Joel Osteen - The Battle Cry of Faith
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In life’s battles—whether sickness, setbacks, or opposition—our words become our battle cry; like the people of Judah shouting praise when surrounded or Joshua commanding a shout at Jericho, a cry of faith declaring God’s greatness activates His power, turning defeat into victory and bringing down impossible walls.
What’s Your Battle Cry in Tough Times?
I want to talk to you today about the battle cry of faith. We all have times when things come against us: the medical report is not good, a child is in trouble, our business had a setback.
It is easy to talk about the problem: «Why did this happen? I will never get well. This relationship is not going to make it.» What we are saying in the battle will determine whether we come out or whether we get stuck there.
The Wrong Battle Cry Limits You
We all have a battle cry; we are all saying something about the challenge. The problem with some people is their battle cry is negative. It is creating a sound of defeat: «I cannot do it.» A sound of doubt: «It is never going to happen.» A sound of weakness: «This is too much for me.»
Their battle cry is what is limiting their life.
Switch to a Battle Cry of Faith
In difficult times more than ever you need to have a battle cry of faith. Create a sound of victory: «Yes, this problem is big, but I know my God is bigger.»
A sound of healing: «This sickness did not come to stay; it came to pass. I am God’s property; it cannot live in my body.»
Praise Activates God’s Power
A sound of praise: «Lord, thank You that You are making ways where I do not see a way.»
Or you had a financial setback—how about a sound of abundance, not «I will never get ahead; this has done me in.» No: «Father, thank You that blessings are chasing me down. Surely goodness and mercy are following me.»
Talk About How Big Your God Is
It is tempting to talk about how big the problem is, but you need to turn it around and talk about how big your God is. God responds to faith.
When He hears you speaking victory in the midst of the trouble, bragging on His greatness when you are surrounded by enemies, praising Him despite obstacles that look permanent—that is when He will step in, and you will see supernatural healing; the problems suddenly turn around; the right people show up.
Judah’s Shout of Victory
When you have this battle cry of faith, God will show Himself strong in your life. This is what happened with King Abijah and the people of Judah.
2 Chronicles chapter 13: King Jeroboam and his army had surrounded Judah. Judah was outnumbered and trapped on every side; they were quickly closing in.
Outnumbered But Not Forsaken
King Abijah saw them in the front; then he realized they had sent thousands of troops to ambush them from the rear. It looked hopeless—like there was no way out.
The people of Judah were good people; they had honored God. Others in that area had compromised and gone astray, but verse 13 says they had not forsaken God; they had kept Him first place—but now they are facing this huge army.
Big Battles Mean Big Destiny
Just because you do the right thing does not mean you are not going to have some big battles. The reason you face big challenges is because you have a big destiny.
The enemy does not bring big adversity to small people. He knows you are a difference maker; you are a giant killer; you are destined to leave your mark.
Your Words in Battle Matter Most
So do not be surprised if at times you find yourself outnumbered, surrounded by trouble, surrounded by sickness, surrounded by lack. That is a critical time.
What you are saying in the difficulty—your battle cry—is going to make you or break you.
Judah Means «Praise»
King Abijah could have complained: «God, why did this happen? We do not have a chance; we will never defeat them.» He could have created a sound of doubt, a sound of defeat, a sound of self-pity.
But the word «Judah» means «Praise.» The reason they were in that city is they were all praisers; they were known as people that declared the greatness of God, went around thanking Him for His goodness, talking about His promises, and singing about His mercies.
At the Sound of Their Shout
The commander of the enemy army gave the signal to attack. They all started running toward Judah.
The scripture (2 Chronicles 13:14–15) says, «The priests blew the trumpets, and the men of Judah began to shout. At the sound of their battle cry, God defeated Jeroboam and routed the enemy.»
God Fought When They Shouted
They did not have to fight; God fought the battle for them. But notice what activated God’s power, what brought the favor, what caused the supernatural breakthrough: «At the sound of their battle cry.»
They had a battle cry of faith: «God, this enemy is no match for You.» A battle cry of victory: «You have not brought us this far to leave us.» A battle cry of praise: «You are the most high God; all power and might is in Your hand.»
The Right Cry Moves Heaven
When you have the right battle cry, all of heaven goes to work. When you create that sound of victory, the sound of faith, the sound of abundance—supernatural things will happen.
But if the people of Judah had complained, talked about how big the army was and how it was not fair—we would not be reading about them; it would have been a different ending.
What Sound Are You Creating?
What kind of battle cry do you have? What sound are you creating when you are surrounded by trouble?
The medical report was not good; that coworker took your contract. It is tempting to talk about the problem: «God, I do not understand; I am a good person. The experts say that I am not going to get well. When am I going to meet someone? I have been single so long.»
Zip Up the Negative Talk
Zip that up. That is the wrong battle cry. If you want the Creator of the universe to show up, you need to have a battle cry of faith.
If you are struggling in your finances, do not go around talking lack and not enough and «I cannot get ahead» and «I will never live in a nice neighborhood”—that is a defeated battle cry; that does not get God’s attention.
Declare God’s Promises
Try a new approach: „I will lend and not borrow. What I touch prospers and succeeds. I live under the open windows of heaven. No good thing will God withhold because I walk uprightly.“
There is nothing more powerful than declaring what God says about you. Find the promises in the scripture; let that be your battle cry.
Don’t Speak Defeat Over Your Future
Not talking about how you feel, how impossible it looks, what the experts say, what has happened in your family in the past. This is a new day; your battle cry needs to be a sound of victory, a sound of abundance, a sound of healing.
When thoughts are telling you, „You have seen your best days; you have been through so much; it is all downhill from here”—do not go around repeating that, speaking defeat into your future.
A Man’s Negative Aging Talk
A man told me last week about how old he was getting and how wrinkled he was and how he was having trouble sleeping and he could not see as well and his back was hurting and his hearing was going down.
The more he told me, the worse he looked—he started convincing me.
Speak Faith Over Your Body
What he was saying may all be true, but in a battle if you just say what you feel and describe the situation, talk about the problem—you are going to get stuck.
If you want to activate God’s power, you have to have a battle cry of faith: „Lord, I thank You that You are renewing my youth like the eagles. That I will run and not be weary. That I am getting stronger, healthier, better looking. That I am full of energy, vitality. That with long life You will satisfy me.“
Die Believing, Not Complaining
And I realize: we are all going to get old; we are all eventually going to die—but I have made up my mind: I am going to die in faith; I am going to die believing, praising, smiling, expecting, thanking God that I can still see and hear and run and play sports, minister, have plenty of hair—that I am still tall, good-looking, a sound mind, full of purpose and destiny.
Moses was 120 years old; the scripture says, „His eye was not dim, and his strength was not abated.“ He was as strong at 120 as he was as a younger man.
David’s Battle Cry Against Goliath
But you are not going to stay energetic and sharp if you are speaking defeat over your life. Pay attention to the sound that you are creating in difficult times when life is not fair.
Like Judah, when there is an unexpected challenge and suddenly you are surrounded—that is when you have to be on guard: „I am not going to speak defeat; I am not going to complain; I am not going to talk about how impossible it is. I know God is still on the throne. He is a way maker, a promise keeper, a miracle worker. Him being for me is greater than what is trying to stop me.“
The Spirit of Faith Is in Your Words
At the sound of that battle cry, Almighty God goes to work. The scripture says the spirit of faith is in our words. It makes a difference what you are saying in the battle.
When David saw Goliath, he could have complained: „Man, he is too big. I do not have the training.“ Listen to his battle cry (1 Samuel 17:45–46): „Goliath, this day I will defeat you and feed your head to the birds of the air. For you come against me with a sword and a shield, but I come against you in the name of the Lord God of Israel.“
A Man’s Cancer Turned Around
When God heard that battle cry, favor came on David and his slingshot; he brought down the giant. I talked to a man that was in town at the medical center for treatment; he has incurable cancer.
The doctors told him that he had 3 to 5 years to live. He had accepted it and thought that he would make the most of these last years and just do his best.
From Acceptance to Declaration
But I encouraged him that our God is a healer, that He has the final say, and when we believe, all things are possible. I challenged him to start speaking victory over his life and start declaring God’s promises.
He changed his battle cry from being passive—“This is okay; I can deal with it”—to „God, I believe that healing is flowing through me, that You can do what medicine cannot do. Thank You for a supernatural breakthrough.“
„Possibly Divine Intervention“
He created a new sound: a sound of victory, a sound of faith, a sound of healing. He would come every 3 months to Houston for a checkup.
About two years later he stopped by after the service; he had a big smile. He said, „Joel, I just got my report from my doctors. The leading expert said: in all his years of practice he has never seen this, but I do not have cancer anymore.“
Asa’s Cry When Outnumbered
They could not explain it; he showed me his paperwork. The main doctor had written, „Possibly divine intervention.“ Medically speaking there was no way—but when you have a battle cry of faith, God will do supernatural things.
That is what happened for Judah. At the sound of their battle cry, God defeated the enemy.
God Makes the Enemy Pay
King Abijah eventually died, and his son Asa took the throne. Asa and the people of Judah had many years of peace and favor.
He had an army of 500,000 men; everything was going great—then this army from another country came to attack; they had 1 million men. Asa was outnumbered 2 to 1.
Declare Who God Is
He could have been depressed and complained, but Asa learned from his father what to do in difficult times. Verse 11 says, „Asa cried out to the Lord his God.“
Here comes his battle cry: „Oh Lord, no one but You can save the powerless from the mighty. You are our God. Our trust is in You alone. It is in Your name that we have come against this vast horde.“
Remind Yourself of God’s Greatness
Instead of complaining—“We are outnumbered; we do not know what to do”—he is declaring the greatness of our God: „No one can stand against You. Our trust is not in our weapons, not in our strategy. God, You alone can bring down the mighty.“
A great battle cry in times of trouble is to remind yourself who God is: „Lord, I want to thank You that You are the all-powerful Creator of the universe. You are the God who stopped the sun for Joshua. The God who parted the Red Sea for Moses. The God who defeated a giant with a slingshot.“
No One Can Stand Against Our God
„The God who protected teenagers in a fiery furnace. The God who made Elisha invisible to the enemy. The God who rescued Jonah with a whale. The God who raised Lazarus from the dead. The God who calmed the storm with Your words. The God who healed my mother of cancer. The God who gave us the Compaq Center. You are the great I AM. Our trust is in You alone.“
Who can stand against our God? No one can stop His purpose for your life.
Jericho: The Final Obstacle
You may be outnumbered today; in the natural the odds are against you—but when you have this battle cry of faith, the supernatural God goes to work.
This is what happened to the Israelites. God had brought them out of slavery; they wandered in the desert for many years.
You’re Closer Than You Think
The parents had died, but now their grown children had finally made it to the place God promised them—the land flowing with milk and honey, where they would have houses that they did not build and eat from vineyards that they did not plant.
The problem was, the city of Jericho stood between them and the promised land. They could not go around it; they could not take a back way—they had to pass through it to get to their destiny.
Your Jericho Means You’re Close
There will always be a Jericho before you get to your promised land. You may have an obstacle in your path today—a sickness, trouble at work, a challenge in your family.
Thoughts will tell you, „It is never going to change. You have been dealing with this a long time.“ What you cannot see is you are at Jericho; you are closer than you think.
The Shout That Brings Walls Down
God told Joshua to have the people march around the walls for six days, once a day. On the seventh day they were to march around seven times.
They were instructed to not say a word—no talking, no whispering, no complaining.
Don’t Talk Yourself Out of It
God knew: if He did not tell them not to speak, they would have talked themselves out of it: „What are we doing out here walking around the wall? We look like fools; this is not doing any good. I am hot; I am thirsty; it is dusty—let us go back home.“
Sometimes God asks you to do things that do not make sense: to forgive the person that did you wrong, to volunteer in the kids’ area.
The Seventh-Day Shout
On the seventh day, the seventh time around, God told them that they were to let out a great shout.
This was not just people being loud and emotional; this was a battle cry of victory: „God, we believe these walls are coming down. What You promised us is on the way. Nothing can stand against You.“
Suddenly the Walls Collapsed
They were declaring the greatness of our God. Verse 20 says, „Suddenly the walls collapsed, and the Israelites went in and captured the city.“
Those six days they walked around the walls they were being obedient, showing God that they trusted Him—but without the shout the walls would not have come down.
Your Shout Brings the Suddenlies
That battle cry of faith is what activated God’s power. There may be some walls up in your life—things you are believing to change.
It is important to pray, to believe, to trust—but what brings the walls down is that shout of praise, that shout of faith, when you declare the greatness of our God.
Our Morning Shout of Victory
Years ago Victoria and I were in a situation where someone had done us wrong and said some things that were not true, and now it was a big legal ordeal.
We were having to meet with attorneys and go through all the process; it was a waste of time and energy. It had gone on for months and months.
From Worry to Worship
We did our best to stay on the high road, knowing that God was still in control—but there were times we were tempted to talk about the problem: „This is not right; why did it happen? What if it does not work out?“
We had to do what I am asking you to do: we zipped that up and switched over into faith.
The Shout That Ended the Battle
After a couple of years of this long drawn-out process, it was coming down to the final day where a decision would be made, and we had to be downtown at 8:00 in the morning.
We decided to meet our team beforehand at 7:00. We drove there quietly, and we pulled into the parking lot.
No More Negative Battle Cry
It is good to pray; it is good to believe—but the shout is what brings walls down.
We went in that day, and before the proceeding started, their side came out and said, „We dropped everything; it is all clear; the case is closed.“
God Surrounds What Surrounds You
When you have a battle cry of faith, the Creator of the universe goes to work. Nothing can stand against our God.
What kind of sound are you creating? A sound of defeat, a sound of lack, a sound of „It is never going to happen“? That is going to limit your life.
Your Seventh Day Is Coming
What you are up against may look bigger; you are outnumbered, surrounded. What you cannot see is the most high God is right there with you. He is surrounding everything that is surrounding you.
It looks like a setback, but really it is a setup for Him to show out in your life.
Now, do your part: no more talking about the problem, how impossible it is. Have a battle cry of faith, declaring the greatness of our God.
If you will do this, I believe and declare: like Joshua, you are about to see some walls come down. You are coming into your seventh day, where impossible situations suddenly turn in your favor.
Like Asa, when you are outnumbered, God is going to step in and bring supernatural healing, supernatural breakthroughs, supernatural abundance—in Jesus’ name.
And if you receive it, can you say amen? Amen!