Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
God met with him, and Balaam said, "I have prepared seven altars, and on each altar I have offered a bull and a ram."
The Lord put a message in Balaam's mouth and said, "Go back to Balak and give him this message." So he went back to him and found him standing beside his offering, with all the princes of Moab. Then Balaam uttered his oracle:
"Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains. 'Come,' he said, 'curse Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.'
How can I curse those whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce those whom the Lord has not denounced?
From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them.
I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations.
Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel?
Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs!"
Balak said to Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but you have done nothing but bless them!" He answered, "Must I not speak what the Lord puts in my mouth?" Numbers 23:4-12
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
As we continue in Chapter 23 of Numbers, Balak has constructed the seven sacrificial altars just as Balaam recommended. On each altar, a bull and a ram were offered. This is the report that Balaam makes to God as he seeks guidance from Him to deliver to Balak.
Scripture tells us that the Lord gave Balaam what he asked for, placing a message in his mouth and ordering him to give Balak the message. So Balaam obediently follows God’s order and returns to Balak who anxiously awaits the word that a curse had been placed on Israel and Balaam had gained control over the Israelite god. He was more than a little bit surprised at what Balaam said next.
For Balaam says the following to Balak:
"Balak brought me from Aram, the king of Moab from the eastern mountains. 'Come,' he said, 'curse Jacob for me; come, denounce Israel.'
How can I curse those whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce those whom the Lord has not denounced?
From the rocky peaks I see them, from the heights I view them.
I see a people who live apart and do not consider themselves one of the nations.
Who can count the dust of Jacob or number the fourth part of Israel?
Let me die the death of the righteous, and may my end be like theirs!"
Shocked by these words, Balak asks Balaam, "What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but you have done nothing but bless them!" To which Balaam replies, "Must I not speak what the Lord puts in my mouth?"
Indeed, this God was like no other god that Balaam had ever encountered. Frankly, my feeling is that Balaam had never really encountered a god at all but it was good for business as a diviner and did keep him employed. The people sure bought into the god stories and his ability to control the gods. Balaam finds out in a hurry that this God was real…alive and active…powerful, demanding and transforming.
This God caused Balaam to look within himself and examine what he had the right to do and not do. Balaam’s words support his inability to carry out Balak’s wishes as he said, “How can I curse those whom God has not cursed? How can I denounce those whom the Lord has not denounced?” In other words, if the Almighty God of Israel found no reason to condemn, then why would he condemn? After all, who was he to condemn…to curse or denounce anyways? And in the end, Balaam concluded that he would rather be with Israel than against them. In other words, he would rather partner with this God than with the pagans he used to share company with.
Friends, when we truly come to the place where we are following Jesus Christ, we too come to a place where we stop judging others and passing judgment. We throw off our former life where we partnered with the world and it’s sinful ways, trading that life for the life of righteousness and holiness only found in the One who proclaimed that He was the way and the truth and the life…the only One through which we can find our way to the Father so we like Balaam can find our way to “die the death of the righteous”. (John 14:16)
This scripture took me back to the time in my life shortly after my divorce. I was playing the blame game, laying all fault on my wife for the infidelity she committed. But then the Lord entered into my life and my heart…and He brought conviction along with Him to show me that I was just as guilty as she was for we were both sinners in need of a Savior…in need of His mercy and grace. I realized that I had failed to lead my family spiritually and this led things down the road of destruction. He made me realize that I had not truly loved my wife as Christ loved the church…that I had not done enough to make her realize that she was a real blessing from the Lord to me. In other words, I had failed just as much as she had. I had no right to curse or denounce.
Praise God that He gave me a second chance in life to make amends for my past mistakes…and I have made the most of it. No longer do I judge others or condemn because it’s not my place. Who am I to judge when I am just as much a sinner as the next person? And so I turn my life over to Jesus…heart, mind and soul…He is my treasure…and as He said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”. (Matthew 6:21) It is this Jesus who has led me to the place of forgiveness and reconciliation…to a place of mercy and grace and love. It is this Jesus and His Father who has helped me see who I truly am and who I can truly be in Them…just as God was trying to do with Balaam.
Question: How are the Father and His Son speaking to you today? What message are they placing on your heart? Are they helping you see who you truly are…leading you from the life of sin to die the death of the righteous?
If we’re truly going to be the people the Lord wants us to be, we need to realize who we are, more importantly, who He wants us to be. Know right up front that this is going to involve change and a non-conformity to the world’s ways. But we are living for something far greater than this world can offer and our future is not finite but infinite…not terminal but eternal…death is not the end but only the beginning. All we need to do is believe and trust in Jesus…the One we need to see ourselves like more than anyone else. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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