Ambushments

Old Journal Entry:

2 Chronicles 20:21-22 - 21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto 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 endureth for ever.

22 And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.

I read this a couple days ago and felt led to go back and read it again this morning.In verse 17 of this same chapter it says, “Ye shall not need to fight in this battle:set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you…” God was sending them into a battle that they would not need to fight in. Singers were appointed and went before the army. Our praises and our voices are powerful. The next verse says “ambushments”. I looked up the word ambushments in the Strongs Concordance. It means to lay in wait. God has ambushments on our behalf, waiting to send and fight the battle for us, but we have to Praise the Lord. We do not have to fight, we just need to praise.

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When I begin to read about the life of David there are two main things that stand out to me. The first one is, the man always seems to be in a battle. Did the man ever take a break?

The second thing that stands out to me is his praise. I do not find it a coincidence that this man is always in a battle, and typically triumphant. Why? Because he knew how to praise the Lord. Did that mean that he did not ever have to face a battle? No. It does mean that he knew where his victory came from, the Lord.

In the New Testament we see Paul and Silas in an unfortunate circumstance, but their praise freed themselves and those around them out of the prison, triumphant.

There are battles everyday that we fight, but we should allow God to fight them for us. He has set ambushments on your behalf, He is just waiting on your praise. Throughout the Bible we can see time and time again how God didn’t work until someone took action. He is waiting for you to take action, not in the flesh, but spiritually, with your praise.

For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12

Now I want to dig a little deeper into these scriptures in Ephesians. While preparing this I noticed some similar phrasing between this chapter in Ephesians and the scriptures in 2 Chronicles chapter 20 that I started this blog post with.

In both Ephesians and 2 Chronicles there is instruction on how to win a battle. In both passages of scripture it also mentions, STAND.

Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Ephesians 6:13

Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you. 2 Chronicles 2:17

Now, it may just be me, but standing in the midst of a battle seems quite crazy. Why would I just stand?

We are all in a spiritual battle, whether we like it or not. We all have a choice how we will fight. Then there are also battles that we fight along the way in this thing called life. We often try to take things into our own hands, guilty, then wonder why they didn’t work out. When God had a plan all along.

In 2 Chronicles 2:21 singers went out BEFORE the army. Now, that seems strange. Why would we have singers before an army to fight in a battle? They were praisers! Their praise was the greatest weapon. There is an importance in your praise.

To win a battle we must first praise.

Now let's get to the army. They are after the praisers, but not supposed to fight? What was their purpose in this battle? Why are they even mentioned?

Remember, STAND.

Let’s continue at Ephesians 6:14-18

14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;

15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;

16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:

18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

He tells us how to STAND in His Word!

We must first PRAISE, then STAND, but we cannot just stand there unprepared, we have to stand with the whole armour of God.

I believe that God has ambushments placed to win the battle. The battle is truly the Lord’s, but He has also given us part in this battle. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. We must not stand unprepared. We must praise, then stand with the armour of God. Then we will see the victory!

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May I also present this thought. There are times that we come together as believers to worship the Almighty God. There are singers and musicians selected, or maybe you are serving because there is no one else. Regardless of how you got on the platform leading a congregation of people into worship, you are placed at the front of a battle. It is easy to come to church and forget the importance of what you are doing. As singers/musicians it is easy to get caught up in how well you are doing, that new song you aren’t quite comfortable with, that we forget what is most important. Although we should serve with excellence, the most important thing is that we are serving purely and in the Spirit. You are praising the Almighty, All Powerful, God. Your voice, your instrument, they are weapons that should not be used lightly. There is power in your praise. When you are on the platform, leading a group of people, it is important that you are in the Spirit and not the flesh.

May I present the thought that you are fighting this spiritual battle, praising the King of Kings, and entering into His throne room so that His Word can be freely given. If you are on the platform, you are at the forefront of a battle.

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David may have not always seen the end and may have been conflicted at times, but he never lost his praise. Get into His word, read the book of Psalms, learn from one of the greatest praisers of all times how to be victorious in your battle.

Put on the armour, and be prepared. Whether today you are in the spiritual battle of life, or you are facing another personal battle, let God fight it for you.

As the body of Christ, we must not lose our genuine praise.