“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.”
Numbers 24:17
Israel, having been rescued by Yahweh and set free from their taskmasters in Egypt, were on their way to Horeb. There they wouldmeet with the God that had saved them with great signs and wonders, the God who is their vanguard and rearguard, a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. He’s the God who delivered the beleaguered nation and split the sea so they may walk on dry ground, who displays his great power and yet condescends to meet them and covenant with them and promises to bless them with a land of their own.
Despite their grumbling and testing of Yahweh, he lovingly disciplines them and rescues them in several notable battles. Balak, King of Moab, wishes to secretly invoke a curse upon this seemingly unstoppable army and calls upon Balaam the prophet for spiritual aid.
But Balaam, who at great lengths and threats by Yahweh, agrees to say whatever Yahweh would permit and not what Balak requested. The prophet tries to curse Israel three times but ends up blessing the nation instead. After extolling Israel’s righteousness (which didn’t exist, since they constantly complained against Yahweh) and promising an enduring legacy (which wasn’t apparent since they were not yet in the promised land) we see the crux of the blessing—the King of Israel (the first of whom wouldn’t be installed for centuries). Yahweh’s faithfulness to Israel is secondary to his faithfulness to the Seed promised from Eve to Abraham and his sons. An outpouring of that faithfulness is the Messianic King and his salvific work to Israel and the nations.
At a time when Israel was faithless in dealing with Yahweh, Yahweh remained faithful to Israel. He proclaimed that the sign of the promised seed would be a star and that, while most of Israel would remain faithless, Yahweh would display his faithfulness and lovingkindness by sending the second person of the Godhead, the Son, as King of Israel to bring peace and righteousness to the nation and then to all the world.
This Christmas let’s remember that we are undeserving beneficiaries of the love shared by the members of the Godhead and that it istheir faithfulness that we are now called to imitate.
Father, may Christ dwell in our hearts through faith this season, that we may be able to, along with all the saints, more fully comprehend the unmerited and divine love of our Saviour.
Melvin George
* Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New American Standard Bible, ©The Lockman Foundation, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1995. Used by permission.
** The above was taken from Glory to God in the Highest: A Christmas Devotional (Oakville: Proclamation, 2024).
By job title, Alice is the office administrator at Oakridge. But her behind-the-scenes efforts go far beyond that! She is actively involved in the leadership team for the Tuesday evening women's bible study, she is on the mission committee, and she has recently both stepped into the leadership of church bridal and baby shower celebrations, and started teaching in our Ozone kids program. Oh, and if you see any special seasonal or holiday decorations around the church, it's a safe bet that Alice was involved!