Several things struck me this year in reading 2 Chronicles 20 and how Jehoshaphat responded to the news that a ‘vast army’ was coming to attack them. Scripture says that he was ‘alarmed,’ How would you feel if you knew a massive army was coming to destroy your city?
My first response would definitely be like Jehoshaphat’s! But look what he did. He not only sought God’s help, but proclaimed a fast for the whole city. They didn’t have radios or TV’s then. News spread fast, probably through the synagogues and word of mouth. It says that people came to seek help from the Lord from ‘every town’ in Judah. Whole families came.
They knew they were powerless with such a massive attack coming. They humbled their hearts and God ended up fighting the battle for them. (The armies destroyed each other and the Israelites never even fought. The singers went out at the head of the army, singing praises.)
I was in a women’s Bible Study called Community Bible Study (CBS) when the first Gulf War broke out. It was a group of around 80 woman from 30 churches. It was not a ‘quiet’ group. Even in the parking lot the ladies, myself included, loved to talk to each other.
It was usually hard for our teacher to get us quiet to even start the class. When the war broke out, our Bible Teacher told us we were going to start with 20 minutes of quiet prayer to seek God’s help for our soldiers.
I honestly thought the idea was great, but no way could these women be quiet for 20 minutes. How could they ever make that work? Well, the next week I was amazed that no one spoke and 100% of the ladies humbled their hearts.
We don’t usually respond with sackcloth and ashes like they did in the Old Testament. But God is looking inside our hearts. He still responds to a broken and contrite spirit. Those are the people he lifts up!
Shalom Aleichem, Jean!
This scripture reference is a good reminder that each of us, as a community of believers and also as individual members of the Body of Messiah are continually in the ‘same place’. That is to say, from time to time and even more frequently now as we draw nearer to G-d in these end times, we are alarmed to hear news of the enemies’ imminent assault.
We are powerless in our own strength to resist this attack. There is nothing in ‘the natural’ that can save us. Yet, there is everything in Heaven at our disposal, for we are sons and daughters of The Most High!
A beloved 83 year old woman of G-d who lives near here, Florence, recently reminded me of the ‘full spiritual armor’ we are to wear. Florence reminded me the armor has no ‘back’, for other believers and even the L-rd Himself has ‘our back’
covered.
She also reminded me that once we don this armor, we best not take it off! For though there are respites in the fight, it is when one’s guard is down that one is vulnerable.
Now, are we sufficiently valiant fighters to do the rest ourselves? Of course not! All we must do next is stand, for The Battle belongs to the L-rd.
No weapon formed against us shall prosper!
Like you remind us, those nations and even individuals who think they are clever enough or powerful enough to win the Victory are sorely lacking. Those who exalt themselves are soon humbled.
Thank you for your teaching. It can be easily forgotten that we are nothing without G-d. No good thing can come from us except by His will and permission. Those who follow Messiah must be in continual humility, which can be a great Joy.
The Joy in knowing that Our G-d is the Most Awesome G-d, Righteous, Kadosh and Loving. A G-d who knows even when a sparrow falls and our every need, even before we ask.
May the L-rd see your faithfulness to Him and come to your rescue too, when news of ‘impossible odds’ come to your ears. I pray you ‘post’ these
things (make them known to other believers) so they can fast and pray, wear sackcloth and heap ashes upon their heads.
For is not a threat to the hand also one to the foot? Are we not one Body in His Name? Then it is important to reveal these things, to ‘sound the alarm’ so the hand and foot, the eye and ear, the arm and leg, all in unison humble unto the L-rd that He may hear, fight for us, and scatter the enemy.
Psalm 35
In His Unfailing Love,
His bondservant,
~Yochanon