We live in a world of suspense. We don’t know what lies ahead of tomorrow and so we do our best to prepare ourselves for that very day. Though you have tried all your best to face tomorrow you will still fall short of something when you live that day. You end up asking yourself “what to do now?”
2 Cho 20: In this chapter we see the king of Judea facing an enemy who was attacking him from every side. After coming to know this he too said, “I don’t know what to do now?” The word of God says that he defeated his enemies and overcame them, how? Let’s take a look at his strategy in conquering over his enemies so that we can follow the same and conquer our enemies in the name of Jesus.
Things that King Jehoshaphat did:
1. He inquired the Lord. (V: 3):
The first thing every born-again believer should do is to INQUIRE the Lord. Go and tell God what you are facing and ask Him what to do now. The reason why David was called ‘a man after God’s own heart’ is that he went and inquired God before he faced any battle. Inquiring God is putting all your wisdom, knowledge and experience aside and humbling yourself to know God’s will for you.
2. He proclaimed a fast to seek the Lord. (V: 4):
He proclaimed FAST in all Judea. There are different kinds of fasting but why do you fast? Most of the people fast because they want to get answers to their prayers by hook or by crook. In other words they twist God’s hand to get their miracle but fasting is humbling yourself and saying God let your will be done. You don’t change God by your fasting but when you fast you change yourself. You will know what God wants from you and do so. Jehoshaphat the king of Judea did not know what to do, he was nervous and was weak to face the situation so he sought the Lord for His help and strength in the situation he was in.
3. Remember and proclaim the goodness and greatness of God. (V: 6-9):
The best way you can make your faith grow is by remembering who God is and what He has done? The moment you remember the goodness and greatness of God your faith level will not be the same instead you will gain strength from within to face the mountain that is in front of you. The word of God in your mouth is the greatest weapon you can ever have.
You know what happened when they were seeking God with fasting; Bible says ‘The word of God came through a prophet saying ‘Do not be afraid’. V: 15: why? Because ‘You need not fight the battle, only take position and stand still for the Lord and He will be with you. V: 17’. Hallelujah!!!! There is hope when you inquire God, seek Him with fasting and speaking the Word of God.
4. He and all his people bowed down and Worshiped God. (V: 16):
When they heard the Word of God through the prophet, they bowed down and worshiped God. Bowing down is the sign of complete surrender to God saying, “God I don’t know what to do but I depend on you for this situation because I know you are the only one who can lead me through.”
5. They praised and thanked God with Loud voice of His Splendor and Holiness. (V: 19-22):
Finally before they overcame their enemy the one last thing they did was to praise God with a loud voice for who He is. They praised His majesty, glory and His Holiness. And they thanked God in advance for He is with them and gave them victory even before they went to the battle field and faced their enemy.
So, what happened after the praises?
- The enemy rose against each other and killed one another. (V: 22-24): When they were praising God with a loud voice there raised a great confusion among the enemy. They killed one another until they were all destroyed completely. The people of God did not even face their enemy. They were already victorious before the battle.
- The great amount of clothing, equipment and also articles of values (more than they could take away) they collected for three days. (V: 25): The people of God not only got victory over the enemy but also got lots of clothes, equipment and other valuable things. When God begins to bless you, you will be blessed physically, emotionally, financially and also spiritually like these people.
- The fear of God came on all the kingdoms. (V: 29): All the people came to know that God was with them and everyone feared the people of God. When you allow God or invite God in your situation he will rescue and bless you and all the people of the world will see the greatness of God in your life and they will tremble and flee because God is with you and fighting for you.
If we can do what king Jehoshaphat did, we will get what he got!
