Who Are These People With You?

The strange story of Balaam illustrates four vital principles for how those who trust in God should relate to those who don’t:
1) People change people. For good or ill, the people we spend the most time around will inevitably shape our perception of what is possible, desirable or good.
2) If you belong to Jesus, you are blessed – but only because of grace. Balaam’s prophecies and their fulfillment in Jesus mark the life of every Christian as fundamentally blessed.
3) Total isolation from “the world” is not only impossible; it’s ungodly. God calls his people to be distinct, and then to bless the world around them. David Mathis says we should be “not of, but sent into” the world.
4) It’s possible to see a great deal and still be blind – just like Balaam, the great “see-er” whose donkey saw more than he did.