Numbers 23:23
“For there is no sorcery against Jacob,
Nor any divination against Israel.
It now must be said of Jacob
And of Israel, ‘Oh, what God has done!’
Once we get past the fact that God allowed a man as carnal as Balaam to speak some of the Old Testament’s most poetic and amazing prophecies, we can begin to appreciate what was being said. In addition to looking forward to the coming of the Messiah, Balaam also looked back at the Lord’s accomplishments in the nation of Israel. His commentary on all of it was that God worked in such a way, when it was all concluded, people would have no other choice than to declare “Oh what God has done.”
This seems to be a pattern with God. Not only does He want to work in and through the lives of His people, but He also desires to do it in a way that He alone will receive the glory. We see this concept declared in both principle and practice throughout Scripture. The principle is declared in 1Corinthians 1:27-29 “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty; and the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence.”
When God wants to accomplish something, He chooses people who are less than qualified, so when the task is achieved, it is clear they were guided and gifted by His Spirit. We see this principle carried out time and time again, within the pages of Scripture. In fact, there is not a generation that goes by where this principle is not practiced. Moses will face the Red Sea, Joshua has his Jericho, Gideon has only three hundred men, David goes before Goliath, Solomon is a young man with no experience, taking over a kingdom, Nehemiah has his wall, the Apostles are sent into a hostile world, armed with nothing more than the Spirit and the Word of God. Within every generation, God is looking for men and women who will trust Him enough to respond to His call, regardless of the obstacles that we might face. When we live like that we will find that:
“For there is no sorcery against Jacob,
Nor any divination against Israel.
It now must be said of Jacob
And of Israel, ‘Oh, what God has done.'”
Pastor Jim
Jim Gallagher 