Singers take up your position - 2 Chronicles 20:20-22

What a beautiful day it has been! The Lord has so much to say to us regarding readiness in our position of worship and praise. I will share more below. Let us begin with prayer.

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My Father in Heaven. How I love You and praise You for Your mighty works. Your heart for us is fierce. The fury of Your love resounds through my being. It is breaking off all that has shackled me and those in my family. Breaking off the chains that have hindered us from fully serving in the call before us. Your love rings through us as we press in and reach the lost. I pray for more Holy spirit boldness to do that which You have called me to do. I fully accept the call. Change me from glory to glory. Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven. I submit 2 Chronicles 20:20-22 for understanding. I pray for Your wisdom as I meditate on this scripture. Teach me more about what it means to be a worshipper in the army of God. Lead us not into temptation by making our spirits keenly aware of the closed doors. Deliver us from evil while You hide us away under the shelter of Your wings. Forgive us where we have fallen short of what You have called us to do as we forgive those who have trespassed against us. For Thine is the Kingdom and the Glory, Forever and Ever more! In Jesus Name. Amen.

Biblical worship has never been about tickling the ears of the congregants but rather to engage in warfare, obediently and faithfully with all within us. Yes, levels of skill are important, but the Lord Himself looks at the heart of the worshipper. The second part of the verse shared yesterday is John 4:14b where it says, "But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." Fountains gush out. We, as worshippers, are to proclaim who our Jesus is and come against the darkness by shining our light and bringing His life to those who need Him in song.

The word at the center of this devotional is a verse from 2 Chronicles 20:20-22 (NLT).

Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.”

After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the Lord and praising Him for His holy splendor. This is what they sang:

“Give thanks to the Lord; His faithful love endures forever!”

At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the Lord caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves.

King Jehoshaphat stopped. Understand that the army was already on the way. However, the King obediently stopped and provided Divine direction to the people as they prepared for battle.

They needed...

1.      Ears to hear to listen. John 10:27 (NLT) says that "My sheep know my voice." It is important to know His voice and how it is different from our own or the enemy's voice.

2.      Identity. They are people of Judah and Jerusalem. At that time, this was a big deal. Even before this in Exodus 17:15 (NLT) it says that "Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi (which means "the Lord is my banner")." Our identity as His people is crucial to understanding His care and protection of us.

3.      Faith. They needed to believe in the character of their God and trust that He would see them through the battle. For 2 Corinthians 10:4 reminds us that God gives us everything we need for the battle. "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but might in God for pulling down strongholds."

Singers to walk ahead of the army,

singing to the Lord and praising Him for His holy splendor.

Then the singers were assembled to praise God in front of the army. I realized as I read this positioning of the singers was unique for this situation. In Judges 7, Gideon was instructed to have trumpeters on the sides of the enemy camp. Once the first trumpet sounded, the others played, and the three hundred Israelites yelled "The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!" Some Midianites ran while some killed each other. In another instance, in Joshua 6, God's people marched around the city with the priests playing horns in front of the ark of the covenant with the army protecting them and the ark. After seven days, Joshua instructed the people to SHOUT, and the walls of Jericho fell.

Faithful and true, my Lord gave additional understanding... the position of the worshippers is not a formula. He is Elohim the Creator God. He had Jehoshaphat place the singers in front of the army, Gideon placed the trumpet players around the Midian camp, and Joshua placed the priests playing shofar horns in front of the ark. He is looking for people who will listen to Him and obey. We must train our ears and ask for us to hear His still small voice. He is faithful to speak if we are faithful to respond and obey.

Our goal in praise and worship should always be to touch the heart of God. For our God inhabits the praises of His people. He is faithful to show up when we are worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. Worshipping like David in abandon because He abandoned Heaven to come and save us. He is worthy of our worship!!

At the very moment they began to sing and give praise...

At the very moment that the singers started to sing, something extraordinary happened...

the atmosphere changed around the enemies of God's people, and they destroyed one another. Remember that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God. Deuteronomy 1:30 (NKJV) reminds us that "The Lord your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes". You see God is not a man that He would lie. He is a covenant keeping God and when you are one of His, you need to remember that. The Israelites had Egypt freshly in the rearview mirror.

What are the battles that the Lord has rescued you from?

Declare with your whole heart of ALL His marvelous works. Speak about His character and His unconditional love for us. Remember that He is Holy and repent for all that you need to. He already knows. Your identity is found in Christ, so the Father welcomes you and accepts the missteps. Repentance is a critical part because we are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling as we are reminded in Philippians 2:12.

Remember that Revelation 12:11a (NKJV) says "And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony". Listen to God's voice, know who you are and whose you are, have faith and be obedient to step out when God says so, and remember to make that joyful noise of praise unto our King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Let us sing praises as Miriam did after the crossing of the Red Sea moment. We have a testimony. He has done great things. It is time for the worshippers to prepare to take our position. Get your armor on. Let us allow for the Divine training and strengthening to be battlefield ready.