Session 8 2 Kings 5:1-14
listen for how Naaman’s servants helped him move toward obedience to God’s directions.
13 But his servants approached and said to him,
“My father, if the prophet had told you to do some great thing,
would you not have done it?
How much more should you do it when he only tells you,
‘Wash and be clean’?”
14 So Naaman went down and dipped himself in the Jordan seven times,
according to the command of the man of God.
Then his skin was restored and became like the skin of a small boy, and he was clean.
Note that the words of Naaman’s servants might be paraphrased as,
“what have you got to lose?”
This is the second time unnamed servants have been catalysts in Naaman’s healing.
The first was the young servant girl. These stories remind us
that God often uses unnamed heroes to accomplish His will for His kingdom.
As soon as Naaman was healed, he led everyone with him to see Elisha, declaring,
“I know there’s no God in the whole world except in Israel” (v. 15).
Naaman was healed on the outside and on the inside, with a changed heart.
Encourage responses to the bulleted statements under Apply the Text (p. 72).
Call for the group to modify or add to the statements, based on today’s study.
Lead the group to respond to the third question set:
Reflect on times when God turned a trial into a blessing in your life.
How can you build on that experience as you face future challenges? (p. 72)
Challenge the group to reflect on the second question set this coming week:
Identify challenges in your life or church that might be opportunities for God
to display His power. What actions do you need to take to make sure you are not a hinderance to God demonstrating His power? (p. 72)
Close in prayer,
thanking the Lord that He is a God who heals.
Thank Him for the story of Naaman from long ago
and the fresh ways that we see Him working in our lives every day.
Reinforce the session by contacting the group by email or text to encourage them to complete the Daily Explorations.