God is Greater than My Enemies

Today’s Message: God is Greater than My Enemies (Elisha)

Main Idea: God has the power to defeat our most fearsome enemies. 

Examples in the Bible:

• • Pharaoh / Egyptian Army (Exodus 14)
  • City of Jericho (Joshua 6)
  • Goliath (1 Samuel 17)
  • Haman (Book of Esther)

Satan, The Ultimate Enemy in the Bible

• • An enraged dragon who is waging war against followers of Christ (Revelation 12:17)
  • A roaring lion, looking for someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8)
  • God’s Promise — He gives us the power to resist the Devil (1 Peter 5:9) and overcome every temptation (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Today’s Story — Elisha and the Armies of the Lord

• Illustrates the idea that God has the power to conquer our most fearsome foes.
• Elisha and his servant have two very different reactions to a threat against their lives — one is fear, and one is faith.

Scripture: 2 Kings 6:8-16

• Elisha is a “secret weapon” in Israel’s war against Aram.
• The King of Aram sends a massive army to kill or capture Elisha to turn the tide of the war.
• Elisha and his servant are completely surrounded by the enemy army.

Two Reactions: Fear and Faith

• Fear. “Oh no!” — What people said when they thought their lives were in danger.
  • Gideon, when he thought he was going to die.
  • Jephthah, when he realized his daughter was going to die.
  • Joshua, when he thought the entire nation was going to die.
  • (See Judges 6:22; 11:35; Joshua 7:7)
  • Faith. “Don’t be Afraid. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.” -2 Kings 6:16 (NIV)
  • Why was Elisha so calm in the midst of this threat? He was able to see things from God’s point of view.
  • His confidence came from his ability to see beyond the physical.

Elisha Prays for His Servant’s Eyes to Be Opened (2 Kings 6:17)

• The entire time Elisha’s servant was panicking, the army of the Lord was already there, standing guard.
• How many times have we given in to fear and worry because we’ve only been looking at situations from a human point of view?
• How many times have we been paralyzed by fear even though we’ve actually be surrounded by the armies of the Lord?
• Sometimes we feel like the only way to stop being afraid is for God to change the situation — but this story shows that if we want to have the courage of Elisha, all we need is for God to open our eyes so we can see things as they really are.

Loving Your Enemies (2 Kings 6:18-23)

• God blinds the enemy army and leads them straight into the palace of the King of Israel.
• In the spirit of loving our enemies and heaping burning coals on their heads, Elisha directs the king to spare their lives and offer them a feast.
• The Result: Aram doesn’t mess with Israel after that.
• Key Point: Just because God has the power to defeat every enemy you face, that doesn’t mean we have permission to exact vengeance on our enemies whenever we feel like it. We are still bound by Jesus’ commands to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.

Remember: God Fights for Us

Scripture: Deuteronomy 20:1-4

• Key Principle: God has the power to defeat our most fearsome enemies. We just need to pray for the eyes to see his power at work in our lives.

Closing Passage: Ephesians 1:17-21

• Paul’s Prayer: Open the eyes of our hearts so we can see you and know you more clearly. 

Study & Reflection:

1. Read Exodus 14:1-31. This is one of the stories Bryan mentioned as an example of God’s power over our enemies.
2. The point we explored through this sermon series was the way God’s power is at work in our lives for his glory. How does this story connect with that theme? Pay attention to verses 4 and 17-18. 
3. Do you think the Israelites’ fear in verses 10-11 is justified? Why or why not?
4. What is your typical reaction to dangerous or stressful situations? Do you fight, flee, freeze, or something else?
5. Moses does not allow the panicking community to affect his own thinking or behaviors. What does Moses say to the people to reassure them in the midst of this chaos? (See verses 13-14).
6. Taking a step back for a moment, why do you think God allowed his people to come to the brink of death before intervening? Why not cause the Egyptians to die while they were still a long way off?
7. God directs Moses to stretch out his hand at several points in this story. Why do you think God requires Moses to personally become part of the process of saving his people? Why didn’t God just snap his proverbial fingers and make it happen on his own?
8. How did this near-death experience affect the spiritual lives of the Israelites? Verse 31 has some good insight into this question.
9. Take a look at 2 Corinthians 1:8-11. What connections do you see between that passage and the story of Israel crossing the Red Sea?