#DailyDevotion Is Christianity Too Simple For You?
September 8
2 Kng 5:9–27
2Ki 5:13 But Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “Master, if the prophet had asked you to do some extraordinary act, wouldn’t you have done it? Why shouldn’t you do as he said: ‘Wash and be clean’?”
Naaman was expecting the prophet to come out and perform some big act to bring healing to his leprosy. He hoped he’d at least come out of his hut, shout out the name of his God and wave his hand over it. But Elisha was not, as a man of God, there to put on a show. He did not come out of his house. He just sent his servant with his word, “Go wash seven times in the Jordan river.” The river that was right there. Naaman was angry. He had come all this way. He had brought great wealth. He was a man of importance and thought more of his own land than the word the prophet spoke by another.
Yet his servant is wiser. Certainly if he told you to do something great you would have done it. Now he was told to do something simple and right there, why not do it. Most people are like Naaman. If you don’t have to put out great expense or go to great trouble than it probably isn’t worth it. Christ when he was visibly with us sometimes acted like Elisha here. A number of times people came to him for help. He didn’t put on a big show. He didn’t even speak words of healing or prescribe some action. Several times he simply said, “Go and it will be done according to your faith.”
For the greatest gift and acts in our life that bring us greater treasures than Namaan brought Elisha, greater treasures stored in vaults and worth more than all the money in all the banks in the world, Christ has given us some simple things that the world, like Namaan scoffs at. Jesus gave us Baptism and the Word and Bread and Wine i.e. his Body and Blood. If a doctor said he had the cure to all diseases, to cancer or a pill that would prevent death, the world would come to him and pay any price to have it. Now Christ comes through the Church, like Elisha’s servant Gehazi, with his Word and simple commandments to give us eternal life, salvation from death, a permanent cure to all disease, a world without famine or thirst, without crimes or tyrants and the world despises it.
Be repentant, believe and be baptized into the name of Christ: The Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In this simple act of faith we are rescued from death, disease, a sinful world and delivered to life, salvation and a promise of a new world. Naaman came to faith in the living God, the Lord of Israel and for the rest of his life worshipped him alone. Jesus is that living God, the Lord of Israel. We have been given this great gift and it cost us only our lives as it cost him his life. He give our life as we put our trust in his word.
We weekly maintain this gift of God in baptism as we simply go to the gathering of the saints to hear from the man of God, the one Jesus has sent, the pastor proclaim that word that Jesus has given him. This word continues to preserve us in the faith until what has been promised we see with our own eyes. Jesus gives us a great miracle which looks like nothing, ordinary bread and wine, in which he gives us his body and blood. In partaking this simple looking gift, we are made partakers of a great covenant with God our Father. Here he says, “I’m and your God and you are my people. I forgive you your sins and remember them no more. Here is my Spirit that you may live as my people.” It isn’t great. There is no show, no flashing lights or dancing stars, just an ordinary man, with ordinary bread and wine and Jesus’ word.
What is your response to this simple thing? Do you take the word as it stands, believe and do it?
Heavenly Father, grant that I may believe your word in simple faith and receive all the gifts you have promise. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.