There is a reason for the seemingly unconnected words being in this title. Over the last three Sundays we’ve been taking a deep dive into the fascinating story of Balaam from the book of Numbers.
I know what Bible readers are thinking. “Something interesting from Numbers?” It’s true, Numbers can be a pretty dry read. However, as with all Scripture, it has lessons for us to learn. In Numbers 22 the Israelites are camped on the east side of the Jordan river near the Dead Sea in the region that belongs to the Moabite people. I suppose when a group of people numbering in excess of 2,000,000 show up in your land you may be a bit concerned.
The king of Moab wanted to deal with what he thought was an invasion by getting Balaam to curse them. Who is Balaam? Just, an internationally known divination expert. That’s right, you can find mention of Balaam and his non-biblical prophecy in world history.
Donkey: When Balaam goes with the king’s men the only thing that kept him from getting himself killed was his faithful donkey. The Angel of the Lord was only visible to the donkey and three times the donkey does his best to avoid the Angel. And three times Balaam whips his donkey. At that God gave the donkey the ability to speak. After that conversation with his donkey, Balaam is able to see the Angel himself and falls to the ground.
We can gather from the story that even though Balaam knew he was NOT going to be able to curse the Israelites, he was hoping to manage it so he could receive the payment for services. Here is the lesson. God knows our hearts, our thoughts, and our intentions. We can lie to others and ourselves all we want, but we can never lie to God. Balaam claimed obedience, but that was not true.
To know God is to love Him. To love God is to obey Him. To obey God is to worship Him. Do not fall into Balaam’s folly. God knows your heart.
Disappointment: Balaam tries on three occasions to curse the Israelites on behalf of the king of Moab. And three times what comes out is a blessing. There was enough disappointment to share. At one point the king is so upset he more or less tells Balaam, “If you can’t curse them, then shut up.” We’ve all been disappointed. And some of us have even been disappointed with what God has done in our lives or what He didn’t do. Perhaps we’ve asked God for healing, or really need financial help, perhaps relationship repair, to take away our pain of all sorts. It’s a very human thing to experience disappointment.
Here is the lesson. You don’t always get what you want. But if you ask God for what He wants, you’ll get it every time.
Direction: When I was 19 yrs old, I went to Sacramento, CA. for an internship. About mid-way through the summer a friend from college was passing through the area. We decided to go see Bruce Almighty in the theater. After the movie I was supposed to take him to the house he was staying that night. I was pretty sure I knew where I was going. In fact, I DID NOT KNOW WHERE I WAS GOING. We ended up lost. Really lost. So lost and unsafe, someone came to escort us home.
Well, Balaam didn’t end up being able to curse the Israelites, so he came up with another way to get paid. Why curse someone if you can get them to curse themselves? The specific details the biblical narrative doesn’t spell out for us. But we know that Balaam taught the Moabites and even Midianites how to corrupt the men of Israel. Numbers 25 tells the story of sexual immorality and idol worship that the women of Moab and Midian convinced the Israelite men to join in. Revelation 2:21 NASB says: “There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak (King of Moab) to entice the Israelites to sin…” Balaam’s story ends with the pointy end of a sword. That is, he was put to death with a sword.
Here is the lesson: Balaam’s story is a reminder that if we follow bad directions there is something way worse than getting lost on a trip. Getting lost on a trip; we can be found. Getting lost following the bad directions of the world and we will lose our soul. God’s GPS unit, the BIBLE, will lead you to abundant life, and life evermore in the presence of God Himself. Mind the directions you listen to.
In His service always,
Andrew P. Christman
Pastor of State Road Church & Church of Peace
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of The Kewanee Voice.
