2 Kings 5:1

2 Kings 5:1 says, Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.  Naaman was the captain of the army of Syria, a great man of valor and honorable, and because of him, God had given deliverance to Syria.  One good and honorable man who follows God may lead to God's blessing of others.  Still, Naaman was a leper in spite of his good nature.  We as followers of Christ are not exempt from problems in life.  Verse two adds, And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife.  The Syrians had defeated and captured some of the Israelites, who were God's chosen people but who weren't acting like it.  We need to pray that people of the world are never doing more for God than Christians are.  There was a little girl among the captives, and she waited on Naaman's wife.  Verse three continues, And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.  The little girl told Naaman's wife that if he were with the prophet in Samaria that he would heal his leprosy, but it was really his God who would.  We need to always make sure that God, and not a preacher or teacher or anyone else, gets credit for the things that He does through us as Christians.  Verse four states, And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.  Someone went to Naaman and told him what the girl had said.  We likewise must go to the people of the world today with the gospel.  The sins of people are already forgiven through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, and if they believe in Him, they can be made spiritually whole.  Verse five adds, And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel. And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.  The king of Syria told Naaman to go to the prophet and he would send a letter to the king of Israel, and he also sent gold, silver and clothes with him.  I am not sure if these were to be used as gifts or to be used to attempt to buy God's blessing, but I do know that we should never attempt to profit materially from serving God or to buy His blessing.  Verse six continues, And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.  The king of Syria said he had sent Naaman to the king of Israel so that he might cure him of his leprosy, but the king of Israel did not have that power.  We need to realize that no person today has that power either.  Only God does.  Verse seven declares, And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me.  The king of Israel was distraught because he said he didn't have that power, nor did he have faith in God to do it either.  If we are Christians in name only without any real faith in God, then we will often be distressed by things of the world.  The king of Israel thought the king of Syria was looking for a reason to go to war with him by asking him to do something he couldn't do, and he didn't look to God for the answer.  As followers of Christ, if someone asks something of us that seems impossible, we should first look to God for the answer.  Verse eight adds, And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.  When Elisha heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, he said let Naaman come to him and that he would know that there was a prophet of God in Israel.  We as Christians should always live in such a way in the world that people know there is only one true God and that we serve Him.