2 Kings 7:1-20

The famine in the land due to the Syrian army surrounding the city was so severe that the people were beginning to despair to the point of eating their own children.  In their desperation they choose to blame God for their situation instead of seek God’s direction.  When they come to Elisha in order to take him prisoner and likely kill him; he promises that within the next twenty-four hours there will be great abundance of food.  The promise seems completely unbelievable, yet with God all things are possible.

GOD DESTROYS THE ENEMY: God has demonstrated time and time again His ability to destroy the armies of nations without the help of any other army.  It is amazing that the people do not seek for His help in their desperation instead of blaming Him and further complicating their situation.  That is the reality of men who are overcome by sin.  Sin blinds us and causes us to question God instead of submit to Him and seek Him.  Despite Israel’s unfaithfulness and failure to seek Him God send deliverance by causing the Syrian army to hear the sound of chariots coming towards them.  They assume that Israel has contacted allies to rescue them and flee for their lives from the sound.  They abandon the camp and all of their supplies.  When God saw the desperate plight of mankind, He sent Christ to destroy Satan and sin.  Desperate times call for desperate measures and there is no greater desperation than sin and certainly God sending His Son to pay sins price is a desperate solution to this desperate problem.

LEPERS DISCOVER THE VICTORY: The enemy of Israel has fled and an abundance of food and riches are freely available to the entire nation.  The problem is that nobody knows about it.  Finally four lepers decide that death is inevitable and decide to throw themselves at the mercy of the enemy only to discover that the enemy has been defeated by God and there is an abundance of food available to them.  They start be eating and then hiding the treasure from one tent and then start on another when their conscience begins to bother them as they remember the plight of the city that is still wasting away in starvation.  They return to the gate from which they had been cast and inform the people of God’s victory and the abundance of food.  God often chooses the most unlikely of messengers to bear the good news, but those of us who have been blessed with the knowledge of God’s provision for sin are responsible to share that Good News with those who are still lost in the desperate condition of their sin.

PEOPLE DOUBT THE REALITY: When the Lepers share the news of the food that is available the king and his advisers doubt that this could be true and then they think that it might be some sort of a trick.  Finally, they decide to send a small group to check out the story and make sure that it is not a trap.  People are skeptical by nature and have a tendency to think that if something sounds too good to be true that it probably isn't true.  Satan is a defeated foe but if he can cause people to doubt the reality of God’s provision he will be able to keep mankind under the desperation of sin.  It should not surprise us when people doubt the Gospel but we must continue to faithfully proclaim God’s truth.

ISRAEL DELIGHTS ABUNDANTLY: Once the people are convinced that the Syrians have fled they run into the camp and begin to plunder the tents and all that is there.  The food is so abundant that it is placed on sale to the people at exactly the cheap price that Elisha had predicted.  God’s provision is abundant and He longs to see His people delight in His mercy and grace.  It is readily available for all who will simply believe in His abundant provision.  Great joy and peace are the promises of God through the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  Unfortunately, so many people are ignorant of His provision or refuse to believe.  Those of us who have experienced this provision must continue to proclaim it until all know and we must delight daily in His matchless grace.