Is Anyone Stuck in the Mud? Part 2

Below is but a small measure of revelation that my father had received from the Lord. I hope this will be a blessing to you. All that is written below are the words of my father.

May 26, 2021 

In loving memory of my father
Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett
July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023

Is Anyone Stuck in the Mud? Part 2: Type 2 Christians

In our previous message, I shared with you some general comments about mud and the three types of Christians. Then I shared about what I call Type 1 Christians ... those who are stuck in the mud and don't know it. Historically, scripturally, and experientially Type 1 Christians are in the vast majority in the church community.

This message is about Type 2 Christians. If you are in this category, then you are stuck in the mud and you know it. You have been born again and perhaps baptized with the Holy Ghost. You may have been in this category for a few years or for many years. You started out very excited when you were born from above. The Lord may have used you in the past to minister to others. You may read your Bible most days, and pray, particularly when things don't seem to go right. You may sing in the choir and bake cookies for others. You have experienced many blessings by the amazing grace of God. You still go to "church" regularly, contribute money to the "church," and do your best to lead a morally "good" life. You have probably read a number of Christian books, listened to a number of pastors teach and preach, listened to DVDs, and possibly have watched a number of TV "evangelists." You may have attended a few large conferences to hear the big-name evangelists. The Lord has blessed you and your family in many ways, your health is reasonably good, and in general you have enjoyed prosperity and blessings. If you are a woman, your husband may be an elder or a deacon in the church.

But you sense that there is much more about your walk with Christ that seems to be lacking. That is a good place in which to be.

Matthew 5:6, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled."

Of course, there may be several possible reasons why you sense something may be missing in your walk. One possibility is that the enemy has been feeding you lies, which lead you into an atmosphere of discouragement and perhaps even worthlessness. Perhaps when you were a child your parents or friends told you that you would never amount to much. Or maybe some of your peers made fun of you when you were going to school, telling you that you were too fat or ugly; or you had a lot of acne, or had a big nose, or any of a myriad of other things.

If any of those "negative" things apply to you, I have good news for you! All of the "negative" things that people, perhaps even your parents or siblings, perhaps even other professing Christians have said to you, come under the heading of a curse. Here is the good news!

Proverbs 26:2, "As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come."

The Moabites and the Ammonites tried to hire Balaam to curse the Israelites but God turned the curse unto a blessing (Nehemiah 13:2). Goliath, the Philistine giant, cursed David (1 Samuel 17:43) but we all know that David slew Goliath with one slingshot.

In the Book of Genesis, whenever God created anything, including man, He said it was "good." And when God completed all of His creation, He said it was very good. Every person is unique. God never makes a copy of anything. Man tries to copy everything. God made you exactly the way He wanted you to be. And if God is happy with your natural makeup, who has a right to say otherwise?

Furthermore, God sets the members, every one of them, in the body as it pleases Him (1 Corinthians 12:18). That is true spiritually in terms of whatever gifts and ministries you have received. It is also true geographically. Many long years ago the Lord made it very clear to me and my wife that we live where we do (actually for the past 57 years) because of the sovereignty of God.

Many long years ago a good brother asked me to share the word at a Sunday morning service in his church in Pennsylvania. The Lord impressed upon me to share about the "great woman" in 2 Kings 4 and the "great man" in 2 Kings 5. From 2 Kings 4,

8 And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.

Shunem was a small village in the tribe of Issachar, about 20 miles from Mt. Carmel, where Elisha spent much of his time. Shunem was in the route to and from Elisha's visits to Mt. Carmel. Twenty miles in those days was a long day's trek, probably a 10-to-12-hour walk. Therefore, Elisha was undoubtedly tired and hungry after his 20-mile trip. A good question is, "What made this woman great?" Note that the name of this woman is never given. This forthtelling of the Shunammite woman's wisdom and faith speaks volumes of what we ought to understand and walk in today. The great woman "constrained" Elisha to have a meal with her and her husband.

9 And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.

The woman discerned that Elisha was a man set apart for the Lord's work in a very special sense. Nowhere else in the Old Testament is the term "holy" applied to a prophet. So the woman received a word of knowledge concerning their relationship with Elisha.

10 Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.

Note that the woman expressed her belief to her husband as to what they should do for Elisha. She did not make a unilateral decision as did Eve before the fall. That was a word of wisdom. By her hospitality the woman was able to assist in sustaining the proclamation of the word of the Lord through Elisha. When we make room for the Lord's anointed, the Lord makes room for us. Jesus said, in Matthew 10:40-42, "He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth Him that sent me. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no wise lose his reward."

Now consider the well-known verse in Romans 14:17, "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost." The first part of that verse clearly says that the kingdom of God is not in the natural realm. God is a Spirit. 2 Corinthians 5:16-17, "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we Him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." Henceforth know we no man after the flesh. I am a man. Therefore, I should no longer know myself after the flesh. When the scripture says that "all things are become new," the word "new" means new as to quality, not new as to time.

Many years ago the Holy Spirit seemed to quicken to me that the reward of a righteous man is peace and a prophet's reward is joy in the Holy Ghost. Also, the Lord never forgets those who are kind to His chosen people. Hindsight, over the 54 years that we have known the Lord, we have received kindness from non-believers almost as much as from believers. Note the rather sparse furnishings in the little chamber. But a little in the sight of the Lord is more than sufficient. The woman then spoke a word of prophecy when she said, "he shall turn in thither." 

11 And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.

12 And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite. And when he had called her, she stood before him.

Although Gehazi was the servant of Elisha, Gehazi was a servant in name only. In reality Gehazi was a servant of "self." That is clearly stated in 2 Kings 5:20-27 when he sought material gain for himself. As a result, the Lord made him a leper for the rest of his life.

13 And he said unto him, Say now unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people.

The woman felt secure and content in the community of her own family and tribe, and she had no need or desire for favors from high government officials in the world. Paul said (Philippians 4:11), "Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need." Today, far too many Christians know only how to abound. We tend to rebuke the devil when we are abased. How sad! In Hebrews 13:5, "Be content with such things as ye have: for He hath said, I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." The Lord plus what else is sufficient for us? The Shunammite woman said that the Lord was sufficient for her. She was a true servant of the Lord with no thought of any return for herself. If all of us Christians had that same attitude, Jesus might return tomorrow! 

14 And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old.

15 And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door.

In those days, to have no child and an old husband was a great disappointment because it meant the family name would cease and their land and possessions would pass on to others. It was also a great threat for this young wife's future in that she faced the likelihood of many years as a widow with no provider or protector. Despite all of the natural-level insecurities she faced, the woman trusted the Lord.

16 And he said, About this season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.

The woman's response did not show a lack of confidence in the word of Elisha; rather it revealed the depth of her desire for a son and her fear of disappointment. In those days, the women of God desired a son. Hannah (1 Samuel 1) greatly desired a son but the Lord had shut up her womb. My maternal grandmother was a real intercessor, just like Hannah. She always wanted a son but she had three daughters, no sons. I was the first grandson. On the day I was born, she wrote in her Bible, "Lord, make him your minister." Six years later she wrote in her diary on my sixth birthday, "Lord, make him Your messenger."

17 And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.

The birth of her son confirmed the word of Elisha and was evidence of God's gracious intervention on her behalf. Psalm 84:11, "No good thing will He withhold from them who walk uprightly." 

18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.

19 And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother.

20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.

The child, given as an example of the amazing grace of God, was suddenly taken from the woman as a severe test of her faith. Her subsequent actions demonstrate the strength of her faith in the face of great tribulation.

21 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.

Note that the woman never told her husband or anyone else that their son was dead. Thus the woman avoided the possibility of negative remarks from anyone. The enemy will use any and all means possible to put doubt, fear, and mistrust into our soul. But with God all things are possible. 

22 And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
23 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.

Again, the woman, in a subtle way, asks her husband's permission. In Verse 23 her husband, still unaware of their son's death, asks why she wants to go to Elisha on a day that is neither new moon nor Sabbath... meaning that Elisha was undoubtedly busy pursuing the work of God. Her response to her husband was ... everything is well ... trust me. Peace in time of crisis is a sure sign of maturity in Christ.

24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.

She was determined to go to Elisha as soon as possible. She had an intensity within her soul. With the intense, God will show Himself intensely. Paul was a very intense man; so was Moses, Stephen, and many more saints. She had continuing faith that if God could give her a son through the word of Elisha, then God could also raise her son from the dead by the word of God through Elisha. 

25 So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:

26 Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well.

Elisha sensed that something was amiss because the woman had never come to him before. The woman replied ... it is well. That reminds me of Horatio Spafford, who wrote the words to the marvelous hymn, "It is Well With My Soul." It is a mark of real Christian maturity when we can say "it is well with my soul" in the midst of severe suffering and anguish.

27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told me.

So Elisha sensed by the Spirit of God that the woman was sorely distressed, but he did not yet know why, because the Lord had not told him.

28 Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me?

The woman struggled somewhat with the question of why the Lord would take from her that which had been Divinely given. Although spiritually mature in many ways, she was still growing spiritually. Some Christians do not seem to understand how something can be Divinely given and then Divinely taken away. There are many examples of this in the Book of Hebrews.

29 Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child.

Elisha apparently expected the Lord to restore the boy's life when his staff was placed on him. Elisha viewed his staff as a representation of his own presence and a symbol of Divine power. But Elisha himself had to learn some things through experience. Elijah had a mantle but Elisha never had a mantle of his own; he simply picked up Elijah's mantle. Elijah followed the Lord; Elisha followed Elijah. It is true that Elisha did twice as many miracles as did Elijah. But Elisha never had the inner character and nature of the Lord worked within him as did Elijah. We must focus on the Giver of all miracles, not the miracles themselves. This was a teaching point for Elisha.

30 And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.

The woman understood the above truth. She trusted Elisha but she did not have much confidence in the staff of Elisha. She insisted that Elisha himself come to her home to raise her dead son to life. 

31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.

32 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. 

The woman had the truth concerning Elisha's staff. Elisha learned a valuable lesson.

33 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD.

When Elisha saw that his staff had no effect on the young boy, he undoubtedly became very intense. Verse 33 says that Elisha prayed unto the Lord. That is not nearly sufficient to describe the intensity of Elisha's actions. It was not a "Lord, please heal Tom or Mary" prayer. It was a prayer of intensity. That was the first time that the Lord had raised someone from the dead through the ministry of Elisha. He had not been that way before. Just as Elijah had done in a similar situation quite some time earlier (1 Kings 17:20), Elisha first turned to the Lord in earnest prayer. Lukewarm prayers usually never get beyond the ceiling. The Lord will show Himself to us in the same manner that we show ourself to Him.

34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.

There is no substitute for hearing the voice of the Lord for ourselves. I have never made an exhaustive search of this, but it seems that Jesus rarely, if ever, healed anyone or performed a miracle in the same way twice. He only did what He saw the Father doing.

35 Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.

In Verse 34, Elisha saw a little sign of life, but he persisted and stretched himself again the second time upon the child. Because of the persistence, determination, and intensity of faith of both Elisha and the woman, the Lord had compassion and brought the boy back to life.

36 And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said, Take up thy son.

God freely gives but we must receive ... we must accept what He gives. God requires action on our part, not simply a passive reception.

37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

Here we see the final step in the fulfillment of faith... thanksgiving ... sincere and grateful thanks in our heart for all that the Lord has done for us.

If the Lord could work His nature into that great woman of faith, He can certainly do the same for you and me... provided that we see the need, confess that we cannot by our own efforts do anything, and sincerely ask the Lord to break us and then make us into His image. Faithful is He who has called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus.

The great woman in 2 Kings 4 is called great simply because she received a prophet (Elisha) in the name of a prophet. Scripture never mentions the name of that great woman, so we could call her a "nobody." That is the only reference in the Bible that speaks of a "great woman." 

Then we read in 2 Kings 5 about how the Lord, through Elisha, healed Naaman the Syrian of leprosy. Naaman is called a great man. Why? because he finally obeyed the word of the Lord through the prophet Elisha. But in that account, it was a little maid who got the ball rolling by introducing Naaman to the prophet Elisha. The primary emphasis in what I shared that Sunday morning was that even if your function in the body of Christ is that of a little maid, if you faithfully function in the place wherein you have been called, and finish your course or purpose for which you were created, then your reward is just as great as that of a prophet such as Elisha.

When that meeting was over, a woman came up to me and told me how much she appreciated that word. She said, "I am a little maid." The Lord used that word to bring life to that woman that day and perhaps for the rest of her life. In perhaps a multitude of occasions, we never know how we have helped others to grow in Christ. That is a good thing! If we knew all of the times that our words or actions have helped others, we might get puffed up in our mind. That speaks of faith. Any time we say or do that which the Lord tells us to say or do, good results must follow, whether or not we ever see the fruit with our natural senses.

In summary, any Type 2 Christian who senses they are stuck in the mud and know it, has a marvelous opportunity to grow quickly in the knowledge of the Lord and bear much fruit. All this type of Christian needs to do is to repent because we are a human being (just as Job and Isaiah both did), repent of the desires and works of the flesh, cry out to the Lord, and ask the Lord to make you into the person that He desires you to be. We all were created for a general purpose and a specific purpose. The general purpose is to glorify God in everything that we say, do, and become. We glorify God by fulfilling the purpose for which we were created. The Lord will always answer the broken heart ... the heart that beats for Him. The way up is down. Humble yourself in the sight of God and He will lift you up.

John 6:35, "And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."

Psalm 107:9, "For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness."

Now we need to ask one more question. Why do Christians of this Type sense that they might be missing God's best? From Verses 20-23 of Romans 8, 

20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of Him who hath subjected the same in hope, 

21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 

22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. 

23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body."

That says that God made man subject to vanity or inutility or uselessness because of the fall of Adam and Eve. The natural man cannot please God, but God hopes that man will repent of man's uselessness and turn to Him. Verse 23 says that even we Spirit-filled Christians are groaning and waiting for our full salvation, which will only be complete with the redemption of our body.

I believe that those verses in Romans 8 imply that God has built into the spiritual DNA of man a longing to move into God's ultimate intention, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

In reality, we all should be Type 2 Christians. David said, in Psalm 17:15, "As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." 

This past Friday, a good brother came over to our house and we talked about the things of the Lord for 3 hours. In essence, the following question came up. If we sense that there is much more for us in Christ than what we have experienced, what do we do to propel us into maturity? I had never thought about this question before; neither do I recall ever reading about an answer. But I found myself saying that I believe there are four ingredients that join together to create hunger in our hearts and pave the way for more of the Lord.

The first ingredient is to hear a specific word from the Lord, either sovereignly or through another believer. A second causative factor is to see a living example through the life of a mature believer. My maternal grandmother had a lot of wisdom. After she went to be with the Lord, I read in one of her Bibles some of the many words of wisdom she had received and walked in. One of those words was this: (quote) "Lord, let me create hunger in their hearts, for until they hunger, they cannot be fed." (end quote)

A third factor is through intercession from other believers. I have been a recipient of all three of those factors many times in my life. I am sure that you have had similar experiences.

But the most important way for us to press toward the mark for the high calling of God in Christ Jesus is by the sovereignty of God, the grace of God, the love of God. For it is God who works in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure.

Psalm 37:3, "Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed."

A 19th century Scottish minister, by the name of Dr. George Matheson, on the evening of June 6, 1882, wrote the words to a lovely hymn titled, "O Love That Will Not Me Go" when he was 40 years of age. I remember my father singing that hymn at weddings, funerals, and church services back in the 1940's. According to Matheson himself, the hymn was the fruit of some severe mental suffering. He said that the words were the quickest bit of work he ever did in his life. (quote) "I had the impression of having it dictated to me by some inward voice rather than of working it out by myself. I am quite sure that the whole work (of four stanzas) was completed in five minutes, and equally sure that it never received at my hands any retouching or correction. All the other verses I have ever written are manufactured articles; this came like a dayspring from on high." (end quote) The words to two of the four stanzas are:

O Love that will not let me go, I rest my weary soul in Thee. I give Thee back the life I owe That in Thine ocean depths its flow May richer, fuller be.
O Love, that will not let me go.
Oh Joy, that seekest me through pain I cannot close my heart to Thee.
I trace the rainbow through the rain, And feel the promise is not vain That morn shall tearless be.

One of the amazing facts associated with this hymn is that Matheson was totally blind when he wrote this hymn. Although never fully substantiated, it is more than possible that just before he was to be married to his college fiancée, she informed him, "I do not wish to be the wife of a blind preacher." It is equally likely that the lingering memory of this rejection from an earthly lover prompted Matheson to write this beautiful expression of an eternal love that will never be broken.

Romans 8:38-39, "For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

What an amazing God we serve! Amen.