Who Are We? (Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost)

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Sometimes, when we read this story about Naaman the Syrian general and Elisha the prophet, it’s tempting to suppose that Naaman is just being a snob.  “Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel?”  My rivers are so much better than your rivers!  Besides, if bathing in a river could cure this, don’t you think I’d have done that already?

But in fact, Naaman’s actually got a point about the Jordan River.  It’s not the deep, broad, flowing “river” that we usually envision, and that some of our hymns make it sound like.  In most places, it’s a shallow, muddy trickle.  If you’ve been to Israel and seen the Jordan River, in most places it looks like this … (show photo)

Elisha hasn’t just told Naaman to go jump in a lake (or a river!)  He’s told him to go jump into this muddy mess!  Who would do such a thing?  It probably wouldn’t make you clean, even if you just needed a regular bath!

Why would Naaman do such a thing?  Naaman must have wondered who Elisha thought he was.  “Do you know who I am, Elisha?  I’m the big shot general of the Army of Syria!  I could just as easily have shown up with my army instead of a big payoff for you and kicked butt all over the place!  Who do you think I am that I should go jump in that muddy mess?”

Who does Elisha think Naaman is?  But even more importantly, who does Naaman think he is?  Who does he believe himself to be, and what’s his own understanding of his own worthiness?

In one sense, this story of Naaman and Elisha is a fascinating study of Naaman coming to re-think and re-define who he is.  For in fact, in order to experience the help and healing of God that he’s seeking, Naaman has to re-think who he is in relation to:

• God – like many people then, Naaman figured he could get what he wanted from any “god” as long as he was able to earn it … (he could do a hard thing, or he could offer a huge gift; but his money and his talent don’t count now …)

• Other people – Naaman was used to being in charge, and he was clearly good at it!  He knew the answers and how to get things done; and yet here, in order for him to be healed, he has to learn to take advice from his servants, who finally convince him to do what Elisha says … (and that’s no small miracle in and of itself!)

• Himself – Naaman’s invested a lot of his understanding of self-worth in his job and his accomplishments; and he has a lot to be proud of; yet by the end of this story, he’s standing before Elisha with a new understanding of himself – he understands that he has value to God apart from anything he’s done or earned; and somehow, he’s beginning to understand he’s more than the sum of his titles and accomplishments …

Who does Naaman think he is?  Who he thinks he is has to change in order to experience God’s help and healing in his life.  And who he thinks he is actually does change because of God’s help and healing in his life.

But this story is included in the Bible not simply to tell us about Naaman.  It’s also a question to each of us.  Would you jump in that muddy mess?  I’ve never been told to jump in a muddy river, but sometimes the future that God calls us into can make it feel that way!  And often, for us too, when we seek the help and healing that makes it possible for us to move forward into the future, God asks us, “who do you think you are?”

And for us, too, that question is an invitation to rethink who we are in relation to:

• God – while we talk a lot about God’s love and acceptance, often we get trapped in the whole “God helps those who help themselves” thinking; we operate as though God will help us if we work hard enough or we’re willing to make the right “sacrifices” in our lives, or even “repent sufficiently”; and are we willing – in spite of who we thought we were – to jump into muddy messes if that’s the thing God calls us to do … ?

• Other people – I’m pretty sure that I’m right and I’ve got good answers; often, I do, and you do, too!  But are we willing to listen to God’s voice and guidance through the voices of strangers and folks we don’t usually think have the answers; are we willing to hear the voice of God through people and in places we haven’t usually expected…?

• Ourselves – like Naaman, I often get caught up in defining myself by my job, my hard work and my accomplishments; I’ve got lots to be proud of and you do, too.  But it’s often important to step back and see ourselves as God sees us – has having worth and value apart from our jobs, and talents and accomplishments …

Naaman learned those things in today’s first reading.  And that he was able to rethink who he was and to understand himself in a new way is one of the real miracles of this story.  And it’s a miracle that God invites us into as well.

So who are you?  And who do you think you are?  God invites us to rethink these questions each and every day.  And that’s because in God’s value system, God’s love and compassion are more important than anything we’ve done or anything we’ve messed up.  In God’s value system, we’re all worth helping, even if we’re not the ones with the answers.  And in God’s value system, our own self-worth is given to us by God, and isn’t simply the sum of our titles and accomplishments.

Amen.