THE BATTLE IS GOD’S, NOT YOURS

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In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.

Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi). Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek Him.

Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard and said:

“Lord, the God of our ancestors, 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. 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? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for Your Name, saying, ‘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.’”

“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. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession You gave us as an inheritance. 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 on You.”

All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord. Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly. He said:

“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, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”

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 Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.

Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. 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.” 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.”

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.

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. 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. 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 20:1-30

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

When you think of the word “battle”, you often think about a military conflict where opposing forces come against one another seeking victory. There is this vision of weapons being fired and people losing their lives for the cause of whatever they’re fighting for. And when people think of our preserved liberties, particularly in America, we often hold to the truth that freedom is not always free but rather paid for with a heavy price as brave men and women went to battle and made the ultimate sacrifice for their nation and its people.

Today, I would suggest to you that we all will face battles in life although most of us will never wear a military uniform. I say this because life can sometimes draw us into battle, especially when we consider the matter of sin, evil, and other worldly challenges we may face in our world today.

Sometimes, the battle is between you and another person who may have ill intentions toward you. At other times, the battle might be physical as you fight against some affliction such as cancer. Still other times might find us engaged in the constant spiritual war waged within our hearts, the war between the Spirit and the flesh.  

Yes, we will all at some time or another, find ourselves involved in battle and so we had better know how to handle it when it comes.

Now, when militaries go into battle, they rely on one another to get the job done for the most part. Such is the commitment that fighting men and women have for one another, that they would be willing to die to save a fellow service member. But what do we do when conflict rises against us? Who do we have fighting for us?

The answer lies in our scripture today as we look at the 20th Chapter of 2 Chronicles.

There we find Judah in a precarious situation. We read where the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat with a vast army from Edom. Alarmed, we see where Jehoshaphat immediately decided to inquire of the Lord while proclaiming a fast for all Judah and the people of Judah all came together and joined with Jehoshaphat in seeking the Lord’s help. You’ll remember at this juncture that God had promised His people that when they turned to Him and sought Him, they would find Him. As we’ll see, God, as He has shown time and time again, stays true to His promises.

Facing what appeared to be a certain battle, Jehoshaphat stood and delivered what was his most inspired petition to God before a people in deep need of reassurance. Look again at his words:

“Lord, the God of our ancestors, 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. 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? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for Your Name, saying, ‘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.’”

“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. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession You gave us as an inheritance. 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 on You.”

What made this request so inspiring?

First of all, Jehoshaphat acknowledged God’s power and authority.

Lord, the God of our ancestors, 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.

The Lord who fashioned the heavens and the earth possessed the power to win victory over anyone and anything. He wins all battles. This was the God who was with Jehoshaphat and Judah. This is the same God who is with us.

Secondly, Jehoshaphat recalled all that God had done.

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? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for Your Name.

God had a history of winning battles for His people. He would continue to build on that track record as we will see by the end of this message and He is still winning battles for His faithful ones even as I type this.

Thirdly, God answers the cries of His people in trouble and responds with deliverance and salvation.

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.

Over and over again as we study the people of Israel, we find God coming to their rescue when they were in His favor and crying out for Him to save them. He bailed them out time and time again and He has never stopped as He is still the God who hears our pleas and comes to our aid.

Finally, Jehoshaphat and his people placed all their hope and trust in the only One who could help them.

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. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession You gave us as an inheritance. 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 on You.

Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah knew they didn’t have the power to battle against the imposing army advancing on them. But they knew who did and so they placed their eyes upon God, trusting that He would watch over them and keep them in His care.

Great words from Jehoshaphat and a humble, faith-filled attitude we all should adopt, an attitude that God favors and responds to as we see in our scripture passage. For not long after Jehoshaphat raised his request, we find God answering him through Jahaziel:

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, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.

How would you feel is you were Jehoshaphat and his people and the Lord spoke this message to you? Would you not be buoyed up in hope?

Well, the truth of the matter is that God is talking to us along with Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah and what He says is what we need to get through whatever battle in life we might encounter. We need to always remember the following:

1. Never be afraid or discouraged in the face of life’s challenges.

When you’re up against it, know and trust that the God who created all things is for you and there’s nothing beyond the work of His hands. Nothing.

2. The battles of life are not yours but God’s.

In other words, don’t rely on your own strength and power to defeat your adversaries, whether spiritual or physical. Rather, trust in the One who can and will always be victorious over all things, even death and the grave, through His almighty authority and reign over all of creation.

3. Stand firm and experience God’s deliverance.

No matter what, those who place their faith and trust in God and His Son Jesus will always find deliverance, even in death. We only need to stand firm in our faith and trust in Him.

4. Face tomorrow knowing God is with you.

When we’re embattled, we often don’t know what tomorrow might bring. When we realize God is with us no matter what, then tomorrow doesn’t need to be something we dread or have anxiety over. God is going to be with us and this gives us the strength to face whatever tomorrow might bring.

Amen and amen, right?

Friends, we should be giving praise and thanksgiving for the power of hope we find contained in this word of God today. For no matter what battles might come before us, we are never fighting alone. Instead, we have a God who is interceding and combating all things that would come against us. Stand firm, trust Him to do what He is all capable of doing, do not be anxious about anything, and step boldly into every new day He offers with the confidence to carry out His will and way, knowing He has your back on the battlefield of life.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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