Services | The Call of Money

Bulletin

Hymn # 425 “Heaven Came Down”

SCRIPTURE READING – John 1:1 - 5
Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
OFFERTORY PRAYER
OFFERTORY MUSIC – Pru Hungate

Praise and Worship
“Who You Say I Am”
“Raise a Hallelujah”
“Way Maker”

Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“The Call of Money”

“Good Grace”

Sermon Notes
Numbers 22:1 – 4 Balak, king of Moab became afraid of the sons of Israel
Numbers 22:5 & 6 Balak sends messengers to Balaam to curse the sons of Israel
Numbers 22:7 Elders of Moab and Midian go to Balaam with money to pay him to curse the sons of Israel
Numbers 22:8 Balaam told them to spend the night so that he could find out what God wanted him to do
Numbers 22:9 – 12 God and Balaam have a conversation about the men and God tells him not to go and not to curse the sons of Isarael
Numbers 22:13 & 14 Ballam tells them he cannot go
Numbers 22:15 – 17 Balak sends a bigger and more distinguished group and increases the price
Numbers 22:19 & 20 Ballam asks God again about going
Jude 11 The error of Balaam - money
1 Timothy 6:10 Love of money is the root of all sorts of evil
Matthew 16:26 The value of the soul

---

Scritpures

---

Transcript of Service

The call of money can be very, it can influence us to do things we would not do, it can even influence us to do things we should not do. We're going to take a look at one man in the book of Numbers and his response to the call of money. We'll also look at what the Bible says about money and its influence. There's some discussion in the commentaries about whether he was a good prophet who turned bad or bad prophet who turned good. I submit to you that he was not a prophet.

He marketed himself as the one who was a diviner. One who would take animals and sacrifice them and do things like cut open their liver and then divine what would happen. He's so pernicious that he's even mentioned a couple of times in the New Testament. And so I want us to take a look at him to learn not from him but to avoid his mistake, to avoid the mistakes that people made around him. So if you have your Bibles and you should, I want you to turn to Numbers 21 and we're going to start with verse 4.

And it says this. Then they set out from Mount Horab by the way of the Red Sea to go around the land of the Edom and the people became impatient because of the journey. Nope, this is the wrong area. This is last week's message.

So we'll kill some time in between. So the situation is this is that because they had to go around, this Edom was, Eseau family and Edom would not allow them to go through. They started trekking around and there were a couple of battles by other kings who were avoiding that because they were afraid that Israel with this might, might overtake them and they won those battles. And so in a situation in winning those battles, there was fear among the inhabitants of this surrounding areas that they would come and because there were so many people that they would kind of like be Locus and Device and occupy them and they would lose that. And so it's chapter 22 that, so chapter 22 verse 1 says this. Then it says a visual journey to camp in the plains of Moab beyond the Jordan opposite.

Now again, I want you to understand that Moab was also relatives. Moab was the son of Lot and his daughter, but they were in essence relatives and God had told the children of Israel not to fight or occupy Moab. And so what we're going to see is fear that was unnecessary because the plan was never to occupy or seize the territory of Moab. Now Baylac, the son of Zippor, so Israel had done to the Amorites because they had defeated them and their journeys because they were attacked by them.

So Moab was in great fear because of the people. Now we read great fear. We go, okay, he was afraid. The language here used in the original became violently ill. He basically regurgitated, in that case you don't know that 50 set word. He threw up. He vomited. He was so concerned by what the children of Israel were going to do and to seize his land and his kingdom was greatly fearful because the people, for they were numerous, and Moab was in dread of the sons of Israel.

So there's this fear, not only from the king, but all the way down in the people that they're afraid of what might happen because Israel is marching toward them. And Moab said to the elders, the Midian, now this horde will look up all the, that is around us as the ox licks up the grass of the field. And Bayla, the son of the poor, was king of Moab at that time. And so he comes and he says, we need to do something because, Arge, that they'll just wipe us out both from our agriculture and our other things, but perhaps seize our territory. So he developed a plan.

So he sent messengers to Ba'lam, the son of the poor, at Bethor, which is near the river. And that river is, so they're sending people to, if you will, Babylonian area to get Ba'lam to come, which is why I tell you that Ba'lam was not a good prophet or a bad prophet. He wasn't a prophet. He was a religious person who, who, who, to cast spells. In the land of the sons of the people to call him, saying, behold, if people came out of Egypt, behold, they covered the surface of the land and they are living opposite me.

So I've got a problem. There is such a law that have come out as slaves as of Egypt, that they've come and their opposite me. And so I'm in fear and dread.

I need your help. Now therefore come cursedest people for me since they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I may be able to defeat them and for I know that he whom you bless is blessed and he whom you curse is cursed. And so Ba'lam has a reputation as being one, if he blesses somebody, then they'll do well. And if they curses them then they'll do poorly.

He isn't a prophet of the person who defines what's going to happen and then he announces that much like it's a medium or whatever. So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with a feast for divination. See that's why I tell you, he wasn't a prophet.

He was there to get his money for being what he does, a person who defines things. So they took fees for divination in their hand and they came to Ba'lam and repeated Ba'lam's words. So the basically said, we've got a massive group of people. I need you to curse them because you have a reputation to be able to do that.

And he said to them, spend the night here and I will bring word back to you as the Lord may speak to me. And the leader of the Moab stayed with Ba'lam. Now again, the reason why Ba'lam is consulting the Lord is because the people coming out of the earth, so he wants to figure out whether he can curse them or pray, bless them. And so he's doing, so it's not that he's a follower of God. He's going to use God as other gods to determine what he should do. Then God and said, who are these men with you?

God always when he starts off the conversation, he always asks questions. God knew exactly who these people were. So he's not finding out from Ba'lam who these people are, but he wants Ba'lam to confirm people are. And Ba'lam said to God, Ba'lam, the son of Zipzipzipur, the cameo have his word to me, behold, there is a people who came out of Egypt and they cover the surface of the land and now they come curse them for me.

Perhaps I may be able to fight against them. So Ba'lam, truthfully, tells God what the situations, why they came and what they want. And God said to Ba'lam, do not go with them, you should not curse the people for they are blessed.

So the hope of the delegation to Ba'lam is to pay him to curse God's people and God told them, number one, you don't go. Number two, you don't curse them because they are blessed. They have been blessed by me, you can't counter it. So Ba'lam arose in the morning, ex-leaders, go back to your land for the Lord has refused to let me go with you. So he goes, I can't take your offer. I can't take the contract. You are offered to pay me to curse them and God won't let me curse them.

So you might as well return home. I can't enter the contract. And the leaders of Moab arose and went back, went to Ba'lam and said, Ba'lam refused to come with us. So again, they are reporting the truth that they don't say that God told them you couldn't come. They just said, Ba'lam refused to come. Then Ba'lam again sent leaders and more distinguished than the former.

So he goes, okay, maybe the delegation I sent wasn't important enough. Maybe they weren't enough distinguished leaders to convince them to come because Ba'lam doesn't want to take no seat concerned and afraid of what's going to happen. So he needs Ba'lam to curse them regardless of why Ba'lam doesn't want to go.

Then they came to Ba'lam and said to him, thus says Ba'lam to son of the four, let nothing I beg you, hinder me. For I will indeed honor you richly and I will do whatever you say to me, please come then and curse the people for me. So Ba'lam basically not only does the upper, the people who comes, the distinguished delegation and larger, now he increases the fee, increases the amount. He's convinced because the world, let's face it, things were all for sale. There's a joke that I'm not going to say but the nub of this story is, cheer for sale, we're just going to discuss the price. So in essence, Ba'lam is saying, okay, I'm going to offer you more money. It's the call of money. Come and curse them for me.

You can't refuse this distinguished group and certainly you can't decline an offer. In essence, an offer you can't refuse. So he wants him to curse them. Then Ba'lam replied to the servants of Ba'lam. So Ba'lam were to give me his house full of silver and gold. I could not do anything either smaller, great, contrary to the command of the Lord by God.

This is where Ba'lam was right and should have stopped. But he doesn't offer his jest to tempt. He should have said, I ask God once, he told me no. And I don't care how much he goes, you can offer me everything he asks. Can't do it. But notice what he says.

Now please, you also stay here tonight and I will find out what else the Lord will speak to me. In essence, Ba'lam is doing theology that you'll hear a lot about in today's world, which tries me crazy. And it's synonymous with, if God closes a door, He'll open a window. What if God closes a door? That means He doesn't want you to go in or out. The window is not for ingress and egress. A window is maybe to let an air in or sunshine or to avoid claustrophobia, but a window is not a door. So why do people say, well, God closes a door, opens a window because they want you to go through the window.

And God closes the door anywhere. But in essence, Ba'lam goes, well, maybe God will change his mind because they offered more money. Maybe God will change his mind. And God gave him to Ba'lam at the night and said to him, and this is where I would stop. If I were God, and I'm not, why answer would have been, did I stutter Ba'lam? Did you not understand? No. Where are we confused with no?

But it's in that kind of what we do in our, I always say, well, God, grant me this. And He says no. So, well, maybe God, if you do it this way, we're always trying to get God to change his mind when we should, when we care, no. It kind of mean, my dad had three answers when he asked him for something. One answer was yes. One answer was no.

And if he said yes, he would do it. And if he said no, he meant it. The third answer was, we'll see. I want to say yes, because if he said yes, that committed him to doing it. God didn't say we'll see. God said no. And he should have stuck with no.

But he did it. And God came to Ba'lam at night and said, and have come to call you, rise up and go with them. But only the word which I speak to you shall you do. So God seems to allow him to go.

But God tells him and reiterates, you shall only speak what I speak and nothing else. God has a reference to somehow I got back to one. I need Jude chapter, it's only one chapter, verse 11. And Jude chapter 1, verse 11, it makes reference to them. And it says this, what are you to them?

For they have gone the way of Cain. He's talking about the teachers of the church. And for pay they have brushed headlong into the air of Ba'lam and parish in the Rebellion Korah. And there are those who will tell you that they're preaching the word of God and teaching the word of God. And the only thing they're doing is they're doing it for money. Not because it's the word of God, not because it's truth, but they're going to get rich from it.

And so notice the Ba'lam, even though it was told no, decided to ask God again. God then says you can go. But even though God says you can go, what's the contract? The contract is the curse. Well, if God says you can't curse Israel, then you're going to do what?

To violate the contract or to see if you can skirt around the contract. He goes so often times like I always use the example of chocolate and broccoli. I don't care about broccoli at all. It's not attempting to me.

So I use those two as sin. It's not that tempting to me. I don't want to take it.

I just leave it. But chocolate, especially milk chocolate. And oftentimes what we do with sin is kind of like, well, this street is known for having a seas candy. Chocolate factory and all these other things. I'll just walk down the street.

I'm strong enough in my faith that I won't be tempted. Then we walked out of the street and I just smell of that chocolate. It's kind of tempting. But I'm strong.

I'll just cross the street. Is there a cross in the street? And then you go to the sea and start to go, I do kind of like their molasses chips.

They have some chocolate, but molasses. Lasses good for you. I'm just going to look at it. And you go and look at it. Five pounds of it.

Because I can withstand anything but temptation. And so that's what's happening. This bailum is going to figure out how he can test the limits to get the money because it's about the money.

It's not about the Word of God. And the reason why I say that I know that bailum is not a good prophet or bad for whatever, we are based on our fruits. Our fruit will tell us exactly to everybody else who we are. If you have good fruit, you're probably trying to follow Jesus. You don't have any fruit. Maybe you're a fake believer. Even Paul tells Timothy this, for the root of all sorts of evil, for some by longing for it to have wandered away from the faith and caged themselves with many Greece. Now notice he didn't say money is a root of all sorts of evil.

He said the love of money is a root of sorts of evil. We were told that if you don't work, you're worse than an infidel. You're supposed to provide for our families. So it's not a matter of earning a living and doing those things. But when the love of it, for power, or prestige, or whatever it is, overtakes us, then it has all sorts of evil. Because as Jesus will say, you cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve God and money. You will love the one and hate the other, or you will hate the one and love the other.

As the scripture says, and as Jesus said, the great Emmaus, this will love your Lord, your God, with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul, and all your strength. And when you love money, that will lessen your love for God. And so we are told we're not to love money. Do like Baileum, we will wander from the face. And they will pierce themselves with many griefs. You will get into more trouble by loving money than it will do for you.

And Jesus will tell us on Matthew 6, 16, verse 26, this, for what will a prophet of man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? You see, in essence, I'll take a risk, I'll get this great paycheck because they offered up a lot of money for me to go simply to curse God's people, even though God told me not to do it. If you take the top one, just people in the world and take all of their wealth and you assemble it to yours, that would still be not enough money to buy your soul.

And yet we are willing to...for cheap. Well, how do you mean? You feel the call of the Lord, but you say, well, Lord, first let me get through school and then I'll follow you. Then you get through school. First job and then I'll follow you. Well, let me get a promotion because you know if I...if I'm one of those kind of Jesus freaks, I won't make it in my career. Well, wait till I get married and have a family, then we'll do it. Well, they didn't wait until I retire.

And they wait so long that there's no longer any time to wait. It's like planning for retirement when you're retired. It's a little late. Planning for eternity when eternity is here is way too late. So Jesus asked, you gain the whole world, not just the riches of the top 100 richest people, but if you have everything, just as Baelin said, if you offer me all the silver and gold in your house and you offer that all to me, I can't do it.

And even if you get everything, it kind of goes back to that situation where the world says they were for sale. The question is the price. The price is long. The absence of God is permanent. We should ask ourselves, is what I'm doing for the eternity or not. And if not, we should do it. Or maybe we should do something else.

Because God values your soul so much that He didn't offer the world. He offered His Son, I for your sins and my sins, that we might have eternity and to take that love and that gift, saying, that's not important. I'd rather have money. I'd rather have prestige. I'd rather have power. What will a man give in exchange for his soul? God gave you the opportunity to not have to sell it.

Indeed. And that we are His from sinners to saved, from foreigners to children of God. And we never fall into the thoughts of Bailem to say, I would rather have this temporary thing than eternity. But that's the grace that God gives us. None of us. But Bailem, what have done with God wanted him to do. He would have experienced great, great, great grace.

But He did it. Let us not make the mistake of Bailem.

And all God's people said.

The Call of Money, Balaam sermon, Numbers 22 sermon, Balak and Balaam, Balaam and Balak, Balaam diviner, love of money, 1 Timothy 6:10 sermon, Jude 11 Balaam, error of Balaam, Matthew 16:26 sermon, what will a man give in exchange for his soul, greed in the Bible, money and faith, compromise and obedience, Bible teaching, Old Testament sermon, Christian warning, false prophet warning, spiritual compromise, value of the soul, obeying God over money, Christian discipleship, biblical teaching on money