Beech Tree News Network

The biblical proverb says, “Pride goeth before a fall.”  It would be safe in saying that pride is a fall.  We knew a lady who had a stroke in a doctor’s office:  she was not a patient; she had only gone with her daughter to a doctor in a nearby town.  She felt herself above the nearby town and the doctor.  She refused treatment by the doctor; she also refused to allow an ambulance to be called-it would have taken her to the nearest hospital-nothing doing.  She had her daughter drive her home, better than an hour’s drive.  There was no hospital as good as the one in her hometown.  She never recovered.  Pride is a fall.
We read about a man named Naaman in 2Kings:5, a soldier: a high-ranking soldier.  Fact is he was commander of the army of the King of Aram.  In today’s army he would have been at least a four-star general, maybe five:  “A great man of valor’” the bible says, “honorable, highly regarded by his king. “BUT, HE WAS A LEPER.  Naaman’s wife had a servant girl, a young captive from Israel.  One day she said to her mistress, “if only my master would see the prophet who is in Samaria.  He would cure him of his leprosy.”  The prophet mentioned here Elisha.  Naaman’s king urged him to go, so he went to the house of Elisha.  Elisha sent a messenger to Naaman:  “Go wash yourself seven times in the Garden®; your flesh will be restored and you will be cleansed,” he was told.  Now we see PRIDE begin to rear it’s ugly head.  The Bible says Naaman threw an ugly fit because Elisha didn’t come out to greet him personally: ”I thought he would surely come out to me—too, we have rivers in Damascus, better than any of the rivers of Israel.  Why couldn’t I wash in one of them and be cleansed?”
“Naaman flew off in a rage,” the Bible says…”my rivers are superior to that muddy old river you call the Jordan.” PRIDE.
Namaan’s servants persuaded him to try it anyway:  “He didn’t ask you to do anything difficult, my Lord,”  they reasoned.  So Naaman swallowed his pride, momentarily and went down and dipped himself seven times.  Verse 13(2k.5): “His flesh was restored and became clean like that of a young boy.”
PRIDE almost became Naaman’s fall.  But thankfully it didn’t.
 
Kindest Regards….