Unnecessary Carnage

I was teaching the Balaam story when it dawned on me that Balaam actually caused deaths of people who were never supposed to be destroyed, even displaced by Israel.

And the LORD said unto me, Distress not the Moabites, neither contend with them in battle: for I will not give thee of their land for a possession; because I have given Ar unto the children of Lot for a possession. (Deuteronomy 2:9)

It is therefore painful to imagine that Balaam’s greed changed God’s purpose not only or Israel but even more drastically for Moab. All because he became inward looking in his ministry.

Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; (1Peter 5:2)

He therefore failed to access God’s secret counsel that is reserved for those who are committed to His purpose.

The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant. (Psalm 25:14)

But I am getting ahead of myself. I have posted that discussion under ‘Balaam and Politically Correct Answers’ and I think it would be useful if you read that post also.

God had no issues with Moab. The problem was that their king did not have that information. He needed a prophet to get him into God’s picture. Sadly, his offer to Balaam blinded the prophet from hearing from God, leading to a curse on Moab instead of a blessing. But it was even worse, it brought about their extermination.

Behold, these caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to commit trespass against the LORD in the matter of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the LORD. (Numbers 31:16)

Balaam’s self interest had caused God to change His design for the Moabites. See what He said

An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the LORD for ever: Because they met you not with bread and with water in the way, when ye came forth out of Egypt; and because they hired against thee Balaam the son of Beor of Pethor of Mesopotamia, to curse thee. (Deuteronomy 23: 3, 4)

All because a prophet became so focused on himself to get God’s picture.

Why do I say so? I doubt that God’s order for Balaam not to curse Israel was the conclusion of the matter. He surely had a better design for Moab due to their links with Israel.

Had Balaam stopped thinking that God had blocked him from a ministry opportunity, he may have been able to hear God’s next order.

And Balaam rose up in the morning, and said unto the princes of Balak, Get you into your land: for the LORD refuseth to give me leave to go with you. (Numbers 22:13)

He thought that God was denying him an opportunity to minister to a king, and of course benefit from his largesse. No wonder God allowed him to accompany them the second time. He looked at God with the theology many people have, the ultimate pleasure killer, forgetting that He created us out of love and not as objects to play with. He created us in His image to be His partners and not toys.

Sadly, that premise, faulty as it is, has very dangerous repercussions as we see with Balaam. You see, if in my mind God does not love me, I owe no loyalty or love to him. I will obey Him only to be safe from His whip and nothing else. I may even be looking for a way to get back at Him.

But it was not only Balaam who displayed that theology. Manasseh, the one whose sin God said no one could pray for forgiveness about, was the product of such a mindset.

And I will cause them to be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem. (Jeremiah 15:4)

Hezekiah wept bitterly when told that his life was over. Like Balaam he thought that God was denying him a good life after all that good work he had done. And like with Balaam he was allowed to live on, opening him to the disaster God was preventing by taking his life.

Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee. (Jeremiah 7:16)

His answered prayer had locked other prayers from being accepted by God. And the captivity was the direct product of that answered prayer and bitter weeping.

Could we be cursing generations in our search of comfort or relevance as we minister to God’s people? Could we be negatively changing destinies of those people following our leadership because we value the titles we hold above the One we pledge allegiance to?

How do I know whether I am pursuing Balaam’s ministry route as I minister?

Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. (Jude 1:11)

We look at the three errors in these Biblical characters. Cain loved prominence. He killed his brother instead of seeking to find out what he needed to obtain the favor Abel had obtained. If you are threatened when you see emerging ministers, it is very possible that you are operating in the same spirit.

Balaam sought a reward. If you think or seek greener pastures when you think of ministry, it is very possible that Balaam’s spirit guide’s you. Korah on his part probably thought he was a better leader than Moses. Again if you must always be a leader or be in leadership, it is probable that you are operating in his spirit.

Contrast that with Christ’s Spirit.

And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. (Mark 10: 44, 45)

Use that as a guide to your ministry or other leadership. Use that to gauge your pastors and prophets.

If your prophet is keen only to see the fulfillment of his prophecy without caring for those he is prophesying to, if he delights more in the recognition he gets when his prophecy hits the bull’s eye, if his prophecy looks for prominence, if he only prophesies good and acceptable things, he is possibly using Balaam’s spirit.

If your pastor has a soft spot for the rich and powerful and shields himself from the needy or needs in his congregation, he also is operating in the same spirit.

But I write to remind us that such doctrine or practice have the capacity like Balaam’s to lead hordes to hell who are confident they are on their way to heaven. In Jeremiah God called such prophets teachers of rebellion. They sought to soften God’s blow on Judah’s sin instead of showing them the way to repentance.

Go to hell alone if you have to. Do not increase your punishment by loving your pocket or comfort too much. Probably that is why these verses are so important.

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7: 21 – 23)

Do not feel bad that I am always quoting them. I only appreciate the gravity of their implications. I want to always remember that it is possible to succeed here and fail to make it to heaven.

Lordship versus Prominence

And when the messengers turned back unto him, he said unto them, Why are ye now turned back? And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words? And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite. (2Kings 1: 5 – 8)

I have been teaching on the topic of Lordship for the past two or so months in the small congregation God sent me to and today I want us to look at one aspect that is so important especially for our days.

Why does the Lord’s servant need such a long CV to be allowed to minister these days?

Do you realize that in the Bible (and elsewhere) a lord denotes the presence of slaves? A lord can never have employees. That is why even the term lording it over others means trashing any other opinion. A lord’s opinion is never open to discussion.

I won’t go through the topic much because I have dealt with it more extensively in other posts on this blog.

It is important to realize that throughout the Bible you will never see any of God’s servants parading their credentials to gain validity or command a hearing. Their lord’s message was all the validity they needed.

Why did Elijah not first introduce himself to the king’s messengers? Why did they also not know this mighty prophet and this was many years after he first appeared in 1 Kings 17? Why did he not call a press conference or elders to validate that very accurate prophetic utterance?

Why was he Elijah the Tishbite? Or do we associate it to a title as opposed to the village he came from?

A slave has no name. He carries the name of his master. That is why Africans in America or Europe do not have African names. They lost them to their slave masters those many years ago.

A slave lives at the pleasure of his master. And that is what Christ called us.

So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. (Luke 17:10)

How many of us ministers ever entertain that reality? Yet this is what defines us.

Moses was so close to God that his face glowed from that proximity. Yet never do we see him parading that closeness or even using it to justify his person or ministry. God stood up for him again and again. From the Korah crowd to his siblings to the people he had rescued from slavery. He never fought for his rights because he had a master whose orders were sufficient to live and die for.

God’s servants don’t have names. They do not have CVs. They do not have rights. They live for their master. The only thing they are content with is being called by their master’s name.

In Acts we see them celebrating for being found worthy to suffer reproach, beatings and other persecution for His name. We are told that Peter was crucified upside down because being crucified like Christ was could have demeaned his Lord’s sacrifice in his eyes.

The prominence of a lord and his name determines and defines everything a servant does.

That is why I want to trash some of your favorite preachers and prophets. And I will use the Bible to make my point.

If your pastor or prophet demands recognition or respect, it is clear he does not serve Christ the Lord. If he parades his titles and achievements to qualify or justify his ministry, it really is his ministry and not Christ’s.

Safety or comfort does not come close to a servant’s priorities. Even death does not feature.

Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. (Acts 21:13)

There is an expectation for such as part of His calling.

Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. (John 15:20)

Is your pastor or prophet the man or woman of the moment? Chances are that Christ is not their Lord.

Christ’s servants only promote His name and interests, nothing else. If your prominence is in any way comparable to His, He simply is not your Lord.

Another thing I will add is the focus of their messages or prophecies. God’s servants take His messages to His targeted recipients. He does not share with all and sundry to prove how accurately he can get God’s messages. He has nothing to prove on his person. His lord’s interest is paramount in any message he shares.

Elijah never took the king’s message to anybody else. Though it might have been easier, cheaper and safer to use other avenues to get the message to the king, he chose the riskiest route because that was the method his Lord required. Remember he was always at the direct risk of the queen as we see after the miracle of fire!

And we see that with other prophets. They took messages directly to their recipients. Remember that John the Baptist died for doing it to another king? Jeremiah was imprisoned severally for doing the same thing as were many other prophets.

Does it not surprise you that prophets nowadays use the press and their churches to take messages to people in authority? Is that what Nathan did with his explosive and dangerous message to David, a message that could easily have meant instant death had the king not been repentant?

Why does a prophet announce to the public or even his church a message to political leaders? Why grandstand with God’s message? Can it really be God’s message under those terms?

And I am not mentioning wholesale prophecies, the kind I see on social media because they are way below anything prophetic. God’s message is direct to the recipient, not to be sifted to get what is mine.

Nowhere in the Bible do I see a celebrity being God’s servant. Only a servant of the other side fits that bill. In fact the celebrity status many times converted a genuine servant into something else.

Balaam is a case in point. He became uncontrollable because to the earthly king he could counter God’s design as he knew a bit too much about His operations, a thing he did very effectively but died for doing it. So did Judas. Of course we also have King Saul. These became too famous for their own good as it made them overshadow their Lord.

Most of today’s prophets and ministers are not Christ’s. Though they may be as accurate as accuracy itself, their demeanor disqualifies them from being servants. What of the retinues accompanying them? What of the monies they must be given to effectively minister? What of the titles they employ? What of the requirement for secretaries to make sure that only the right persons can see them?

Whatever happened to Christ’s anointing that opens ministry to the poor, hurting and disenfranchised?

I will use two passages to prove to you that probably your pastor, prophet or spiritual leader does not serve Christ.

Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7: 20 – 23)

Accurate, effective and powerful ministry is no indicator of God’s approval. Submission and obedience to God’s will is the only standard.

Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal. (Matthew 25: 41 – 46)

Please note that He is not talking about CSR or support raising projects or PR stunts. He is basing His judgment on the purpose for His anointing in Luke 4:18.

Do you also qualify as God’s servant?

Sacrificing a Child for a Grade

Have you ever used public transport the times children are on their way to or from school? What is the most noticeable thing you see?

I always see children falling into deep sleep however uncomfortable the ride is, be it morning or evening. And it is easy to understand why.

They wake up long before dawn to prepare for school. Add that to the fact that they will be on their homework from the time they get home to bedtime; meaning that they have no time to rest, or even play. We are talking about the privileged few who do not have household chores to deal with. What about the ones who have to wash clothes and utensils and even cook?

It would be good if you read my past post ‘The A Syndrome’ as a companion to this because they are related.

Why will a parent enroll his children to a school so far when there are many schools in his neighborhood? What makes a parent to wake their children up (many times using nannies) at 4 am to prepare for school? Why would a parent allow his child to go to the bus stop before daylight to get a vehicle to school? And why does a parent allow his child no free time all in the name of homework and tuition so that even school holidays are completely swallowed by that tuition?

Many a parent will tell you that they make all these sacrifices so that their children can get good grades. What they seem to forget is that they are in the process sacrificing those children. They are sacrificing the children to the god called excellence, the one the Bible calls Molech, though they may think otherwise.

By the way it is to the same god abortionists sacrifice those children they call unwanted, even those parents who for a lean family ‘remove’ possibilities for conception. I won’t go farther on this as I believe I have offended some already.

Anyway let us get back to what we started with; sacrificing our children for ‘excellence’.

How much time do those children get to spend with their parents in a normal day? How much of that time has any quality when it is there? How much of that time enriches the bond between both parties?

What happens when a child is sleepy all the way to just a few minutes before class begins? How much judgment does he have in those times?

It reminds me of a time many years ago when I was from visiting a relative and found a boy surrounded by people because he did not know where the bus had dropped him. He could not even explain where home was. People were taunting him while others were advising him to go to the police station for assistance. I offered to go with him and nobody even offered any protest. Then I took him to school the next morning before I went to college.

Yet he was a normal boy, as bright as any other from the time I spent with him. It most likely happened that in his hurry to get home and fatigue he picked the wrong bus which dropped him at the end of its route.

I hear they came to look for me with his mother later but I had moved from there.

That is what we expose our children to. That is many times the cost of that grade.

How do we expect them to have a strong moral backbone when the only time we are with them we are only talking about academics, the only rebuke constant in their lives involves an unsatisfactory grade or unfinished homework?

And we wonder when they are unable to make good moral choices. We are shocked when they see no problem having sex with parents and grandparents age mates, even coining a respectable term for it, sponsors. High school students in day schools away from home are converting their small rooms into whorehouses. And children burn schools for the smallest excuse.

But there is another aspect to this sacrifice. We not only throw our children to the deep end of adult expectation, we also become sacrifices to another god, consumerism. In fact that is the reason we are preparing them for that altar as we know no better. Of course we may pretend but we know that this god is called mammon. The children are therefore some sacrifices our worship demands.

How much time do we have left after all the hustle of the day? And I am asking this, not only for our children but even for us. Do we have any free time left after a full day? Does our work day ever end? Do we have a full night’s sleep?

With the digital progress, we are able to work long after office hours. Some do not even know whether there are nonworking hours any more. What with the cell phone and laptop computer and internet everywhere?

With the pursuit of a bigger car or a house or a move to a classier neighborhood parents have forgotten what rest is or means. Even the religious have all but trashed God’s requirement for a Sabbath, behaving as if God did not consider our times when He issued the command. That does not exclude the sabbatists because they also pay lip service to the doctrine they devote their all to prove others in error. They focus on the day at the expense of all the other requirements for that day of rest. Like the Pharisees they reject the weightier matters of the Sabbath.

Do we give our bodies and spirits adequate rest or are we so devoted to the pursuit of that elusive coin? Are we slaves to mammon? Do we think that giving the tithe in a church covers the worship of mammon? Are we so deceived to believe that giving God (which is many times a conniving pastor whose connection to God may only be mouth deep) is acceptable to God as an exchange for living for Him? (Those who have been reading my blog know that I have argued from the scriptures that the tithe is a teaching of rebellion with no place in the New Testament church. This is especially because they choose only the parts that suit them)

Our worship of a foreign God demands that we introduce our children to that worship, and if possible sacrifice them. That is how we are able to burden them with books and school so that they have no spare moment to consider any other god as we are scared they may embrace that other god. Sadly, the God we are shielding them from is the only God who has the exact things they will ever need, the God who created them. That is incidentally the only God resisted by all the religions and cults. You will see it in their exertions and exclusiveness of their ‘worship’. It is the same God we block by our extremely busy lifestyles where we have no spare moment for reflection outside what makes us money.

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. (Psalm 46:10)

Denying our children or us that quietness denies us that crucial connection with God that gives Him time to give direction to our whole lives. But it does worse. It connects us to a false god, a god whose purpose operates at cross purposes to our creator’s.

That is why I am talking about sacrificing our children, though many times we are the first sacrifices on that altar.

It saddens me that parents are at the forefront pushing for extra tuition against the law. They are the ones who readily agree with teachers whose driving force is lining their pockets from that tuition. They do this many times because they are scared of having their children at home, many times because they are also never there. School for many is a safer bet than home alone. They are the same parents who buy their children very expensive toys to compensate for their absence.

Think of it as killing two birds with one stone; the parents and their children. Then you place them on the altar of that destructive god.

What does God have to say about this? I want to leave this open for us to pray that God will speak to us individually. Then we will see the kind of collective action He will require of us.