God is not man, that he should lie,or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

 Numbers 23:13-30

God is not man, that he should lie,or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? Numbers 23:19

I continue my study of Numbers, and in the text today - Numbers 23:13-30 -  we see an obstinate Balak who is determined to curse Israel, despite God's will that they be blessed.  Here are my observations using the Sword Bible Study Method.

• What do we learn from the text about God?: God once again makes Himself and His will clear.  He will not curse Israel.  In doing so, He also reveals part of His nature - that He does not lie (He is Truth) and when He makes a promise, He fulfills His promises. God also uses both believers and non-believers such as Balaam - a pagan prophet - and He works through them in both words and deeds to accomplish His will. And once again, we must understand that God's will is not to be thwarted.  
• What do we learn from the text about people?: As I posted yesterday, Balak does not like God's word spoken through Balaam so he pushes his will, even though it is contrary to God's will.  See v13 where Balak continues to push Balaam to curse Israel.  Balak is not as wise as Solomon who shared in Proverbs 19:21 "[m]any are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand." In vv25-30, Balak, continues to disregard God's will and in chapter 24 (for Saturday) we will God's reaction.
• Is there anything from the text God wants us to obey (SPEC: Sins to avoid, Promises to claim, Examples to follow, Commands to obey?): Do NOT blatantly and repeatedly disregard God's will.  Claim the promise that God's Truth is eternal, it never changes, and God does not lie - we can rest in His Word and His promises.  Follow the example of Balaam who finally recognizes that He must follow God's will and desires. Understand God's will (Romans 12:2) and pray for obedience and that God make it not burdensome because You love Him and You want to follow His desires because of how good He is. 

Comment and discuss this post

My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves and saves.  Your Truth is eternal, You never lie, nor change Your mind, and we can rest in Your Word and promises.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of how You save and how You are faithful.  My sin is great and it continues...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses.  Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind.

Chapter 31: Pages 436-446

He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a human being, that he should change his mind. 1 Samuel 15:29

This morning, I continued John Piper's book Providence (purchased from Amazon Kindle Store) and started Part 3 "The Nature and Extent of Providence", moving to Section 6 "Providence Over Sin" - moving to chapter thirty-one "Deception and Dullness of Heart".

Here, Piper explores how God uses false shepherds, dullness of heart, and false prophets to accomplish His perfect will.  He provides examples (Amos 8:11, Zechariah 11:16-17, Lamentations 3:65, Isaiah 6:9-10, and 44:8) of His providence over withholding the Word, understanding the Word (Isaiah 53:1, 6:10, John 12:37-40, Matthew 11:25-26, 13:10-12, and Luke 8:9-10), and over sending a strong delusion (2 Thessalonians 2:9-12, Revelation 17:16-17).  

He works to ensure we can defend how God is able to do all of this but never lie (Titus 1:2) by demonstrating that God does all of this not as man does - see 1 Samuel 15:28-29. He summarizes this defense by stating that "God does send a lying spirit and deceive a prophet and send a delusion, but he does not do this in such a way that his divine veracity or truthfulness is compromised....[God] is guided by [His] infinite wisdom...[and]...perfect justice."

Piper wraps up the chapter by providing the ultimate example of how God does not regret, lie or deceive as man does by pointing to Judas and how the orchestration of this sin led to Jesus' death on the cross - thus providing all believers forgiveness of sins and salvation.

Comment and discuss this post here.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are good in all Your ways and paths - I am grateful for how You have orchestrated all things in my life for my good and Your glory.  Thank You!  You are deserving of the glory and I am not deserving of the mercy and blessings You pour out for me.  I have many sins...daily.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength.  Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo.  Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior.  Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin.  Help me serve You my family, my church, and others.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness—in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie,

Titus 1

Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— in the hope of eternal life,which God, who does not lie...v1-2

In his greeting to Titus, Paul refers to God and writes that God does not lie...in contrast to every human being who has lied at one point or another in their life.  I am reminded of one of my favorite verses:

For no word from God will ever fail. Luke 1:37

My Prayer: Lord what an awesome God You are...You make promises that You always keep and I can always count on what You say to be Truth...the only Truth that exists under the heavens and the earth.  I am thankful for You and Your Word.  You provide this to me - Thank You Jesus!  I am not worthy of such a gift!  I am selfish and I have harsh thoughts in my head.  Please forgive me!  Help me overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Help me rely soley on You.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength, comfort and freedom from pain.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.