SUNDAY SERVICE August 26, 2007
THE BATTLE BELONGS TO GOD
You might be in the midst of a great battle today. You might be battling sickness, disease, and pain. You might be battling misunderstanding, persecution, judgment. There may be problems with your finances—even to the point where you worry about facing bankruptcy.
You may be facing a bully—whether that bully is threatening you physically or emotionally or spiritually. If you are in prison, you are going to face all of those bullies—probably every day. And, if you are chronically ill (especially if you are shut-in) you are going to face them too.
From ancient times to modern times, the people of God have had and will always have enemies that come against them. There will always be battles.
I want to remind you, though, that we are not fighting against flesh and blood. As New Testament believers, we fight spiritual forces and we have to come against them with spiritual weapons.
Ephesians 6: 12For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
And God tells us that we cannot fight with the weapons of lesh and blood. He tells us to put on HIS ARMOUR and, having done all, to STAND...FIRMLY IN OUR PLACE!
verse 13Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
BUT, HAVING DONE THAT, WE MUST REALIZE THAT THE BATTLE BELONGS TO GOD! Moses, David, and Jehosophat understood that principle and they each won a great battle because of it.
MOSES TOLD THE ISRAELITES...
Exodus 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace
THE PROPHET TOLD JEHOSOPHAT….
2 Chronicles 20:15-17: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's.
THE BATTLE BELONGS TO GOD! Whether you are like King Jehosophat and the people of Judah when the armies of Moab and Ammon came to attack them, or like Moses and the people of Israel between the Red Sea and the Egyptian army when pharaoh decided to pursue them, or if you are like David facing the Giant Goliath when the Philistines came against all of Israel…THE BATTLE WILL ONLY BE WON WHEN YOU UNDERSTAND THAT IT BELONGS TO GOD!
MOSES LED HIS PEOPLE OUT OF EGYPT AND THE EGYPTIAN ARMY FOLLOWED. IT WAS PART OF GOD’S PLAN BUT IT WAS SCARY FOR THE PEOPLE. God spoke to Moses and said “why are you crying out?”
Exodus 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace. Exodus 14:22 And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground: and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left.23 And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.
24 And it came to pass, that in the morning
watch the LORD looked unto the host of the Egyptians through
the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host
of the Egyptians,
25 And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them
heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the
face of Israel; for the LORD fighteth for them against the
Egyptians.
You know the rest of the story. God made the waters of the Red Sea come back and swallow up the Egyptians.
26And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.
27And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the LORD overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. 28And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. 29But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. 30Thus the LORD saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore. 31And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.
Moses encouraged the people TO Fear Not, Be Still, See the Salvation of the God , Wait for God, AND See their Deliverance. And that’s what happened.
THEN THERE WAS DAVID. DAVID WENT UP AGAINST GOLIATH, THE GIANT, BECAUSE HE STOOD UP AND MOCKED THE PEOPLE OF GOD, DEFIED THE GOD OF ISRAEL, AND DAVID’S BRAVE AND GODLY HEART COULD NOT STAND FOR THIS. HE WAS A BOY, BUT HE HAD TO FIGHT FOR GOD AND THE PEOPLE OF GOD.
DAVID fought Goliath with a sling and a stone because he knew that armour and a sword would not help him. He had already killed a lion and a bear while guarding his father’s sheep.
1 Samuel 17 "I used to keep my father's sheep, and when a lion or bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it rose against me...I killed it. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
He knew it was God who had had given him the strength then and it was God who would give him the strength now, so he ran TO the fight shouting that He came in the “name of the God of Israel”. You know the rest. He killed Goliath and cut off the giant’s head with Goliath’s own sword.
AND THEN THERE WAS KING JEHOSOPHAT. He was a good king (mostly) and he led Judah to worship God. But the king’s enemies cam against them. They were in terrible danger.
2 Chronicles 20 (AMP) 1 after this, the Moabites, the Ammonites, and with them the Meunites came against Jehoshaphat to battle. 2It was told Jehoshaphat, A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, from Edom; and behold they are in Hazazon-tamar, which is En-gedi. 3Then Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself [determinedly, as his vital need] to seek the Lord; he proclaimed a fast in all Judah. 4And Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord [yearning for Him with all their desire].
YES, JEHOSOPHAT WAS AFRAID. THAT ISN’T BAD. FEAR IS A NATURAL RESPONSE TO GREAT DANGER. IT’S HOW WE RESPOND TO THE FEAR AND THE ACTIONS WE TAKE THAT DETERMINE THE RESULT. WHAT JEHOSOPHAT DID WAS TURN TO GOD AND PROCLAIM A FAST.
After starting his prayer by acknowledging how great, awesome, powerful and wonderful the Lord is, Jehoshaphat then began relating specific mighty acts the Lord had performed in the past to protect His people and uphold the promises He had made them. And in finally presenting his request, He began by expressing His confidence that the Lord would handle the problem.
2 Chronicles 20:5-13 (NIV) 5 Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the LORD in the front of the new courtyard 6 and said: "O LORD, God of our fathers, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. 7 O our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? 8 They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, 9 'If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.'
10 "But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. 11 See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. 12 O our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon you." 13 All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD.
THEY SOUGHT GOD BECAUSE THEY KNEW THAT GOD HAD THE SOLUTION. GOD HAS THE SOLUTION TO OUR PROBLEMS BEFORE WE EVEN SEE THE PROBLEM! WE HAVE TO SEEK HIM TO GET THE ANSWERS THAT WE NEED. People don’t have the answers—only God does.
Jehosophat needed to hear from God and he did! God spoke to him through the mouth of His prophet.
2 Chronicles 20:15-17: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's. Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'"
What is remarkable about this prophecy is that it contains two clear instructions:
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You will not need to fight this battle (because God will fight for you)
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March down against them and take up your positions
These two instructions might appear to be
contradictory. If they didn't need to fight this battle, why
take up battle positions? If the battle is the Lord's, and
not theirs, why face the enemy in the first place?
BECAUSE GOD NEVER CALLS US TO COWER AND HIDE. HE WANTS US TO
WITNESS HIS DELIVERANCE AND MIRACLES. HE WANTS US TO BE
ACTIVE IN OUR FAITH. Faith is about trusting God, but it
also about taking an active step in response to that trust.
The next morning, Jehoshaphat encourages his people.
verse 21 tells us:
"After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: 'Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever.'"
God didn't actually instruct Jehoshaphat to put singers at the front of his army; all he had said was:
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"...the battle is not yours, but God's." IF THE BATTLE IS NOT GOD’S THEN GOD WON’T FIGHT IT AND WE CANNOT WIN.
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"Tomorrow march down against them." WE CAN’T JUST HIDE OUR HEADS UNDER OUR PILLOWS AND CROSS OUR FINGERS. WE HAVE TO FACE THE ENEMY!
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"You will not have to fight this battle." WE WON’T HAVE TO DO THE FIGHTING!
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"Take up your positions; STATION YOURSELVES, TAKE THE POSITION THAT GOD HAS GIVEN YOU---THE MINISTRY THAT IS YOURS.
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stand firm TAKE YOU STAND AND DON’T BACK DOWN OR WAVER!
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and see the deliverance the LORD will give you." WATCH AND PRAY EXPECTING GOD TO DELIVER YOU!
-
"Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you."
The faith of the people was so great that they decided that
the way they would enact these instructions was
through worship. They focused on God and praised Him.
Through worship, they shifted their attention from the enemy
to the Lord.
2 Chronicles 20:22-23
then tells us what happened.
"As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. The men of Ammon and Moab rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
I WANT TO END WITH WHAT I STARTED WITH: There will always be battles.
I want to remind you, AGAIN, that we are not fighting against flesh and blood. As New Testament believers, we fight spiritual forces and we have to come against them with spiritual weapons.
Ephesians 6: 12For we are not wrestling with flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the despotisms, against the powers, against [the master spirits who are] the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spirit forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) sphere.
God tells us that we cannot fight with the weapons of lesh and blood. He tells us to put on HIS ARMOUR and, having done all, to STAND...FIRMLY IN OUR PLACE!
verse 13Therefore put on God's complete armor, that you may be able to resist and stand your ground on the evil day [of danger], and, having done all [the crisis demands], to stand [firmly in your place].
AND, HAVING DONE THAT, WE MUST REALIZE THAT THE BATTLE BELONGS TO GOD!
Trust God. Cry out to Him when you are in trouble and KNOW that He will hear you. It isn’t a sin to be afraid; the test is what you DO when you’re afraid. DO YOU LET FEAR BECOME A STRONGHOLD IN YOUR LIFE? Do you cower in fear or do you turn to God and build yourself up in faith? Do you believe HIM and His Word?
Look through the circumstances at God---who is right there ahead of you. THEN GO AND FACE THE ENEMY, STATION YOURSELF, STAND FIRM, AND WATCH AS GOD DELIVERS YOU!
Psalm 36:4-8 4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. 6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. 8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
SONG: THE BATTLE BELONGS TO THE LORD
