2 Kings 5:20

New King James Version

But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “Look, my master has spared Naaman this Syrian, while not receiving from his hands what he brought; but as the Lord lives, I will run after him and take something from him.”

For Meditation

Money!

It has an irresistible force that captivates the heart and turns it towards madness. Its aromatic smell hits the nostrils and pulls its captives into its grip.

Flash money before people, and they lose their senses. Everything one could do with those bundles of fresh notes comes parading before them. Resolutions on integrity whittle as morality weakens.

The servant of the man of God saw his determined heart to serve the Lord fall flat before the Aramean General, who had just received cleansing from leprosy and was rejoicing in his newfound God of Israel (2 Kings 5:20). After his healing, as the Lord directed through Elisha, Naaman brought out silver and clothing to reward him (15). Elisha turned it down. He was not the one who healed Gehazi, but God, and he would not take His glory. Money was not the prophet’s motive for ministry. He was just an instrument for the glory of God, and all thanksgiving belongs to Him alone.

Do not tell this to today’s ministers of the gospel. They will even curse when the people they pray for do not come to thank them with—you got it—money! Gehazi, the understudy of Elisha, was way ahead of his time. 

The moment Elisha declined the gift from Naaman, Gehazi lost himself. His master had declined the reward including his share, and it did not sit well with him. The deep-seated greed he had suppressed for so long showed its ugly head and made plans to get his share of the money by fraudulent means. His story sounded convincing to Naaman, who quickly obliged with double what Gehazi asked for (21-24).

Money can make the wisest person foolish in their reasoning. How could Gehazi avoid the eye of the Lord his anointed master so powerfully saw through? How did he plan to use the money and the clothing without Elisha noticing the sudden change in his lifestyle? But that is what greed does to the human heart. It makes them foolish.

“The foolishness of a man twists his way, And his heart frets against the Lord” (Proverbs 19:3).

Gehazi schemed for money and clothing and gained leprosy as an inheritance for his descendants forever (17). Not the way to live for the child of God. Our way is godliness with contentment, which is much gain (1 Timothy 6:6).