WAR ROOM
Ex. 17:8-13
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: ON THE ELEVATOR
1. Around the coffee machine at work, Sam was telling a story. “Billy and I were in an elevator yesterday telling Aggie jokes. We didn’t notice that standing right behind us was this really big guy.
2. Suddenly he reached between us and pushed the elevator “stop” button. He growled, “I don’t appreciate you telling Aggie jokes! I am an Aggie!” Then he reached down into his bag and pulled out a razor.”
3. Sam took another long drink of his coffee. His listeners, in suspense, chimed in, “What happened next?” Sam said, “Nothing. It was an electric razor!”
B. VIDEO – “WAR ROOM” TRAILER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIl-XY9t_Lw
C. TITLE
The title of this message is “War Room.”
I. WHAT’S A ‘WAR ROOM?’
A. THE WAR ROOM
1. The concept of the “War Room” is that battles are not only waged on the battlefield, but often far away at a military headquarters in a room dubbed a “War Room.”
2. This Room is the “brain” that moves the “arm” of the Battle Troops on the field.
3. Many examples can be drawn from history where a weaker army has out-maneuvered a stronger army and defeated them.
4. It wasn’t the strength of the army that prevailed, but the strategic mind of the general who directed it.
5. This same thing happens in the spiritual realm. The “David” defeats the “Goliath;” the Jonathan defeats the
Philistines; the Gideon defeats the Midianites; the Samson defeats the Philistines; the Jephthah defeats the Ammonites; the Jehoshaphat defeats 3 nations! All defeated far superior armies because there was a higher power directing the battle.
6. One of the best examples of this is when Israel, under Moses, was fighting the Amalekites. Let’s read about it.
B. PASSAGE PORTRAYING A WAR ROOM
1. 8 The Amalekites came and attacked the Israelites at Rephidim. 9 Moses said to Joshua, “Choose some of our men and go out to fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hands.” 10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. 12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword. Ex. 17:8-13.
2. Notice: Moses’ arms went up and down, symbolizing praying and ceasing from prayer.
3. When Moses’ arms were up (in prayer) Israel’s soldiers began to win the battle.
4. When Moses’ arms were down (him not praying), Israel’s soldiers began to be defeated. Moses got 2 relatives to help him hold up his arms and Israel won the battle.
5. The invisible power of prayer was graphically demonstrated & its effects visually observed; we see how the visible is manipulated by the invisible. The same repercussions happen today when WE pray.
C. PRAYER HUMOR: Hunting
1. The Wednesday-night church service coincided with the last day of hunting season.
Our pastor asked who had bagged a deer. No one raised a hand.
2. Puzzled, the pastor said, "I don't get it. Last Sunday many of you said you were unable to make service because of hunting season. I had the whole congregation pray for your deer."
3. One hunter groaned, "Well, it worked. They're all safe." Jokstop
II. WHY WE NEED A WAR ROOM
A. OUR BATTLE
1. How is all this discussion of “War Rooms” applicable to us? Because each one of us have ongoing struggles.
a. It might be with our HEALTH.
b. It might be a shortage of MONEY.
c. We might have a troubled MARRIAGE.
d. Ongoing UNFORGIVENESS.
e. FEARS & insecurities.
f. TEENAGERS going the wrong direction.
g. Our CULTURE slipping toward the precipice.
h. Our JOB threatened – boss, co-worker, lay-offs.
2. These are the areas we have “battles.” Our mistake is thinking – like Joshua – that we can beat them on our own. 3. OUR BATTLE MUST BE FOUGHT IN THE WAR ROOM OF PRAYER! “All things happen by prayer and nothing without it.”
4. The problem comes – when we pray, we often don’t see any change in our situation – so we’re tempted to abandon prayer.
5. Our problems are usually long in developing, and a few applications of prayer aren’t enough. WE MUST PERSEVERE IN PRAYER TO SEE VICTORY!
6. Moses had to hold his arms up for a long time before Israel finally won the battle.
B. PRAYER’S POWER TO CHANGE THINGS
1. “God shapes the world by prayer. The more prayer there is in the world, the better the world will be, the mightier the forces against evil …” E.M. Bounds
2. "Our prayers lay the track down upon which God’s power can come. Like a mighty locomotive, his power is irresistible, but it cannot reach us without rails." Watchman Nee
3. "The reason why we obtain no more in prayer is because we expect no more. God usually answers us according to our own hearts." Richard Alleine
C. THE ONLY WAY TO EFFECT CHANGE
1. “ONLY A PRAYING CHURCH…
a. Can change the world!
b. Controls the destinies of nations!
2. They who wield prayer, wield the greatest force in the Universe. (Atomic power is not as powerful!)
3. Is prayer important? Yes! Even the Son of God prayed fervently. [Thompson Chain # 2834-35; 4141]
4. “Intercession” in Isa. 53:12 & 59:16 means to “impinge” which means to “drive in, as with a wedge.” Things will go on naturally unless we drive in the wedge of the supernatural by intercession.
5. God has ordained prayer as the means of summoning His intervention!
D. ILLUSTRATION: ANSWERED PRAYER
1. "In the summer of 1876, grasshoppers nearly destroyed the crops in Minnesota. So in the spring of 1877, farmers were worried. They believed that the dreadful plague would once again visit them and again destroy the rich wheat crop, bringing ruin to thousands of people.
2. The situation was so serious that Governor John S. Pillsbury proclaimed April 26 as a day of prayer and fasting. He urged every man, woman and child to ask God to prevent the terrible scourge.
3. On that April day all schools, shops, stores and offices were closed. The next day temperatures soared to a very high temp. for April.
4. Minnesotans were devastated as they discovered billions of grasshopper larvae wiggling to life. For 3 days the unusual heat persisted, and the larvae hatched. It appeared that the wheat crop would be wiped out.
5. On the fourth day, however the temperature suddenly dropped, and that night frost covered the entire state. Result? It killed every one of the pests as surely as if poison
or fire had been used.
6. It went down in the history of Minnesota as the day “God answered the prayers of the people." [John Maxwell, Partners in Prayer.]
III. CONFIDENCE IN THE WAR ROOM
1. “But when you pray, go into your room (KJV “closet”), close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.” Matt. 6:6
2. SOME DON’T KNOW WHAT CLOSET IS FOR! [HUMOR]
a. At a grandma was keeping/ babysitting her grandson Dirk. Dirk followed her into the bedroom as she puts up things away in the closet.
b. "Grandma," he said, "what room is this?" "This is a closet, Dirk," she explained. "We don't have a room like this in our house," he said. "Of course you do," she said, "You have lots of closets in your home."
c. When he again denied having closets in his house, she tried another tack. "Where do you keep all your clothes?" she asked.
d. A true child of the times, he replied, "In the dryer."
3. WE ALSO NEED TO LEARN THE PURPOSE OF THE PRAYER CLOSET!
A. PRAYER IS GOD’S IDEA, NOT OURS
1. First, we are invited to pray. God would never have invited us to pray if He had not intended to hear and answer us. God doesn’t invite you to dinner and then have no food for you. The invitation implies there’s blessings to receive.
2. Jesus said, “I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” Mt. 9:13. Jesus didn’t come for righteous people, but for us sinners, so we can feel welcome coming to Him. We’re not perfect, just forgiven!
3. It’s only on terms of God’s grace that we can expect to obtain the blessings that we need. Jesus paid it all!
B. OUR GOD’S CHARACTER
1. Remember the character of the King who sits upon the throne of grace. He is infinite in mercy and love and He delights to bless His creatures. He is infinite in power and is, therefore,
“able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.”
2. He’s unlimited in His resources, so we can’t exceed His ability to help us. Your requests can be as large as they must be!
C. YOUR RELATIONSHIP TO GOD
1. Remember, Christian, your relationship to the King who sits upon the throne of grace! You aren’t merely His servant—
you’re His child—an heir of God, and joint heir with Jesus Christ!
2. All that you ask for is already yours by right of inheritance and shall be in your possession in due time. Shall a child tremble in his loving Father’s presence? Perfect love casts out all fear.
3. ”We have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Heb. 4:15.
D. LEARN TO STAND ON THE WORD
1. Our prayers should be based on God’s promises. God has made many “precious promises” that apply to all children of God.
2. When you have a need, find a scripture where God promises to meet that need, then petition God to meet that need based upon His promise.
3. In faith, lay claim to the promise, and expect God to answer your prayer.
4. God is faithful! The same God who answered your prayers last year will answer them this year! He’s the “same, yesterday, today, and forever!”
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: A SAFE LANDING
1. Chris Hoyle lives in a high rise condominium. She was enjoying the afternoon and looked out her window just in time to see Ken Larsen on the way down from the top of a five-story building.
2. “His head was down, his feet were up, and he came whizzing by screaming.” Larsen survived the fall with no broken bones and was only bruised and scraped.
3. Ken Larsen’s frightening fall seems to be a picture of many of our lives -- rapidly heading for a crash landing. Some have financial problems, health problems, marital problems, job problems, sin problems or a combination of problems.
4. So what do you do when you find your life coming apart and you are falling?
5. Ken Larsen was on top of the building laying tele-communications cable. He was walking backward pulling on the
cable and his co-worker was holding the spool feeding it out.
6. When Ken stepped off the roof he still had the cable in his hands. He held on gripping tighter and tighter which broke his fall. He landed on his feet even though much of the fall was head first.
7. Meanwhile back on the roof his co-worker leaned against the spool of cable trying to slow the rate the cable fed out.
8. THE ONLY THING THAT WILL SLOW OUR FALL IS TO HANG ONTO GOD!
9. I Cor. 15:58 says, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord….” To have a safe landing, hold to God! [Ed Wrather]
B. THE CALL
1. “Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers!” Sidlow Baxter
2. We are in a battle for the souls and lives of this city. Huntsville is at stake! We need prayer partners to join in the battle.
3. How many of you have a prayer battle in your life?
Healing; Money; Marriage; Unforgiveness; Fears; Kids; Temptation; Culture War; Job Situation; Depression; Need Direction? Come join me for special prayer!
4. Let’s all join together and intercede for these up front. Pray!
