Monday, February 12, 2024
NO PROGRESS WITHOUT CHANGE – NO CHANGE WITHOUT RISK!
The situation was unimaginable! The city was under siege and no food or supplies could
reach them. Mothers were boiling their children for food [2 Kings 6:28, 29] and
other unthinkable things were being eaten. The city would die if there was no
change. Elijah then prophesied that there would soon be plenty.
2
Kings 7:1-2
7:1 Then Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus
saith the LORD, To morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold
for a shekel, [about 16 grams of silver or $12 dollars] and two measures
of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.
2 Then a lord on whose hand the king leaned answered the man
of God, and said, Behold, if the LORD would make windows in heaven,
might this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes,
but shalt not eat thereof.
Some stories,
especially in the Old Testament, take time to play out but it is worth our
while to read to the end the following portion.
2 Kings 7:3-9
3 And there were four leprous men at the
entering in of the gate: and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we
die?
4 If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is
in the city, and we shall die there: and if we sit still here, we die also. Now
therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Syrians: if
they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die.
5 And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of
the Syrians: and when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of
6 For the Lord had made the host of the Syrians to hear a
noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host: and
they said one to another, Lo, the king of
7 Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left
their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was,
and fled for their life.
8 And when these lepers came to the uttermost part of the
camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence
silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and came again, and entered
into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it.
9 Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a
day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the
morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may
go and tell the king's household.
Several spiritually significant points can easily be made here, so we will.
The Four had a death-dealing disease! There was no known
cure for leprosy in those days and death was slow but certain. Sin is
like that. Its progress may be slow but, as the Bible says, “the ends
thereof are the ways of death.”
They sat at the entering in of the gate! There are several ways we may look at this gate. If we see
it as the entrance to the old legal system we conclude, as they
did, that the famine is there, and death would be the result for “by the law
shall no flesh be justified.” [Galatians 2:16] We may also see the gate as the
key or opening to the future. The gate may represent salvation. They
did not yet have it, but they were close.
They weighed their options! If they remained in their current situation they would
certainly die. If they went into the city, they would certainly die. They would
either be killed because they were lepers, or they would simply join the huge
population of “the dying.” But if they went unto the camp of the Syrians they MIGHT
live. They might be able to beg bread for another day or two of life. If the
Syrians killed them, it would only be a swifter means of death.
They made a decision! It is hard
to rise from the relative comfort of slow death to chance the
prospect of a quicker one and the only reason to make such a
decision is hope. [2 Kings 7:4] They would approach the enemy with
beggars’ hands and hope for the best.
They were wonderfully provided for! Taking a risk is another way of saying that they exercised
FAITH. God always responds favorably to faith for without faith it is
impossible to please Him. [Hebrews 11:6] They found the camp empty of men and
full of rich supplies. When we risk coming to Jesus, we have nothing to lose
and everything to gain.
They thought of others! Reclining
after a Thanksgiving-like feast they suddenly thought of others less fortunate.
They suddenly felt an obligation to a city that had forced them out. This
is the missionary urgings of a grateful people. How can we sit full and
satisfied by the abundant mercy of God when a whole city is perishing with
spiritual hunger? This is how common people, wonderfully blessed,
become evangelists and missionaries.
2
Kings 7:9
9 Then they said one to another, We do not well: this
day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry
till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come,
that we may go and tell the king's household.
Church! If we keep
doing what we are doing, we will continue to get what we already have. There is
no progress without change and there is no change without risk. Today is a day
of good tidings! Go tell!
Dear Lord, I am afraid to take a risk, but I know that is
the only way to make progress. Give me courage to risk change. I have been
blessed, help me to tell others. AMEN
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