Quick now.....who said this: "What have I done to make you beat me these three times?"
Hint: Think Chronicles of Narnia. Think talking animals.
If you guessed Balaam's talking donkey you are right! (Some folks say a donkey talks every Sunday morning at CCC!)
Later we will read how God shut the mouths of the lions in Daniel's case. Here in Numbers 22 he opens the mouth of a donkey. Not only does the donkey talk......she asked her owner two hard questions. This comes after the donkey saw what Balaam could not.
"The angel of the Lord was standing in the road with a drawn sword in his hand." Wow! It makes me wonder what I am not seeing. An invisible world is all around us. Every time we pray we enter that invisible world.
The donkey swerved three times to avoid trouble. Three beatings from the master is better than facing the angel with a drawn sword.
The Lord opens the donkey's mouth. Wouldn't you like to see a replay of that conversation? The donkey asked, "Am I not your own donkey which you have always ridden to this day? Have I been in the habit of doing this to you?" (It was a female donkey so was it a female voice?)
IT IS HILARIOUS! And what's even funnier......Balaam doesn't even act surprised. He just answers the questions from the donkey like this happened every day. He simply replies, "No."
What a day for Balaam......first he talks to the donkey, then to the angel.
The angel said, Why have you beaten your donkey these three times? I have come to oppose you because your path is a reckless one before me. The donkey saw me and turned away. If she had not I would have certainly killed you by now, but I would have spared her."
Many applications come to mind here:
God is for us. He used a foreigner like Balaam, a man beyond our circle and knowledge to work in behalf of his people.
God is all-powerful. He can make donkeys talk. He can make pigs fly.
There is an invisible world. God is the King there too.
God is trying to get our attention. In this story the donkey is more observant than her owner. If you are beating your head against a wall it might be that the Lord is trying to tell you to wake up and smell the coffee. Is your path a reckless one before the Lord?
Your way is not working. Try his way. Apparently Balaam didn't wake up. He was later killed. (Numbers 37)