God will FIGHT our BATTLES if we CRY OUT to HIM!
April 23
Bible Reading: 1 Chronicles Chapters 4-6
God will FIGHT our BATTLES if we CRY OUT to HIM!
"The sons of Reuben, the Gadites, and
half the tribe of Manasseh had forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty
valiant men, men able to bear shield and sword, to shoot with the bow, and
skillful in war, who went to war. They made war with the Hagrites, Jetur,
Naphish, and Nodab. And they were helped
against them, and the Hagrites were
delivered into their hand, and all who were with them, for they cried out to God in the battle. He heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him. Then
they took away their livestock--fifty thousand of their camels, two hundred and
fifty thousand of their sheep, and two thousand of their donkeys--also one
hundred thousand of their men; for many fell dead, because the war was God's." (1 Chronicles 5:18-22)
The
two-and-half tribes of Reuben, Gad and Manasseh had settled east of the Jordan
River and had not entered into the Promised Land during the time of Moses and
Joshua (Numbers 32; Joshua 13:15-33). The story in the above passage is about
these people and illustrates the importance of prayer and reliance on God in
battle, which is a theme appearing frequently in the book of Chronicles. There
are many other occasions that emphasize how God answered the prayers of His
people that were offered during times of battle (see 2 Chronicles 6:34; 13:14;
14:11; 18:31; 32:20).
What we can
see in this passage is that these two-and-half tribes went into battle with the
Hagrites of Trans-Jordan (Ishmaelites) assisted by the related peoples of
Jetur, and Nephish, and Nodab, all of whom were apparently descendants of
Hagar’s son Ishmael (Gen 25:15). With a small army of 44,760 men, they defeated
a much bigger enemy force. They had trusted in their God (v. 20), and He gave
them victory and abundant spoils (v. 21). All
credit for success was attributed to God alone!
We need to
recognize God’s divine government in operation as He directs political affairs
among men in accordance with His intended purposes. Ultimately it was God who
brought success in the battle because they cried out to God and put their trust
in Him. "The war was God's"
confirms the statement about God helping His people during their battle!
Just as God
was so ferocious in His defense of the Jewish people back in the Old Testament
– God can be just as intense and just as ferocious in His defense of us when we
cry out to Him for help. God is all-powerful and there is nothing that He cannot do on our behalf, which would include
handling any type of stormy cloud that may have just come across our way. Today,
God is just waiting for you to go directly
to Him so that He can fight your battles
on your behalf as you put your trust
completely in Him!
