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Series Code: BOLS
Program Code: BOLS000088S
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00:08 Sermon #S046 - Something Within Me (Part 1)
00:25 Pastor Snell: Today, we need to go right into the word. 00:27 I'm going to invite you to stand to your feet as we go into the teaching of God's word today. 00:35 If you don't mind, go with me and your bibles to Daniel Chapter Six 00:41 and we'll begin together at Verse number One as we really spend some time talking about our prayer-answering God. 00:47 Daniel Chapter Six and Verse number One. When you get there, say, pastor, I'm here. Daniel Chapter Six and Verse One, 00:58 and we'll read a good little bit this afternoon. Daniel Six and Verse One again, when you get there, say, pastor, I'm here. 01:06 The Bible says, it pleases Darius to set over the kingdom 120 satraps to be over the whole kingdom 01:17 and over these three governors of whom Daniel was one, 01:21 that the satraps might give account to them so that the king would suffer no loss. 01:27 Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and the satraps because, and what? 01:36 Excellence spirit was in him and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. 01:45 So the governors and the satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom, 01:51 but they could find no charge or fault because he was faithful, nor was there any error or fault found within him. 01:59 Then these men said, we shall not find any charge against Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God. 02:06 So the governors and the satraps thronged before the king and said thus to him, King Darius live forever. 02:15 All the governors of the kingdom, the administrators and the satraps, the counselors 02:20 and the advisors have consulted together to establish a royal statute and make a firm decree that whoever petitions any God 02:28 or man, for how long? 30 days except you, O King shall be cast into the den of lions. 02:36 Now, O King established the decree and signed the writing so that it cannot be changed according to the law of the Meads 02:43 and Persians, which does not alter. Therefore, King Darius signed the written decree. 02:49 Now, when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he was not ignorant. He knew what happened. 02:55 He went home in his upper room with his windows open, good Lord, toward Jerusalem 03:06 and he knelt down on his knees three times that day and prayed and gave thanks 03:18 before his God as was his custom since the early days. 03:24 Then these men assembled and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God and they went before the king 03:31 and spoke concerning the king's decree. Have you not signed a decree that every man who petitions any God 03:37 or man within 30 days except you, O King, shall be cast into the den of lions? And the king answered 03:44 and said, this thing is true according to the law of the Meads and Persians, which does not alter. 03:50 So they answered and said before the king that Daniel who is one of the captors from Judah does not show due regard for you, 03:59 O King or the decree that you have signed, but makes a petition three times a day. 04:05 And the king, when he heard these words, was greatly displeased with himself and he set his heart on Daniel to deliver him 04:17 and he labored until the going down of the sun to deliver him. These men approached the king 04:25 and said to the king, no O King, that it is the law of the meads and Persians. 04:29 No decree or statute with the king degrees may be changed. 04:36 Then the Bible says here in Verse 16, so the king gave the command and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. 04:42 But the king spoke saying to Daniel, your God whom you serve continually, he, man, the king got some faith up in here, 04:54 he will deliver you. Then a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den 05:00 and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the signets of the Lords 05:04 and the purpose concerning Daniel might not be changed. Now the king went to his palace and spent the night fastly with no music. 05:12 Musicians were brought before him and also his sleep went from him. Then the king arose very early in the morning 05:19 and went to haste to the den of lions. And when he came to the den he cried out with a lamenting voice to Daniel 05:26 and the king spoke saying, Daniel, Daniel, servant of the living God, 05:32 has your God whom you serve continually been able to deliver you from the lions? 05:36 Then Daniel said it to the king, O King, live forever, my Gods and his angel, 05:44 and shut the lion's mouth so that they have not hurt me because I was found innocent before him and also, 05:51 O King, I have done no wrong before you. Second half of Verse 28:3 says, so Daniel was taken up out of the den 06:00 and no injury whatsoever was found on him because he believed in his God. But again, for emphasis, I just want to read Verse Three, 06:10 then Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and the satraps because an excellent spirit was in him. 06:19 Today's saints, for just a little while, I want to talk to you under the subject, Something Within Me. 06:26 Let's pray together. Father, in this little while, would you please say much. 06:33 Lord, would you attach special anointing to the speaking and the hearing of this word. 06:40 Lord, I'm praying that you would give me the strength to preach it, but then Lord give the believers the courage to hear 06:47 and act on it. And so Lord, we need more than oration. We need more than information. Lord, we need a change. Lord, 06:56 begin a change in us today and continue it until the day of Jesus Christ. 07:01 Hide me in the shadows of the cross that Jesus alone might be seen, heard, and praised. 07:08 Do this before we ask it in Jesus' name. Let those who believe say together, Amen. 07:13 And amen. You may be seated in the house of the Lord. Again talking the subject, Something Within Me. Thank you. 07:33 Friends, our text today is filled with some immense implications for the body of Christ. 07:42 But the first thing Daniel teaches us is that you don't have to choose between being spiritual and being successful. 07:51 You see, as Darius the king of the Meads and the Persians adjust to his new role, 07:57 he chooses a government of structure that somewhat overgoverns the people so that he sets up 120 satraps on the land, 08:08 and above them are three governors of whom Daniel is one. 08:13 And the Bible says that Daniel so distinguished himself above them all that the king was about to set him over 08:21 the entirety of the land. But please, make a note of what distinguished Daniel, 08:28 what distinguished him was not just a disciplined work ethic. What distinguished him was not just punctuality consistently, 08:37 what distinguished him was not his political connections. 08:41 What distinguished him was an intangible quality that was inimitable by those who were around him. 08:50 In other words, it wasn't a behavior that he demonstrated. There was just something within him that set him apart. 09:00 And the Bible says, friends, that he had an excellent spirit within him, 09:06 but understand that these pagans or unbelievers don't have the verbiage 09:11 or the context to recognize it wasn't just an excellent spirit, but it was the Holy Spirit at work within him 09:20 and understand that this spirit that Daniel received could not be gotten by burning sage in the living room, 09:28 praying to the universe, our good works. This spirit can only be received when you are in connection with the living God of heaven. 09:37 Now, to be clear, friends, Daniel was a very sharp person. In fact, Daniel One and Verse Four talks about how he 09:46 and the three Hebrew boys were good-looking, how they were skilled with science, and how they had wisdom in literature. 09:54 But be clear, it is not Daniel's abilities that set him apart. In other words, your abilities can get you in the pack, 10:05 but it's your anointing that sets you apart from the pack. It is your gifts that might get your foot in the door, 10:13 but it is your character that opens up the door. It may be your education that sets you apart on paper, 10:20 but it's your anointing that sets you apart in real-time. It might be outer beauty that makes him ask you out on a date, 10:29 but it's that something within you that makes him get down on one knee. And the reason this is critical 10:36 because there is this sense amongst the people of God that somehow we've got to blunt our spirituality in order to get ahead. 10:46 There is this feeling that we've got to become a little bit more common and world-like in order to prosper. 10:54 But because we don't believe that our steps have been ordered by God, sometimes we sacrifice prosperity in the name of popularity. 11:05 You all not with me today? In other words, we sacrifice our prosperity 11:10 because we believe the advantage is in blending to be like everyone else. 11:15 But I need you to know that blending just makes you average. 11:19 That blending makes you fit in with the crowd. That blending keeps you from God's best. 11:26 In fact, some of us are so messed up that we think our success is tied to being a kappa, a lambda, or a delta, 11:34 but your success is tied to knowing the alpha and the omega. 11:39 There are some that feel like we've got to curse like the men on the loading dock, 11:45 that we've got to gossip with the petty in order to be down, that we've got to drink at happy hour in order to be accepted, 11:52 that we've got to step on others in order to get ahead. 11:56 But what sets Daniel apart is not that he reflects the culture, but what sets him apart is that he is different than the culture. 12:05 And see, what I need the modern church to get back to is we've got to get used to a little awkwardness. 12:13 And in other words, friends of mine, I need you to understand that you never sacrifice prosperity for the sake of popularity. 12:23 Are y'all with the pastor today? In other words, I'm not telling you to be awkward, I'm not telling you to be weird, 12:30 but how many of us know that if you are like Jesus, it's just going to make you different than everybody else in your circle? 12:40 And what I'm saying to somebody today is that you'll never get comfortable in that awkwardness until you embrace your Christ's 12:48 likeness. Are you all with me today? In other words, friends of mine, you ain't got to try to be different, just be like Jesus 12:56 and it's going to make you different. 12:58 In other words, I need you to get that on the job when their conversation is filled with curses and profanities, 13:05 it's going to get awkward when they notice that your speech is a little different. In other words, when they get hammered 13:13 and baked and they notice you don't move like that, it's going to get a little bit awkward. When they begin to get petty 13:20 and tear folk down and you don't participate, it's going to get a little bit awkward. 13:25 When the men start passing around pornographic text and you don't reply, it's going to get a little bit awkward. 13:32 And what I'm saying to somebody today is that just like it was for Daniel, he did not have their friendship, 13:38 he didn't have their admiration, but guess what? He had their respect and he prioritized his witness above their friendship. 13:48 Are you all with the pastor today? 13:50 And see, I need you to know that there was just something within Daniel that moved him ahead of his peers. In other words, 14:00 the spirit of God, with being Daniel in such a way that whenever there were complexities and conundrums, 14:08 the spirit would give Daniel the answer to the problem. That whenever they tried to communicate the same thought, 14:16 the spirit would teach Daniel exactly how it needed to be said. When they worked on a group project, 14:23 the rest of the group would work seven days a week. But Daniel would take the seventh day off 14:28 and come in Monday morning with the answer to the problem. 14:32 And see, I need somebody to understand that the Holy Spirit doesn't just fill you in church, 14:38 but the Holy Spirit sets you apart on your job. The Holy Spirit anoints you in your school. 14:45 I need you to know the Holy Ghost is your superpower. 14:51 In other words, I need somebody to know that the Spirit does not just aid preachers, 14:57 but is there anybody that knows the spirit aids teachers, it aids doctors, it aids contractors. 15:04 Look at your Bible. You realize that Samson became like any other man as soon as the spirit departed from him. 15:12 That David was like any other shepherd until our Samuel anointed him and the spirit came upon him. 15:20 That Joseph was like any other prisoner until the spirit began to set him apart. 15:25 And what I need somebody to understand today is that your advantage is not in what's on you. 15:31 It's not in who's around you. It's not in who you know. There's just got to be something within you that sets you apart as a 15:41 child of the most high God. Are you hearing me today, Friends? And so as we move into this text, 15:49 I need you to know that the second thing that this word teaches us today is that sometimes your strength 15:56 is going to be seen in what the enemy attacks. 16:01 Okay. So I need you to get that, these other governors and satraps, they are enraged by the king's decision. 16:11 One because of personal jealousy. They big mad because they were not chosen. But understand they are also mad 16:18 because Daniel is not one of them. He is a holdover from the previous regime and also he is different in race 16:26 and also in religious practice. Are you all hearing me today? And I need you to get, man, 16:32 that Satan literally inspires them with a plan that is destined to succeed apart from divine intervention. 16:43 In other words, they've got a plan to execute Daniel, but they've got a sinister contingency that we don't often take note of. 16:52 In other words, plan A is to execute Daniel, but plan B is to disconnect Daniel. In other words, 17:01 I need you to get that the men's goal is to get rid of Daniel, but Satan's goal is to weaken and discredit Daniel. 17:11 In other words, if they can't get rid of him, their next goal is to disconnect him and to get him to stop praying for 30 days. 17:21 In other words, the devil knows that if he can get Daniel to stop praying for 30 days, guess what? His morality is going to weaken. 17:30 His decisions are going to go bad. His work is going to stop prospering, mistakes are going to be made 17:38 and it's going to expose Daniel in such a way that the king will recognize that he made a mistake. 17:46 And see, there are some of us that still have not gotten the nature of the plan. See the men, they're haters. 17:52 They just want to kill him. But Satan's goal is to discredit him and cause him to be lost. Are you all with me today? 17:59 And see, the reason this is critical is I need you to know the destruction of any powerful habit begins with the temporary 18:08 suspension of that habit. In other words, he knows that if he can disrupt Daniel's prayer rhythm for 30 days, 18:18 he is going to have a hard time getting back into rhythm. Are you all hearing me today? 18:22 Anybody know that if you work out every day and you go 30 days without working out, it's going to be hard to regain that rhythm. 18:31 Am I telling the truth? That if you go 30 days without reading or study, it's going to be hard to regain that rhythm. 18:39 And the reason we struggle to stay consistently in prayer is because the enemy so consistently disrupts our rhythm. 18:50 And what I've got to pause to tell somebody today is that the person the devil fears most is not just the man 19:00 or woman behind a pulpit. It's not the person in a choir loft. It's not the person sitting in a pew, 19:09 but the one he fears the most is the one that can be found consistently calling on the name of Jehovah. 19:20 Are you all hearing me today? Listen, great quote here from the book, Christ Triumphant. I want you to see, man, 19:27 the power that is too often forfeited by a dereliction of prayer. I need you to know, watch this, 19:33 satan cannot endure to have his powerful rival Jesus appeal to for he fears and trembles before his strength and majesty. 19:44 Watch this, at the sound of fervent prayer, satan's whole host trembles. And when angels all-powerful, 19:57 clothed with an armory of heaven come to the help of the faint and pursued soul, 20:03 Satan and his hosts fall back knowing that their battle is lost. Oh, you all didn't catch that church? 20:14 Oh God. Look, it literally says that Satan trembles at the sound of fervent prayers. 20:25 See, some of us don't realize that your prayers give the devil post-traumatic stress disorder so that when you start praying, 20:36 the devil starts sweating. His hands start tripling. He starts glitching 20:42 because it awakens repressed memories of what happens when the people of God pray. 20:49 He starts remembering what happens when Paul and Silas prayed in the midnight hour. 20:55 He begins to remember what happens when you call on the name of the Lord last. 21:00 And what I'm saying is, instead of you walking around, talking about how the devil got his foot on your neck 21:06 and how strong he is, you just need to connect with your source and call on the name of the... 21:13 Oh, Lord, you all are not hearing me today. And I need you to get that he doesn't tremble at ceremonial prayers. 21:22 He trembles at fervent prayers. He doesn't tremble at rehearsed prayers. He trembles at fervent prayers. 21:29 He doesn't tremble at your mama's prayers. He trembles when you call on the name of the Lord. 21:34 And when I'm saying to somebody today is your prayers got to stop being so pretty, they got to stop being so well spoken. 21:42 They got to stop sounding so good. Sometimes you got to pray with some broken English. 21:47 Sometimes there ought to be some sweat on your brow. Sometimes you ought not be on your knees, 21:54 but you ought to be on your face. Who am I preaching to today? You got to get between the porch 22:00 and the altar before you call on the name of the Lord. 22:05 And see, I need us to understand that your strength is going to be seen in what the devil opposes. 22:10 That's why the most challenging part of your day in many ways is going to be two things. 22:15 It's going to be eating right and praying consistently. 22:22 Do I got at least one cousin in the church today? And see, a part of praying consistently why is it going to be hard? 22:29 One is because of falling nature. It's going to be hard because my nature is going to shrink from the things of the spirit. 22:35 My nature is going to withdraw from the things of God. 22:38 But I need you to know also that there is also going to be a circumstantial attack on the time you commit to pray. 22:47 Am I the only one that whenever it's time to pray, all kind of stuff start popping off all over your life? 22:54 Am I talking to anybody today? Ain't it crazy how man, don't nothing bad happen when it's time for you to get on your Sega? 23:01 Don't nothing bad happen when it's time to go to Dillard's. Ain't no opposition when it's time for you to watch TV. 23:07 But man, try to get down on your knees, and the phone start ringing, babies start crying, roof start leaking, car start explosion. 23:16 All kind of stuff happens when it's time to pray. 23:20 And I need you to know that your opposition is the proof of where your strength is at. 23:28 And it's crazy because in the field of war, one of the things that happens is that when they want to cripple a certain country, 23:36 they attack the source of their strength. So that even in this war crew against Ukraine, 23:42 one of the things Russia does is they bomb the power grids and the plants or certain countries in the Middle East, 23:49 what they'll do is they'll destroy the oil fields. And the reason they burned the oil fields is 23:55 because they don't want them to have access to the oil. 24:00 They want the oil flow to cease so that they don't have the power to re... oh you all not with me. 24:07 How many of must know that the devil wants to attack your oil supply so that your anointing does not flow 24:15 and you can't respond to the wiles of the devil? Are you all hearing me today my friends? 24:23 Third thing this teaches is that in a time of trial, you got to focus on your help more than you focus on your haters. 24:34 Let me say it again, that in a time of trial, you got to focus on your help more than you focus on your haters. 24:43 Because see, when Daniel finds out that the decree is signed, what he does is very instructive. 24:49 But what's equally instructive is what Daniel does not do. Now, it's impactful that as it was his custom, 24:56 he goes into his upper room and he prays and gives thanks as he does as it is his custom. 25:02 But man, one of the things that you notice that Daniel doesn't do, he doesn't even go and approach his protagonist. 25:08 He doesn't try and negotiate with his protagonist because he understands ultimately that this battle is not his. 25:19 That this battle must be fought on a different plane. You all going to sleep on me today? Oh church, stay with me. 25:29 He doesn't try to appeal to the protagonist. He doesn't try to negotiate with his protagonist. 25:35 He doesn't try to persuade his protagonist. He doesn't even go in order to the king. 25:40 Did you notice that Daniel does not even acknowledge them. All Daniel does, 25:46 he doesn't focus any time on those who are hating. He devotes his time to praying. 25:53 And see, Daniel understands this fundamental truth that if they didn't put me here, then they can't take me down. Oh, God. 26:04 Thank you so much for joining us for the Breath of Life Television Ministries broadcast with Pastor Debleaire Snell! 26:12 We hope and pray that you have been blessed by his powerful message. 26:17 Join us next week for Part Two of the message Something Within Me.” You don't want to miss it! 28:06 (Breath of Life Theme Music) 28:30 [END] |
Revised 2023-09-28