Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim. And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand. So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands [were] heavy; and they took a stone, and put [it] under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.
Introduction
The life of discipleship is filled with challenges and spiritual warfare. Indeed there will days when you’ll feel as strong as an ox, as big as a giant and as invincible as Hercules. And then there will be days when you’ll feel as broken as Job, as forsaken as Jesus on the Cross, as misunderstood as Jeremiah, as persecuted as Paul, and as vulnerable as David when he was being hunted down by Saul. But no matter what you are going through, you must be very careful to keep your faith and trust in the Lord at all times and let the praise of the Lord be continually in your mouth (Ps. 34:1).
Listen! Don’t let your circumstance determine your praise. Don’t let your adversities neutralize your faith. Don’t let your weariness frustrate your worship. The road of discipleship is a stony road filled with bitter sweet memories and unavoidable challenges. But the end result thereof is life everlasting with Jesus our Lord.
Setting the Stage
Our text this morning chronicles the victory of the Israelites over the Amalekites at Rephidim ( = "rests" or "stays" or "resting places"). A station of Israel in the wilderness between Egypt and Sinai. It is interesting to note that it is in the place of rest that war came upon the Israelites. After a Red Sea experience, after manna from the sky, after meat from the quails, and after water at Meribah, I’m sure the Israelites were moving confidently towards the Promised Land. So confident that they decided to hang out a little bit at Rephidim.
My brothers and sisters, there are a lot of us who have climbed the ladder of success, bought the dream home, paid all our debts, and think that we can put our lives on cruise control and coast our way to heaven without having to do any hard work. That is the furthest thing from the truth. For the enemy will attack you in your resting places. He will attack you in that dream home. He will attack your dream marriage. He will attack your dream job. He will attack your dream neighborhood. That’s why your hands have to always be lifted in prayer before the Lord at all times.
The truth in the matter is; there is no rest for the followers of Jesus Christ. We are always at war with the enemy. That’s why we have to cry out to God day and night. We have to be ready to fight the enemy whenever and wherever.
Body
Thank God for the servant/leader Moses who was a man of prayer and faith. Moses did not stay in the valley of rest (Rephidim), but he went on the top of the hill and lifted his hands with the rod of God towards the heaven. It is here that we learn two things:
1. A disciple must always have his/hands lifted to God in prayer
When there is no prayer there won’t be victory. And it doesn’t matter your position or title in the Church. Without your prayer, the enemy will destroy everything that you hold near and dear. I like the way Alvin VanderGriend puts it in the “Love to Pray” book; “God was teaching His people that He chooses to move in response to prayer and He will not move without it.
The text says; “when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.” In other words, you and I can’t drop our spiritual guards. We have to keep our hands up in prayer for our children when they go to school, for our spouses when they go to work, for our neighbors, for our co-workers, for our extended family members and church members.
When our hands are lifted in prayer God neutralize the enemy and give us victory. When our hands stay lifted crack-houses are closed down in our neighborhood. When our hands stay lifted, gang members move on to other areas. When our hands stay lifted, broken marriages are fixed. When our hands stay lifted the church gets stronger, more souls are saved, more disciples are developed, people are set free.
2. A disciple needs help from other disciples to keep their hands lifted
Moses' hands [were] heavy; and they took a stone, and put [it] under him, and he sat thereon;
The term used here is the adjective כְּבֵדִים (kÿvedim). It means “heavy,” but in this context the idea is more that of being tired. This is the important word that was used in the plague stories: when the heart of Pharaoh was hard, then the Israelites did not gain their freedom or victory. Likewise here, when the staff was lowered because Moses’ hands were “heavy,” Israel started to lose.
Listen! I don’t care who you are and how long you’ve been on the Christian battlefield, you will get tired sometimes. Even Moses got tired. All day long while the Israelites were fighting the Amalekites, Moses was interceding for them. But at some point he got tired. I think you need to know that there is nothing wrong with getting tired if you have some folks to hold you up.
But Moses was more than tired. He was burdened for the Israelites. He was emotionally spent for the Israelites. He was physically worn out. He was heavy laden. He may not have been fighting physically with the Israelites, but he was engaged in the most difficult of all battles –spiritual warfare.
I wonder how many of your hands are heavy because you had them lifted up to the Lord in prayer for your neighbors and your co-workers. I wonder how many of your hands are tired because you had them lifted all day long for your children and your spouse. How many of your hands are tired because you had them lifted all day long for this church family?
You see, you may not understand it but we are in a war. Your children are in a war, your husband, your wife, your fellow church members are in a war. And they need you to intercede for them day and night. They need you to get tired for them.
And when you get tired, you need one or two people to hold your hands and help you keep them lifted unto the hills from whence cometh your help. In the last year I have had a lot of you wondering what am I doing with the church. I know a lot of you are asking: is he going or is he staying? Is Imani going to continue or is the church going out of business? The only thing I can tell you is: stop asking me the question and start holding my hands up so we can win the fight.
Let me break it down to you! The truth is, when I moved to NC I was looking for rest. NC was my Rephidim. I thought that the church would be okay and that I could coast my way to heaven and write a few books in the process. But after I arrived at NC the Devil came against me like the Amalekites came against the Israelites. He began to attack my finances. He attacked my marriage. He attacked my mind and my body. And then he began to attack Imani. By the time I realized what was going on much damaged had been done. So I had to get on top of the hill and stretch out my hands before God and cry out to him for my family, my finances, and the church. I had to change my focus from just a pastor to being an intercessor like Moses and a disciple maker like Paul. And for the last two years I’ve been fighting as such.
Yes I get tired and most of the time I don’t know what is going to happen with the church. All I ever wanted was to go somewhere, live in peace and write some books. But I realize that if I do that, many of you won’t make it. I realize if I do that, my marriage and my family won’t make it. So I have to stay and fight. But I do get tired. I get tired of my financial situation, tired of the fact that I have to leave my family behind and come here alone, and tired of the fact that we can’t have a building of our own to do the Lord’s work. So I need you to stay up my hands like Hur and Joshua stayed Moses hands. Yes I’m looking for some Joshua’s and Hur’s to prop me up when I’m tired, to encourage me when I’m discouraged. This is war; and I can’t win it alone. I need you to pick up the slack and make my hands easier.
My job is to keep my hands stretched out before God while you go to work, school, etc to do battle with the enemy. My job is also to empower and encourage you to keep your hands stretched out before the Lord. But I also need your help to keep my hands from being too heavy.
Conclusion
There is a war going on and we need some fighters to hold their hands up in prayer in order to get the victory. For all your children who go to school; you need to hold your hands up.
Hold your hands up for the drug dealer on your street
Hold your hands up for the gang members and the prostitutes
Hold your hands up for the depressed and downtrodden
Hold your hands up for the broken homes and the single parents
Hold your hands up for the brothers and sisters in the pen
Hold your hands up for the backsliding brother
Hold your hands up for your Muslim neighbors
Hold your hands up for your Buddhist/Hindu gas station owner
This ain’t the time to rest my friends. It’s time to hold your hands up.
