“And spoke encouragingly to them, saying, “be strong and courageous. Do not be dismayed before the king of Assyria…with him is an arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord God, to help us and to fight our battles.” 2 Chronicles 32:6-8
There is a fierce battle raging today against anyone that has called upon Jesus as their Lord and Savior. A war that will sooner or later arrive at their doorstep. Unannounced, unwelcomed, and unwanted. And there is a guarantee concerning these battles…they will arrive. In fact, as I talk with Christians this seems to be one of the biggest stumbling blocks they encounter. They don’t believe there’s really a war. When spiritual attacks manifest, they either confuse them with some kind of bad luck, or they believe the attacks are somehow misdirected, meant for someone else. We are clearly told in multiple places in God’s Word that during our particular age of God's kingdom, satan is the controller of this world. The quicker you come to terms with that the better equipped you will be to honestly look for and face the spiritual battles as they materialize in your life. Remember that the goal of satan is to either halt or completely stop the work of God. If you are on the front lines of God’s work, then get ready, you are a prime candidate for attack. But never fear, before you get too paranoid, there is a principle, that at its core, is one of the most important you will ever learn as a Christ Follower. The fight is not yours. You can try to fight, but in your own power you are destined to lose. The fight belongs to God and the quicker you give it to Him, the better you will be able to serve Him. We see here in 2 Chronicles 32 good king Hezekiah coming to this realization. King Sennacherib of Assyria has come knocking and with him 185,000 warriors that are intent upon destroying and pillaging Jerusalem. They have spent days camped outside the walls of Jerusalem shouting lies and trying to discourage the people of Jerusalem. They have shouted to them that their God is not real. They have shouted to them that their God will not be able to save them. They have even told them that worshiping their one God is useless for their many “gods” of the world have more power than just one God. They urge them to abandon their God and worship the same gods that the world around them worships. They tell them to give up on their God and save themselves from the emanate death that surely awaits them. And so it is that satan starts his battles. The psychology of spiritual warfare. Satan will attempt to discredit God in your mind. To get you to doubt God just a little, to get you to question His Almighty power, to make you think He is not enough. But good king Hezekiah and the mighty prophet Isaiah go to the only place you should go to when you are under attack from satan…to your knees. They pray to God and they confess that what the world says about Him is false, all lies. They state in their heart who God is, what He is, and the power He holds in His hand to deliver those that call Him Lord. And folks, that night we see God unleash one mighty angel of war that annihilates 185,000 Assyrian soldiers. The fight belongs to God, but not until you admit it. God will not rip the fight from your hands, but instead, He will wait for you to place it at His feet in great faith. You must stand aside in order for God to fight for you. Place your unbelief aside. Place your arrogance and pride aside. Step out of yourself and allow God to fight for you today. For it is in this way that your faith will be the most powerful weapon you ever wield in this world.
“Since the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but are powerful through God for the demolition of strongholds. We demolish arguments and every proud thing that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to obey Christ.” 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
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