God Demands Distinction In His People

“Do not worship the LORD your God in the way these pagan peoples worship their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.4] 

God demands distinction in His people.

You must not worship the LORD your God the way the other nations worship their gods, for they perform for their gods every detestable act that the LORD hates. They even burn their sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods. [Deuteronomy 12.31]

Let me just say that "relevant" is a term of idolatry. 

Jesus' demand says it all:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

God did all the 'blending in with man' that He is going to do when He gave His only Son. Now it is time for man to 'blend in with God' by following Jesus. 

Notice both of the Deuteronomy passages above are not specifically about worshiping other gods, but are about not worshiping God the same way.

Interestingly enough, the modern Church looks nothing like the early Church. The way we worship God today is the product of years and years of evolution - or should I say devolution? The way we worship God today has become much more about the convenience of man than the holiness of God. 

The Church has stooped to the level that it is not about Jesus and His Body together glorifying God in word and deed as much as it is about a one-man-show complete with an emotional opening act music sideshow. Consequently, the people walk out in the same condition they walked in except for perhaps they got emotional. They call this emotion a "move of the Spirit" even though it is strikingly similar to the "good vibes," "tears shed" and "hands raised" at an entirely secular music concert. The blind do not see. The deaf do not hear. The lame do not walk. The dead are not raised.

So low has the Church digressed that when an infirmed or sick person is encountered, the first question asked of that person is "what do the doctors say?" What the hell? Literally, what the worldly HELL? Doctors and medicine are the same way the world (going to hell) treats sickness and disease. In fact, the Church today resorts to all the same major solutions as the world (debt, insurance, medicine and technology) regarding blessings and curses instead of being distinguished as God's people.

“Look, today I am giving you the choice between a blessing and a curse! You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the LORD your God that I am giving you today. But you will be cursed if you reject the commands of the LORD your God and turn away from him and worship gods you have not known before. [Deuteronomy 11.26-28]

 Just sit tight... it gets worse!

To worship God the same way the world worships their gods is to effectively worship those worldly gods instead of God!

About now it should make much more sense that Jesus would demand (not suggest) that a true follower must "give up his own way (the way of the world and its gods), take up his cross (the way of faith even in the face of death), and follow Jesus, Who makes the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame to walk, and the dead to live.

Yes, the paragraph above describes what "church" today should look like. Does our current church model reflect this? No. Is it redeemable? Not likely because the modern church model, at its foundation, is the way of man (an IRS compliant business) when it should be the way of God.

The details that define the True Church model should be the same as Jesus defined:

John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” [Matthew 11.2-5]

If the Church today is not built upon Jesus in His description of Himself, then there is only one solution in a two-part action: repent and believe. In fact, that is how Jesus ministered:

Later on, after John was arrested, Jesus went into Galilee, where he preached God’s Good News. “The time promised by God has come at last!” he announced. “The Kingdom of God is near! Repent of your sins and believe the Good News!” [Mark 1.14-15]

The popular "faith movement" has proven that faith alone has only underwhelmingly come to this solution. There must be repentance - and lots of it. We will know we have repented enough when our faith makes us look and act like Jesus in all His ways. Without repentance, we areworshiping God the world's way - man's way - the same way pagans worship their gods - and we are just wasting God's time.

Father, the words written here are hard. We are on the road to hell and expecting to arrive at heaven. May we be found repentant because our faith does not have us looking like Jesus. May we be found repentant because our church does not have us looking like Jesus. May we be found repenting and believing in proper proportions! May we recognize that proper proportion when Your glory manifests all Your power among us. May we understand that we are tasked to give up our own way. May we understand that we are tasked to take up our cross. May we understand that we are tasked to follow Jesus. So be it.

God Cannot Bless Our Idolatry And Ignorance Of His Word

And the LORD our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the LORD our God has given us.’ [Deuteronomy 6.24-25] 

So, how's that grace-of-God-in-Jesus thing working out for you?

The problem with people today is that they religiously read the Bible (if they read it at all) without paying one bit of attention to what it is actually saying. Then, they make stupid, unsubstantiated claims about "Jesus" and "grace" of which they neither know nor show by their allegedly redeemed lives. If this sounds sarcastic, then at least something is making sense...

Jesus said the entire Bible points to Him:

“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]

Matthew recognized this for face value: 

That evening many demon-possessed people were brought to Jesus. He cast out the evil spirits with a simple command, and he healed all the sick. This fulfilled the word of the Lord through the prophet Isaiah, who said, “He took our sicknesses and removed our diseases.” [Matthew 8.16-17] 

In contrast, today's One Year Chronological Bible reading includes: 

You must diligently obey the commands of the LORD your God—all the laws and decrees he has given you. Do what is right and good in the LORD’s sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the LORD swore to give your ancestors. You will drive out all the enemies living in the land, just as the LORD said you would. [Deuteronomy 6.17-19] 

"All going well for you" does not mean financial hardship, loss, sickness, or ignorance. In fact, today's reading defines what "all going well for you" looks like:

The LORD did miraculous signs and wonders before our eyes, dealing terrifying blows against Egypt and Pharaoh and all his people. [Deuteronomy 6.22] 

In Christ, this should look like Paul wrote to the Church in Galatia:

But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” [Galatians 3.13] 

It is pure mockery of God and Jesus Christ to make all the claims the Church and its leaders make today with nothing to show for it. And, the problem is in plain sight in today's One Year Chronological Bible reading:

“The LORD your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the LORD, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. You must fear the LORD your God and serve him. When you take an oath, you must use only his name. [Deuteronomy 6.10-13]

God's people today have not been "rescued from Egypt." Instead, they are still "relying on Egypt" in cities they built, houses stocked with goods they produced, drawing water from wells they dug, and eating from vineyards and olive trees they planted. In short, God's people are living just like Egypt in total reliance upon themselves and their accomplishments. Egypt and idolatry are synonymous in the Bible, and God's people have yet to come out of Egypt! God's alleged people live and look just like Egypt. This is a farce and a total mockery of God.

What's more, in spite of what the Bible clearly says are curses for idolatrous disobedience, the Church today abstractly says "it's all under grace in Christ" while demonstrating zero tangible evidence of God's promised blessings. Then, they mitigate curses with their own man-made systems and call it "God's doing." Oh sure, people give God credit for "blessings" that have perfectly understandable origins, but they are not living in actual miracles they had no part of whatsoever like Deuteronomy 6.10-13 says God's people would live and look like.

Today's OYCB reading reveals two reasons that God's people, then and now, are not distinguished from the world: 1) they have not come out of Egypt (idolatry) and 2) they are grossly ignorant of God's Word.

“In the future your children will ask you, ‘What is the meaning of these laws, decrees, and regulations that the LORD our God has commanded us to obey?’ “Then you must tell them, ‘We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand. [Deuteronomy 6.20-21]

“Listen, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. [Deuteronomy 6.4-9]

No, this is not just Old Testament teaching that has somehow passed away. Jesus left no room for imagination when He demanded:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]  

To give up our own way is to give up man-made (idolatrous) self-preservation in deference to His way: undeniable, unexplainable miracles. To take up our cross is to give up our hold on life in deference to mountain-moving faith that transports us to resurrection life on the other side of the cross. Following Jesus is to wholeheartedly follow God's Word without regard for "self." Jesus is God's Word.

I am not trying to be mean. This "pokes me in the eye" as much or more than it does anyone. Something is terribly wrong in the Church today and it has everything to do with our death grip on "Egypt-idols" and our gross ignorance of God's Word - Jesus.

Look at references to the distinction God wishes for His people. God never has, nor ever will be, satisfied with His people looking and acting just like the world and, in particular, Egypt! Our ignorance of God's Word and intimacy with idols prevents God's distinction in our lives.

And the LORD our God commanded us to obey all these decrees and to fear him so he can continue to bless us and preserve our lives, as he has done to this day. [Deuteronomy 6.24]

Get in the word and get rid of idols!

Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. [1 John 5.21] 

Jesus pointed out the problem:

For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.’ [Matthew 13.15] 

Father, help us to get it right concerning Your Word and idolatry. Help us to see. Help us to hear. Help us to look at our powerless lives and understand! So be it.

The Place Of Your Slavery

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. [Deuteronomy 5.6-7] 

Should it not give us great pause that God would refer to Egypt as "the place of your slavery"?

What do we know about Egypt?

Egypt started out as a solution for Israel - the way Israel mitigated a great famine. 

Egypt brought relief to Israel. 

Egypt was provision for Israel. 

Egypt was an improvement to Israel's former condition. 

What's more, Egypt represented the emotional reunion of a divided family.

And yet, God calls Egypt, "the place of your slavery". 

Why would God choose to point out "the place of your slavery" just before demanding, "You must not have any other god but me"? The answer is simple if only we will see it...

Why would Israel go to Egypt if they knew they would become slaves there? They wouldn't! Israel went to Egypt as a way to improve their current situation. Israel had needs and Egypt met those needs. Egypt indeed improved Israel's condition ...until it didn't! What began as a logical and practical solution became Israel's bondage.

So, we must ask ourselves again, why did God point out Egypt for its bondage instead of relief before saying "You must not have any other god but me"? Because all the things listed above (that we know about Egypt regarding Israel) are the things that idols promise up front. In the Old Testament, Egypt is synonymous with idolatry (see here).

Here is something to think about: had it not been for overwhelming emotion of being reunited with Joseph, Jacob might never have agreed to go to Egypt. Where need did not succeed in luring Israel to Egypt initially (ultimately to slavery to idols), emotion effectively 'sealed the deal.'

God's inclusion of "...Egypt, the place of your slavery" before "You must not have any other god but me" warns every person, for all time who would ever follow God, of the danger of having needs met by anyone or anything other than God alone. That danger is idolatry.

Let's fast forward to the 21st Century... 

In light of the 1st Commandment and God's reference to Egypt, should not God's people today be just as leery of the lure of "solutions" that ultimately enslave them having effectively become idols in their lives? These solutions (idols that enslave) abound in our time! And, although this list is not exhaustive, it covers the main slave masters of our day: debt, insurance, medicine and technology. These industries all offer solutions to mitigate life's hard circumstances that God jealously wants to miraculously and distinctly mitigate Himself. Much of the average person's labor today goes to "pay" these slave masters.

And, just as Jacob (Israel) was betrayed by his own emotion of being reunited with Joseph, so the emotion of "family" today lures people into idolatry as well. I will trust the reader here to think this through.

When God commanded "no other god" He did so in direct reference to what happened to Israel in "turning to Egypt." If Egypt had been "God's way" it would not have required rescue from it.

Society today is effectively enclosed in a cocoon of idolatry through debt, insurance, medicine and technology. That cocoon can be broken and escaped from, but not without great resistance and the chagrin of the world - usually starting with family - and, therein is found the fuel of emotion, attached to need, mitigated elsewhere instead of by God alone.

Dear reader, I am not making this up! We have all been warned of this digression into idolatry since God first gave the Ten Commandments. It all started with, "I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery." God was not just employing literary fluff, but instead, giving us a clear warning how betraying our trust in Him starts. It starts with Egypt - with need fueled by emotion that eventually becomes slavery.

We would be amiss here not to remember Jesus' own exclusive command, not dissimilar to the 1st Commandment:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)] 

"Our own way" is the way of man. It is the way of idolatry - trusting man's thoughts and inventions instead of God's miraculous provision. Modern archeology has proven over and again that Egypt (ironically - of all places) was incredibly advanced in knowledge and inventions. Man's inventions today - debt, insurance, medicine and technology - cannot be separated from "the way of man" and must be understood as that which Jesus said must be given up in order to follow Him.

"Taking up your cross" is pure unadulterated faith in God alone (more specifically, Jesus) instead of man's way.

"Egypt" is the way of man and, is the enemy of God's way, the way of faith - the way of the cross.

To abbreviate or simplify the 1st Commandment as "You must not have any other god but me" would be open for logic and reason if it weren't for the preceding phrase, "I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery."

God's Word is clear. We just need to read it for what it actually says.

Father, Your Word is indeed clear on the matter of idolatry and its nefariously subtle and enslaving ways. May our eyes be opened as we read and understand Your Word. So be it.

Pretend Faith Does Not "Go In"

But you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God and refused to go in. [Deuteronomy 1.26] 

This is what pretend faith does. It goes along with the plan until the plan encounters difficulty. It's all "Go, God!" until it finds itself in the middle of the desert with no food or water. Pretend faith makes for great conversation, lessons, sermons and motivational books until there is no humanly-explainable way to accomplish the impossible task at hand.

Pretend faith depends on common sense and human reasoning. Pretend faith stops at the idol of life instead of worshiping only the LORD God Who gave that life. Pretend faith is all good until life is on the line and suffering and death are threatening. Pretend faith has no vision beyond physical death.

Pretend faith makes excuses for idolatry. Even worse, it justifies idolatry. And even worse still, it blasphemes the very name of God in its justification of idolatry by claiming idols are 'gifts from God.'

What does it mean to "refuse to go in"?

It means to mitigate financial crisis bowing to the idol of debt (man's solution) refusing to trust God alone.

It means to mitigate material or physical loss bowing to the idol of insurance (man's solution) refusing to trust God alone.

It means to mitigate health issues bowing to the idol of medicine (man's solution) refusing to trust God alone.

It means to mitigate physical or mental limitations bowing to the idol of technology (man's solution) refusing to trust God alone.

The "go in" part is real and genuine faith. Pretend faith gets us to the threshold, but real faith goes right on in (while, for all we care, suffering, loss, or even death itself can be damned).

Pretend faith only carries one to the point of suffering. Real faith carries one through suffering to victory that can only be attributed to God (think "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego" - Daniel 3.16-18). Real faith, in fact, furthermore sees death as victory.

Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” [1 Corinthians 15.54-55]

So, we must ask ourselves, "Is my faith pretend or real?" Our compulsion (or lack thereof) to mitigate our hardships with man's solutions (costly idols) reveals the truth.

Father, may my faith be found real as I "go in." So be it.

Are Being Made "Right With God" And Being Made "Right With The Land" The Same?

“All murderers must be put to death, but only if evidence is presented by more than one witness. No one may be put to death on the testimony of only one witness. Also, you must never accept a ransom payment for the life of someone judged guilty of murder and subject to execution; murderers must always be put to death. And never accept a ransom payment from someone who has fled to a city of refuge, allowing a slayer to return to his property before the death of the high priest. This will ensure that the land where you live will not be polluted, for murder pollutes the land. And no sacrifice except the execution of the murderer can purify the land from murder. You must not defile the land where you live, for I live there myself. I am the LORD, who lives among the people of Israel.” [Numbers 35.30-34] 

This is an intriguing passage of Scripture.

While the Bible speaks of all manner of sin that defiles people or the Tabernacle/Temple, here it reveals that murder pollutes the land.

The scripture above furthermore states that no sacrifice except the execution of the murderer can purify the land from murder. Does this mean not even the sacrificial blood of Jesus?

It must further be considered that Jesus made the following statement:

“You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell. [Matthew 5.21-22]

It would seem Jesus did not refute civil law regarding murder but, in fact, addressed the more important ramifications of the spiritual indiscretion behind it.

The apostle Paul, who ironically had a role in the murder of Stephen (Acts 22.20), wrote:

For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. [2 Corinthians 5.21]

Notice what I have made bold in the New King James Version: 

For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. [2 Corinthians 5.21 NKJV] 

It would seem Jesus meets for us the demand for the righteousness of God, but does that rectify the pollution of the land?

There is much to consider in Numbers 35.33 as it relates to 2 Corinthians 5.12. If Jesus makes (repentant and believing) men right with God, does this mean He makes the same men right with the land? Does it matter? Is there a distinction then between God's spiritual law and the land's civil law?

I am certain of this: the Bible contains all the answers and I will continue to allow the Bible to speak to me... For now, this topic seems deeper than I am prepared to swim in!

Father, help me to form my opinions about murder and the redemption of Jesus Christ in light of all Your Word (and not just the passages I like). So be it.

This Is Distinct

While they were camped near the Jordan River on the plains of Moab opposite Jericho, the LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel: When you cross the Jordan River into the land of Canaan, you must drive out all the people living there. You must destroy all their carved and molten images and demolish all their pagan shrines. Take possession of the land and settle in it, because I have given it to you to occupy. You must distribute the land among the clans by sacred lot and in proportion to their size. A larger portion of land will be allotted to each of the larger clans, and a smaller portion will be allotted to each of the smaller clans. The decision of the sacred lot is final. In this way, the portions of land will be divided among your ancestral tribes. But if you fail to drive out the people who live in the land, those who remain will be like splinters in your eyes and thorns in your sides. They will harass you in the land where you live. And I will do to you what I had planned to do to them.” [Numbers 33.50-56] 

Before the Promise land was to be divvied up between the tribes of Israel, there were two things that were to take place: 1) displace the current inhabitants, and 2) get rid of all their idols.

In today's culture, these instructions would be seen as unacceptable. Consequently, people of different cultures are cohabiting lands and idolatry is just the way of life.

For this reason, God said He would do to His people what He had planned to do to the original inhabitants of the land. Their "blending together" (cohabitation) did not improve the condition of the original inhabitants but instead, spread their demise to God's people.

God has always intended to make a distinction between those who are His and those who are not. However, if God's people fail to uphold that distinction themselves, God will treat them just like those who are not His.

Now, let's fast forward to Jesus. Jesus no less demanded distinction among those who would follow Him and those who would not.

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

So just what was it that Jesus did that genuine followers are to do? Jesus' followers' distinction is to be one and the same as the distinction in Jesus: 

When Jesus had finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he went out to teach and preach in towns throughout the region. John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.” [Matthew 11.1-6] 

Jesus was not about occupation of any particular land or region. 

Jesus answered, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom. If it were, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish leaders. But my Kingdom is not of this world.” [John 18.36] 

Instead, Jesus' conquest was other-worldly. He came, representing His Kingdom (not of this world) to overcome the entire world:

“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.” [John 3.16-21] 

Because Jesus came for the entire world, it would be impossible to drive out the inhabitants, as that would annihilate everyone. However, Jesus did indeed come to destroy the gods of the world - the worldly idols controlling mankind - so that His other-worldly Kingdom might be established. Thus, the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. This is indeed the distinction of Jesus and His (God's) followers.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father. [John 14.12]

Herein is found the great problem however. There is no distinction between those who are God's and those who are not if God's people rely on the exact same methods as the world for provision, protection, health, and convenience. 

It is not possible to be distinguished as God's people for provision when God's people use the same industry of debt as does the world. 

It is not possible to be distinguished as God's people for protection when God's people use the same industry of insurance as does the world. 

It is not possible to be distinguished as God's people for health when God's people use the same industry of medicine as does the world. 

It is not possible to be distinguished as God's people for conveniences when God's people use the same industry of technology as does the world. 

Not to mention that God said "no other gods" - specifically, "no idols,"  it should be seen and understood that idols are the great equalizer of all men on earth. They offer themselves to all men for solutions God promised freely to those who obey Him (see Deuteronomy 28.1-14). Idols offer "benefits" without commitment to God. However, in lieu of commitment to God, idols require payment (because they are man-made), and that "payment" is ever increasing to the point of controlling. And yet, people still find themselves in the position of the woman with the issue of blood:

A woman in the crowd had suffered for twelve years with constant bleeding. She had suffered a great deal from many doctors, and over the years she had spent everything she had to pay them, but she had gotten no better. In fact, she had gotten worse. [Mark 5.25-26]

There was no distinction in the woman's life until she came to Jesus. Distinction is what God wants for those who are His.

But the LORD will again make a distinction between the livestock of the Israelites and that of the Egyptians. Not a single one of Israel’s animals will die! [Exodus 9.4]

God's idea of distinguishing between those who are His and those who are not is miraculous intervention. It was this way in the Old Testament and Jesus proved it so in the New Testament. Idols are not miraculous intervention (regardless how man attempts to claim so). Idols are expensive mitigation of life circumstances that bypass God's miraculous intervention and the commitment (obedience) He requires. Idols are the "way of man" and are more so a problem today than ever before in history. Jesus words are timeless: If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me.

Just as Israel's possession of the Promised Land required the destruction of everything to do with idols, Jesus requires no less for His followers to enjoy occupying the Kingdom of God: the ways of man, idols, are to be given up (repented of) and displaced with the foolishness of a cross (believing God alone even in the very face of death). This is distinct.

Father, may the words written here reflect only the truth of Your Word. May Your people see and understand that idolatry is the world's way and, as such, stands between Your people and You even today. May we all see that only in forsaking all idols are we distinctly Yours... So be it.

How To Defeat God's People Today: Lure Them Into Idolatry

So Moses said to the people, “Choose some men, and arm them to fight the LORD’s war of revenge against Midian. From each tribe of Israel, send 1,000 men into battle.” So they chose 1,000 men from each tribe of Israel, a total of 12,000 men armed for battle. Then Moses sent them out, 1,000 men from each tribe, and Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest led them into battle. They carried along the holy objects of the sanctuary and the trumpets for sounding the charge. They attacked Midian as the LORD had commanded Moses, and they killed all the men. All five of the Midianite kings—Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba—died in the battle. They also killed Balaam son of Beor with the sword. Then the Israelite army captured the Midianite women and children and seized their cattle and flocks and all their wealth as plunder. They burned all the towns and villages where the Midianites had lived. After they had gathered the plunder and captives, both people and animals, they brought them all to Moses and Eleazar the priest, and to the whole community of Israel, which was camped on the plains of Moab beside the Jordan River, across from Jericho. Moses, Eleazar the priest, and all the leaders of the community went to meet them outside the camp. But Moses was furious with all the generals and captains who had returned from the battle. “Why have you let all the women live?” he demanded. “These are the very ones who followed Balaam’s advice and caused the people of Israel to rebel against the LORD at Mount Peor. They are the ones who caused the plague to strike the LORD’s people. So kill all the boys and all the women who have had intercourse with a man. Only the young girls who are virgins may live; you may keep them for yourselves. [Numbers 31.3-18] 

What was Balaam's advice?

First, we need to look in the Revelation of John:

“But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin. [Revelation 2.14] 

But when did Balaam do that? We have no record of it ...Or do we?

Let's start by looking at portions of the first blessing Balaam spoke (focus on bold):

Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stand here by your burnt offerings, and I will go to see if the LORD will respond to me. Then I will tell you whatever he reveals to me.” So Balaam went alone to the top of a bare hill, and God met him there. Balaam said to him, “I have prepared seven altars and have sacrificed a young bull and a ram on each altar.” [Numbers 23.3-4]

Balaam's actions here made a distinction between himself and Balak. 

Then, in Balaam's first blessing, he revealed critical information (again, focus on bold):

I see them from the cliff tops; I watch them from the hills. I see a people who live by themselves, set apart from other nations. [Numbers 23.9]

Balaam again revealed critical information about the distinction of God's people versus all other nations. Israel's Ten Commandments and all their laws, ceremonies and rituals distinguished Israel from all other nations. No doubt, Balak, as a king, as a strategic man of war (confirmed by his conscription of Balaam) was paying attention! Balak was obviously covertly compiling a short list of ways to penetrate Israel's strength and he strategically concluded that contaminating their ceremonial "purity" would be a good start. Revelation reveals this is indeed what happened in the Midianite women convincing Israel's men to eat food offered to idols (thus worshiping the gods of Moab, specifically, Baal).

As already stated, Balak learned something from Balaam that was critical to getting the access necessary to contaminate Israel's purity (pay attention to bold):

How beautiful are your tents, O Jacob; how lovely are your homes, O Israel! [Numbers 24.5]

And,

While the Israelites were camped at Acacia Grove, some of the men defiled themselves by having sexual relations with local Moabite women. These women invited them to attend sacrifices to their gods, so the Israelites feasted with them and worshiped the gods of Moab. In this way, Israel joined in the worship of Baal of Peor, causing the LORD’s anger to blaze against his people. The LORD issued the following command to Moses: “Seize all the ringleaders and execute them before the LORD in broad daylight, so his fierce anger will turn away from the people of Israel.” So Moses ordered Israel’s judges, “Each of you must put to death the men under your authority who have joined in worshiping Baal of Peor.” Just then one of the Israelite men brought a Midianite woman into his tent, right before the eyes of Moses and all the people, as everyone was weeping at the entrance of the Tabernacle. When Phinehas son of Eleazar and grandson of Aaron the priest saw this, he jumped up and left the assembly. He took a spear and rushed after the man into his tent. Phinehas thrust the spear all the way through the man’s body and into the woman’s stomach. So the plague against the Israelites was stopped, but not before 24,000 people had died. [Numbers 25.1-9] 

Based on the scriptures presented here, it was none other than Balaam who inadvertently informed Balak of the significance of Israel's distinction of worshiping only God, and, that Israel's tents and homes (representing sexual purity) were the critical gateway to accomplish that (even in modern times, "sex sells")!

As far as Balaam knew, he likely never even realized his betrayal of Israel until it was too late. If only he had just stayed home in the first place...

So, the lesson for us today is that our enemy, Satan, uses sex to segue us right into idolatry. But, we should not be so dull as to think that only the act of sex is all there is to it. Sex is representative of all self gratification...

Mitigating financial hardship without repentance - independent of God ...is self gratification.

Mitigating loss without repentance - independent of God ...is self gratification.

Mitigating health without repentance - independent of God ...is self gratification.

Mitigating ignorance and weakness without repentance - independent of God ...is self gratification.

Sex is only the "flagship" for all forms of "self gratification" that lures mankind today into the modern idolatry of debt, insurance, medicine and technology. These industries represent man-made idols that God's people, supposedly distinct from the world, make themselves indistinguishable from the rest of the world by their use. Balaam's story is a grave warning to God's people today of the vulnerability and danger that self gratification leads to. There is a reason the First Commandment is first!

“I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me. [Exodus 20.2-3]

Yes, first things matter. Balaam should have not questioned God's first response that he should stay home. His second inquiry was indeed his first mistake (see The Second Inquiry Is The First Mistake). His first mistake made the way for the king of Moab to lure Israel into violation of the First Commandment - the idolatrous worship of Baal.

Father, help us not be so dull as Balaam. Likewise help us not be so dull as Israel being drawn by self gratification into full-blown idol worship. May the truth of Your Word, fleshed out in Jesus Christ, climax in Jesus' New Testament version of the First Commandment that we give up our own way (self gratification), take up our cross (death-defying faith), and follow Him. So be it.