Articles - Bulletin
More With Us Than With Them
One of my favorite Old Testament stories in in 2 Kings 6:8-23. It tells of a time with a king of Syria once again went out to battle against Israel. The Syrian king would always be trying to make raids and ambush the Israelites but Elisha would tell the king of Israel where to go and where not to go. That really upset the Syrian king and when he found out that it was Elisha in Dothan he surrounded the city intent on killing him.
There are multiple things about this story that make this particularly one of my favorites and I’ll let you read the entire story to see the inspiring and humorous elements of what took place but I just want to remind us this morning of probably the most important element. “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” (2 Kings 6:16)
Elisha’s servant went out and quickly realized that they were surrounded and was greatly distressed. Who wouldn’t be? They were surrounded and he knew exactly why. Elisha not only told him what you read above from v.16 but then Elisha asked of God to “open his eyes that he may see. So the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.” (2 Kings 6:17) It would really only take one angel to defeat this army but the young man saw a mountain full.
There’s a lot of turmoil in this world on a constant basis. Sometimes it is closer to home and events like what is going on in different parts of our nation cause some unrest among brethren. The feeling that we are surrounded by evil on all sides weighs heavy on us. And we are surrounded by evil by the way, that’s true. But… “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them!”
I am not a prophet like Elisha and I cannot even begin to tell you the slightest hint of what God has planned and is doing. But I believe God has given us the knowledge of these events in Scripture to tell us that He has all things under his control and we need not fret. Let’s go through this week seeking to SEE God’s presence in our lives and around us each day.
--E
