God’s Word Can Overcome Any Situation, No Matter How Difficult It May Be
It happened after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. There was a great famine in Samaria. — 2 Kings 6:24-25
We are pressed on every side, yet not crushed; perplexed, yet not to despair; pursued, yet not forsaken; struck down, yet not destroyed. — 2 Corinthians 4:8-9
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: No matter how extreme our situation may be, with God we are never without a way out. Samaria was under siege, suffering a terrible shortage, and seemed to have no hope; yet through Elisha, God gave a word promising provision that seemed humanly impossible. Likewise, even though we may face need, affliction, hardship, or persecution, the power belongs to God and not to us. We may be struck down, but not destroyed; persecuted, but not forsaken. Therefore, we must not give up: if we believe in God’s solution, He can transform a desperate circumstance into provision, life, and glory for His name. God has a way out for His Church and for our own lives.
We children of God are never desperate; there is always a solution. No matter how desperate our situation may seem, in God’s hands your problem can be transformed into something wonderfully glorious if you trust God for a solution.
In 2 Kings chapter 6, beginning with verse 24, we have the story—which perhaps some of you have read—of how Ben-hadad, king of Syria, invaded Israel, specifically the northern part of Israel, and surrounded and besieged the city of Samaria, which at that time was the capital of Israel. When this siege, this blockade of the city, had continued for a long time, famine spread throughout the entire city of Samaria, to the point that there was simply nothing to eat. And we have an interesting story in which it appears that some of Samaria’s inhabitants resorted to the terrible measure of cannibalism. We have the story of these two women who entered into a gruesome agreement to eat each other’s sons, so great was the famine that had spread throughout the city.
But the most important thing about this story is what we see here: when this city is gripped by famine, God gives the prophet Elisha a Word that the next day there will be enough food for everyone at a very affordable price. This seems impossible, but we know that in God’s hands nothing is impossible.
So this is a story of how faith and the Word of God can overcome and prevail over any situation, no matter how difficult it may be. The story says: “It came to pass that Ben-hadad, king of Syria, gathered his entire army, went up, and besieged Samaria. And there was a great famine in Samaria because of that siege, so severe that a donkey’s head sold for eighty pieces of silver, and a fourth of a cab of dove’s dung sold for five pieces of silver.”
We see that this is an extreme situation in which famine is everywhere, and the city of Samaria finds itself in an utterly desperate situation. How many times have we found ourselves in situations of great need, great poverty, and urgency, where it seems that no solution will appear from anywhere because the situation is so extreme and so difficult to resolve?
That was how Samaria found itself at that time: surrounded by a powerful army, with apparently no way out. Perhaps the one thought I want you to take away from this segment we are discussing is this: there is no situation, no matter how difficult, that God cannot resolve. The Christian always has a way out available; there is always something God will do in our lives.
This Word tells us never to throw in the towel, no matter how desperate the situation may be. With God there is always a solution; there is always a way out. We children of God are never forsaken, and as I say that, I think of a passage in 2 Corinthians. I am going to look it up here, although I do not remember exactly where it is, but perhaps I can leave you with that thought so that you may simply keep it there in your heart, because it can help you and resolve any situation in which you may find yourself.
It says in chapter 4 of 2 Corinthians, verse 7: “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us. We are afflicted in every way, yet not distressed; perplexed, yet not in despair. We are persecuted,” says the apostle Paul, “yet not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed, always carrying about in the body, everywhere, the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.”
These people in Samaria were in a desperate situation. Nevertheless, the fact that God was involved caused that entire terrible situation to change. And as we see here, the apostle Paul says that although we are afflicted in every way, we are not distressed; although we are perplexed, we are not in despair; although we are persecuted, as children of God we are not forsaken.
We children of God are never desperate; there is always a solution. No matter how desperate our situation may seem, in God’s hands your problem can be transformed into something wonderfully glorious if you trust God for a solution.
Later we will see how this terrible famine that Samaria was enduring was transformed into a great provision from God that resulted in glory for the Name of God. Likewise, I believe that in these times of scarcity in the world, when it seems there is no solution for the Church’s problems, God has a solution for His Church, and He also has one for you in your own life. May the Lord bless you, and until our next study.