[0:00] We're going to begin our worship this evening by singing to God's praise in Psalm 27 in the Sing Psalms. We're singing verse 1 to verse 5. The Lord's my Savior and my light, who will make me dismayed. The Lord's the stronghold of my life. Why should I be afraid? When evildoers threaten me to take my life away, my adversaries and my foes, they will stumble in that day. We're going to sing from verse 1 to 5. The tune is St. Columba, and we'll stand to sing.
[0:57] St. Columba, and we'll make me dismayed. When evildoers threaten me to take my life away, my adversaries and my foes, they will stumble in that day. Although an army hands me in, my heart will feel no dread. Though war against me should arise, I will lift up my head.
[2:24] one thing that I need before the Lord, and this I'll see always, that I may come within in the cross-house and dwell in cross-house and dwell there all my days.
[3:02] and in the cross-house and dwell there all my days. on the beauty of the Lord, I constantly believe in his, and in his mouth may seem to know the direction in the cross-house and dwell there all my days. the beauty of the Lord, and in his way. the beauty of the Lord, I constantly believe in his, and in his mouth may seem to know the direction in his ways.
[3:16] the beauty of the Lord, and in his dwelling is, and in his dwelling is, and in his ways. the meaning is, and in his ways. the beauty of the Lord, and in his dwelling is, and in his ways. May seem to know Direction in His ways For in His dwelling He will be Be safe in trouble Will face Within His tent He'll shelter me And on and on Be raised
[4:16] Let's unite her Hearts in prayer Let us pray Lord our God Our Father in Heaven The privilege is ours To come and draw near To You in worship The joy is ours To know that You are a God Who delights In Your people coming And to draw near to You And to offer up Praise from the very bottom Of our hearts Rejoicing in the fact That You alone Are our salvation That in You alone There is salvation For all who will come And put their trust In the Lord Jesus Christ And we thank You That the Gospel Is an open invitation That there are no restrictions Put on it But that there is a free offer Through the Gospel We thank You
[5:18] That the Word Became flesh And dwelt among us And we thank You That the beauty of Christ Has been seen And indeed is seen In this world That there were many Who gazed upon the Lord Who saw His works Who saw His miracles Who spoke of them Who marveled at them That we thank You That the greatest one Of all That was those Who could say He is not here For He is risen We thank You That there is such great hope In those words That though there were many Who looked on As our Lord Was led to the cross And as He was crucified And as He gave His life up That there was much sorrow In that time As there was darkness Over all the earth We thank You For the resurrection morning We thank You For the power He has Over conquering death
[6:18] And that in Jesus Christ Now We know the beauty Of salvation We know the delight To be able To come near to Him And we pray That even this evening We will have that Great longing Of the psalmist That one thing We'll plead Before the Lord That we will seek it always That we may come in Within God's house And dwell there All our days That we would see The beauty Of the Lord And gaze constantly Upon Him We thank You That that is not just seen Here in this place But even as we leave here This evening Help us to fix our eyes On our Lord And Saviour Jesus Christ The one who heals Our sin sick hearts The one who If we come in repentance And confessing Our sins anew He is able to cleanse us From all our sin So we acknowledge Lord before You And You this evening Our shortcomings How we are a people
[7:19] Who falls short Of Your glory In so many ways You know the wickedness And the deceit Of our hearts As the word says The heart is wicked Beyond all things And we know Lord In our own experience In our day to day lives How easy it is For us to sin How often we say The wrong thing How often we do The wrong thing How often the wrong thoughts Come into our minds How often our inaction Is sin as well But we thank You That there is yet Forgiveness with You And so we come as sinners Before a holy God This evening Pleading with You Lord Have mercy upon us And direct us Towards You Lead us in our worship Lift up our hearts And our souls To You this evening So whatever our circumstances Whatever our situation We may find that great joy Of salvation Restored to our hearts We thank You That You are the one Who is able
[8:19] That we come before You With powerless hands And lips We thank You For the power of Your Spirit We thank You For the power You have To work in and through us And so we plead Lord Your presence with us That You will draw near to us As we draw near to You Bless all our homes And families As we unite our hearts Together here Bless the homes We reach into Through the online services As well And all who are Unable to be with us For such a variety Of reasons We thank You That we have the means To For the gospel To go out We pray that You will bless it To all ends of the earth Not just the gospel Preached here today But throughout Our denomination Throughout our churches Throughout all the churches Of the world today Wherever Your people Have gathered As Your church That wherever Your name Has been praised That there will be much glory Given to You We pray for the work Of salvation To be seen and known
[9:19] Far and wide But we thank You That Your gospel Is not confined In any way Not limited in any way And even as we see In our reading this evening That Your word Is powerful To convict And to convert And so we pray For that power To be with us As we hear Your word And as we come To study it together here We know Lord That You know Our very hearts And our innermost thoughts And we thank You That as we come In prayer We come rejoicing In the hope That You are the one Who is able to answer Above and beyond All that we ask Or imagine We thank You That as we ask For comfort In our prayers That You are able To comfort Beyond the comfort We even imagine That we cannot enter Into the experiences Of Your people At times In the hurt they feel In the anxieties They have In those who are Downcast in their hearts Sorrowful in their souls But we thank You That You are the one
[10:20] Who is able to uplift That You are the one Who is able to encourage And so we pray For all Who we know And love And care for Who are going Through difficult times Times of sorrow Times of illness Times of grief We do pray Lord For Your hand To be upon them For good That they would know That You are the one Who is faithful And always ever present That You are the one Who is near We pray Lord For our communities At this time We know that there's Been so much activity Around the town These past days We do thank You For many people We've met And spoken to We do pray Lord That even from This morning's Breakfast That there will be Many seeds That have been Sown there That will be Blessed by You Thank You For every engagement That was made With people in the hall Thank You For those who came Into the worship service And maybe even here This evening too Those who are visiting With us We pray Your blessing On each and every one And we do thank You Lord
[11:21] That You are a God Who is able to unite us As a people Through praise And worship We thank You For the families Who are present This morning For the baptisms We thank You For the children Who are baptized We continue to pray Your blessing on them We thank You For that great covenant Promise that there is And we pray That You will draw These children And all our children To know the covenant Promise of Christ Fulfilled in Him That they through faith Might come to confess Him As their Lord and Saviour Look after all our young people During these holiday times Remember especially those Who are at camps just now We continue to pray For the camps That continue to meet In this week And the week ahead The weeks ahead We ask Your safety And Your protection And Your blessing Over each and every one Of the leaders And all the activities They are involved in And the children Lord may they hear The gospel good news And may they be blessed By it We do pray for
[12:23] The ongoing work Of the church Throughout our nation And the nations of the world How we need Your light To go forth And with power Into our Into every nation Of the world To bless our leaders To bless those Who rule over us To bless those Who have such Desires for evil In this world When we think of war And terrorist activities And greed And all of the things That direct our hearts So often We pray for You To melt the hardest Of hearts To bring grace And to bring mercy And to bring repentance And to bring glory To Your name So we continue to pray For the needs of our world For Your protection Over us as a people For Your blessing To be upon us For Your reviving power Of Your spirit To be with us Even in this time together May You continue To bless us this day And look after us And go before us In the days ahead Direct our steps
[13:24] And our paths Encourage our hearts And give us lips That will always sing Your praise And witness for You So Lord continue With us now In our praise As we continue To worship You Forgive us all our sins And all we ask We ask the forgiveness Of all our sin In Jesus name Amen We'll again sing To God's praise In Psalm 125 In the Scottish Psalter You'll find this On page 429 Psalm 125 Psalm 125 Page 419 We'll sing the whole Of this Psalm together Then the Lord That firmly trust Shall be like Sion Hill Which at no time Can be removed But standeth ever still We'll sing The whole of this Psalm The tune is St. Andrew And we'll stand To sing From the Church Amen.
[14:52] Amen. Amen.
[15:52] Amen. Amen.
[16:52] Amen. Okay.
[17:33] We turn together to read in God's Word, a reading in the Old Testament and in the book of 2 Kings. 2 Kings chapter 5.
[17:46] We're reading from the beginning of the chapter down to the middle of verse 19. 2 Kings chapter 5, reading from the beginning of that chapter.
[18:20] 1 Kings chapter 5, reading from the beginning of that chapter.
[18:50] 1 Kings chapter 5, reading from the beginning of that chapter.
[19:20] 1 Kings chapter 5, reading from the beginning of that chapter. he is seeking a quarrel with me. But when Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent to the king, saying, Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come now to me, that he may know that there is a prophet in Israel. So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and stood at the door of Elisha's house. 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.
[20:06] 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.
[20:20] Are not Aban and Farpar, the rivers of Damascus, Beth and all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them and be clean? So he turned and went away in a rage. But their 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?
[20:44] As he actually said to you, Wash and be clean. 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. Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and he came and stood before him. And he said, Behold, I know there is no God in all the earth but in Israel, so accept now a present from your servant. But he said, As the Lord lives before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it, but he refused. Then Naaman said, If not, please, let it be given to your servant two mule loads of earth. For from now on, on your servant, on your servant will not offer burnt offering or sacrifice to any God but the Lord. In this matter, may the Lord pardon your servant. When my master goes into the house of Rimon to worship there, leaning on my arm, and I bow myself in the house of Rimon, when I bow myself in the house of Rimon, the Lord pardon your servant in this matter. He said to him, Go in peace.
[22:09] And so on. And may God bless that reading from his word to our souls. We're going to sing again before we turn back to this passage in Psalm 31. We're singing the Sing Psalms version. Psalm 31 on page 36 of the Psalm books. I'm going to sing from verse 1 to verse 7. In you I have taken refuge, Lord. You are my shelter in distress, so let me never be ashamed, but save me in your righteousness.
[22:42] We're going to sing verse 1 to verse 7, and the tune is Rockingham, and we'll stand to sing. in you I have taken refuge, Lord. You are my shelter in distress. Oh, let me never be ashamed, but save me in your righteousness.
[23:17] Lord, turn you here to hear my cry. How quickly to be dear to hear my cry. How quickly to be dear to hear my cry.
[23:47] Lord, deliver me, and bring my love and firm defense, my stronghold and security.
[24:10] You are my fortress and my love. You are my fortress and my love. For you may save me, my sure guide.
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[24:57] For me wepin' 예看 nach christen kanu' rye, O God of truth, my spirit I commit to you.
[25:15] I hate all those who trust false gods.
[25:25] I trust the Lord, for he is true. I will rejoice and take delight in all the love that you have shown.
[25:56] For my affection you have seen. To you, my soul's distress is known.
[26:16] Amen. Well, if we can turn back to our reading in 2 Kings 5.
[26:28] We want to consider these verses we've read. Together we read of this man called Naaman. Naaman, who was, as we read in verse 1, commander of the army of the king of Syria.
[26:40] He was a great man with his master and in high favor, because by him the Lord had given victory to Syria. He was a mighty man of valor, but he was a leper.
[26:54] And so it goes on. There are many things that we maybe think are hidden from others in this life. Many things that we probably know in our own hearts that we're glad that people don't know about us.
[27:10] But God's word reminds us that there is nothing hidden from the Lord. You know, in the psalm we just sang, Psalm 31. In verse 7 we read these words.
[27:22] For my affliction you have seen. To you my soul's distress is known. And in the midst of Naaman's life, in the midst of everything that was good in his life, as he would see it himself, there was something that was a great affliction to him.
[27:40] But almost unbeknown to him, the Lord had a great plan and a greater plan for him than anything that he could have planned in his own heart. And that's what we want to look at this evening as we come to look at this passage.
[27:55] One of the many things that people will look forward to on a Sunday, and perhaps you've already enjoyed this afternoon, is to sit down to a nice meal.
[28:06] To sit down and enjoy maybe a traditional Sunday roast. Gathered around the table, maybe with family and friends. Sometimes it's hard to beat, just a nice roast and all the trimmings.
[28:18] But with it comes another issue. The dishes. There may be a rush to come and sit at the table when everyone's called, that the food is ready.
[28:31] But then once all the food is gone, once all the food has been devoured, there'll be a different kind of rush. And that's the rush away from having to do the dishes.
[28:41] We'll leave that for someone else to do. Because to make a roast involves a lot of work. The roasting dish will be hard to clean.
[28:52] The pan of vegetables that's dried and burnt to the bottom will be impossible to clean. The Yorkshire dish, the Yorkshire pudding dish, it just will not clean no matter how much you scrub at it.
[29:03] So there's a lot of work. And that's when people will disappear. And that's why there are billions spent on trying to find the magic cleaning agent or the magic machine that will do the work for you.
[29:17] But there are some stains that are just impossible and so hard to remove. Well, this evening as we look at Naaman, we're looking at a man who in the midst of all his power and all his wealth, a man who probably never had to clean a dish in his life.
[29:36] We look at him, but he's got a different problem. A different issue that's needing cleaning. But no matter how much he has and no matter how much he can try to deal with this issue himself, it is impossible.
[29:54] It's a stain that's impossible to remove by himself. As we've read there in verse 1, you see so many things about this man.
[30:07] So many things that would have held him in great esteem among his people. He was a man of great power, a commander of the army, second only to the king of Syria.
[30:19] And yet he finds himself having to humble himself and look for help from someone he would never want to go near by his own choice.
[30:30] To go to the people of Israel. To go to the prophet of God. To go to Elisha in order to be healed. And yet it's into this amazing situation that we see God working things for his good.
[30:49] From the most unexpected of sources comes a word of hope to him. From a little girl who had been taken captive. Who has a great burden for her Lord as she calls him.
[31:03] For her master. And she speaks to his wife these wonderful words. If only he would look to the Lord. If he would only listen to this prophet of God.
[31:17] And it's in this encounter that the word of God takes hold of this man who was a stranger to the God of Israel. A stranger to the Lord and his grace.
[31:28] And at the center, at the heart of it, is what it really means to be clean. To have that stain of sin washed away. A stain that we can never remove ourselves.
[31:42] But that only the Lord can. It's a reminder to us of ourselves. And how we are a people who are unclean in so many ways. But how the Lord is able to work from the inside out.
[31:55] To make us clean. In other words, to make us right with God. But we may see ourselves in Naaman. Or we have to see ourselves in Naaman. In different ways to know this cleaning.
[32:09] In order for our hearts to be made right with God. Our hearts need to be pricked. Just as Naaman's was. And there's three things I want us to see about Naaman this evening. That remind us of ourselves.
[32:22] The first thing is this. That Naaman was a sick man. The second thing is he was a stubborn man. The third thing.
[32:32] And the most amazing thing is he was a saved man. So the first thing we see is Naaman is a sick man. Naaman and who he was.
[32:45] We are introduced there in verse 1. It tells us all about him. But what does it tell us? What does it say in that verse that stands out to you? He was a commander.
[32:56] Commander of the army of the king of Syria. Which at this time was one of the most powerful kingdoms in the whole world. It's hard for us to imagine just the power that this man had.
[33:11] The hold that he had over his own armies. And over all the nations around him. People lived in fear of him. He was a commander in the midst of this.
[33:21] It says too that he was a great man with his master. He was trusted by the king of Syria. He gave him all authority and all power to do as he saw right in his eyes.
[33:36] To go about all his conquests. He was trusted by the king of Syria. It also says that he was a mighty man of valor.
[33:49] He was a brave man. He had conquered many nations. Many people. He'd won many battles over his years. You can almost see him as being untouchable in so many different ways.
[34:05] And these are the kinds of things that in our day and age are so appealing to people now as well. They want this sense of being untouchable as we were hearing this morning about everybody has their own individual ideas.
[34:22] You cannot tell me what to do. I am going to do what I want. And these are the things that people see as being important. People want power and wealth and authority are strived for.
[34:36] And as we've seen over the last few years, they're not easily given up. Nobody wants to let go of this power. Nobody wants to let go of this authority if they have it.
[34:49] People want this sense of power. But yet there is something about Naaman in this verse that it tells us to. Something telling.
[35:01] You see, at the end of verse 1, there is a but. He may have been all these great things. A commander. A trusted man. A man of valor. A mighty man of valor.
[35:13] Yet it says at the end of the verse, But he was a leper. He was a sick man. No matter how much power.
[35:26] No matter how much money or authority he had. This was something that was incurable. He was a sick man. Now we've experienced much sickness in different ways over these last few years.
[35:43] Our world was living in a way where it seemed people were untouchable. Nothing could get to them. And yet during the pandemic, it seemed at some points that each day it was emphasized just how contagious the virus was.
[36:02] And it was often noted that even so-and-so has got it. And it's almost like people were astonished, surprised, that people in positions such as the rich and the famous sports people, the politicians, that this virus could touch them.
[36:21] And yet no one was immune to it. No matter the power that Naaman had. No matter the wealth that Naaman had.
[36:35] He was sick. And no matter the power that anyone has today. Or the status that anyone has today. People are not immune to sickness.
[36:48] But this is telling us more than just a physical illness. This is reminding us of a greater problem. A problem that's even more contagious than any virus of this world that comes our way in this world.
[37:06] And it's the problem of sin. Sin is the greatest sickness that we experience. And we all have it.
[37:17] You see, no matter how you describe your life today. No matter how well you feel today. Or no matter how weak and vulnerable you maybe feel today.
[37:32] This is something we cannot get away from. This is a problem we all have. We all have this but in our life.
[37:43] Not I am a leper. But I am a sinner. I am a sinner. Naaman was a sick man.
[37:58] You and I are sick people. Because the word of God tells us so. You read in the book of Romans chapter 3 verse 23.
[38:08] We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. No matter how much we try and deny it. No matter how much we try and push that away from us.
[38:23] No matter how much the world will tell us that we cannot say you are a sinner. The word of God tells us that we are sick. That we are all sinners.
[38:38] Naaman was a mighty man. A powerful man. But he was a sick man. But in the midst of this.
[38:49] There is something greater going on. God is at work. There is another but in this verse.
[39:00] A verse. A but that we maybe don't see. Immediately that doesn't stand out as much as. But he was a leper. You see in this opening verse.
[39:11] It is not all about Naaman. It is not telling us. How great Naaman was. It is telling us. How great God is. You read through verse 1 there.
[39:23] And there is all these things about Naaman. Naaman was a commander of the army. He was a great man with his master. High in favor. But in the middle of the verse it says. Another but if you like.
[39:35] But because. By him. The Lord. Had given victory to Syria. It wasn't through Naaman's power. It wasn't through Naaman's.
[39:48] Military tactics. Or skills. It was the Lord. That had given victory. It was the Lord. Who had won. God.
[40:00] Was in the midst. Of everything here. And it's a reminder to us as well. For all. Our world is sin sick. That God.
[40:11] Is working in this world. God is working. His purposes. Through all his works of providence. Providence. God is still working. Providence.
[40:23] That doesn't seem to make sense to us. At times. Who could understand. Why this mighty nation of Syria. Naaman's day. Was all conquering. And all powerful.
[40:33] When they did not trust God. Yet in the midst of it. God was teaching his people lessons. And God was working. Even in the heart of Naaman.
[40:45] An enemy of God. It was the Lord. Who had given. Victory. In all the victories. That Naaman had.
[40:56] It was the Lord. Naaman. Could do nothing. Without the Lord. Willing it. And the same. Is true for ourselves.
[41:07] Too. We are lost. Apart from the Lord. God. But we should be thankful. That the Lord is speaking. That the Lord is working.
[41:19] That the Lord looks down. On this sin sick world. And what does he want for his people. That they might be saved. That they might come. To him. And be saved.
[41:31] Because there is something else here. In these opening verses. That reminds us. Of God's great works. In verse 2. It says. Now the Syrians.
[41:41] On one of their raids. Had carried off. A little girl. From the land of Israel. And she worked. In the service. Of Naaman's wife. She said. To her mistress. Would.
[41:52] That my Lord. Were with the prophet. Who is in Samaria. It's such. A minute detail. In so many ways. Naaman.
[42:03] Would have had no thought. For this little girl. As she was taken captive. Probably along with hundreds. Or even thousands of others. But this little girl.
[42:15] Was about to change his life. This little girl. In God's providence. Was brought to work. In his household. To have a word. To speak.
[42:26] To Naaman's wife. Would. That my Lord. Were with the prophet. Who is in Samaria. Watching the courage. Of that little girl.
[42:36] To speak. To say these words. To her masters. In their own home. To stand up before them. And direct them. To their enemy.
[42:47] And say. You can get help there. From this man. Of God. From this prophet. Of God. The courage.
[43:00] Of this little girl. And then. Isn't it wonderful. How God. Works together. All things. How God. In the midst. Of this mighty. Man of valor.
[43:11] Life. Uses. A little. Helpless girl. To direct him. To the place. Of healing. What we see.
[43:21] In this little girl. Is what we should see. In every Christian. Courage. Courage. To speak. And to point people. To the prophet of God.
[43:34] To the son of God. To Jesus Christ. And to say. To the sin sick world. I know your problem. Because I have it too.
[43:45] I am a sinner. In my heart. Yet I know. Where there is hell. Would. That you would go. To Christ. Would.
[43:56] That you would come. To him. Who is able. To heal. We have a powerful man. Who is a sick man. But who hears.
[44:07] Of a great God. And that is what we should long for today. For ourselves. To know our sickness. To know that.
[44:18] No matter what power we feel we have. We are unable to do anything about this sickness. But to hear. That there is a God. Who can help.
[44:29] To acknowledge our sin. To acknowledge our weakness before God. Pleading for help. With him. But we see the second thing.
[44:41] Is a problem we also have so often. Naaman. Is a stubborn man. And isn't that a problem. We so often have.
[44:53] Ourselves too. You just look at the way Naaman responds. When he hears about this. Possibility of help. He hears. The potential of healing.
[45:04] For himself. And he's keen. To find out. What it is. But he wants it on his own terms. He wants everything done. His way.
[45:17] And that's because. Like you and I. He was stubborn. Sin. Makes us stubborn. Sin makes us a people.
[45:27] Who want to work things out. For ourselves. We want things done. In our own way. And who is willing. To acknowledge.
[45:38] Their stubbornness. We are so often. Too slow. To admit it. Even if someone was to tell us. Why are you so stubborn? Or you're just a stubborn person.
[45:50] Our natural reaction. Would be to say. I'm not stubborn. Our stubbornness. Makes us stubborn. To admit we're stubborn. We don't want.
[46:00] To admit it. And we'll go on the defensive. Straight away. And so. If someone tells us. You're a sinner. And you need to come to Christ.
[46:12] Our natural reaction is. No I'm not. And how dare you tell me so. And you see. Our own hearts. In Naaman's. In his stubbornness.
[46:23] As you see. In verse 11. Naaman was angry. He was angry. And he went away.
[46:36] Saying. Behold. I thought he would surely. Come out to me. And stand. And call upon. The name of the Lord. And just wave his hand. Over the place. And cure the leper. Why.
[46:46] Why. Was he so angry. Because. In his stubbornness. He couldn't humble himself.
[46:56] To this point. Where he would receive help. From somebody else. He wanted it done. To. In his way. First of all. He thought. He could sort things out.
[47:08] For himself. By his wealth. You see that. In the middle. Of verse 5. In verse 5. It says. The king of Syria said. Go now. And I will send a letter. To the king of Israel.
[47:19] So he went. Taking with him. Ten talents of silver. Six thousand shekels of gold. And ten changes. Of clothes. In today's value.
[47:31] You're looking at silver. They're worth about. Two hundred thousand pounds. And gold. Worth. Probably around. Three million pounds. And here he is.
[47:42] Carrying this wealth. With him. In the hope. That he could probably. Buy. His cleansing. Purchase it for himself. And to be able to say. I have done it.
[47:53] By my own wealth. And by my own means. But we are fools. To think. That we can in any way. Do anything. To earn or pay. For our salvation.
[48:04] To find a way. That is going to save me. That's. A cost that I can pay myself. Because our salvation. Is a cost. That we can.
[48:14] And could never pay. Isaiah 55. Verse 1. Is that. Great invitation. And says. Come. Everyone who thirsts. Come to the waters.
[48:25] He who has no money. Come. Buy and eat. Come. Buy wine and milk. Without money. And without price. But Naaman would rather bring.
[48:37] His own wealth. To buy it. And isn't that the stubbornness. Of our hearts. So often too. Where we feel. That there is a way.
[48:48] We can do something. About our situation. Ourselves. We need to learn. This lesson. Of our stubbornness. You cannot. We cannot.
[48:58] Do anything. The second way. You see. He was stubborn. Was. Who he came to. He was told. To go. To the prophet. Of God.
[49:09] In Samaria. But who does he come to? He came. To the king. Elisha. Was almost way down the ranks.
[49:20] He wasn't going to go to a common person. He was going to go to the top. To the king. If anyone was going to help him. It would have to be someone really important.
[49:30] So he goes. To the king. But no. It wasn't to the king. He had to go.
[49:41] But his stubbornness. Made him. When he did eventually go to Elisha. He wouldn't even go through his door. He wasn't going to come down. And go into his place.
[49:53] He was going to have to come out to him. To help him. Did he not know who he was? And how important a person he was. In our stubbornness.
[50:05] We need to humble ourselves. To recognize how unimportant we are. And to realize the importance of the one. Who is able to help.
[50:17] The one who came into this world. Who humbled himself by coming into this world. Who was nothing to be looked at. And yet when we are saved.
[50:31] As the psalmist says. That we might see the beauty of the Lord. The beauty of Jesus Christ. And humble ourselves before him. Our stubbornness wants things done.
[50:44] Our way. But humility teaches us. And grace teaches us. There is nothing we can do. That it has all been done.
[50:55] By the Son of God. By Jesus Christ. And to see Jesus. And to see the price that he has paid. Should humble us.
[51:06] That he came to give his life. As a ransom for many. That he came to pay the price. That we could never pay.
[51:17] The book of Acts. It tells us that there is only one. Who can heal our sin sick hearts. In chapter 4 verse 11. It says.
[51:27] This Jesus is the stone. Who was rejected by you. He has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation. In no one else. For there is no other name.
[51:39] Under heaven given among men. By which we must be saved. There is no other way. In a stubbornness.
[51:51] Naaman thought. He could do things his way. Again you look at. Verse 11. And it says. In his anger. Behold. I thought.
[52:03] That he would surely come out to me. I thought. This is how it was going to work out. I thought. This was what was going to happen.
[52:15] And we all have our own plans. I thought. This is how I would be saved. But the truth. Changes it for us. To recognize it so often.
[52:27] Not what we thought. But what the Lord wants. He thought he could change. God's plan.
[52:38] Naaman thought. His ways. His ways. Were superior. To God's ways. He even found fault. In God's plan. When Elisha says to him. Through the messenger.
[52:48] Go and dip yourself. Seven times. In the Jordan. What's his response? What an insult. Are there not better rivers.
[53:00] In my own country. That I could go and dip myself in. Are there not better places. I could go. Be a bit like someone. Saying to us.
[53:11] Go to Glasgow. And dip yourself in the Clyde. You say. Well. Why not just go to the Creed? It's cleaner. It's better. But when God says.
[53:24] To do something. You must do it. We must obey. The command of God. And not say. But I've got a better idea.
[53:34] I've got a better way. If God says. Go to church. To hear his word. You don't say no. If God says.
[53:45] You're a sinner. You don't say. No I'm not. If God says. You must repent. You don't say. No. I've got no need. For repentance. If God says.
[53:58] Believe in the Lord. Jesus Christ. It's the only way. To salvation. You don't have the right. To turn and say. No. I've got a better way. For there is only one way.
[54:09] To be saved. And that is through him. Millions. Every day. Make the same mistake. That Naaman made. Perhaps you've been making.
[54:20] That mistake. In your own life. Again. And again. You think. Your own ways. I thought. I could do this. I thought. I could do it.
[54:30] This way. Or a better way. I've got a better plan. But God is saying. No. There is no other way.
[54:41] To be saved. So he speaks. To Naaman's. Stubborn heart. In the same way. He speaks. To our own. Stubborn hearts. And he says.
[54:53] Do it my way. Come. Repent. And put your trust. In the Lord Jesus Christ. In our stubbornness.
[55:06] God sent his son. To bring a stubborn people. Back to himself. There is only. One way. Naaman.
[55:17] Was a sick man. Something we must acknowledge. Naaman was a stubborn man. Something again. We must acknowledge. And turn our hearts. Towards him. But the third thing.
[55:28] And the great thing. You see here. Is Naaman. Is a saved man. When we see. God's grace. Fulfilled. In his life. You see the.
[55:39] I thought. I knew best. In verse 11. God. I know. He is a saint. I know. He is a saint. In verse 15. He returned. To the man of God. To Elisha. He and all his company.
[55:50] And he came. And stood before him. And he said. Behold. I know. There is no God. In all the earth. But in Israel. I thought.
[56:02] I knew. He is saying. You see his humility. Now I know. Now I know. there is no other God in all the earth but in Israel. And this is the God who has come to us in the person of Jesus Christ. There is no other God but him. What a transformation for this man Naaman, the second most powerful man in the world, humbled before God.
[56:32] How was he humbled? How did he come to this point? He obeyed the word of God from the prophet.
[56:45] He dipped himself seven times into the Jordan and he was cleansed. There was repentance. There was humility. There was obedience.
[57:02] He went from unwilling to willing. And you notice some things that brought him to this point. There was a word from his own servants in verse 13. Even when he was angry, his servants came and said to him there in verse 13, my father is a great word. The prophet has spoken to you. Will you not do it?
[57:29] Will you not do it? And sometimes we just have to speak directly to people. People are angry against God. But they said to him, my Lord, my father, it's a great word the prophet has spoken.
[57:48] Sometimes the hardest thing for us is to speak the truth. But in a world that's so confused and lost, it is the truth that needs to be heard.
[58:00] My friends, you are sinners. But my friends, there's a cure in Jesus Christ. Naaman's stubbornness is turned to submission.
[58:15] Who would have thought, looking at this man, this Naaman, the most powerful man at this time, that in his stubbornness, he would be changed.
[58:28] And when we look around ourselves today, we see our own stubbornness and we see the stubbornness of others. We see the truth in love.
[58:43] Naaman dipped himself in the Jordan. And what the word of God is telling us is, you must believe. You see, Naaman wasn't changed by the dipping itself.
[58:57] He wasn't changed by the Jordan itself. It was by the power of God that changed this leper into a man who was clean. And how are we made clean today?
[59:10] How can we be made clean? Well, Peter, in his first letter, tells us, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blenish or spot.
[59:26] We are made clean through faith in Christ. And Naaman's cleansing was complete. He got more than his health.
[59:39] He was made whole. It tells us there at the end of verse 14, his flesh was restored like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
[59:51] He was made well. And you see it so often in the cleansing of Jesus in the New Testament. The woman with the issue of blood.
[60:02] Blind Bartimaeus. And so it goes on, there's so many. By the touch of Christ, they are made well. They are made clean. They are made whole. Your faith has made you well, he says.
[60:15] We need that faith. And as he is made well, you also see that even in his anxieties and his fears of being a man who had come to trust in the God of Israel, and he had to go back to his own people, to his own land, and the fear of the worship that they were involved in.
[60:37] And you see that in verse 17 down to the middle of verse 19. He's going back to a place that is offering sacrifices to any God, but the Lord, it says.
[60:50] There's so much that is wrong with where he is going. And he has this fear. And he brings this fear to Elisha. He's almost saying to him, he's bowing himself before him.
[61:04] He's saying in verse 18, in this matter, may the Lord pardon your servant. He knows the challenges he's going to have going back. But Elisha says this to him, go in peace.
[61:19] And one of our greatest fears when it comes to faith in the Lord Jesus is to go back into the world and to live among a people who will challenge our faith, a people whose ways may be so different to our faith, to hear a language that hurts, to see behavior that hurts.
[61:44] We don't avoid it. You see, Naaman was being put back there as a light for the gospel, a powerful man in the midst of that nation, just like Daniel, who stood up for the Lord, just like so many we see in the scriptures who stood up for the Lord.
[62:04] And so we as Christians are to stand up for the Lord. Do not be afraid to believe. For the Lord says, go in peace.
[62:17] And what these words means is he goes with us. When we are well, we are to tell others of the way to be well and not to be afraid, for the Lord is with us.
[62:33] He will never leave us or forsake us. He is with his people always. That is the great promise. Do you see yourself then in this man, Naaman?
[62:46] We are a sick people, just like Naaman. But in God's providence, here we are with the opportunity to know the one who is able to make us clean, the Lord Jesus.
[63:02] We are a stubborn people. Our hearts are always stubborn. To be told what we must do, we don't like it. The Lord is telling us, humble yourselves.
[63:16] Humble yourselves unto the mighty arm of God so that he may lift you up. That's what the gospel tells us. And the gospel assures us that when we come to the Lord Jesus, we are made well, we are made clean, and we are able to go in peace.
[63:38] That peace that only he can give. We all have this issue of uncleanness. The stain that's so hard to remove, impossible for ourselves.
[63:54] But God sent his son into this world that these stain of sin may be eradicated from our hearts, that we may be made well with him, and that we may know his peace.
[64:09] Just like Naaman, we are to humble ourselves in obedience and come to him. So may we hear that great invitation to come and be clean, to be well, and to go in peace.
[64:27] May God bless his word to us. We're going to conclude by singing to his praise in Psalm 92 in the Scottish Psalter.
[64:38] Psalm 92, page 351. We'll sing from verse 1 to verse 3.
[64:51] Psalm 91, Psalm 92, sorry. Psalm 92, in the Scottish Psalter, verse 1 to verse 3.
[65:06] To render thanks unto the Lord, it is a comely thing, and to thy name, O thou most hide, you praise aloud to sing. We'll sing from verse 1 to verse 3 to God's praise.
[65:24] You praise aloud to sing. You praise aloud to sing.
[65:47] To praise aloud to sing. To praise aloud to sing.
[65:59] Love to die in all the most high, to praise aloud to sing.
[66:11] Thy lovingkindness to show for when shines a morning light, and to declare thy faithfulness with pleasure every night, with pleasure every night, with pleasure every night, and to declare thy faithfulness, with pleasure every night, on heart and sing it instrument, upon the psaltery,
[67:12] And on heart and singлена. And on heart we shall and sound a BE sweet melody, and邊 sweet melody, and邊 sweet melody, and邊 sweet melody, and two.
[67:37] And on the heart will fall in sun And grace be carried out thee After the benediction I'll go to the door to my right hand side Let's close with the benediction Now may grace, mercy and peace from God Father, Son and Holy Spirit Rest upon and abide with us all Now and forevermore Amen