“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Harass the Midianites and strike them down, for they have harassed you with their wiles, with which they beguiled you in the matter of Peor, and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of the chief of Midian, their sister, who was killed on the day of the plague on account of Peor.”“ (Numbers 25:16-18, ESV)
Remember that the daughters of Moab had seduced Israel to idolatry. We also remember that Balak king of Moab made an allegiance with the elders of Midian. This meant that both the Moab and Midian were involved. From the Lord’s instruction, it seems that Midian must have played the major role in leading Israel astray. Moreover, the command to harass and strike down Midian was for more than mere retribution. The Lord called upon Israel to remove the source of their temptation.
The principle we have here is not to harass and strike down people, but to recognize the things that play on our weaknesses and put them out of our lives. We all have weaknesses and there are certain things that will entice us to cave in to these. Believers who have an area of weakness must remove the enticements to sin in that area, since these could easily cause them to stumble. For instance, there are certain people and places that are dangerous for those with addictions. Those with addictions need to change their relationships and remove those places from their repertoire. Men struggling with lust must avoid watching television shows with explicit themes and content.
This means making some difficult choices. However, the believer must make them. Remember Jesus’ words.
“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.“ (Matthew 5:29-30, ESV)
Jesus recommends the same thing for His people. Remove and avoid the things that can attack you at your weak points and can cause you to stumble. This is better than to fall into temptation and sin.
Renewing the Heart 