The Star of the Show!
Numbers 24
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, November 5.
Everyone wants to be the star of the show, but there can be only One!
Surprisingly, Balaam realized that God was the star of the show! Listen to Numbers 24:1,
“When Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not go as at other times to seek omens but he set his face toward the wilderness [the Israelite camp].”
In Numbers 24:17, God used Balaam’s fourth and final oracle to point to the true star of the show, the coming of the Messiah:
“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, A scepter shall rise from Israel, and shall crush through the forehead of Moab, and tear down all the sons of Sheth.”
God used an ancient seer, saved from the angel of the Lord by a talking donkey, and paid by an enemy king to curse Israel, to proclaim the coming of the Messiah-King!
A Bible scholar explains the connection between Balaam’s ancient oracle and the messianic prophecy of Jesus Christ:
Numbers 24:17 was considered messianic in ancient Jewish thinking, but no one thought of a celestial sign when reading it. … For Israelites, star language pointed to the Messiah-King. Numbers 24:17 is therefore the backdrop for interpreting some odd passages in Revelation.[1]
Jesus described Himself in Revelation 22:16,
“I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star” (cf. Revelation 2:26-28).
Seize the moment and point to Jesus Christ with your life—He alone is the star of the show! May He shine brightly in and through you!
God bless your day!
If you would like to receive a personal phone call today, all you have to do is dial the phone number below right now and one of us will call you soon.
YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click
HERE to visit the page.
Videos are posted about a week after the devotion appears in the blog.
[1] Michael S. Heiser, The Bible Unfiltered: Approaching Scripture on Its Own Terms (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2017), 218–219.
