Elisha replied, “Hear
the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says: About this
time tomorrow, a seah of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and
two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.” (Second Kings 7:1)
At
the beginning of Pastor Joy’s sermon on Sunday, she reminded us that chapter 7 of Second Kings continues a narrative that began in chapter 6. In the middle of
the sixth chapter, we see that the siege against Samaria caused a severe famine. Towards the
end of the sixth chapter we read that the king is wearing sackcloth (a sign of contrition
and repentance). However, the words he spoke had no connection to the symbolism
of the fabric he wore.
Decapitation of God’s prophet. He said, “May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of
Elisha son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today!” (Second Kings 6:31) The
head is where God has placed the means of communication (brain, eyes, ears,
mouth). By removing Elisha’s head, the king would have removed the source and symbol of
prophetic communication to the community (the means by which the people of God received
the word of God).
Dismissal of God’s
process.
The king said, “This disaster is from the Lord.
Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?” (Second Kings 6:33b) The
king, faced with the sufferings of his people, was frustrated at the length of
the siege and the severity of the famine. He was ready to take matters into his
own hands, beginning with the removal of God's authority in his realm, so that he could act without waiting on God.
Well, that siege was thousands of years ago... and yet it's not so far away.
Though we are not currently experiencing nationwide famine
here in the U.S.A, we do have “pockets of crisis” where communities are
suffering unimaginable things. You may even be experiencing personal, multiple
crises that are painful, and that have been going on for years. Do you think
that God is taking too long to rescue your community from disaster? Are you
tempted to ignore God’s voice and God’s timeline for your deliverance? Pastor Joy
shared something (paraphrased here) that I’d like us to reflect on today: We are called to have faith. We are called
to refute the thoughts that are sent from the enemy. Amen. Let’s pray that we,
today, will not permit the trials of life to shake our faith in God.
Lord God, please help
us. It’s so easy to forget You when we are in the middle of hardships. It’s so
easy to take out our frustrations on Your ministers of grace. It’s so easy to
ignore Your timetable for deliverance and restoration. It’s so easy to give up.
But You have given us a word! “Tomorrow, at about this time…” Yes. We trust
You. We embrace You. We know that it is You who gives us grace to endure
hardships. We thank You for walking with us, even as we starve under siege. We
hunger, and yet we live in joyful expectation of all that You will do. We will not move prematurely. We will wait
in expectation of “Tomorrow”, with full confidence that Your timing is perfect.
Thank You, Lord.
All
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica,
Inc.®Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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