Participants:
Series Code: SISS
Program Code: SISS000080S
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00:01 Music...
00:31 James: All right, so we are in Daniel chapter 2, 00:33 we've gotten a good start... 00:34 the... the red carpet has been rolled out by God 00:37 and all of the wisdom of this world 00:39 is not going to be able to help Nebuchadnezzar 00:41 with his crisis. 00:42 Yvonne: Hmmm... 00:44 James: And it's a crisis, you know it's a crisis 00:45 because he wants all his wise men killed 00:47 and Daniel's not yet part of the crew... 00:50 he's still in training... but the decree doesn't exclude him 00:54 so, when the wise... the... 00:55 the captain's guard comes to get him, 00:58 Daniel is surprised... he's shocked 01:01 and this trial... life and death trial 01:04 could have thrown Daniel into anxiety... stress... 01:08 but it actually throws him into prayer 01:10 and that's where we left off. 01:12 We left off with Daniel saying, "Hey, wait a minute, 01:14 could you give me a little bit of time to think about this?" 01:16 And Daniel, unlike the rest of the wise men, 01:18 doesn't come up with some kind of lame excuse, 01:20 you know, "I'm on payroll... 01:22 and this shouldn't happen to me... 01:23 and this is unbelievable... 01:25 and, this is not supposed to happen to me... " 01:26 he says, "I'm going to go pray about this. " 01:28 And somehow, what Daniel has been through in the past, 01:31 prepares him for his present trial and crisis 01:34 and the M O for Daniel is, "Pray... we need to pray... " 01:39 and that's what we need to do right now, we need to pray. 01:41 Yvonne: Ah, good, good segue. 01:43 Ivor: "Heavenly Father, we just want to thank You 01:47 for giving us the opportunity to open Your Word 01:51 and to study it Lord, 01:52 we thank You for the insights you are giving us... 01:55 we thank You Lord, 01:56 for just helping us to see that You have our future 01:59 in... in... in Your interest Lord 02:03 and that You care about us... 02:06 You care about what's... what's coming 02:07 and You want to prepare us 02:09 and Lord, as we are continuing to study, 02:11 we ask that You would continue to help us to see 02:15 that You are asking us to trust You with our future. 02:18 Thank You Lord, for hearing and answering this prayer, 02:21 because we ask it in Jesus' name, amen. " 02:24 All: Amen. 02:25 James: So, we left off here, right at that juncture 02:29 where Daniel has asked for time 02:32 and he's gone in... in verse 17... 02:35 to his house 02:36 to make this thing known to Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 02:40 his companions... 02:41 and I love that phrase... "his companions... " 02:44 Yvonne: Hmmm... hmmm... 02:45 James: We need companions... 02:46 we need this help that comes from those 02:50 who are in a like situation that we're in 02:54 and that's why we're doing this Program really, 02:56 we're doing this Program 02:57 because we are wanting to be companions 03:00 with our Brothers and Sisters and Viewers out there 03:04 who are going through the same trials we're going through 03:06 and none of us are exempt or... 03:09 or left out of the trials of life 03:12 and Jesus, our Savior, also became a man... 03:15 became a human 03:17 and He went through those same trials with us and for us 03:20 and so, He knows how to deliver us, we're told 03:23 and He wants to deliver us 03:24 and He wants us to help one another be delivered 03:28 and so, Daniel is helping us. 03:30 You know, Daniel is... 03:31 Ivor: Iron sharpens iron. All: Yes. 03:33 James: Yes, and Daniel is at rest right now 03:35 but his... his legacy lives on 03:37 and so, he is helping us 03:39 and he's showing us how to help one another 03:41 and so, we do this Program 03:42 so that we can have this companionship... 03:44 this commitment to each other 03:46 and so, we can together figure this out, 03:51 so he goes in to his companions 03:53 and they have this prayer session 03:55 and they desire mercies of the God of heaven... 03:58 verse 18, "Concerning the secret 04:00 that Daniel and his fellows should not perish 04:05 with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 04:06 Now, I really want us to emphasize this point right here 04:09 because I think this is really interesting how 04:11 even in Daniel's experience there's this need for growth. 04:16 We are selfish to the core and the way we think sometimes... 04:21 the way we respond sometimes... 04:24 the way that we interact a lot of the times 04:27 is tainted with that selfishness that... 04:30 that needs to be purified 04:31 and we don't understand this until we see more of Jesus 04:34 and when Daniel goes into this Prayer Meeting... 04:37 this prayer time with his companions, 04:39 his prayer is... it's a... it's a sincere prayer... 04:42 it's a good prayer... it's an honest prayer... 04:43 it's a prayer that he would not perish 04:45 with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. 04:46 Ivor: "Save... save me. " 04:48 James: "Save me... save us from their fate. " 04:50 Yvonne: Hmmm... 04:52 James: And God wants to do that of course, 04:54 but God wants to do more than that, 04:55 so, what happens is, 04:57 and we'll go through the prayer in a minute 04:59 but I want you to notice, what happens is, 05:00 when he comes out of this prayer time, 05:02 right, it says that in verse 24, 05:06 he comes out of this prayer time 05:07 and it says in verse 24, 05:09 "And therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, 05:12 whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: 05:15 and he went in and he said thus unto him... " 05:17 what did he say, Jason? 05:18 Jason: And verse 24? James: Hmmm... hmmm... 05:21 Jason: "He said thus unto him: 05:23 'Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; 05:25 and take me before the king 05:27 and I will tell the king the interpretation. '" 05:29 James: Woooo... now I love this, 05:30 you see the transformation that's taking place here? 05:33 Yvonne: Hmmm... 05:34 James: I mean, it's... it's very little... 05:35 it's very slight... there's just a little hint here, 05:37 Daniel has spent time with God 05:40 and when you spend time with God... things happen... 05:42 things change... perspective changes... 05:44 and so there's not this "them-and-us spirit" anymore 05:47 there's a "we" spirit... there's a corporate... 05:49 "Don't destroy the wise men of Babylon... bring me in... " 05:53 and that's... that's a type of Christ... 05:54 "bring me in... " 05:55 the king's angry... the king's mad... 05:57 the king's ready to kill anyone... 05:58 "I'm going to go in... I'm going to risk myself 06:01 and I want you to hold back on this decree... " 06:04 the death decree against the world is put on hold 06:07 while Daniel goes in before the king 06:10 and offers to help him with his situation 06:12 and this is exactly what we see in the life of Jesus. 06:15 Jason: So he interceded on their behalf. 06:17 James: Yes. Yvonne: Yeah. 06:18 Ivor: I think there's a... there's another 06:20 powerful point here... 06:22 you look at verse 1 again, 06:24 "And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar 06:26 Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, 06:27 wherewith his spirit was troubled, 06:29 and his sleep brake from him. " 06:31 James: Hmmm... 06:32 Ivor: So, he has this dream and now he can't sleep. 06:35 right? He's troubled, he can't sleep 06:38 but in Daniel 2:21... you look at Daniel 2:21 06:46 and verse 19. 06:49 "Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. " 06:54 James: Hmmm... 06:55 Ivor: So, think about this, 06:57 imagine if you were told you know, 07:00 "There's a death decree and you're dying tomorrow. " 07:02 Like, how many of us could sleep? 07:04 Yvonne: Right... that's true. 07:06 Ivor: But Daniel prays and after he prays, 07:09 he has peace of mind enough to... 07:11 "All right, I'm going to go to sleep now. " 07:13 Yvonne: Hmmm... 07:14 Ivor: You know, prayer and communing with God 07:17 allow him the peace. 07:19 Like, he could have been praying all night, like, 07:21 "All right Lord, when are you going to do this? 07:23 When are you going to...?" 07:24 But he goes to sleep. 07:26 He prays... he believes God has answered... 07:28 he's like, "All right... " he goes to sleep 07:30 and knows the Lord is going to answer this. 07:33 Jason: They truly gave it to God. 07:35 Ivor: Truly gave it to God. 07:36 Jason: A lot of times we don't always truly give it to God... 07:38 we're still up till 3... 4... in the morning thinking about it. 07:41 Ivor: Nebuchadnezzar couldn't sleep... Daniel slept. 07:44 Yvonne: Wow! wow, it's good. Ivor: Yeah. 07:47 James: You know, in Isaiah 53, 07:49 it talks about Christ's great sacrifice for us 07:52 and part of the imagery you get here... 07:54 "He bears our sins... our iniquities... " 07:57 and it says in verse 6, 07:59 "All we like sheep have gone astray; 08:01 we have turned every one to his own way. " 08:02 Not just Christians... but the whole world needs a Savior 08:06 and God has laid on him... 08:09 "the Lord laid on Him the iniquity of us all... " 08:11 and then in verse 12 it says this, 08:13 "Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, 08:15 and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; 08:18 because he's poured out his soul unto death: 08:20 he was numbered with the transgressors; 08:23 and he bare the sin of many, 08:24 and He made intercession for the transgressors. " 08:26 Yvonne: Hmmm... 08:28 James: Daniel is making intercession 08:29 for the transgressors. 08:31 Now, to understand the... 08:32 the depth of the iniquity of the wise men, 08:35 their hypocrisy... 08:36 they're on payroll but they're worthless. 08:38 Yvonne: Right... 08:40 James: They're worthless... and the king's figured that out, 08:42 he's figured that out. 08:43 You had a different version of the Bible... 08:45 New King James... 08:47 the King James renders verse 5 and verse 8 this way, 08:51 "The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, 08:54 'The thing is gone from me... 08:56 the thing is gone from me... '" 08:58 and in verse 8, "The king answered and said, 09:00 'I know of a certainty that you would gain the time, 09:02 because you see the thing is gone from me. '" 09:04 Yvonne: Right. 09:05 James: "I don't remember the dream... 09:06 I don't remember it... it's gone from me... 09:08 and I've just figured how... 09:09 that I'm paying you guys for nothing. " 09:11 Yvonne: Right, right right. 09:12 James: "You guys aren't wise at all. " 09:14 Yvonne: Exactly. 09:15 James: "You're trying to buy time... 09:16 you're trying to buy time. " 09:18 When... when this world completely lets us down, 09:21 when we... when our 40K is a 10K... right? 09:24 when everything is just diminished and insignificant... 09:28 we come to the end of our life 09:29 and we've attained all the things this world has to offer 09:31 and our heart is still empty. 09:32 Yvonne: Right. 09:34 James: Right, that's where Nebuchadnezzar is right now, 09:35 it may... these guys have nothing to offer him 09:39 and that's why he's so upset... that's why... 09:41 he's not really upset at them per se, 09:43 he's upset at himself in a way, 09:44 you know, like, "How could I be so foolish? 09:46 mmm... I don't care about any of the stuff anymore. " 09:49 Yvonne: "I'm paying you guys 09:51 and you can't do what I'm paying you for. " 09:53 But instead of him saying, "You're fired... " 09:54 No... "I'm killing you. " 09:56 I mean, he was just... this is the mind of a conqueror, right? 09:59 Someone who's conquered all these other nations, 10:02 "Look, you can't do what I'm telling you to do, 10:04 you're dead. " 10:05 That's it. 10:07 Jason: No unemployment. Yvonne: That's right. 10:08 James: And that's the way it was in my early experience, 10:10 I mean, when I was a kid, we went through some tough times... 10:13 you know, food stamps and... 10:14 you know, that kind of stuff... 10:16 and I remember when I started really, I mean... 10:19 when I was 12... 13... 14... I started working hard, 10:24 I mean, I wanted to make my way in the world, 10:25 I wanted to get jobs... I wanted to have my car... 10:27 I wanted to have my house... I wanted to have my stuff... 10:29 and when I was 21... just before I came to Christ... 10:33 I was getting ready to buy a house... 10:34 had a couple cars... 10:36 I had a winter car... summer car... 10:38 you know, my nice hot rod Camaro... 10:39 Yvonne: At 21? 10:41 James: Hmmm... hmmmm... I had a good job, 10:42 I'd been working at a hospital for seven years, 10:45 I had lots of vacation time... sick time... 10:47 full health coverage... I had my motorcycle... 10:49 you know, for those nice summer days, 10:51 I had my friend... I had... I was set up 10:53 and it was... 10:54 and I came to the place where I realized... this stuff... 10:57 I thought this was going to bring me happiness... 10:59 I thought this was going to take care of my dreams, 11:02 but this stuff isn't taking care of my dream... 11:04 Nebuchadnezzar is... 11:05 "These guys aren't taking care of my dreams... " 11:06 and so, I got rid of all of it. 11:08 When I became a Christian, I got rid of all... 11:10 all of it died... I slew it all... 11:12 it all went up the window... it was gone... 11:14 but in time, God said, "You know, 11:17 you don't have to kill all that stuff... 11:19 you don't have to get rid of it, 11:20 you can use a car... you could use a bank account... 11:23 you can do some of the stuff. 11:24 Just don't depend on it... " 11:26 "Don't depend on it Nebuchadnezzar... 11:28 you don't have to kill the wise men... 11:29 just don't depend on the wise men. " 11:31 This life can teach you lessons, 11:33 but the God of heaven is ultimately the One 11:35 that's in control... He's ultimately the One 11:37 that's going to navigate you through life. 11:39 He's going to be able to answer your difficult questions 11:41 and give you direction through these visions and dreams. 11:44 Ivor: Hmmm... hmmm... 11:45 James: And I see that in Daniel chapter 2, 11:47 Daniel chapter 2... we're about to find out 11:49 the answer to every question that we have in life... 11:55 the answer is in Daniel chapter 2. 11:57 Now, Daniel 2, of course, repeats and enlarges 12:00 in Daniel 7... in Daniel 8 in Daniel 11... 12:02 and then, even fills out in Revelation, 12:04 especially Revelation chapter 13 12:06 as we get into the... the end-time scenario, 12:08 so... but the questions we have in life... 12:10 what's our purpose... why are we here? 12:12 Remember Daniel... he found his purpose. 12:13 Why are we here... why were we created? 12:15 What does the future hold? 12:16 How can I navigate? 12:18 How can I make the right decisions? 12:19 Do I really need to be doing this, this and this 12:21 or should I be doing something else with my life? 12:23 These are the questions that are all going to come to pass here 12:25 in Daniel chapter 2 12:27 at least foundationally... 12:28 they're going to build that foundation 12:30 for moving us on through life. 12:31 It's a beautiful, beautiful picture that we have 12:33 of God's care for us here. 12:34 Yvonne: I love the way God works 12:37 because like, as you read the... 12:39 the fact that... okay 12:41 His articles went into the house of the other gods 12:44 and you brought this out, Pastor James, earlier... 12:47 it's so interesting to me 12:50 that God does things on His own time, 12:53 He's sovereign, like, you know, we... 12:56 we can't even fathom what He's doing 13:00 and the way He does it. 13:01 He... His ways are not our ways... 13:03 His thoughts are not our thoughts 13:05 but the way He handles things, the... 13:07 He's just so... it's so awesome to me 13:09 the way He does things, like, He... 13:12 He didn't... He came in a dream 13:14 that no one else could deal with... no one else... 13:19 and the enemy, of course... He blocked him... 13:21 so that those guys couldn't come up with what the dream was. 13:25 God blocked him... he was just out of the picture 13:27 and so, it's like... God just does things 13:30 that no one else can do to let you know, 13:32 "I'm God... that's it... your gods are nothing, 13:36 I'm God. " 13:37 I mean, He's just so awesome, I just get excited 13:40 but He's so awesome the way He does things... 13:42 I love it. 13:43 James: So, let's move on now in... in... 13:47 Daniel chapter 2 and I just... 13:50 there's something here that I want us to bring out 13:53 in relationship to the prayer time. 13:55 I've already talked about how Daniel had peace, right, 14:01 through all of this process... that he went to God in prayer, 14:05 he gave it to God in prayer and then he had peace 14:07 and then God reveals this to him... what does he do? 14:09 As soon as the vision is revealed to him, 14:11 what does Daniel do... how does he respond? 14:12 Ivor: He praises God. 14:14 James: I mean, how do you respond 14:16 when God gives you something like... you know what I mean? 14:18 Like insight, like... 14:20 you know, like... because I think sometimes 14:21 one of the biggest stumbling blocks to religious people... 14:24 is religious people. 14:25 All: Laughter. 14:27 James: I mean, to religion... excuse me... 14:28 to religion is religious people, 14:30 like, one of the biggest stumbling blocks 14:31 to Christ are Christians. 14:33 Yvonne: Hmmm... 14:34 James: You know, the way we are sometimes... 14:36 the way that we react when we've got something... 14:39 when we've got light... when we've got truth... 14:41 we got understanding... we got the message... 14:43 we got... we know the Bible... 14:44 we know we're right, you know what I mean? 14:46 And so, Daniel now... he... 14:49 I mean, he's in a position where all the wise men, like, 14:52 "I know I'm just a resident here 14:55 and I know I wasn't even included with you guys, 14:57 you got like, you got this thing to go to the king 15:00 and you could have given me, like a... a memo... 15:02 like, 'Hey, come on with us, Daniel... 15:03 hear the story... this is how it works... ' 15:05 No, you left me out and... 15:08 and so, here you know... I got a little thing on you now... 15:12 I've got it on my head now... I've got this. " 15:13 But what does Daniel do? What's his first reaction? 15:16 It says here in verse... in verse 20, 15:20 "And Daniel answered and said, 15:22 'Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever 15:26 for wisdom and might are His... '" 15:28 wooo... why do we call people wise? 15:30 Why do we call people smart? 15:32 Why do we look up to people? 15:33 He is the One Who has the wisdom and the might, 15:36 God is the One that has the wisdom and the might, 15:38 He is the One that changes times and seasons 15:42 and removes kings and sets up kings 15:44 and gives wisdom to the wise 15:45 and knowledge to them that have understanding 15:46 and reveals the deep things and... 15:48 and He knows what's in the darkness 15:50 and the light dwells with Him. 15:52 God is the One that has all of this 15:54 and I thank You and I praise You O God of my fathers. 15:57 You know, we don't praise God enough... 16:00 we don't praise God enough. 16:01 And because we don't praise God enough, 16:03 we end up praising men... 16:05 we end up praising ourselves... 16:06 we end up exalting man and exalting ourselves. 16:08 We need to learn how to praise God. 16:10 Yvonne: Yes. 16:12 James: This is something that's taught to us in prophecy... 16:14 you get it in Daniel... you get it in Revelation... 16:16 praising God... praising God... praising God. 16:18 Yvonne: The other thing was 16:20 his relationship with the Lord was so strong 16:22 that he knew that that interpretation came from God. 16:25 He knew God's voice... 16:28 he knew that this was from God 16:30 and he could praise Him and thank Him for it 16:32 and go to the king with it with confidence 16:34 that it came from God, so it's got to be true. 16:36 All: Hmmm... hmmm... 16:38 Yvonne: It wasn't coming from him... 16:39 he knew that it came from God. 16:41 James: And there are so many 16:42 different theories out there now, isn't there? 16:43 So many different ways of interpreting things. 16:45 How do we know for sure this is the right one? 16:46 Yvonne: That's right. 16:48 James: Well, I think one of the ways is 16:49 we give the glory to God. 16:50 A lot of people put their name next to the theory... 16:54 their name next to the interpretation... 16:56 you know, this person... that person... 16:57 "Well, have you heard his... " 16:59 or "Have you heard his...?" 17:00 What does the Bible say? 17:02 What does God say? 17:03 Jason: Hmmm... hmmm... 17:04 Ivor: I think another really powerful point 17:07 about Daniel's character is... 17:10 first he's praying, 17:13 like, "Let us not be killed with the other wise men. " 17:17 But then, he goes in and gives an interpretation 17:21 that could cost his life. 17:22 All: Hmmm... Yvonne: That's right. 17:24 Ivor: He goes in like, 17:27 "I'm about to tell you this dream 17:28 whether you like it or not 17:30 I need you to know that your kingdom is going to fall. 17:33 All: Hmmm... 17:34 Ivor: You don't want to tell a king that. 17:36 Yvonne: Right, that's true. 17:37 Ivor: You lie... 17:39 "There are some other kings that are going to fall 17:41 and you O king, live forever. " 17:43 All: Laughter. 17:44 Ivor: No... you go in there and you're telling the king, 17:46 "Your kingdom is going to fall. " 17:47 James: Hmmm... hmmm... 17:49 Ivor: I mean, that's... that's risky 17:51 and so, I think even his... in his courage, 17:55 he was just like, "This dream, you might not like it 17:58 and you might punish me for it, 18:01 but I'm telling you... this is what's going to happen. " 18:05 James: I love that... and the only way we can do that 18:09 is if "self" is out of the way. 18:10 We're not worried about ourselves, 18:12 we're only worried about God... and that's what you see here. 18:14 As we set up for this, we see that Daniel... 18:16 he is pressured... 18:18 the world pressures us to put self in the picture 18:21 so, as Daniel praises God, self is completely obliterated 18:25 and then in verse 24, Daniel goes unto see Arioch 18:30 who the king had ordered to destroy the wise men of Babylon 18:32 and he said to him, 18:33 "Don't destroy the wise men of Babylon, 18:34 bring me in before the king, 18:36 and I will show the king the interpretation 18:38 and Arioch brought Daniel in before the king in haste, 18:41 and said thus unto him, 18:43 'I have found a man of the captives of Judah, 18:46 that will make known unto the king the interpretation. '" 18:48 "Wow! Arioch, you found him. " 18:49 It must have been... you must have worked... 18:52 that was something! You found somebody. 18:54 Jason: He got a raise. 18:56 James: He got a raise... 18:57 he wanted some credit didn't he? 18:59 Yvonne: He put himself on the line, though, 19:00 to support his work. 19:02 Jason: What did he have to lose? James: That's right. 19:04 Ivor: He could have got killed too... 19:08 like, "You found this guy that just told me 19:11 that my kingdom was going to fall? 19:13 All right... both of you... " 19:14 James: "I found a man... " 19:15 and... and it's interesting how we... 19:18 we all wanted a little bit of the credit... 19:19 We... human nature wants a little bit of credit. 19:22 Yvonne: Yeah, that's true. 19:23 James: So, let's read verses... let's read verses 26, 27 and 28. 19:27 Jason: "The king answered and said to Daniel, 19:30 whose name was Belteshazzar, 19:32 'Are you able to make known to me the dream which I have seen, 19:35 and its interpretation?' 19:37 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, 19:40 'The secret which the king has demanded, 19:42 the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, 19:45 and the soothsayers cannot declare to the king. 19:48 But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, 19:51 and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar 19:54 what will be in the latter days. 19:59 Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, 20:04 were these... '" 20:05 James: Okay, so Daniel is a politician in training, 20:11 right? He's a politician in training 20:12 but God is the One who's training him above and beyond. 20:15 So, the king asked him... you know how politicians are... 20:18 the king asked him a question, 20:19 did he answer the question? 20:20 Yvonne: Well, he did, he said... 20:24 "Nobody else could do it but God could do it. " 20:27 James: Did he answer the question? 20:28 The question was, "Are you able to interpret the dream?" 20:31 See how he did that? 20:32 See how... how God gave him a heavenly political answer... 20:37 heavenly... you see... 20:39 Yvonne: Hmmm... hmmm... 20:40 James: So, Daniel should have said, "Yes" or "No" 20:42 "Yeah, I can answer... " or "I can't answer... " right? 20:44 But he didn't say that... he didn't say that 20:46 but what he did was masterful. 20:47 Ivor: Hmmm... 20:49 James: He said, "You know, 20:50 in answer to your question, O king, 20:52 can I answer the dream and I answer that question? 20:53 The wise men, astrologers and the magicians 20:57 and all your wise men... they can't answer it... " 20:58 James: Completely bypasses himself... 21:01 "but there is a God in heaven. " 21:03 James: That's so beautiful. Yvonne: Yes. 21:06 James: That's what we need... 21:07 that's what the Christian world needs. 21:09 Yvonne: Yes. 21:10 James: We need to bypass ourselves 21:12 and direct all the glory to God 21:14 in the context of people's lives completely falling apart, 21:18 Nebuchadnezzar's life is completely falling apart. 21:19 Now, think about this, 21:21 his whole empire that he's built... 21:22 all the wisdom that he has in that empire... 21:24 he's about ready to throw in the garbage can... 21:26 he's just going to toss it 21:27 and in that crisis of his life, 21:29 God steps in through a man named Daniel 21:32 who can step out of the way and then give God all the glory. 21:35 Yvonne: Yes. 21:36 James: "Those guys can't... but there is a God in heaven... 21:38 I'm eclipsed... I'm out of here... 21:40 there is a God in heaven... " 21:41 and I love that picture that... that he's giving 21:43 because that's the picture that sets Nebuchadnezzar up 21:46 to say, "Your God is the God of gods... 21:48 not you, Daniel, you're not... 21:49 but your God is the God of gods. " 21:51 So that's what we need to be at... 21:53 if we can be at that juncture in the crisis of people's lives, 21:56 where we're just there to direct people to God... 22:00 and we're eclipsed... it's not about us... 22:02 it's about directing people to God... 22:04 that's where God wants us to be. 22:05 That's where we can be of... of the most help 22:08 and that's where Daniel is in this time. 22:10 Powerful stuff... 22:12 James: So, there is a God who reveals... 22:17 and then he goes... and then he's going to begin the dream. 22:19 So, in verse 30, Daniel begins, 22:24 and let's just... let's just read this, 22:26 there's going to be a lot of verses here, 22:28 maybe we can read through the first part of this 22:31 and we can stop at verse 35, 22:36 let's read at verse 35... 30 to 35... 22:38 Yvonne: Okay. 22:40 "But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me 22:42 because I have more wisdom than anyone living, 22:45 but for our sakes who make known the interpretation to the king, 22:49 and that you may know the thoughts of your heart. 22:52 'You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! 22:56 This great image, whose splendor was excellent, 22:58 stood before you; 23:00 and its form was awesome. 23:01 This image's head was of fine gold, 23:04 its chest and arms of silver, 23:06 its belly and thigs of bronze, 23:08 its legs of iron, 23:09 its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. 23:12 You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, 23:16 which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, 23:19 and broke them in pieces. 23:21 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, 23:23 the silver, and the gold were crushed together, 23:26 and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; 23:29 the wind carried them away 23:31 so that no trace of them was found. 23:33 And the stone that struck the image 23:35 became a great mountain and filled the whole earth. '" 23:39 James: Wow! 23:41 "This is the dream and we're going to tell you 23:43 the interpretation. " 23:44 Just think about what Nebuchadnezzar's thinking 23:46 right now, what's he thinking? 23:48 Ivor: That's what I dreamed. 23:51 Jason: He's probably blown away. 23:52 James: "How did you know... what?" 23:54 Yvonne: Like, yes... nobody else could do it. 23:56 James: "Nobody else could do this... 23:58 nobody else can do this. " 23:59 Jason: And you're still in school. 24:00 James: You haven't even graduated yet. 24:04 You know, it's interesting to realize 24:08 that Daniel is probably a teenager at this point, 24:10 he's probably a young man 24:12 and to see that God doesn't use us 24:14 because of our years of experience 24:16 or wealth of knowledge... 24:17 because of letters behind our name... 24:19 God uses us because we're available 24:21 because we found His purpose for our lives 24:23 and we make ourselves available to Him. 24:24 Yvonne: Amen. 24:26 James: And I've been so blessed. 24:27 Many times when I'm doing ministry or whatever, 24:31 I tell people, "God has me in ministry 24:33 for my own salvation, 24:35 I'm not in ministry... because I've been saved 24:37 and I'm good and I don't need anything 24:39 but to share with others what God has shown me, 24:42 I'm in ministry because 24:43 every day I need more of the grace of God 24:45 and the blessing of God... " 24:46 and as I pour out to others... others pour into me... 24:50 I was just reading a testimony 24:52 from one of the students in Australia... 24:54 we'll be going back there... 24:55 I've been there... here just a few weeks ago 24:57 and we're going to be going back there toward the end of May 24:59 for the graduation and doing Revelation... 25:01 we did Daniel too and Revelation 25:02 and it was a powerful testimony... 25:04 and part of what this young lady said was, 25:06 "I used to think that... 25:10 my life was... was just too broken to give to God 25:14 and... but now I realize that God wants all the pieces... 25:17 all the pieces... even the broken pieces... 25:21 He wants all the pieces 25:22 and I just need to give Him all the pieces... 25:24 including the broken pieces... " 25:25 and that just really ministered to me this morning 25:27 and as I read that... 25:28 as I thought about that in my own life... 25:30 you know what I'm saying? 25:31 And this is where we see Daniel at, 25:33 Daniel is available... 25:35 he's a young man and he's available to God 25:37 and sometimes, young people can be intimidated, 25:39 they can be overwhelmed, "What do I have? 25:41 I'm just in the shadow of these great giants... 25:43 I don't have anything to offer... " 25:45 but the story of Daniel tells us 25:46 that it's not about us, it's about God... 25:49 it's about being available to Him 25:50 and fulfilling the purpose that God has for us in our lives. 25:53 It's beautiful... it's powerful 25:55 and so, Nebuchadnezzar is literally blown away. 25:57 We mentioned this yesterday 25:59 but Nebuchadnezzar was the first person to attend 26:02 a Daniel Seminar. 26:03 All: Laughter. 26:05 Yvonne: That's true. 26:06 James: He sat on the front row and he's just listening, 26:08 he's going like, "Wow! that's exactly 26:10 what I saw, Daniel, how could you know that? 26:12 Who told you that... 26:13 who told you that? 26:15 And I didn't even remember that... 26:16 how could you know my thoughts... 26:18 what I was thinking... what I was cogitating on... 26:20 what I was worried about... 26:21 what I was anxious about... how could you know that?" 26:23 All: Hmmm... hmmm... 26:24 James: And that really sets him up for the... 26:27 for the interpretation 26:28 and I think at this point, 26:30 what Ivor said earlier that Daniel was taking a great risk 26:33 because he's about to tell the king, 26:34 "Your kingdom's going to end at a certain spot... " 26:36 but I think because God set this all up 26:40 so that He could actually just impress the king 26:44 with the fact that he didn't remember this 26:46 it's not just an interpretation, 26:48 I think this prepares the king to be receptive. 26:50 Yvonne: Right. 26:52 James: And God wants to do that for us, 26:53 we're in situations and circumstances... 26:55 we're talking with people who are in "influence... " 26:57 positions of influence 26:59 we don't know what to say. 27:00 God knows what we can say... 27:01 that we can sow that seed and have a word 27:07 that's going to impact them in a way that's going to be powerful 27:09 and that's what God does with Daniel. 27:10 Yvonne: Hmmm... hmmm... 27:12 James: God sets him up so he has a word to share 27:13 that can be impactful and powerful. 27:15 Yvonne: Yes. James: So... 27:16 Yvonne: That was so powerful, 27:17 God was preparing King Nebuchadnezzar 27:21 for what was going to come with Daniel... 27:25 He was opening up the door for Daniel to... 27:28 to minister to him really and to show him the way. 27:31 James: He had to have influence with him. 27:33 Yvonne: Absolutely. 27:34 James: Because Daniel was... as Ivor said, was taking a big risk 27:36 and God will do the same with us. 27:37 Yvonne: Yes. 27:38 James: When we're willing to step out and take that risk, 27:40 God will prepare the way. 27:41 Yvonne: Amen. Jason: Amen. |
Revised 2020-04-18