One may be great, successful, wealthy, honorable and mighty, but spiritually lost. The principle we need to see is that вЂњmany today are perishing from the loathsome leprosy of sin. Here we see a holy GodвЂ™s perspective of man without Jesus Christ and the ravages of sin. This one word gives us GodвЂ™s perspective of the true condition of this man regardless of how he was seen and thought of by man. Regardless of how men may see us or we may see ourselves, in GodвЂ™s Holy eyes, we are leprous without the righteousness of Christ imputed to us through faith in the person and work of the Savior. In Scripture, leprosy is a portrait of sin and manвЂ™s true spiritual condition without the saving grace (spiritual healing) of GodвЂ™s salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ. In the original Hebrew text we find only the word вЂњleprous,вЂќ which highlights or emphasizes NaamanвЂ™s problem-the dreaded disease of leprosy. вЂњBut he was,вЂќ italicized in the NASB, is not in the Hebrew text. But being so used does not save a person. Here again we see how the Lord uses the saved and unsaved alike to carry out His purposes and plans.

He was a man whom God had used as He had Pharaoh and the Kings of Assyria and Babylon. But would you also note the biblical perspective and truth regarding the source of victory and valor it is the sovereign plan and power of God. Upon his head were the laurels or wreaths of victory and upon his chest, medals of honor and valor. He was a national hero as the general who had been victorious over the enemies of the nation of Aram. This is noted in the words, вЂњa great man with his master, and highly respected. He was a man of great authority and position. He was вЂњcaptain of the army of the King of Aram.вЂќ This means he was the General of the Syrian or the Aramean Army, second in command to the King. The way Naaman is first described gives us a picture of him as he was seen by people who tend to look mostly on the outward appearance. It provides a striking picture of mankind created physically and spiritually beautiful in GodвЂ™s image before sin began to take itвЂ™s toll on both the disposition and physical body of man. But his name became a reproach and a striking contrast to his appearance and probably also to his disposition because of the disease which had attacked his body. Further, the implication is that he was also a gracious and delightful man. His name suggests he had undoubtedly been a handsome man, at least before the leprosy. Naaman comes from the Hebrew verb naem, вЂњbe delightful, pleasant, beautiful.вЂќ It has the idea of вЂњgraciousвЂќ or вЂњwell formed.вЂќ Because of the significance of names in Scripture, this tells us something about the man. In this we have a picture of the sinner before he comes to God. The man was also a valiant warrior, but he was a leper.

Now Naaman, captain of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man with his master, and highly respected, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. Here, then, is a classic illustration of GodвЂ™s Love, of how He reaches out to a people in utter darkness and uses their afflictions to draw them to Himself if they will only respond to His pre-salvation work of grace wherein God seeks to bring men to repentance (Rom 2:4). NaamanвЂ™s healing was an illustration of what God would later do in the ministry of the Lord Jesus and His church. In these verses there is an anticipation of the gospel that would go out from Israel through Messiah and then out from the church carrying the light of Jesus Christ to the Gentile nations. We step into Syria to the north, a heathen (pagan) nation surrounded in darkness, a place of idolatry and heathen blindness. All illustrate the various good and evil persuasions of people that either aid or hinder bringing men to Christ.ДЄs we step into this scene, we leave the land of Israel, a nation that was to be a light to the Gentiles and a nation of priests. In NaamanвЂ™s healing there are a variety of people who play different parts some good and vital to the salvation and healing of Naaman and others not so good. The healing of Naaman, the Leper is not just a story of the healing of a man from one of the most dreaded diseases of ancient times, but it is a story of salvation, one which illustrates the spiritual salvation man finds only in Jesus Christ and how men come to find that salvation in Christ.

Jordan river bible reference