One of the most important questions that you always need to ask yourself whenever you read the Bible, any part of the Bible, is what can I know about God from this text? If you read a story like what we read this evening, a war is going on from Syria against Israel. Many, many individuals are included. And you have to ask this question. Who is God here? What He looks like? What can I know of Him through this story? This is a very important question. Although this story tells us something that happened thousands of years ago, still, what we can know of God is relevant to us today. Because God doesn't change. He's the same yesterday, today, and forever. And who God is in this story is who God is today. And who God is forever. We change. If I meet some of you, if the Lord give us more days and years, let's say ten years from now, all of us would be different. Our appearance will be different. Our hair may be different. Even our characters will be different. Some changes is going to happen. Every day we change. God does not. So what we learn about Him is crucial and have great impact on our lives. How we relate to Him, how to relate to each other, very relevant to us. And today, through this story, I'll see three attributes or three characteristics of who God is. First of all, we'll see the omniscient God, that God is omniscient. And we'll see the faithfulness of God, that God is faithful. And we'll see the grace of God. God is gracious. God is omniscient. God is faithful. And God is God is gracious. First of all, God is omniscient. We have seen this scene. It's a war between the Northern Kingdom, Israel, which was not a righteous kingdom. They were not true worshippers of the Lord. The Lord sent them prophets to bring them back to His ways, to His commandments, to His covenants. Prophets like Elijah, like Elisha, So it was not in the best state. And there is another nation, which are pagans, wicked nation, Syria. In Hebrew it's called Aram, which is today Syria, waging a war against Israel. And in this story, we see in this war, the king of Syria is planning to attack the king of Israel. And he's making wise plans, war battles. He wants to get victories against the king of Israel. But every time he plans, he fails. Every time he tries to do something in secret, some way, somehow, his plans are revealed. And he thought, there must be a leak. Someone among my servants, among my leaders, is taking this information and giving it to the King of Israel. Otherwise, I could have conquered him. I could have killed him. Who is telling them what's happening? He thought, there must be a spy. And then he gets this report. No. In verse 11. No, there's no spy. the heart of king of syria was so troubled for this thing and he called his servants and said unto them will you not show me which of us is for the king of israel and one of his servants said none my lord or king but elisha the prophet that is in israel telleth the king of israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber in your bedroom in the most secret places whatever you say elisha knows And it was not just about the person who has this gift of knowing how people think or how people plan. Simply, Elisha knows because he was the man of God. He was the prophet. God revealed it to him. Every time the king thinks that he's doing this in secret, no one knows. Only the close people would know. There's a leak. The King of Israel knows. And he got a report. They have a prophet. This prophet is worshiping a certain God. The God of Israel. Yahweh. And he knows. Even what you say in your bed shampers. In your bedroom. I know that everyone here, I would say, if I ask you, is God omniscient? Does he know everything? Everyone will answer in the affirmative. Oh, yes. He knows everything. But let's meditate for a few seconds on this fact. He knows everything. Everything. He knows what you are thinking of right now. He knows the words that you will say He knows the whispers that you would do in a secret or in a dark room. Even if you are alone, thinking of something in the most darkest or the darkest place, He knows it. All around. As Psalm 139 says, there is no darkness for Him. The darkness is like the light. Everything you can think of, that you can say, that you would do, He knows. He knows your motives. He knows my motives. He knows your planning, your ideas. People may not know. You can deceive everyone around you. You can deceive the closest person to you. You can even deceive yourself. You can keep telling a lie and yourself you would believe it. But you can't deceive him. He knows. And the implications for this is huge. This means every time I do something against him, every time I sin, every time I plot against him, it's in front of him. It's before him. One day the Lord asked Cain, where is your brother? And Cain answered a very foolish answer. How shall I know? Am I his guardian? Do you think Cain that God didn't know where is your brother? What did you do? He knows. Many times we act as if he doesn't No, or he doesn't see. In fact, many times we fear people more than him. So if I know that someone will be here in the room, I will not do certain things. I will stop myself. I will control myself. I will not let people see me doing this sin. It's very shameful. Or I don't want my picture to be kind of corrupt in their eyes, in their sights. So I will not show them this side of my life. Yet when we are alone, we do it. I remember one day in Egypt, I was applying for a visa in an embassy. And they asked us, when you go there, they ask you, give us your phone. You can't have your phone. But all the places where they can keep their phones or the phones, they were all full. And they said, OK, you can keep your phone, but you can't use it. You can't use it. And if you use it, you may lose your appointment, and you may not get your visa. I said, OK. Then I sat in an aisle, no one is watching me, and I had some work to do, so I got my phone, and I thought no one is going to see me, and I start texting. And then I heard one of the security men shouting, but not on me, but on another man, you can't use your phone! And he gets him out. And when I saw this, I put my phone in my pocket and I start to be nervous. It's serious. But then after a while, I thought I will get it and no one will see me. But then I looked around and I saw some cameras. And when I saw the cameras, when I knew that someone is watching me, I put my phone in my pocket. Now I'm sure that someone is watching me. My action became different when I knew that someone is watching me. When we sin, we act as if God is not watching, and He is watching. Theologians would say this, whenever you sin, sin is kind of practical atheism. You act as if God does not exist. Because if you think for a moment that He is there, He is watching you, and who He is, you will not dare to sin, even when you are alone. He knew what was happening in the bedroom of the king. He knows everything. But it's amazing, this story is not just showing us the omniscience of God, the wisdom of God, it shows us the foolishness of man. Because the reaction, the reaction of the king is significant. So the king got a report saying, well, we have a prophet and the prophet knows everything that you are planning, everything that you are saying in your bedroom. What would be the reaction of the king? What should be the proper reaction of the king? Well, I may need to seek this Elisha and ask him for this wisdom. What kind of God this is? I should repent, I should worship this God. Was this his action? His reaction? No. Look at verse 13. What was the reaction of the king when he knew that Elisha knows everything that he's planning? Verse 13 he says, and he said, Go and spy where he is that I may send and fetch him. Whenever I read this, I see the foolishness of sin. Foolishness. What are you doing? He knows. He can know that you are planning for this even now. He already knew your plans. Now you are planning to capture him? He must know. But this shows you the foolishness of sin. You know, pride and foolishness are always hand in hand. For him to say these words, he's proud. He's arrogant. But he's a fool. To be arrogant, to be proud, is foolishness. And many times we do the same things. We do things that we know that they are hurting us. We do sins that we know that they are against His will. And we know the consequences are bad. We have heard, we have read, we have seen. Yet we still do it. That's why it's foolishness. It's amazing how the book of Proverbs is describing sin and righteousness in these words. Not expressively sin and not expressively righteousness, but he would always call, this book would always call sin as foolishness. To be against God is foolishness. To think that you can hide from Him, you can escape from Him, you can deceive Him. This is foolishness. The wisest thing, the wisest thing that you can do is to fear God. To obey His commandments. This is what David prayed in Psalm 19. The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. Reading the word, listening to the word, obeying the word. is the wisest thing that a man can do, to be humble. Pride is foolishness, especially before our God, the Omniscient, the All-Wise. He's the wisdom. You can't deceive Him. And this takes me to the second point about God in this scene. God is faithful. God is faithful to his people. He keeps his promises. He protects his people. The context that we see God's protection and faithfulness is an antagonistic context. There is a war against God's people and this war is getting heavier now because there will be a kind of a siege around one man, Elisha, and his servant. Can you think of this? A whole army is coming around one man, one man, but he's not just a man, he's the man of God, he's Elisha. And if a destruction can happen to this man, this will affect the people of God. God used Elisha to protect his people. Although they were not righteous at that time, but God used him to teach them, to protect them, to guide them to his covenants, God is using his men. And the enemy knows that God's men are key figures. If I can just destroy the men of God, if I can just destroy the prophets, if I can just destroy this minister, or this elder, or this deacon, or this leader, I'll make a big destruction. Think of the BS that is going on right now. We are sending our children, and men and women from our church are teaching them. Satan may want to destroy or deceive the children, but would he go for each one of the children or would he just go to the teacher who would have 10 in his class, deceive him, frustrate him, put false ideas in his mind or in her mind. Then he knows, well, and instead of reaching in each one of these little boys, I'll just reach the teacher. And he will do it. Think of a bigger scale. Satan would focus his attacks on the men of God. on the ministers, on the preachers. And in different ways, it may come through persecutions, it may come through family problems, it may come through false ideas, it may come through immorality. Because he knows if he can destroy this figure, the destruction will be huge. That's why what my brothers were just doing, few minutes ago, praying for those who preach, praying for the pastors, praying for me today as I'm preaching. It's vital. It's crucial. We are in a war. And the ministers, the pastors, the elders, the deacons, the leaders, they are men and they are under weakness. They need support. They need prayers. Christ himself needed prayers. On this day in Gethsemane, he told the disciples, pray with me. There is a great opposition. There is a great battle going on, and I need you to stay and pray for me. If he needed prayer, we need prayer. We are weak. And we need your prayers. We need your accountability. It's crucial. And we see here there is a great attack on the man of God. And when this attack came, we'll see the reaction of the boy, the little boy. He came in verse 15, and said this after he saw the great army surrounding Elisha and himself. Verse 15, and when the servant of the man of God was risen early and gone forth, behold, a horse come past the city, both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, I lost my master. How shall we do? Think of this, there is an army, army, around the church, trying to attack the church. We are not two, we are not just two, we are more than two. But think of this, army, chariots and horses, around two men. The boy was terrified, because he had a kind of an equation, well we are two and this are an army, we will not survive, we will not make it. But then, Elisha said this, He answered him and said, fear not, for they that be with us are more than that that be with them. The answer may not seem reasonable. How can you say this, Elisha? We are only two. How can you say that those who are with us are greater or larger? I don't see this. The anxiety, the fear that this boy had was because he was only depending on his eyesight, what he sees, the enemy around him. And if we think in today's terms, in terms of numbers, we are minority, right? The church has always been like that. Smaller numbers. When I think of the disciples, in the time of the Pentecost or in the early church. These 120 people gathering in this place, in front of the Roman Empire, in front of all the Jewish nation, with all the powers that was around them. Humanly speaking, they will not survive. It doesn't make sense. If we just depend on the eyesight, But here Elisha was pointing to something greater. Well, the equation was unequal. Not because these people were more than Elisha and the boy, but because those who were with Elisha were greater than this army. And so Elisha prayed, open the eyes of the boy that he may see who is with us. We often see the danger around us so quickly. And this danger that is around us, we see it more real than who God is. Sometimes the dangers, the persecution, the wickedness around us, they become more real than who God is. But Elisha knew that God is more real than the danger around him. God is more real than the danger around us. Even if he were alone or only with a boy against an army, the one who is with us is greater than those who are against us. He prayed for the boy and the boy saw the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. And when the boy saw He realizes, oh, now I need to be calm. God is with us. You may say, well, I would love to see what the boy saw. If I just see what the boy saw, I may be calmer. The anxiety and fear will go away from my heart. Well, many people saw things with their eyes. They saw it. And yet they did not believe. The people coming out of Egypt, they saw the plagues, they saw God's mighty hand. They saw it, and they didn't believe. So it's not just about the eyesight, what you see with your eyes, but what you see with your heart. Believing God's promises, believing what he's saying is true. even though what is around me, what the world is telling me is the opposite. I will trust your word. I will trust what are you saying, and I will act accordingly. What does it mean to act accordingly? I shall not fear. I will bring all my anxieties, all my fears to you. His word is telling us Look to me. Look to my beloved son, the one who died and rose again. I did not spare my only begotten son. What can separate you from the love of God in Jesus Christ? So this is what we want, this prayer that Elisha prayed. Lord, open our eyes. to know and understand and believe that the one who is with us is greater than those who are against us. Even if the attack came upon us, even if we were harmed, will continue to trust you knowing that this is not the end knowing that all things are working together for good for those who love God you know this place this place where where Elisha was its name was Dothan and the only place where Dothan was mentioned is in the book of Genesis in the place where Joseph was sold by his brethren he was under siege as well they surrounded him and he was a minority. And they sold him with their wickedness. On that day, Elisha was spared, him and the boy. Joseph was not. And I know that we know that Joseph's story ended so nicely. He became the second greatest man all over the earth. But think of all these years, what was happening to Joseph. Humanly speaking, from bad to worse. In his father's house, some empty with his brothers, now he became a slave! In the prison! Forgotten in the prison! What hope he has! And there is nothing. We don't hear that God appeared to Joseph to comfort him. Joseph just trusted God. And how do we know that he trusted God? He was faithful. He was faithful. And interestingly, the text always says, the Lord was with Joseph. Even in the midst of this, God is faithful. We may not understand what's happening. We may not understand why, oh Lord, you are leaving the enemy to attack us, even to touch us, to bring this crisis to our lives. Why are you silent? He's not weak. He's not helpless. He's not just watching and cannot intervene. He has a plan. Many times, he would save his people in remarkable ways. And many times now, Joseph was spared. Stephen was not. Stephen was killed. He was stoned, surrounded by enemies. What's got there? Was God greater than the enemies around him? Yes, he was. But in his will, in his wisdom, Stephen was killed. And greater than Stephen, there is another man who was surrounded by his enemies. Jesus Christ himself. Governors, kings, religious leaders. Great crowds were against him, and he became alone. Even his friends, they left him. And when Peter saw that the equation is not going well, those who are against Christ and the disciples were greater than him, he tried to make a kind of a resistance. He got his weapon and cut the ear of this servant. And Christ stopped him and he said, what are you doing? You think I can't call or can't pray and God would send 12 legions of angels? I'm aware of God's protection. If I want God to stop this, he can stop it. But if this is happening, This is God's plan. I can stop it if I want, but I'm going to the cross because this is the plan. Whenever, whenever evil happen to God's people, to the church, to the believers, it's not because God is not faithful or that God is not there or that he is weak. No. All things work together for good. to those who love God. God is faithful to his promises. And we pray with Elisha, open our eyes, oh Lord, to see how great you are and how faithful you are. Even if death came and devoured our bodies, we know that we will be risen one day with you. And this takes me to the third point. God is gracious. This God who is faithful, the Immanuel, is a gracious God. He is gracious to Elisha, to the boy. He is gracious to the king of Israel, who is wicked king. This nation lived in wickedness, yet God saved them, saved them from the king of Syria. God is gracious. But surprisingly, God is gracious even to the enemies, to the king of Syria. When we read the story, sometimes we think, I am waiting to the point where this king will be killed. That this proud king would be stopped. We are waiting for the judgment. When is it going to happen? But if you read the story, even before this chapter. You see how gracious God was even with this wicked king. In chapter five we read the story of Naaman, Naaman the Syrian. And if you open with me chapter five, the previous chapter, verse one we read what the Lord is doing to this king, to the king of Syria. Verse one, now Naaman, captain of the horse of the king of Syria, was a great man with his master and honorable, Because by him the Lord had given deliverance unto Syria. The Lord had given deliverance unto Syria. They conquered in battles. They won battles. And the text is saying, who gave them these victories? It was God. God made him prosper. He gave them victories. It's not that every nation prospers because their God is helping them. There's no other gods. Every nation that prospers, every nation that enjoys God's blessing, it's enjoying it because God is gracious. God is giving it this. It was a gift from God. But not only victories. What happened with Naaman, the famous story of Naaman, was a great, a great call for repentance. Not just for Naaman, but for this king, for this nation. Naaman, who was great with his master, honorable, he had a crisis. He had leprosy. And we know the story how the Lord saved Naaman, how the Lord healed him. And when Naaman went back clean from his leprosy, It doesn't seem that the king of Syria cared. In fact, when we read later on about Syria and the kingdoms, we hear nothing about Naaman. We don't know what happened. Maybe he killed him. Maybe he kicked him out of his position. But this man who was great with his master and honorable, and because of whom Syria had many victories, great man in the kingdom. And we hear nothing about him. god sent the king of syria an example of his saving grace and the king of syria didn't care in his pride he didn't care and then the lord he humiliated the king of syria so that he may repent the lord humiliated naaman to bring him to faith he made him go to the Jordan River and go under the water seven times very humiliating for Naaman and when Naaman was humbled and obeyed and trusted he was healed and the Lord was doing the same with the king of Syria okay one man will tell all your plans to the king of Israel and all your plans will fail so that you may know that I am the true God. He is humbling him. He is resisting him. And the king has... can't find a way. God is humbling him so that he may return. But we see that this king despised God's omniscience. Despised God's wisdom. And he even tried to kill Elijah. Sending an army against one man. In his pride. Sending an army. But then let's see how God was even gracious with this army. In verse 16 and 17. Elisha prayed and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes. That is the boy that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man and he saw and behold, the mountain was full of horses, chariots of fire round about Elisha. This is 17. The Lord is opening the eyes of the boy, the following verse. It says, and when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the Lord and said, smite this, this people, I pray thee with blindness. And He smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. God is opening the eyes of the boy and blinding this army. And blindness here does not mean that they don't see, they can't comprehend, they don't understand what's going on. They can see Elisha, but they don't know that this is Elisha. They are in the place where he is and they don't know. to the point that Elisha led them to the capital of Israel, to Samaria. Well, it doesn't look good for the army. Being taken to this place, it means that they will be killed. The best thing that they can hope for when they go to Samaria, to their enemies, to their capital, is a quick death. The Lord used Elisha and brought them to this place, humbling them and humbling the king of Israel. But when you look, what would you expect? Now they come, they are coming against God's man, the man of God, Elisha, to kill him. And the Lord, in his might, in his power, in his wisdom, is bringing them to Samaria, to the capital. What would you expect? What would the king of Israel expect? Who will smite them, who will kill them? And this is what the law would say for sinners like us, for sinners against God. They should be killed. But it's amazing how Elisha acted with them. And instead of striking them to death, He made a meal for them. He gave them bread and water. What kind of God is this? No other God can do this. Human beings don't understand this. What would you do with your enemy? You kill your enemy. God here is feeding his enemies through his prophet. Again, it reminds me what happened with Christ. They were gathered around Him to kill Him. They spit on Him. They hit Him. And He was praying for them. Forgive them. In fact, He was dying for sinners like them. Those who are surrounding Him. Those who are killing Him. He was dying for such sinners. On this day, one man, a centurion, responsible for this brutal death, saw what's happening and believed. And he cried and said, truly, this was the Son of God. The price of this cry was being paid by the one on the cross. For this centurion to say, this is the son of God, Christ paid the price. He fed his enemies. He died for these enemies. And here, Elisha is feeding them. The law against such sinners says, smite, strike, kill, and it's fair, it's just. But God in his grace, is giving them food, peace. I imagine when this army went back to the king of Samaria, to the king of Syria, excuse me, he asked them, did you capture Elisha? No. Did you kill him? No. He captured us. He captured you and you're here? Yes, because after he captured us, he prepared us a meal, and he sent us back in peace. What should this king do in front of this, in front of this humiliation? One of two actions, either to come on his knees, confessing the greatness and the grace of God. Or to stay in his rebellion, to stay proud and resist God. Later on we'll see that this king will go and besiege Samaria again, Israel again. He did not stop. But it's amazing how God was gracious. to this King again and again and again. No other God is like our God. And maybe God is gracious to you today in many ways, right? And you're still resisting, showing you His mercy, His grace in many ways, in the creation, in the good things that you're enjoying in your life, even listening about what he is doing, what he has done in the Supreme Court, bringing this great decision, saving many young children from being slaughtered. He's showing you who he is. Or maybe through some crisis, illness, sickness, problems in the family, bringing some crisis to humiliate you, like what he has done to this king. He's showing you your grace again, His grace again and again and again. And like this King, you have two options. And I pray that no one here would do like this King. Either you will come on your knees, confessing that He's the great God, He's the King, and that you are a sinner, accepting to be humiliated, before this king, like Naaman, coming on your knees wisely, or you would continue on your resistance in a foolish way, refusing this grace, this great love, this great meal that he brings before you. Every time God's enemies come to the world, listening to the word, he's preparing a meal. He's giving them a meal to enemies. Enemies that would like to even to kill him, to get rid of him. Like what they have done with Jesus. Yet he's feeding them. Don't lose this grace. Don't despise God's grace. But wisely, humbly, Confess and say, O Lord, I am a sinner, and I am thankful for such a grace, for such a Savior who would die