The Error of Balaam 14 -the Error of alternative obedience

“Then Balaam said to Balak "Stand by your burnt offerings and I will go ,perhaps the Lord will come to meet me and whatever He shows me, I will tell you ".So he went to a desolate height. Numbers 23:3  NKJV New King James Version

We continue to look at the life of Balaam and compare with our lives so as to avoid the many errors that Balaam made on the way to the final error for which he is most known for (greed).It seems that it was the greed and his eye on the reward he would get that shaped  the several choices that he made.

When we compare the conversation of Balaam with the messengers from Balak at the very first and second meetings Numbers 22:4-8,18-19 there  appears to be a change in  Balaam's demeanour  when he finally meets Balak( Numbers 23:3). He is no more as sure as he was of an answer from God.

Whereas when he was originally met by the messengers from Balak in Numbers chapter 22, he told them categorically that they should wait as he would hear from God and get back to them( Numbers 22:8),however some chapters down the line it is the same Balaam who now tells Balak that perhaps the Lord would speak to him(Numbers 23:3). Earlier on in this series, we  did commend Balaam for having the kind of relationship with God that is enviable. What made Balaam move from a state of absolutely sure to a state of perhaps? Could it be that his sense of perception was dulled by continuous disobedience? Sometimes in our lives, we find out that we are not as perceptive as we used to be and the issue may just be in the area of obedience. Refusing to do what we know God has asked us to do has a way of hindering our relationship or standing as a veil between us and him.

Disobedience itself is an act which stems from the spirit of rebellion. God had a right to tell Balaam what to do but because Balaam was  more concerned with having his own way, he refused  to submit to authority, thus became guilty of rebellion. And he was ready to use different ways to manipulate God and that in itself is witchcraft. No wonder the Bible likens witchcraft to rebellion (1 Samuel 15:23).

 In the next half of verse 23 of 1 Samuel 15, we are told that obedience is better than sacrifice. I must confess that the Bible is quite exact as the very thing we do after being rebellious is to be manipulative and then try to offer sacrifices to serve as alternatives for our obedience. All through the Bible however, we learn that obedience is non-negotiable. This is best summed up in the words of Apostle John  and Jesus who confirm that obedience is the mark that we really know him ( 1 John 2:4) and love him(John 14:15).

 Sometimes acts of sacrifices may be a way of avoiding what we know is our call of duty, and although they may seem impressive to others, God has regard only for the man who trembles at his word instead(Isaiah 66:2).ready to obey them.

Balaam indeed did many sacrifices for so many rams and bullocks were slaughtered during his consultation (a staggering total of almost 50 animals), but in spite of all these, God’s verdict for Israel(they cannot be cursed Numbers  22:12& 23:8 ) did not change  as He cannot be manipulated

 The place of obedience in our relationship with God cannot be overemphasised. It is our regard for God that makes us reverence and obey his Word. When God speaks, he speaks to be obeyed .Reasoning God’s word has a way of dulling our perception to his Spirit as we see in the life of Balaam.

 In His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.

Error of Balaam 13 -"The Error of using God

“Then Balaam said to Balak, ”Build seven altars for me here, and prepare for me here seven bulls and seven rams”, And Balak did just as Balaam had spoken ,and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar”. Numbers 23:1-2 NKJV New Kings James Version

So Balaam commands Balak to offer the sacrifices following the building of seven altars. On these seven altars were offered seven rams and seven bulls. This is all in an attempt to pacify or appease God or rightly  the “gods” before cursing. It seems that  Balak did not have any problems with going along the notions as long as he got what he wanted.

So both Balaam and Balak offer the sacrifice (Numbers 23:2) in an attempt to curse the people of God. The error here to me seems to be the error of using God. It is the error of trying to buy God’s favour or anger , the error of using the externals. As spiritual as building altars or  offering sacrifices may be , it is wrong for us to use these things to serve our purpose. It is not surprising these days to see some believers fast and pray in an attempt to curse another individual who has perhaps hurt them or are perceived to have done so or be planning to do so.It is also common to hear the excuse of such acts being that one cannt argue with results but that in itself is wrong as we see God in the Old Testament questioning Moses results. Moses was told to speak to the rock but in his anger, he struck the rock and although the same result of water rushing out occured but not without God’s anger and pronouncement that Moses would not enter the promised land (Deutronomy 4:21, 3:27;Psalms 106:32,33).

 Some Christians today open some Bible passages, rather than reading for meditation, use it to confer curses on other people. Even during Jesus stay here on earth, we see some of his disciples asking that they used the power available to call down fire on the Samaritans who had not received Jesus and it is pertinent to note that Jesus rebuked them sharply and  reprimanded them  saying  “ye do not know what Spirit you have received(Luke 9:55).

The kind of spirit we have received is not the one that allows us to go cursing individuals like Balak intends Balaam to do. It may be something we do subtly with accompanying  spiritual exercises and disciplines but if our motive is borne out of vengeance or self preservation  rather than  out of love, Paul admonishes us that it amounts to nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1-4).

All through the Bible, there have always been people who were enemies to God’s people and time and time again, we have seen how God fought for his people. Our current case study is an example that God is well able to defend us. All we see happening behind the scene is unknown to the Israelites yet they cannot be cursed.

This is not to discredit spiritual warfare and prayers against the forces of darkness as the Bible enjoins us to (Ephesians 6:12),  but it is one thing to be praying against spiritual wickedness in high places and another thing to be praying against our neighbours, friends, family and supposed enemies. God is able to fight for us without us trying to curse people. It may be popular or people may have claimed it worked for them but the end does not justify the means rather let us take heed as everything will be judged by the test of love.

Yours in His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.

Error of Balaam 12- The error of compromise

At the very beginning of these series, when we began to consider the errors of Balaam, one of the errors we examined was the error of wrong company and we later saw how this error led to wrong battles. Once again , in this chapter we see Balaam fully associated with wrong company go further down in the path of compromise  which led  to  erecting wrong altars and sacrifices.

Eventually he arrived in Moab where he was rebuked by Balak for not trusting in his ability to honor him. Balak dangles in front of Balaam the fact that he is able to promote and enrich him. Balak asked three questions of Balaam and did not receive any answers. Balak seems to place himself in the position of God as regards providing honor.The enemy cannot provide us with honor as it is the Lord who gives promotion ( Psalms   ).In verse 40 , we see Balak offering sacrifices and sending to Balaam. There is however a sad progression as we see Balaam in the next verse accompanying Balak to the high places of Baal.

How did a prophet get to the place where he began to offer sacrifices on pagan altars? It was not possible for Balaam to associate with wrong company without doing wrong and we see that there is no defined path for the way of compromise. Once we start to compromise , it is most probable that along the way,we will continue to take little steps.The path of compromise is always spiralling downwards with every little step going beyond our original boundaries and convictions till we are left with none. We  sometimes do this  to keep the peace but  the price is usually too high and peace bought this way eventually alludes us.

The perfect will of God for Balaam was already stated the very first night the men from Balaam  came with the instruction for him not to go with the men. To further buttress the point, we see the angel of the Lord coming to kill him for his disobedience, still Balaam was bent on going and indeed he comes to a place where his compromise leads him far beyond what he has bargained for. For his company’s sake, he has begun to eat things sacrificed to idols and to offer sacrifices on altars of Baal. God knows the fluidity of the human experience and how we love to be like those around us That is why he warned the children of Israel not to intermarry with other nations as one of the first things they were sure to do was to turn their hearts to other gods. Idolatry is the first commandment God warned against.

The company we keep will eventually be the company we worship with. What they put in the place of God will naturally become our god in no distant future. Perhaps this is another time for us to revisit our company, check those people who have our ears for indeed they have our lives.

Yours in His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer

Error of Balaam 11 -a look at Balak

Balaam’s First Message

1 Balaam said, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me.” 

2Balak did as Balaam said, and the two of them offered a bull and a ram on each altar. 

3 Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your offering while I go aside. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet with me. Whatever he reveals to me I will tell you.” Then he went off to a barren height Numbers 23:1-1 NIV New International Version 

For quite a while now,we have been discussing the "Error of Balaam" with the emphasis being the several different errors Balaam made along the way to the main error for which he is popularly known. It appears that the various choices he made along the way were feeders into the stream that eventually brought his downfall.

As I read through Chapter twenty three of Numbers and moved closer to the scene when Balaam begins to eventually do what Balak wanted him to do, I have been reading with the desire to see not only errors but if there are some things he did that we can emulate.I noticed another error which appears to have been committed by Balak and it is an error we sometimes commit.

Balak prepared his offerings and also built seven altars. This was someone who was not a believer but had the outward show. He built altars and was ready to sacrifice bulla and rams so as to achieve his purpose. As a people. we must be careful not to be involved in spiritual acttivity in a bid to further our cause rather than the cause of God. In the Bible whenever altars were built, it usually signified a place of meeting with God , as a place of divine encounter that brought change to the lives. Sometimes serving as a place of worship, it also serves as a place of revelation but with Balak, we see him building this altar not to further enhance his relationship with God but to curse his enemies.

And what is interesting is the fact that the very next verse states categorically that  although Balak was the one who built the altar, it was both Balaam and Balak  who offered the sacrifices on each altar. I am not sure why Balaam did this and would like to consider that in the next post.

Yours in His Service

Grace Tom-lawyer

Error of Balaam 10-The Error of Sef -deceit

31Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.

32 The angel of the Lord asked him, “Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come here to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me.[a] 33 The donkey saw me and turned away from me these three times. If it had not turned away, I would certainly have killed you by now, but I would have spared it.”

34 Balaam said to the angel of the Lord, “I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back.” Numbers 22:31-34 NIV New International Version

After Balaam left with the second delegation from Balak, he was opposed by the angel whom he did not see initially. He became frustrated by the unexplainable behaviour of the donkey and responded to what he did not understand by the use of violence and abuse. He actually considered killing the donkey until his eyes were eventually opened to see the angel .The angel rebuked Balaam for being abusive to the donkey who was trying to save his life. There are so many times we erroneously think that people and things that are not working our way are `evil .The reality is that some oppositions we face may not be from the enemy but it might just be God's way of saving us from further harm. .Balaam's ignorance was no excuse for his abuse of his donkey and the ensuing conversation with the angel reveals yet another error.

  Balaam followed the notions by worshipping the angel when he saw him. This angel appears to be the Lord as there is no record of the angel  rebuking this act of worship. There have been other appearances in the Old Testament that refer to the angel with subsequent unrebuked / unhindered worship by individuals(  Judges 13:3-23,Joshua 5:13-15 ).He was ready to do the outward display of submission without really totally submitting as the latter part of his answer reveals.

"I have sinned. I did not realize you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you are displeased, I will go back.” ( italics mine for emphasis)

He started well right by saying that he had sinned but his confession did not automatically translate to repentance. It is not enough to confess if we are not going to make amends(Proverbs 28:13) and ironically, the last part of his statement shows that Balaam is in a sort of denial and the error here which we are also guilty of from time to time is that of self deceit. According to the Free Dictionary , Self deceit is the act or an instance of deceiving oneself, especially as to the true nature of one’s feelings or motives.It was no secret that God did not want Balaam to go in the first place but because his motives was getting the divination money at all cost(2 Peter 2:15-16,Jude 1:11).

Living in self deceit may also be a case of having a form of godliness but denying the power therefore (2 Timothy 3:5).It may also be denying the power of the grace of God (Titus 2:11-13) to say no to certain things we are sure of are not his will for us. Usually this would require an amount of sacrifice which our flesh usually does not want to do (Galatians 5:17).

We all have a tendency towards self deceit because sometimes the truth is too painful to face and at other times we have our own personal agenda and do not want to go all the way. We may be living in denial of our actual state but for there to be true healing and progress,  the truth must be faced and with the help of God this is possible.

Yours in His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer

The Error of Balaam 9- The Error of Insensitivity

)        Balaam got up in the morning, saddled his donkey and went with the Moabite officials. 22 But God was very angry when he went,and the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him. Balaam was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 When the donkey saw the angel of the Lord standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand, it turned off the road into a field. Balaam beat it to get it back on the road".- Numbers 22:21-23 NIV New International Version

         When we were young, my siblings and I were sometimes naughty as all children are but   a quick supervisory look by my mother quickly made us make some readjustments.As I grew older,I realized that this experience was not uncommon with my contemporaries   and that the look is referred to as  the "Mama's eye".Without words, this eye had a way of communicating several  messages  which were best yielded to in order to avoid  discipline later.The "Mama's eye" told you when to sit down, stand up, not accept a gift or food you seriously wanted to,it gave you the final warning and the one that promised  you would cry later.Due to inexperience, sometimes the youngest child may not  decipher what was required by just a look and thus further necessitate the use of words  with   greater mercy in the area of punishment when compared to an older child who    stubbornly  refused to heed  to warnings following several looks.        

      

      The next error we see is almost synonymous to saying Balaam did not understand the "mama's eye".He goes on rather quickly the very next morning with the visitors(Numbers 22:21).However the author of Numbers  leaves us in  no doubt of God's stance on the matter by penning down eight words in the first part of verse 22 "God was very angry that he went". I like  the fact that God did something about his anger.He did not just sit passively and we are enjoined to do the same especially for anger at a justifiable cause;anger about domestic abuse or child trafficking to mention a few.          

 "..And the angel of the Lord stood in the road to oppose him....."

    
God sent an angel to oppose him but both Balaam and his servants were blind, so blind that it took a donkey to  remove him from the place of danger.It took 3 consecutive attempts by the donkey and on those 3 occasions ,he was beaten by his owner.This picture however does not depict the Bible's position with regards to the treatment of animals.Quite the contrary as cruelty to animals is condemned by the Bible  as  depicted by the angel's rebuke to Balaam later in this chapter (Numbers 22:32), and other places(Exodus 23:5, Proverbs 27:23).Balaam was infuriated by the donkey's behaviour and the donkey eventually  resorted to words to explain his behaviour.Several commentators have argued about whether the donkey really talked but I would love us to refer to what the Word of God really says.In 2 Peter 2:16, we are told that the donkey spoke with a human voice,end of story.

   
Balaam's failure to perceive and his subsequent insensitivity may most likely have resulted from his stubbornness.Continuous persistence in wrong doing will lead to a searing of conscience and dampened sensitivity  to the voice of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. Balaam was so gone in the path he was determined to take that even the voice of a human from the donkey did not deter him.Once again,we see how one error pf Balaam led to another.Because he was disobedient,and head on stubborn, he no longer could perceive God and became opposed by God.Sometimes we suffer some opposition because God himself is trying to discipline and restore us. The true proof that we are loved and are  not bastards is discipline from our fathers( Hebrews 12:8) as  a child left to himself  will bring shame to the mother( Proverbs 29:15).

      

      For us today, we can learn that insensitivity does not usually take place suddenly, rather a series of repeated  disobedience to the Spirit of God or the revealed word  of God will eventually cause callousness of our  spirits(1 Samuel 15 ,Acts 5:1-11).Whenever it is that we can see in the spirit the "Mama's eye" showing disapproval,it is necessary for us to proceed no further and retrace our steps. Someone has rightly stated that "Obedience is Jesus's love language" and if we say we love him, we should obey him(John 14:15,1 John 5:3) .It is in the place of continuous obedience that we receive further instruction.What need is there for him to give us some more instructions not to obey.Obedience is not just only the proof of our love but serves as the barometer of our spiritual intimacy and enhances our  sensitivity to the  Holy Spirit.    

     In His Service          

     Grace Tom-Lawyer

The Error of Balaam 8- The Error of Stubborness

18 Then Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. 19 Now therefore, please, you also stay here tonight, that I may know what more the Lord will say to me.”

20 And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men come to call you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you shall do.” 21 So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab. V.12, 20, 22 Numbers 22:18-21 NKJV New King James Version

  

“That night God came to Balaam and said, “Since these men have come to summon you, go with them, but do only what I tell you.”-Numbers 22:20  NIV  New International Version

Several versions give different renditions to the reply of God to Balaam at this second visit. Some commentators say that God only gave Balaam permission to go if the men came to call him(as seen in the King James Version ) and that since there is no record of the men coming to call him, then he should not have gone.The New International Version however renders verse 20 of  God's reply as "Since the men have come to call you ",making it appear that God had no choice in the matter as the men had come again. However, most commentators  generally agree on one point which is that the permission of Balaam to go was conditional.This grudging permission  did not seem to deter Balaam from going ahead with Balak's request. The heart of Balaam was clearly  fixed  with a mind of his own and although we are more apt  to use the word for children, the error we see here is "Stubbornness".

So what is stubbornness? According to Meiam –Webster Dictionary, Stubbornness is unreasonably or perversely unyielding, resolute, performed or carried on in an unyielding ,obstinate or persistent manner.One is said to be stubborn when he is obstinate,inflexibly fixed in opinion;not  to be moved or persuaded by reasons or is inflexible.There is a good side to  stubbornness as there are times we need to be inflexibly fixed  about some issues but our focus for now is  on wilful stubbornness here and its dire consequences  as seen here and  in other Biblical characters such as Pharoah(Exodus 13:15) and Saul(1 Samuel 15;1-24).

The Prophet Samuel put his finger on the very root when he told  King Saul that stubbornness  is as  the sin of iniquity and  idolatry(1 Samuel 15: 23) and  although we usually associate idolatry with graven images, the idolatry of stubbornness is our failure to give God the rightful place to have the first and final say in our lives.This  is because there is another god we have chosen to obey which sadly if truth be told,is ourselves.The position of stubbornness is one that is far from righteousness(Isaiah 46:12).When we are stubborn, we do not pay attention to God (Zechariah 7:11),resist the gentle nudging of the Holy Spirit (Acts 7.51) and find a reason to be an exception to the rule like Balaam.

There are several reasons for stubbornness amongst which include pride (Nehemiah 9:16) and ignorance( Ephesians 4:18).Not left without consequences,Stubbornness makes us go backwards and not forward in our relationship with God (Jeremiah 7:24) Although  God loves hearts that are quick to repentance,Stubbornness makes repentance  fractious .In relation to our fellow men, Stubbornness  causes insistence on our own way almost all the time which  shows lack of consideration for others, making them feel devalued. It can also lead to unreasonable behaviour(Gen 49 5-6) which ultimately  destroys relationships.

An attitude of the heart,Stubbornness  may be subtle and an error to watch out for especially as it  has been equated with the sin of  idolatry. The very first commandment warns us against idolatry (Exodus 20:3) and in Old Testament  Bible times, stubbornness was such a serious issue that a stubborn child was surrendered by his parents to be killed(Deuteronomy 21:18-20).For us today,it is not a  stubborn child but “ourselves” , the "I" also referred to as the "flesh" which in a nutshell is anything rising in opposition to the plan and will of God(Galatians 5:17).The same cruel treatment given to a stubborn child  has to be given to the flesh to ensure it does not usurp the authority of the Spirit(Romans 6:11-12,Galatians 5:16).We are  indeed admonished to kill the flesh( Romans 8:13).This is a daily struggle(Luke 9:24-27) which even the great Apostle Paul admitted to having(Romans 7:21-25)..One of the secrets to avoiding  this error is to be yielded to the Spirit with a continuous daily filling(Galatians 5:16, Ephesians 5:18 ) while maintaining a heart that is quick to repent(Proverbs 28:13-14).Let us remember that continuous stubbornness will lead to destruction (Proverbs 29:1 )  as we ultimately see in the life of Balaam( Numbers 31:8).God promises to guide and lead us in the best pathway as long as we are not stubborn like the mule (Psalms 32:8-9). Lord deliver us from stubbornness and idolatry(1 John 5:21).

Yours in His Service,

Grace Tom-Lawyer.