Rev. David Holwick ZH Make It Count, #15
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
October 16, 2011
Numbers 22:27-35
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I. What would you do if you had one?
A. Our first-ever prime time multimedia trivia quiz. [1]
1) (Shrek's donkey)
a) What is his name?
b) He's not Shrek - the donkey is just called Donkey.
c) He sounds a lot like Eddie Murphy.
1> What did doing three voice-overs earn him?
2> At least $17 million.
2) (Mister Ed)
a) I grew up with Mister Ed. He aired from 1960-66.
b) The legend is that they made him talk by putting peanut
butter on his lips, but they really used a thread.
c) After a few seasons, he automatically moved his lips
when humans stopped talking.
d) Do you remember his theme song?
A horse is a horse, of course of course,
and no one can talk to a horse of course,
that is of course, unless the horse,
Is the famous Mister Ed!
e) TV has been all downhill since then...
3) (Francis the Talking Mule)
a) Do you recognize him? You are really dating yourself.
1> Francis was in 7 movies in the 1950s.
2> He was an Army mule who would only talk to his
handler.
b) Actor Donald O'Conner hated Francis because the mule
got more fan mail than he did.
1> And he missed out the biggest scene in "White
Christmas" because the mule gave him a virus.
B. A talking animal would make you a lot of money.
1) That would be a big motivation for many people.
a) It motivated Balaam because he was into money.
2) But sometimes talking animals have a deeper value than
dollars and cents.
a) Sometimes they open up your eyes to the truth about God.
II. The profitable prophet.
A. Israel is poised on the Promised Land.
1) They have encountered local Amorites and defeated them.
a) One final nation stands as a barrier - Moab.
2) Moab's king, Balak, recognizes his situation.
a) Drafting a quick army won't work - Jews are too numerous.
b) So he turns to religion: he arranges a curse on Israel.
1> Curses were thought to have a lot of power back then.
2> A good curse would level the playing field so that
Moab might actually win.
3> But you needed the right kind of person to give a
good curse.
B. The famous Balaam enters the scene.
1) He was internationally known and came from far away.
a) Many of the elements in this episode strike many as a
pure fairy tale, but consider this.
b) Hard evidence on Balaam:
In 1967 archaeologists working in Deir Alla, Jordan,
unearthed a wall that was covered with inscriptions.
When they translated them, they found they were
prophecies of Balaam, dating to around 800 BC.
None of them are found in the Bible.
This guy had a big reputation back then. [2]
2) Balaam was a pagan prophet whose specialty was divination.
a) In other words, reading signs in animal guts.
b) He was also experienced in visions and supernatural
experiences.
c) He was not a Jew, but he is one of the more interesting
characters in the Bible.
III. Is Balaam a saint or a sinner?
A. He had pretty good theology for a pagan.
1) He calls on Yahweh and says he is his God. 22:8,18
2) He insists he will only prophesy the words God gives him.
a) Even a ton of treasure wouldn't change his mind. 22:18
b) He proves it by giving seven positive prophecies about
Israel instead of the curses he was hired to give.
3) Several times it says God's Spirit comes upon him. 24:2
4) Many of his prophecies are absolutely true.
a) He even gives a true prophecy about Jesus. 24:17
B. Yet every other reference in the Bible condemns him.
1) Both the Old Testament and New Testament are consistent.
a) 2 Peter 2:15 is typical:
Balaam "loved the wages of wickedness."
b) He is nothing but a prophet-for-hire in their eyes.
2) Is there any evidence for this in the book of Numbers?
C. Many see manipulation in his negotiations.
1) "I won't accept money" often means "You'll have to pay me
a lot more than this!"
a) We see the same thing in Abraham's negotiation for
a cave to bury his wife.
1> First the owner says, "Just take it. We're friends!"
2> But in the end, Abraham has to pay through the teeth.
b) When the second group comes, offering greater reward,
he asks them to stay overnight again. 22:19
1> God has already given him a clear answer.
2> Is he practicing hospitality, or does he hope he'll
get a better answer from God this time?
c) At the same time, we must admit regular prophets like
Samuel were sometimes paid money.
2) The narrator of Numbers seems to be distancing himself
from Balaam.
a) Balaam usually refers to God as the LORD (=Yahweh)
which was the special Jewish name for God.
b) The narrator uses the term Elohim, which is a more
generic name for God.
1> His God and Balaam's god are not the same.
2> Balaam uses the right religious language but
apparently it doesn't come from his heart.
IV. Lessons from Balaam.
A. God can use anyone.
1) God used Balaam, and even his donkey.
a) On the one hand, it is good to know God is not limited.
1> He can use anything in creation to accomplish his
will.
2> You can be weak, uneducated, poor or an outcast,
yet God can still use you to do great things.
b) On the other hand, the fact that he is using you does
not mean you are special or even saved.
2) Spirituality is different than salvation. Matt 7:21-23
a) Jesus says that on the Judgment Day, many people will
boast of how they served him, and prophesied like
Balaam, and even did miracles in his name.
b) But they won't enter heaven - Jesus never knew them.
3) Real salvation requires a miracle as great as a talking
donkey.
a) Even ancient people knew that donkeys can't talk - they
don't have adequate vocal cords, or brain function.
1> It would take a miracle. It would take God.
b) Salvation requires a miracle, too.
1> Real salvation is about the transformation of the
human heart.
2> The Bible says only Jesus can do that.
3> Does your life show evidence of real change?
A> Perhaps you put on a good front, but that's all.
B> Someday everyone will find out the truth about
you.
B. God reveals himself as he chooses.
1) You can see his attributes in nature.
2) He certainly reveals himself in the Bible.
3) But he also can reveal his character through other religions
or philosophies.
a) There is light in other religions.
1> Someone as far out as Balaam can understand the
importance of listening to the true God.
2> But it is a mixed light, with error thrown in.
3> This is probably why God told Balaam not to go to
Balak, then told him to go. 22:12,20
A> God is not changing his mind - even Balaam
recognized God doesn't do that. 23:19
B> The Lord is emphasizing that Balaam must obey
God EXACTLY and not follow his own whims or
intuition.
b) The light of other faiths can illuminate part of your
path, but it cannot get you to the final destination.
1> Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me."
V. Religious people can be dumber than a donkey.
A. The real point of the story.
1) The dumb donkey sees the Angel of the Lord, and the famous
prophet does not.
2) The poor animal even tries to save the prophet and gets
beaten for his efforts.
B. Most people don't see spiritual realities very well.
A while back I came across the testimony of a homosexual
Mormon.
He was a very successful missionary but he had to hide the
fact that he was attracted to men.
One day he and other young leaders were called in to meet
one of the top twelve Apostles of Mormonism.
The man looked them over and proclaimed that he could
sense they were all pure in thought and deed.
The young missionary decided that if this leader was so
clueless, maybe the whole religion was a sham.
C. How in tune are you with what God is doing behind the scenes?
1) I think most Christians see about as well as Balaam.
2) I wonder how well I see.
a) Can we sense the pain people hide inside, the questions
and doubts that lurk in their souls?
b) Can we tell the difference between the sincere
but troubled seeker and the religious fake?
c) Are we blinded by the sensational and the popular and
the beautiful, so we don't see where God is?
3) Jesus once said he came so the blind could see.
a) Has he touched your eyes?
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
[1] The opening was inspired by Rev. Jeffrey Stratton’s sermon, "A Donkey
Tale,” Kerux Sermon #26963.
[2] Jona Lendering, “Deir 'Alla Inscription,” <http://www.livius.org/de-dh
/deir_alla/deir_alla_inscr.html>, August 28, 2009.
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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