| II Kings 6:8-23 "In the Name of Love" |
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| Written by Rev. Don Lee | |
| Saturday, 19 January 2008 | |
II Kings continues the story of Israel’s monarchy, focusing primarily on God’s ongoing covenantal relationship with Israel demonstrated through the stories of the prophet Elisha; who in the manner of Christ:
Our Old Testament reading in 2 Kings 6:8-23. Pray with me: Lord, make me a channel of thy peace; that where there is hatred, I may bring love; that where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness; that where there is discord, I may bring harmony; that where there is error, I may bring truth; that where there is doubt, I may bring faith; that where there is despair, I may bring hope; that where there are shadows, I may bring light; that where there is sadness, I may bring joy. Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort than to be comforted; to understand, than to be understood; to love, than to be loved. For it is by self-forgetting that one finds. It is by forgiving that one is forgiven. It is by dying that one awakens to eternal life. Amen. -The Prayer of St. Francis as adapted by Alcoholics Anonymous. Once upon a time there were 2 kings. One was a good king, the other bad. Well, in truth it wasn’t so clear cut who the good guy was. Let’s just say that the major difference between one and the other is the King of Israel had a “Prophet” of God consulting him. And as God’s prophet, God kept Elisha “in-the-know.” This pleased the King of Israel greatly because it allowed him to know in advance, the movements of his enemy, knowledge the king used to its fullest advantage. When several of the Aramean raiding parties are ambushed, the King of Aram suspects the work of a traitor. Instead, he is told about the prophet, who is said to know the “goings-on” of even the most intimate corners of the King’s royal household. This news distresses the king on a number of different levels. But then he has a thought. “What if he were on our side?!” He could tell us what “our” enemy is up to then we’d be the one doing the ambushing! Why we’d be invincible! When Aram learns that the prophet is in Dothan City, the army is sent to capture him. The flaw in the plan? Elisha had to know they were coming. The fact that the army comes under cover of darkness only betrays their naiveté. Elisha’s waiting for them! Through a narrative tool we are allowed to glimpse the reason for his confidence: A thousand heavily armed angels loaded for bear! Verse 18 When the Arameans came down against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, and said, ‘Strike this people, please, with blindness.’ With a simple prayer, the Aramean army is plunged into chaos! Soldiers drop to their knees in horror; or stumble about wildly swing their swords out of fear of this unknown assailant, leaving a path of destruction in their wake. How long this goes on is unclear but at some point the scene descends into resigned helplessness. You can see the storyteller’s eyes dance with delight as he describes what happens next. Unaware that the one who has showed up to help, is actually their target leading them into a trap, the mighty warriors of Aram are led like little children, hand in hand into the very stronghold of the Israel’s battle-forces. Suddenly the Arameans regain their sight only to find themselves, surrounded, outnumbered, and outgunned. The ancient Hebrews familiar with stories of Israel’s epic battles knew what was about to happen. The God of Israel had heard the prayers of God’s people and had miraculously delivered their enemies into their hands. The order would be given to smite down the enemy and so would end another glorious victory for God’s people. Here the story takes an incredible and unexpected twist. As the good king is poised to give the order, the prophet intercedes. “Would you kill those whom you have captured with your sword and bow?” A little cryptic but basically, “Where’s your compassion?” While not privy to the good king’s thoughts, I’d bet my last nickel that king was thinking, “You’ve got to be joking!” This is war, man! And these are our enemy. Of course we’re going to kill them. What would you have me do? Invite them to stay for dinner?!” “Good idea,” responds the prophet. “That’s exactly what’ you’re going to do!” Well that was about as unexpected as a UFO buzzing Stephenville! In the next scene we find the Arameans seated as guests of honor as what is described as a five star, four course lavish feast; no doubt just as confused as their hosts. Two armies, two enemies, eating and drinking together, sharing in the intimacy of a meal, engaging in dialog, sharing about lives and families, hopes and dreams. After the meal, the Arameans are allowed to return home unmolested. The story ends with these words, “And the Arameans no longer came raiding into the land of Israel.” After thousands of years of holy war, genocide, and acts of terrorism by both sides, God commands Israel to have compassion on its enemies. Instead of justifiable revenge we get radical hospitality! If I were to summarize this story it would be this: The best way to defeat your enemy is to make them your friend. Can you hear the king arguing with the prophet, “But you don’t understand; they’ve killed our people, destroyed communities, and targeted our innocent. Threaten our very way of life! This is our chance! Let’s just make this problem go away!” And how would the prophet respond to this? Would he reply,
I want to go back for a moment to vs. 16 because I don’t want us to miss something significant in this text. It reads: [Elisha] replied, ‘Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them.’ Elisha’s words betray a theological grasp of the bigness his God. Here comes the armies of Aram, wave upon wave of armored warriors prepped for battle and Elisha’s response is a, “Hmmmph, big deal!” That’s when it struck me. I’ve heard these words before! Those of you who knew Cynthia Hamner; remember when she learned of her cancer diagnosis, what she told her doctor in response? “My God is bigger then anything you can throw at me.” The one who is with me is bigger!
And so we choose who we will serve: Are we servants of our anger, our hate, our resentment, our racism, our pride, or are we servants of God? My God is bigger then anything anyone can throw at me! (would you repeat that with me?) Do you believe that? This is in no way an attempt to dismiss any wounded-ness you or I might have in our lives. On the contrary, it is an affirmation of the power of God to change us and our world. Dr. King’s dream of a world governed by peace, compassion, and equality grew out of his conviction that God dreams of a better world and has given us the power to do something about it. As you may be aware, reports of violence in Kenya following the recent elections there continue to filter in. Bill and Jerri Savuto, UM missionaries in Maua, Kenya wrote in an email I received this week: “Kenya has such potential, but like all nations and even all people, we have potential for good and evil. We are praying that Kenya’s potential for good will win out.” The biblical writers believed that the potential for good and evil is present in all of us but the writers also believed that the One who is in us is bigger then the one who is in the world (I John 4:4). In his memoir Night, Elie Wiesel’s writes about the absence of compassion in the Nazi concentration camps. Having gone without food or drink for three days, thousands of Jews were driven out of their barracks at dawn into a thickly falling snow and herded into a field. Forbidden to sit, bend down or even much move, they stood in line until evening, waiting for a train that would take them deeper into Germany. Their thirst became intolerable and as snow began to blanket the prisoners, someone suggested they eat snow off each other’s shoulders. Slowly the prisoners leaned toward their neighbor’s shoulders and began to eat the snow that had accumulated there. Soon that field filled with individuals carrying separate pain, became a community caring for one another and offering the bright light of compassion. God does not call us to play small… but rather God calls us to live selflessly, compassionately, generously, big heartedly. Why? Because our God is bigger then anything, anyone can throw at us.” Lord, make us channels of your peace. Amen. |
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