stantly hinder Him and grieve the Spirit by our self effort. The twentieth verse of our text gives us a very wonderful description of the PERFORMANCE of faith! “And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be estab lished; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” What faith - inspiring words these are. Praise God for men of God in places of leadership who know how to lead the people of God in the faith God has given them. But notice the most unusual way in which the battle was to be executed. This is certainly a military maneuver without precedent or antecedent in his tory. “And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, PRAISE THE LORD;, for his mercy endureth forever. And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambush- ments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.” Not an arrow had flown, not a sword had flashed, nor a spear had been cast, but the battle was over. One great les son stands out before us in bold print, the battle was indeed God’s and He alone had won it. Now finally notice the PEACE that follows conquest. The chronicler re ports in verse thirty, ‘.‘So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet; for his God gave him rest round about.” What peace results when we stand still, and stand aside to see the Lord work in answer to the prayer of faith. Now let me very briefly point out without extensive comment, three great lessons that God has brought home to my own heart from this wonderful portion of His Word. 10
lessness of his own armies to face this dismal situation. He was no fool in military strategy or logistics. He could readily see that it would be impossible for the armies of Judah to meet and conquer this mighty military coalition. But neither was he a stranger to the God of Israel or to the power of prayer, both personal and public, both individ ual and collective. So, Jehoshaphat calls the people of Judah together for a great time of public confession, brokenness, surrender to God and earnest prayer. We might call this a practical demon stration of II Chron. 7:14, so oft quoted, “If my people which are called by my name, shall humble themselves and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven . . .” We read in verse five that Judah gathered themselves together to ask help of the Lord, and Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and said, “O Lord of our fathers, art not thou God in Heaven.” We do not have time to analyze this prayer, but if we could it would point up some very real and practical lessons. We cannot fail, how ever, to notice just the concluding sen tence in this moving mighty prayer (verse 12), “neither know we what to do; but our eyes are upon Thee.” My friend, this is the attitude that God wants when we approach Him in prayer. He wants us to die to self, to move out of the way, to take our hands off, and let Him live and move through us as a part of oui being. But let us notice thirdly, the PROB LEMS of God. The Spirit of God speak ing through the prophet Jahaziel with a positive, “thus saith the Lord,” gives God’s answer to their dilemma. Notice verse 15, “Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours but God’s.” My what a great lesson this is and how vital it is to success in this spiritual realm. This is the Lord’s battle, He wants to fight it for us, yet we con
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