VICTORY IS ASSURED SO LONG AS YOU LIFT UP YOUR HANDS

Exodus 17:8–13 “Then Amalek came and fought with Israel at Rephidim. So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses told him, and fought with Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.”

Exodus 17:14–16 “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

This was written for us.

Romans 15:4 “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” The word hope (elpis) , This noun expresses the idea of hope and expectation. Which means the we can expect that if we do what they did in time of attack God will give us victory.

INTRODUCTION

Suffering as part of our Christian walk

This event was one of the situations the Israelites had to deal with when they came out of the land of Egypt. Prior to that they had to deal with the Crossing of the Red Sea, Bitter Water Made Sweet,Provision of Manna and Quail,Water from the Rock at Rephidim - In all these these things the presence of God was them, being a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night leading them through all these difficulties and challenges. This tells us it was Gods will for them in the same was as new creations who has been redeemed by the blood of Jesus also face hardships in life such as Financial Struggles,Health Issues,Loss and Grief,Discrimination and Inequality,Natural Disasters,Family and Relationship Issues,Addiction,Educational Barriers,Isolation and Loneliness etc.

Who are the Amalakites?

The Amalekites were an ancient nomadic tribe mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. They were descendants of Amalek, the grandson of Esau, and were known for their ongoing conflict with the Israelites. The Amalekites are mentioned in various books of the Bible, including Exodus, Deuteronomy, 1 Samuel, and Esther. Since the Bible always records the Amalekites as opposing the Jewish people, in modern times the name has become synonymous with this adversarial role. Certain anti-Israel groups, such as the Nazis, have been branded as “Amalekites.” It could be tempting to read this view back into history, suggesting that the Bible uses the term this way, but there is little warrant for such a claim.

Then Amalek came- This tells us of the unexpected as well unprovoked nature of the attack and letting us know that firstly the enemy can attack at anytime, secondly you have to do anything for the devil to attack.

Response to the attack Notice that they did not,panic,murmur or talk but rather decided to actively respond by engaging in two things So Moses said to Joshua, “Choose for us men, and go out and fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” A spiritual(Prayer) and physical(Corresponding actions) approach to the situation. Moses discerned that attack was orchestrated from the spirit realm and therefore he had to engage that realm by lifting up his hands which is sign of humility,seeking the help from the Lord

This establish the fact that attacks or anything that destabilizes your peace are initiated from the realm of the spirit therefore we need to deal with every situations from that point.

Philippians 4:6 “do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

James 5:13 “Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise.”

Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. This means that so long we depend on God in prayer the power of God goes into effect to grant us victory and whenever we take our eyes of the Lord and depend on the arm of flesh we begin to loose. 1 Samuel 2:9 ““He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.”

Jeremiah 17:5 “Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord.”

But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua overwhelmed Amalek and his people with the sword.” Some people are not able to persevere through prayer till absolute victory is established,they begin grow weary,become complacent,or distracted by pockets of successes. We need to maintain our stance in the presence of God until we see the manifestation of total victory.

God has sworn that He will be at war with those amalakites or opposition figures from generation to generation but the Lord will only do that as we lift up our hands just us Moses and the Isrealites did.

Prayer points

Pray and give thanks to God for his word.

Pray that the Lord will answer answer speedily . Psalm 143:7 “Answer me quickly, O Lord! My spirit fails! Hide not your face from me, lest I be like those who go down to the pit.”