Title I Think (2 Kings 5:8-14)
Contents
It is said that a certain angler fished and filtered out the large fish and put only the small fish in the basket. Doing this is contrary to what all anglers do. It's common sense and fishing practice to let go of the small ones and put the larger ones in the basket. So, it was strange, so when I asked why he was doing that, he said, "Our frying pan is only 15 inches long, so only the meat that fits in the frying pan is put in the basket." I thought only of the size of the frying pan, but I didn't think of cutting and grilling the meat. When a person lacks thought, if the mind is blocked, the hands and feet suffer and the body suffers.
Unlike other animals, humans live by thinking. A person's thoughts are an important factor in determining who he or she is. What he thinks deeply about his life determines his life, determines his future, and determines his eternal life. What do you spend most of your day thinking about? That's your life.
There is a saying, "Sow a thought and you will reap an action, sow an action and you will reap a habit, sow a habit and you will reap a character, sow a character and you will reap a destiny." What happens to a person's destiny begins with that person's thoughts.
However, it is a fact that many people living in the modern world think everything is centered on themselves, insist on their own stubbornness, and are caught up in old paradigms and stereotypes. I think it's a problem because there are so many people who don't think I should give up my thoughts, respect the opinions of others, throw away my thoughts and embrace the ideas of others who are better than me.
General Naaman of Syria, who had Hansen's disease (leprosy) in the Bible today, also said, "I think" and was trapped in his own thoughts. This frame of thinking, “I think it should be this and this,” becomes a spiritual limit and a spiritual boundary, which is an obstacle to the miracle of faith. When we break such thoughts and accept the word of the Lord, miracles will happen.
1. I thought, "I thought I could fix it through a special ceremony."
When Naaman heard from Elisha the prophet, "Wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River," he said, "I think he might come to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place to be healed of leprosy. all," he said. He expected a grand ceremonial purification worthy of his status and dignity. He is still chasing face, stating status, and chasing form. He thought that his illness would be healed by performing some great and grand ceremony through the prophet. I think that some kind of ritual should be done to the shaman's fluttering expression.
Such expectation is a mistake of faith that we Christians today can easily fall into.
When Naaman was obsessed with “his thoughts,” he became angry and tried to back off. min woke up. But faith is to forsake my thoughts and trust me to the Word of God.
Naaman did not realize that his disease could be healed by faith. The work of faith happens when you fully believe in the power of God. A prophet is only to make known, to communicate, and to help.
2. I thought, "There are clearer and greater rivers in Aram."
The rivers Amana and Barbal in Damascus were flowing in better water than the Jordan River in my opinion. The river of Damascus was cleaner than all the rivers of Israel. So Naaman said, "If I wash there, will I not be clean?" But it was not in the Jordan River in Palestine or the Amana and Barbal Rivers in Damascus that cured him. And it was not a matter of the purity of the river itself.
Because there was power in the word of God's promise, which was proclaimed through the prophet. His faith, holding on to the word of God and jumping into the Jordan River, healed him. The Jordan River does not have power, but faith that enters the river of obedience and humility creates power.
3. I thought, "Why should it be seven times?"
It may be a natural thought that we humans can fall into the question of why it must be Jordan River water and why it must be seven times, but this is a vain idea. It is the strong wall of our unbelief and doubt that we must break through. This kind of thinking fuels the error of our faith. Faith is total obedience to the Word of God. It may seem pointless to repeat the act of going in and out of the Jordan River 7 times. However, even if it seems like such a useless thing, it is faith to keep obeying the Word of God. The history of healing appeared when he overcame his thoughts of why it couldn't be done once, five or six times and jumped into the river seven times repeatedly.
Naaman almost missed a good opportunity. He almost made the biggest mistake of his life.
Even sincere Christians sometimes make a “fall of faith.” Rather than the words of the Lord, there are times when I am caught up in the self-assertion that my thoughts or opinions are this or that. This error of belief is caused by the very deep-rooted nature that occurs in the human heart. I think that the image of himself in the story of General Naaman's healing of leprosy that we saw today is a good example of what it is like to clearly show the "fall of faith that is easy to fall into".
In this way, you must overcome this fearful enemy of faith, "I think this and that." This kind of thinking is a stumbling block to our faith and is what causes us to stumble in our faith. This is unbelieving, demonic, and satanic that drives us into a fall of faith. You must learn to bow your head humbly before the word of God. Naaman destroyed what "I think" was. I almost made a mistake in insisting on my thoughts, but I took the advice of those servants. And believing the prescription that Elisha had given him, he went down to the Jordan River, and there he submerged himself seven times. By this, his leprosy was healed, and his body was restored to tender skin like that of a child.
Faith is like throwing away our thoughts and completely trusting and relying on God's promises.