2 Kings 5 (Part 2) Bible Study (Gehazi's Greed and Punishment) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

Let's come together now to the book of second Kings chapter five, and place your finger there at verse 15 as we will complete this chapter together this evening. I'll tell you upfront that the focus of our study will be on two individuals and the change in their spiritual condition, the radical change in their spiritual condition. The first is Naaman and how his faith was converted to the true and living God. The second is Gehazi, Elisha's servant, and how he compromised in his faith in the true and living God. In Naaman, we are going to witness the remarkable transformations of the convictions of a very unlikely person.

In Gehazi, however, we are going to look at a minister and a pupil of one of God's most remarkable prophets in all of history and how this man was eaten up by covetousness. This section is not only going to offer us lessons from each of these individuals, it's also going to highlight striking contrast between them. And when we carefully examine those contrasts, it's only gonna add to the stock pile of revelation that we seek to accumulate tonight. And that's what we do here. We discipline ourselves to read and study our Bibles carefully, to dig and to mine in order to see all that God has to offer.

And so let's do that. Let's come to second Kings five fifteen. Last week, we studied how Naaman was miraculously healed and cleansed of leprosy. And right away, we're going to notice that there was another type of cleansing that took place in this man's life. Not externally, internally.

Not on his skin, but in his soul. Let's read the first few verses beginning in verse 15. Then he, being Naaman, returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he came and stood before him. And he said, behold, I know that there is no God in all the earth but in Israel. So accept now a present from your servant.

But he said, as the Lord lives before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged them to take it, but he refused. Then Naaman said, if not, please let there be given to your servant two mule loads of earth. From from now on, your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god but the lord. In this matter, may the lord pardon your servant when my master goes into the house of Ramon to worship there, leaning on my arm and I bow myself in the house of Ramon, when I bow myself in the house of Ramon, the Lord pardon your servant in this manner.

He said to him, go in peace. You know what we have before us tonight, the study? One of the most notable gentile converts in the Old Testament. And again, as we mentioned in verse 14, we learned that this Naaman, his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. But right away in verse 15, we realized that there was an inner transformation, a genuine conversion.

He was saved. And I want you to look back at verse 15 because this is more interactive than on a Sunday. Is there anything from verse 15 that stands out to you that would validate Naaman's transformation? And you can say it out loud. You don't have to give a whole sermon, but just a word or two about what you notice from verse 15 that would indicate that this man indeed was different.

Yes. Okay. So he returned to the man of God. That's significant because he's gonna make certain requests to the man of God. We're gonna elaborate on that.

Any other observations from verse 15? Exactly. He made this claim about the exclusivity of the God of Israel. Absolutely. Anything else?

He humbly came and stood before Elijah. Yeah. So he stands before Elisha, different posture, different mindset. Anything about his mindset that was different from how we studied him last week? Humble.

Absolutely. So I I think we can look at three marks of this man's transformation. And and some of us already talked about at least two of them. The first one was his confession, his profession. He made this claim that there is no other god but the God of Israel.

Now it was not uncommon for a pagan at this time to discover of a new deity and then to add him to his panoply of gods. But that's not what Naaman does here. He doesn't add this God to the list of other gods that he respected and revered. He makes this profession that a faithful Israelite would've made that there is no other God, but this God. And that's what the Bible unequivocally declares over and over and over again, that there is only one Lord and it's this Lord.

And this is what Naaman does. It's a massive declaration for somebody with his background to make. Absolutely. So he's already lining up with what the scripture says about the exclusivity of this God and his claims and his prerogatives. The second thing that Naaman does though is that he is demonstrating a willingness to respond sacrificially to the experience that he had with the grace of God.

Notice what he says to Elisha. So accept now a present from your servant. So a couple of people already mentioned that Naaman goes back to the man of God. It could have been very easy for him to have that miracle at the Jordan River and then to make his way straight back home to Syria. But instead he, he travels many miles back to come before the man of God because he wants to leave something with the man of God.

And as we're about to discover, take something back with him to Syria. Now if you think that's unrealistic for somebody to do this, to go back home after experiencing such a marvelous thing, do you remember when Jesus healed 10 lepers? How many then came back to give him thanks? One. And he was a foreigner according to the Lord's words, just like Naaman was.

So Naaman goes above and beyond to ensure that he can do what he can by properly responding to this encounter that he had with God. And so he makes this offer. Out of his gratitude, he wants to repay the spiritual and the human instrument rather for the miracle, but we're gonna learn Elisha rejects it and for a good reason. So it's not that he just wants to give something though. He wants to take something.

Look at verse 17. Then Naaman said, if not, please let there be given to your servant two mule loads of earth. From now on, your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god, but the Lord. Was Naaman commanded to worship the Lord? No.

He he discovered a fresh desire to worship the Lord. And there's no doubt that his understanding of the things of God will develop, but there's no denying the the purity of this priority. He wants to do what he can to honor God. And it is no different for a person who has genuinely encountered and been changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ. In the same way, Naaman wants to go back home and reorient everything around the true God being central.

When you've really experienced the gospel and responded to it in repentance and faith, you will want to set up your life in a way where Christ has preeminence and that he will have your supreme devotion. If you've been cleansed by the blood of Jesus, that will be true of you. And if it's not true of you, then you have to question whether or not you really have tasted of his grace. And I find it fascinating how this is the same Naaman who earlier, when he was commanded by Elisha to go dip himself seven times in the Jordan, made these boast about how the rivers in Damascus were far greater. Right?

And now what is he doing? He wants to take back with him the dirt of Israel in order to honor God through it above everything else back home. This man changed. He's different. But it's not just his view of God that's altered, how he views himself is radically changed as well.

How does he refer and identify himself when he comes before the man of God? He says what? Your servant. And he says that twice more in verse 18. Your servant.

Your servant. Compare this to how we saw Naaman interact with Elisha in his first introduction. Look at verse 11 of second Kings five, just as a reminder. But Naaman was angry and went away saying, behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. Much different, wouldn't you say?

And just like how Naaman wanted to worship the Lord, go back home and change everything about how he views the world and views these different gods and his idols. This is also a pattern for a person who's experienced the gospel of Jesus Christ. No matter who you are, even if you are the general of a nation's army like Naaman, you will also want to serve Your servant. So when Christ does a work in your heart, he doesn't just secure you. He doesn't just declare you positionally as a saint.

He makes you into a servant. And the effects of the gospel in that regard are repetitive throughout the new Testament. One of my favorite texts to prove that is Titus two fourteen, when it talks about he who redeemed us and delivered us from all lawlessness and to purify unto himself a people who are zealous for good works. You're not saved by good works. You're not saved even by zealous good works, but you are saved for zealous good works.

So here you have Naaman now saying, yes, I wanna worship the true God, but I also wanna be a servant. So he calls himself your servant. When you're saved, you're gonna wanna serve. Serve God's people, serve God's kingdom, and you'll do so with joy. Did you notice that in verse 16, Elisha rejects the gift?

But he said, as the Lord lives before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it, but he refused. This is even more strange when you remember how Elisha unreservedly accepted the service of the Shunammite woman. All those meals and she even extended her home, built a room for him. He didn't object.

So why is Elisha denying this gift here and now? And I believe it's in the same chapter where you get a clue that indicates Elisha's wisdom and discretion in this matter. Scroll down to verse 26. We didn't read it yet, but but look at what he says to Gehazi when he confronts Gehazi about his greed as we're going to read later. Verse 26, but he said to him, did not my heart go when the man turned from his chariot to meet you?

Was it a time to accept money and garments, olive orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male servants and female servants? There it is. It wasn't the right time. So it's not that Elisha's ministry had this unbending policy where you couldn't receive any donations or charity. It's that at this particular moment, he discerned that it was not appropriate to do so.

And why was it wrong? Why would it have been foolish for him to accept this gift? Here's what I believe, and I I think this is the case that the scripture is making. Elisha understood that he was dealing with with a foreigner, and he did not wanna give the slightest impression to him, Naaman, or the people that he was going to go back to that this miracle was somehow earned or it was purchased in any way. So Elisha's thinking beyond what's happening here.

He's thinking that when Naaman goes back and those around him that knew of his condition and traveled to Israel to receive healing from the God of Israel, and they ask, how was it that you were healed by the God of Israel? He would respond based on what Elisha does here with, nothing. Nothing at all. I didn't pay anything. I I I didn't have to perform in any way.

He just asked me to do something in simple faith, and in simple faith, I received my cleansing. And through that, I'm sure that the message of the grace of God would be unmistakable. That's what Elisha was trying to protect. Paul made similar objections when he served among the Corinthians. He refused to be a financial burden to the Christians of that area because he discerned that in that context, there were adversaries that were trying to muddy his testimony and claimed that he was doing this for financial gain, so he gave him no evidence to work with.

Even though he cut off the right of an apostle to receive compensation for his work, he would not exercise that right because he had a greater ambition in mind. Both Elisha and Paul, among others, serve as a wonderful example for ministers today and how they should operate in wisdom. You have to learn how to be flexible in your ministry and in your service, especially when people wanna respond by giving you something for your service. There are times when the best thing to do is to not receive anything. Could have Elisha used this as the leader of the sons of the prophets?

We got a glimpse of how much the sons of the prophets needed support, material support. I'm sure he could have used this. I'm sure his students could have benefited from this. But he refused to accept it because in this mind, he understood that there is a superior spiritual goal that overrided any temporary material profit. This is a man who had great wisdom.

Unfortunately, it wasn't shared by his assistant as we're going to discover. So he tried to give it to him and he wouldn't take it. So notice what he says in verse 17, Naaman that is. Then Naaman said, if not, please let there be given to your servant two mule loads of earth, for from now on your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any god but the Lord. Okay.

You won't take anything? Fine. Can you at least do me this favor? Can you fill up two of my cars with some of the dirt of the land of Israel? I I I wanna go back and I wanna worship God and honor him.

What does dirt have to do with devotion? Here's how some explain it. That Naaman, though he is truly changed, he's still in the infancy of his faith. And with many heathens of this time, they understood gods as localized deities. So you have the god of the hills and the god of the valleys and the god of that country and the god of that city.

And some would claim that Naaman is still operating with that filter. And when you, when you read back at first Kings, you don't have to turn there now where the Syrians go to war with Ahab. God criticizes the Syrians for that very kind of thinking. That the God of Israel is, is, is the God of this location and not that location. And the Lord proved otherwise, that he's the God of everything and over everything.

So the idea here is that in the innocence of his heart and the purity of his devotion, in order to stay connected to the Lord, the God of Israel, he wants to take some of the ground that God governs so that he can relate and engage with him. That's the explanation many people give. Here's why I have trouble with that. Because if this is how Naaman was thinking, surely Elisha would have corrected him. He would have gently redirected him and clarified this misunderstanding.

What's more likely is that Naaman, though he, he was freshly saved, perhaps was able to gather some information about how this God, the God of Israel should be worshiped. And there is one particular law from the book of Exodus that would give commentary to why Naaman made this request and why Elisha allowed it. You have to turn to Exodus 20 to see it and look down with me in verse 24. This is the Lord speaking to the people of Israel and what he demanded of them and how they should worship him. An altar of earth, you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen, in every place where I cause my name to be remembered, I will come to you and bless you.

An altar made out of what? Dirt. Earth. So this was before the tabernacle would be instituted and the temple would be constructed. God made a way for the people of Israel to construct an altar to worship him.

And even after the tabernacle and the temple was made, this was still applied in many instances on special occasions or if people were too far from the temple and they desired to glorify God in this fashion. Why dirt though? Here's why. God is so practical and so kind. This would leave it open for anybody to worship.

This didn't limit people who had the ability to put together special materials or stones in order God for for God to be honored, even if you couldn't afford anything, everyone has access to dirt, which means that it's an open invitation for anybody to seek him and honor him and glorify him no matter where they are. It It speaks of the accessibility of God. And Naaman living in Syria understood that he couldn't make his way to the to the house of God in Jerusalem, and so he asked, can I take some of his dirt and build an altar so that I can present burnt offerings on it? Elisha has no objections to that. And it's evident that in this, this man's conscience is is changing and he's now becoming more sensitive to matters that he was not really concerned about before.

And it could be that on his way back from the Jordan to the man of God in Samaria, he's now thinking about his way of life back in Syria, and he's concerned about how different things are gonna conflict now with his newfound convictions, including his job. And so he couldn't wait, I'm sure, to get to Elisha to get some kind of guidance and clarity about something that was pricking his heart, and he brings it up in verse 18. Notice what he says. In this matter, may the Lord pardon your servant. When my master goes into the house of Ramon to worship there, leaning on my arm and I bow myself in the house of Ramon, when I bow myself in the house of Ramon, the Lord pardon your servant in this matter.

There's something bothering Naaman. He knows that he's heading back to a place that honors and worships different deities but he made this claiming confession that he will not worship anything or anyone else except the God of Israel. So this scenario is playing in his mind and he needs to be sued. He needs some kind of assurance. And what we learned from this scenario is that Naaman was not just the governor, rather the general of the army of Syria.

He was also some kind of an aid to the king of Syria. And one of his responsibilities evidently was to join the king of Syria whenever the king would go into the Temple Of Ramon and worship this false god, and he would assist them in his worship. It could be that the king of Syria was advanced in age and he needed some kind of assistance to posture himself in certain ways in order to worship Ramon the way Ramon demanded to be worshiped, which will then require Naaman to position himself in a similar fashion and and this concerned him. He was discovering who the God of Israel was and he and he's he's asking the prophet, look, this is part of my duty. I'm not really worshiping though, but when he leans on my arm, notice how that's that's highlighted.

That's so important. Showing that he's depending on Naaman, again, for physical assistance to participate in these rituals. When he leans on my arm and part of my job is to help him do that, will the Lord pardon me? This is probably a very poor equivalent, to kinda make sense of this. Just imagine a Christian caregiver who is living with a old elderly Muslim man, and that Muslim man is a devoted Muslim.

And and so he needs help to pray several times a day and requires help to realign himself and posture himself in order to pray in the way his religion tells him to to to pray. And this requires the Christian caregiver to do what he needs to do to assist him in that regard. This is the struggle that Naaman has. And it amazes me how practical something from the Old Testament can be to our lives today. You know why?

Because it provides instructions for many of us who are in settings or employed in places that intersect with people or organizations that believe differently than you? What do you do when you are surrounded or when you are connected? Not in your faith, but in your interactions and in your duties with systems or beliefs or employers that don't line up with the scriptures. And there there is wisdom here from Naaman's side, and there is discretion and instruction from Elisha's side. From Naaman, you know what we learn?

That when you're put in positions where you don't know if you're compromising, you should seek the guidance of godly people, including your spiritual leaders. Our thinking can often be clouded when we're trying to assess situations and we could be overwhelmed causing us to either overestimate or underestimate our involvement in certain actions or practices. That's where the body of Christ comes in. And don't just go to any nominal Christian. Naaman went to Elisha, the man of God who represented the word of God.

And so he's really seeking a person who operates and is sensitive to what God's will is in his word. Do the same. Do the same. And from Elisha's side, what we learn, mature believer, is not to be so rigid or legalistic in how you also advise and counsel people in nuanced predicaments. You know, you have some Christians who believe everything is black and white.

I'm sorry to tell you not everything is so straightforward. Are there things in the Scriptures that are clear and indisputable? Absolutely. And wherever it is clear, you be clear with your convictions and with your counsel. But there are some things that are muddy.

There are some things that are gray. And if you're not careful in how you advise other believers, you can hinder them. And you can actually invite unnecessary but great harm in their lives because you are not considerate or careful of how to apply God's word in a situation that necessarily doesn't have a verse to give direction in. And I've seen it. I've seen it.

People become overly simplistic in how they deal with people's lives and situations in their lives. And they get those people in trouble, or confused, or falsely condemned. So be prayerful. Seek the Lord for wisdom and and and discernment on this and and ask God to be as close as possible to his will in something that doesn't seem to be so obvious. What does he tell him?

Go in peace. God knows your heart. You don't have to worry about that. You're not worshiping him. This is not this is not Naaman going into the house of worship of Ramon so that he can blend in and pretend that he's not really a different person.

Remember, he's going back home with piles of dirt to dedicate an altar to the God of Israel. That's gonna get you some attention. This is him saying, look, I serve my king. This is my job. And part of my job is I have to go into this place.

He leans on my arm. I have to go down with him to make sure I can bring the old man back up. Is God gonna condemn me for that? And let's just go in peace. Go in peace.

Now we noted at the beginning of the study three significant changes in Naaman that validate his conversion. Well, in contrast, I want us to look at three unfortunate marks of Gehazi's change. Naaman knew an inner cleansing. Gehazi is about to see an inner decay. Let's read verse 20.

Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, the man of God said, see my master has spared this name in the Syrian and not accepting from his hand what he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him. What stands out to you from verse 20? Again, short answers. What stands out to you that's concerning?

Red flags in Gehazi. Yes. I will run after him and get something from him. Is that in alignment with the man of God or in defiance of the will of God? Defiance.

Yes. Anything else? As the Lord lives, this man even has the audacity to invoke the name of God in this matter. Good. Anything else?

Go ahead. Presumption. Okay. In what way? Presume that they should have perceived Yeah.

So he thinks that this whole thing of Elisha not accepting this gift is actually foolish of him. So he's criticizing Elisha ultimately. Any other observations before we break this down together? My master is very Yeah. Why did Elisha do this?

Why did he let this man go? Again, it's it speaks of his criticism of the man of God. Well, that's precisely what's happening here. The concern is that he says something against Naaman, he says something against Elisha, and he does something with the name of God. How does he address Naaman?

Look back again at verse 20. This Naaman, the Syrian. Does that sound like the language of somebody who values another person created in the image of God? Nor is there any evidence that Gehazi is rejoicing in this rare transformation that took place in Naaman's life. There's there's no mention of how this man is different.

There's no mention of how this man changed and aligned himself to the truth. All you see here is that he is a dollar sign to Gehazi. Notice what he says as our brother mentioned, I will run after him and get something from him. Unfortunately, that's how some leaders in ministry view people, view souls that walk into the church. As profitable consumers to fill their pockets or satisfy their egos, I will get something from him.

A true servant of God like Elisha is someone who will be willing to help others even if they don't get anything in return. A true servant of God will be concerned with the spiritual change, transformation, and development of any person, whether or not they put something in the donation box, whether or not they partner with that ministry financially. A true man of God will trust in God providing for his ministry as he ministers to people's souls, not their pocketbooks. But men like Gehazi view ministry as a profitable business. They use it as a platform to gain, and that is a very dangerous approach to the ministry as you're gonna discover.

So it's not just how he views Naaman though, how he views this man's miserable condition manifest in how he speaks about the man of God, the true man of God. Don't you find it interesting? Look back at verse 20. How the Holy Spirit reminds us that Gehazi was the servant of Elisha, the man of God. We already know who Gehazi is.

We we've read this enough to understand Gehazi was Elisha's personal assistant. So why is the Holy Spirit bringing this to our attention once more? So that we again would see and not forget that Gehazi experienced something special. He had certain advantages that other people did not have. He had a personal discipleship relationship with Elisha.

He witnessed remarkable miracles. He saw in Elisha that it's possible to be consistently holy, consistently compassionate. He learned what it meant to walk with God in private by by observing Elisha's ministry. And with all of that and all these other privileges, he still succumbed to covetousness. You know what we learned from that?

We learned that unusual spiritual advantages do not promise personal change. They certainly can help promote it, but please know this, the choice to be influenced depends on the heart living in that environment. You've probably been puzzled. As I have been early in my walk, where you see somebody who sat under incredible spirit, empowered, faithful preaching of God's word, or someone who grew up with parents that were truly godly and, and, and not fake godly, not legalistically godly, no godly with joy and with the fruit of the spirit and with testimonies of God's provision and power, and they served and they made service to God an incredible thing to seek and to enjoy, or maybe even somebody who had access to incredible resources or relationships that would enable them to still serve God. And yet they still pursue the world.

If that's ever confused you, don't be too confused. Look no further than Gehazi. He's seen it all. He heard it all. And yet his heart was still filled with wickedness.

And he even criticized him. Like, he didn't learn anything. He didn't interpret the situation the way his master did. He says, as our brother said, my master has spared this name in the Syrian. In other words, what a fool.

We're struggling here. We're suffering here. Instead of understanding that Elisha was being strategic spiritually because his heart was coated with covetousness, he can only see a loss. And lastly, let's look at how he invokes the name of the Lord. You might be thinking that Gehazi is conscious of God and how he assesses this, but I say it's just the opposite.

Notice he says, as the Lord lives, As the Lord lives, I will run I will run after him and get something from him. What what do you think he means by saying as the Lord lives? Here's what I think. I think he's careless. And I think he's just being offhand.

Like how people throw around the name of Jesus and and express the name of God flippantly. So for him to use the name of the Lord in this situation tells me something. He didn't fear God. He wasn't truly conscious of God. He didn't truly revere God.

And it shows right here as the Lord lives. We see that the absence of this genuine reverence for the Lord is seen in how he is committed to materialism. Does he say I will walk to him? No. He says I will run after him.

I'm not gonna lose this opportunity. I'm gonna exert all the energy. I'm gonna give up whatever time it takes for me to catch up to Naaman. And I wanna tell you today that that is dedication. This is enthusiasm.

And unfortunately, many professing Christians show greater excitement for personal gain than for spiritual maturity and influence. They'll run after to make more money. When you ask those same people to serve in the church, that running turns into crawling. There there's a lot of hesitation there. Hesitation to work double the hours so that you can make a little bit more cash?

No problem with that. I will run after him. Okay. Run. See what's gonna happen when you make money your God.

So what happens? He arrives in verse 21. So Gehazi followed Naaman and when Naaman saw someone running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him and said, is all well? So this is what something about Naaman. His change is consistent because he recognizes somebody running to him and he quickly learns that this is Elisha's servant.

And remember, this is the commander of the Syrian army army. He doesn't have to get out of his chariot. But what does he do? He gets out of his chariot and he meets him on his level. I believe we're gonna see Naaman in heaven.

And so he meets him face to face, eye to eye, and he asks, is everything okay? And what does Gehazi do? Lies. Gehazi lies about himself. Gehazi is gonna lie in the mouth of Elisha.

Gehazi is gonna lie about the sons of the prophets. Gehazi is going to lie to a brand new believer. Read it with me. Verse 22, and he said, all is well. That's a lie about himself.

He's self deceived. All is not well. Do you remember the last time that this question was asked? It was when Elisha asked the Shunammite woman, is all well? She said, all is well.

In her case, all was well. In his case, nothing was well. Far from being well. All is well. Do you think people are honest with their spiritual condition?

Many cases, no. Either they are lying to themselves or they are self deceived. All is well. Now the next lie. My master has sent me to say did Elisha send him?

No. He misrepresented the man of God. There have just now come to me from the hill country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets. Please give him a talent of silver and two changes of clothing. He's lying about the sons of the prophets.

What do we learn from this? When a person is consumed with greed, he rarely becomes an honest person in the process. When a person lives for selfish material gain, that will often be met with the encouragement to manipulate, to be disloyal, and to implement trickery so that you can attain more. And the way that Gehazi lies shows that he was he was a skilled deceiver. Why?

Because he uses the guise of religious and charitable work to demand a donation from Naaman. We have two students from our seminary that need some money and some change of clothing. Are you willing to make that donation? Naaman says, I'm willing to give you more than what you're asking. Remember, this is a changed man.

Now he's generous. Right? You're telling me that I can make Elisha's multiply in Israel? Let's do it. It pains me to say this, but I have to tell you the truth.

It really does hurt me to say this, that there are some ministries today that do the same. That do what? They convince generous, goodhearted people like Naaman that they're helping fulfill a need when in actuality, all they're doing is adding more to their personal bank accounts. You don't think ministries are doing that at 2024? You'll be shocked at the judgment seat of Christ.

Oh, yeah. There are many people who are taking advantage of God's vineyard, not to serve and feed and help and clothe and bring the gospel, but so that they can, they can have more. And they're willing to use the gifts of God's people to do so. If you're that kind of a minister in this place or hearing this later on, you don't fear God and you better repent because I'm telling you straight forward, God's gonna expose you. You don't play around with God.

You don't play around with God's people and how they partner with the gospel for personal advantage. You evidently have no fear of him and you should. Lying begets more lying, doesn't it? Verse 23, and Naaman said, be pleased to accept two talents and he urged him and tied up two talents of silver and two bags with two changes of clothing and laid them on two of his servants, and they carried them before Gehazi. Obviously, this is a sizable donation.

It's not like something you can put in his pocket. Naaman had to send two servants to carry the stuff. Gehazi is a little nervous here because he knows that he had to escape the supervision of Elijah to make this happen, so he has a little plan. Like, he really thought this. I don't know how long this run was, but he came with an elaborate scheme.

Verse 24, when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand and put them in the house, and he sent the men away and they departed. So he didn't let him come too close to Elisha's whereabouts. He said, okay, stop here. Thank you so much. God bless you.

We'll send you your tax receipt. Thank you for your donation. And he makes his way back to Elisha. And look at this slithery snake. Verse 25.

He went in and stood before his master. Standing in the Bible is a posture of service. So he comes before his his teacher as though nothing had happened, and he's just waiting for any orders for the day. Now I can understand where Gehazi found the confidence to lie to Naaman. But to have the courage to lie to the prophet?

What's wrong with you? Have you not seen what God can do through this man of God? Are you not persuaded that you could be exposed? Well, this is one of the marks of a person who does not fear God. You believe that God is limited in many ways.

A person who doesn't fear God thinks that he can actually keep things a secret in his life. That's how you know if you don't fear God, that you actually think that there's there's parts of who you are that will never be disclosed, that will never be unveiled, that will never be made known. The person who fears God understands that God not only sees things and knows all things, he can make these things known. One of the greatest fuels to sin is secrecy. But a person who fears God doesn't believe that they can keep their sins a secret.

Naaman, or rather Gehazi, he can invoke the name of the Lord and he can lie to the man of God who had unusual abilities because he didn't fear God. To fear God is to believe all that he says that he is, and it actually applies to your life. That it's not just some Sunday school story, that it's real in 2024. That's why we're doing these Bible studies, to realize, okay, you can't play the fool with God. This man does.

So what does he do? He went and stood before his master and Elisha said to them, where have you been Gehazi? I would be sweating bullets. Does it even blink before he says the next thing? And he said to him, your servant went nowhere.

Here here's one of the strongest contrast in in this story. There are many we're not gonna be able to touch on all of them. What was Naaman's concern when he went back to Syria? That when he would go into the Temple Of Ramon and his his boss would lean on his arm and he would fall down with him, that God might judge him for that. What does Elisha say?

Go in peace. The Lord knows your heart. While you have Gehazi who pretends to be a servant of God, standing before his master, ready to do what he's called to do. When in reality his heart was corrupt with covetousness and he would be judged for it. What's the lesson in this?

Here's the lesson. Before God sees what you do with your knees, with your hands, with your lips, above all else, he looks at your heart. What's in your heart tonight? Not what's in your hand, not what you're highlighting, not what songs you sing, not what the preacher preaches. What is in your heart?

That is what God considers above everything else. That is the loud louder than your voice, more meaningful than what you do outside of your inner man, what is in the innermost part of your being. God saw what was in Naaman when he would go back to Syria. God saw what was in Gehazi while he was still in Israel. And the Lord only cares about that and where that leads to.

The sincerity, the purity and the posture of your heart above all else. He lies. Look at verse 26. But he said to him, did not my heart go when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Was it a time to accept money and garments, all of orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male servants and female servants.

What did Gehazi take from Naaman? What did he take specifically? Yeah. Two talents of silver and two changes of clothing. Right?

So why is Elisha giving this whole catalog of things that are not even mentioned in the story? Like, at first, he mentions what? Look at it again. Was it time to accept money and garments? Well, that's what he took.

But then he goes on to say, olive orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male servants and female servants. What is he saying here? Can I tell you what he's saying here? He's revealing to Gehazi what his true desires are in life. He's exposing Gehazi for what his ultimate ambitions are in life.

To have money, to have nice clothes, to have land, to have estates, to have influence, to have comfort, to have profit. He might even be exposing what Gehazi was planning to do with that silver that he got from Naaman. And essentially, he is revealing to him that he knows, God knows what he ultimately wanted. And what he was doing was, he was willing to use the ministry as a means to achieve those selfish things. What's the punishment?

The last verse of our study. Therefore, the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your descendants forever. So he went out from his presence a leper, like snow. You want Naaman's money? Take his leprosy too.

Leprosy is one of the most severe conditions that any human can endure. We learned that a little bit last week. So for the Lord to unleash this kind of disease on this man says something about how he feels about Gehazi's decisions. God doesn't play favorites. He healed a gentile from leprosy and he inflicted an Israelite with leprosy.

Do you see that? There's no partiality with God. Sin is sin no matter who sins. Righteousness by faith is righteousness by faith no matter who offers it. Okay.

Here's here's a question for you now. As extreme as this might be, and you gotta understand that this is don't you dare believe that God is going overboard here. Not, not for a moment. This could have had generational consequences. This could have made an impact, not just on Naaman's perception of God, but others that Naaman would testify to what just happened now.

Naaman ended up giving what Elijah said, don't give because he wanted to, to protect the message and the image of God. And Gehazi just blows it all up. So this is severe. The this could impact souls. But this is the only time that the Lord Almighty inflicts his servant with leprosy in the Bible.

If you know of another person in the Old Testament where the Lord calls for leprosy to infect them, well, that would have what all at the same time. Wow. Say say one. Miriam is one. And the other one?

Miriam is the first case of leprosy, we learned that last week, but there's another one. There's a total of three, including Gehazi. If you know it, you can say, you said it. You're right. King Uzziah.

Miriam, King Uzziah, Gehazi. What did they all do? They all sinned. I understand they all sinned, but they all sinned in a unique way. What led to Miriam's leprosy?

What was her sin? She spoke against the man of God Moses in numbers 12 verse one. What was Uzziah's sin? Let me read it to you in second Chronicles twenty six sixteen. But when he was strong, he grew proud.

He grew proud to his destruction for he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and enter the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. And what was Gehazi's sin? Greed and deception. So Miriam was leprous because she was a gossip. Uzziah became leprous because of pride.

Gehazi became leprous because of greed and deception. Miriam was temporary. Uzziah was permanent. Gehazi is an interesting case as we're gonna read in the next chapters. That teaches me, when I consider all of those individuals, how God feels about these particular sins.

For him to call for leprosy shows me how he views these particular vices. He feels very strongly about gossip. He feels very strongly about pride. He feels very strongly about greed and deception. You know what's interesting about all those cases?

Every single one of them served God in a unique way, and every single one of them, because of their leprosy, were disqualified from ministry. Miriam was a prophetess. She became a leper temporary, and she was isolated. Uzziah was called to be a king, but he was so arrogant that he thought that the rules of ministry didn't apply to him. So he dabbles in the priesthood.

He's disqualified for ministry. Gehazi uses the ministry as an assistant to the prophet to try to make money and he lies through his teeth just for an extra buck and he's disqualified for ministry. Here's what this teaches me when I consider all of these things. If I'm a gossip, if I'm proud, if I love money, if I lie, I can't be used in the ministry. And that's for all of us.

What did Gehazi forfeit for two talents of silver and two changes of clothing? So he went out, the last part of verse 27, so he went out from his presence, a leper, like snow. He personally lost any potential to be used by God in a more significant way, And his sin brought havoc to his home because this would have generational effects. When we consider the pain that sin brings, When we consider what sin takes from us, it will be less attractive to the alternative in righteousness. A bit of a heavier Bible study tonight, but it's the Bible.

And we have to thank God for his warnings as much as we might thank him for his promises. Can we do that? Let's thank him. And if the praise team can join, the platform before I begin to pray, I just want to encourage you in this silent moment, take these truths, meditate on them, and communicate them before the Lord. Ask the Lord to protect your heart.

How we need you, Lord, tonight. We thank you for the purging, fiery, sharp word of God. We don't recoil. We don't shrink back. We don't duck.

When the word of God in its surgical ability comes for our hearts, we open our arms and we extend our bosoms and we say, do a work in this life. Whatever you need to cut out, Lord, cut it out. The early stages of things that might lead to catastrophes like Gehazi, we pray that you would deliver us from it right away. In the same way that we saw early signs that there's something off about Gehazi, Lord, if there's anything that's leading us in the wrong path that would create greater harm and devastation because it was not dealt with early on, we pray that you would consume it this evening. Please, Lord, help us really believe like Elisha that spiritual goals far outweigh anything in this life.

And even if we have to make sacrifices for the temporary things in this world, it's always worth it for the eternal reward. Help us never forget that. Give us wisdom and discretion in all matters. How we advise, how we seek advice, Lord. May you renew that purity and that longing that we see in Naaman who was so excited to worship, so excited to testify, so sensitive in his conscience, not wanting to grieve God in any matter.

Lord, may you show us any area in our lives where we become too relaxed, but when we also know your comfort in places where we are overly analyzing. We need your help, Lord. Give us your help in all things. And Lord, we all wanna be used by you. And so in this case, we pray that you would keep our hearts from being infected by greed.

That Lord, if we rely on lies and dishonesty for personal gain, for any reason Lord, we just pray that tonight would be the night where we would never lie through these lips again. And that we would rather bear the reproach of telling the truth than to enjoy temporary gain from our lies. Use us. Use us, Lord. We wanna we wanna be used until our final day and we want no sin to get in the way of our potential.

So Lord, we pray this prayer as we sing the song. It's really a cry from our hearts that you would make into a reality in our beings. In Jesus name we pray. Amen. Amen.

Let's stand and worship the Lord.