Please be seated. And good morning, brothers and sisters, you are the people of God. And you have the spirit of God. And so by God's good work and will, he will, by his word this morning, bless you and help you.
So let's pray for that. Father in Heaven, we need your word. And so you have supplied your precious word to be a lamp for our feet and a light for our path ahead. And so we ask that you might be with us by your spirit this morning as we look to your word.
Bless us now in Jesus' name we ask him in. We are turning to Numbers 24 today for the last of three sermons on Balaam. And the frank with you had I known how much material really was in here. I would have planned for six or ten sermons or something else.
But here we are. And so we'll be flying through chapter 24 this morning. Let me just remind you as you turn into chapter 24. That in chapter 22 we titled the sermon testing in our traveling.
Because this actually turns out to be unbeknownst to the people of Israel a test in front of them. Not one that they have to pass, but one God is going to pass them through. As a man named Balaam is called in by a king named Balaam to curse this people. And so it turns out that some of our tests in life as we work our way through this world into the promised land above.
That we are facing testing in trials and sometimes of our own making, but not always. The world, the flesh and the devil are indeed real enemies and they are enemies to us. And then we looked into chapter 23 in which we get the first two oracles or pronouncements from Balaam. And of course they are blessing as God has decreed and determined and they are statements of blessing.
Angering, Balaam who thinks he's going to pay for a real good cursing on these people and doesn't receive it. But there we see that words matter in this testing and trial of life in the warfare that it is. Words matter. And if you wonder if that's so you could ask Hitler or you could ask Mussolini.
Or you might ask Chamberlain or Churchill. Words matter. And who is saying what matters and a great deal of warfare in this life will be receiving correct revelation, the truth of God and not the falsehood of man. Well, we come to chapter 24 and I'll be frank again, it's not easy reading, it's difficult, especially to get through the second oracle of this chapter, the fourth one.
And then, praise the Lord, I found a lamp to shine on this passage just a little bit. And it's actually a recollection slightly of the passage. The prophet Micah says at one point, the words of the Lord to Israel, oh my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab council. Let me remind you again, what was it that Balak was trying to do?
And what Balam, the son of Bior, answered him, what were those oracles? And then he urges them geographically, the people from Acacia Grove to Gilgal, remember these words, that you may know the righteousness of the Lord. So the story is meant to remind us of the righteousness of the Lord. Now, if we get through this third sermon today and you haven't heard about the righteousness of the Lord and you haven't picked up on that from the other two sermons in this one today, then I completely missed the point of the passage.
I'm glad to read over it and see where the righteousness of the Lord is. But I trust that you will pick up on that today. And so, if we are to know and to remember the righteousness of the Lord from this passage, I had to think about that title too. If there's trial and troubles and there's testing in our traveling here on this earth, and much of that warfare comes in a warfare of words and of preaching either truth or falsehood, then the third question might be, well, how does it all end?
What's the conclusion of this? And it's the conclusion of our sermon series, and so it will be the conclusion of some study on Balaam. How does it all end? Would be the title of the sermon today?
Well, that leads to some more thoughts on it as well. There's sort of a sort of, there's a macro version of how does it all end? The big story, how does the big story end? Not only for this nation, but for us, and that's a really big question.
But then there is the question of how does it end for me? So let's consider this passage today in front of us, and then we're going to have to jump into some following passages to really understand the Balaam's end. But we'll look at the oracles of Balaam once more, the past two, and then these two more today. We'll look into these very briefly.
And then, after looking at the oracles of Balaam, we'll consider the obituary of Balaam. So you get both the macro version and the micro version, the large-scale picture, and the small, personal, and individual picture, and both have instruction for us. So let's begin with the oracles. That's in chapters 23 and 24, and I just want to remind you, please, of two statements we can make regarding the oracles, these pronouncements, these prophetic discourses.
There are two things we can say of them all, generally. One is that there is an escalating revelation of truth over the course of these oracles. And this matches what is just true of us, mankind, generally. We are not, as the scriptures teach us, to be swift to hear and slow to speak.
We're quite the opposite. We're quick to speak up and we're a bit slow to hear. We don't always catch on as quickly as we should. And the Lord in grace here, even though to us, Israel's not hearing this, or these oracles, yet Balaam and Balaam are hearing them, Balaam speaking them.
And there are probably several advisors around who are also hearing these spoken and revealed. And so there's this escalating revelation of what God is doing in history through this people. And that starts in oracle one and carries on into the fourth. The other statement we should make is that these are divinely appointed or divinely provided, divinely given.
And you find that Balaam admits as such, and the passages before us say so, but I'll just point you to chapter 24, since that's what we're studying mostly this morning. And verse 4, where Balaam says, this is the oracle of Him who hears the words of God, who sees the vision of the Almighty. So all of these four oracles bring an increasing revelation of God's word and work, and they are divinely given. And no one within these passages, none of these participants doubt that.
Now, let's just pull out of each of the oracles a couple of truths. Just lift a nugget of truth out of each one so that we can move on through these oracles. We'll spend more time on the third and the fourth discourse because we've already gone through one and two. But if you were to turn back in chapter 23, you would find that the first pronouncement makes plain, once again, God's determination to bless His chosen people.
They are His and He has declared blessing upon them. And this is nothing more than a reiteration and yet an expansion of the Abrahamic covenant in which the Lord had said, I will bless those who bless you and I will curse those who curse you, Abraham. And so this would apply to all of His children. So God is determined to bless His chosen people.
He will be faithful to the promise He made to Abraham for all generations to follow. Then you come to the second pronouncement, the second discourse. And then we find a further explanation in verse 21 of why the Lord would bless these people and how that blessing will appear. In verse 21, he that is speaking of God has not beheld misfortune in Jacob, nor has he seen trouble in Israel.
Therefore their God is with them and the shout of the King is among them. This determination of God to bless His people and what that blessing actually looks like is His giving to them His righteousness. This now begins to express that theme from Micah that this story is about the righteousness of God to carry out all of His work and bring righteousness to all His people in His time. The Lord has declared this people in a state of union and righteousness with Him.
And that is how He will bless them. It is not only part of the blessing, it's the basis on which He blesses them. It's not in them. Then we come now to chapter 24 and let's look at, let's read together, not out loud.
I'll read you follow along if you like this third pronouncement from Balaam, the oracle of Balaam the son of Bior. The oracle of the man whose eye is opened. The oracle of him who hears the words of God who sees the vision of the Almighty. Falling down with his eyes uncovered.
How lovely are your tents O Jacob, your encampments O Israel, like palm groves that stretch afar like gardens beside a river, like aloes that the Lord has planted, like cedar trees beside the waters. Water shall flow from his buckets and his seed shall be in many waters. His King shall be higher than a gag and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brings him out of Egypt and is for him like the horns of the wild ox.
He shall eat up the nations, his adversaries, and shall break their bones in pieces and pierce them through with his arrows. He crouched, he lay down like a lion and like a lioness. Who will rousing up? The less it are those who bless you and cursed are those who curse you.
And so if we're going to lift a couple more of the nuggets of truth from here, let's find out more of what this intent to bless is like, what does it look like? Well, the Lord will organize them and provide for them versus five and six. We just read those. I won't read that over again, but there is both organization and provision.
The camp of Israel was laid out as God intended it to be. And the very center of life was the tabernacle. And then the tribes camped out and about from the tabernacle in something like a cross-shaped pattern. Life was about worship.
Worship was actually warfare. And life was about worship for the people of Israel. Worship of highest and utmost importance and everything else flowed out from that, not just geographically or as it was laid out physically, but it was meant to point them there. To use a modern expression, it was the church steeple that was the center of town.
And so this was how they were to live with God's organization of their encampment. And so they had that and provision. And God was providing for them in a beautiful way as they had exited Egypt. Now, it's also clear from this oracle that God was doing this remarkable work.
And you can see that in verses six and eight. It says here that these encampments were like pongros and then like gardens and then in verse six, like aloes, that the Lord has planted. And then in verse eight, we have the words God brings him, Jacob, out of Egypt. And so this is a divine plan, well organized and ordered and brought about.
God is doing this remarkable work. And then in verse nine, here is the international importance they would have. And it would make nations cautious about even arousing them to any action. They would reach that point in international importance and international viability.
Speaks of Jacob, he crouched. He lay down like a lion and like a lioness who will rouse him up. We have an expression you let sleeping dogs lie. I've been bitten by a dog and it wasn't any fun.
So yes, I leave them alone. But this would be like walking by a lion that's crouching right here. And you walk by quite cautiously and you just leave them alone. And this would be how nations would begin to treat the people of Israel so long as they would walk with him and obey him.
Now, we come then to the fourth or final pronouncement, the final discourse. But just before we get to that, we've had the three that Balak hired each time Balak said to bail him. Well, you misfired on that one. That was not a good curse.
Let's try another one. And we try another one at a different place. He even thinks geographically it might help. We didn't get the curse to work from over here.
Let's move to another location. Try another location. Same thing. Third location, same thing.
And now in verse 10, before we get to this last discourse, Balak's anger was kindled against Balak and he struck his hands together. He's not just unhappy. He's really unhappy. And he goes on to say, I hired you and I told you I was going to give you honor and I was going to pay you really well.
Well, now it's God's fault because you didn't do what I asked and I'm not going to pay you anything. You can just head on home. So things are not working out well for either of these men because God had determined otherwise. And then in verse 14, Balen says, and now behold, I'm going to my people.
I'm going towards my people. But then he says, come, I will let you know what this people will do to your people in the latter days. I have just a little bit more to say. So if I'm going to stand here and talk to you for a minute, I want you to listen and give you a warning about these folks.
You know, the Hebrews are more dangerous than you even realize. But he's going to open his mouth with divine God appointed understanding. And it is a mercy that Balen would speak this and that Balak would hear. Both of these men have an opportunity at this point post discourse to repent and believe.
Now, we'll see later that that does not take place. So on to the last oracle. He, Balen took up his discourse and said, the oracle of Balen, the son of Björ, the oracle of the man whose eye is opened, the oracle of him who hears the words of God. And knows the knowledge of the most high, who sees the vision of the Almighty falling down with his eyes uncovered.
But that falling down so that you know, it's sort of a forced down. He was pushed down and popped my eyes open. This was not, he was not falling down as other men in old, in a New Testament seeing the Lord would immediately in humility fall to their knees and cover their face. And so he's not that kind of humility.
He had to be forced to see this vision. And then he says in verse 17, which Pastor Ted had read to us earlier, I see him. But he's not speaking of Jacob anymore. This is a singular and personal noun.
It is for one individual. And so he says, I see him, but not now. I behold him, but not near. I have a vision of someone yet in the future.
A star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel. It is singular. It shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth. Another good translation is sons of Tumult.
Edom shall be dispossessed. So if Edom's dispossessed, they'll be possessed by another. Seer also, his enemies shall be dispossessed. Israel is doing valiantly.
And one, one from Jacob shall exercise dominion and destroy the survivors of cities. Now we're not going to go on here through the rest of this poetry today. But right now through the reading, there's a great deal in there. I think there's a whole sermon in verses 23, 24 perhaps.
But this ends then that discourse. And then he adds just a little bit more to it. Now we'll look at them briefly. But let's say this then.
He's describing a man who will come out of Jacob who is described as both a star and a scepter. And I think for us when we hear scepter, that's not too far from our minds. It's easy to think, okay, we're speaking of rulership. We're speaking of kingship, kingdom, a warrior perhaps, who triumphs in battle, control and peace.
And control and power and sovereignty. All those words come to mind. But why star? Well, if you stop and think about it, it's really common in cultures all over the world and through the ages to think of a star as something above us, beyond us.
Heavenly, mysterious though, not perfectly known to us, yet also light. And then there would be even more images, maybe come to our mind more to think about. But we've used words like this individual so-and-so as a star athlete. It's a rock star.
The word star comes more out in our conversations on a daily basis than we might realize. So it's someone of great importance and with heavenly origin. But at the same time, this man arises out of Jacob. So he's directly connected to humanity.
He's human. He's both heavenly and human. And that appears right here in this prophecy. Now then, we also should be reminded, I think, on this word scepter of Jacob's prophecy of his sons.
He called them to bless them. You remember there's Abraham, Isaac, and then Jacob, the founding fathers of Israel. And Jacob had 12 sons. And he calls them to bless them in chapter 49 in Genesis.
And in verse 10, he makes this pronouncement regarding Judah. The scepter rulership, so not the part from Judah nor a law giver from between his feet until Shiloh comes. And to him shall be the obedience of the people. And that is a reference to our Lord Jesus.
And as we trace that through in this golden cord, is it worth through scripture of who is Christ? We find this passage fulfilled in our Lord. Now, as to the rest of these short discourses, we have Ehem. And we did read about Eden because it followed right there.
But then he adds on the Balaam does, Amalek and the Kenites. And then Cain and a reference to Asher and then down in verse 24, ships come from Cateem and afflict Asher and Eber. Let's just summarize that briefly and say, those are a number of different people groups geographically and a number of people groups generationally. This one, the star and scepter to come from Jacob, will have influence across the world and through time.
And you find that same thought expressed at the very end of Psalm 22. I won't read that to you. Look it up later this afternoon if you like. Note that Christ's reign, Christ's influence is both wide and deep.
Christ's righteousness to his people is worldwide and through every generation. And Balaam said that, but Balaam sadly didn't believe that. And so we come from the big picture, the oracles of Balaam, down to the small study of the obituary of Balaam. What?
The scripture had to say about Balaam. I don't know if you've ever thought about writing your own obituary. I have. Not even 50 yet.
But it occurred to me much earlier in life than you would think. So I got to give you that story. I think 9 or 10 years old. I'm not sure.
And I was driving one of my dad's tractors. And it was a 45 horse boits tracker and had a front end loader on it. And I wasn't a real good tractor driver yet. I wanted to be.
But I wasn't. Because as I pulled into the front yard, he had his cars parked there in the front yard. And he and mom had a conversion van. You know, one of those 1980s conversion vans?
And I didn't get my steering, clutching and break right all at the same time. And as I pulled into the yard, I stuck the front corner of the bucket on the tractor right in the passenger door on that van and just wrinkled it up good. I don't think it would open. It was a disaster.
And that was my moment for like, so what is, you know, like, what's my headstone going to say? Is it going to be like, right? You know, here lies Dan Schweter, bad tractor driver. How does the obituary get written up?
And in my dad's defense, okay, he's never hurt me. He never did. I wasn't really afraid of him like that. He's a good man.
But, you know, it was like the most expensive thing I could think that they owned beside maybe their house. And he handled it so well. And by night, I wasn't thinking about my obituary anymore, but it sure crossed my mind. And so maybe it's crossed yours.
But you know, at that point, I didn't know the Lord would give me so many more years to yet work out what my obituary might look like and how it might be written up. Balaam, though, doesn't get to change his. It's been put down in Holy Scripture. Can't do anything about it now.
Beautiful thing is, you and I still can of our own. But let's just read what happens to Balaam. Turn over just a few pages, please, to Numbers, chapter 31. What comes of this man?
Numbers, chapter 31. Now, Balaam, the king of Moab, also united himself to five kings that spanned the countryside or region called Midian. There were five different kings. And if you can find verse 8, it's just kind of nestled in there, chapter 31.
Verse 8, and it says of the people of Israel, they killed the kings of Midian with the rest of their slain. Yvonne, Rehkems, Zurh, and Reba, the five kings of Midian. And they also killed Balaam, the son of Yor with the sword. So he comes to a sad and tragic end.
Verse 16 tells us just a little bit more and is actually a quick summary of chapter 25 here in Numbers that we won't look at. But verse 16 says, these, meaning some of Israel and some of the kings had collaborated together. He holed these, verse 16, on Balaam's advice, caused the people of Israel to act treacherously against the Lord in the incident of Peor. And so the plague came among the congregation of the Lord.
Paul writes in one of his letters to Corinth, to the Corinthians that there were 23,000 Israelites who died in a plague from the Lord because of, what we do now in Revelation chapter 2, you'll find many cross references to Balaam. So many more than I remembered. Revelation 2 and verse 14, the angel is speaking to the church in Pergamum, the words of the Lord. And he says, you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balaam to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so they might eat food, sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality.
This is again a quick summary of chapter 25. So Balaam somehow stuck around, talked more than once again with Balaam, consulted with him, maybe decided since I kind of feel like they got the best of me this time around, we're going to try something more deceitful than outright curses. We're going to get Israel caught up with our people. You know what we'll do?
We'll put one foot in each camp and we'll just become their friends. And in doing that, we'll cause a downfall. They did get 23,000 by Paul's reckoning. But there's a little bit more to be said about Balaam.
There are a couple more passages. Second Peter, chapter 2, says of false teachers, they were forsaking the right way. They have gone astray. They have followed the way of Balaam, the son of theor, who loved gain from wrongdoing.
Jude in verse 11, it's Jude chapter 1 because there isn't a chapter 2. Verse 11 says, woe to them again, of false teachers and false prophets, for they have walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to Balaam's error. This is then essentially his sad obituary. To recap it, Balaam's way was crooked or perverse before God.
The angel that stopped him before the donkey spoke said exactly that. Your way is perverse before me. It was the pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. Well, the love of gain through artful and religious language was his motivation.
He never joined the people of God. He says he went to his own. He never joined them, though he knew the truth. He willingly led others astray.
By freely showing, you can put a foot in each can't, live with the people of God and live with those in rebellion. Know them both. Be friends to both. If you had to put a very short stamp on his headstone, I think you would write, he's the first recorded, unbelieving preacher in the Bible.
A man who actually spoke the truth by the help of the Spirit of God and never believed what he said. And so it's tragic. I have three final thoughts, and then we'll close up the passage and reflect on what we've learned. One, Balaam's obituary is finished.
There's nothing more to say about it, nothing more that he can do. He can't change it. We can't change it. Scripture has written about it.
But you can still change your obituary. If you have not yet believed, even these words of Balaam, and you've never repented and believed and received Christ, Jesus, the King of Israel, the ruler of the nations, then it's time. Today would be a very good day to do that. Psalm 2 says, and this is a good word for those who've not yet looked to Jesus, for his righteousness.
Psalm 2 says, kiss the Son, lest he be angry. And so you run to him for safety from him. And urge your friends and family to do this, if you have already, and found the righteousness of God in Christ. Two, as believers, we need to be watchful for the Balaams of our day.
They are among us, but they don't bring light and life in Christ. Those teachers and preachers like Balaam are in the church for their own gain, and they lead others into unholy lives and practices. Mark them, beware of them, and avoid them. You do not need to listen to them.
Third, and final meditation, the prophecies of Christ's coming and his perfect subjugation of all his enemies and our enemies, they were all true. All of them, and the ones yet not taken place, his second coming, they're all true. They'll happen just as the prophecies of his first advent happened. But not because these prophecies are good guesses by smart people.
That's not why the prophecies are true. The prophecies are true because that is how God himself has already sovereignly planned the history of this world. And he was then and is now revealing himself directly in this word, and back then by his own special methods. And he has revealed the truth of his son who is our king.
As it turns out, men have obituaries, but Christ and his kingdom do not. Let's pray. Our Father in Heaven, now we ask that you would use this, your word, to the good of our hearts, and to our rejoicing in you and our gratitude for your righteousness to us. Through Christ, our Lord Jesus, we ask your blessing on the remainder of the service in our day in Jesus' name.
Amen. So we'll stand together now and sing. O come, O come, the manual.