Why God Allows Your Crisis | Sermon by Tony Evans
Dr. Tony Evans is the founder and senior pastor of Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in Dallas, founder and president of The Urban Alternative, chaplain of the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks, and author of over 100 books, booklets & Bible studies. His radio broadcast, The Alternative with Dr. Tony Evans, can be heard on more than 1,300 US outlets daily and in more than 130 countries.
if your car falls apart you go to a
mechanic if your house is falling apart
you go to a repairman or a handyman
if your clothes are falling apart you go
to a tailor if your grades are falling
apart you go to a tutor but where do you
go when your life is falling apart when
things are unraveling at rapid pace and
you don’t quite know what to do our
series is on revival and revival at the
heart of it is the return of God to his
people where his manifest presence is
experienced where you where you
experience the reality of God where God
is no longer a theology or a theory a
concept that you believe in but seems to
be so untouchable and so far far away
revival is when the reality of God
becomes real to the experience of its
people when God in a sense re-enters
into your situation of life regularly as
we stated when we began our series when
there was the return of God it was often
in the midst of a crisis a situation
that men could not fix such as the
situation that we find in second
chronicles chapter 20 with King
Jehoshaphat king jehoshaphat has a
problem verse one says it came about the
sons of Moab and Ammon together with
many Knights came to make war against
Jehoshaphat they came and reported to
Jehoshaphat saying a great multitude is
coming against you for me on the sea out
of Arum and beyond verse three
Jehoshaphat was afraid
and turned his attention to seek the
Lord Jehoshaphat is in a crisis he is
now being overwhelmed the statement is
that a great multitude is coming against
you you know you’re in a crisis when
life is overwhelming you when everywhere
you look there is a problem when it’s
one thing after another he is being
outnumbered by the circumstances a great
multitude that is a plethora of negative
circumstances are engulfing your life
Jehoshaphat and God’s people were being
surrounded by the enemy they were being
surrounded by those who were against
them you know you’re in a crisis when
you feel like Jehoshaphat felt because
verse 3 says Jehoshaphat was afraid a
crisis verse fear it bursts insecurity
it bursts trauma and even terror because
it looms so large in your life in the
Bible and in life crisis comes in all
shapes and forms there are financial
crises of which most people know about
right now
in fact I’ve had numbers in the
congregation share with me about
insecurity or fear as it relates to the
markets and their retirement or the job
situation how am I going to make it well
I have to work longer and it creates a
situation of insecurity it says he was
afraid crisis can come in health forms
when
as our sister said the doctors don’t
know quite how to fix the problem that
can be relational crisis crisis between
people and you’re overwhelmed by the
inability to fix or whatever the nature
of the relationship is a vocational
crisis like Daniel faced in Babylon and
the three Hebrew boys who were going to
be fired no pun intended it was a
fearful situation here’s one you really
know you’re in a crisis verse 12 he says
o our God will you not judge them before
we are powerless before this great
multitude who are coming against us nor
do we know what to do in a crisis when
you don’t know what to do when you sense
or feel a sense of powerlessness to
change things you know as long as you
feel like you’ve got the power to turn
around the feeling dominate it’s when
you have this sense of powerlessness I
don’t have the wherewithal to fix it or
to change it or to reverse it or to
correct it and I don’t even know anybody
else who can help me when your actions
have run out and that sense of
powerlessness prevails you’re in a
crisis I want to make sure I’m being
relevant because maybe there’s nobody
here in a crisis so so if you had a
crisis raise your hand I just need to
know oh oh I can talk to everybody all
right Jehoshaphat says I’m in a crisis
it’s a big thing a great multitude it’s
now running my emotions I’m afraid I
feel powerless to do anything I don’t
have the way with all the turning around
myself
even if I have the power I couldn’t use
it because I don’t know what to do
I don’t know the best steps to take I
don’t know the right action to move
forward on so I’m stuck in a crisis
trapped in a crisis and I don’t know
what to do jehosophat in the midst of
his crisis and many of you perhaps feel
like the man who who told his friend and
anything else goes wrong in my life
today it’ll take me two weeks before I
can get around to worrying about it cuz
it’s just so much stuff I got I got to
put it on the calendar worried about
this two weeks from now it’s a crisis
for those of you who didn’t raise your
hand because you’re not in a crisis just
wait
life has a way of catching up with you
the end one you just got out of one of
you’re headed toward one because life
has its crises Jehoshaphat was afraid
verse three he turned his attention to
seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast
throughout all of Judah because it
affected the whole southern kingdom
there was the northern kingdom and then
there was a southern kingdom Judah
Jehoshaphat is king of the southern
kingdom Judah and because it affected
everybody who dis affected because the
nation was under attack he called them
to join him in seeking the Lord you need
to understand something that’s very
important you’ve heard it before but I
need to remind you and I want to remind
you about why God allows crises why he
allows us to be in situations that are
overwhelming situations that create fear
in security situations that render us
powerless and situations where our minds
and the sharpest minds we know don’t
know what to do
but like now let me give you the good
news the crisis is the bad news the good
news is that God allows creates and uses
crises so that he can demonstrate he
alone is God he said it again
God allows creates causes endorses
overwhelming scenarios in our world so
that we can discover God see it’s one
thing to know God in theory he’s my rock
my sword my shield
he’s wheel in the middle of a wheel that
sounds good and it’ll get you an amen
but in a crisis you don’t need cutesy
statements in a crisis you don’t need
spiritual Serendipity’s in a crisis you
doesn’t need high sounding theological
vernacular in a crisis you need to see
the Living God in a Christ you need to
know the God you’ve been talking about
is real and you need an experience with
that God well if you need an experience
with that God you need an experience
that calls for that God if you need an
experience with that God then you need
an experience that calls for that God so
he sets his face to seek the Lord he
sets his face to seek the Lord now he
calls for this gathering because an
effect of the whole nation because of
this crisis situation
and there’s a reason he does this if you
will turn quickly back a few pages to
chapter 6 when Solomon dedicates the
temple Solomon prays this prayer of
dedication and when he does that and he
prays this prayer verse 34 when your
people go out to battle against their
enemies by whatever way you shall send
them and they pray to you toward this
city which you have chosen and the house
the temple which I have built for your
name then hear from heaven their prayer
their supplication and maintain their
cause the reason that Jehoshaphat in
chapter 20 seeks the Lord is he
remembers what was promised and prayed
when the temple was dedicated by Solomon
and that prayer was when we are being
invaded by the enemy when the enemy is
seeking to override us and we call to
you from this place then we are needing
you to intervene on our behalf and turn
them away we are needing you to speak
into this situation so he seeks the Lord
nothing will make you seek God like a
crisis when you’re not in a crisis you
throw up few prayers general prayers
Lord bless my day bless my family
bless my house bless my health you know
bless everybody bless the world that’s a
non crisis prayer you know what a crisis
prayer you know you in a crisis can you
specific well United crisis is easy to
be general but he sets things aside he
puts food aside and says he calls a fast
he does it when you in a crisis
not eating there’s no big deal when
you’re not in a crisis you want to eat
everything you can get your hand over
when you’re in a crisis
putting fried chicken beside not that
hard because there’s something bigger on
the table they are in a crisis the whole
nation is in a crisis because they are
worried about this attack this enemy
that is about to descend on them and
their sense of helplessness when you’re
in a crisis you feel like you’re in a
boxing match and the ref won’t stop it
quicksand and the harder you try the
deeper you go under but he makes this
cry based on the Word of God now I want
to share something with you on our way
to looking briefly at this prayer we’ve
got the problem they’re being
overwhelmed by circumstances we’re going
to get to the prayer but I want you to
notice something in chapter 19 first one
that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah
turned in safety to his house in
Jerusalem Jehu the son of Hanani the
seer went out to meet him and said to
King Jehoshaphat should you help the
wicked and love those who hate the Lord
and so bring wrath on yourself from the
Lord but there is some good in you for
you every move the Asher Roth from the
land and you have set your heart to seek
God now before we get to this prayer I
wanted to read that because I wanted you
to know Jehoshaphat is an imperfect man
he’s a good man
Jew says there is some good in you and
you start to seek the Lord but you’ve
also done something wrong and the wrong
thing he’s talking about is in chapter
18 when he covenant it with the wicked
to accomplish God’s will see in chapter
18 Jehoshaphat complimented with the
wicked to achieve God’s will in God’s
grace God did not let him be destroyed
with his complimenting with the wicked
in God’s grace he was kind to him
because God says even though you blew
this you are a good man and I’ve seen
where you’ve done something you’ve
gotten rid of the Asherah and you’ve
decided to seek the Lord so I want to
say this as we deal with your crisis in
my crisis and all of our crisis and that
is even in your imperfection
god never excuses our in profession but
he recognizes it even if your
imperfection if you will begin removing
the idols if you will begin seeking the
Lord God will register the seriousness
of your pursuit and not give you the
full consequences of your weakness
because he says you could have brought
wrath down but because there is still
some good in you because God still see
something worth saving salvaging in your
life if you will proceed so when you
read the rest of chapter 19 guess what
you will see we won’t go through it now
you will see all these changes
Jehoshaphat begins to make in the nation
because he wants the good to rule and he
does not want the wickedness to overrule
and so he begins now to make all of
these changes in the nation in order to
make things more pleasing to God and so
he begins to be radical in his
Reformation efforts now why did I bring
out chapter 19 as I get ready to get to
the prayer of chapter 20 because he
positioned things so that God would hear
when he called see a lot of times we
call him but God came here not because
he’s unable to hear but because we not
adjusted to him see what we want is God
to adjust to us without us adjusting to
God
jehosophat adjusted the God so that now
God was free to hear his prayer one of
the worst things to do is to pray and
have a God who will not hear not because
he doesn’t want to hear but because we
are not adjusting to him we live in that
kind of world I hope you know that
people want God as long as here just to
us well that’s not quite to God that’s
God that’s the God that we want to make
so he gets things right and then he
prays Jonathan stood in the Assembly of
Judah verse 5 and Jerusalem in the house
of the Lord before the new court so he’s
in God’s house in a crisis he says Oh
Lord the God of our fathers are you not
God in the heavens and are you not ruler
over the kingdoms of the nation’s power
and might are in your hands so that no
one can stand against you he introduces
his prayer with one of the great truths
that you need to remember particularly
if you are in a crisis or when you get
in a crisis he says God is it not true
that here it is here it is here it is
never forget this God is it not true pay
close attention he says God is it not
true that heaven rules if you can
remember if you forget everything I say
today I want you to remember this heaven
rules in other words Earth never has the
last word your crisis is not the final
word it looks like the final word cuz
you’re being overwhelmed it feels like
the final word because you’re afraid you
think it may be the final word cuz you
don’t know what to do so what he does in
his prayer is reach
to what he knows to be true about God
even though it goes against how he feels
right now how’s he feel right now he’s
very much afraid
never let your feelings uh sit in
judgment over your faith let me say them
again
never let your feelings sit in judgment
over your faith you must always let your
faith sit in judgment over your feelings
don’t deny how you feel how you feel is
how you feel
I’m afraid I’m anxious I’m insecure I’m
worried I’m doubtful don’t let me cuz I
say you’re not afraid when you’re afraid
well that’s like lying if you’re
trembling you’re trembling that’s the
real but the problem is not how you’re
feeling the problem is allowing how you
feel as real as it is to override your
faith so what he says is what he knows
to be true about God he says God is it
not true that you rule from heaven that
heaven has the final say that you have
the last word that heaven will make the
closing comment and make the final
decision and give the final answer it’s
not over don’t have it has said it’s
over you must always make sure that what
is true about God that’s why theology is
important what is true about God is
brought to bear in the middle of the
discord that you may feel remember
feelings have no intellect they’re real
but they don’t think feelings don’t
think that’s what feelings do feel
that’s all feelings could ever do all
feelings can do is feel that’s why
they’re so mobile you know they’re up to
date on the morrow
you if you’re unhappy here today
somebody give you a million dollars
you’re gonna feel different because
feelings feelings follow circumstances
so feelings don’t think they react
that’s why you must bring to bear what
you know to be true about God so
Jehoshaphat says is it not true that
happen rules earth
that’s theology he’s dealing with the
sovereignty of God sovereignty has to do
with rulership
he says heaven rules God so he appeals
to God’s character you are not ruling
over the kingdoms of the nations you
rule said watch this now God just
doesn’t rule circumstances he just
doesn’t rule individuals he rules
kingdoms and nations why is he saying
you relations cuz we being attacked by
some nations so I don’t need a God who
just takes care of streets when I’m
being attacked by a nation I I need I
need a nation kind of ruling God I don’t
need just an individual ruler I need
somebody who can change the whole course
of nations
you know I need somebody who can turn
all nations cuz that’s the nature of my
problem I got a national problem I need
a national kind of God he says is it not
true that you ruled over nations
he goes on in verse seven did you not Oh
God drive out the inhabitants of the
land before your people is real and give
it to the descendants of Abraham your
friend forever I love this I love this
he goes back here everybody says now
when I read my Bible because cuz your
house fast this many years later he said
when I read my Bible I can find places
where you dealt with whole nations of
people before when you wanted to bring
Abraham into this new land you dealt
with the Canaanites and the Hittites and
the ammonites in the jab your sites and
you dealt with whole nations to give us
this land that’s why
you need to know your Bible cuz you need
to know that you can refer back to other
folk who in the same situation that you
are now facing to know that while your
situation is different your God is not
you know your situation may be different
but your God is the same God he says now
and I love the fact he’s praying to God
but he’s praying in question for you see
that he’s praying a question for he says
are you not the ruler verse 6
did you not o God in other words God let
me ask you a question
in other words God I’m asking you a
question cuz I need to remind myself for
the answer so he now remembers she
starts with the sovereignty of God
heaven rules he remembers God you face
this problem before with your people and
you handled it so I’m not your test case
listen I don’t care what crisis you are
now going through you’re not the first
one God has had to address you not his
test case you’re not his trial he’s not
scratching his head saying I haven’t
faced this one before the financial
crisis the widow of Zarephath can
testify I was down to my last meal and
he made a way out of no way if you don’t
know which way to go Moses in Israel can
testify between Pharaoh and the Red Sea
that he can open up a road nobody could
predict God was gonna do that so the
Bible is full of particularly the Old
Testament testimony but you say wait
wait a minute that was in the Old
Testament
yeah but the Bible says in first
Corinthians chapter 10 those things were
written for our example the Bible wrote
for Old Testament so that when you and I
are living in the New Testament we can
refer back to the Old Testament when our
New Testament problems
like Old Testament situations he says as
I recall Abraham had some nation
problems and you came through for him
they lived in it and you built the
sanctuary and then he comes in verse 8
when we built this sanctuary in your
name we stamp your name on it is your
house saying should he become upon us
the sword judgment pestilence famine
distress you will hear and deliver us
now watch this now now he thought God’s
word up in God’s face he said what
mister I understand that if all this
crisis came on us and eNOS he gives a
whole list of crises yours is in there
somewhere it’s a hole it’s the Christ he
said you got we got pestilence we got
famine that’s financial that’s called
that’s called Wall Street famine we got
we got judgment we got we got this we
got that we got it but if we called on
your name from this house remember now
we have time to get into the theology of
naming but but remember God’s name is
legal to God’s name that’s not a word
God it is a legal relationship it is a
trademark name okay it’s a trademark
name you know Oh click Bible Fellowship
is trademarked that name is registered
which means you only use it legitimately
if you use it legally so a lot of people
use God’s name but they use it illegally
see so the name doesn’t register because
there’s no legal authority attached to
it so he goes to God’s Word he goes to
God’s person he goes to God’s history
then he goes to God’s Word after he goes
back to the history after he goes back
to God’s person he’s ruler after he goes
back to God’s Word verse 10 man now
now we generally start with now yeah God
hello now he doesn’t get the nail he
remembers who are we talking to see cuz
sometimes we forget who we talking to
see you forget who you talking to
and then you you you reduce it to
something else now he says let me tell
you about my problem I want you to rule
it happen it’s what they got to do with
me didn’t you do this before well you
said something in your word now let me
tell you about me and my messed up
situation
he says the sons of Ammon and Moab
desire whom you did not let invade
Israel you turn aside them and did not
destroy them see how they are rewarding
us by coming to drive us out from your
possession which you have given us as an
inheritance Oh our God will you not
judge them for we are powerless before
this great multitude who are coming
against us nor do we know what to do but
our eyes are on you okay my problem is
I’m powerless I don’t know what to do I
just know I’m powerless I don’t know
what to do but I’m changing where I’m
looking
did you see that last line my own you
know watch this as long as the enemy can
keep your eye on the enemy you gonna be
looking at the wrong thing down my
crisis I’m not gonna ignore my crisis
cuz I’m just saying now they’re coming
at us but I’m not gonna stare them down
I’m gonna look to you I’m gonna look to
the hills from with cometh my help my
help cometh from the Lord I am looking
for you
remember last week why does God call us
to prayer he calls us to draw down
heaven for the benefit of my crises on
earth prayer is for drawing down what
has been offered in heaven in the midst
of my crisis on earth now watch this all
Judah is standing before them infants
wives children everybody because it
affects them all then in the midst of
the assembly the Spirit of the Lord came
upon jahaziel the son of Zachariah verse
15 and he said listen all Judah and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem and King
Jehoshaphat thus saith the Lord to you
do not feel or be dismayed because of
this great multitude is overwhelming
crisis for the battle is not yours but
gods for the battle is not yours but
gods oh there’s so much in here listen
listen now he prays cuz he’s in a crisis
he says I’m not gonna focus I’m not
gonna ignore my crisis cuz it’s right
here in front of me it’s invading me but
I’m not gonna let my crisis be my focus
I am now going to put my eyes on heaven
cuz watch this heaven rules since heaven
rules I’m gonna look at heaven that
rules I don’t know how you gonna do it I
don’t know when you gonna do it I don’t
know where you’re gonna do it all I know
is you’re the only one that can do it
because I’m powerless in this situation
the text says the Spirit of the Lord
came all the Prophet who then gave them
watch this a direct word from God for
their immediate situation please don’t
miss that when he focused on God and
they God is focused without ignoring his
crisis when he made us focus on God
appealing to God’s nature
appealing the guards history and then
appealing to what God’s Word said it
says the Spirit of the Lord came upon
the prophet and the Prophet gave them a
word about how God wanted them to
resolve this problem why am i pointing
this out because now we have the Word of
God joining with the Spirit of God to
bring an answer to the crisis being
experienced by the people of God God
calls a prophet forth to speak a word
now here’s what I want to say to you I
want to say this to you when you are in
a crisis and don’t know what to do
God has a Rhema word for you now let me
define what I mean by Rhema word the
word Rhema refers to a specific
utterance the Bible is the Word of God
it is the word of God from Genesis to
Revelation it’s the Word of God when you
feel it it’s the Word of God when you
don’t feel it it’s the Word of God when
you like it it’s the Word of God when
you don’t like it it’s the Word of God
cuz it’s the Word of God but when you’re
in a crisis you just don’t need the Word
of God in its general written sense you
need a Rhema word that is you need the
specific Word of God that applies to you
in your specific crisis because you
can’t go to the Bible and the Bible tell
you whether to move to Fort Worth or
move the California you can’t go to the
Bible and it tells you whether to do
this specific thing or that it gives you
general principles but it doesn’t give
you all the specific guidance about your
specific crisis but God has not
forgotten what you might call gaps he
fills in those gaps by the Holy Spirit
it is the Holy Spirit’s job to speak to
the human spirit of the problem what we
should do in addressing our specific
crisis
this specific time and he does it
prophetically now remember what a
prophet was a prophet was one who would
speak on God’s behalf to the people the
Bible the Bible is called the prophetic
word when the script is called the
prophetic word like in 2nd Peter chapter
1 it’s referring to the Bible not in its
general sense but in its specific sense
to walk you through a specific problem
how do you know when you’re getting an
utterance a specific utterance deal
situation well it can come in numbers of
ways you know you get the specific
utterance when they’re 2,000 people in
the sanctuary but the sermon was only
for you it’s like you the only one
sitting there and everybody else could
have stayed home cuz this was with you
in mind that means you weren’t hearing
the Word of God you were hearing a word
of from God for your specific situation
it can come when you’re reading and
you’re reading and then God the Holy
Spirit highlights a verse in other words
it’s no longer just general reading all
of a sudden diverse emerges of off the
page when when I think I may mention
this when we were buying this little
church here and I was walking up and
down the street and I and I was just
looking at all the land and then I was
reading the Bible and I read Joshua
chapter 1 and I was just having
devotions over Joshua chapter 1 and
Joshua chapter 1 it says and I will give
you this land every place on what your
foot tribes this land will belong to you
now I’ve read Joshua chapter 1 a hundred
thousand times and nothing happened
those hundred thousand times I read it
but when I was in we were in a crisis
and we didn’t know where we were gonna
get the money to buy the church and we
didn’t have any place to meet and on
that crisis day I was reading Joshua
chapter 1 all of a sudden I will give
you this land every place on what your
footsteps that is what I am giving to
you all of a sudden
yes up in my grill God is all up in my
face I knew on that day that I was
reading Joshua chapter 1 God was not
just give me general verses for general
devotions he was giving me a Rhema word
a prophetic utterance for my specific
crisis situation God speaks that’s why
when the Holy Spirit speaks to the human
spirit and get specific about you he’s
talking to you now you hear God speaking
to your heart okay let me let me run on
here I’m getting too excited okay
he says the battle is not yours
yours but the Lord now in 1st Samuel we
have this phrase because Israel was in a
crisis his name was Goliath Goliath
there’s a problem too big for you to
handle by the way whenever you have a
problem that’s too big for you to handle
call it Goliath because then you know
how things gonna wind up david says the
battle is not yours the battle is the
Lord’s okay in football the quarterback
receives the ball and the quarterback
receives the ball and and and so the
other team is coming in to tackle him
they’re coming in to destroy him
because he has the ball when he takes
the ball he’s also invited a problem
because they are 11 other men who want
to do something about the fact he has
that ball they don’t want him to have
that ball and they want him on the
ground and they are doing everything
they can to get him on the ground
the quarterback takes the ball and then
he hands it off to the halfback the
halfback then takes the ball and he runs
with after the quarterback changes
[Applause]
somebody else’s hands
[Music]
it’s the Lord’s
he calls on God cuz he said I got to
hand this off financial crisis okay look
what happens is he tells them look you
go on down there but you don’t have to
fight
you go on down there but you’re not
gonna have to fight the Lord’s gonna
take it over he’s gonna handle it one of
the beautiful things about God in a
crisis is him handling stuff cuz you
don’t know what to do remember watch
this now he says you don’t need to fight
the battle verse 17 the house mat bowed
his hand with his face to the ground all
of Judah inhabitants fell down before
the Lord and worship the Lord the
Levites the son of the core Knights they
praise the Lord with a loud voice it
says the next okay watch this is the end
of verse 20 says listen trust in the
Lord and you will be established put
your trust in his prophet and you will
succeed
put your trust in the word that comes
from God to the mouth of his legitimate
servants and you will you will succeed
and when they consulted the people that
he appointed those who sang to the Lord
and those who praised him and holy
attire as they went out before the army
give thanks to the Lord for his
loving-kindness is everything he says
have a praise service
[Music]
[Music]
[Music]
[Music]
[Applause]
with his name together don’t you get
cute up in here don’t you get too
sophisticated
two plus the name of the Lord you let it
know that you’re gonna praise him in the
mornin
praise them in noontime praise them when
the Sun Goes Down the problem may not be
gone but you handed it off cuz the
bottle is not mine the battle is the
Lord’s somebody bless the Lord in this
form
[Music]
we bless your name we bless your floor
we bless your name today
we bless your name we bless your name in
the middle of our pain regression in
when the middle of our circumstances we
bless your name in the middle of our
confusion regression aid in spite of our
financial crisis we bless your name in
spite of our uncertainty we bless you
even though we bless your name because
of our grades are we bless your name
Lord you go in peace not because the
enemy has disappeared but because you
handed it off and you’re gonna let God
run with this ball you’re gonna call him
down from heaven because heaven rules in
spite of the situation
Amen <3