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Living on Leftovers
We last hear of Gehazi in 2 Kings 8:1–6. What do we find the ex-servant of Elisha doing?
Many years have passed since the great miracle of the raising of the Shunammite’s son. Gehazi’s skin disease must not be too disfiguring, for we now find him in the royal court. Gehazi, Elisha’s “ex-servant,” is talking about what has been. He is bragging about Elisha and his miracles, and in doing so he is most likely reflecting on his own importance by his connection to Elisha.
We never may have heard of this storytelling session had it not been for the timing of this event. The biblical author tells us that at the precise time that Gehazi was telling about the miracle of the Shunammite’s son being brought back to life, the Shunammite appears before the king. God in His providence uses Gehazi’s bragging to help the woman of Shunem. The woman of Shunem is by now most probably a widow, as no mention is made of her husband, and it is unusual that a woman would appear before the king on such business instead of her husband. She is most likely in charge of her family until her son becomes of age. She has been out of the country for seven years during a severe drought. Having the right relationships and knowing the right people may be important and seen as advantageous from a human point of view, but God views things differently.
What relationship really counts, and why? See Jer. 9:23, 24.
And so Gehazi fades from history. The sad part of the story is the fact that Gehazi could have been doing God’s work. He could have learned from Elisha. He could have been the next major prophet or perhaps a leader and teacher in the schools of the prophets. Now all he can do is speak about the good old days when he worked with the prophet. Gehazi could have been making history; now all he can do is live in the past.
We need to recount and remember God’s dealing with us in the past. But at the same time, we need to be careful about dwelling on what happened in the past, at the expense of living correctly in the present. How do we strike a right balance here? How can dwelling too much on the past negatively influence our walk with the Lord today?
| THURSDAY | December 16 |
We last hear of Gehazi in 2 Kings 8:1–6. What do we find the ex-servant of Elisha doing?
Many years have passed since the great miracle of the raising of the Shunammite’s son. Gehazi’s skin disease must not be too disfiguring, for we now find him in the royal court. Gehazi, Elisha’s “ex-servant,” is talking about what has been. He is bragging about Elisha and his miracles, and in doing so he is most likely reflecting on his own importance by his connection to Elisha.
We never may have heard of this storytelling session had it not been for the timing of this event. The biblical author tells us that at the precise time that Gehazi was telling about the miracle of the Shunammite’s son being brought back to life, the Shunammite appears before the king. God in His providence uses Gehazi’s bragging to help the woman of Shunem. The woman of Shunem is by now most probably a widow, as no mention is made of her husband, and it is unusual that a woman would appear before the king on such business instead of her husband. She is most likely in charge of her family until her son becomes of age. She has been out of the country for seven years during a severe drought. Having the right relationships and knowing the right people may be important and seen as advantageous from a human point of view, but God views things differently.
What relationship really counts, and why? See Jer. 9:23, 24.
And so Gehazi fades from history. The sad part of the story is the fact that Gehazi could have been doing God’s work. He could have learned from Elisha. He could have been the next major prophet or perhaps a leader and teacher in the schools of the prophets. Now all he can do is speak about the good old days when he worked with the prophet. Gehazi could have been making history; now all he can do is live in the past.
We need to recount and remember God’s dealing with us in the past. But at the same time, we need to be careful about dwelling on what happened in the past, at the expense of living correctly in the present. How do we strike a right balance here? How can dwelling too much on the past negatively influence our walk with the Lord today?
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