The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in 2 Kings 4:1,
"The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, 'Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.'"
I note in Elisha's response to this widow that he did not correct her statement when she said to him "you know that he [the widow's husband] revered the Lord". Elisha only asked how he could help. I have to think the Scriptures are telling us the man that had died was a man who revered the Lord as a prophet.
I have some questions here in light of a lot of the stuff that gets passed around these days as biblical "teaching". Why would the Lord take a godly man, leaving his widow and sons in a financial lurch? We often hear when we revere the Lord, he will keep us from trouble. Why was there a creditor - a creditor on the way to take the sons as slaves? How can a man who reveres the Lord incur a debt? We often hear the Lord will prosper us when we live our lives for him.
The Scriptures don't indicate there was anything amiss with the dead man, the widow or the sons. It doesn't mention any lack of faith on her part, it doesn't mention any sin in her life... why the hardship? Why the trouble? Why the struggle?
The answer, of course, is pretty obvious. The Lord arranged these circumstances such that we might read about the amazing ability of the Lord to provide in a miraculous way. The Lord had this account documented "to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope." Romans 15:4.
The prevalent assumption and the teaching in many circles in the church today, that when someone in the fellowship encounters hardship, when illness comes calling, when a financial setback occurs, then some hidden sin must be afoot in their lives, some lack of faith, some failure in a spiritual sense.
Jesus' disciples had to be corrected by the Lord on just this erroneous assumption. When encountering a man born blind, they asked Jesus "Who sinned?, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" John 9:2. A great question based on a faulty assumption. Jesus told them no one sinned to cause it. He was born blind so that Jesus would heal him on that day to provide an opportunity for him to establish his credentials and teach us about himself. "this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:3.
Apparently the assumption that when hardship, illness, trouble, setbacks occur, that it indicates a lack of faith, "hidden sin" or some other spiritual failure is not just unfair to those who are struggling, there is simply no grounds for the assumption at all. The most that can be said is that it might be a possibility. On the other hand, it might be when we are caught in such a difficulty (and all believers have their turn) we are actually in the hands of our loving Lord who is doing something very special in or through us. "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline." Revelation 3:19. Isn't it unfortunate that is not the assumption in many circles in the church today?
There is a lot of misguided teaching these days and a lot of faulty assumptions. We all need to keep our noses in the Scriptures to insure what we are hearing really is true.
After all, how do you know what I have said here is true?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
"The wife of a man from the company of the prophets cried out to Elisha, 'Your servant my husband is dead, and you know that he revered the Lord. But now his creditor is coming to take my two boys as his slaves.'"
I note in Elisha's response to this widow that he did not correct her statement when she said to him "you know that he [the widow's husband] revered the Lord". Elisha only asked how he could help. I have to think the Scriptures are telling us the man that had died was a man who revered the Lord as a prophet.
I have some questions here in light of a lot of the stuff that gets passed around these days as biblical "teaching". Why would the Lord take a godly man, leaving his widow and sons in a financial lurch? We often hear when we revere the Lord, he will keep us from trouble. Why was there a creditor - a creditor on the way to take the sons as slaves? How can a man who reveres the Lord incur a debt? We often hear the Lord will prosper us when we live our lives for him.
The Scriptures don't indicate there was anything amiss with the dead man, the widow or the sons. It doesn't mention any lack of faith on her part, it doesn't mention any sin in her life... why the hardship? Why the trouble? Why the struggle?
The answer, of course, is pretty obvious. The Lord arranged these circumstances such that we might read about the amazing ability of the Lord to provide in a miraculous way. The Lord had this account documented "to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope." Romans 15:4.
The prevalent assumption and the teaching in many circles in the church today, that when someone in the fellowship encounters hardship, when illness comes calling, when a financial setback occurs, then some hidden sin must be afoot in their lives, some lack of faith, some failure in a spiritual sense.
Jesus' disciples had to be corrected by the Lord on just this erroneous assumption. When encountering a man born blind, they asked Jesus "Who sinned?, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" John 9:2. A great question based on a faulty assumption. Jesus told them no one sinned to cause it. He was born blind so that Jesus would heal him on that day to provide an opportunity for him to establish his credentials and teach us about himself. "this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him." John 9:3.
Apparently the assumption that when hardship, illness, trouble, setbacks occur, that it indicates a lack of faith, "hidden sin" or some other spiritual failure is not just unfair to those who are struggling, there is simply no grounds for the assumption at all. The most that can be said is that it might be a possibility. On the other hand, it might be when we are caught in such a difficulty (and all believers have their turn) we are actually in the hands of our loving Lord who is doing something very special in or through us. "Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline." Revelation 3:19. Isn't it unfortunate that is not the assumption in many circles in the church today?
There is a lot of misguided teaching these days and a lot of faulty assumptions. We all need to keep our noses in the Scriptures to insure what we are hearing really is true.
After all, how do you know what I have said here is true?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
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