THE BATTLE ISN'T YOURS

Eltham Baptist Church 15th July 2012

No. 383

I was reading about King Jehosaphat in 2 Chronicles chapter 20 and could see a vast treasure trove of amazing revelation and sermons that you could preach for months. In this chapter the King is up against great odds.
"After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat." 2 Chronicles 20:1

First of all I noted that there were 3 armies that came against Jehosaphat to make war with him. Not just one big army only but 3. He must have felt overwhelmed by this challenge. Aren't there days when we feel the same? Days when it seems like the enemy is attacking us from every quarter and we just don't have the forces to overcome them. We notice that Jehosaphat (being a man of God) first inquired of the Lord on what he should do. He got himself focused by fasting and praying and not only he himself but all the nation as well. Sometimes you can be confused by too much information and the deceit of your own heart, so it's good to humble your flesh with fasting. Next Jehosaphat prays in the midst of the congregation and brings forth his strong arguments to God. I have personally found this method of prayer a very effective way to pray. The Bible encourages it in this verse.
"Present your case," says the LORD. "Set forth your arguments," says Jacob's King. Isaiah 41:21

It is scriptural to do. God wants to see if we really desire what we are asking for. We see in the verses below that King Hezekiah was told that he would die by a Prophet, but he cried out to God with a strong reason why he should live and things changed.
In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, This is what the LORD says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover. Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, Remember, O LORD, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes. And Hezekiah wept bitterly. Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah: Go and tell Hezekiah, This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will add fifteen years to your life. And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend this city. Isaiah 38:1-6

We notice that Jacob brought forth his strong arguments too when faced with the overwhelming army of men that came with Esau his brother to apparently kill him. He was vastly outnumbered and the last time he heard from Esau he had said that he was going to kill him.
"When the messengers returned to Jacob, they said, We went to your brother Esau, and now he is coming to meet you, and four hundred men are with him. In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. He thought, If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape. Then Jacob prayed, O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, O LORD, who said to me, Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper, I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two groups. Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau, for I am afraid he will come and attack me, and also the mothers with their children. But you have said, I will surely make you prosper and will make your descendants like the sand of the sea, which cannot be counted. Genesis 32:6-12

You see here how Jacob used strong arguments in his prayers. He reminded God of what he had previously promised him. Jacob reminds God that it was He who told him to return home and that there he would prosper. Jehosaphat told God that when the children of Israel came out of Egypt they could have wiped out the Moabites and Ammonites but they didn't. They spared them and here they are coming now to kill him and he is vastly outnumbered. God heard this prayer and gave a prophetic word. Next we see someone who I have never heard of before bring a prophetic word. They were not one of the recognised Prophets of the day but just an ordinary Levite. 2 Chronicles 20:15-17 He told them not to be afraid by what they saw, but trust in God. He said the battle wasn't theirs but God's. He then went on to say that they are to still go out against them but they would see something great that God would do for them. After this they worshipped God and then lifted up their voices in praise very loudly. Jehosaphat then went on to say.
"As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem!

Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful. (prosper) 2 Chronicles 20:20 "Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper." kjv

They didn't treat this prophetic word lightly even though it wasn't from an established Prophet. Next Jehosaphat did something that wasn't mentioned in the prophetic word and that was to place the singers first in their army as they marched out against these 3 great armies.
"

After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendour of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever. 2 Chronicles 20:21

You can imagine how the enemy must have scoffed when they saw this small band of men coming out against them with singers in the lead. It's like Goliath seeing David the shepherd boy coming to fight him little realising that with that small boy he would soon be destroyed.
"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 Ammonites and Moabites 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." 2 Chronicles 20:22-23

Even though the army of Jehosaphat was told that the battle wasn't theirs but God's, they still went out to battle but didn't trust in their own strength. They believed that Praise and God go hand in hand. They had prayed, worshipped, praised and then marched forward fearlessly and then praised some more. They knew that there was power in praise. It had a spiritual dimension that confused the powers of darkness. The armies of the enemy ended up fighting amongst themselves. Oh that we would realise the power of praise more, not only in our Church services but in our personal lives. Sometimes when I look out over the congregation on a Sunday and see how disinterested some folk are in the praise side of things I sense the sadness of God's heart. If only we knew what power could be flowing into our lives with praise. What darkness could be dispelled and what chains could be broken over our lives in the service if we did. So often we want a meaty sermon or some great revelation given to us thinking it would be the answer when God says - PRAISE ME. Not only in the Church but in our own lives we can march out against the enemy singing songs in English and singing in the Spirit as well knowing that as the enemy was put to flight in Jehoshaphat's day so can it be today. Not only did they win the battle that day but there was a great spoil to be taken up.
"When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. 25 So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it." v24-25

This reminds me of the days of Elisha when those people who believed the Prophet Elisha were greatly rewarded.
"..and they found the whole road strewn with the clothing and equipment the Arameans had thrown away in their headlong flight. So the messengers returned and reported to the king. Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans. So a seah of flour sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley sold for a shekel, as the LORD had said. 2 Kings 7:15-16 "On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they praised the LORD. This is why it is called the Valley of Berakah to this day. Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the LORD had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies. They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the LORD with harps and lyres and trumpets. The fear of God came on all the surrounding kingdoms when they heard how the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side." 2 Chronicles 20:26-30

So they began with praise and also ended with praise. So often we forget to thank God for answered prayer. We are all in there when we are in trouble but walk away when we are delivered. When we had the twin tower disasters in America the churches were filled but soon their passion waned and things went back to normal and so did the Churches. Let that not be said of us. Pray

and Praise before and always after answered prayer. There is power in Praise.