Not A Myth But A Person

"He came to His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as

received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons and daughters

of God." That is the way you get the power.



Naaman goes down to the river and takes the first dip. As he comes

up I can imagine him looking at himself, and saying to his servant:



"There! there I am, no better than I was when I went in! If one

-seventh of the eprosy was gone, I should be content."



The servant says: "The man of God told you to dip seven times. Do

just as he told you. There is no discount on God's word."



Well, down he goes a second time, and he comes up puffing and

blowing, as much a leper as ever; and so he goes down again and

again, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth time, with the same

result, as much a leper as ever. Some of the people standing on the

banks of the river probably said, as they certainly would in our

day:



"Why, that man has gone clean out of his mind!"



When he comes up the sixth time, he looks at himself, and says:



"Ah, no better! What a fool I have made of myself! How they will all

laugh at me! I wouldn't have the generals and aristocracy of

Damascus know that I have been dipping in this way in Jordan for all

the world. However, as I have gone so far, I'll make the seventh

plunge."



He has not altogether lost faith, and down he goes the seventh time,

and comes up again. He looks at himself, and shouts aloud for joy.



"Lo, I am well! My leprosy is all gone, all gone! My flesh has come

again as that of a little child."



If one speck of leprosy had remained, it would have been a

reflection on God.



Ask him now how he feels.



"Feel? I feel that this is the happiest day of my life. I thought

when I won a great victory upon the battlefield that that was the

most joyful day of my life; I thought I should never be so happy

again; but that wasn't anything; it didn't compare with this hour;

my leprosy is all gone, I am whole, I am cleansed."



First he lost his temper; then he lost his pride; then his leprosy.

That is generally the order in which proud, rebellious sinners are

converted.



So he comes up out of Jordan and puts on his clothes, and goes back

to the prophet. He was very mad with Elisha in the beginning, but

when he was cleansed his anger was all gone too. He wants to pay

him. That's just the old story; Naaman