II Kings 7:9 Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household.
Kings Need It and Beggars Can Get It
Every year the Bill Rice Ranch spearheads an evangelistic outreach in the heart of New York City. Just recently, I asked five people who serve with us here who had been on the New York City outreach, “Who are the people most open to the gospel?” The answer was, of course, those who are most aware of their need. All of us are needy, but not all of us know it. A person who is down-and-out is much more apt to realize his need of the gospel than a person who is wearing a $3,000 suit. Both of them need the Lord Jesus, but they both may not know it. Prosperity tends to dull our awareness of needing Jesus.
In II Kings 7, we read about people in need, some who were well off and others who were not.
Benhadad, king of Syria, had laid a siege. All the people in the city were starving, and the only people worse off than those in the city were a couple lepers who were locked out of the city.
A day came when they thought to themselves, “Why are we just sitting here waiting to die? Let’s go appeal to the Syrians. The worst that can happen is that we will die, but that’s going to happen anyway.” When they got to the Syrian’s camp, it was deserted. The Lord had made the Syrians hear the noise of chariots, and they fled. When the lepers went into the tents, they ate, drank, and carried out silver, gold, and clothes.
Verse 9 is pivotal. It says, “Then they said one to another, We do not well: this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry til the morning light, some mischief will come upon us: now therefore come, that we may go and tell the king’s household.” They said, “This news it too good to keep to ourselves. We’ve got to go tell the king.” Then they spread the good news.
Both the king and the lepers were, at this point in their lives, beggars. They both needed the mercy of God. They both needed food. The lesson for us today is that good news, specifically the gospel, is something even kings need and even beggars can give. It’s easy to condescend to people when they are down-and-out, thinking that we are better than they are and that we have something that can help them. We are all beggars. It’s been said, “The gospel is just one beggar telling another beggar where he can find food.” That’s exactly what this story illustrates. We are never better than someone else simply because we have experienced the grace of God. We all need the same thing.
On the other hand, I can give the gospel in Manhattan to a man wearing a suit worth more than I’ll make in a month and do it with great confidence because, whether he knows it or not, he needs Jesus Christ just as much as a beggar does.
We are to be both humbled by and emboldened by the wonderful good news that we have. Not just good news of food, silver, or gold, but the good news that God sent His Son into the world to save sinners which includes people like you and me.