How to Win Spiritual Battles

By Peter Crause

2Ch 20:21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers to sing to 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 endures forever.

To get the full import of the occasion of this story it is advisable to read the entire 20^th chapter of second Chronicles.

In summary, Jehoshaphat was king at the time over Judah. The Ammonites and Moabites and inhabitants of Mt Seir had gathered together to invade Judah and destroy them. The multitude was great and fear gripped the hearts of Jehoshaphat and his subjects. They were hopelessly outnumbered and defeat was inevitable. They did what any child of God should do – they called a fast and went to the Lord in prayer. It was during this time that the Spirit of God came on Jahaziel a Levite; with a message of hope and promising sure victory.

A couple of things stand out in the promises made to them. Verse 15; “..The battle is not yours, it is the Lord’s.” Verse 17; “…stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD.” They were told the exact location of the enemy and told to go against them and see the Lord’s victory.

Jehoshaphat’s faith was such that he believed the Word of the Lord to them. He appointed a worship team to lead the army into battle – how strategically stupid to the human reason! Surely battles are won with superior firepower?

The record says that as the singers went ahead, praising the Lord, God sent utter confusion amongst the enemy and they started killing each other. When Jehoshaphat’s army arrived the enemy was defeated – all by themselves; and there was an abundance of riches and precious jewels for the spoil. They hadn’t lifted a finger – God had won God’s battle God’s way!

You and I don’t face physical hosts who are bent on destroying us. We face an enemy who is very powerful and wily. He has a large host under his command and he is a relentless foe. His tactics are as mentioned in Daniel; “he will wear out the saints of the most high.” Terrorism is a hit-and-run kind of war. You never know where he will strike or what form it will take. It may be a temptation to do a sinful act – so he can accuse you. It may be him whispering in your ear that you are a failure or that nobody cares about you anyway. It may be to get you so busy doing “good” things, that he makes you weary so you can’t seem to find time anymore to pray and wait on the Lord to find strength. Rest assured the battle is real.

When you feel tired, disappointed, weary emotionally and physically, have no desire for prayer and feel overwhelmed or discouraged – it’s more than likely you’ve been under enemy fire.

I have repeatedly faced such situations. Sometimes I’ve seen it for what it was and started praising the Lord and found immediate victory. Other times I confess I refused to listen to the inner voice of the Spirit and spent untold hours and days in defeat.

When in the doldrums and valley of despair – dare to offer the sacrifice of praise. The scriptures say:

1Th 5:18 in every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Eph 5:20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Does this make sense? Of course not! Does it work? Absolutely! When we praise the Lord in all situations – good or bad – when we give thanks for the situation; we bring God on the scene. Praising and giving thanks is an expression of our faith; that the Lord has permitted this to give us a newer and greater revelation of His provision to us! Unless we’ve been sick we cannot know Jehovah-Rapha (Lord our Healer) in experience. Unless we’ve had material needs, we cannot know Jehovah-Jireh (Lord our Provider or the Lord who sees to it) in experience.

As we start praising and thanking Him; acknowledge we don’t understand it – yet; but we know that He will lead us (Jehovah-Roi) to the victory – somehow – and He will get all the glory! Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord; for the battle is not yours but the Lord’s. Praise and worship with thanksgiving brings God’s might to bear on the situation – no human reason or ingenuity required. He then gets all the glory and we stand back in utter awe of our awesome powerful Lord.