Participants: Pr. John Carter
Series Code: CR
Program Code: CR001705A
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00:01 The Carter Report presents "Living Victoriously,"
00:06 secrets of success 00:07 from Prime Minister Daniel of Babylon city 00:10 with your host John Carter. 00:25 We're very glad today to have you here in our studio 00:28 in beautiful Moorpark in Southern California. 00:32 And we just want to give you the warmest welcome today. 00:36 The program today is "Living Victoriously" 00:40 and this is part three. 00:44 This is part three of a series, 00:46 and you're just going to be blessed by this today. 00:50 Let me ask you this. 00:52 Have you ever stood up for something 00:54 which is morally important to you, 00:59 and then you got into all sorts of trouble. 01:02 That ever, ever happened to you? 01:06 Some years ago, 01:08 Beverley and my team and I were in Zimbabwe, Africa. 01:15 Africa is a dangerous place. 01:18 We were running this campaign in the city of Harare. 01:22 Harare is in Zimbabwe, Salisbury, Rhodesia 01:27 used to be called many years ago. 01:29 I was invited to go to the national television station 01:32 for an interview. 01:34 This was out in the bush, out in the jungle, 01:37 so I drove out there. 01:40 I was astounded to discover 01:42 that the manager was a former terrorist. 01:48 And he has set me up 01:51 to become involved in a nationwide telecast 01:56 that would have compromised everything that I believe in. 02:02 I said to him with respect, 02:03 I can't do this television program. 02:06 This was going to make big ratings, 02:08 he became so angry. 02:13 He got some soldiers with machine guns 02:17 and marched me off into the jungle 02:19 as the sun was going down. 02:22 About 6 o'clock in the evening, sun was just going down, 02:24 it's getting very black. 02:27 And I thought maybe this is the end. 02:30 I was marched down this bush track 02:34 with his soldiers standing beside me 02:37 with guns sticking in my ribs. 02:46 What happened? 02:49 Well, as we go along today, I'm going to tell you. 02:54 But I was amazingly delivered, 02:57 I'm gonna talk to you about that today. 02:59 Today in the topic "Living Victoriously" 03:02 we're talking about deliverance 03:04 when you stand up for something very important. 03:07 The topic today is 03:09 "Saved from Death and the Big Promotion" 03:14 that you're going to get. 03:15 I want you to take your Bibles and come with me 03:17 to the Book of Daniel 3, please. 03:21 Daniel 3 and those of you 03:24 who are watching on the telecast, 03:26 you can follow along if you wish to. 03:29 Daniel 3:1, the Bible says, 03:33 "Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, 03:36 whose height was sixty cubits and its width six cubits. 03:41 He set it up in the plain of Dura, 03:44 in the province of Babylon." 03:49 Last week we talked about the great image of Daniel too, 03:51 which had a head of gold and chest of silver. 03:54 You know the story, we talked about this last week. 03:58 But some time after this, this young potentate, 04:02 this dictator who was not comfortable 04:06 with the idea 04:07 that he would be replaced by the chest of silver 04:11 and the belly and the thighs of bronze 04:13 and all of which you've heard about last week. 04:15 He made this great image and it was, 04:19 wasn't made partly of gold, 04:21 the whole thing was made of gold 04:24 to symbolize himself. 04:27 It was probably a statue of himself, 04:31 such as you see in North Korea and in some other places. 04:35 He had a tremendous ego. 04:41 Did you know that his empire 04:42 was the second Babylonian Empire? 04:47 They had been the first Babylonian Empire 04:49 and this went back a 1000 years before Nebuchadnezzar 04:53 back to the days of Hammurabi 04:57 that you may have heard about Hammurabi's Code. 05:00 And so now he inherits the second Babylonian Empire, 05:04 in his heart 05:05 there is the desire to make Babylon great again. 05:11 So this was his consuming passion, 05:14 we're going to be the biggest and the greatest, 05:16 we're going to make Babylon as great as it has ever been 05:19 but even more so. 05:21 But I wish to remind you of this truth today, 05:25 there is no greatness without goodness. 05:29 No greatness without moral integrity. 05:33 Now would you notice Daniel 3:2 and 3? 05:38 "And King Nebuchadnezzar sent word to gather 05:40 together the satraps, the administrators, 05:43 the governors, the counselors, 05:45 the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, 05:49 and all the officials of the provinces, 05:51 to come to the dedication of the image 05:53 which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. 05:55 So the satraps, the administrators, 05:58 the governors, the counselors, 05:59 the treasurers, the judges, the magistrates, 06:02 and all the officials of the provinces 06:04 gathered together for the dedication of the image 06:07 that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, 06:11 and they stood before the image 06:13 that Nebuchadnezzar had set up." 06:17 And keep on reading, my friend. 06:22 No, we'd just hold it there, we'll hold it there at verse 3, 06:26 we'll come back, come down to the other verse in a moment. 06:30 This indeed was a great ecumenical gathering. 06:37 The leaders of the world 06:38 were gathered on the plain of Dura. 06:42 And when you are in a great ecumenical meeting, 06:45 when you are in a mass meeting like this, 06:49 there is tremendous pressure upon you 06:52 to go with the crowd 06:55 and to conform. 06:58 And did you know this 07:00 that people will do things in a big meeting 07:03 that they would never do as individuals, 07:07 in the privacy of their own homes. 07:09 And so here you got this colossal man 07:13 representing the empire of the new Babylonian Empire 07:18 and the whole world is gathered together. 07:21 Now notice, we'll start on, now verses 4 and onwards, 07:25 we'll pick it up here. 07:26 "Then a herald cried aloud: 07:28 'To you it is commanded, O peoples, 07:29 nations, and languages, 07:31 that at the time you hear the sound of the horn, 07:33 flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, 07:35 in symphony with all kinds of music, 07:38 you shall fall down and worship the gold image 07:40 that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up, 07:43 and whoever does not fall down 07:44 and worship shall be cast immediately 07:46 into the midst of a burning fiery furnace.' 07:49 So at that time, 07:51 when all the people heard the sound of the horn, 07:53 flute, harp, lyre, 07:54 in symphony with all kinds of music, 07:57 all the people, nations, and languages fell down 08:00 and worshiped the gold image 08:01 which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up." 08:08 This is called the tyranny of the crowd, 08:15 and it happens whatever your nationality, 08:18 whatever your religion, and whatever your creed, 08:23 when you were with a big group of people 08:27 and you're told to do something, 08:29 the pressure is enormous to do it. 08:34 Everybody here 08:36 was marching to the beat of a different drummer 08:38 that was Nebuchadnezzar. 08:41 It is very easy for the weak, 08:44 the frightened, the insecure, and the ignorant, 08:49 and the proud to be swayed 08:51 by a demagogue. 08:56 And so here is one of the world's greatest demagogues. 09:00 And he says, every person has got to kneel down, 09:04 you've got to get down with your faces in the dust, 09:07 and you've got to conform, and you've got to worship. 09:11 Notice the dictionary definition of demagogue. 09:16 "A person, especially an orator 09:21 or political leader, 09:25 who gains power and popularity by arousing the emotions, 09:31 passions, 09:34 prejudices of the people." 09:39 So here is the case of mass 09:42 manipulation of the people. 09:47 And of course, this could never happen 09:51 in our day and age, could it now? 09:58 Well, we all know about Mussolini and Hitler. 10:04 The Germans were and still are very intelligent people. 10:10 Almost all of the Germans 10:13 and the Italians were Christians. 10:16 And 95% of the Germans, 10:20 the Protestants and the Catholics, 10:24 put this man into power 95%. 10:29 And they remained silent 10:32 when the Jews were marched into the concentration camps. 10:43 They were called the apostles of culture were the Germans. 10:47 By the time Hitler was through, 10:50 he had killed in the war, 10:54 and in his death camps 50 plus million people. 11:00 This doesn't include 11:02 what the Japanese did, all unnecessary. 11:08 Why? 11:09 Because our Christian nation was overwhelmed 11:16 by the oratory of the leader. 11:21 Now it is of great significance 11:23 if you study the Bible 11:25 that the Bible says, listen to this. 11:28 That the scenes of Daniel 3 11:31 and the setting up of the image 11:34 will be repeated in the last days. 11:39 It says it. It's in Revelation 13. 11:44 And notice verse 7, it says, 11:48 "So at that time, 11:50 when all the people heard the sound of the horn, 11:53 flute, harp, lyre, 11:55 in symphony with all kinds of music, 11:57 all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down 12:02 and worshiped the gold image 12:05 which Nebuchadnezzar had set up." 12:10 Our conformity is very easy, 12:13 particularly, if you were the big crowd of people 12:18 who ostensibly think the same as you do. 12:24 And remember this, 12:25 people will do in a crowd on a committee, 12:30 you say this would never happen in churches, 12:33 especially churches, especially churches, 12:37 where people will prostitute their consciences in a crowd 12:42 and they would never do it 12:44 in their own homes. 12:48 So by the time Hitler and his gang got through, 12:52 there were tens of millions of deaths. 12:56 Conformity to evil is evil. 13:01 It is natural in our hearts to want to fit in. 13:05 I want to fit in, don't you? 13:09 The conformity for evil is evil. 13:16 Notice verses 8 and onwards. 13:18 "Therefore at that time certain Chaldeans came forward 13:22 and accused the Jews." 13:26 They spoke and said to King Nebuchadnezzar, 13:28 'O king, live forever! 13:32 You, O king, have made a decree that everyone 13:35 who hears the sound of the horn, 13:36 flute, harp, lyre, psaltery, in symphony 13:39 with all kinds of music, 13:41 shall fall down and worship the gold image. 13:43 And whoever does not fall down and worship 13:45 shall be cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 13:49 There are certain Jews whom you have set over 13:53 the affairs of the province of Babylon, 13:56 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 13:59 These men, O king, 14:02 have not paid due regard to you. 14:05 They do not serve your gods or worship the gold image 14:12 that you have set up.'" 14:16 Now it is very significant that Shadrach, 14:20 Meshach, and Abed-Nego, 14:22 apparently Daniel was out of Babylon on this occasion. 14:27 But there must have been hundreds of Jews 14:30 who were brought from Jerusalem 14:32 to be trained in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. 14:36 So here you've got 14:39 all of the professed people of God at least in Babylon, 14:42 the ones who are the leaders. 14:46 And all the peoples of the earth, 14:50 and they're characterized by one trait, 14:53 their sniffling subservience. 14:59 And their willing obedience to get their noses 15:02 down in the dirt. 15:07 Rather than be stalwarts 15:10 for truth and decency. 15:15 Now the Bible makes it plain that there were three misfits, 15:21 three boys. 15:23 I want to say it to the people watching the telecast. 15:26 Listen to this. 15:28 The Bible is full of the deeds of young men and young women. 15:34 You see. 15:35 Too often when we go to church councils, 15:38 everybody has got white hair or no hair, 15:42 but the people who changed the world were young people 15:46 including our Lord. 15:48 And so here you've got standing up straight 15:54 proudly erect three Desmond Dosses. 16:04 What about the others? 16:07 We should never be afraid when we're in the minority, 16:12 and there's a reason for this. 16:14 God plus one equals an invincible army. 16:20 It is not who is against you, it is who is with you. 16:26 You see. 16:28 So these young guys think they are standing alone, 16:33 all of their friends, 16:35 all of their colleagues are down with their bellies 16:40 on the ground and their noses in the dirt 16:44 and they are standing up. 16:46 But they're not alone, because God is with them. 16:52 Look at verses 13 and 15, I think it is. 16:59 "The Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, 17:03 gave the command to bring 17:05 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 17:07 So they brought these men before the king. 17:10 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, 17:12 'Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, 17:16 that you do not serve my gods 17:18 or worship the gold image which I have set up?'" 17:22 Verse 15, "Now if you are ready 17:26 at the time you hear the sound of the horn, 17:28 flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, 17:31 in symphony with all kinds of music, 17:34 and you fall down and worship the image 17:35 which I have made, good! 17:39 But if you do not worship, 17:42 you shall be cast immediately 17:44 into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. 17:48 And who is the god 17:52 who will deliver you from my hands?" 17:57 Here you have the meeting of five young men. 18:03 Nebuchadnezzar, just a young man, 18:05 the three Hebrews, plus one, soon to be revealed. 18:12 Now, it is important 18:14 that we recognize this great truth 18:16 that I'm going to tell you now. 18:19 God has never promised a life without trials. 18:23 In John 16:33, our blessed Lord said these words. 18:30 "These things I have spoken to you, 18:33 that in Me you may have peace. 18:35 In the world you will have tribulation or trouble, 18:38 but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." 18:45 Spurgeon said, "God had only one son without sin, 18:48 but he never had a son without sorrow." 18:53 So the Bible teaches, Jesus teaches, 18:56 that in this world if we follow Christ, 19:00 we are bound to have trouble and tribulation. 19:06 This is true of the individual as well as of the church. 19:11 Distorting popular theology 19:13 mainly taught here in the United States of America, 19:17 that the church escapes the great tribulation 19:21 and is ruptured home to glory. 19:29 That is a pernicious heresy. 19:33 It is the religion of weakness. 19:36 It is not the religion of Shadrach, Meshach, 19:39 and Abed-Nego. 19:41 And the Bible plainly teaches 19:44 that the church in the last days 19:47 goes through the great tribulation. 19:51 In the world you will have tribulation. 19:53 Come over here to Revelation 7:13 and 14, 19:58 Revelation 7:13 and 14, 20:04 the last book in the Bible. 20:07 And this chapter talks about 20:10 God's redeemed in the last days. 20:13 Revelation 7:13 and 14. 20:20 Notice it says, 20:21 "Then one of the elders answered, 20:23 saying to me, 'Who are these arrayed in white robes...' 20:27 "These were the saints who were saved." 20:30 Where did they come from? 20:33 And I said to him, 'Sir, you know.' 20:36 So he said to me, 20:37 'These are the ones who came out of the great tribulation, 20:43 and washed their robes 20:44 and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.'" 20:49 The Bible says, God's elect in the last days 20:56 goes through the great tribulation. 21:02 The church is not ruptured home to glory 21:05 and then the great tribulation takes place on the earth. 21:07 No, the church because 21:10 it is then composed of people like 21:12 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, 21:15 the church withstands the assaults 21:17 of the Nebuchadnezzars 21:19 and it passes through the time of tribulation 21:21 and then it is taken home to glory, then it is delivered, 21:26 but after the great tribulation. 21:32 Now come back to Daniel, please. 21:36 Daniel 3:16 and 17, Daniel 3:16 and 18. 21:43 "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered 21:46 and said to the king, 'O Nebuchadnezzar, 21:48 we have no need to answer you in this matter. 21:51 If that is the case, 21:53 our God whom we serve is able to deliver us 21:56 from the burning fiery furnace, 21:59 and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 22:03 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, 22:07 that we do not serve your gods, 22:10 nor will we worship the gold image 22:14 which you have set up.'" 22:19 These young men say some wonderful words, 22:24 and one amazing phrase I say 22:27 is "God, our God is able." 22:33 I want you to think about then, 22:34 I want you to think what comes from it. 22:38 Our God is able, because their God was the God 22:45 who made the universe. 22:48 So we don't serve some little tinpot God. 22:53 They say, "The God we serve, our God is able." 22:59 Now look at me. 23:02 Whatever happens to you and to me, whatever it is, 23:07 our God is able. 23:10 Nothing is too hard for our God, 23:13 because our God is the God who made the stars, 23:17 He flung the stars in space. 23:21 And so they say to this foolish king, our God is able. 23:28 And then they say another three great words, 23:32 "We will not." 23:37 They say, "We will not. 23:40 You can do your worst, but we will not." 23:47 There comes a time 23:48 when you got to stand up to the powers that be 23:52 and say to them, look them in the eye 23:54 whether they're the powers of church 23:56 or the power of state. 23:58 You've got to say, when they ask you to do evil, 24:01 you've got to say, we will not. 24:06 You see. 24:08 Like Queen Vashti, we've got her somewhere, 24:13 Queen Vashti's somewhere on the screen. 24:16 The king said to her, 24:18 I want you to come into the royal banquet hall 24:20 and dressed in a certain way. 24:21 And she said to the king, I will not. 24:26 That's good. 24:27 I will not, I'm not going to do it. 24:32 One of my friends in Russia, famous pastor, 24:36 Pastor Mikhail Kulakov, 24:39 got to know him 26 years ago. 24:43 Suffered for many years in the mines in Siberia 24:48 because his father was preaching 24:51 in the church on the Sabbath, 24:53 the KGB said, you will not do this. 24:55 He said, I will. 24:58 So they took him away. 25:00 You know what the son did? 25:02 The son immediately got up 25:04 and went and stood in the pulpit. 25:07 And they said, Mikhail Kulakov, you will stop that preaching. 25:12 He said to the power of the KGB looking them in the eye, 25:17 I will not, my wife will not, 25:20 none of us will, we will not. 25:25 And the day came 25:29 when Mikhail Gorbachev sat down with my friend, 25:34 Mikhail Gorbachev's the great man 25:37 who let the people go free like Cyrus. 25:40 Mikhail Gorbachev took him by the hand, 25:43 he said Pastor Kulakov, 25:46 I say sorry to you in the name of Mother Russia. 25:52 More in just a moment 25:56 as we talk about those three young men 25:59 in the fiery furnace. 26:13 We should never say something is impossible, 26:16 because Jesus said, with God all things impossible. 26:21 It seems impossible to think 26:23 that a group of Americans, Australians 26:27 could come here to Castro's communist Cuba 26:30 and preach the gospel. 26:33 We're here with the permission of the Cuban government, 26:36 we've got special visas, so we can preach here. 26:40 I've had the privilege of preaching 26:42 in the most difficult places Moscow, all across Russia, 26:46 all around Ukraine and dangerous places in Africa. 26:50 But this is one of the biggest miracles of all. 26:53 Here we are a Carter Report team, 26:56 just a little team. 26:59 But we're here by the grace of God 27:02 because with God all things are possible. 27:06 But God works through people, 27:08 He's working glory be to God we believe through us. 27:12 But He's also working my friend through you, 27:16 because of your prayers 27:18 and your support and your gifts, 27:21 these people, many of them 27:22 are hearing the true Gospel of Christ for the first time. 27:27 So my heart is full of thanks to God and to you today. 27:32 Would you please drop me a line? 27:34 John Carter PO Box 1900, Thousand Oaks, 27:37 California 91358. 27:40 And of course, you can write to me 27:43 at Terrigal in Australia. 27:45 Let's get a fire going in this country. 27:50 We have established a beachhead on the shores of Castro's Cuba. 27:56 A gospel beachhead, not a military one. 28:00 We are the ambassadors of peace 28:02 and we've come here to preach the gospel of peace. 28:06 Stand with us and thank you for your support. 28:14 For a copy of today's program, 28:16 please contact us at PO Box 1900, 28:20 Thousand Oaks, California 91358. 28:24 Or in Australia contact us at PO Box 861, Terrigal, 28:30 New South Wales 2260. 28:33 This program is made possible 28:35 through the generous support of viewers like you. 28:38 We thank you for your continued support. 28:41 May God richly bless you. |
Revised 2017-04-20