Breaking The Siege | Rev’d Dr Taiye Adeola

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TEXT: 2 KINGS 6: 24-30; 2 CHRONICLES 32:1-10

This morning I will be speaking on “Breaking the Siege”. The siege can be like a seal, limit, restriction, obstruction, opposition placed on you by the enemy; it is a blockade of any form mounted by the devil using whatever means or method intended to stop you from fulfilment, manifestation, actualization, or demonstration of all that God has called you to be either as an individual, as a couple, family, organization, community or a country. In 2 kings 6:24-30. When Benhadad king of Syria besieged Samaria, it led to great famine and terrible lack in the land but by the word of the Lord the siege was broken and the city experienced great surplus.

“And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass’s head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver”.

A siege was also experienced by Hezekiah as recorded in 2 Chronicles 32,

“After this did Sennacherib king of Assyria send his servants to Jerusalem, (but he himself laid siege against Lachish, and all his power with him,) unto Hezekiah king of Judah, and unto all Judah that were at Jerusalem, saying,10 Thus saith Sennacherib king of Assyria, Whereon do ye trust, that ye abide in the siege in Jerusalem?

When Sennacherib came against Hezekiah, the Lord fought for him and he defeated the vast army of Sennacherib. The siege can be broken and will be broken in whatever area the devil has mounted it against you in Jesus name.

The devil mounts siege in different areas of people’s lives – fruitfulness, procreation, finance, progress in career, marital bliss, spiritual growth and so on. As you call on the Lord this morning, the Lord in his mighty power will move in to break the siege over your life and give you the breakthrough that you require in Jesus name.

WHEN THERE IS SIEGE – 2 KINGS 6:24 -29

STAGNATION

LIMITATION OR RESTRICTION

NO PROGRESS

FAMINE, HUNGER AND STARVATION

SCARCITY

SHORT IN FOR ATTACK OF THE ENEMY

GOOD THINGS ARE SHORT OUT

RESOURCES GET DEPLETED AND LATER EXHAUSTED

Learning from the experience of Hezekiah in 2 Chronicle 32:1-10 breaking the siege demands having confidence in God and declaring the same to yourself and others around you. I encourage you to be confident that every form of siege over your life, home and ministry will surely be broken.

The devil does a lot of things to make us lose confidence. He tries to make us afraid and become timid and intimidated before him. But God has not given us the spirit of fear (2 Timothy.1:7).

In the story read to us in 2 Chronicles 32, we see a man demonstrating confidence in God and another man that represents the devil challenging that confidence and its source. Hezekiah in the phase of impending war encouraged his people in verses 7 and 8

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged because of the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater power with us than with him. With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the Lord our God to help us and to fight our battles”. And the people gained confidence from what Hezekiah the king of Judah said. (NIV)

Hezekiah’s confidence in God became contagious. The soldiers became confident. Sennacherib’s expectation was that Hezekiah will become afraid, run helter-skelter and beg him or send people to negotiate for peace but he did not. So the question came in verse 10… ‘On what are you basing your confidence that you remain in Jerusalem under siege?

I tell you, the devil wonders when we refuse to collapse under his threat.

When we compare Hezekiah and Sennacherib, both have confidence – verses 7&8. While Sennacherib can boast of the vast army of Assyria depending on the arm of flesh, Hezekiah depended on the Lord God that is able to help and fight his battles. Not on the weapons that he made.

The arm of flesh –  Depends on its self and its ability

–           Boastful and counts its own achievements v.13

–           Does not regard God vv14-15

–           Sees only himself as able

Confidence in God -Calls on God for help – v.20

Trusts in God’s ability

Talks always of what God will do – v 8

God fights for him v 21

The Bible says in Philippians 3:3 “For we are the circumcision that worships God in spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus and have no confidence in the flesh”. WHY?  The arm of flesh will fail as it did in the case of Sennacherib. Despite his boasting, God sent his angel to destroy his vast army which was his confidence.

I want us to consider a method of the devil from this story and that is intimidation. Satan tries to intimidate you with his credentials telling and showing you how much evil he has done and can do. He may raise questions about prayers that you have prayed and are yet to be answered; he may ask you whether or not your God can help you just like Sennacherib did to Hezekiah.

You must refuse to be intimidated. Your confidence must be demonstrated even in the phase of the greatest opposition by the devil. That is why he says in Hebrews 10:35 “Cast not away, therefore, your confidence which hath great recompense of reward.  NIV puts it this way “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded”

Your confidence in God must be developed and sustained. It does not matter what the devil does, you must rest in God’s ability to help you and bring to pass all of his promises for your life.

WHAT MAKES YOU CONFIDENT IN GOD/WHY YOU MUST BE CONFIDENT IN GOD

HIS CHARACTER – Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. Does he speak and then not act? Does he promise and not fulfil? (NIV)

HIS ABILITY – Luke 18:27 “Jesus replied, what is impossible with men is possible with God”. He is able to handle your case and fight for you because he can do all things.

HIS PERSON – 1 John.4:7-16. God is love, God is good, he is kind, faithful, righteous and so on. That is his personality.

HIS PAST DEEDS – Hebrews.13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. What he did in the past should make us have confidence in him in the now being assured that he will do it again. Consider what he has done for you in the past

HIS WORD – What he says – 2 Corinthians 1:20 “His word is yea and amen” Isaiah 55:11 “So is my word that goes out of my mouth; it will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it”

We need to go into the scripture to see what God says concerning us and every situation we find ourselves in so that our confidence in God will be unwavering.

Is there a siege against your life? Are you already losing confidence because of what you have been through? Your case is not hopeless. Don’t give in to the devil’s intimidation, don’t surrender to his harassment; don’t give up from following and trusting the Lord. WHY? Confidence has a great reward.

In the case of Hezekiah, God fought and won his battle. He said God will fight for them and he did. God honours faith, he will honour you when you trust in him.