In Romans 3, Paul asks an important question: “Or is God the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles?” How does he answer that question? By saying “Yes, of the Gentiles also” (Rom 3:29 NKJ)! God is the God of Gentiles too, and He proved it to Naaman the Syrian through Elisha the prophet of God. That’s the story that our text tonight tells. This story, coming as it does in the midst of a barrage of stories that reveal to us the character of God to His people, shows us that God is the same generous, caring, compassionate God even to those who do not belong to His people. God could have healed Jewish lepers, but He chose to heal a Syrian — and a Syrian who had presumably badly damaged Israel at that! Why? Because He wanted to show that His free grace is for Gentiles too. As we’ll see tonight, God severely punishes anyone from among His own people who tries to hinder the spread of grace to other ethnicities and even to our enemies. The freedom of God to show grace to whom He will, on His own terms — and the freeness of His grace to those who receive it — are both shown in this story to be non-negotiable. God will be gracious to whom He will be gracious, and our job is to proclaim and live in light of that grace. Woe be to those who try to stop it!
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Caleb Nelson grew up in Ft. Collins, CO. Born into a Christian home, where he eventually became the eldest of 11 children, he has been a lifelong Presbyterian. He professed faith at the age of six, and was homeschooled through high school. He then attended Patrick Henry College...
