Great Expectations

Today's passage:  Genesis 4
     I wonder what kind of man Cain was before he killed his brother?  It is obvious he was a very hard worker. This was after the fall, after the Garden of Eden, so the fruits and vegetables no longer grew without labor.  Cain put in the work.  He dug up the hard ground, he seeded, he watered, he harvested.  This was backbreaking work, as any farmer could attest.  This was day in and day out toiling in the field.  I don't know if Cain was assigned to this task by his parents, if his God-given skills naturally suited this kind of work, or if he just enjoyed agriculture and took it upon himself to learn how to coax the soil to do his bidding, but he achieved results.  Some might argue that Abel had the significantly easier job.  As the younger brother, maybe this was just the obvious task he could accomplish in their younger days, and incidentally kept that job while Cain kept the fields.  I'm not sure how it all transpired, but I think perhaps if I had been Cain, and I slaved away every day as he had, my nose might be put out of joint too when God did not accept my offering.
     The whole reason God would not have accepted my offering though, would have been because it was my work, not His.  My work will never be enough to satisfy Him.  My works will never purchase peace and pardon with Him, no matter how well it was done.  Abel couldn't really brag about how well he had kept the sheep, because honestly, there wasn't much to it, was there?  You feed them, you herd them, you make sure they have good shelter and you keep them safe.  I'm not saying shepherding was nothing work, but compared to farming?  I'm thinking Cain might not have minded exchanging jobs on occasion.  So when Abel offered up one of the livestock that he tended, it wasn't really a picture of how hard he had worked.  It was the offering that God required.  It may be true that Cain's produce would have been accepted if he had only offered God his best, but he wanted to give God the leftovers.  I'm still not certain God would have accepted anything but a living sacrifice.  I don't know that fruits and veggies would suffice.  I know later, God asks for different types of offerings, and loaves and other things other than animals were brought before Him, but in this instance, I think only the flock would satisfy. 

     So what should Cain have done?  Should he go to Abel and ask him to supply a sacrifice for him as well?  Would Abel have been willing to do this?  I don't know if their relationship was close or contentious. I know that Cain was a proud man.  The Bible says, "And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell."  How could God accept Abel's sacrifice and not his?  Didn't God know how hard he had worked?  Didn't God understand all the hours he put in?  And this brother of his?  What had he done? Not much, by Cain's estimation.  It seemed unjust.  It seemed disproportionate.  Surely God made a mistake and didn't realize just what was involved in managing the land.  Maybe God had forgotten, that he, Cain, was the older more responsible brother who had selflessly helped provide for his family.  I can see the thoughts swirling in Cain's head.  It just wasn't fair.  And how many times had his mother proclaimed him the savior of their family?  When he was born, she had said, "I have gotten a man from the LORD" implying that he was the accepted one that God had promised while they still were in Edenland.  How could God not accept him?  It was ridiculous.  How hard he had worked all this time, all these years, and God was going to tell him he wasn't good enough?  And worse, that Abel was?  What was going on here?
     Cain measures the rejection of his sacrifice with God rejecting him. But it is clearly not the case.  If it had been, why does God seek Cain out and encourage him to do better?  God says to Cain, "If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted?"  Cain would have to lay down his pride to do well.  But he wasn't willing to do that.  He wasn't willing to accept God's way, even though God's way is the only way.  He wasn't willing to recognize Abel's no-work-involved sacrifice.  Maybe Cain hadn't given God the best of what he had harvested, but it was still more than anything Abel could offer.  Sheep.  Humph!  What nonsense!  Cain was the Promised One (or so he probably thought).  Cain was the Firstborn.  Cain was the son who held all the family's hopes and dreams of deliverance.  Then to be flat out rejected.  It hurt.  It confused him.  It didn't make any sense.  And Cain never gets over it.  Instead of listening to God's warnings, instead of taking God's advice, he takes matters into his own hands.  He kills his brother.  He rids himself of the reminder that he was less.  He thinks that somehow eliminating Abel will somehow make his offering more acceptable to God.  Now who is ridiculous?  It does not have the desired effect.  God does not all of a sudden see how hard Cain has worked and say, "Oh yes, I understand now.  I do accept your sacrifice, Cain."  How Cain thinks it will work that way can only be irrational blinding pride.
     God never rejected Cain's offering on the basis that he hadn't worked hard enough.  He rejected it on the basis that no amount of work could help him.  He rejected it because it is by grace alone that He accepts us.  I shouldn't be surprised that Cain didn't understand this, because unfortunately, there are too many people today who still don't understand.  They can't see why all the good things they do will never, ever be enough to appease God.  They can't believe that all the work they have put in can never be acceptable.  They figure there must be some way to earn our way to God.  That is because they can't comprehend God's immeasurable love for us.  They can't understand a God who would sacrifice for us, instead of the other way around.  Why?  Because that is not how they would have done it.  It isn't how I would have saved this world either.  It is not how any idol or god requires salvation.  Every other religious system requires something from the believer.  Not God.  He just requires that we believe and accept His methods.  That we humble ourselves and accept His ways.  His way is to provide salvation for us.  Abel seemed to understand this.  Cain never would.  Maybe it is because he believed himself to be the way of salvation.  Maybe his parents voiced their belief that he would be their Deliverer once too often and Cain couldn't fathom that this was only his parents plan, not God's.  And there is no indication that Cain ever asks God for forgiveness or redemption.  In fact, verse 16 says, "And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD..."  Cain never gets it.  He could have, but his pride would not be overcome.  And humility is the most necessary ingredient to salvation.
     Cain was a hard worker. But it wasn't enough, not when it came to eternity.  It wasn't enough for him, and it will not be enough for any of us.  Cain never accepted or recognized that whatever holiness we pretend at, it can never measure up to God's.  The real question is, how many others will allow pride to hold them back as Cain did?  No matter what we have been led to believe in the past, our works are never enough.  Only God's work, by sending His Son to die on the cross will suffice.  It is the Abel sacrifice.  And it is acceptable.
   

Trust Issues

Today's passage:  II Samuel 3
      Abner was a crafty fellow.  He obviously was in this king-making business for how it benefitted him.  Most people in politics are in it for what they can get, and I think that is why we become so disillusioned with them.  Backroom deals, compromises, loophole promises pave the way for power and influence.  Abner was no exception to these schemes.  "Now there was long war between the house of Saul and the house of David:  but David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker."  Abner is on a sinking ship, and he knows it.  The numbers would seem to be in Ish-bosheth's favor.  After all, most of the tribes had gone with him.  But God was on David's side, and that makes up for any weakness in numbers.  When Ish-bosheth accuses Abner of a liaison with his father's concubine, Abner makes a great deal of being offended.  He makes it clear to Ish-bosheth that all he need do is say the word and Ish-bosheth will be ousted.  It is obvious who is running the show.  I think Abner was looking for any excuse to go work for David.  David's kingdom was on the rise, and Abner now realizes he picked the wrong side.  He also remembers what happened at Gibeon.  He knows that Joab will never rest until he has avenged the death of his brother, Asahel.  Ish-bosheth knows that Abner can dethrone him and doesn't push the concubine matter any farther.
     Still, Abner decides to do some under-the-table dealings anyway.  He contacts David and assures him of his allegiance, and the future allegiance of the other tribes.  David accepts with the condition that Abner will bring Michal, the wife Saul had promised to him so long ago but then married off to someone else.  David feels it is time that Saul's promise be honored.  So Abner arrives, treated like a guest.  It is fortunate for him that Joab and his men are in battle, because he may have not been received so graciously.  Abner leaves with an assurance from David that he will leave in peace.  I believe this is all Abner was really after.  Unlike that other king, Ish-bosheth, David was in command of his men.  Abner knows this.  He knows that if David makes a promise, it will be kept.  He knows that if David says to withhold harm from Abner, he will be given safe passage. 
     When Joab gets word of Abner's visit, treated like a respected ambassador, Joab is furious.  He confronts David about the matter.  He tells David he is being played, just as Ish-bosheth had been.  David apparently does not give Joab the answers he is looking for, because Joab sends servants to retrieve Abner, without David's knowledge. 
     Under other circumstances, Abner might have had cause for concern.  But he knows David.  This is the man who spared Saul's life in the cave.  This is the man who tiptoed around Abner's sleeping men to confiscate Saul's spear and water canteen.  Abner had become quite familiar with David's character.  He knew that he was not given to deceit or masquerades.  So when Joab requests a private conversation with Abner, Abner doesn't worry.  I'm sure he smiled smugly at Joab, knowing there was little Joab could do.  Although Abner may have known David's character, he obviously did not know Joab's.  Joab takes Abner's life in the same style Abner had taken his brother's. 
     When David learns of the news, he orders Joab to mourn this man.  Joab had his revenge, but Abner will have the last play.  Joab must humiliate himself by being respectful of this man's death.  The man who had murdered his brother would be given a statesmen's burial.  I'm surprised that David does not require a more stringent punishment upon Joab.  This action would make it appear that Joab was calling the shots.  It might make David appear weak.  It might make people question David's word.  But Joab is also family.  He is David's nephew.  Asahel was David's nephew.  Maybe just a little part of him knew that Abner got what was coming.  So for now, Joab is spared any further punishment. 
     Abner played the political game.  His allegiance was with whoever he thought was the rising star at the time.  When it was Saul, he was loyal to Saul.  When he thought it would be Ish-bosheth, he was loyal to Ish-bosheth.  Now that David's influence had increased, he became loyal to David.  In reality, he was only loyal to himself.  Shifting allegiances make a lot of enemies.  Abner thought if he befriended his enemies, that would cause them to forget their grievances, or at least be controlled by them.  He thought he had cleverly ingratiated himself to David enough that his nephew could only follow his lead.  He didn't take into account that like himself, Joab had a mind of his own.  He didn't trust Joab, but he trusted his pact with David, and he assumed that Joab was loyalty bound as David was.  It was his undoing. 
     This is what David says at Abner's memorial:  "Died Abner as a fool dieth?  Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters:  as a man falleth before wicked men, so fellest thou."  Abner's life and death are reminders that we can never be too sure of others.  Our trust is only entirely safe in one place.  In Him.

Charitable

Today's passage:  I Corinthians 13:1-4
     This is one of my favorite passages in the Bible.  I would venture that it is a favorite of many people.  A majority of the verses are dedicated to telling us what Godly love is supposed to look like.  We often interchange the words charity and love but they are not the same.  One of the best definitions I have seen for the word charity is "Godly love in action".  We have experienced Godly love through our Lord.  It is hard to explain it without showing what it is.  There is so much in these verses that I think I will take only a few at a time.  I want to have a real understanding about how God loves me, and how He wants me to love other people.
     "Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up."  This morning as I was having my prayer time, I was really meditating on these verses.  I was praising God for being these verses.  He is the definition of godly love, since He is God.  I was thanking Him for being a longsuffering God.  He is not only waiting for unbelievers to accept His Son, He waits for me to continue to grow and mature into the Christian He wants for me to be.  I'm really thankful He is so patient with me.  I thanked Him for being kind.  Oh, how kind He is.  How can I even begin to explain how good He has been to me.  He shows me kindnesses every day.  He has given me a wonderful family.  He has provided all my needs.  He protects me. 
     I praised Him for being a God without envy.  Jealous, yes, but not envious.  They are two completely different things.  I asked Him to help me to be a person who does not wish for the things of others, who does not wish to be others.  I praised Him for being a God who does not promote Himself.  I was really struck by this, because if there is any One who deserves to be promoted it is Him.  The Bible is full of verses talking about exalting, praising, reverencing, worshipping God, and they all come from people who at the time recognize how great He is and how much He deserves all of it.  God doesn't boom His voice down to us, reminding us that it is praise time again.  He doesn't arrange the clouds to say, "Hey, down there, I'm up here and I want you to worship me."  He could.  He has all the power in the world to do that.  He has all the right in the world to expect it.  His beautiful Creation points to it.  But He doesn't ever ask us.  He isn't "puffed up".  Nor could He ever be, since any recognition He gets He rightly deserves. 
     He does not have to exalt Himself, because when I recognize the characteristics of charity that have just been described, when I think about His longsuffering, His kindnesses, being devoid of envy, it automatically brings me to a place where I will promote Him, I will boast and brag about what a wonderful God He is. 
     I can't articulate appropriately just how much God impressed this on my heart this morning.  I can't because He is beyond my faltering words.  I pray that God will make me a person who is longsuffering (although I will never be as longsuffering as He is), a person who is kind (even though His kindnesses exceed any I even attempt), a person who is devoid of envy, but especially a person who does not seek her own glory.  I pray that if I am able to achieve even a sliver of charity's traits, I will understand that I do not deserve any recognition for those things, because God is the only One who can enable them in me.  If I represent charity in any fashion, then I know it can only be God, because never can I have that kind of love on my own.  He doesn't demand our praise, but when any of us shows His love in our lives, He is the source of it.  When we do something that seems completely contradictory to how a person would react, we are pointing to Him.  We make people wonder how we possibly could respond the way we do, then He is getting that credit He deserves, because it acknowledges a "higher power" to act that way.  When I accept praise for a particular kindness or unexplained patience, then it must not be charity at all, because if I can achieve it on my own, it must not be from God.  True charity has no feigned action.  It has no disguised humility.  It is not doing what ought to be done with an underlying sense of obligation.  If I loved others the way God loves me, I would never do anything out of duty.  I would do it with the love I have for my own children.  And even that, as selfless as it usually is, doesn't quite compare.  Because God loved me enough to give up His only child, and I'm pretty certain I will never be as selfless as that.
    

Failing

Today's passage:  John 21
     "He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me?  Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me?  And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things: thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep."
     There have been days when I have wondered how Peter felt after denying our Lord.  If he feels like I am feeling today, then he felt like there was no use trying to accomplish anything, because he would surely fail.  The Lord knew I was going to need this chapter this morning.  I didn't know it, but He did.  He knew I was going to wake up feeling a little like Peter this morning.  He knew that I would feel defeated because I failed Him in a particular area in my life for the umpteenth time.  Before I started reading this morning, I told God I was certain I would probably not be blessed by His Word and I would understand why.  Even though I had confessed my sin and asked Him for His help, I still felt that I would probably be of no use. 
     I'm reading about Peter's failure.  Some people may think, well, I would never fail Jesus that poorly.  That is the wrong view to take.  We all fail Jesus that poorly any time we fail Him.  But God has encouraged me this morning.  Even though I've read these events numerous times, it feels fresh to me, because I feel like Peter did.  Jesus was persistent in letting Peter know, he was still His chosen vessel.  Just as Peter denied Jesus three times, Jesus insists on him declaring his love for Him three times.  And Christ gives Peter a job to do.  I know Peter loved his Lord, even though for a few hours he wouldn't admit to it.  I know Peter was ashamed of his treachery (the gospels tell us that he wept bitterly after the rooster crowed).  I know Peter was certain that His Lord would not claim him as His disciple again.  Aren't you glad that wasn't the case?  Aren't you glad that when we have messed up, again, that God still welcomes us in His arms and allows us to serve Him?  I am.  I'm so thankful God is not done with me yet.  I'm so grateful that He allows me to ask for His forgiveness and restores fellowship with me. I know that He can help me overcome areas in my life that I am still lacking.  I know because I see areas in my past where He has given me victory.  My pastor often says he knows that God is not finished with him yet.  He knows this because he is still breathing.  This is true for all of us.  I've checked, and I am breathing today, so God is not done with me.  I don't want to be done with Him.  I want to serve Him today, better than I did yesterday.  I want to look forward to the times in my life just like Peter had, when he proclaimed Christ to over three thousand people, when God used him to heal a lame man, when God delivered him from a prison cell.  If Peter's story had ended in John 21, many of us would have given up a long time ago.  Peter's failure shows me I will fail.  Peter's humility shows me I will be humbled.  Peter's discouragement shows me I will become discouraged.  But Peter's victories shows me I can be victorious.
     Father God, thank You so much for Your Word.  Thank You that when I don't feel like reading it will accomplish anything because I have failed You so miserably, that You prove me wrong.  Thank You for knowing exactly what I need to see everyday, and Lord, with Your help, I ask for Your guidance and ability to avoid failing You today.  I know You still want to use me, just as You used Peter.

No Longer Looking

Today's passage:  John 15:12-27
     "If I had not come and spoken unto them, they had not had sin:  but now they have no cloke for their sin.  He that hateth me hateth my Father also."
     Ever forget to look for Jesus' coming?  Do you get up each morning thinking, "This might be the day?"  If you are like me, I think about it, but not every day.  It is certainly not the first thought in my mind.  How tired would the Jews have been of looking for the Messiah?
     One of the things that set Judaism apart from every other faith system at the time, is that it is monotheistic.  They worshipped only one God.  For Jesus to come to earth and then tell them that they are still monotheistic but their God is not one, but three in one, was probably a very confusing leap for the religious Jews to make.  They knew Messiah would come, sent from God, but they had always supposed He would be from among the people.  As early as Genesis, when Cain is born, Eve makes the statement, "I have gotten a man from the LORD."  She is already looking for the One that was promised.  This is why in the Jewish culture, a son was so important.  He might be the Messiah, the One who would deliver the people, their Moses.  Perhaps the people at first thought that Moses was that Messiah.  He had the pedigree, born among them but elevated to princely status.  He leads them out of Egypt, but then they spent numerous years in the wilderness.   This was deliverance?  What kind of Messiah would leave them in the desert?
     Maybe it would be Joshua.  He had been Moses' right-hand man.  He was a commanding general.  So maybe they hadn't completely rid the land of all their enemies, he gave it a good college try.  He dies and they are at least in the land, but they are still having to keep their enemies at bay.  Doesn't seem too Messianic.
     Saul?  He proves to be a disappointment.  David?  He is a shepherd boy who God raises up to be king.  He is a very popular king, at first.  He has to fight the enemies within his own family almost as much as the enemies in the land, but he mostly prevails. He also dies and leaves his kingdom in the hands of his wise son.  Solomon is able to keep the peace for as long as he reigns, but I don't think the Messiah would compromise his faith to do this.  I don't think the Messiah would allow other religions to worship in his palace so they would stay friends.  (Hmmm, I wish our government would learn from Solomon's mistakes.)
     What about the prophets?  Elijah?  He was taken up in a fiery chariot.  Now the Messiah would have taken the people up with him, but they were left behind.  Isaiah?  Jeremiah?  They had been carried away to Babylon as well, they didn't seem to be taking an active role in freeing the people.  The list could go on and on.  Every impressive person never seemed to fit the Messiah's profile.  This is because Isaiah 53 says, "he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him."  The Messiah would not be some charismatic leader.  He would not have a procession announcing His presence.  He would not have an entourage fulfilling a rider before each performance.  He came humbly.  He came without fanfare.  He came without all the trappings of success.  And because He came in this way, the Jews could not wrap their mind around it.  They grew tired of looking for the Messiah, until they no longer looked at all.  Maybe once in a while a child was born, and they wondered.  Maybe once in a while a leader would present himself, and they paused.  But mostly, they went about their day-to-day never giving it a thought.  When Jesus comes onto the scene, they had stopped looking for a while.  Too many false prophets had come.  Too many zealots had tried to wrest control from the Romans.  Why keep looking when you would continue to be disappointed?  By this time, they had their checklist of who or what Messiah would be.  Jesus did not fit that checklist.  That's because it wasn't God's checklist.
     I think the Jews would be rather surprised to hear that they hated God.  I think they would be offended by this statement.  I know they would.  They hated Jesus because He exposed their sin, but they also hated Him because He was another in a long list who had not fulfilled their Messianic ideal.  They were tired of looking. 
     I may not seem like I'm tired of watching for Christ's coming, but when it is not the first thought each morning, and the last thought each night, and many thoughts in between, I must be.  When I am not grabbing each person that passes by and telling them about Christ, my actions show that I am not watching.  When I am not keeping things in order, confessing my sin each day, it is evident that I have become indifferent about His return.  Do I keep a checklist of when I think Christ will return?  Sure, the Bible gives some hints, but it could be any day.  It might be today.  Am I looking?  Or have I grown too tired?
 

Windswept

Today's passage:  Isaiah 64
     Chicago is not called the Windy City because of it's strong winds, although, we have some pretty windy days.  In a survey a few years back, Chicago actually ranked 10 among the windiest cities.  When we do have them, the gale that pulls off Lake Michigan can be pretty powerful.  I've had my share of days trying to walk into the wind and feeling like I will never get to my destination.  The wind can be so forceful that I have to plant myself before I take another step or I will be pushed back three.
     A very powerful wind can not only push a person back, but topple him over or even carry him away.  "...and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.  And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee:  for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities." The wind has swept me away and as hard as I try, I can never reach the Lord, because the wind is too great.  This verse tells me that my sins are like a windstorm.  My sins are so grievous that no matter what I try to do, they will keep me from the Lord.  I will never be able to reach Him on my own.  It will take One who told the wind, "Peace be still".

Jesus calms the sea saying  Peace, be still--Taken from The Children's Friend (Part 2)
By Mrs. Adelaide Bee Evans
Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1911, 1928

     Verse 7 tells me that I would never be willing to call upon the Lord myself.  I would never take it upon myself to seek Him out.  Compare this verse to I Corinthians 2:9-10 and I discover that it is God that brought me to Him.  His Spirit worked in my life and heart and then I was able to come to Him.  He revealed Himself to me.  Then I had to be willing to accept what I had heard.  I had to humble myself and admit that He is Lord.  This challenges me to be a better witness.  If a person is never presented with God's Word in any fashion, how is His Holy Spirit supposed to work in that person's life so that he can know God?  A person will not seek out the Lord unless the Spirit prompts him.  Our sin is so great and burdensome it will sweep us away.  If a person has not been presented with God's Word or a Godly person, he will never recognize who God is.  What am I saying?  If my friends never darken a churchhouse, if they never hear or see a TV or radio broadcast about Christ, if they never are presented with a gospel tract or a Godly witness in their lives, how will the Spirit ever work in their lives?  How can the Spirit bring them to God, if they never have the Spirit anywhere near them?  
     I have often wondered at people who never seem to account for God in anything that they do.  They wake up from a hangover, go to work, hang out at the bar or club, stay out late only to wake up from another hangover.  They have no issues with sharing their virtue with every stranger, cursing at the kids they produced because of this sin, or letting those same kids be involved in adult activities at a tender age.  They laugh and mock anything that has to do with religion.  They lie, cheat on their spouses (if they have one), gamble at casinos while their babies are left with an older sibling or at the casino daycare.  These things absolutely boggle my mind and I think to myself, "Do you never, ever think about God?"  And then I wonder, has anyone ever told them?  Has anyone presented them with a tract?  Has anyone invited them to church?  Has anyone read their Bible on their work break so they can see that there is an alternative to the life they are living?  Has anyone turned the conversation to spiritual things when they both had their kids in the swings at the park? I haven't done some of these things.  If I really want to see people changed, it is not going to happen with a lifestyle Christianity.  It is going to take the Word of God and the Spirit of God.  My lifestyle may prompt questions, and that is when I need to plunge in and present the Gospel.  My lifestyle alone will not save them, because they can not see that they are lost, they can not comprehend that they are being pushed away with every step by the powerful wind of their sins.  Can I help bring them to the One who told the winds to cease?  Help me do that today, Lord.

Sin Stinks

Today's passage: I Kings 5
This week we have been having 8 day revival at our church.  We are only the second day in, and God has enriched my spirit.  Sunday night's message dealt with Elisha and Naaman.  The message was tremendous.  While the speaker was preaching, God brought a different thought for this passage to my mind.  Although, I'm sure it has been taught as such many times before, this was the first time God had impressed it on my heart.  As the preacher was describing the horrors of leprosy, I was reminded that leprosy in the Bible many times symbolizes sin.  The speaker described the bandages to wrap the affected leprous parts and referred to the verse in Isaiah 64:6, "all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags...".  He suggested that the filthy rags were as those of a leprous person.  Not a pleasant picture, of course, but that certainly gives us a better view of how God sees our attempt to cover our sin.  I was thinking about the unpleasantness of leprosy.  Once a person has the disease, there is no cure.  The disease begins to isolate the carrier from loved ones.  It smells, it erodes, it destroys.  Isn't this indeed the picture of sin?  We cannot be rid of our sin.  We carry it with us wherever we go.  It does awful things to us and other people.  Basically, sin stinks.  Too many of us, like Naaman think we can do something about our sin.  Like Naaman, we succumb to our pride and want to do it our own way.

Naaman goes to Israel for healing from leprosy--Taken from Standard Bible Story Readers, Book  Three
By Lillie A. Faris, Illustrated by O.A. Stemler and Bess Bruce Cleaveland
Standard Publishing Company, 1926

 Naaman learned if he truly wanted to be rid of this dreaded disease, he would need to do things God's way.  Why couldn't he cleanse himself in the rivers of Damascus?  Because God said he must do it this way.  Why should he dip himself seven times when once should suffice?  Because God said this is the way it must be done.  Why shouldn't I trust in the good things I have done to get to Heaven?  Because God says in Ephesians 2:8-9, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."  Some may say, "That's too easy. " It isn't too easy.  It is the hardest thing to do.  Why? I must recognize that I am an awful sinner (and not one of us wants to admit that we are no good, even though we know it is true).  I must recognize that the good things  I have used to try and disguise or cover up my sin are like the smelly, disgusting, leprous rags Naaman would have worn, and why would anyone, let alone a Holy God accept them as atonement? Would any of us want somebody's used Band-Aid?  Like Naaman, I must humble myself before a holy, loving God, admit I can't do it myself, that my righteousness isn't enough (because I have none) and trust only in the righteousness that God provided through the death, burial, and resurrection of His precious Son, Jesus Christ. And what will transpire when I do this?  Just as Naaman finally humbled himself and dipped the seventh time in the Jordan River, he came up with skin that was not just clean, but as the preacher pointed out, "like unto the flesh of a little child".  The preacher reminded us that Naaman was a soldier,  his skin was undoubtedly covered not only with leprosy, but with war scars.  His skin was probably leathery from the elements.  God didn't just heal Naaman, he miraculously changed him.  What God could do for us, if we just let Him!  God can heal us from the stench of leprosy, he can take away the stink of our sin.