Participants:
Series Code: BOLS
Program Code: BOLS000170S
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00:02 #S090 - I'm A DEI Hire (Part 1)
00:20 I would invite you to stand with me to your feet 00:22 as we go to the Scriptures today. 00:26 I want to invite you to 00:27 go with me to a couple of places in the word Daniel. 00:31 Chapter two. 00:35 And we will look together 00:38 at verse number 47. 00:42 And if you don't mind, just put your finger over 00:45 into Daniel chapter three, 00:47 and we will begin at verse eight, 00:50 but we're going to start at Daniel chapter two 00:53 and we will begin 00:56 at verse 00:58 number 47, just for context sake. 01:02 The King Nebuchadnezzar, sir, had a dream 01:05 that he could not recall and he could not interpret. 01:10 Issued a decree, an insane decree. 01:14 This is. 01:14 I need you to tell me what I dreamt, 01:18 and then I need you to interpret it on top of that. 01:21 And nobody in the King Kingdom could do it. 01:24 But Daniel was connected with God and God through 01:28 Daniel, made known to the King, 01:30 the dream and the interpretation thereof. 01:34 And as a result, 01:35 he receives this promotion that we reference here in Daniel 01:38 two in verse 47. 01:40 When you get there, just pass the room there, 01:42 the Bible says the king answered Daniel 01:46 and said, Truly, your God is the God of Gods 01:50 and the Lord of Kings and a revealer of secrets 01:55 since you could reveal this secret. 01:58 Then the King promoted Daniel 02:02 and gave him many great gifts, and he made him ruler 02:06 over the whole province of Babylon and Chief 02:09 Administrator of all the wise men of Babylon, 02:13 and also Daniel petitioned the king 02:15 and he sent Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego 02:20 over the affairs of the province of Babylon. 02:22 But Daniel sat in the gate of the king. 02:26 Now go over to Daniel chapter three, 02:28 where now the king essentially establishes 02:30 an unjust law that this image now overlaid in complete gold, 02:36 that if anyone does not bow down or worship, 02:39 they will be thrown into the fiery furnace, verse eight says. 02:42 Therefore, at that time, certain Chaldeans 02:46 came forward and accused who 02:50 and they spoke and said 02:53 to King Nebuchadnezzar, o King Live forever. 02:57 You and King have made a decree 02:59 that everyone 03:00 who hears the sound of the horn, the flute, the harp, 03:03 the lyre and sultry and symphony with all kinds of music 03:08 so fall down and worship the golden image 03:12 and whoever does not fall down in worship 03:15 shall be cast into the mist of a burning, fiery furnace. 03:19 There are certain Jews whom you have sent over the affairs 03:22 of the province of Babylon, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. 03:27 These men of King have not paid due regard to you. 03:30 They have not served your gods are worship 03:34 the golden image which you have set up. 03:36 The Nebuchadnezzar are in a rage and fury, gave the command 03:39 to bring Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego 03:42 so they brought these men before the King 03:45 and Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, 03:48 Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, 03:52 that you do not serve my gods nor worship 03:55 the image which you have, which I have set up in verse 16? 03:59 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego answered and said to the king, 04:03 Oh, Nebuchadnezzar, 04:04 we have no need to answer you in this matter. 04:07 If that is the case, our God whom we serve 04:12 is able to deliver us 04:15 from the burning, fiery firms, and he will deliver us 04:18 from your handle. 04:19 KING But if not, let it be known unto you 04:24 that we do not serve your gods, nor we will. 04:27 We worship the golden image which you have set up. 04:30 The Nebuchadnezzar 04:31 was full of fury in the expression of his face, 04:33 changed toward Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego, 04:37 and he spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace 04:40 seven times more than it was usually heated. 04:43 And he commanded certain mighty men of valor 04:47 who were in his home army to bind Shadrach, Meshach 04:49 and Abednego, and to cast them into the burning, fiery furnace. 04:54 And these men were bound in their coats, 04:58 their trousers, their turbans, and their other garments, 05:00 and they were cast into the mist of the burning, fiery furnace. 05:05 Therefore, because the king's command was urgent 05:09 and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of fire killed those 05:12 who took up Shadrach Meshach in a bid and got the job. 05:16 Gets this. 05:18 It killed the ones that threw them into the fire. 05:22 And the Bible says. 05:24 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshack 05:27 and Abednego, fell down, bound 05:31 into the mist of the burning, fiery furnace. 05:34 They Nebuchadnezzar had to check himself, for he was astonished 05:39 and rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselor, 05:42 Did we not cast £3 million into the midst of the fire? 05:49 And they answered and said to the king, True. 05:53 Oh, king. 05:54 And he says, Look, 05:57 I see four men loose 06:01 walking in the midst of the fire 06:04 and they are not hurt. 06:06 And the form of the fourth 06:09 is like the son of God 06:12 today, saints for just a little while. 06:15 I want to talk to you under the subject. 06:18 I'm a I higher 06:22 I'm a D.I. 06:24 I'm a tell you now you got fragile ears. 06:29 This sermon aim for you. 06:32 And so let's look to the Lord in prayer. 06:35 Father, I pray 06:42 that you would give me strength to preach your word. 06:47 And then, Father, would you give us the strength to hear 06:51 and rightly respond to your word? 06:54 I'm praying that in these days 06:56 where discouragement and fear abounds, 07:01 that you would 07:02 allow faith to settle afresh in our souls. 07:05 Today. 07:07 So, Lord, would you please hide in the shadows of the cross 07:10 that Jesus alone might be seen, 07:13 that Christ alone would be heard, 07:15 and at the end of our time 07:16 together, let Jesus alone be praised. 07:19 Bless us. 07:20 To this end, 07:20 we ask 07:21 in the mighty name of Jesus, our Lord, 07:23 let those who love himself together. 07:25 Amen. 07:26 And they, man, you may be seated in the house of the Lord 07:31 again, talking to you under the subject of 07:33 the higher 07:39 would invite you all to 07:39 come on quickly and settle. 07:44 You know church the last ten days 07:54 have been emotionally draining 07:59 for members of various 08:00 minority communities. 08:04 President Trump revealed his true values 08:08 in the executive orders that he signed into being 08:11 on day number one. 08:14 The second Trump 08:15 presidency began with him making good on his claim 08:20 that he would enact mass deportations. 08:24 His stated aim is to rid our country 08:29 of the violent criminals that were shipped 08:31 from other nations to the shores of our land. 08:35 And though I am in favor of policies that make our land safe 08:40 from where I stand, the greatest threat to safety 08:44 is not those that seek asylum on these shores. 08:48 From my standpoint, the greatest threat to our safety 08:52 is an American born 16 year old male 08:56 named Timmy, who sits in an unsupervised basement 09:01 with access to munitions and bomb making material. 09:06 And yet there is no policy enacted 09:09 to deal with this clear and present danger. 09:15 Additionally, one of his top priorities was to disassemble 09:19 the federal protections 09:20 provided by the Department of Equity and Inclusion 09:25 as if the greatest threat to our democracy is that America 09:29 is too diverse, too equitable, and too inclusive. 09:34 It is offensive to me 09:36 that the belief that the way we make America great again 09:41 is by tipping the scales of justice out of balance 09:45 and in fact threatens the term d i higher has actually become 09:50 a slur designated by the worst among us to demean 09:55 the accomplishments from those from minority communities. 09:59 It actually leaves a psychological scar, 10:03 suggesting that unfair policy is the reason 10:06 for their employment placement. 10:08 When the truth is that DDR was not designed 10:12 to enable unqualified minorities, 10:16 but it was actually put in place to ensure that those that had 10:20 merit would not be overlooked based upon their religion, 10:25 their gender, or the color of their skin. 10:28 And it is amazing that some are so callous 10:32 that they blame the tragedy in the Potomac 10:36 as a result of the high hires. 10:39 While bodies are still 10:41 being fished from the river where the accident took place 10:46 and friends, these enacted policies 10:49 are simply a reminder to the marginalized, 10:52 along with the majority of good conscience, that 10:55 there is no rest for us down here on this side of eternity. 11:01 There will always be injust steps on this side. 11:06 There will always be inequity on this side. 11:09 There will always 11:10 be an underclass until the day that Jesus Christ comes. 11:15 And it is a reminder that though we should fight for change 11:17 and though we should stand up for the oppressed, 11:21 that wickedness will prevail until Jesus comes to put it 11:24 to an end. 11:26 And the truth is, friends, to be surprised by injustice 11:31 is personal naivete. 11:34 It is to suggest that men can be something greater 11:38 than his base nature. 11:39 In fact, Jesus knew man's nature. 11:42 It is why the Bible says that he would commit himself to 11:46 no man because he knew what was in man. 11:50 And I simply stop by 11:51 to let the church know that there will come a day 11:56 when the sorrows of this world will exit from our memory. 12:01 In fact, the prophet Isaiah, in his vision of harmony 12:05 and peace, sees the words that I shall declare at this time. 12:09 And Isaiah 11, in verse four, the Bible says, 12:12 with righteousness he will judge the poor 12:16 and decide with equity for the meek of the earth 12:20 that he should strike the Earth with the rod of his mouth 12:24 and with the breath of his lips, he shall slay the wicked. 12:27 He says that righteousness shall be the belt of his loins. 12:31 And on that day, the wolf will dwell with the lamb, 12:34 and the leopard will lie down with the young goat, 12:37 and that the calf and the lion 12:38 self dwell together, and a child will lead them in. 12:43 The Bible says the cow and the bear shall graze 12:46 and their young ones will lie down together 12:49 and they shall not hurt or destroy. 12:51 In my holy mountain, 12:53 for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord. 12:57 And I don't know 12:58 if we've gained a sense of that, what that picture means 13:02 when he says the lamb will lay down with the lion. 13:05 It is Isaiah pointing 13:07 to the disintegration of all social Darwinism, 13:11 an idea based upon survival, based upon predatory strength. 13:18 It is a promise that God will put an end to all caste system, 13:23 that God will end all hierarchy, that God will end 13:26 all tribalism, that God will end all sectarianism, 13:31 that God will end all racism, that God will end all sexism, 13:37 that God will end all discrimination 13:40 and that God will end all patriarchy. 13:43 You see, friends of mine, I'm glad to know that trouble 13:46 won't last. Always, 13:49 you see. 13:50 I heard some folk on Facebook say this way this week 13:54 that that pastor, I think I'm going to change my citizenship. 13:58 Well, the problem is, Paul told us we should have 14:00 did that a long time ago in Philippians 320, 14:04 the Bible says our citizenship is in heaven, 14:09 where in way is on the return 14:11 of Jesus Christ as he friends, I need you to suggest 14:16 that I'm not running from Donald Trump, the Canada or Mexico. 14:20 I'm American born, I'm American bread. 14:24 And when I die, I'll be America. 14:26 Oh, y'all in brand new in here today I scared of any man 14:32 this is my country to you are hearing what I'm saying today. 14:36 But even though I live down here, my citizenship is 14:39 and heaven. 14:40 My investments are on the streets of go with thieves 14:44 do not break in and steal and rust does not corrupt. 14:49 In fact, let me say it this way. 14:50 This week I learned that you need about six major documents 14:55 in order to change your citizenship that you need. 14:58 And in 400, which is an expensive document 15:03 to help you naturalize, you need a green card 15:07 that allows you to work permanently. 15:09 You need proof of identity. 15:12 You need proof of marital status, you need proof 15:15 of military service. 15:16 And you have proof of good moral character. 15:21 And I need you to know that because of Jesus, 15:23 you've got all your citizenship documents, 15:27 because the naturalization documents are expensive. 15:30 But guess what? 15:31 He pay the price at the cross. 15:34 I need you to know he got our green card 15:38 when he got up on the first day of the morning, 15:41 he gave us his proof of identity for Revelation two. 15:46 Says he's given us a new name written in glory. 15:50 He's given us our marital status for Ephesians five. 15:55 Says that the church is the bridegroom of the lamb, 15:57 that we've got proof 15:59 of military service because I'm in the Lord's army, 16:04 and then I got nervous when I need a proof of moral character 16:08 because I'm born in sin and Saipan in iniquity. 16:13 But Hebrews says that he ever live 16:16 to make intercession for us, and we're seeing our bounce. 16:21 Grace does much more abound. 16:23 Can you shout that we've got citizenship 16:26 beyond the sky in Jesus? 16:29 Can you say Amen today? 16:32 And so go back with me, if you don't mind. 16:34 As we unpack this a little further 16:36 to Daniel chapter one and verse one as we see some things 16:40 in the scripture today, Daniel chapter one and verse 16:44 number one, when you get there, say, Pastor, I'm there, 16:48 Daniel chapter one and verse number one. 16:51 Look, there are some things 16:52 I need you to see in the word today. 16:54 The Bible says in the third year of the reign of Jehovah 16:59 King of Judah Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon 17:03 came to Jerusalem and besieged it. 17:06 And verse three says, Then the king instructed Aspirin's 17:11 the master of his units 17:12 to bring some of the children of Israel 17:15 and some of the kings descendants 17:16 and some nobles, young men in whom there was no blemish 17:21 but good looking and gifted in all wisdom, 17:24 possessing knowledge and quick to understand 17:28 who had the ability to serve in the King's Palace, 17:30 whom they might 17:32 teach the language and literature of the child's, 17:35 and the King appointed for them a daily provision 17:40 of the king's delicacies and of the wine which he drink. 17:44 And three years of training for them, 17:47 so that at the end of that time 17:50 they might serve for the king. 17:56 Okay, now, Church, I need you to know 17:59 that our text today is very relevant 18:01 for today's climate and today's situation. 18:07 And the first thing it teaches is that a nation's strength 18:11 is connected to its diversity. 18:15 Let let let me let me slow it down that that a nation's 18:19 strength is connected to its diversity. 18:24 Now, remember, Friends and Daniel chapter two, 18:27 that God gave Nebuchadnezzar a dream 18:31 that he could not recall or even interpret. 18:34 And so he put forth an insane decree that if the wise men 18:39 could not tell him the dream or interpret the dream, 18:44 they would all essentially be put to death. 18:47 But essentially what God does is 18:50 he wheels into being a forum 18:53 for Daniel to be able to address the king. 18:57 And so once God gives him the vision, 19:00 God lets Daniel the King through. 19:03 Daniel know that the dream was of a statue 19:07 that consisted of many different medals. 19:11 It had a head of gold, it had chests 19:13 and arms of silver, it had belly and thighs of bronze. 19:19 The legs were made of iron and the feet were made 19:22 of iron and clay. 19:23 And he helped the king to understand that these metals 19:29 represent the various kingdoms that would have great influence 19:32 over the earth. 19:34 And he let him know that you okay 19:38 represent the go ahead of gold, that Babylon represents 19:41 the hand of gold, that the head of gold 19:44 would be supplanted by the middle Persians, 19:47 which is the chest and arms of silver. 19:51 The Medes and Persians would be overtaken by the Greeks, 19:54 which are the belly and thighs of brass, 19:57 that the Greeks would be overwhelmed by the Romans, 20:00 which represent the legs of iron and the feet of iron and clay, 20:05 represent the emerging provinces of Europe 20:08 and the superpower that would flow out of them. 20:12 But at the end of division, there is a rock cut out of the 20:15 mountain without hands, 20:18 and it comes 20:18 and smashes the image to bits 20:22 and the image is blown away like chaff, 20:26 and the stone fills up the entire earth with its glory. 20:30 And the point of the dream is not that God establishes. 20:34 Oh, well, it was the teach Nebuchadnezzar 20:38 that God is sovereign and that He will establish 20:41 a kingdom that has no end. 20:46 Now Church remember what Daniel told him? 20:51 That the different metal represents the strength 20:54 of the different kingdoms so that the gold, the kingdom 20:59 would be the best one and each one would be inferior to it. 21:04 And what God is telling Daniel is that Babylon, 21:09 the head of gold, would be 21:10 the most powerful nation in the succession. 21:15 So then the question should be, 21:17 what would make Babylon so great? 21:21 I'm glad you asked you just read it there. 21:23 And Daniel, chapter one, 21:27 do you realize that for all of Nebuchadnezzar, 21:30 his eccentricities, he had one good civil practice? 21:36 What made Babylon stand out was they instituted 21:39 a diversity, equity and inclusion program. 21:44 Okay. 21:45 Yo, yo, yo, yo, yo. To slow me today. 21:48 Did you notice it was there in Daniel chapter one. 21:51 So that what I Babylon 21:54 did was every captured nation, 21:58 they would take individuals from that group and they would 22:00 train them in the same and literature of Babylon 22:05 and put them to work in the King's service. 22:09 And some believe that Nebuchadnezzar 22:12 learned from his father. 22:13 No bow plays are that any kingdom 22:17 that has a homogenous cabinet 22:20 is going to have a lid and his prosperity. 22:24 In other words, Nebuchadnezzar knew that 22:26 if your cabinet is homogenous, if your military looks the same, 22:32 if all of those in leadership think the same, guess what? 22:35 Your blind spots are going to be permanent. 22:39 And the only way to get a 360 degree view of wisdom 22:45 is to have people from every nation represented 22:48 in the leadership of government. 22:53 In other words, Nebuchadnezzar recognized 22:56 that there would be some that have gifts in military, 22:59 that there would be some that had strength. 23:01 And Admiral culture, that some would have strength in the arts, 23:06 that others would have strength in sciences. 23:09 And Nebuchadnezzar knew that it did not 23:11 diminish him in order to include them, 23:16 but it actually bolstered him in order to include them. 23:20 Because the more gifts you have at the table, 23:23 the more wisdom you're going to have 23:26 as he friends of mine. 23:27 If America can learn something from Babylon, if we are to be in 23:32 real life who we claim to be on paper, we've got to be willing 23:38 to let everybody have a seat at the table. 23:42 Is he friends of mine? 23:43 I need you to understand that what set Babylon apart 23:47 is they literally created space for everyone 23:49 to bring their diverse perspect dishes and gifts 23:53 to employ them in the use of the kingdom. 23:57 And one of the things I simply want to suggest to us, 23:59 friends of mine, 24:00 is that the only way that America has got as far 24:03 as it has gotten is because of the contributions of people 24:08 who look like you and me 24:11 and I preach anybody that I know 24:14 now, y'all 24:15 looking sleepy in time, but I'm going to treat you 24:16 whether you are here, this thing or not today. 24:18 See? See, I need you to understand. 24:20 No matter what they tell us, 24:24 America ain't America without us. 24:28 Okay? 24:32 Thank you for joining us for The Breath of Life 24:35 Television Ministries broadcast with Pastor Leah Smith. 24:39 We hope and pray 24:40 that you have been blessed by this powerful message. 24:43 Join us next week for part two of I'm a DIY home 24:49 studio Wilderness 24:52 What's Good Family. 24:54 Joe 228 says that in the last days 24:57 I'm going to pour out my spirit on all of this. 25:00 Your sons and daughters will prophesy, 25:03 your young men will dream dreams, 25:05 and your old men are going to see visions. 25:08 I want you to know family that we are living 25:10 in the age of visions and dreams. 25:14 That's why I want to invite you to our second annual 25:17 Breath of Life Vision and Dreamers conference. 25:20 Last year, hundreds of you came from all over the country 25:25 and we had a great time of instruction and inspiration. 25:28 But this year we're going to do it even bigger. 25:31 Make sure you save the date 25:33 for November the seventh through the ninth. 25:36 But this year's Vision and Dreamers conference, 25:38 we're going to be blessed by the awesome ministry 25:41 of the hip hop preacher. 25:42 Dr. Eric Thomas is going to be here. 25:45 We're going to hear from the leading leadership 25:47 voice of our generation, author John Maxwell. 25:52 Then we're going to also be blessed by the Ministry 25:55 of Entrepreneurship and visionary Tabitha Brown. 25:58 And I'll be here to assist along the way. 26:02 If you're an entrepreneur, a content creator, a speaker 26:06 and author, I need you to know that this conference is for you. 26:11 It's going to be the biggest conference 26:13 to ever hit the city of Huntsville, 26:14 and it's going to be one of 26:15 the most impactful occurrences of your life. 26:19 So if you want to register, 26:20 I want to encourage you to do it right now. 26:23 Get the early bird special. 26:26 You can register to come in and be in person, 26:28 or you can register to attend the event online. 26:32 But there's a limited 26:33 amount of space for those in-person attendees. 26:38 So go right now to our website and register 26:40 at www.breathoflife.TV 26:45 is going to be in amidst time of instruction, food, fellowship, 26:50 networking, and your visions and dreams will be empowered 26:54 to be moved from just a concept to a truth and reality. 26:58 God bless. 26:58 I look forward to seeing you there. |
Revised 2025-05-01