Do
you need to be rescued? I know that I do.
Does
your family need to be rescued?
Does
your church need to be rescued?
Do
Christians need to be rescued? The answer is, yes, we do!
We
are surrounded by a godless world that hates us.
The
hate us for the same reason they hated,
And
continue to hate Christ Jesus.
He
tells them that what they do is evil and they resent that fact;
And
we represent Him. (John 7:7)
We
live in The Time Of The END,
Where, because of the increase of wickedness
The
love of most is growing cold as Christ Jesus told us it would.
We
can see this all around us if we have eyes to see
And
ears to hear what the Spirit of Christ is speaking today.
However,
God has given us a pattern for our rescue from Scripture.
That
pattern is contained in 2 Chronicles 20; Lets have a look.
The
Problem And Correct Response
King
Jehoshaphat is told that a vast army is coming against Israel.
Alarmed,
the king resolved to inquire of the Lord and called a fast.
The
whole nation (church) came together from every town.
King
Jehoshaphat addresses the assembly,
Declaring
who God is and who He is to them:
6
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.
What
God had Given And Promised
7
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?8 They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying,
They Cry Out To God
9 ‘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.’
10 “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.
11See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance.
We Do Not Know What To Do, But Our Eyes Are On You
12 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.”
13 All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD.
God Speaks To A Prophet
14 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.
The Battle Is The Lord's
15 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.
The Directions
16 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.
17 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.
The Appropriate Response
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD.
19 Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.
20 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.”
Further Directions
21 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.”
The Victory
23 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.
24 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.
The Spoil
25
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.
26 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.
Continued Rejoicing
27 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.
28 They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the LORD with harps and lyres and trumpets.
The Results of Obedience And Faith In Action
29 The fear of God came on all the surrounding kingdoms when they heard how the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel.
30 And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.
Our Response Today, Intentional, Warfare Worship
Those who see the circumstances the Church of God is in at this time and hear the voice of the Spirit of God, have this wonderful pattern to ensure their rescue. We have great and precious promises from God.
We can come together and fast, pray and seek the face of God.
We can expect to hear from God specific instructions as to what He would have us do.
We can stand and face our enemy, the rulers, and authorities, and powers of this dark world; the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms, with praise and worship to God as did Jehoshaphat and Israel.
The battle is the Lord's and the Lord inhabits the praise of His people. As we praise and worship God He rises up on our praise and destroys our enemies. This is not typical Sunday morning worship, but intentional, spiritual, warfare worship. Our lives depend upon it.
It is for the purpose of tearing down strongholds of the enemy. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. (2 Corinthians 10:4)
Praise the Lord.
Sing to the Lord a
new song,
His praise in the
assembly of the saints.
Let Israel rejoice
in their Maker;
Let the people of
Zion be glad in their King.
Let them praise his
name with dancing
And make music to
him with tambourine and harp.
For the Lord takes
delight in his people;
He crowns the humble
with salvation.
Let the saints
rejoice in this honor
And sing for joy on
their beds.
May
the praise of God be in their mouths
And a double-edged
sword in their hands,
To
inflict vengeance on the nations
And punishment on
the peoples,
To
bind their kings with fetters,
Their
nobles with shackles of iron,
To carry out the
sentence written against them.
This
is the glory of all his saints. (Psalm 149)
Let
God arise, let His enemies be scattered! (Psalm 68:1). God arises
on the praise and worship of His people.
Behold, I have given you authority to trample upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall injure you (Luke 10:19).
And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly (Luke 18:7-8).
The Son of God appeared for this purpose, that He might destroy the works of the devil (1 John 3:8).
In this way, God disarmed the evil rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by His victory over them on the cross of Christ (Colossians 2:15, NLT).
…upon this rock (Christ Jesus) I will build my church, and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys (authority) of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven (Matt 16:18-19).
I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in Heaven. Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven (Matthew 18:18-19).
All authority has been given to Me in Heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18). As the Father sent Christ Jesus so Christ sends us. (John 17:18)
Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours (Mark 11:24).
The LORD shall cause your enemies who rise up against you to be defeated before you; they will come out against you one way and will flee before you seven ways (Deuteronomy 28:7).
The Lord has driven out before you great and powerful nations; to this day no one has been able to withstand you. One of you routs a thousand, because the Lord your God fights for you, just as He promised. (Joshua 23:9-10)
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