Title: Yeongam Church Prayer School (22) Joshua...
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Yeongam Church Prayer School (22) Joshua's Prayer (Ex 17:8-13) 2002.11.20.
Today's text is an article about the war with Amalek that Israel met in the wilderness on the way to Canaan. Amalek, who already had a well-established and trained army, and the war with Israel, such as the pilgrims who traveled long distances, were at least in favor of the Amalekites in the fight. There are records that Egypt could not get rid of this Amalek while occupying the Sinai Peninsula, indicating that it had considerable military power. It is said that in the history of Egypt, the name of Amalek did not remain, but that it was recorded under the name of Mentu. Already having such confidence and calculation, Amalek also blocked the path of Israel and went to war.
Reluctantly, Moses told Joshua to gather the young men and lead the hasty army and go out to fight the Amalekites. Joshua did as Moses commanded and gathered men to fight. Then he went to the battlefield and fought bravely against Amalek, and the result was a surprising victory. It could be said that it was a great victory that was truly unexpected. The Israeli army, such as Ohabjizol, completely defeated the Amalekites, who had great military power and weapons. It was a great thrill and joy.
How was this victory possible? It was not due to Joshua's superior leadership or tactics, nor was it, of course, that Israel had a secret weapon that Amalek could not stand against. However, it was not that the suddenly recruited army had considerable combat power and strength. He was inferior to Amalek in every way. Still, Israel won.
In the Bible, the story of Israel's victory is summarized as follows. On the day of the war, Moses went up a high mountain with Aaron and Hur. Then I stood where I could see both camps well. Then he raised his hands and prayed for Israel. Surprisingly, while Moses' hand was raised and prayed, Israel was victorious. But when Moses' arms were tired and came down, the Amalekites' camp gained strength and pushed Israel in.
Aaron and Hur held up their arms so that Moses' hands did not come down. Then, because it was difficult to stand for a long time, he gave Moses a stone on which to sit. After all, Moses' arms did not come down all day. And with the help of Aaron and Hur, Moses was able to keep his hands up until the sun went down. The surprising thing is that Israel, who had gained strength from this, defeated the Amalekites until the sun went down and was victorious.
It can be found that the victory in the war between Israel and Amalek was not in the sword, the spear, or the army, but in prayer. When we prayed, the power of Almighty God was with us, and with that power, we were able to lead a war that was impossible at all to victory. In this way, prayer is God's power and strength to win all battles.
The God we believe in is an all-powerful God, and there is nothing that cannot be accomplished. Therefore, if the saints believe in and rely on Him and go forward, no matter what difficulties, hardships, tribulations, and adversities come, they will be able to overcome them. Joshua, who prayed with faith that can move the natural world, led the allies of the five Amorite kings (Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon) to victory in the war with God's help.
We who live today are also at war, which is spiritual warfare. The life of faith is a spiritual warfare. In order to win the spiritual warfare, we must imitate Joshua's prayer.
1. Don't be afraid, let's pray
◆ Joshua 10:8 “At that time the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them, for I have delivered them into your hand, and not one of them will be against you.” Isaiah 41:10 “Do not be afraid, for I am with you; do not be dismayed. For I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, and I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
<I'll Hold You>: When a child goes down the street at night, he is afraid by himself, but if his father holds his hand, he can walk without fear even in the pitch-black darkness. The world is like a dark night. We are even afraid if we go on the road alone. But if God the Father holds our hand, we can be bold. Hold on to the righteous right hand of the Lord and go forth.
2. Believe in miracles and pray
◆ Joshua 10:12-13 “On the day the LORD gave the Amorites to the children of Israel, Joshua said to the LORD, “Sun, stay on Gibeon, in the sight of Israel. The moon, too, to the valley of Aijalon." And the sun stayed, and the moon ceased, so that the people might avenge their enemies. Was it not written in the book of Jashar, that the sun stayed in the midst of heaven, and did not go down hastily all day long?”
<Stay the Sun>: A group of astronomers at the Kirsten Engine Manufacturing Company in Baltimore, Maryland were gathering together to check the orbits of the Sun, the Moon, and other meteors and their predicted orbits using a computer. This is because the artificial satellite can avoid colliding with other objects in orbit only by knowing this accurately. One day, while scientists were tracing the orbit with a computer for decades, a surprising phenomenon occurred. This is because the computer showed that one day (24 hours) was missing at some point in the past. It is said that while he was struggling with no way to explain it no matter how much he researched, he was able to find a lost day in the Bible with the help of a Christian scientist among them and glorified God.
As a result of checking the orbit of Joshua's time using a computer, the space scientists found that the orbit was stopped for 23 hours and 20 minutes, and the remaining 40 minutes were found in Ahaz's Japanese and English charts (2 Kings 20:8-11) through Hezekiah's prayer. I made the sun's shadow back 10 degrees, so it's exactly 40 minutes if you do the math. Miracles are not unique to the past. Even now, miracles do happen, but they happen through people who pray.
3. Believe that God answers and pray.
◆ Joshua 10:13 “The sun stayed still and the moon ceased, so that the people might avenge their enemies. Was it not written in the book of Jasar, “The sun stayed in the midst of heaven, and did not go down hastily all day long?” ◆ Mark 11: 24 “I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.”
4. Believe that victory will be given and let's pray.
◆ Joshua 10:21 “All the people returned to the camp in peace, and came to Joshua, but no one dared to oppose the children of Israel with the tongue.” ◆ 2 Corinthians 2:14 “He always gave us victory in Christ, Thanks be to God who reveals the smell of knowing
Let us remember that <victory> is not in me, but in Jesus Christ. A believer's right attitude of faith is to confess his incompetence before the Lord and ask the Lord for help.
Moses' prayer is an intercessory prayer. It is a prayer that Joshua recruits soldiers and pushes them into prayer from behind while fighting Amalek. It is a prayer that has more power than any other prayer and is a prayer that works. God is pleased with intercessory prayers, which are prayers for others, not just prayers for ourselves. Jesus also said that he prayed for Peter in Luke 22:32, and showed an example of intercessory prayer by saying, “But I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. After you are converted, strengthen your brother.”
William Carey, who is called the father of modern missions, worked as a missionary to India for 42 years. It has an amazing history. However, it was her sister's intercessory prayer that enabled him to perform such a great work of God. William Carey confessed, "I was able to carry out God's work because of my sister's intercessory prayer, who had been lying in bed and praying for 42 years." In this way, intercessory prayer has a strong working power.