Readings for today: Numbers 22-24, Psalms 47
Believe it or not, there are some Christians out there today who want to limit God. They limit His love, reserving only for those who have been saved. They limit His power, suggesting that certain miraculous gifts have ceased. They limit His voice, arguing He only speaks to those He has chosen. I have to admit it is baffling to me. I have been in lots of places around the world and heard testimony after testimony of former witch doctors, Muslim imams, and other thoroughly pagan people whom God has revealed Himself to through visions and dreams. I remember one such man vividly. He was a Muslim warrior from a violent tribe who had never heard the name of Jesus. God visited him in a dream one night and the man surrendered his life to Him. The very next day, he shared what he had experienced and 80 people from his village also gave their lives to God. He did not know the name of this God. He didn’t have access to a Bible so could not read about this God. He only knew what had been revealed to him in his dream. A few nights later, God came to him again. Told him to show up at a particular town on a particular day where he would be met by visitors from a faraway land who would teach him all he needed to know. That’s when I met him. He showed up at our conference out of the blue, dressed head to toe in a beautiful Muslim robe with a scimitar on his hip. He had walked two days to get to where we were holding our conference. Through a translator, he related his story to us and we were blown away yet again by the sovereignty of God.
I think of that man almost every time I read the story of Balaam. Here’s a pagan witch doctor whom God uses to bless His chosen people. He is bought and paid for by a pagan king and God still speaks to him and through him. He is not part of God’s chosen people and yet God uses him for His glorious purposes. Can there be any limit to God? Can God not do as He chooses? Can He not use who He chooses? God can speak through a donkey for goodness’ sake! I love how the Psalmist puts it, “God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. The nobles of the peoples have assembled with the people of the God of Abraham. For the leaders of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.” (Psalms 47:8-9 CSB) God reigns over all. God rules over all. There is no limit to His power. No limit to His love. No limit to His authority. No limit to His grace. God will use whomever He wills to accomplish His plans.
I am not sure why some of my friends seek to limit God. Perhaps they seek a God who they can always understand. A God who never acts in strange and mysterious ways. A God who is always safe and under control. But, as C.S. Lewis said so well, “He is not safe but He is good. He is the King.” God’s ways are higher than our ways. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. We cannot begin to grasp the infinite nature of His plans for us. But we can trust Him. We can have confidence that He always has our best in mind. We can place our faith in Him for while He may not always conform to our understanding, we do know He will never fail.
Readings for tomorrow: Numbers 25-27, Psalms 48