servants, who carried them in front of Gehazi. 24When he came to the citadel, he took the bags from them, and stored them inside; he dismissed the men, and they left.
25 He went in and stood before his master; and Elisha said to him, ‘Where have you been, Gehazi?’ He answered, ‘Your servant has not gone anywhere at all.’ 26But he said to him, ‘Did I not go with you in spirit when someone left his chariot to meet you? Is this a time to accept money and to accept clothing, olive orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, and male and female slaves? 27Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you, and to your descendants for ever.’ So he left his presence leprous, as white as snow.
Luke 4:24-27
24And he said, ‘Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s home town. 25But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up for three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; 26yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.’
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