Scripture reminds us repeatedly of the importance of praise. Your praise determines your position! Praise can take you from doubt and unbelief to certainty and victory! 1 Corinthians 15:57 says, “But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ”. Psalms 145:3 says, “Great is the Lord and worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom”. Psalm 100 tells us to sing about, shout to, and serve the Lord! Psalms 8:2(TPT) tells us “You have built a stronghold by the songs of children. Strength rises up with the chorus of infants. This kind of praise has power to shut Satan’s mouth. Childlike worship will silence the madness of those who oppose you”.
There are so many places in the Living Word of God where we can read about the power of praise! We want to take a closer look at one story in particular. This story is found in 2 Chronicles 20. Let us begin by introducing you to the main man in this story. His name is Jehoshaphat. If you’re not familiar with him, he was the king of Judah. In chapter 18 we see him escape death by calling on the name of the Lord (2 Chron 18:31). The chapter after that it’s noted that Jehoshaphat isn’t perfect, but some of what he does having going for him is that he has prepared his heart to seek the Lord (2 Chron 19:3).
Moving into chapter 20 Jehoshaphat hears word that the Moabites, Ammonites, and more have joined forces to battle against him. They are already on their way! Verse 3 tells us that Jehoshaphat was fearful of this attack. In the very same verse it says he “set himself to seek the Lord”. Jehoshaphat stood before the people of Judah and cried out to the Lord saying “O Lord, God of our fathers are You not God in heaven, and 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?”. He goes on reminding God (as well as all those listening) of who God is and of all the things He had done for the people of Israel. Then, in verse 10 Jehoshaphat approaches the root of his outcry, the upcoming attack. After stating his plea for protection the Word says all of Judah stood before the Lord awaiting a response.
Then the Lord spoke through one of the people gathered. Verse 15 says “And he said “Listen, all you Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: ‘Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s." The Lord goes on to tell them that they won’t need to fight in this battle, but only to position themselves in the Lord! After hearing such a great report, everyone in Judah bowed down before the Lord and worshiped Him.
The next morning, the army of Judah prepared to face the oncoming attack. Having heard from the Lord, Jehoshaphat appointed a choir to go before the army! This choir sang out, over and over, “Praise the Lord, for His mercy endures forever”. As they placed their faith in God and sang His praises aloud, God H
imself set ambushes against those who had come to attack Judah! The attacking tribes were suddenly confused and began attacking one another. Judah didn’t have to lift a finger in battle. Their enemies were slain by one another, not a single man left standing!
This story shows us the tangible power of praise as a weapon of warfare! You may not be called onto a literal battlefield, but you face spiritual warfare daily. The way to overcome this is with praise! Praise the Lord in total faith that He will come through. You do this by praising like you already have the evidence of victory in front of you! Remember Exodus 14:14 “The Lord will fight for you, you need only to be still”. Other translations say “hold your peace” instead of “be still”. The way you hold your peace is to remain focused on Christ! Stay in the Word! Sing praise to The Holy One who holds your future! Just like in the story, when we praise, the enemy gets confused and ultimately defeated!
We pray that you will see any attack of the enemy as an opportunity to praise and worship God. He was mighty in battle all those years ago and He is mighty in battle today, through all you may face! We pray you will stand firm on His Word and on His promises. We pray that you will see yourself seated in heavenly places, far above. "The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all." (Ephesians 1:18-23 NKJV)
