In a recent mid-week Bible study our discussion focused briefly on the infamous Old Testament prophet Balaam. The fellow in Numbers 22 who got preached to by his donkey. Remember him?
“As bad as Balaam” became a favorite Bible way to describe a no-good preacher. Bad as he was, though, this wayward prophet still can teach us a lesson.
Like most of us, Balaam knew from the outset what God wanted him to do.
“Come over to
“I’m sorry,” Balaam replied, “but Jehovah wouldn’t like that. I can’t come.” Good for Balaam! He stood up for what he knew his God wanted.
But he didn’t perform so well when the king’s messengers returned with an even better offer. Dazzled by promises of money and power, the prophet waffled.
“Camp down there in the field tonight, and I’ll talk to Jehovah to see what he thinks about your proposal.”
On some subjects God already has made himself so clear that we really don’t need to hold a prayer meeting to find out what he thinks, do we?
Do you need to check with God again to find out whether it’s O.K. to cheat on your mate?
Do you feel an overwhelming need to double-check God’s preferences to find out if you should lie on your income tax return?
If you pray hard enough, do you think God might change his mind about letting you bump off the ex who keeps gouging you for higher child support payments?
In this respect we’re not really a whole lot different from Balaam. We know what God thinks before we ask him. His divine opinion of murder and adultery and dishonesty have not shifted one iota since the beginning of time, have they?
But Balaam, driven by blinding greed, still went through the
charade of asking for God’s opinion about cursing
Either we bow before our Creator and say, “Thy will be done,” or he will bow to our destructive wishes and say to us, “Your will be done.”