READING: Numbers 23-25
The Word of God never whitewashes the sins of God’s people. In fact, sometimes the statements describing their sin are as jarring as the acts themselves must have been. Today’s reading begins with the seven messages of Balaam, both the pronounced blessings on the people of God and the coming judgment on God’s enemies. God would keep His word: those that cursed Israel would themselves be cursed.
God would also keep His word about calling His people to holiness. When the men of Israel turned to pagan Moabite women and engaged in sexual immorality with them, God would not — and did not — tolerate their immorality and idolatry. His own people “yoked themselves” to the false god of the region, and God’s anger rose against them (Num 25:1-3, NIV). His judgment was swift and severe: The Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and execute them in broad daylight before the Lord so that His burning anger may turn away from Israel.” So Moses told Israel’s judges, “Kill each of the men who aligned themselves with Baal of Peor” (Num 25:4-5).
It’s hard for us to fathom such judgment. Nevertheless, God is a holy God who demands sole allegiance from His people. As the people of God were moving toward the Promised Land, God dramatically reminded them that He would not tolerate blatant sin and idolatry in the camp. He particularly would have high expectations for leaders, who in this case seemingly either participated in the sin or tolerated it. In either case, they failed as leaders, and their exposed bodies would be an undeniable warning to others.
I wonder if we learn much from leaders who have fallen today. We sometimes are more intrigued by their stories than we are grieved by their sin. We gossip to others about them more than we pray to God on their behalf. We claim to learn from their failures even as we remain convinced we’ll never walk in their shoes.
When we take the fallen bodies around us far too lightly, we run the risk of being the next leader whose sin is exposed in broad daylight. May the enemy not win in any leader’s life this Lord’s day.
ACTION STEPS: Consider these steps:
- Pray for the leaders of your church.
- If you have a tendency to be fascinated with the fall of others — and if you cover your gossip in the cloak of prayer — confess your own sin to God.
- If you’re living a life of idolatry today, choosing something or someone above the only true God, beware of God’s righteous wrath. Turn to Him, trusting His forgiving love. Jesus Christ has already paid the price for your sin.
PRAYER: “God, I don’t want to be an example of an immoral leader. Help me. Please help me.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Numbers 26-27