#96. The Child Opened His Eyes

Published by Ben Stahl on August 14, 2020August 14, 2020

When Elisha came into the house there was the child, lying dead on his bed. He went in therefore, shut the door behind the two of them, and prayed to the LORD. And he went up and lay on the child, and put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands; and he stretched himself out on the child, and the flesh of the child became warm. He returned and walked back and forth in the house and again went up and stretched himself out on him; then the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. And he called Gehazi and said, “Call this Shunammite woman.” So he called her. And when she came in to him, he said, “Pick up your son.”

II Kings 4:33-36 NKJV

I remember hearing story a while ago about a minister who taught many interns during his years of ministry. On the intern’s first day the minister did not bring him into his study or share with him the secrets of godly preaching but instead gave him a toilet brush, brought him to the restrooms and told him to get to work cleaning them. A servant of God cannot be profitable if he is unwilling to roll up his sleeves and serve God’s people and Christ’s church according to their needs but only according to his desires.

The Shunammite woman would not leave Elisha so Elisha willingly went with her from Mt. Carmel to her house in Shunem where he saw her son, dead and lying on his bed. This journey was not too lowly a task for him but was according to the work God had called him to as a servant. Upon his arrival in Shunem, Elisha immediately shut the door so that he was alone with the boy and prayed to the Lord. Elisha was not making a show of his prayers but needed to be alone with the boy and the Lord so that his mind might be focused. It is wise for all of us when we pray to go alone to our rooms to make our prayers before the Lord.

The Lord did not immediately act and Elisha, under the inspiration of the Lord, lay on top of the child, whose flesh became warm. When Elisha did this a second time the child sneezed seven times and opened his eyes. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man again availed much, and the child who was dead was raised by the Lord from the dead.

The Scripture rightly teaches us not to pray for the dead or to the dead. But we are to go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to raise the dead. When we pray the second petition, “Thy kingdom come,” part of that petition is to ask God to hasten the kingdom of glory. That means simply to ask God to come quickly and raise the dead to everlasting glory with Him forever. As we remain constant in prayer to the Lord asking Him to return and raise the dead, one day at last we shall see Him do just that even as He raised the boy in Shunem.

Elisha’s instruction to the Shunammite woman can seem somewhat subtle, “Pick up your son,” but he is saying something more profound: Come see what the Lord has done for you and your son! Come behold the wondrous works of the Lord your God who caused the eyes of the boy that once were shut in death to be opened again in life. Prayer may seem boring, few will see it, if done in private nobody will commend you for it, but as Elisha privately prayed to the Lord, a dead child was given his life again. Serve the Lord with gladness, gladly go wherever the Lord calls you, and think well of every task from cleaning the restrooms to praying and preaching the Word. One day, you too will see the eyes of the dead opening to life again.

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