Brethren and sisters, joy to be with you again this evening. Thank you very much, Davey, for your welcome. It's been just a joy to have fellowship with you over these past three weeks, as the brethren have already been saying. It's hard to believe this is the fourth week now, but the time has really flown and it reminds us that the time indeed is short. And we must redeem the time because the days are evil. So we're turning to the word of God again tonight, please. Again, we're in 2 Kings 5. 2nd Kings chapter 5 now. We're going to be taking a different reading tonight. I do trust that reading the, or taking the same passage over the past three weeks has not been too tedious. There is a lot to glean from this account of naming the leper. But tonight we're turning to a different character in the same chapter, and tonight we're reading from verse 20. So 2nd Kings chapter 5. and commencing to read at verse 20. But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, and not receiving at his hands that which he brought. But as the Lord liveth, I will run after him and take somewhat of him. So Gehazi followed after Naaman, And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from Mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets. Give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver and two changes of garments. And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents, And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants, and they bare them before him. And when he came to the tower, he took them from their hand and bestowed them in the house. And he let the men go, and they departed. But he went in and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. And he said unto him, Went not mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow. And we'll end our reading there at the end of the chapter, verse 27, trusting the Lord to bless the reading of this precious truth to our hearts tonight for his name's sake. It has often been said that when there is a time of great blessing from the Lord, the devil is never far away. The footprints of satanic attack and counter-attack can clearly be discerned from the pages of Holy Scripture. We need not mention for instance the events of Job chapters 1 and 2 and the circumstances which led to Satan's attack upon Job. Job had enjoyed great blessing from God both materially and spiritually on account of his uprightness before God. Meanwhile, Satan had been going to and fro, walking up and down in the earth, looking for his next target. Although the devil is not mentioned here in this passage, his hallmarks can clearly be discerned. What is this an account of, very simply? Well really this is an example of greed, a story of covetousness and deviousness of the worst kind. It's the tale of how the honesty and the integrity of both Elisha the prophet and Naaman the leper, following his conversion of course, were followed by the dishonesty and the malignity of a man who was supposed to have been following in the footsteps of a man of God. Naaman the leper had just been healed of his leprosy. He had humbled himself and done what the prophet had instructed him to do. He went down and dipped himself seven times in Jordan and his flesh came again, like unto that of a little child. And then he returned and humbled himself before the prophet, declaring that he knew that there was no God, but the God of Israel, and that from that time on, he would sacrifice to no other God, but to the God of Israel. It was an open demonstration of integrity, humility, and worship toward the one true God. Really, it was a scene of great rejoicing. But it was spoiled. It was spoiled. You see Gehazi here in this passage of scripture reminds me of Ananias and Sapphira in the Acts of the Apostles in chapter 5. We remember how Peter confronted Ananias and then he confronted the sin. And you remember how he did it. You remember how Peter asked Ananias outright. Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart? to lie to the Holy Ghost and to keep back a part of the price of the Lamb. Brethren and sisters tonight, I do not believe anyone in this meeting is guilty of the sin of Gehazi. He stands forth merely as an example not to be followed, but I do take it as a challenge to my own heart and as a warning to my own soul of the danger of covetousness and that the danger of covetousness and greed and the lure of filthy lucre is not to be underestimated. It's remarkable to note that in the case of Ananias in Acts chapter 5, which mirrors this incident quite closely, Peter identified the instigation of Satan in the sin. But the key question which was asked by Peter under the direction of the Holy Ghost was very simply, why? Why? Why hath Satan filled thine heart? And the same question could be put to Gehazi this evening, why? You see the truth of the matter is this, neither Ananias in Acts chapter 5 nor Gehazi in 2 Kings chapter 5 had to do what they did. Why did they do it? They did not have to. It was their own choice. And neither do we, brethren and sisters, have to give place to the devil. And so we want to learn what lessons can be learned from the sad testimony of this man. You see, the principal text that I believe the Lord gave me from this particular passage is the question that was asked by the prophet Elisha in verse 26, in the middle of the verse. Is it a time? Is it a time? And the answer is that for Gehazi, it was not a time for spiritual exercises. It was not a time for service to the Lord God of Israel. And it was not a time for sacrifice of personal interests. No, for Gehazi it was a time of sowing to the flesh. It was a time for the service of the flesh as far as Gehazi was concerned. And the warning of Galatians chapter 6 and verse 8 rings loud and clear over this sorry episode. For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption. Is it a time? The question would ring in the ears of Gehazi for all of eternity. If only he had spent the time another way. If only he had spent the time following the godly example of his master Elisha and had sought to be rich toward God and not to himself. But alas! He chose to serve the desires of the flesh rather than serve the spirit of the living God. Do not let anyone tell you or me, brethren and sisters, that such events as this in the scripture are the sovereign design of God. Let us not for one minute believe that such things were sovereignly foreordained of God. God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man. God is not the author of sin. Gehazi made his own choice here and he made it to his own destruction. How did Gehazi use and spend his time? Well first of all, for Gehazi it was a time for personal ambition. A time for personal ambition. Notice if you will how verse 20 commences. But Gehazi, but Gehazi. Gehazi. Now this stands in remarkable contrast to what had just taken place beforehand in verse 19, which was where we concluded last week. And he, Elisha, said unto him, that is Naaman, go in peace. Go in peace. What wonderful words those are. For Naaman, he had found peace in the one true God through faith in his name. Naaman had discovered by his miraculous recovery from leprosy, which of course was a picture of sin, that true peace could only be found in the one true God, the God of Israel, and faith in him alone. And for Naaman and Elisha, it was a time for rejoicing here, and I'm certain that just like the Ethiopian eunuch in the Acts of the Apostles in chapter 8, that he went on his way rejoicing, rejoicing in the Lord, having been healed and having declared his faith to no other God but in the God of Israel, and that he would sacrifice to no other God but Him. It was a time of peace. It was a time of joy. Here we see a man humbled and converted to faith in the one true God. It's wonderful. but, verse 20, commences. And that word but signifies that we're looking into something here that commences with a note of warning. We do not see here and Gehazi, but rather but Gehazi, signifying to us that what is about to follow is not of God. And if it is not of God, it must be of the devil. Notice that he's not called here the man of God, like his master Elisha. Nor is he called even the servant of God, but simply the servant of Elisha, the man of God. And notice that the distinction is made here between Gehazi and his master. Gehazi has done nothing to warrant the same honor as his master of being known as the man of God. You see, Elisha here is distinguished as the man of God, but Gehazi is not. He is simply the servant of that man. And so the distinction is made clear here. On the one hand, we have a man of God, a true man of God, and we have another man who does not reflect that character. Now, if Gehazi had been faithful, he may have earned the title that his master had. but his subsequent actions reveal an altogether different character. Notice how he reproaches his master first of all. You see there's a note of criticism here in what he says. Behold, verse 20, my master hath spared Naaman the Syrian, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought. In other words, if I could paraphrase it as follows, my master has missed an opportunity, and what an opportunity it was. Imagine turning down a gift such as this. The truth is, as J. Vernon McGee puts it in his commentary, Elisha would accept no payment for what God had done. And that shows the caliber, and it shows the character of the man that Elisha was. There was not so much as a hint of covetousness in him. He was a man of integrity before God. Ah, but Gehazi saw it differently. My master hath spared naming this Syrian, he calls him. In other words, my master has let this Syrian man go. He speaks about him in disparaging terms. My master has let this Syrian man go without any payment for services rendered. And Gehazi saw it like this. Here was a Syrian, a foreigner, a Gentile, coming to his master, being healed of his leprosy, and he's allowed to go away with everything he had when he came, and we get nothing. Essentially, as I see it, that's what Gehazi is saying. And beloved, how sad it is that many professing Christians are involved in so-called service and ministry for the Lord for what they can get out of it for themselves. The so-called health, wealth and prosperity gospel is only one example being promoted by many false teachers in America and further afield. And we could say nothing of those who enter the clerical ministry for the sake of a nice salary and a pension and all the rest of it and the months and everything that goes with it. And if that's what motivates their hearts, they're certainly not in it for the Lord. Look at the determination of Gehazi here. But as the Lord liveth, he says, I will run after him and take somewhat of him. He actually swears by the Lord. As if by mentioning the name of the Lord, that this somehow placed the seal of divine approval upon his course of action. How often today do we find that religion is mixed with evil and wickedness? Did Gehazi not call to mind the tenth commandment, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. Exodus chapter 20 and verse 17. But you see covetousness is so often disguised in a cloak of religious language, just as it was here, or rather as Gehazi sought to do so, to justify his determination to run after Naaman and take something of him. Note the anxiousness here to seize the opportunity. In his mind, his master Elisha had let it slip by him, but he by no means was going to let it go. He knew that there was still a possibility if he was quick, and so he ran. And I can picture him, watching Naaman, making his way off into the distance on his chariot, and seeing the silver, and seeing the raiment, and saying, I'll take somewhat of him. His own personal gain was the only driving force that motivated him now. It was a time for personal ambition. And so he ran. And I'm sure that he could have raced in the Olympics the way he ran. It was a time not only for personal ambition, but secondly, it was a time for the pursuit of wealth. A time for the pursuit of wealth. Notice verse 21. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And now we see that he put his words and his thoughts into decisive action. He ran, he followed. It reminds me of James chapter one and verses 14 and 15. But every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust. And notice the words every man. Beloved, that includes me. There's not one single one of us are immune from temptation. Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin when it is finished bringeth forth death. And I love the words of James that follow, Do not err, my beloved brethren. The moment Gehazi set out upon his course, he was not on the road to success as he thought, but rather he was heading headlong down the broad way that leadeth to destruction. Little did he know at this stage where this golden handshake, or we might call it a silver handshake, that he was seeking would lead him. And so Naaman saw him running after him. Verse 21 again. So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him and said, is all well. Now, what we see taking place here might lead us to conclude that there was some naivety on Naaman's part because he didn't seem to have the least suspicion that he was being taken advantage of. He lighted down from his chariot to meet him. Now, that's remarkable. Any other dignitary would have just sat there and looked down on the servant and not look down from his chariot to meet him. No, but you see, Naaman's a changed man here. And he says, it's all well. Look at the grace, the humility. As one commentator remarked, this was the bright side to an otherwise deplorable incident. You see, Naaman showed an eager willingness here to comply with Gehazi's request, and how obliging he is. This is a marked contrast to the pride he had earlier displayed before he was healed. Look at verses 21 to 22 again. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he laid it down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mighty Friam two young men of the sons of the prophets. Give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver and two changes of garments. Now, Naaman here demonstrates three attributes that are the marks of a converted man. First of all, he demonstrates courtesy. Is all well, he asks, lighting down from his chariot to meet him. Secondly, he displays the attribute of sincerity. He believed the explanation that Gehazi gave in verse 22. Entirely unaware that it was a falsehood fabricated by a man's imagination. And the success of Gehazi's deception here is breathtaking. We might wonder how Naaman could be so easily taken in. But beloved, is that not how the devil so often strikes? Following a time of joy and blessing, in this case when a man was walking in newness of life before God, reminding us that when a man or a woman gets saved, the devil will not be too far away to attack them. You see, he struck when the man least expected it. Furthermore, the success of Gehazi's concocted tale demonstrated a skill previously mastered, as one commentator remarked. He had practiced the art of deception to a level of perfection. But Naaman's innocence continues to shine through in contrast here. Notice verse 23. And Naaman said, be content. Take two talents. And he urged him, and bearing two talents of silver and two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them upon two of his servants, and they bare them before him. You see, this is the third mark of a truly converted man. Not only do we see his courtesy, and not only do we see his sincerity, but we see his generosity here. And Naaman said, be content, take two talents. He doubled the portion. And not only that, not only did he provide the goods, but he provided a courier service for the goods as well. You see, he was anxious to lay hold upon the opportunity to express gratitude by rewarding the prophet, as he saw it. Now on the one hand, this is highly commendable, because it shows that Naaman desired to demonstrate kindness to the man of God. He was rich, and yet he was willing to communicate, and to distribute, as the New Testament puts it, and to do so heartily, and to do so readily, and to do so liberally. You see, he had a desire to serve, and that will always be the fruit and the evidence of genuine conversion. Faith without works is dead. being alone. But on the other hand however, I wonder was there still a part of Naaman, now we must remember that he was genuinely converted to faith in God, there's not one single doubt about that whatsoever, but was there still a part of Naaman that wanted to somehow pay for what he had received? Was there still a desire within him or a feeling that he should remunerate someone for the gift of God? but a gift of God cannot be earned, for by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. You see, perhaps there was an overwillingness on the part of Naaman to comply twofold with the request, that he in good faith believed came from the prophet when all the time it was a lie straight from the pit of hell. You know, it reminds me of those scam telephone calls and those bogus callers that so often take advantage of many of our senior citizens, fraudsters and confidence tricksters, defrauding unsuspecting members of the public and vulnerable individuals of tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands of pounds. Sometimes folks' life savings can be gone in a moment of time because they've been deceived by some wicked person on the telephone. Ah, but the unchanging law of scripture still stands. As recorded in Numbers 32 and verse 23, be sure your sin will find you out. You see, it may have been a time for personal ambition for Gehazi. It may have been an ideal time for the pursuit of wealth for Gehazi, but Gehazi was about to find out something else. Gehazi was about to find out that it was a time for punishment of sin. Punishment of sin. Look at how he seeks to conceal the evidence of what he did here in verse 24. Verse 24. And when he, that is Gehazi, came to the tower, he took them, that is the goods, the garments and the silver, from their hand, and bestowed them in the house. And he let the men go, and they departed. Naaman, in his generosity, had provided his two servants to carry the goods to Elisha. As we said already, he provided the goods and he provided a courier service free of charge. But no sooner had they arrived at the tower than Gehazi let them go without a moment's delay, so that his master wouldn't see them, having already bestowed the silver and the garments in the house. And so he thought his plan was foolproof. He must have thought in verse 25 that his scheme had successfully concluded. And in verse 25 we read there at the beginning, but he went in. He went in and he stood empty handed before his master, reporting for duty as if nothing had happened. And look at how he tells another bare-faced lie, this time to his own master. Look at verse 25. But he went in and stood before his master, and Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. What a lie! Another bare-faced lie, and this time he tells it to his own master. Ah, he might have succeeded in pulling the wool over Naaman's eyes, but he couldn't fool the prophet of God. Verse 26 tells us that not only did Elisha have full knowledge of his actions, but also of his motives. Look at verse 26. And he that is Elisha said unto him, Went not thine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and olive yards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and maidservants? You see, not only did Elisha, as we said, have full knowledge of his actions the whole time, but also of his motives. He knew what Gehazi would use the money for, to purchase land, and property, and produce, and cattle, and servants, laying up treasure for himself upon the earth. God forbid that any of us, and I speak to my own heart as much as anyone else, God forbid that any of us should follow such an example of covetousness and lies and ungodliness. You see, divine judgment and punishment was meted out in accordance with the severity of the sin. We see this in verse 27. The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee. The word cleave there means remain, it would never leave him. Shall cleave unto thee and unto thy seed forever and he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow. You know it's remarkable to compare Naaman and Gehazi as this chapter comes to a close. Naaman by faith had repented of his pride, and had obeyed the word of God through the prophet, and his leprosy was cleansed. And that, dear friends, is a picture of a lost sinner who comes by faith and humble repentance toward God and trusts in the Lord Jesus Christ to save them and to cleanse them of their sin through faith in his precious blood. He was then ready to distribute from whatever resources and wealth he had within his possession there and then. the fruit of conversion. Gehazi, on the other hand, followed the covetous desires of his own heart and sought to deceive the prophet of God. That's a picture of a Christ-rejecting sinner who despises the word of God and remains in their sin. And leprosy was perhaps the most vivid illustration of what sin truly is. It corrupts the heart and destroys and damns the soul. It is insidious, it is infectious, it is hideous. You see, Gazi's outward condition was now the outward manifestation of that which was inward. The heart, Jeremiah 17 and verse nine tells us, is deceitful above all things. and desperately wicked, who can know it? Only God. And praise God he has provided the only remedy, that the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 1 John 1 verse 7. And you know it's remarkable to see, on the one hand, Naaman having been cleansed of his leprosy, walking in newness of life, lighting down from his chariot to meet Gehazi, showing such eagerness and such anxiousness to seize the opportunity to do good and to give away so much of his resources, but then on the other hand to see Gehazi, equally anxious as Naaman was, to seize the opportunity of exactly the same moment, only to get everything he could from the hand of Naaman for himself. Two men seizing the same moment, but with entirely different motives. One man's motives commended him in the sight of God, the other man's motives condemned him in the sight of God. One man's intents were good, God-honoring, and God-glorifying. The other man's intents, detestable, despicable, and damnable. Two different fates. One man, a picture of the sinner who cries, God be merciful to me, a sinner, and who goes home justified. The other, a picture of the Christ-rejecting sinner and the fool who hath said in his heart, there is no God, no God for me. Oh, Gehazi may have said, as the Lord liveth, but he had no fear of God. Rather, he put the Lord's name to something that brought nothing but dishonor and reproach to the name of the Lord. And you know, Gehazi is a reminder of what Adam attempted to do in Genesis chapter 3. You remember when Adam and his wife sewed fig leaves together and made themselves aprons and hid themselves from the presence of the Lord in the garden? And Gehazi attempted to hide the evidence of his sin. He put the goods away and then he dispatched the men who brought them. But what was the first thing Elisha said when he appeared before him? Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And that mirrors the solemn soul-searching question of Genesis 3 in verse 9. Where art thou, God said to the man? Only this time, the man, rather than simply making excuses as Adam did, told a brazen lie, expecting the man of God to believe it. But Elisha said, went not mine heart with thee? You see, Elisha, as the prophet of God, had discernment. He possessed the gift of discernment, and here was a man he had trusted with his own heart. And it reminds me of the text which we sometimes bring to mind when we remember the Lord Jesus Christ and the breaking of bread. In Psalm 41 in verse 9, Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me. When I think of the marked contrast between these two men, Naaman on the one hand, Gehazi on the other, it really shows me something of what the scriptures teach concerning integrity. You know integrity is something we hear politicians speaking about at times. But I wonder how much they truly know the meaning of the word. Here is a true lesson in integrity. One man possessed it by simple faith in the word of God and obedience to the word of God. The other man did not possess it. And he that hath the Son hath life. He that hath not the Son hath not life. One man was on the road to heaven and home, the other man was on the road to hell and destruction. And how about you, my friend? You're either on the road to heaven with Christ, or you're on the road to hell without him. Dear friend, can I exhort you tonight? Sinner, be in time, be in time. And just in closing tonight I want to put out a challenge to those who profess faith in Christ. To consider the warning of the Apostle Paul to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6 and verse 9. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts which draw men in destruction and in perdition. That was what Gehazi was. They that will be rich But then Paul also gave another instruction in the very same chapter for those that already are rich. Those in Christ who already have resources and whose hearts are not attached to them. What does he say? He says, charge them that are rich in this world that they be not high minded. You see the Lord sees into our hearts. He sees the very thoughts and intents and motives of our hearts. He knows whether our hearts and whether our affections are set upon those riches or not. Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not high-minded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, which giveth us richly all things to enjoy. Someone once said, it is not the having of riches that is a sin, it's when those riches have us and possess us, that is where the sin begins. That they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate, laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come that they may lay hold on eternal life. That was, in essence, what Naaman was demonstrating at his particular time. You know, Naaman was wealthy. Naaman had resources, but he was ready to distribute. He was willing to communicate, just like that. So sad that he was fooled and taken advantage of. But he'll not bear the sin. You'll notice that none of the leprosy went back to Naaman again. It all went to Gehazi. You see, the Apostle Paul himself practiced what he preached in his words to Timothy. By his own testimony, he was the complete opposite of Gehazi in every possible way. You remember when the Apostle Paul met with the elders of Ephesus in Acts chapter 20, and he said to them in Acts chapter 20 in verse 33, I have coveted no man's silver or gold or apparel. Perfectly aware of the danger of covetousness, Paul sought to warn the Church of God. Beloved, such examples as these in Scripture are written for our learning. and our admonition upon whom the ends of the world are come. May God help us by his grace so to learn and so to adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things to the glory and honour of our Lord Jesus Christ in his precious and worthy name. Amen. May he bless his word to our hearts for his name's sake. Shall we pray? Our Father, we do thank Thee for the challenge to our hearts from Thy precious Word. We thank Thee for these precious truths contained in the Holy Scriptures. We thank Thee, our Father, for these warnings that are given, these words of admonition. We pray, our Father, that we might take them to heart. We're living in a world that lieth in wickedness. We're living in a world, Father, that is saturated with covetousness, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Grant our Father that we, by Thy grace and by Thy Spirit, might live those lives that are separated, sanctified, and well-pleasing in Thy sight. We know, Father, that we're not saved by our good works or by our holiness, but nevertheless, having been saved, We are saved to serve and saved to be separated unto the Master who gave himself for us. So Father, we commit these things to thee. We thank thee for thy precious word again. Grant our Father that we might be doers of the word and not hearers only deceiving our own selves. Again, our Father, bless the work of this little assembly. in the days and months that lie ahead, if the Lord should tarry. We thank thee for each and every individual brother and sister in this place tonight. We mention each one of them by name. We thank thee for brother Bert. We thank thee for brother Davey and May and we thank thee for Joyce and for Ruth and for Netta and for Ina here with us this evening. For my own wife Janelle and father for Sadie and for Sam who are not with us this evening, we ask for thy blessing to be upon them. And our Father, until we meet our blessed Saviour in glory, may we be found faithful, serving Him acceptably, with reverence and with godly fear. For we ask it in His precious and worthy name. Amen. Amen. Thank you.