Page separation




The Secret of Victory
2 Chron. 20: 1-30
Introduction
We all want to be the victor. In any aspects in our lives, battles, struggles, competitions, etc., victory is what we are aiming for and what the end result we want to see and experience. The Word of God have listed some clear guidelines on how to be victorious. I have just preached about this instance last week and this time I want to preach it again looking at a different perspective. I want to emphasize here that the people who trusts in the Lord will always have the Lord on their side. This chapter in the Bible teaches us the secret of victory as what happened to King Jehoshaphat and the kingdom of Judah.
1. Seeking the LORD (2 Chron. 20:3)
a. The Hebrew meaning of the word seek here is to ask; specifically to worship, inquire, make inquisition, question, require, search.
b. In the face of danger and life threatening situation, for Jehoshaphat, it is the Lord that he sought first.
c. Most of us in the midst of any grievous situation will not seek God first. Most of the time, we do everything first on our own using every resources we have and God is always the last in our list.
d. Not so with Jehoshaphat.
e. How about you? Do you seek the Lord Jesus Christ first or he is always the last, when you are on your wits end?
The Word of God tells us that it is our duty to seek the Lord. Isa. 55:6, Ps. 105:4. David told his son Solomon to seek the Lord 1 Chron. 28:9. Those that seek the Lord is blessed Ps. 119:2. Proverbs 8:17 I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me. Seeking the Lord is one of the requirements not only for victory but for revival also. 2 Chron. 7:14.
2. Pray to the Lord (v. 4)
a. Jehoshaphat’s prayer here was to ask the help of the Lord against their enemies, and His protection from them;
b. He and his people met not in their several cities, but at Jerusalem where the temple is.
c. They were united in prayer
d. The one thing that is lacking in us is praying. We should always pray without ceasing.
e. The Lord Jesus Christ associated prayer with fasting. Mk. 9:29.
f. To have victory in any situation, we must pray earnestly, fervently, with all our hearts, mind, soul, and spirit.
g. Christian forgets to pray when everything is alright but when trouble comes, they pray hard.
h. Problems, difficulties, sickness and others are given to us by the Lord so we will pray. What I want to say here is be prayerful always. I give you two beautiful quotes about prayer here.
The greatest thing anyone can do for God and man is pray. It is not the only thing, but it is the chief thing. The great people of earth are the people who pray. I do not mean those who talk about prayer; nor those who say they believe in prayer; nor yet those who can explain about prayer; but I mean those people who take time to pray. – S. D. Gordon
Without time for prayer, nothing can be accomplished. – Scroggie
3. Depend only to the Lord (v. 12)
a. ‘We have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon Thee.’—2Ch 20:12.
b. An expression of helplessness and total dependence on God.
c. Our weakness as human beings should render us dependent upon God only
d. The Lord Jesus Christ clearly told us in Jn. 15:5 that without Him we can do nothing.
Once there was a rich man who had a son to whom he promised an annual allowance. Every year on the same day, he would give his son the entire amount. After a while, it happened that the only time the father saw his son was on the day of allowance. So the father changed his plan and only gave the son enough for the day. Then the next day the son would return. From then on, the father saw his son every day. This is the way God dealt with Israel. It is the way God deals with us.
4. Recognize that the battle is the Lord’s (vs. 15-17).
a. In all our struggles, difficulties, and battles in this life, bear in mind that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Divine Protector.
b. He is called God of Battles
c. The Bible presents God in types and figures as:
-Divine defence (Ps. 5:11, 31:2, Isa. 31:5, Zech. 9:15
-Fortress (Ps. 18:2, Nah. 1:7)
-Hiding place (Ps.7:8, Isa. 32:2)
-Refuge (Ex. 33:22, Deut. 33:27, Zech. 9:12).
-Shield (Gen. 15:1, Deut. 33:29, Prov. 30:5).
There are many instances wherein God did the fighting for His people in the Bible. The drowning of the Egyptian army in crossing the Red Sea is a clear picture, the falling down of the walls of Jericho is another good example and so is the victory of Gideon’s 300. 1 Sam. 7:10 tells us how the Lord thundered the Philistines with great thunder that they were smitten. I can tell you a lot more and in the modern times, during 6 day war the Israeli army were outnumbered and surrounded yet they won. Our God is the God of Battles and He will always win. Are you on the Lord’s side? If your answer is yes then victory is yours.
5. Worship the Lord (vs. 18-20)
a. To worship means to bow down; to honour; to exalt; to pay homage; to reverence (Gen. 24:52; Ex. 4:31; 12:27; 24:1; 33:10; 34:8; Mt. 2:11).
b. Only the Lord God of the Bible is to be worshipped (Ex. 20:1-6; 34:14; 2 Kings 17:36; Mt. 4:10; Acts 10:25-26).
c. Jesus Christ is to be worshipped (Mt. 2:11; 8:2; 9:18; 14:33; 15:25; 18:26; 20:20; 28:9,17; Ph. 2:9-11; Heb. 1:6).
d. Worship is in vain if based on the traditions of man instead of the Word of God (Mt. 15:9; Mk. 7:7).
e. Here in our text, (v. 18) Jehoshaphat and all Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem humbly worshipped the Lord by bowing their heads.
f. Modern Christians instead of worshipping the Lord, just sing praises and contemporary music to amuse themselves and feel good.
g. There is very less and sometimes no more worship at all. Church programs now gives more time to singing and dancing as well as testimonies and healing rather than worshipping the Lord.
When we all get to heaven, we will be worshipping the Lord. Lots of people are worshipping wrongly. They worship graven images, angels, even an ordinary human being is revered as god. How often do you worship the Lord?
6. Faith in the Lord is essential for victory (v. 20).
a. If Judah is to be saved from their enemies, they must be “saved by faith”
b. Faith alone in Christ alone can save us from sin and from its penalty.
c. Jehoshaphat stood and said, believe in the Lord your God; in the promises he had made, particularly with respect to the victory over their present enemies;
d. They are to believe also God’s prophets.
Faith means relying on what God has done rather than on one’s own efforts. In the Old Testament, faith is rarely mentioned. The word trust is used frequently, and verbs like believe and rely are used to express the right attitude to God. The classic example is Abraham, whose faith was reckoned as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). At the heart of the Christian message is the story of the cross: Christ’s dying to bring salvation. Faith is an attitude of trust in which a believer receives God’s good gift of salvation (Acts 16:30-31) and lives in that awareness thereafter (Gal. 2:20; cf. Heb. 11:1).
7. Gladness in the Lord is the result of victory (v. 27).
a. The people of Judah rejoiced for the Lord have given them victory.
b. They also was made rich because they took away the precious jewels of their enemies.
c. There is so much spoil that it took them three days to gather it.
d. They call the name of the place Valley of Berachah, which means “blessing”
8. Rest in the Lord is another outcome of victory (v. 30).
a. The Lord gave Jehoshaphat rest.
b. No more war from his neighbouring countries for they fear the God of Israel when they came to know that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel. (v. 29).
Conclusion:
What Jehoshaphat did was a very good example worthy to be imitated by us Christians. With the Lord on our side, who can be against us? Are you on the Lord’s side? Do you want to be victorious also? Then come to Christ. Repent from your sins and receive Him now as your personal Saviour. For those who are already saved, be faithful.

Page separation