2 Kings

At last the protests fade away and we come to seven little splashes in the Jordan river.

At last the protests fade away and we come to seven little splashes in the Jordan river.

Elisha is unsure of himself at first.

In 2 Kings 5, the VIP characters aren't the ones who make a difference.

In 2 Kings 5, the VIP characters aren't the ones who make a difference.

Naaman's servants' question cuts and burns.

Naaman's servants' question cuts and burns.

A voice of grace rings through the Naaman story—the voice of a child carried away as a spoil of war.

A voice of grace rings through the Naaman story—the voice of a child carried away as a spoil of war.

This week's Living by the Word column focuses on the story of the healing of Naaman the Aramean, one of the most dramatic healing stories in the Bible. But here I want to blog about a small detail of that story as it relates to the other lessons.

The general was insulted by the piddling, muddy Jordan. But he entered the water—and was healed! Then it was time to pay the bill.

The general was insulted by the piddling, muddy Jordan. But he entered the water—and was healed! Then it was time to pay the bill.

Jesus and Elisha perform great miracles. What do we modern westerners do with this?

It’s possible you come from a church background in which the obvious takeaway is to pray for God to do the same thing in our lives here and now. Or maybe you believe such events are still possible, but less probable.

In any case, most of us preachers want to avoid suggesting that the difference between then and now is our lack of faith.

If the disciples hoped before that Jesus didn't know what he was saying, these hopes are now gone.

The lepers all received healing. What a happy shock that must've been! But only one, a Samaritan, returned and thanked Jesus.