Simple Obedience

2 Kings 5:9-14 ESV So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored, and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman was angry and went away, saying, “Behold, I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call upon the name of the Lord his God, and wave his hand over the place and cure the leper. 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean?” So he turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants came near and said to him, “My father, it is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God, and his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.  

Naaman was given a simple command to clean him of leprosy and he balked at it. In his eyes, he could have done this simple command by himself in his own homeland. But it was not the Jordan that would cleanse him, it was God. He was waiting for Naaman to obey Him.
 
Aren’t we like that sometimes? I think one of my biggest challenges is not being so busy that I miss out on what God is doing around me (Ps 46:10). Another challenge is giving things over to God first before I make an attempt to do them (Pr 3:5-6). You may have different challenges, but in essence many of those challenges are just simple commands to follow that we balk at. Why? Because they seem too simple. Because we can take of things on our own. Because we just don’t always believe in God and His word.  


Fortunately Naaman had servants that reasoned with him to obey. Naaman did obey and he was cleansed. Seek to put people around you who will help you obey God’s word. Even if you balk at a little change that a sermon or daily reading has moved you to do, you can still turn around and obey.