"Jehovah-shamma" The Lord is There
*Psalms 139:7-10, "Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
There are some remarkable things that can happen during our lives. Things that cannot be explained. Some refer to them as miracles, slight of hand, or a figment of our imagination. Many call them chance, fate, or just the roll of the dice. These are the reasons that are given when a phenomenon or circumstance occurs that we cannot explain.
When they do happen we are amazed, even astounded that the event took place. They can make our mouth drop open and eyes grow wider. Any everyday event becomes completely insignificant compared to these unexplained incidents.
However we view or explain these occurrences, they draw our attention from the natural toward the supernatural. Causing us to dig deeper into the unknown. In trying to find an explanation we can find ourselves following a course that will not only change our life, but our psychological state as well. Propelling us totally off course and spinning like a top.
The children of Israel had followed the Lord and pitched their tents by the Jordan River near Jericho in the plains of Moab. Because there were so many of them, this distressed the people of Moab who feared them because of what the Lord had done to the Amorites. Now Balak, the king of Moab, sent messengers to a soothsayer named Balaam with offerings for his divinations. When they came to him they requested that he come and curse the nation of Israel saying, "A great and mighty nation has come up from Egypt against us. Come and curse them for us because whosoever you curse is cursed and whosoever you bless is blessed".
This displeased the Lord greatly because he had blessed the nation of Israel. When Balaam consulted the Lord He would not let him go so he refused to go to Balak with the men. The king sent more honorable messengers to Balaam, this time with the promise of promotion. Once again Balaam consulted the Lord and He gave him permission to go but not to speak anything other than what He instructed him to say.
Nevertheless, Balaam met Balak and told him to build seven altars and sacrifice seven oxen and seven rams while he went to a high place to see if the Lord would meet with him. And the Lord spoke to him and told Balaam he could not speak anything other than what He told him to speak. When he returned to Balak he looked out at the multitude of the sons of Israel and opened his mouth and blessed them. Very dismayed and angry, Balak asked him why he had done this since he had asked him to curse his enemies. But Balaam said, "Didn't I tell you I could not speak anything other than what the Lord put in my mouth to speak?"
Three times he built his altars and sacrificed upon them. He uttered his incantations on the mountain in front of the sons of Israel. Three times he opened his mouth to speak and the Lord put His words into his mouth. Three times Balak took Balaam to curse the nation of Israel and instead he blessed them because of the words the Lord put in his mouth. Balaam said to Balak, "How can my mouth curse those whom the Lord has blessed. If you give me a house full of gold and silver I cannot go beyond what the Lord puts in my mouth to speak." So they departed and Balaam returned to his own house.
Balaam was not a prophet of God, but he was under the Lord's authority. He was a professional soothsayer who was hired for money. A magician whose performance was less than admirable. He worshipped and served the gods of Moab and his thoughts and motives were selfish. He came to mock God and to curse the people He had blessed.
As a final insult, Balaam counseled Balak to send the women from the temple of Baal into the camp of Israel. So Israel committed whoredoms against their God. They gave their sons to the women, went into their tents, and worshipped Moab's gods.
In our desire for a greater understanding of the spiritual aspect of our lives we need to be mindful of our motives. If our motives take on a selfish nature driven by the desire of power we may find we are reading and meditating on books that focus on the occult or witchcraft. If our motives are driven by the desire of fame and money we may find we are acquainting ourselves with people who are involved in the occult. *I John 4:1, "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world."
Satan is subject to God's authority and is incapable of doing anything beyond what the Lord will allow him to do. God will allow Satan to test our faith but He has given us a way of escape with every trial. We have an Almighty God Who is there and ever vigilant over all His creation. The Spirit of God will always lead you to the Son of God, Jesus Christ.
*February 12, 2006