Changing God's Mind

Balak son of Zippor, the Moabite king, had seen everything the Israelites did to the Amorites. And when the people of Moab saw how many Israelites there were, they were terrified...So Balak, king of Moab, sent messengers to call Balaam son of Beor..."Look, a vast horde of people has arrived from Egypt. They cover the face of the earth and are threatening me. Please come and curse these people for me because they are too powerful for me. Then perhaps I will be able to conquer them and drive them from the land. I know that blessings fall on any people you bless, and curses fall on people you curse." (Numbers 22:2-6 NLT)

Balaam's story is an interesting one.  If you've never read or heard it, it's worth the reading the three chapters. (Numbers 22-24)  There are armies, intrigue, prophets, curses, and battles.  God, of course, shows up on the scene to make a donkey talk.  Really, take the time to read it if you haven't.

The thing is, Balaam does a lot of things right in this story.  He also messes up really bad.  It costs him his life.  Worse than that, it costs him his reputation for thousands of years to come.  He will always be remembered for this story and his greed.

You see, Balaam, like many of us, wanted to do God's bidding.  He wanted to make sure he heard God correctly so he could follow His commands.  When a neighboring king send delegates to ask Balaam to put a curse on some people, Balaam did what he should have done.  He asked God what to do.

But God told Balaam, "Do not go with them. You are not to curse these people, for they have been blessed!" (Numbers 22:12 NLT)

Balaam took the message back to the delegates.  The delegates went back home.  End of story...or it should have been.

Well, the king wasn't happy with that answer, so he sent more people with more influence and more power and more money.  They really tried to persuade Balaam to change his mind.  What did Balaam do?  I'll tell you what he should have done.  He should have told them that this case was closed.  He should have told them that God already ruled on this issue and the discussion was over.  He should have told them to go home.  But he didn't.

But Balaam responded to Balak's messengers, "Even if Balak were to give me his palace filled with silver and gold, I would be powerless to do anything against the will of the LORD my God. But stay here one more night, and I will see if the LORD has anything else to say to me." (Numbers 22:18-19 NLT)

The money looked a little too good.  Maybe he could change God's mind.  Perhaps if he asked the question in a different way, God would let him go.  After all, a man's got to eat - right?  "Hang on for one more night," he said. "Let me see what I can do."  It all went down hill from there.  God was already going to teach the Moabites a lesson.  Now he would end up teaching Balaam a lesson, too.  When God says, "No," He means, "No!"

Do you ever try to go up against a clear command from God?
How's that work out for you?

It's really not wise to try and change God's mind when He clearly tells us, "No!"