Naaman’s servants went to him and said, “My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing, would you not have done it? How much more, then, when he tells you, ‘Wash and be cleansed’!” 2 Kings 5:13 NIV
The land of “much more” is found at the end of the road of small steps. For instance, consider a water droplet on the huge Mississippi River. It found its beginning as a small trickle from Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota before traveling 2,348 miles to find its home in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Hebrew expression of “much more” is actually the same word repeated, “aph”, twice. It would be similar to a friend of mine, Eddie Taylor, speaking to the kids at camp…”listen, listen”. The servant is talking with Naaman and trying to get his attention, to cause him to stop his line of “stinking thinking” in order for him to think differently.
For Naaman the issue of obedience to the prophet did not make sense. The prophet asked him to dip himself seven times in a dirty river to be healed. There was no logical connection between the action and the desired result. It was easy to dismiss obedience.
Naaman followed the instructions and was healed.
Are there some small steps of active obedience that you have dismissed as trivial? Are there whispers from the Spirit of God that you have shelved for later response? Do you struggle with putting small changes into your routines that would bring freedom in such areas as eating habits, exercise, entertainment time management, time alone with God? If you want to be wealthy, begin by learning the value of saving – starting with the first $1.00.
Let the servants wisdom guide you into the land of “much more”. Start taking the small steps of obedience. May you experience the joy of transformation…though it takes 7 or more times.
Blessings Love y’all.
Great post, Greg! There’s an interesting divine dynamic between discipline and freedom. What you said about “small changes” and “freedom in such areas” really resonates with me. And this discipline starts with not our self-effort but is a fruit of yielding obediently to the Spirits quiet, subversive ministry deep within our very souls. Today I am teaching on “the cell and the coracle” – which is a wonderful metaphor from Celtic spirituality for this: before one can launch out on an adventure for God in our little steer-less coracles – we need to live and learn the self-denying disciplines of the “cell”. None of this can be done apart from a deep pressing into and abandonment to the Spirit of God our Father.
Agreed on the necessity to learn total dependence and obedience to the Holy Spirit. Preach with power and anointing.