The Long Road away from God's Purpose

Numbers 22:1 

Then the Israelites traveled to the plains of Moab and camped along the Jordan across from Jericho. ² Now Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites, ³ and Moab was terrified because there were so many people. Indeed, Moab was filled with dread because of the Israelites. . . . ⁴ So Balak son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time, ⁵ sent messengers to summon Balaam son of Beor who was at Pethor, near the River, in his native land. Balak said: "A people has come out of Egypt; they cover the face of the land and have settled next to me. ⁶ Now come and put a curse on these people, because they are too powerful for me. Perhaps then I will be able to defeat them and drive them out of the country. For I know that those you bless are blessed, and those you curse are cursed." ⁷ The elders of Moab and Midian left, taking with them the fee for divination. When they came to Balaam, they told him what Balak had said. ⁸ "Spend the night here," Balaam said to them, "and I will bring you back the answer the LORD gives me." So the Moabite princes stayed with him. ⁹ God came to Balaam and asked, "Who are these men with you?" ¹⁰ Balaam said to God, "Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, sent me this message: ¹¹ 'A people that has come out of Egypt covers the face of the land. Now come and put a curse on them for me. Perhaps then I will be able to fight them and drive them away.' " ¹² But God said to Balaam, "Do not go with them. You must not put a curse on those people, because they are blessed." ¹³ The next morning Balaam got up and said to Balak's princes, "Go back to your own country, for the LORD has refused to let me go with you." ¹⁴ So the Moabite princes returned to Balak and said, "Balaam refused to come with us." 

The reading today tells the story of a man with a double heart. One the one hand we read that he resisted the pressure of enticement with material possession or royal accolades. And if he had held resolutely to those values Balaam would have been recorded among the righteous concerning Israel. Instead we read that he ended up one of their arch enemies.

2 Peter 2:15  forsaking the right way, they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; ¹⁶but he received a rebuke for his own transgression, for a mute donkey, speaking with a voice of a man, restrained the madness of the prophet. 

You can read the whole story in Numbers 22 and 23. The lowlights were that after Balaam faithfully sent the kings messengers Balak, the king, sent more noble messengers with greater rewards. 

Numbers 22:15  Then Balak again sent leaders, more numerous and more distinguished than the former. ¹⁶They came to Balaam and said to him, "Thus says Balak the son of Zippor, 'Let nothing, I beg you, hinder you from coming to me; ¹⁷for I will indeed honor you richly, and I will do whatever you say to me. Please come then, curse this people for me. 

Once again it seemed like Balaam would pass the test:

Numbers 22:18 Balaam replied to the servants of Balak, Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not do anything, either small or great, contrary to the command of the LORD my God.

But then Balaam made what I consider his fatal mistake. 

Numbers 22:19 "Now please, you also stay here tonight, and I will find out what else the LORD will speak to me." ²⁰God came to Balaam at night and said to him, "If the men have come to call you, rise up and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you shall you do." ²¹ So Balaam arose in the morning, and saddled his donkey and went with the leaders of Moab. 

I believe that we don't just sin. I believe we make mistakes.A mistake when followed to its end will end up in sin but in itself it is not a sin. The best example for me of this understanding was Eve. She sinned when she took the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. She made a mistake when she listened to the serpent as he challenged God's Word. She had not sinned by talking to the serpent but it was a big mistake. If she had stopped at the mistake level she would have never sinned. 

Too often we hang around temptation too long. It is not a sin but it is a big mistake. 

Balaam is a perfect example. You see God had already told him not to go. Why did he need to go back and ask God a second time? Only one reason. He wanted to get what Balak offered him but he wanted to have God's approval as well. And God let him go when he asked the second time. Here is the part that is very hard to understand:

Numbers 22:22 But God was angry because he was going,

Why would God be angry when He told Balaam to go with the men? 

God teaches us two ways - by us listening in complete surrender to His heart and ways as revealed through His Word or by giving us up to our own devices. We have already seen this in the wilderness. The people cried out for meat and God gave it to them. But as soon as they started eating it the started dying from a plague.

Psalm 106:14-15 Expresses it perfectly:
 ¹⁴ But lusted exceedingly in the wilderness,
         And tested God in the desert.
 ¹⁵ And He gave them their request,
         But sent leanness into their soul.  

I like the way the Message says it:

They only cared about pleasing themselves in that desert,
      provoked God with their insistent demands.
   He gave them exactly what they asked for—
      but along with it they got an empty heart. 

We will see this again as the people of Israel cried out for a king. Even though He made it absolutely clear that it was in complete opposition to His will God even choose their king for them. 

Psalm 81:11 But my people would not hearken to my voice and Israel would none of me. 12 So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust: and they walked in their own counsels.

Romans 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts,. . . 26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections:. . . .

Many years ago, when I first began to meditate on this truth I found it very disturbing.  But I know from the scriptures and history that it is true. When we do not listen to Him, God will let us learn by going our own way. The terrible tragedy of this is seen clearly in Balaam's life. 

Numbers 22:22b and the angel of the LORD took his stand in the way as an adversary against him. Now he was riding on his donkey and his two servants were with him.²³When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand, the donkey turned off from the way and went into the field; but Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back into the way. ²⁴Then the angel of the LORD stood in a narrow path of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side.²⁵When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she pressed herself to the wall and pressed Balaam's foot against the wall, so he struck her again.²⁶The angel of the LORD went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn to the right hand or the left.²⁷When the donkey saw the angel of the LORD, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam was angry and struck the donkey with his stick.²⁸And the LORD opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, "What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?" ²⁹Then Balaam said to the donkey, "Because you have made a mockery of me! If there had been a sword in my hand, I would have killed you by now." ³⁰The donkey said to Balaam, "Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden all your life to this day? Have I ever been accustomed to do so to you?" And he said, "No." ³¹Then the LORD opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the way with his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed all the way to the ground. ³²The angel of the LORD said to him, "Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out as an adversary, because your way was contrary to me. ³³"But the donkey saw me and turned aside from me these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, I would surely have killed you just now, and let her live." 

See the great deception the lusts of the flesh, eyes and the pride of life have? At that moment Balaam should have said, "That's it! I'm headed back home." But he didn't:

Numbers 22:34 Balaam said to the angel of the LORD, " I have sinned, for I did not know that you were standing in the way against me. Now then, if it is displeasing to you, I will turn back."

Understand this, God already told him not to go and the reason why -  "But God said to Balaam, "Do not go with them. You must not put a curse on those people, because they are blessed.""

Balaam knew God had told him that he could not curse Israel. God's first command was not to go. Nothing had changed in the situation. Balak was still seeking to get him to curse them. But Balaam kept asking to go. So Balaam lost his destiny for good and became a horrible lesson about the consequences of continuing down the long road away from God. Scripture gives us a look at what God saw in Balaam's heart - He  "loved the wages of unrighteousness;" (2 Peter 2:15 above) 

As we read the rest of the passage we might think, "What is so bad about Balaam? He did not curse Israel but blessed them." This is the problem with double mindedness. It seems like we are doing what is right but our hearts are intent on finding a way to get our own desire and still believe we are doing God's will. Ultimately the reward of divination became more powerful than keeping God's command. Balaam did not curse Israel directly but instead taught Balak what it took to get them cursed:

Revelation 2:14 'But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality.

Israel came under a deep curse as they followed those sent into the camp by Balak into fornication and idol worship. And Balaam died for his part in bringing that curse on them. 

Balaam's name is used fifty seven times in scripture. All of them tell the sad story of a double minded man who knew the will of God but for earthly goods and honor failed to find his destiny. Had he followed God his name might have appeared only one time. But it would have been in honor.

With these thoughts in mind I believe we need to commit ourselves to wholeheartedly listening to God the first time He speaks. We need to not ask twice about what he reveals in the scripture or by His Spirit in line with that scripture. We also need to remove ourselves from situations that tempt us. Most of all we need to seek God to take out of us any hint of doublemindedness about serving Him.