Text: 2 Kings 6:24-7:20.
At the beginning of Chapter 6, we read the story of the King of Syria sending people to kill Elisha. Of course, God protects him, and the prophet feeds and sends them away in peace. Ben-Hadad, king of Syria, repays Elisha's kindness by coming against Samaria (capital of Israel) and laying seige to the city.
Things get so desperate that people are paying a fortune for a donkey's head and the excrement of doves in order to survive. A woman calls out to the king and asks him to make her friend kill her son, so they can eat him. Does the king repent or call the people to repentance for all their sins? No, he blames the messenger of God for their predicament and sends an assassin to the prophet's door.
Elisha prophesies that food will be plentiful and cheap the next day. The messenger expresses his doubt. As a result, he's told he will see the prophecy come to pass, but will not participate in the blessing.
When reading these stories, it's good to put ourselves in the place of these people. Suppose someone told us that gas would cost two cents per gallon tomorrow down from $6.00? A lot of people would have difficulty believing that prediction.
The next day, four lepers decide to approach the Syrian camp and beg for food. What do they have to lose? If they stay outside the city gates, they'll starve. If the Syrians kill them, their misery will be over. They find the camp abandoned, and gourge themselves on food and drink and carry off valuables from the tents. Out of fear, they decided they'd better let the king and the people know of their discovery. They are thankful, but did they have an attitude of thankfulness? Did they want to share the good news? They told the others to protect themselves.
To hear the entire message, check out the website sermon player, download it to your MP3, or podcast. Pastor Steve shows the difference between being polite and being gratefully thankful.
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