Naaman the leper's story illustrates the human condition of sin and the mistaken conceptions people have about salvation. Despite his distinguished status, wealth, and courage, Naaman was miserable due to his leprosy, a metaphor for sin. His initial attempts to be healed involved seeking an 'important commission' from kings and making an 'imposing contribution' of wealth, reflecting common human efforts to earn salvation through status or money. Furthermore, he expected an 'impressive therapy' from the prophet, highlighting a misunderstanding of God's grace. The sermon emphasizes that true healing comes not from human effort or ceremony, but through humble obedience to God's simple plan of salvation through Jesus Christ, as Naaman was cleansed by washing in the Jordan River.
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because by him the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria. He was also a mighty man in valor, but he was a leper. The New Testament page, the first chapter of the Gospel according to Luke, the commencement of the ministry of the Lord James. Luke chapter four. We will read... In verse sixteen, and he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and stood up for to read.
And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Isaiah. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted. to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty then that approves, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. Verse twenty-seven, and many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elias and the prophets, and none of them was cleansed, save Nehemiah, the Syrian.
For God and Father, we want to say afresh this evening, thank you. Thank you for the one who paid the debt. We could not pay. We pray that each one of us may know him as our failure and crown him as our Lord. Solidize our hearts now, Lord, as together we look at thy word and consider what thou hast to say to us. For Jesus' face. Amen. If there is one thing I am absolutely certain of, it is this. But all of you have listened to a legion of sermons, and maybe Sunday school ends on the story of Nehemiah.
But it is remarkable, is it not? And I'm certain all of us were stirred by it, and we read the Word of God together. It is remarkable that when the Lord Jesus starts his earthly ministry, if you go up to the fifty-third of Isaiah, he turns, It's not the stories so familiar that tell us of the said blood of the Lamb. And the lifted up serpent, or he will tell those stories later in his ministry. But right at the very beginning, he starts by reminding those Jews that have been critical concerning his first statement from the prophecy of Isaiah. He tells them of Nehemiah the letter.
And I don't think I can do anything better than Jesus did. If he reminds people of the story of Nehemiah and the leper, maybe I'm doing what God wants me to do tonight, as I would finish this crusade with that same story. There are three very simple things that stand out for all of us as we casually read the story. There's no need to have lepers after your name from a theological seminary. There's no need to be able to claim some high academic award. The youngest and the oldest in the reading of the story can see these things. And I'm going to ask you to keep them in your mind as we talk a little about them tonight.
I want to remind you that it's the story of a miserable condition. But he was a letter. It is only men and women who have seen leprosy in its ugliest, maybe in the continent of India or the continent of Africa, maybe some that have seen it to weigh longer in Malaysia, to understand just what a miserable condition comes to a person who's suffering with leprosy. It is the story of a miserable condition. It is not only the story of a miserable condition, but please note, It is the story of mistaken conceptions.
For all of you have sat and pondered over, as you read the story, the words that come right to our hearts. I thought. I thought. I thought. Would you like me to wait at the beginning, sobbing and shouting, hallelujah? Because it's not only the story of a miserable condition. It is not only the story of a mistaken conception, but it is the story of a mighty conversion. A mighty conversion. Of all the lepers in Israel, there was but one man and the Syrian who was blessed.
But as I take the story, I knew this please, just as an illustration of the wondrous message of the Christian faith. I trust you'll walk along with me. No need really for me to introduce, Mr. Naaman. I sometimes say of him, is it the story indeed of a distinguished person? I sometimes say of this story, it's the story not only of a distinguished person, but of a disillusioned person. I sometimes say it is the story of a disappointed person and a disobedient person, but a delivered person. But there are so many ways to look at this all. But as I look at this man, Mr. Neheman, I remember there is one thing he did not lack in, he did not lack in personal courage.
As I look into the face of some of you young men, I have a strong feeling that many of you young folk are like I was when I was a young fellow. The only thing that mattered in life was personal courage. You know, I've never known a boy different than that, have you? I suppose you're our son, but I've never known him. Whenever young kids come into my home, when my own children were small, and they climbed the stairs and fell into my library and run their finger over the long list of books that are biographies and autobiographies, or those are the books I love, I never once heard a voice say to me, Uncle Stan, will he have good hands? I'll tell you one thing, can you teach us with me?
I'll tell you one thing I never ever heard about. Will he have learned his hands? They all would ask the same thing. Was he a great man? Was he a great man? That's what boy wanted us. Well, if you would like someone to look up to, how about considering Ned? A man who lacks nothing in personal courage. A man who was the general of the army of the king of Syria. A man through whom God gave victory to the Syrians. Not, if you please, to the interlite, but to the Syrians. A man who lacks nothing in moral and personal courage. A man who lacks nothing in wealth.
I have a strong feeling, you know, that we're living in a day when people imagine that the only thing that matters in life is that you have wealth. The cry of the fifteenth of Luke is all around us. Give me, give me, give me. But he was a man who has. He had much personal wealth. Here was a man who not only did not lack personal courage and did not lack wealth, but here was a man who did not lack position. There are some people to whom personal courage may be of secondary, and wealth is secondary. But oh, how they crave that they might have position. They turn their thoughts and their attentions to the politics of the world, whether it be local or whether it be national or whether it be international.
And they imagine indeed that if only they have position. Well, here was a man who was a great man with his master. He had reached them. The tragedy is this, that with all those things, possession, achievement, authority, he was a leper. I remember standing away in a great leper asylum in Pretoria and South Africa a few years ago. Christians is in the little temple there in Victoria. Every little day, go to the leper site, and they go through the weakness realm, and they seek to minister to those lepers.
There would be, and I remember correctly, about a hundred and fifty of them. But there was one thing that struck me forcibly. I have seen leper in the next parts of the world, and all the lepers I have seen were folk whose fingers were curved, whose ears were twisted. Who knows it when they see it? Who speaks? Of course, you know, leprosy attacks the far parts of the world, the stars. But I looked around and saw this crowd of leprosy, and one of the many that bore the outward sign of leprosy. I was amazed that there were most of them, not all of them, but most of them looked no different than you and me.
They bore no outward sign. And I spoke to the doctor, the medical man in charge. And I said, sir, you're excused by ignorance. I'm not a medic, as you know. But these folk don't look like lepers. I will never forget his answer. He said, Mr. Ford, maybe they don't look like it. But every one of them have in their blood the disease that unless they are treated will break out in their skin. And I suddenly found that folk can look nice and be nice. and yet still have within them the very seed of evil. And as I use this as a picture of your need and mine, I say very kindly, sir, very kindly, I say this, But we may have achieved personal courage.
We may have achieved personal wealth. We may have achieved personal authority and personal position. But God tells us outside of Christ, there's no difference. We've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. And there is within us that potential for evil. That old nature of Adam that will break out and make itself very obvious to others. We may even be taking, as it were, medicine for it. But it's in the bloodstream. When this man, of course, found that he was a leper, he did not design his position.
He was not demoted. The king of Syria didn't say to him, Herman, no longer will you be the Lord of my army. He was not rejected by the Syrians in my army. But nevertheless, he knew he was a leper, and he knew that in front of him there was little of pain and rejection. Until this girl came to him, this lovely little girl, and dared to say to her mistress, would that my master was with the prophet that is in Israel. He would heal him. What confidence? No, me. What confidence? You know what Jesus said?
How did this girl know that was the leper to be? She had no evidence. She said, come and say, hey, come with me. I want to introduce you to our leper who was cleansed. Here it is. Oh, no. Jesus said there was only one cleanse. Her faith was such that she believed in that prophet God. And what others could do, she was confident he could. The tragedy is this, but that miserable condition that this man found himself in, he only half listened to what the girl said. Now, may I say, very kindly, may I say this, I have a strong feeling there are lots of people who only half listened to what God has to say.
There are lots of people who may be in the past two weeks who need services. You have listened, but you're only half listened. for there were mistaken conceptions. The message of God had come to him all that you were with the prophet that's in his breath. But this man, how mistaken he was, he thought, first of all, now, if I'm going to be healed, I know what has to happen. If I'm going to be cleansed of my nepotency, I know what has to happen. There has to be an important commission. I mean, I'm the general. I mean, if I go to anyone, I must go to the king.
There must be an important commission. And he goes first and all to the king of Syria. And he tells the king of Syria what the last he has told his wife. And the king of Syria says, I'll send you to the king of Israel. Now please, there was nothing wrong with the king of Syria. Nothing wrong with going to the king of Syria. God had given victory for the King of Syria. So if God would have fellowship with him, nothing wrong with his general going to him, but everything wrong with going to him to try and get healed. Oh, how mistaken some people are. We are living in a day of good organizations. I'm not going to start to listen.
If I walk towards them, I will never, never be able to tell you them all. But if I move from place to place, I get utterly amazed that there's this society and that society and a member society and all good organizations, nothing wrong with supporting them or going to them, unless you want to be cleansed of your sin. I mean, if that's what you want, then there's no cleansing there. I suppose the greatest of all organizations is the church. Thank God for the church. But if you think by having your name on the membership wall of a particular group of people, that will get you to heaven. Oh, please, please, madam, sir, Jesus said, I'm the way, not the church is the way.
Oh, I'll go no further. I don't need to. I think it's very obvious and plain. He thought that if there was an important commission, if he could go to some person of high enough standing, all would be well. Now there are many important people who have left their shadow, and many of them a deep shadow in the history of the world. Did you know anyone else that Jesus Christ is in vain? There's none other name under heaven given amongst men whereby ye must be saved. Good people, not people, but unable to say. But not only were these mistaken conception seen, first of all, as he thought there would be an important commission, but then he thought that there had to be an imposing contribution.
Oh, as long as you can pay enough money, you'll get there. Oh, let me go along to my bank. Let me get ten pounds of silver. Let me get six thousand pieces of gold. I say, let me go along to see Mr. Penny, and I'll purchase there ten fingers of raven. I'll take these things with you. Now, I'm not going to even attempt to give you the value of ten pounds of silver, and I wouldn't try to give you the value of six thousand pieces of gold. Not today. Not today. I only want to say that none of you will disagree with me. This was wealth in any man's money.
And ten changes at Raymond? This is wealth in any man's money. And he thought, all this I will take, I will go to the king of Syriac. He told me he can't help, but he will give me letters to go indeed to the king of Israel, and I will take his contributions. Let me say it again. I thank God that no one has been ready for these services and we have to repent. I thank God no one put a correction on you. Now you may have. I want to tell you today, it doesn't matter if you're the first person to be. I'm going to say it.
I want to tell you this. My God is not poor. You can't buy your salvation by some contribution. It's no room for any of you if you all do some great thing or give some great thing. My Bible tells me this. But the Bible says it's not. It's not at work. And we are taught in this heart. By. And without faith. Oh, I thank God I have a God who does you. Whether you're rich or rich. It's not true whether you have little or have nothing or much. On Calvary's trial, let God be God, and pay the debt over not him.
If it's the blood of Jesus Christ that handed me off then, let me tell you a little story. But it's not my story at all. I'm borrowing it, but the man I'm borrowing it from, he's holding glory, so he won't attempt to use it in his glory. Many of you are familiar with the lovely gospel track. Maybe one of the finest that ever has been printed. I would love to use more of them, but they've become so expensive, I can't. But a lovely gospel track, the reason was. Robert Laidlaw, I had the joy of preaching with years ago when he came over as the film director of the Soldiers and Airmen's Christian Association in my country.
And I heard him, while I was working with him, I heard him tell this story. Robert Laidlaw... is the owner, or was the owner, while he was alive, he was the owner of a very large store in New Zealand, similar to your seers, the farmer's market, the departmental stores in almost every town in New Zealand, with a very large staff. You will understand that sometimes there was pilfering. And they had an order in the business that if anyone was trans-pilfering, They were immediately dismissed. But while they were immediately dismissed, as a Christian, he could not feel that he could put them in court.
But there was no breaking of the law, any pilgrim, any feeling dismissed. One day he was in the office. And as he was working in his office, one of his managers came in and said, Mr. Label, I've done very bad news there. He told Jim, now please, I don't remember if his name was yet. I am just using it. He said, he told you. What's the matter? We've just had the orders of him. They've been going through his books. And a large sum of money has been taken. But, sir, let me finish this one. He's been with us now for many, many years. Started as a lad. Started when you started the business.
But his wife has been serious here. He's been nursing her. He's been doing his work. He's been piling up doctors' debts. And the money that's been taken has been used to pay the doctor's bills. And every month when he's received his wages, almost all his wages have gone back to pay off the money that he took. And if we have not had a spot on it, we wouldn't have found out. Mr. Leidlaw, can you see it in your heart? You've been merciful. Robert Leidlaw said, bring him in. And old Jim came in. And as he came in, the peers were in his eyes. And he was winging in his hands. And he said, Mr. Leidlaw, for God's sake forgive me. For God's sake, forgive me. Jim Sedan. No trick.
Will you forgive me? I'm sorry I've done it, sir. But will you forgive me? Jim Sedan. I can't tell you how hurt I am. Not that you stole the money. That's bad enough. But the thing that hurts me is that you were in that situation and you didn't think you could come and ask me for help in the first place. That's what's hurt. But listen, Jim. You're forgiven. You're forgiven. go home. You're going to take a week off from your work and care for your wife that you're making. We'll forget it. Immediately, they rushed back into the man's cheek, colour, and into his lips, blood. He thought there was no colour in his cheeks and no blood in his lips when he came in the ocean. In sent him, Mr.
Label, or he almost ran from the office back to his home. Would you tell me something? Why? Why? Why? Why as soon as he got home before his door. Didn't he say to his wife? It's the plate. They suffer it. Why was it that the blood came back to his lips and the color came back to his cheeks? You know, why don't you? He believed in the integrity of the man who said you're forgiven. I want to tell you something. I believe in the integrity of the man who's in glory. I believe in the integrity of the man who sang you.
If you'll come just as you are, I will not cast you out. I'll receive you and forgive you. I believe in the integrity of the man who has dared to record in his word that salvation is without money and without grace. Oh, my friend, do you believe in him? But not only was there a mistaken conception because he thought there had to be an important commission. Not only was there a mistaken conception because he thought there had to be an imposing contribution, but there was a mistaken conception because he thought, he thought there had to be some impressive therapy.
Or he went along, you see. And he saw the king of Syria. And the king of Syria sent him to the king of Israel. And then the king of Israel saw him. The king of Israel was frightening. He said, This king of Syria has sent his hand to me with that with me. Asked him to make him well. I can't do anything. All he's doing is finding an excuse to go to war with me. But Adam turns away. And the saints spoke it hard. David will point you in any way. Maybe. Maybe, please. Maybe in a temper. Maybe saying, Well, I brought money. I cannot make long journey. I've got my servant. I thought it was going to be well. Maybe he was angry.
I only know that on his way, the servants of the prophets told him that there was a message from God. Go and wash in the pool. Go and wash in the mirror. Get myself, Sam and God. But, oh, he thought there should have been some impressive ceremony. He said, I thought that the... I thought that the prophet would come out and lay his hand on my leprosy. Well, if the prophet had done that, he'd have been a leprosy himself. Oh, there'll be some impressive ceremony. Oh, just glistening that way. Oh, my friend, my friend, what a mistaken conception.
Are you looking for some impressive ceremony? I've met men and women since I've been here who've told me they weren't quite sure they were saved, and they weren't quite sure because when they asked the Lord to save them, they didn't have some funny feeling run up their back. Or they didn't... I don't know what they expected. I want to remind you of something that you all know. For what I'm saying tonight, every one of you heard again and again and again, and I want to remind you of something else you know. There's only one man in the Bible that we're told about who went by his feet. And you know who that was, don't you? He was blind. And they came into him, rapture of the Son.
The Son said, Father, bless me. That blind Father said, who is it? That's the voice of Jacob. And the Son said, I'm not Jacob, I'm, I'm, I'm in trouble. But he said, I read all this, and I'll just say, come here, most likely, let me do it. He stretched out his hand. He felt the hair on his cheek and the hair on his arm. And he said, Lord, it is. He said, he said, and I don't read you from slaughter feelings, but he went by his feelings, and he was unclean to sin.
I read. I know not to see you and use what sort of healing that you're saying. I'm not seeing you either. I like to say, I thought there would be some impassioned therapy. So we have seen this evening, haven't we? We have seen, first of all, that every one of us are in the same miserable condition that Naaman was in. We have seen that so many have their mistaken conceptions. They think they ought to be an important permission. They think they ought to be some imposing contribution. They think they ought to be some impressive therapy. But then the servant said, Master, if the prophet had asked me to do some hard thing, wouldn't you again?
If there is one thing that continually impresses me as I travel the world, it is how religions that demand physical things on people can get so many far. I've seen folk climb stairs on their bare knees until the skin is just pulled off their knees, and they still do it because they think they're pleasing God. I've seen folk away in the Near East who have passed through all sorts of physical pain because they think somehow they're pleasing their Buddha. I am amazed how people imagine.
that our God is a cruel God and demands cruel things for men and women. Please, my God is such a loving God that he said, I'll bear that cruelty for you. I won't ask you to have it. I'll bear it. I'll bear it. And the servant said, if the master, if the prophet has asked me to do some hard thing, wouldn't you have done it? Don't we realize that we're saved by grace and save by grace alone? That it's the blood of Christ that cancels us on all things. A man went out into the river.
No, he could have thought of many better rivers than this river. This muddy, muddy river. He went out in seven times. He went under the water. I have, please, I have nothing to say about the number seven. I've heard some fantastic sermons on the number seven. I have nothing to say about it. Beyond this, that what the prophet asked him to do, he did. And I want to say what Jesus asked you to do. If you want salvation, you've got to do it. He went down seven times. Hallelujah. He came up clean.
The Bible says his flesh was like the flesh of a child. Isn't that lovely? Like the flesh of a child. Jesus said there was only one letter that was cleansed. But hallelujah, he was cleansed. He was cleansed. Tonight I have a Lord that's slain to you. You want salvation? Then let me tell you the way. And what he requires of every one of us is complete obedience to his will. I wonder if I may put my hand in my pocket and take out my little testament. I suppose over the years, or I've had this testament, I don't know how long, it's just about wearing out a bit, but I suppose over the years I've used this very testament to show the way of salvation to literally hundreds of men and women.
I wish I'd been able to use it a little more here, but I'm going to use it now. Not one man or woman will leave this chapel saying, no one told me how to this day. I'm going to make sure none of you do that. Will you come to Christ? Will you accept him as your Savior? You say, how? Why? When? I want to make reference to four verses. We will stay in the epistle to the Romans because I don't want to be jumping here and there. Romans, three and twenty-three, listen.
For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. For all have sinned. Oh, we're so much like men. Woman six and twenty-three. For the wages of sin is death. The diamond sinner. The wages of sin is death. Name in your leper. The end of your leprosy is death. But isn't it wonderful? that between Romans three and twenty-three that tell us that we've all seen, and Romans six and twenty-three, in between those two verses, Romans five and eight.
But God commendeth his love towards us. in that while we were yet sinners, all have sinned, while we were yet sinners, Christ died, the wages of sin is death, Christ died for us. Sir, as simple as I know how, that's the message of the gospel. God has made it so simple that a white fairy man, though a fool, shall not occur therein. He tells them to sin. He knows that truth. He tells us that the wages of sin is death. We know that, sir. And while he hates our sin, he loves us.
Jesus Christ came down from heaven and went to tell these cross that our sin may be placed upon him. He took my sin in his own body to the tree. There he proved God's love towards us in that while we were sinners, Christ, Oh, you're saying. Oh, you're saying. It's the scripture that there are things that we're all saying. We're all saying. It's the right thing we're all saying.
Well, you know it. May I give you some sort of illustration? Even if I say it like Mr. Ford, have you got a return ticket? They weren't prepared for which to let me come to your country unless they had me to put me on a plane and sending me home if I was in use. That's it. That's what they'd ask you if you came to my country today. And I have a ticket. And I have a ticket. So it'll take you to England. It's been paid for. I've got it.
I've got it. It's been paid for, but that ticket will never take me to England. I can stand on it. I can sit on it. I can do it a little bit, and it'll take me nowhere. It's not the ticket that takes me to England. It's the plan. And I can't get aboard the plane unless the proof of the fare being paid is in my hand. Here I say it represents When Christ died on parable, he paid the fare for every one year to get in. For every man or woman to be saved. My Bible says, not from my sins, those people, but from the sin of the whole world.
But you've got to step on the way. You say, Mr. preacher, that's what I like to say. Romans three and twenty-three. We've all seen it. Romans six and twenty-three. The weightless of sin is death. Romans five and eight. God proved his love towards us. Isn't that why we react to that? Christ died for us. Hallelujah. Romans ten thirty. Who so am I? What on it you heard me say the other night? I've got a call at the place with one arm on the shoulder of a fair, lovely girl with a very lustre, flora did I?
He places another arm on the shoulder of a man. He places another arm on the shoulder of a young man that farther than do that which is by or whatever his arm is torn out. He places another arm on the shoulder of a liberty. And he says, whosoever. Whoever you are, I've got a God who in Christ wishes to stretch arms towards you and draw you to himself. Whosoever. Shall call on the name of the Lord shall be made. And Lord, whosoever shall call. Make that passionate entreaty. In other words, call there means a passionate entreaty.
It's the sort of call a fire brigade gets when there's a fire. Help! It's the sort of call a lifeboat gets when a boat is sinking. Help! It's the sort of call you give to the doctor when your child is tossing with a fever. Help! soever we'll call on the name of the Lord shall hallelujah but I wish I could hit that home shall be saved please don't leave this service tonight saying I don't know how to say So that's the way.
Are you prepared to call in the name of the Lord? Please, God, you will. Such amazing. Amen. We're going to sing to him. We have sung so many times, number two hundred and twenty-one. I think it is, or maybe two hundred and twelve. Two, twenty-one. Two, two, one, please. If you are tired of the load of your sin, let Jesus come into your heart. Now, I'm not going to make an appeal.
I'm not going to ask anyone to stand up and come forward. But I am going to say this. And maybe in this service and speech, a man was. If you haven't trusted the Lord, we have trusted together. It's not right with you tonight. You get your thing taken away tonight by coming to see you. Some of you youngsters here, I don't even know what you're saying. You say I'm going to do that tonight. You say I'm going to lay them gently doing damned, damned judicious things. I want to come to him. Some person here, lonely, tired.
Praise God he's willing to us. If you are tired of the load of your sin, let Jesus come into your heart. If you desire a new life to begin, let Jesus come into your heart. Just now, you're nothing more. Just now, She kept him no more.
Just now, let her open the door. Let Jesus come into your heart. If you was joined the glad song of the blessed Let people come into your heart. If you were to enter the mansions of rest, let people come into your heart. Just now. Just now.
Reject him no more. Just now. the Lord. Let Jesus come into your home. Oh God and Father, each one of us stand before the individual. Each one of us realize that, like Nehemiah, we need to be cleansed. But we've all sinned. But we thank thee for that fountain that's open for all uncleanness.
For that Christ to die. We ask that none of us tonight will reject him a moment longer. But that we might take him as our Savior, doesn't it? For we ask it in his name for his glory. Amen. And so are those.