“The Sin of Unbelief and the Rewards of Belief”

2 Kings 7 to 10 There are two kinds of people in this world; they either believe the Bible, or they don’t believe it. You can’t mix in those people who say they believe some of it. Those are still unbelievers. They have one thing in common; they see the evidence but cling to their unbelief. They look for excuses not to believe even when the evidence is before them. God has no mercy on those, and at death, they will join the Luke 16 rich man in torments.

So what does have to do with today’s reading? The story begins and ends with a man who scoffed at Elisha’s prophecy of the salvation of a city. Lepers find the coats and armor and horses of the enemy left behind; go to the city to report it, but the king surmises a ploy. He sends horses and men to check it out, and the city is saved. In the end, the scoffer was trampled and died just as Elisha said he would because of his unbelief.

Is there any hope? Yes! God gives us a ray of sunshine in the Shunammite woman who obeyed Elisha, leaving her home to reside in the Philistine territory during the famine. After the famine, she returns home to claim her land. In the palace Elisha’s servant, Gehazi just happened to be in the presence of the king and verified her story. The king returned her property and the profit of it during the years she was gone.

Both stories reveal the principle of belief vs. unbelief and the rewards or consequences of each. Which category fits you?