BY PASTOR BRANDON YOUNG
I would like to thank Hunter for writing for me last week while I was away on vacation. God blessed us with a much-needed relaxing trip to the beach! While I was there I was reading from 2 Chronicles 32 about Hezekiah, the King of Judah, fighting against Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, and the Lord spoke to my heart about out warfare with Satan. Let me begin with a short summary of that Chapter.
After taking over Israel, King Sennacherib of Assyria comes gunning for Hezekiah in Judah. King Hezekiah immediately set to work. He first cut off all the water and fountains that flowed out from the fenced cities of Judah. He did not want the King of Assyria to find water for his men. He knew his enemy had to be cut off from any supplies that would help them stay strong in the battle. He did not want to help King Sennacherib in this fight against his own people so he severed their supply line of water.
Hezekiah also built up defenses in all the most important cities in Judah by building great walls to keep the enemy from entering. He was a good strategic thinker, but he also had the one main thing that the Assyrians didn’t — God was on his side. He told the people of Judah not to worry because God would help them. Skeptics might have said, “Sure, God didn’t help Israel or any of the other countless nations the Assyrians have smashed to bits, but he’s totally going to help Judah.” King Sennacherib sent his people to Jerusalem to give the city a message — “You’re going down.”
Sennacherib also tried to make Hezekiah look bad in the eyes of his people. He told them King Hezekiah was lying to them about God being able to protect them. He also noted Hezekiah removed all the altars in Judah except for the one in Jerusalem. He filled the people of Judah’s mind with lies. He wanted to infiltrate their minds so they would no longer be loyal to Hezekiah and they would turn against him. He tried to win the battle from the inside out. Doesn’t that sound just like an adversary we fight daily? King Sennacherib told them, “We’ve conquered a lot of nations. No god has ever been able to hold us back. What makes you think your God is different?” So, King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah started to pray and God listens. Hezekiah knew that he alone was no match for the King of Assyria so he turned to the Lord for assistance. God sent an angel to kill many people in the Assyrian camp. Sennacherib, his army depleted, is forced to head back home. Later, his own sons killed him.
We can apply this amazing story directly to our warfare with Satan. What immediately caught my attention when reading this chapter was Hezekiah’s realization the waters had to be stopped from flowing beyond the walls. He knew the King of Assyria should not be able to find water. How many times have we provided Satan with the ability to attack us? Would we leave loaded weapons on our front porch at night with the door of our house wide open? None of us would! When it comes to fighting our adversary the Devil, we behave more carelessly. We leave our doubts, fears, and worries right where he can access, manipulate, and embellish them before he uses them against us. We provide Satan with many of the supplies he needs to destroy our faith, freedom, and peace of mind.
According to Wikipedia, a supply line is a large line of military supply vehicles, usually in convoy format. The line is useful for transporting needed supplies (food, medical supplies, ammo) to the front line. Without the supply line, a deployed army far from home would not be able to fight for long, as supplies would soon run out. A supply line comes from the allies, not the opposing force, but in our battle with Satan, we often send him exactly what he needs to defeat us. Hezekiah could see how this water could be used to strengthen the enemy, and he immediately severed the supply. It is time we sever Satan’s supplies that he uses against us. Ephesians 4:27 tells us to not to give place to the Devil. Once he arrives for the fight, he should find a serious and vigilant people full of faith, trust, confidence, and a peace of mind knowing God is in control. We have assisted Satan too long. Here are just a few ways we assist Satan:
We refuse to trust God’s plan.
We refuse to let go of old hurts and wounds.
We refuse to acknowledge what we did wrong.
We refuse to forgive others for what they did.
We refuse to stop judging others for their grievances.
We refuse to admit we were wrong too.
We refuse to apologize.
We refuse to lay down our “rights” for those of others.
In closing, let’s look at the word “devil” for a moment. The word “devil” comes from the Greek word diabolos, a compound word made from the words dia and ballo. This name is used 61 times in the New Testament. The first part of the word is the prefix dia, which means “through” and often carries the idea of penetration. Because dia is used at the first of this word, it tells us that the devil wants to enter our minds and hearts. That’s why Hezekiah built fenced cities. He did not give Sennacherib a point of entry.
Once a point has been located through which he can secretly slip into people’s lives, he invades the mind and emotions with the supplies left for him outside the walls to drive a wedge between those individuals and the other people in their lives including the Lord. He wants us to distrust God and turn from his ways. Let’s decide today to sever the supply lines of Satan, and keep fighting the fight of faith!
(The Solution Column is provided by Pastor Brandon Young of Harmony Free Will Baptist Church, Hampton, and his associate, Hunter Greene.)