The Battle Belongs to The Lord

1 Samuel 17:4

Throughout Israel’s history, they faced adversity and conflict from other nations.  In spite of the promises that God had made them, they were not able to take the land without adversity.  Once they had conquered ground, they often had to defend it against enemies who would try to take it from them.  The Israelites had to be dependent on the Lord in order to succeed, and at times, just to survive.  Life for the modern believer should be no different.  Jesus told His disciples, ‘in this life you will have trouble’ but he told them not to worry because He had overcome the world.
During the course of life, it can be tempting to try to go through trials, and to fight battles, in our own strength.  For those who don’t know Jesus, this is the default behavior.  They succeed and fail based on their own effort.  They overcome and achieve based on their talent, skill, work ethic, and stability.  For the Israelites this would result in complete failure.  God had brought them out of Egypt to a new place.  Through His power, He had brought them to a place of dependence in Him.  They were in a place that they could never have achieved by themselves, and they couldn’t defend it by themselves.
 When God raised up David to fight Goliath, He once again clearly showed that it was by His power that victory would be accomplished.  David himself declares ‘the battle is the Lord’s.’  Although David had stood up to fight Goliath, he knew that it was by God’s power, not his own strength, that victory would be accomplished.
Throughout the New Testament we are told to stand, and to resist.  Our part is to make a decision to stand up in faith in the midst of turmoil.  We are to resist the enemy.  Once we make the stand, however, we must give the battle to the Lord.  That means abandoning our own methods and plans, or trying to control the situation.  Often, the mindset of having to deal with the problem ourselves is bringing anxiety and preventing the peace of God in the first place.  As we release the battle to the Lord and worship Him, the peace and joy of the Lord return in the midst of all circumstance and we are able to see the deliverance of God.  May you release the battle to the Lord, and may you see God rout the enemy!