Don't Forget The Angels
A Devotional on 2 Kings 6:15-17
When the servant of the man of God rose early in the morning and went out, behold, an army with horses and chariots was all around the city. And the servant said, “Alas, my master! What shall we do?” He said, “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” Then Elisha prayed and said, “O Lord, please 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 6:15-17
There are two things we need to learn from Elisha in this passage.
First, he didn’t forget the angels.
Elisha is God’s prophet for the northern Kingdom of Israel, and he has received a double portion of the spirit that Elijah—his predecessor in the prophetical ministry—had before him. He is quite literally the most Spirit-filled person on the planet at this time.
Interestingly, and this is a conversation for another day, what Elisha had doesn’t even compare to what we have now in the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Elisha is awakened by the news of a massive army surrounding the city. The text says, “all around the city,” which implies that as far as the eye could see, the Syrian army was making their advance.
And what’s his response?
“Don’t be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
When was the last time you were blindsided by bad news?
Far too many of us have lost loved ones, learned of the gossip that others are spewing about them, or lost their jobs.
Bad news can come as a punch to the gut. Our reactions are typically all over the place—anger, rage, frustration, sadness. I don’t know about you, but it typically takes me a while to get into a spiritual state to remember God.
I typically try to remember a few things:
That God is good
That God is in control
That God loves me despite what my circumstances may indicate
But rarely do I remember that there’s an angelic army on my side.
Interestingly, Elisha didn’t even have to remember. When we read the text closely, we get the implication that Elisha had already set his eyes on the angel armies before praying for his servant. He asks God to open the servant’s eyes, not his own.
Elisha had been seeing the Lord’s army and wanted to ensure his servant could do the same.
But how do we be like Elisha? That seems impossible.
I’m reminded of the Beatitudes. Jesus says:
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
—Matthew 5:8
If Elisha opened his eyes and the first thing he saw was God’s army, it was because of the purity in his heart.
Yes, Elisha was a prophet, but what we have today is better than what he had. The promise of seeing God comes after the purity of heart.
So, what’s the best way to never forget we have an angel army surrounding us?
Be radically committed to purity in heart. Those pure in heart will see God and see Him at work, even in tragedy. Being radically committed to purity in heart means being radically committed to confessing sin and walking in step with the Spirit.
We’ll look at the second thing we can learn from Elisha tomorrow.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
What was the last tragic or challenging thing you experienced? Does anyone else know about it other than you? If no, who can you share that experience with?
What is your typical response to bad news? Do you pray first? Complain? Do you try to ignore it? How does Elisha’s response challenge you?
Have you ever thought about seeing God the way Elisha has? Do you think that’s still possible today?
What’s one step you can take to become more pure in heart today?
—Brandon
