prayer school series 2010 - part 6 (the place of battle became the place of blessing)

I taught the following at a recent prayer school - just around mid-July.

It was not the first time i taught from this passage, but as I prepared God showed me a couple of new (to me, at least) insights and applications in our lives.

2 Chronicles 20:1-41
It happened after this that the people of Moab with the people of Ammon, and others ... came to battle against Jehoshaphat. ... 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

Jeremiah 33:3

Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not know.

(v1-3) Jehoshaphat's first response was fear. But he quickly turned and sought the Lord, leading the whole nation into a time of fasting and prayer. The Lord always responds when we turn to Him.

2 Chronicles 20:5-12

5 Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem... 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? ... 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.' ... 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."

(v5-11) Jehoshaphat and the Israelites focused fully on God and not the enemy (problem). Confidence grew as they reminded themselves and God who He was, what He could do, and His promises to them.

(v12) They trusted in the Name of the Lord and that He would show them what to do at the right time as they kept their eyes on Him. And God spoke...

2 Chronicles 20:17

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."

As in Ephesians 6:10-13, the Lord told them to stand still for He would be with them. It was His battle. The Lord takes on your battle as His own when you cast your cares on Him. We have the same enemy.

2 Chronicles 20:18-19

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...

When the Lord spoke through His prophet, the people listened and responded with worship (v18) and praise (v19), and did exactly as the Lord instructed them to (v20). They chose to praise the Lord that very moment they heard the promise of the Lord.

2 Chronicles 20:22, 25-26

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... 25 When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies,[d] and precious jewelry... 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[e] until this day.

On the day of the battle, they did not waver in their trust in the Lord. They stood still and did not fight. Instead they chose to send the singers to praise the Lord.

As they praised the Lord, He caused confusion within enemy camps and gave them the victory (v22). But they had, in fact, anticipated the victory when they first prayed, and starting praising even before the victory was seen

(v18-19). This demonstrated their faith in the Word of the Lord.

(v26) The place of battle became the place of blessing - Valley of Berachah (literally, Blessing).

And it all started with seeking the Lord and praising Him.

prayer school series 2010 - part 5 (gaining momentum)

At a prayer meeting attended by about 30+ people about yesterday, we were praying for God's plans and purposes to be accomplished on earth.

As i was praying, i found myself speaking the word, 'arena' quite a few times. Then i felt in my spirit to perform a certain action - a turning of the waist with hands stretched out - which i quickly recognised as the action of the discus thrower in gaining momentum and strength to throw the discus the furthest they can.

This momentum was built up over time and helped gather strength and expertise in the arena of Kingdom Building.

Prayer plays such a crucial role.

I believe that as we prayed, there was great spiritual impact on the work of God all over the world. The impact of any seed sown or word preached will be far-reaching and wide-spread.

Jesus healed them all (part 14): the healing of the man born blind

John 9
¹As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. ²His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" ³"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. ⁴As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." ⁶Having said this, he spit on the ground, made some mud with the saliva, and put it on the man's eyes. ⁷"Go," he told him, "wash in the Pool of Siloam" (this word means Sent). So the man went and washed, and came home seeing. ⁸His neighbors and those who had formerly seen him begging asked, "Isn't this the same man who used to sit and beg?" ⁹Some claimed that he was. Others said, "No, he only looks like him." But he himself insisted, "I am the man." ¹⁰"How then were your eyes opened?" they demanded. ¹¹He replied, "The man they call Jesus made some mud and put it on my eyes. He told me to go to Siloam and wash. So I went and washed, and then I could see." ¹²"Where is this man?" they asked him. "I don't know," he said.

¹³They brought to the Pharisees the man who had been blind. ¹⁴Now the day on which Jesus had made the mud and opened the man's eyes was a Sabbath. ¹⁵Therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he had received his sight. "He put mud on my eyes," the man replied, "and I washed, and now I see." ¹⁶Some of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath." But others asked, "How can a sinner do such miraculous signs?" So they were divided. ¹⁷Finally they turned again to the blind man, "What have you to say about him? It was your eyes he opened." The man replied, "He is a prophet." ¹⁸The Jews still did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight until they sent for the man's parents. ¹⁹"Is this your son?" they asked. "Is this the one you say was born blind? How is it that now he can see?" ²⁰"We know he is our son," the parents answered, "and we know he was born blind. ²¹But how he can see now, or who opened his eyes, we don't know. Ask him. He is of age; he will speak for himself." ²²His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews, for already the Jews had decided that anyone who acknowledged that Jesus was the Christ would be put out of the synagogue. ²³That was why his parents said, "He is of age; ask him." ²⁴A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. "Give glory to God," they said. "We know this man is a sinner." ²⁵He replied, "Whether he is a sinner or not, I don't know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!" ²⁶Then they asked him, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?" ²⁷He answered, "I have told you already and you did not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you want to become his disciples, too?" ²⁸Then they hurled insults at him and said, "You are this fellow's disciple! We are disciples of Moses! ²⁹We know that God spoke to Moses, but as for this fellow, we don't even know where he comes from." ³⁰The man answered, "Now that is remarkable! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes. ³¹We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will. ³²Nobody has ever heard of opening the eyes of a man born blind. ³³If this man were not from God, he could do nothing." ³⁴To this they replied, "You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!" And they threw him out.

³⁵Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and when he found him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" ³⁶"Who is he, sir?" the man asked. "Tell me so that I may believe in him." ³⁷Jesus said, "You have now seen him; in fact, he is the one speaking with you." ³⁸Then the man said, "Lord, I believe," and he worshiped him. ³⁹Jesus said, "For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind." ⁴⁰Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, "What? Are we blind too?" ⁴¹Jesus said, "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.

1. The actions of the parents affect the parents. Father drives drunk, and the children in the car might be killed in the accident. Mother takes drugs and the child in her womb is born deformed. Exodus 34:6-12, Jeremiah 32:17-19
2. God is fair and just in all His ways. Whether we see it or not, whether we understand it or not, God is merciful. Lamentations 3:31-36, 2 Samuel 3:28-31
   
3. John 10:10 - The devil is the one who came to steal, kill and destroy. Sickness steals, kills and destroys. Sickness does not please God.
4. We need to understand this, so that we know who to resist ('resist the devil and he will flee from you) and who to receive from. We resist the work of the devil such as sickness and disease and eternal death etc, but we receive from the Lord blessings such as healing and salvation etc.
5. Acts 10:38 - sickness is an oppression of the devil.
6. God made Adam and he as without sin or sickness. Romans 5:28 - sin came into the world... through Adam
   
7. Jesus said it was not the parents' nor the blind man's sin that brought about the sickness, but there was a cause.
   
8. Jesus' focus was that he did the work of God in order to bring glory to the Lord. Healing is the work of God.
9. Obedience is an act of faith. The blind man obeyed whatever Jesus told him to do.
   

Jesus healed them all (part 13): the healing of the lunatic son

Matthew 17:14-20

¹⁴When they came to the crowd, a man approached Jesus and knelt before him. ¹⁵"Lord, have mercy on my son," he said. "He has seizures and is suffering greatly. He often falls into the fire or into the water. ¹⁶I brought him to your disciples, but they could not heal him." ¹⁷"O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy here to me." ¹⁸Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of the boy, and he was healed from that moment. ¹⁹Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" ²⁰He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

Mark 9:14-29, 33-35

¹⁴When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. ¹⁵As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him. ¹⁶"What are you arguing with them about?" he asked. ¹⁷A man in the crowd answered, "Teacher, I brought you my son, who is possessed by a spirit that has robbed him of speech. ¹⁸Whenever it seizes him, it throws him to the ground. He foams at the mouth, gnashes his teeth and becomes rigid. I asked your disciples to drive out the spirit, but they could not." ¹⁹"O unbelieving generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you? Bring the boy to me." ²⁰So they brought him. When the spirit saw Jesus, it immediately threw the boy into a convulsion. He fell to the ground and rolled around, foaming at the mouth. ²¹Jesus asked the boy's father, "How long has he been like this?" "From childhood," he answered. ²²"It has often thrown him into fire or water to kill him. But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us." ²³" 'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." ²⁴Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" ²⁵When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." ²⁶The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." ²⁷But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up. ²⁸After Jesus had gone indoors, his disciples asked him privately, "Why couldn't we drive it out?" ²⁹He replied, "This kind can come out only by prayer.

³³They came to Capernaum. When he was in the house, he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the road?" ³⁴But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest. ³⁵Sitting down, Jesus called the Twelve and said, "If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all."

Luke 9:37-43
³⁷The next day, when they came down from the mountain, a large crowd met him. ³⁸A man in the crowd called out, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son, for he is my only child. ³⁹A spirit seizes him and he suddenly screams; it throws him into convulsions so that he foams at the mouth. It scarcely ever leaves him and is destroying him. ⁴⁰I begged your disciples to drive it out, but they could not." ⁴¹"O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? Bring your son here." ⁴²Even while the boy was coming, the demon threw him to the ground in a convulsion. But Jesus rebuked the evil spirit, healed the boy and gave him back to his father. ⁴³And they were all amazed at the greatness of God.

1. Don’t miss the supernatural in looking for the spectacular.
2. Don’t miss God looking for things to go your way. It’s easy to receive and there are many ways to receive.
3. Build up your faith. Don’t let it stay puny. Unbelief irritates and annoys the Lord. Jesus rebuked the disciples for having little faith. He expected them to grow in their faith.
4. It’s not just about running fast and hard; the main thing is to run in the right direction!
5. Learn to be quiet and hear from the Lord.
6. Faith comes by hearing the word of God. Faith grows when we hear the word.
7. We don't react to what the devil is doing. We hear from God. Jesus remained calm. He took charge. He asked about the situation. He reminded the boy's father about believing.
8. John 10:10; Proverbs 3: 5 - We believe with the heart. We trust God with our heart. Heart here refers to the core of our being. We don't lean to our understanding, our thinking.
9. Faith arose in the father's heart, and he began to believe. Faith will work in our heart even with doubts in our mind.
10. While Jesus was praying, the boy got worse but he became all well. Don't be shaken.
11. Fasting does not heal people. Fasting does not deliver people. Fasting does not give authority. Fasting does not change God or move God. It is faith which moves God.
12. But fasting is instrumental in powerful and effectual ministry. Fasting changes us. Fasting humbles our flesh.
13. Psalm 35:13 - God does not humble us. We make a choice to humble ourselves before God. Fasting is a way to humble ourselves because we deny our body food, which is something our flesh desires. When we deny our flesh, it gets weaker. Our spirit becomes more sensitive to the Lord.
14. The disciples were weak in faith as they had been arguing about who was the greatest. That is giving in to fleshly ambition. That was why they could not minister healing to the boy.

Jesus healed them all (part 12): the healing of the blind man at Bethsaida

Mark 8:22-26

²²They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. ²³He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man's eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, "Do you see anything?" ²⁴He looked up and said, "I see people; they look like trees walking around." ²⁵Once more Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. ²⁶Jesus sent him home, saying, "Don't go into the village."

1. Only recorded in Mark

2. Some things never change – God, the devil, human nature.

a. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever.
b. He healed 2000 years ago, and He heals today.
c. He provided – He multiplied loaves and fishes; He took a gold coin from a fish’s mouth.
d. People like a ‘no-fault/no-responsibility’ religion – that they don’t have anything to do that affects the will of God. We have to receive the message, believe it and then act on it. Just like the salvation message.

3. The blind man was led out of town; the previous case – a deaf-mute man near the Sea of Galilee was taken aside from the multitude.

4. We can be affected by the faith of the people around us, as their words have power to impact our beliefs. We can also choose not to be affected by those around us, and to believe in the word of God. Our confessions, our words impact us, our bodies.

5. Bethsaida – north-east side of the Sea of Galilee

6. Jesus did not spit on everyone. He was led by the Holy Spirit. So we follow the Holy Spirit and not by our flesh. We do things which please God, not following a method.

7. What God gives is not imperfect. Our reception can be imperfect.

Luke 10:8-16

⁸"When you enter a town and are welcomed, eat what is set before you. ⁹Heal the sick who are there and tell them, 'The kingdom of God is near you.' ¹⁰But when you enter a town and are not welcomed, go into its streets and say, ¹¹'Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. Yet be sure of this: The kingdom of God is near.' ¹²I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. ¹³"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. ¹⁴But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. ¹⁵And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. ¹⁶"He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me."

Matthew 11:20-24

²⁰ Then Jesus began to denounce the cities in which most of his miracles had been performed, because they did not repent. ²¹"Woe to you, Korazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. ²²But I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you. ²³And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to the skies? No, you will go down to the depths. If the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. ²⁴But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you."

8. Jesus never accepted any challenges to PROVE His message. He said that no sign would be given when the Pharisees challenged Him to prove His divinity with signs and wonders.

9. If people do not accept the message, ‘shake the dust’ off your feet and leave, telling them clearly that the kingdom of God is near you.

10. Bethsaida did not accept the message Jesus and the disciples preached.

11. You can lose what you receive if you don’t hold fast to your confession.

Jesus healed them all (part 11): the healing of the deaf and dumb man

Mark 7:31-37
³¹ Again, departing from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He came through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee. ³² Then they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they begged Him to put His hand on him. ³³ And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched his tongue. ³⁴ Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”
³⁵ Immediately his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ Then He commanded them that they should tell no one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it. ³⁷ And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.”

1. Those who brought the deaf and dumb man had faith that Jesus could heal him.
2. Jesus took the man aside, away from an unbelieving environment, in order to better minister healing to him.