Wednesday, July 31, 2024
And the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah and he said, Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the LORD to you, Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed at this great horde, for the battle is not yours but God's. Tomorrow go down against them. You will not need to fight in this battle. Stand firm, hold your position, and see the salvation of the LORD on your behalf. Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, and the LORD will be with you. 2 Chronicles 20:14-17
The Battle is Not Yours, but God's...
Have you ever felt like there was a "great horde" descending upon you? That is exactly what it feels like when we are facing difficult times. Even though we may not have a great army headed for us, we have different kinds of “great hordes” that descend on us at times. Jehoshaphat was facing a great horde of armies. Prior to this passage God had protected Jehoshaphat by holding back his enemies, which of course He could have continued to do, but He does not. Instead the "great horde" is coming, and instead of rescuing them completely out of the situation, God sends them directly into the middle of it. God often wants us to go to the frontlines of the battle as an exercise of our faith in Him. This battle was not Jehoshaphat’s or the kingdom of Judah’s battle, it was the Lords - for the battle is not yours but God's.
So many times, we just want God to make the great horde disappear, or for God to keep holding back the hordes, but sometimes He wants us to take the step of faith and face the great hordes so He can do a great work in our hearts. It takes a lot of faith and trust to stand still when the hordes are upon you, but this is what faith is. Our faith is built on moments like this when we see God work in our lives, and our faith is strengthened when we witness it over and over again. We see His power and faithfulness at work for us in our lives. God has already fought every battle for us - He already has the victory in His hands. He wants us to trust Him - His sovereignty, power and faithfulness.
Come, see the works of the Lord, who brings devastation on the earth. He makes wars cease throughout the earth. He shatters bows and cuts spears to pieces; he sets wagons ablaze. “Stop fighting, and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth. The Lord of Armies is with us;the God of Jacob is our stronghold.” Psalm 46:8-11 CSB
This past Sunday, Pastor Jim spoke about Psalm 46. In this Psalm, the Psalmist speaks of God's sovereignty over the earth and everything in it - all the natural elements. He speaks of his sovereignty over human elements - the nations and kingdoms. Lastly, in the passage above, the psalmist continues to highlight God's majesty and sovereignty. Then, God calls us to stop fighting and remember who He is. He calls us to stop fighting and know that He is God - exalted among the nations, exalted on earth. He is with us and He is our stronghold.
Trusting in God’s sovereignty is the only answer in a situation when we don’t know what to do. Believing in His sovereignty is the only way we will trust in Him and His promises on the front lines of battle, in the hospital, in school, inside the walls of our homes. When we have to fight battles for or make decisions that affect our loved ones, trusting Him is the only way to get through. Focusing on Him every step of the way we can find direction and guidance for taking the steps we feel He is leading us to take in faith.
God cares about us. He understands our fears and loves us and wants the best for us. The battle is not ours just like the battle was not Jehoshaphat’s either. There is no battle too big for Him because He is sovereign God and nothing happens outside of His control. He sends us to the battle but we do not have to fight because He fights for us. We just have the faith to take the step forward and to turn it all over to Him.
