Woe to them! For they
walked in the way of Cain and abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to
Balaam’s error and perished in Korah’s rebellion.
THE STUDY:
This morning
we want to look at Jude’s three OT examples of individuals who disobeyed God
and were severely punished: Cain, Balaam,
and Korah. Today we will look at Balaam. The immoral infiltrators abandoned themselves for the sake of gain to
Balaam’s error (see 2 Pet 2:15–16). The greed of Balaam is firmly
established in Num 22–24. Balaam was hired by Israel’s enemy, King Balak of
Moab, to curse Israel. Although he was ultimately unable to curse Israel, he
became infamous for his willingness to try to do so for profit. Balaam was also
blamed for leading the people of Israel into immorality and idolatry at Baal-peor
(Num 31:16). By this analogy, Jude accused his opponents of rushing for the sake of gain to Balaam’s error
by deceiving their fellow Christians. The word gain implies that they were reaping financial benefits from their
victims.[1]
WHAT WE CAN WALK AWAY
WITH ….
- We walk away this morning with the understanding that Balaam is a great example of the scriptural warning found in I Timothy 6:10, For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.
CONCLUSION:
I Timothy 6:10 is one of the most
mis-quoted passages of scripture in the bible. Money is not evil, it is the “LOVE
OF MONEY” that is the root of all kinds of evil.
I have a good friend who lives in
Richmond Virginia who shared with me his attitude toward money. He said, “Money
is a tool that is used to help me to further God’s purpose.” I love this way of
looking at it. Money doesn’t make the world go around but it can cause God’s
purpose to go around the world.
Some may say, “people who say that
about money are people who have money.” Let us remember that God will take care
of all our needs. That includes money! When I start to feel the pressures of
the world (Bills are due, can I stretch our paycheck to the end of the week) I
am reminded of this passage of scripture (Matt. 6:26) Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into
barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than
they?
You are valuable to God! Today, let
God show you just how valuable you are to Him. Trust and Obey, for there is no
other way. Amen? Amen!
Blessings my friends
Pastor Rod
[1]
Powers, D. G. (2010). 1 & 2
Peter/Jude: A Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition. New Beacon Bible
Commentary (280). Kansas City, MO: Beacon Hill Press.
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