Journey to Resolve
Resolution 8: Let God Win My Battles
Leave your rifles in the rack. You won’t need them when the battle is insurmountable. Has anybody ever told you that? Sometimes we can go to battle without breaking a sweat or calling upon those heroes who are somehow larger than life. But, of course, we should call on the Almighty Hero. God will be our Hero when we let Him.
This
is the 3rd post about kings and kingdoms within our larger series of New Years
Resolutions based on every 20:24 and 20:25 verse in the Bible.
Regarding kings and kingdoms, we first resolve to stand for God’s government.
When we do so, we support His choices for who sits in office, and we
ultimately trust and obey His commands. Then we are prepared to step
forward, and follow Him through the highs and lows
of life, including battles we can't win. We can remain
committed to His plan despite any difficulty or hardship because our
battles are God’s battles when we lean into Him. He will go
before us and do the heavy lifting if we let Him, which is Resolution
#8: I will let God win my battles.
Raise your hand if, when trouble comes, your first instinct is to protect yourself or at least fight to maintain the status quo. My hand is raised. Is yours? How readily do we pray and trust God to handle the situation?
Today’s resolution brings us to 2 Chronicles. It is full of stories about the kings of Judah that we can treat as character studies to help us learn how to be faithful to God and His Word. A central theme for most of the book is the priesthood and worship, and in today's story of King Jehoshaphat, we see that worship and faith invite the presence and victorious hand of God – the very hand that fights our battles.
Jehoshaphat had the faith to lead his kingdom into battle against all odds. He was the fourth king of Judah (the southern kingdom of God’s people) and his “heart was devoted to the ways of the Lord” (2 Chronicles17:6).
Our
20:25 verse for this post lands us in the aftermath of Jehoshaphat’s
battle:
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.
2 Chronicles 20:25
----------------
Jehoshaphat understood how to let God win his battles. Here are a few things from his story that we may not always think about when we decide to put our difficulties in God’s hands.
Jehoshaphat
was alerted that “a vast army [was] coming against [him] from Edom…” He was alarmed, but his
first action was remarkable.
He
leaned into God.
He ordered all of Judah to fast and they sought God’s help together. He led all the men, women, and children in prayer (2 Chronicles20:3-13):
He acknowledged God’s authority and power.
He recited God’s plan for Israel in the promised land and the temple in which He dwelt.
He reiterated God’s promise of deliverance to those who abide with Him.
He asked God for deliverance from an army that would surely defeat them by any human estimation.
And God answered:
‘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,
Judah and Jerusalem.
Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.
Go out to face them tomorrow,
and the Lord will be with you.'"
2 Chronicles 20:15b-17
Notice that Judah still had to march into battle and take a firm stance against a vast army. God didn’t let them walk away from their problem. Like Judah, you and I need to work hard and not shirk our responsibilities. Relying on God doesn’t mean washing our hands from the situation. Sure, sometimes we need to retreat and simply rest in the arms of God, but, after some rejuvenation, we step up in faith. For when the outlook is bleak, God will be with us.
**** Click to tweet ****
When the outlook is bleak,
God will be with us.
****
We face challenges we have little control over. How much do we rely on God to handle them?
What Jehoshaphat did next is also remarkable.
He worshiped God.
Jehoshaphat
bowed down with his face to the ground,
and all the people of
Judah and Jerusalem
fell down in worship before the Lord
Then some Levites from the Korahites stood up
and praised the Lord, the God of Israel,
with a very lout voice.
2 Chronicles 20:18-19
.Jehoshaphat didn’t wait for God to win the battle. He immediately bowed. The people followed his lead and the Levites praised. How empowering that must have been. What a sight that would’ve been had the enemy been there, but they weren’t in view yet. As they set out toward battle, they praised even more. Jehoshaphat told the people to have faith in God and he appointed singers! They sang and sang about the splendor of God’s holiness (2Chronicles 20:20-21).
That’s quite a new take on winning a battle, isn’t it? Praise typically comes after victory, but Jehoshaphat was confident in God’s promise and they sang (2 Chronicles 20:21). Call it a battle cry, but it was not aggressive. Their focus was on God’s holiness and mercy. When we step into difficulty, do we think about the God who favors us? Do we worship our incomparable, glorious God who loves and delivers us?
**** Click to tweet ****
When we step into difficulty,
do we worship our incomparable,
glorious God who loves and delivers us?
****
Now
this I know: The Lord
gives victory to his anointed.
He answers him from his heavenly
sanctuary
with the victorious power of his right hand.
Some
trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we trust in the name
of the Lord
our
God.
They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise
up and stand firm.
Psalm 20:6-8
The army of Judah didn’t know that, as they sang, God defeated their enemy. They didn’t know that God confounded the enemy to fight against itself until all lay dead in the desert before they arrived at the revealing overlook (2 Chronicles 20:24). God did indeed fight and win the battle. Judah’s job was to trust Him.
Do
we trust God to fight our battles? Do we praise Him and rely on His
promises as we journey through life? I wish I could answer with a
resounding “Yes!,” but I can’t. I hope you’re doing better
than I am. Let’s lean into God and praise Him and we will receive
assurance and greater faith to trust in His power and sovereignty. He
will win our battles.
It’s easy to rest after deliverance and get cozy with the spoils of battle. But the people of Judah didn’t forget their Deliverer. They assembled to praise Him. I imagine they were astonished when they reached the overlook in anticipation of battle. They must have expected an overwhelming army aligned to overtake them. Instead, they were met with surprise and relief…
And
praise.
And
it didn’t stop there. After carrying back all the plunder, Judah
again gathered to praise the Lord
(2 Chronicles 20:26) They continued their praise in the temple (2Chronicles 20:27-28). We can’t praise God enough. Truly, the best
offering of praise is our continuous worship: as
we wake, as we sleep, and throughout the day (Hebrews 13:15, 1Thessalonians 5:16-18, Psalm 150:1-6).
**** Click to tweet ****
We can't praise God enough.
Truly, the best offering of praise
is our continuous worship:
as we wak, as we sleep,
and throughout the day.
****
After victory, the surrounding kingdoms feared God. Judah was at peace (2Chronicles 20:29-30). God not only delivers, He gives rest. When it
feels like the walls are caving in, we can hide in the arms of the
Almighty and trust in His care. We can Let Him win our battles.
Whoever
dwells in the shelter of the Most High
will rest in the shadow
of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and
my fortress,
my God, in whom I trust.”
Surely
he will save you
from the fowler’s snare
and from the
deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers,
and
under his wings you will find refuge;
his faithfulness will be
your shield and rampart.
You will not fear the terror of
night,
nor the arrow that flies by day,
nor the pestilence
that stalks in the darkness,
nor the plague that destroys at
midday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
ten thousand at
your right hand,
but it will not come near you.
You will
only observe with your eyes
and see the punishment of the
wicked.
If
you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
and you make the Most High
your dwelling,
no harm will overtake you,
no disaster will
come near your tent.
For he will command his angels concerning
you
to guard you in all your ways;
they will lift you up in
their hands,
so that you will not strike your foot against a
stone.
You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
you will
trample the great lion and the serpent.
“Because
he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will
protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
He will call on me,
and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I
will deliver him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy
him
and show him my salvation.”
Psalm 91
7 more resolutions to come...
The resolutions in this series:
I will…
1. Worship God Alone (Exodus 20:24)
2. Be More Holy (Leviticus 20:24)
3. Aim High (Numbers 20:24)
4. Trust in God’s Strength (Judges 20:25)
5. Nurture Quality Friendships (1 Samuel 20:25)
6. Stand for God’s Government (2 Samuel 20:25)
7. Follow God through Highs and Lows (1 Kings 20:25)
8. Let God Win My Battles (2 Chronicles 20:25)
9. Rise Above the Naysayers (Job 20:25)
10. Trust God’s Ways (Proverbs 20:25)
11. Allow God to Correct Me (Ezekiel 20:25)
12. Serve Others Without the Glory (Matthew 20:25)
13. Rely On the Wisdom of God (Luke 20:25)
14. Trust the Words of My Savior (John 20:25)
15. Complete the Work God Has for Me (Acts 20:25)
If you want to dialog more about highs and lows, feel free to leave a comment or email me at authordlv@att.net. As I wrote above, the highs will come for those who earnestly follow God.
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