God of Breakthrough

                 
Photo by Echo Wang

David attacked the Philistines and defeated them. Then he said, “I watched the LORD break through my enemies like a mighty flood.” So he named the place “The Lord Broke Through.” 2 Samuel 5:20 CEV

This was David’s declaration right after he became the king of Israel and went out on his first battle as king. God had gone before him to help him fight. Here, he had a revelation of the God of breakthrough.

God will break through

For David, the Philistines were a formidable enemy. They had been Israel’s constant enemy from the time they came out of Egypt. The Philistines represented a persistent enemy. David knew that He needed more than skill to win this battle. So he turned to the Lord for help. God so helped him, he burst against the Philistines like a flood of water-giving the imagery of an overwhelming defeat.

What enemy has persisted in your life? Could it be a problem you have had for years? A sickness that you feel will never go away? Could it be a situation that feels as if it will never come to an end? Whatever persistent enemy we are facing today, God wants to give us a breakthrough. He wants to fight with us until we get the victory we have been praying for. He wants to deal with our persistent enemies until they are no more.

We do our part

Here is the thing with breakthroughs we have to get on the battleground and fight. We have to take up our spiritual weapons and wage the war. We have to stand in faith and believe God for the breakthrough. Breakthroughs don’t come to the passive onlooker. They come to the person who is willing to take a stand and go against the enemy believing God will help them win. David doesn’t pray for God to deal with the Philistines so he wouldn’t have to fight them. He got up and went to the battleground and did his part.

Sometimes our part in the breakthrough is a stand of faith. Other times its words of declaration-we begin to speak what God has said about our situations. Other times we fight through fasting and prayer. Other times we take a stand of peace and allow God to do the fighting for us. Whatever we do, we have to make sure we are participating accordingly in the fight.

Inquiring of the Lord

Something stands out in this story. The first thing David does when he heard the Philistines were coming against him is he inquires of the Lord.

And David inquired of the Lord,” Shall I go up against the Philistines? Will you give them into my hand?” And the LORD said to David, “ Go up, for I will certainly give the Philistines into your hand.” 2 Samuel 5: 19

Notice we are told that he “inquires” which has a sense of more than just asking to get information but asking with intentionality. David investigates the Lord’s stand where this battle was concerned. He asks questions. He needed to know if what He was doing was in line with what God wanted. He didn’t want to be presumptuous. He inquires of God first.

David had a life of breakthroughs because he had the habit of inquiring of the Lord before doing something.

Do we have a habit of inquiring of the Lord? Are we patient enough to wait on Him for the answers and strategies, or do we ask for answers and quickly move on to plan B if God doesn’t come quickly? Are we willing to say if He doesn’t show me how to do this I would rather not do it, or do we go to Him with the agenda of wanting God to bless our ideas? Breakthrough becomes a lifestyle for the person who will learn to inquire of the Lord habitually.

Our breaker

The one who breaks open the way will go up before them; they will break through the gate and go out. Their king will pass through before them, the Lord at their head. Micah 2:13

Micah depicts what Jesus comes to do for Israel and for us. Jesus is our breaker. He goes before us to make a way where there is no way. He is making a way for us in the wilderness. He is making a way through the mighty waters. It doesn’t matter what is before us, when He goes before us, there will be a way.

Gates represent places of access. Gates could be a way of opportunities; it could be a way into something. Sometimes, we are unable to get access to some things because the gates have been closed. He breakthrough the gates for us, where doors have been closed God will smash open the closed doors for us. God will go before us and break through for us. Where impossibilities stand in our way, we have a breaker who breaks through for us.

“For he breaks down gates of bronze and cuts through bars of iron.” Psalm 107:16

Jesus, not us is able to break through. Gates of bronze and bars of iron represent impenetrable situations; things that we cannot be able to get past, things that have remained immovable in our lives. God goes before us and smashes the bronze gates and cuts into pieces the bars of iron.

When the breaker goes before us, we are able to walk in breakthroughs.