WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO
We are usually taught that to find God’s will we should pray, study the Scriptures, listen to the inner voice of the Holy Spirit, seek Christian counsel, and analyze the circumstances.
But what happens when there is no angelic visitation, no audible voice from God, no supernatural manifestation, no time to seek counsel--but you have a pressing situation and need an immediate answer?
In 2 Chronicles 20 the Bible records the story of a man who faced such a dilemma.
A formidable enemy was rapidly advancing to invade King Jehoshaphat’s nation.
As the massive army marched towards him, Jehoshaphat fearfully acknowledged that he had no strategy to face the crisis.
He didn’t have time to search the Scriptures, make an appointment with a Christian counselor, or wait for circumstances to work out.
Jehoshaphat’s story begins with confusion but ends in conquest because he learned what to do when he didn’t know what to do--and so can you!
Once you master the strategies Jehoshaphat used then you can apply them to every crisis youR encounter.
Allow me to read you the story….follow along with me in 2 Chronicles 20:1-30
1 It happened after this that the people of Moab with the people of Ammon, and others with them besides the Ammonites, came to battle against Jehoshaphat. 2 Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar” (which is En Gedi). 3 And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast
throughout all Judah. 4 So Judah gathered together to ask help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord. 5 Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the
Lord, before the new court, 6 and said: “O Lord God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You?
7 “Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? 8 “And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, 9 `If disaster comes upon us-- sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine-- we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’ 10 “And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir-- whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them--11 “here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit.
12 “O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” 13 Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the Lord. 14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah,the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly.
15 And he said, “Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: `Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 `Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel.
17 `You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.”
18 And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. 19 Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high.
20 So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.”
21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.”
22 Now when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. 23 For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
24 So when Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped. 25 When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies, and precious jewelry, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering the spoil because there was so much. 26 And on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, for there they blessed the Lord; therefore the name of that place was called The Valley of Berachah until this day.
27 Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat in front of them, to go back to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies. 28 So they came to Jerusalem, with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the Lord.
1. Jehoshaphat receives a very disturbing report
Life is filled with disturbing reports……It is a part of life ...There is always “someone ” with a bad report to give to you. You are not alone…..The Biblical is filled with people who have received bad reports
God chose Moses to deliver his people from Egypt….Moses received When he was trapped at the Red Sea
Messengers came to Nehemiah describing Jerusalem in ruins with its fortified walls broken down and burnt
Naomi, a woman whose story is recorded in the book of Ruth, received a series of bad reports when she was told her husband died…and then her two sons died also
King David looked out over the plains and saw a messenger running with news from the battlefield. It was a devastating report that his son, Absalom, was dead.
A man named Job who hated evil and loved good received bad news that all his possessions were gone in one day…the sheep, the donkeys, the camels all gone
Then he received another report that in a moment’s notice all his children were killed and every servant was captured by the enemy
As Jarius hurried towards home bringing Jesus to his ailing daughter’s side, his servant met him with the tragic news that the child was already dead.
There is always a bad report and always "someone " willing to bring you a bad report.
Even the local weather is negative with a bad report…instead of saying there is an 80% chance of sunshine…the forecaster always says “20% chance of rain”?
HAVE YOU RECEIVED A BAD REPORT?
Did the doctor say your disease is terminal?
Are you being sued for divorce or battling for custody of your children?
Are you facing financial ruin?
Did the pediatrician tell you that
Your precious little baby will never be normal?
Perhaps you grew up in a negative environment where you constantly heard “bad reports” from parents who declared, “I’m sorry you were ever born!” or “You are so stupid...You will never amount to anything!”
Your bad report may be a written document similar to the threatening letter received by King Hezekiah in Old Testament times.
Or perhaps your “evil report” is in human form, someone who is pursuing you as Queen Jezebel did the prophet Elijah...Whatever the form of your “bad report,” whoever the source, and regardless of its message, there is an answer for you
You will learn what to do when you don’t know what to do, using Biblical guidelines drawn from the story of King Jehoshaphat’s battle with enemy forces recorded in 2 Chronicles 20.
Don’t miss the next few weeks…you will find solutions that will lead you to victory when you just don’t know what to do and you need an answer
JEHOSAPHAT WAS A KING WHO WALKED GOD’S WAY
When a man or a woman chooses God’s way it won’t be long until his commitment is challenged.
Notice the phrase “It happened after this...” After what?...After Jehoshaphat made a commitment to walk God’s way....After he established righteous judgment and instruction in God’s law.
In the midst of “delighting himself in the ways of the Lord”......That is when he received the bad report:
When you are doing your best to live for God, ordering your life and ministry by His Word, and establishing yourself in holiness— that is when Satan and his demonic forces launch their fiercest attacks.
When Jehoshaphat heard that the enemy surrounded him, he cried out to God saying, “We have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us, nor do we know what to do” (2 Chronicles 20:12).
This is not the way most of us talk today. We boast of our great power in the face of adversity. We declare, “Greater is He within me than he that is in the world.” ...But at the first hint of disaster, we retreat in fear and dismay. We really don’t know what to do, but we act like we know it all.
Jehoshaphat humbly admitted his dependence on God. Jehoshaphat was at his wit’s end, which means he came to the end of his own mental and emotional resources.
Question: Have you ever been at your wit’s end? Are you there right now?
Do you know where the expression “wit’s end” originated? You may be surprised to learn that it comes from the Bible:
Psalm 107 25-27
For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.
Psalm 107 details what it is like to be at your wit’s end. ...It is compared to the uncontrolled environment of a raging storm: Your “wit’s end” is a place of instability marked by spiritual, emotional, and mental “ups and downs”:
They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. …do you see it...?
At your wit’s end your soul (your inner man) is “melted” and you are spiritually famished:
At your wits end the Psalmist said they are Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them...They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. (Psalm 107:5 and 26)
...They fell down, and there was none to help...They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. (Psalm 107:12,27)
hen the difficulties of life bring you to your wit’s end, as they did Jehoshaphat, things appear to be out of control.
Notice that I said appear to be out of control because Psalm 107:25 indicates, that the stormy winds and waves are actually under God’s authority.
“But why would He allow a devastating storm in my life?” “Why would God permit an enemy alliance against me?
Why would He allow me to come to my wit’s end?”... Because it is at your wit’s end--when you feel deserted, powerless, and fearful--that you learn what to do when you don’t know what to do...
....and once you master these strategies you can apply them to every difficulty of life you encounter. While others are running around wringing their hands in despair you will know exactly what to do!
Look at verse 2
Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, "A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the seas, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar"...(2 Chronicles 20:2)
The multitude that came against Jehoshaphat was a formidable alliance consisting of the Moabites, Ammonites, and others with them.
The Moabites were descendants of Moab, the grandson of Lot who was conceived by incest with his eldest daughter (Genesis 19:30-38). Joining with the Moabites were the Ammonites, descendants from Lot’s son, Ammon. God instructed his people to have no dealings with the Ammonites (Deut.23:3). The chief god of the Ammonites was “Molech” to whom they offered human sacrifices to. The Ammonites and Moabites created a powerful alliance--but the Bible says that there were “Others” with them also. The “others” were the Edomites. These people were descendants of Esau. You will remember that it was the king of Edom who refused to allow Isreal to pass through the land them forcing them to take a more lengthy and difficult route through the desert to the east (Numbers 20:14-21; Judges 11:17,18).
These three nations--the Moabites, Ammonites, and Edomites--were fierce by nature,…they had one thing in common…they hated God’s people. This was the grate multitude that Jehoshaphat now faced
WHAT ABOUT YOUR MULTITUDE?
Now think for a moment...What is the composition of the “great multitude” you face? You may think your “multitude” is a person who is making your life miserable.
You may think is a child out of control, abusive mates, hostile co-workers—Some situation you face….financial…sickness…Whatever
But if you think some person or situation is your great multitude you would be wrong. Your enemy is not those rising up against you. Your real foes are only disguised in “flesh and blood” …..and as long as you perceive your battle to be on a natural level you will continue to be terrorized by the enemy.
Behind every “great multitude” and every “bad report” there are spiritual causes. The Apostle Paul says it this way in Ephesians 6:12 ...we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 6:12)
Your enemy is controlling power behind the great multitude, the forces of Satan and his demonic hosts. Their strategy is similar to the enemy alliance Jehoshaphat faced, because “the thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy” (John 10:10).
You must face a spiritual enemy with spiritual strategies. This is why the Apostle Paul declares, “For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (1 Corinthians 10:4).
MEETING THE MULTITUDE
The first time God’s people came to the borders of their promised land they faced a Great multitude. There were giants in the land and the majority of Israel were terrorized by them. They turned back and wanderd in the wilderness another 40 years.
On another occasion, the Prophet Elisha’s servant, Gehazi, was intimidated by a multitude of warriors encamped around the city of Dothan. The prophet prayed that Gehazi’s eyes would be opened so he could see into the spirit world, enabling him to recognize that the forces of God were greater than those of the great multitude.
If you are to confront your great multitude successfully, then your spiritual eyes must be opened. Begin by making this declaration today:
“Lord, it is nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power; help us, O Lord our God, for we rest on You, and in Your name we go against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You!" (2 Chronicles 14:11)
What about your great multitude? Your enemy is also encamped nearby. You can hear the intimidating sound of advancing footsteps. Like Jehoshaphat, you may not know what to do--so what will you do?
We will continue in the story and see some awesome principal we can use in our own
times of fear and not knowing what to do BUT TODAY WE CAN BEGIN THE PROCESS
You can recognize you are being attacked by an enemy more powerful than yourself
You can recognize you are in a spiritual battle….not a battle against a person or situation
You can go to God and remind him you are his child…..whom he promised to care for and never to leave or forsake
4. You can tell God the enemy is trying to steal your possessions that God has given to you…..or your child that God has promised to you as a heritage....
......Or you can tell God the enemy is trying to destroy you…kill you…steal your peace….
Simply put....... right now the first step is to get God involved in the battle….
Part 2 next week
