Trevor S. Ferguson
July 2, 2011
2 Kings 5:1-3 (NKJV)
1 Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.
2 And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman's wife.
3 Then she said to her mistress, "If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy."
1 Now Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, was a great and honorable man in the eyes of his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Syria. He was also a mighty man of valor, but a leper.
2 And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman's wife.
3 Then she said to her mistress, "If only my master were with the prophet who is in Samaria! For he would heal him of his leprosy."
2 Kings 7:3-5 (NKJV)
3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said to one another, "Why are we sitting here until we die?
4 If we say, 'We will enter the city,' the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. Now therefore, come, let us surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they keep us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall only die."
5 And they rose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of the Syrian camp, to their surprise no one was there.
3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said to one another, "Why are we sitting here until we die?
4 If we say, 'We will enter the city,' the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. Now therefore, come, let us surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they keep us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall only die."
5 And they rose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of the Syrian camp, to their surprise no one was there.
2 Kings 7:8-10 (NKJV)
8 And when these lepers came to the outskirts of the camp, they went into one tent and ate and drank, and carried from it silver and gold and clothing, and went and hid them; then they came back and entered another tent, and carried some from there also, and went and hid it.
9 Then they said to one another, "We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent. If we wait until morning light, some punishment will come upon us. Now therefore, come, let us go and tell the king's household."
10 So they went and called to the gatekeepers of the city, and told them, saying, "We went to the Syrian camp, and surprisingly no one was there, not a human sound--only horses and donkeys tied, and the tents intact."
8 And when these lepers came to the outskirts of the camp, they went into one tent and ate and drank, and carried from it silver and gold and clothing, and went and hid them; then they came back and entered another tent, and carried some from there also, and went and hid it.
9 Then they said to one another, "We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent. If we wait until morning light, some punishment will come upon us. Now therefore, come, let us go and tell the king's household."
10 So they went and called to the gatekeepers of the city, and told them, saying, "We went to the Syrian camp, and surprisingly no one was there, not a human sound--only horses and donkeys tied, and the tents intact."
INTRODUCTION
The concept of change has become an important area in the world today. This is particularly so in the business setting but has also be used frequently in church settings. Most persons have some degree of dissatisfaction with their current state of being and as such desire change. The desired change is of course a change for the better – people want better wages, better governments, better countries, better health, and better lives. US president Barack Obama built his 2008 election campaign on the concept of change. Here in Jamaica the people want change. They want change in government policies, change in our financial situation, change in the way we do business, change from a culture of crime and violence to a culture of peace. In the church people also want change. We want better worship, better leadership, better organizations, and better results!
In most situations persons tend to look for one person or a small group of person to bring about the change – the general population often wants to stand back, do little or nothing to bring about the change, but of course they must also reap the benefits of the change.
In today’s texts we see examples of a different approach - how individuals who would normally appear to be insignificant became powerful agents of change. As we seek to apply these principles to our lives, I would like to challenge all of us as individuals to become agents of change.
EXPOSITION
2nd Kings 5 records the story of the miraculous healing of Naaman the leper. The story is well known and the main characters Naaman and Elisha have formed the basis of many Sunday school lessons and songs; however the role of the little maid is often overlooked. It must be recognized that if that little maid had not shared with her mistress that Naaman could be healed, there would have been no story to tell, and Naaman would have died a leper. This little maid therefore was an agent of change! It was through her that Naaman received his change! Although all she did was tell her story, her willingness to share became that catalyst that led to a mighty healing
Today there are many similar persons who could become agents of change. You may consider yourself as insignificant, a person who normally would be rarely seen, and never heard! Yet today you too can be a powerful agent of change. Ensure that your life testifies of the goodness of God, that people can see the light of God in you and that your life will be a light and a catalyst for change.
In 2nd Kings 7 we find here another interesting story, again involving lepers. These two lepers were outside the gates of Samaria while the city was surrounded by the army of Syria. They had no food and had to make a decision as to what they should. The question they asked themselves is relevant to all of us today: Why sit here until we die? They evaluated their options. If they went into the city they were likely to die there because of there was famine in the city. If they remained were they were they would die there also. The third option was a dangerous one – Go into the camp of the Syrians. Food was there! The problem was if they went the Syrians would probably kill them, but there was a chance that the Syrians would spare their lives. They decided to take the dangerous option because at least there was a chance that they would be spared!
Today we can learn from the leper’s philosophy. Sometimes all the safe options will be dead-ends. The only viable options may seem risky, but we have to step out in faith. When the lepers moved, God moved as well. The Syrians heard the noise of horses and chariots and fled from the camp. By the time the lepers got there the camp was empty. They went in and told the story to the people inside Samaria and the whole city was able to get food. These lepers became agents of change.
Points to note:
At the point when they were making their decisions neither the little maid nor the lepers were thinking about making any big change! All they were doing is acting according to what they perceived to be the right thing at that time! If we seek to do the right thing all the time then often, when we least expect it, we will find that our decisions will have lasting impact and will bring about great change.
These stories do not relate that the lepers were healed or that the maid was promoted to a mistress, but in their lowly states both the maid and the lepers became agents of change.
Note also that sometimes our individual effort may not account for much but when we pool all the small bits of effort together we end up with a significant momentum for change. Consider the difference between a thread and a rope – both are made of the same material. The least of us can rip a thread apart with little effort, but the rope can often pull a truck up a hill! If we pool our effort we can accomplish that which seems impossible. One voice in the street will often be ignored. But thousands of voices can bring down dictators, as happened recently in Tunisia and Egypt.
APPLICATION AND CONCLUSION
The word to us today is that all of us can become agents of change! We may seem insignificant, or we may have been treated like outcast, but if we consistently do the right things our effort will make the difference in somebody’s life. Our collective effort will add up to become a powerful catalyst for change.
If each person commits himself or herself to doing the right thing all the time – at home, at work, at school, even when everyone else seems to be doing the wrong thing – our collective effort will overcome the difficulties and we will become agents of change.
