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?”

II Kings 5:9-12

Naaman was a great general, had great power, was highly favored by the king, but Naaman was a leper. His body would waste away until his organs deteriorated and he died. Naaman had everything the world could offer but he was a dying man with an incurable condition. The historic plight of Naaman is such an explicit picture of man in his sin it is difficult to keep the physical and spiritual realities of this passage separated.

In the world, fame, greatness, and wealth are freely offered and many achieve those goals each day. But those achievements do not change the underlying condition of being dead in sin and the deterioration of the body until death occurs and the terror of hell fire begins. So the world seeks to put off the reality of death. It spends billions of dollars on anti-aging products; it gets blood and plasma infusions from the young; and it continues the centuries old search for the fountain of youth and the eternal life gene that will never be found.

800 years before Christ was born, Naaman heard that a prophet in Israel could provide healing for his incurable disease. Today may be the first time or the thousandth time you are hearing that eternal life can really and truly be attained. But when Naaman heard the cure for his leprosy, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times…and you shall be clean;” he responded in the most deadly and foolish way possible, he did not believe and became angry at the message. What is your response to the way to eternal life? “He who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life;”[1] “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved….”[2] Will you run, leap, and praise God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, or will you turn in unbelief and grow angry at this simple message of salvation and eternal life through Jesus Christ?

Naaman travelled more than a hundred miles. Some have searched their whole lives for eternal life. But when the simple message of cleansing and life is presented in such a manner that the work is being done by another, it causes many to turn their back from the truth.

Naaman was furious (vs. 11)! He left in a rage (vs. 12). He came up with a better way of healing – at least he should have been told to wash in the rivers of Damascus, Abanah or Pharpar rather than the filthy Jordan (vs. 12). He despised the means of the message – why didn’t the prophet come out waive his hand around calling for his God and heal him (vs. 11). Then from the place where healing was pronounced, he turned his back and left in unbelief (vs. 12).

Isn’t this tragic response the way of the fool, the way of the dying, and the way of the world? The message of the gospel goes out – that Jesus Christ died on the cross so that sinners might not die but have eternal life. The call goes out – Repent and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. And the response by so many is hatred, mockery, and rejection, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing….” [3]

Many will turn their backs on the house of God that proclaims the simple call of God and return to the lost and dying world in a rage. While claiming to desire eternal life they hate Christ and return to darkness. When their days draw to an end, they fall asleep in death and wake up in the terrors of hell for all eternity “where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.” [4]

Dear friend, a simple call has been made to you. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ of Scripture alone and you will be saved and have eternal life. Will you become furious at this message and turn around in a rage to return to the path of sin and death or will you heed the good news presented to you today? Will you take hold of eternal life that is freely offered to you in the gospel? Will you repent of your sins and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved?

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

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[1] John 5:24.

[2] Acts 16:34.

[3] I Cor. 1:18.

[4] Mark 9:48.

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