Eyes That See

Eyes That See

2 Kings 6: 8-23

Introduction

Opening Line

In 1998, the Tennessee Volunteers undefeated record was in dire straits (Oh my goodness, Tee Martin)

Tee Martin was quoted as saying that he didn’t take his shoulder pads off when he got back to the sideline because something in him knew that they would get the ball back and win the game.

And with 1:47 left on the clock, that is what happened (Stumbled and fumbled) and Tenn would go on to win the game

Tee Martin saw something no one else did, just like a man of God saw something no one else did in 2 Kings 6

Let’s pray and we will begin reading in 2 Kings 6:8

Message (2 Kings 6: 8-23)

As we begin our study of 2 Kings 6, we are in wartime. Aram was waging war against Israel.

Anytime a war is going on, tensions are high along with anxiety and worry.

Let’s pick up in verse 8

8 When the king of Aram was waging war against Israel, he conferred with his servants, “My camp will be at such and such a place.”9 But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel: “Be careful passing by this place, for the Arameans are going down there.” 10 Consequently, the king of Israel sent word to the place the man of God had told him about. The man of God repeatedly[ HYPERLINK "https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%206%3A8-23&version=CSB#fen-CSB-9685a"a] warned the king, so the king would be on his guard.

Enemy Plans Foiled

King Ben-Hadid was getting ready to attack Israel and he told his men where they would camp and attack but there was a problem, the Lord kept telling this man of God (Elisha) the Kings plans and he kept telling the King of Israel and Israel was able to make countermeasures to Arams plans the plans of the enemy and kept foiling and frustrating their plans, this happened on several occasions

don’t you love it when the the enemy’s plans get foiled? Let’s see what happens next

11 The king of Aram was enraged because of this matter, and he called his servants and demanded of them, “Tell me, which one of us is for the king of Israel?”12 One of his servants said, “No one, my lord the king. Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel even the words you speak in your bedroom.”13 So the king said, “Go and see where he is, so I can send men to capture him.”When he was told, “Elisha is in Dothan,” 14 he sent horses, chariots, and a massive army there. They went by night and surrounded the city.

Suspected Whistleblower and Capture Plan

The King was ticked off because his plans kept getting countered and the King became paranoid, he thought he had a whistleblower

One of the Kings servants spoke up to inform the King that there was a prophet, Elisha, who not only knew the Kings every move but he also knew the things that he was saying in his bedroom.

So either Elisha has divine intelligence, he had the King’s bedroom wiretapped, or he is a stalker.

Jesus spoke to Elisha and told him of the things to come just like the Holy Spirit wants to do for us.

“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.” John 16:13

So as you can imagine, the King is livid and makes plans to capture Elisha and he literally sends all of the King’s horses and all the King’s men so Elisha will never squeal on the King again. They surround the city.

15 When the servant of the man of God got up early and went out, he discovered an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. So he asked Elisha, “Oh, my master, what are we to do?”

What are we going to do?

I want you to imagine Elisha’s servant, getting up in the morning with a cup of coffee and seeing that they are surrounded. How would you react? I would imagine the same way this servant did “What are we going to do?”

Some of you may be asking that in your life’s circumstances at this moment.

What am I going to do? (Job, sick, Trump/Kamala)

I want you to notice how Elisha responds:

16 Elisha said, “Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us outnumber those who are with them.”

They Are Outnumbered

I want you to notice how Elisha responds to his servant: the servant wanted to know what to do, Elisha didn’t tell him what to do, he told him how to be “don’t be afraid”

How many times have you seen that in the Bible

A standout characteristic of a Christian is to not be afraid in fearful times (economy, election year, end time talk)

Why does Elisha respond that way? Because he was able to see what the servant wasn’t able to see. (1 John 4:4)

He saw what the servant was about to see:

17 Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, please open his eyes and let him see.” So the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he saw that the mountain was covered with horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

His Eyes Are Opened

Elisha prayed that the Lord would open his eyes and let him see. Important note: just because you can see, that doesn’t mean you can see what you need to see.

His eyes were opened and he finally saw what Elisha saw, he saw that Jesus was surrounding what was surrounding them

Spiritual eyes look through circumstances

If you don’t get this, you will respond like the servant when life goes wrong instead of Elisha

In life, we have two choices, we can look at things from a humanistic perspective or we can view things from a spiritual perspective

God tells us not to be dismayed because He is our God.

Over and over again God tells us not to be afraid, but the only way to do that is to look at physical circumstances through spiritual eyes (Peace he gives and peace he leaves)

We aren’t called to look at life with Democratic eyes or Republican eyes. Economy good eyes or economy bad eyes. But with spiritual eyes.

When you look at life with spiritual eyes you won’t be afraid because you will see that Jesus is surrounding whatever is surrounding you.

So how do I get my spiritual eyes?

Application

Pray for Jesus to open your eyes

You will see things that others don’t, you will act in ways that others won’t.

18 When the Arameans came against him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Please strike this nation with blindness.”[ HYPERLINK "https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%206%3A8-23&version=CSB#fen-CSB-9693b"b] So he struck them with blindness, according to Elisha’s word. 19 Then Elisha said to them, “This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will take you to the man you’re looking for.” And he led them to Samaria. 20 When they entered Samaria, Elisha said, “Lord, open these men’s eyes and let them see.” So the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw that they were in the middle of Samaria.

Faithful Execution

Notice that even though they had spiritual eyes, they still had physical problems (the Arameans rushed Elisha)

Just because we get spiritual eyes, that doesn’t mean physical problems go away but just like you have spiritual eyes, you will have spiritual responses.

He prayed that God would strike them with blindness and that is what happened.

And then he leads them right into captivity

21 When the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha “Should I kill them, should I kill them, my father?”

22 Elisha replied, “Don’t kill them. Do you kill those you have captured with your sword or your bow? Set food and water in front of them so they can eat and drink and go to their master.”23 So he prepared a big feast for them. When they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. The Aramean raiders did not come into Israel’s land again.

Spiritual Warfare

Why did they feed them instead of kill them? This feast was a sign of confidence in God’s ability to control the enemy and in those times, it was a social custom to not attack anyone who had shown hospitality.

“since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds.” 1 Cor 10:43

God’s purpose was not to kill Aram, His purpose was to save Israel.

This war ended the way nobody expected but the Lord tends to do things that are beyond our expectations.

This is why we need spiritual eyes

Closing

Which set of eyes are you looking through?

Do you have the capability to obtain spiritual eyes?