AMAN AND TSALACH

Read: 2 Chronicles 20:20

Topic: "Aman" and "Tsalach"

"And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper."

2 Chronicles 20:20

In this famous Scripture, you find Jehoshaphat, a church member, exhorting the rest of the congregation to believe in God as well as in the man of God. This famous speech teaches us a very great lesson for the ministry. In the first part of the Scripture, there is a prediction that believing in God will lead to establishment. In the second part of the Scripture, the promise is that believing in the prophet will lead to prosperity.

You see, Jehoshaphat was faced with a very difficult situation. Several kings were about to attack him and his nation was in crisis. He had called for a prayer meeting; much prayer had been offered to the Lord. At the end of the prayer meeting, one of the pastors (Reverend Jahaziel) gave a prophecy. He prophesied that they were going to win the war. He predicted that God was going to fight for them and that everything was going to be okay. Because of this, Jehoshaphat made the choir march in front of the army. That was a very dangerous move! But he believed in both God and the prophet – and it paid off! At the end of it all, Jehoshaphat and his followers had more blessings than they could carry away. God blessed them with more than they could carry!

"And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much."

2 Chronicles 20:25

The Hebrew word translated “established” in 2 Chronicles 20:20 is the word “Aman”. It means “to nurture”, “to foster as a parent”, “to build up” and “to nurse”. This teaches us that as you believe in God, you will be nurtured and nursed by God. He will build you up in the faith and you will receive a strong foundation that only a parent can give. But this Scripture goes on and says to believe in the prophets and you will “prosper”. The Hebrew word translated “prosper” is the word “Tsalach”. It means “to push forward”, “to go over”, “to come mightily” and “to break out!” “Aman” and “Tsalach” are two very different experiences in the ministry. 

God will nurture you and build you up for His work. He will nurse you like a baby in a cradle. He will foster you like a parent and encourage you until you are well developed. BUT THEN, YOU NEED A PUSH FORWARD IN THE MINISTRY.

You need to come mightily in ministry. You need to break out into the fullness of your calling. God wants you to go over every wall and obstacle in your life and ministry. The question is, “How will you receive this push forward into ministry?” After you have been nurtured and fostered by Almighty God, what is the key to coming mightily to the front of the ministry lines? The key is to believe in the man of God.

Some people have difficulty in believing in the man of God. They say, “I can believe in God, but I can’t trust these men.” They say, “I cannot put my trust in the arm of flesh.” What you must realize is that you are not putting your trust in a human being, per se. The safety catch in this Scripture is that you are supposed to believe both in God and in the man of God. One without the other will not get you where you need to go.

Believing in God without believing in his prophets will help you to be nicely built up in Christ. But you will not have the push forward that you need. Believing in the man of God without believing in God is also very dangerous! You could easily make a mistake and follow the errors of a human being. That s why the two go together! It is alright to follow people closely as long as they are following Christ.

"Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ."

1 Corinthians 11:1

It is alright to believe in a man of God as long as you simultaneously believe in God. God gives everybody a man of God. Through the man of God in your life, you will receive a push into ministry. You will catch the anointing and you will break out mightily. Do not make the mistake of rejecting the man of God that God gives to you. The ministries of many people end up nowhere because they refuse to get connected to God through a man of God.

It is impossible to catch this blessing and be pushed forward mightily in the ministry when you never fully follow and obey the directions of the prophet God has given to you. It is my prayer that you'll open up to the blessings of “Tsalach”.