Surrounded
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Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master, and honourable, because by him the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty man in valour, but he was a leper.
And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman’s wife.
And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.
Introduction.
Introduction.
Somewhere in Israel during the days of Elisha, there was a “little maid”.
I. קָטָן adj. small, young, unimportant
Root is “insignificant”.
We don’t know her name, she was so small and unworthy of recognition.
It must have been a traumatic thing when she was taken away from her home.
I can see her at night, with her hands and feet bound. Carried against her will by the cruel enemy, listening to the band of soldiers brag about how they slaughtered her family and friends.
She was surrounded.
Sometimes we feel surrounded.
(School, work, family, trouble)
Compassed is the King James word.
Job felt surrounded by his friends.
They have gaped upon me with their mouth; They have smitten me upon the cheek reproachfully; They have gathered themselves together against me.
God hath delivered me to the ungodly, And turned me over into the hands of the wicked.
I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: He hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, And set me up for his mark.
His archers compass me round about, He cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; He poureth out my gall upon the ground.
David felt this way many times
Look at Psalm 22 when he was being hunted by Saul.
Be not far from me; for trouble is near; For there is none to help.
Many bulls have compassed me: Strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round.
They gaped upon me with their mouths, As a ravening and a roaring lion.
I am poured out like water, And all my bones are out of joint: My heart is like wax; It is melted in the midst of my bowels.
My strength is dried up like a potsherd; And my tongue cleaveth to my jaws; And thou hast brought me into the dust of death.
For dogs have compassed me: The assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: They pierced my hands and my feet.
I may tell all my bones: They look and stare upon me.
They part my garments among them, And cast lots upon my vesture.
But be not thou far from me, O Lord: O my strength, haste thee to help me.
Completely surrounded by enemies, this is how Jesus felt on the cross.
Yonder on the hill, when they laid Him down, pulled His precious hands back. Those hands that stood the fever; that hands that said…to that poor widow woman’s boy, when it touched his brow, or the casket he was laying in; he come to life.
That One Who called Dorcas back to life. That One Who called Jairus’ daughter to life. That One Who said, “Lazarus, come forth.” Them lips are bleeding now, parching, crying.
As the great cruel nails drive into His hands and in His feet! “They pierced My hands and My feet,” said the prophet, seven hundred years before it happened. What was it? It was Abel’s Lamb. There they flung Him down in the ground, and the flesh tore. His poor body quivered. Said, “I thirst.” They give Him vinegar.
They riled and mocked, and made fun of Him, said, “You great miracle-worker, do something about it now.”
But then the skies begin to get dark, lightning begin to flash. God was hiding His face; He couldn’t stand it no more. O God, how cruel sin must be! How cruel, how cruel, that caused that precious One to do that. Even such a price He paid till God Himself hid His face.
The Angels veiled their faces and turned around, to weeping with Him. The moon and stars could not go any farther. They could not shine no more. The very God that created them was dying on the cross. And He bowed His head.
Before He did that, He looked down there to them people gambling for His garment, fulfill what the prophet said. Said, “Father, forgive them; they don’t know what they’re doing.”
All in love, Adam’s Lamb, God’s provided Lamb, slain from the foundation of the world. There He died, friendless, even forsaken by God Himself. God, and, then, His Own Father, forsaken Him; bleeding.
Yet, we go around laughing, gaiety, just like nothing had happened.
O God, it was that Blood! When yonder in the hospital, the doctor said “he’s dying,” it was that Blood that healed me. A little old sinner boy running around here, it was that Blood that forgive my sins.
It was that Blood that took…that taken me out of a debauch of a place that I was living, and set me and made me Your son. Oh, “Poor, dear dying Lamb, Thy precious Blood!” Keep me near the cross, Lord.
That’s my vision. That’s what it is yonder, love, all God’s great heart moving down there. And all that comes by Him will not be rejected. They’ll all receive everlasting Life. “He that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.” 53-0403 - The Cruelty Of Sin, And The Penalty That It Cost To Rid Sin From Our Lives
Surrounded by His enemies, he said “Father, forgive them”.
Notice the attitude of the little maid.
And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would recover him of his leprosy.
So they had a little girl there. Now, I want to show you the force of a testimony of a child who lived in a nation, or perhaps a family, who was under the influence of God.
She loved her master and her mistress. So when she seen Naaman, probably a good hearted, good natured man…As far as we know, according to history, Elijah had never healed a man with leprosy. There’d never been a leper case healed in his day.
But the little girl, being raised and brought up under the influence over in Israel, yet an alien, she was conducting herself as a believer.
And that’s the way we should do all the time, is conduct ourselves, no matter what our position is, conduct ourselves as believers, ready at all times to give an answer for the hope that lieth within you. 56-0129 - The Supernatural
(Slave acting like the Son of a King.)
How much that ought to be to the Christian Church this morning, and what a challenge. No matter what other men do and what those who profess Christianity does, we must walk as sons and daughters of the King. Our morale should be wonderful.
We should never act as the world or live with the world. We should keep our courage high, knowing this, that we are aliens. We don’t care about the world and what they think. We are aliens, pilgrims, and strangers. But someday we’re going home. But at this time we’re pilgrims.
This little lady was that type. And she said to her mistress; she said, “I would God, that my lord Naaman was over in my country, for we have a prophet over there that could heal him of his leprosy.”
Oh, my, how God used that child. How did she know? The same thing I was talking on last night: inspiration from the very atmosphere.
Now, notice. That child under inspiration was led to say those words. We don’t know of Elijah ever healing anyone else and maybe no one else, no matter how many he prayed for. But she said, “I would to God that my lord was over with my country, for in my country we have a prophet.”
Oh, if we could say that about our churches today. I would to God that you could come under the influence that I live under and my church lives under, for we believe that God is a Healer. We believe that God is a Saviour. We believe that God gives the Holy Spirit. And I would to God that you lived in my country. 56-0129 - The Supernatural
She had that testimony in those circumstances.
What are we surrounded by?
Elisha knew the words spoken in the kings bedchamber.
And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.
Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.
And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?
And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.
And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.
The servant saw Syrians, Elisha saw Angels.
The angel of the Lord encampeth Round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.
When God opened his spiritual sight; all around there, the prophet, stood chariots of Fire and Angels of Fire. Why, he seen the…Why, the chariots of Fire outnumbered that Syrian army, by the thousands. The mountains was on Fire; Angels of Fire, horses of Fire, chariots of Fire.
And the Bible said, “The Angels of God encamp about those who fear Him.”
Just the same tonight! I wonder what would happen if a man here, tonight, had the power to strike across your eyes, and say, “Look, standing around this tabernacle tonight!” You would be a member here the rest of your life. Sure. Yes, sir.
Sometimes you can’t see It with your natural eyes, but you can feel the impulse of It, Something near. A sixth sense that denotes Something is near. 55-0109E - Beginning And Ending Of The Gentile Dispensation
Now, I hope I’m not superstitious; if I am I don’t know it. But then, when you go into these places where they have amusements, and gambling, and dances, and it just looks to me like that there’s just little devils setting around everywhere, you know.
And they just kind of a habitation for them. They just stay there. And then you got to go in, take about five nights to preach all them out, you know, before you can get the meeting started.
But in the church house I believe the Angels of God encamp around, because of saints gathering there. It’s a noted place for God, where He comes and meets with His people. 61-0315 - An Uncertain Sound
Why can’t we see them?
Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath:
That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
“In the veil.” The veil is the flesh. The veil is what keeps us from seeing God, face to face, in this church. The veil is what keeps us from seeing the Angels at their positions this morning, standing by the seats. The veil is what keeps us from seeing Him.
We are hid behind the veil, and that veil is the flesh. We are sons and daughters of God, we’re in the Presence of God, “The Angels of God are encamped about those who fear Him.” We’re in the Presence of God, all the time.
“I’ll never leave thee, neither will I ever forsake thee. I’ll be with thee always, even unto the end.” But the veil is the flesh, that’s what keeps us out of His Presence. But through the soul, the Spirit, by our faith we know that He’s watching us. He is standing by us. He’s here now. 57-0915M - Hebrews, Chapter Six #3
Conclusion
Conclusion
Can we see behind the veil? When you feel surrounded by enemies, look up, your redemption draweth nigh.
He broke through the veil, and led captivity captive.
Surely the Presence of the Lord.