| The Battle is On! |
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The Battle is On! 2 Chronicles 20:6-12 The measuring stick of any great man comes from his response, often something that happens once in his life that defines him for the rest of his life or career. Just to make that point, think of the moments in these mens careers that shaped your memory of them: - Ronald Reagan - George HW Bush - Bill Clinton - George W Bush Big idea: “We can please God by making corporate worship a personal priority.” Book: Set the scene: The date 750 B.C. The place: Jerusalem The man: Jehoshaphat, King of Judah. A good king, the son of Asa. During his reign there was peace and prosperity because Jehoshaphat was a man of the Book. More than anything, he wanted to do what God said. God honored him for that commitment and made him great. The crisis: A surprise attack from the southeast. Three nations had teamed up and were 40 miles from stomping Judah. These three nations had anger that went way back, jealousy had boiled over into anger. They were ready to fight and not take prisoners. The news: 2 Chron 20:2 “A vast army is coming against you. They have crossed the Dead Sea and are already in En Gedi.” They were no more than 3 days away. - Jehoshaphat had to act fast! - Verse 2 adds a significant phrase: “A vast army is coming against you.” - This statement made the attack personal. - The messenger didn’t say “They are coming after your nation!” - He said, “They are coming after you, King Jehoshaphat.” This crisis acts as a measuring stick for Jehoshaphat’s entire reign. This would tell what kind of man he really was. Personal identification: I don’t know about you… but this speaks right to me because in my life, there seem to be people willing to attack me. - As Christians, we are to expect attack. o From non-beleivers o From believers o From Satan - Attacks come, it’s a guarantee.. it’s a result of the Fall of Man and it’s the result of Satan’s activity in your life. - The question for you should never be “How can I avoid being attacked?” - It is always, “When I am attacked, how will I respond?” King’s response: Logical Options 1. Cover up and hide 2. Give up and surrender 3. Ignore the threat 4. Panic 5. Get the guns, prepare the army This was a defining moment for the King: Life is full of defining moments isn’t it? “Either you define the moment or the moment defines you.” Only option of a faithful king Jehoshaphat did something that made no sense. Instead of calling out the guard and sending off the troops, Jehoshaphat took time to pray. This defies common sense. Common sense response: There’s a time to pray, but there’s also a time to fight. Now is the time to fight! 2 Chronicles 19 is all about a fight, we know King Jehoshaphat was willing to fight, his instinct would have said “let’s get it on!” But just like any defining moment… your response will reflect on you. - When we respond to an attack with an attack of our own, it reveals our heart. - When we respond to an attack by running and hiding, it reveals our character. - When we respond to an attack with wisdom, it reveals our faith. We see a lot about Jehoshaphat’s heart, character, and faith in his response. v. 3 When he hears the news, he calls for a prayer and fasting meeting. Look: Read II Chronicles 20: 6-12 Highlights of the prayer - Acknowledged God’s rule over all nations - Acknowledged God’s power and might - Acknowledged what God had done in the past for Judah - Acknowledged that God listens to them - Asks God to judge the attackers - Asks God to give them power to defeat their enemy - Asks God for the answer God’s response The response from God came immediately! Read II Chron 20: 15 “The battle is not your’s but God’s” (16) God tells them where to meet their attackers (17) You will not have to fight this battle, just show up and BE READY! (17) Wait for God to deliver them to you Took: There are three major points we can take from this lesson that teach us how to worship. 1. Great things happen to us when we realize our powerless condition Many times in our life we try to win battles that aren’t ours to win. We fight so many battles that we are too weak or too over-confident to win anything. My observation is that this isn’t because we are bad people or because we have bad intentions… it’s simply because we try to win every battle in our life. Let me save you some time, I will tell you something I’ve learned so that you won’t have to learn this the hard way. (Some of you will laugh at me because you learned this a long time ago) In life you are: - Always outnumbered - Always outflanked - Always surrounded by work - Always surrounded by cares - Always full of hindrances - Always surrounded by harassments - Always backed up with problems - Always entangled by “life” - Always just around the corner from the latest battle to be fought. - Always right around the corner from the latest person trying to distract you from worshipping God. If you want to grow in life, you will have to surrender to all of these things and acknowledge that these battles are not yours. 2 Chronicles 20:15, “For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” - Boss treating you poorly? “The battle is not yours, but God’s.” - In-laws stressing you out? “The battle is not yours, but God’s.” - Kids fighting you as you try to lead them? “The battle is not yours, but God’s.” - Worried about money or your future? “The battle is not yours, but God’s.” Once you have freed yourself from these burdens, you will be free to worship God fully. Big idea: What does this have to do with worship? Well, as we’ll see… when we worship God corporately… when we make that a priority… it’s not only going to please God, it will release POWER. This isn’t an excuse to give up personal responsibility, it’s simply acknowledging that God is God and you are not. And the result of his leading corporate worship… we will see soon. It is the release of God’s power. 2. When it looks like nothing good will come out of a situation, take time to pray. It doesn’t matter how soon you think you need to respond, God wants you to honor Him with your dedication. There is always time for a quick prayer. This should give you peace of mind in any bad situation. - God knows your circumstances - God knows your cares - God knows how hard you’ve worked - God knows your scared - God looks at your heart (Your intentions, how you wanted to respond!) Jehoshaphat was crazy! He didn’t worry about his battle… the thousands of people out to kill him just 40 miles from his front door… He made worshipping God a personal priority. 3. Great things happen when we worship in community. Let’s see how God totally destroyed Jehoshaphat’s enemy because his country put God first in his battle. Recap: Jehoshaphat’s enemies: We’re coming to kill you! Jehoshaphat’s counter 1. Read v. 18 Jehoshaphat and all the people bowed down and worshiped the Lord. 2. Read v. 19 The Levites stood up and shouted praises to the Lord. a. Note it didn’t say pretty! b. Praising God doesn’t have to be pretty! c. This is great news for people who can’t sing, isn’t it! d. Don’t worry about praising God press God’s solution Read II Chron 20: 20-21 - The choir leads the army into battle! Maybe the strangest army formation in the history of the world. This is bold, audacious worship! They were confident because God had told them what to expect… just like so many times before. The Opposing Army’s Perception - This was suicide! - This was laughable! - This was silliness! - This was embarrassing! - This is too easy! - These guys are fools! - These guys are dead meat! What was the result of their corporate worship? The Results: Read 2 Chronicles 20:24 “When the men of Judah come 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.” Bold, audacious worship unleashed God’s power. - The Jews… o were faithful o Were brave o Were obedient o In full knowledge of how they looked o Were completely exposed o Won a battle they never physically fought - God was… o Fully faithful to His word o Complete (everyone dead) o Rewarding (25) The result of the application: Great things happen when we allow God to act. Let’s be honest. There are battles out there that you go looking for, and there are battles out there that find you. Here are some things from this passage that we can learn about fighting battles: 1. Pick your battles 2.Give it to God, battles belong to Him 3.Trust God to lead you 4.Communicate the plan 5.Boldly implement your plan Our corporate worship releases God’s power. - When we pray, we worship out of need - When we obey, we worship out of love - When we sing, we worship out of joy - When we give, we worship out of gratitude - When we praise, we worship out of reverence Let this be a house of God filled with praise and worship! Let this house be full and loud! Let this house unleash God’s power by worshipping together. PRAY |
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Students
Students are vital to many aspects of Romeo's ministry. We invite middle and high school students to join a small group, get connected, and experience life change.
Students are vital to many aspects of Romeo's ministry. We invite middle and high school students to join a small group, get connected, and experience life change.
