(Yes, so I missed posting this last Sunday. I had my weekly "essay" planned; however, I was in the middle of moving boxes from one place to the next. I finally found time to publish the post today. I am planning on my next post for this coming Sunday, as usual.)
In this week's readings, Numbers 22 presents this bizarre story about a man and his donkey. Balaam, a diviner, is traveling to meet Balak, a Moabite prince, to discuss the idea of cursing the Israelites. Along the way, an angel of the Lord blocks the road, and most certainly would have prevented Balaam's arrival in Moab, perhaps by death. However, Balaam's donkey sees the angel and keeps turning aside or away from the path. When Balaam begins to beat the donkey for its seemingly wayward nature, the donkey speaks and defends itself. "What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times? [...] Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden all your life long to this day? Is it my habit to treat you this way?" (Numbers 22:28-30). At this moment, Balaam's eyes are opened, and he sees the angel of the Lord, who states, "Behold, I have come out to oppose you because your way is perverse [...]. The donkey saw me and turned aside before me these three times. If she had not turned aside [...], surely just now I would have killed you and let her live" (Numbers 22:32-33).
As I read this story, I felt such sympathy toward the donkey. Here she is taking care of her master while he blindly and foolishly beats her, never even stopping to wonder if something was wrong. I thought to myself, "Surely people can be smarter than a donkey, can't they?" Then I began to read 1 Chronicles. Chapter 17 speaks of the covenant God makes with David, who is so understandably in awe at the extent of God's promise that he starts his prayer with, "Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And this was a small thing in your eyes, O God. You have also spoken of your servant's house for a great while to come, and have shown me future generations" (1 Chronicles 17:16-17). The covenant God makes with David will last for generations, and one would think, especially based on this prayer, that it would be something David would remember. Yet four chapters later, David is feeling proud about his dominion and demands a census, something even his military commander, Joab, finds "abhorrent" (1 Chronicles 21:6). David wants to know how much man power he has. The consequence of this arrogance? A pestilence so bad that 70,000 of the men David counted fall. David, clothed in sackcloth, notes, "Was it not I who gave command to number the people?" (1 Chronicles 21:17). Honestly, this is a frightening tale. One haughty decision cost David so much.
Jeremiah 51:17 comments about Babylon, "Every man is stupid and without knowledge." They put their faith in idols that have "no breath" and are a "work of delusion" (51:17-18). Proverbs 9:13 declares, "The woman Folly [...] is seductive [...]. She sits at the door of her house; she stakes a seat on the highest places of town, calling to those who pass by [...] 'Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!'" Based on these passages as well of the story of David, it would appear that "being smarter than a donkey" can be a Herculean task. How do one overcome a natural state of stupidity?
Thankfully, 2 Corinthians paints a counteracting picture. First, it recognizes the power of person's choices. Chapter 2, verse 5 notes, "[...] if anyone has caused pain, he has caused it not to me, but in some measure - not to put it too severely - to all of you." Too many times, we, like David, think our actions only affect ourselves. We rarely pay attention to the ramifications of what we do, and this gets us into trouble. If we are to "be smarter than a donkey," it would be prudent to see ahead and consider the path we are on. What lives might be touched by the decisions we make?
Second, when one's keeps God at the center, a positive boldness ensues. "[W]here the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17). We have access to one who has done "mighty deeds" (Psalm 106:2), who has "an abundance of [...] steadfast love" (Psalm 106:7), and who has saved and redeemed from the "hand of the foe" and the "power of the enemy" (Psalm 106:10). If in our choices we seek his guidance, we can "be smarter than a donkey" and live in his world with a surprising boldness.
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