The REPROOF of ELISHA ... A WARNING !

"Is it the TIME ... ?

to receive money and clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep, oxen, male and female servants?"

With these words, Elisha the Prophet issued correction to his guileful  servant, Gehazi, a correction which Gehazi never forgot.

Elisha's corrective was accompanied by a most dire consequence: instantly the leprosy of Naaman descended upon Gehazi. Gehazi left the presence of Elisha leprous, as white as snow.  

It was also promised to descend upon his family line forever. 

What did Gehazi DO

to warrant such terrible consequences ? 

 

Let's look at the account in 2 Kings 5 of Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Syria, being healed of leprosy. 

First of all, Naaman was NOT a Jew and was NOT part of the commonwealth of Israel or Judea.

 

He came to the king of Israel to be healed of leprosy, and the distraught king said, 

" Am I THE ELOHIM, to kill and make alive...

to heal [Naaman] of his leprosy ? "

Elisha intervened and comforted the king, telling him to send Naaman to him that Naaman “might KNOW there is a prophet”  of The Most High God   “in ISRAEL.”

 

Likely, there were quite a few OTHERS who received this knowledge, along with Naaman !

 

Naaman almost missed his blessing, though, angrily refusing to dip himself in the Jordan River.

 

However, he eventually listened to the pleadings and counsel of his servants who seemed to have loved him, calling him  “my father.”

Humbling himself to listen to servants, humbling himself to set aside his anger, humbling himself to obey, obediently dipping himself 7 times in the Jordan river, Naaman was miraculously cleansed.  

Thus, Naaman's healing was a testimony to this important army commander himself that THE ELOHIM really existed and was known among GOD'S people Israel.

 

NAAMAN'S RESPONSE ...

"Now I KNOW there is no ELOHIM in all the earth, except in Israel," Naaman the Syrian said, in open testimony before Elisha, who now received the Syrian.

 Naaman was so thankful to be healed of that dreaded leprosy that he wished to bless Elisha with silver and changes of garments. 

Elisha refused all gifts, vowing before The LORD  

"… before Whom I stand"  to receive NOTHING.

 

GEHAZI'S RESPONSE ...

Gehazi , unlike Naaman,  seemed not so impressed with the miraculous healing.  Perhaps, Gehazi was not so glad GOD  healed someone who was not of the tribes of Israel, saying, "  ... my master has spared Naaman  this Syrian."  vs. 20

Obviously, Gehazi DISAGREED with Elisha's refusal to take a blessing, a gift, Naaman offered after his healing.

THUS, a disgruntled heart about the Syrian's healing and a disagreement in the inner man with his master Elisha's decision nested in Gehazi’s bosom.  

Two problems Gehazi had in his heart.  Two problems not dealt with in righteous repentance before GOD.  Two problems paved the way for a life-time of sorrow.

BECAUSE Gehazi ignored

those two UN-righteous things working in his heart ... Gehazi’s judgment became skewered.  Thus, we next see Gehazi DECIDING to step beyond the authority Elisha had placed upon him.

Operating out of his now-warped judgement, Gehazi planned out exactly what to do in order to control the situation for his benefit and receive temporal wealth and goods.

He pursued Naaman's chariot, and that good man stopped to see if all was well.

Gehazi promptly told lies to Naaman in order to receive silver and garments; now they become STOLEN GOODS and he used Elisha's name to do it.

WHAT HAD HE DONE ?

Gehazi injured Elisha's word to Naaman, when Elisha said, " As The ELOHIM lives, before Whom I stand, I will receive nothing."

Gehazi, you see, told Naaman that "... my master has sent me.... please give ..."

Elisha would not receive a gift for Naaman's healing because the healing was from GOD, The ELOHIM.  

Naaman's healing was freely given to him.  It was to be used as a witness to The ELOHIM to draw all the nations unto The ONE TRUE GOD.

Naaman's healing showed the character of GOD. It showed The ELOHIM'S mercy to sinners when they humble themselves to obey The Word of the LORD... whether they like it or not, whether they even understand it or not. 

Instead of reflecting the true character of The ELOHIM ,  Gehazi reflected the character of  the father of lies and his demon, mammona.

His eyes still dazzled by the demon mammona, Gehazi's judgment was confused enough to lie to the Prophet Elisha ! 

 WRONG Move...

Elisha's heart, Scripture says, accompanied Gehazi when he met Naaman in his chariot. vs 26

We notice that Naaman did NOT give Gehazi   "... olive groves, vineyards, sheep, oxen, male and female servants."

Those plans were only in Gehazi's guileful heart. The SPIRIT of The LORD made Elisha very much aware of these secret schemes.

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There is NO hiding place where The SPIRIT of GOD cannot see, hear, or go.  To invite the demon mammona into a miraculous healing from The LORD is anathema to The ELOHIM.

To invite the demon mammona into ANY workings of The LORD GOD ELOHIM, is asking for anathema to be written upon one's project and upon one's Self. Remember Ananias and Sapphira.

Y'SHU+ said

it is IMPOSSIBLE

to serve GOD and mammon.

Beware of the spirit of Guile.

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Psalm 139

 O LORD, THOU hast searched me,

and known me.

THOU knowest my downsitting

and mine uprising,

THOU understandest my thought afar off.

THOU

compassest my path

and my lying down,

and art acquainted

with all my ways.

For there is not a word in my tongue,

but, lo, O LORD,

THOU

knowest it altogether.

THOU hast beset me behind and before,

and laid Thine hand upon me.

Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

it is high, I cannot attain unto it.

 

Whither shall I go from Thy SPIRIT?

 or whither shall I flee

from Thy PRESENCE?

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A warning to the organized religious systems in the West and elsewhere.

Is it a time  ... to seek more material goods, bigger houses, more land, gold and silver, guns and ammo?

The TIME is upon us...  to begin to live our lives as The MESSIAH-The Eternal SON+ of GOD-YHWH Adonai, has taught and commanded us to live them, to become anchored in Y’SHU+ The M’SHIKHA . 

It IS Time to stop bringing reproach on HIS+ Precious and most Holy Name with our man-made doctrines and traditions of IGNORING HIS+ Words whenever they do not fit our self-serving life styles  or the political  "correctness"  of the world.

Will the REPROOF of ELISHA settle on a Reprobate church system that refuses to separate from materialism, hedonism, politics and endless mammon-serving? 

The Time for Repentance is NOW.

If corporate Repentance does NOT happen, then by all means SAVE yourself from this untoward and rebellious generation.

Individual Repentance IS possible, even if the religious systems refuse to repent.

When the Fire of The Judgment and Wrath of The LORD GOD/YHWH ELOHIM falls upon a religious system that has brought shame and reproach upon HIS Beloved SON+, it will be too late to avoid being taken in the judgment with the worldlings.

TAKE HEED what you hear.

TAKE HEED not to mingle society's standards with The LORD'S RIGHTEOUS WAYS. 

Now is the time

to Humble ourselves under The Mighty Hand of GOD, and seek HIS Face while HE may be found.

Time is short. Judgment approaches.

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LET US PRAY:

O Gracious Heavenly FATHER, we humble ourselves to YOU.  We admit that YOU know us better than we know ourselves. YOU  understand  the  hidden desires of our heart, both good and evil. 

Help us not to hide from YOU.  Help us not to run from YOU or ignore Your conviction of warning. Help us to come clean in purest honesty when we react.  Help us to admit our guilt when we hold unrighteous thoughts that go against Your Word... that besmirch Your character. 

We are ashamed of our guile. Our hidden agenda, expedient for us, is not hidden to YOU, LORD.  We are ashamed of pretending to be pure, when we are not.  We know, O Righteous FATHER, that we have grieved Your Heart with our secrets and schemes.

And worse, we have ignored Your conviction sent to warn us that we are harboring wrong things. How can YOU bless wrong ? 

We are sorry to have hurt YOU, dear LORD.

We lay our hearts open to YOU to  remove those desires --- both good and bad --- that are not Your Will for us; we freely give them up to YOU... good desires as well as bad. 

Set us straight on the path of total  honesty before YOU. We yield  the  controls  over to Thy Righteous SON+ Y’SHU+ the M’SHIKHA, our LORD and SAVIOR.

Then shall YOU be glorified in our lives, and rivers of Living Water will flow forth from us, Your children. 

We ask Thy help for the sake of Thy Beloved SON+,  our LORD and SAVIOR , Y’SHU+ the M’SHIKHA ... Who+ lives and reigns with THEE and Thy Blessed HOLY SPIRIT, ONE GOD,  both now and forever. Amen.

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