Participants: Dwayne Lemon, Lance Wilbur
Series Code: TKS
Program Code: TKS000012
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00:28 Hello. My name is Dwayne Lemon.
00:31 And I'm Lance Wilbur. 00:32 And we'd like to welcome you to another episode of TKS, 00:36 a True Knowledge of Self, 00:37 where we get to know ourselves from the biblical perspective. 00:41 We want to welcome you to our program 00:42 as we are going to pick up 00:45 where we left off from our last program, 00:46 where we were looking at Daniel in Babylon. 00:49 And we were noticing that there were some parallels 00:52 to the experience of Daniel in Babylon 00:55 and what we see taking place in our urban communities today 00:58 and we even saw some things 00:59 as it pertains to the effects and influences 01:02 of the hip hop culture 01:03 and how it very much ties into some of the influences 01:06 that even Babylon was displaying 01:08 during the days of Daniel. 01:10 We notice something very powerful about Daniel. 01:12 Daniel was one that was a young man. 01:14 He was used powerfully by God 01:16 and he was very faithful, very temperate. 01:19 He was a man of priority. 01:20 And this was in Daniel as a youth. 01:23 And so it is that we saw that this is something 01:25 God wants to put into the hearts 01:27 of His young people today, 01:28 even young people who are in disadvantaged situations. 01:31 Daniel was a slave. 01:33 And yet, Daniel was still able 01:35 to demonstrate faithfulness to God. 01:37 And so it is that youth today in urban communities, 01:40 where there's a lot of disadvantages around us, 01:42 we find also that that is not an excuse for us 01:45 to have to give in to the traps 01:47 and the tricks of the devil 01:49 and to have to surrender 01:50 to the popular things that are around us. 01:52 And so we find that there were these beautiful parallels 01:55 that were shown through Daniel as he exercise wisdom. 01:58 And in Daniel Chapter 1, 01:59 specifically versus 17 through 20, 02:02 we saw that Daniel was one 02:04 who was willing to stand for His God 02:06 and God certainly stood up for him. 02:07 And as a result of that Daniel was faithful 02:10 and he was mightily used and God blessed him with wisdom 02:13 because Daniel was obedient to the will of God. 02:16 But we also find that 02:17 there's another aspect of wisdom 02:19 that we wanted to introduce 02:20 because we believe that this is gonna be very effective 02:23 in the hearts of those today in our urban societies, 02:26 those who are going through the various trials 02:28 and tribulations of urban life, 02:30 but also, even those who sometimes feel the pull 02:34 of the hip hop and RnB culture 02:35 and how it pulls them to say well, here is the solution 02:39 where we have seen already in previous programs, 02:41 it's not really a solution at all. 02:42 And therefore, we're gonna look at some practical lessons 02:45 from the story of Daniel and his use of wisdom 02:49 and how it helped him to overcome the nets 02:52 that were around him 02:53 and surrounding him to entrap him. 02:56 Lance, once again, we're here 02:57 and we have another opportunity to go ahead 02:59 and dig deeper into the word of God 03:01 so we can see how God can speak to us 03:03 and teach us from old lessons powerful present truths 03:07 that we can practice today in our daily lives. 03:09 And we saw Daniel exercising wisdom, 03:12 as you were explaining in our last program, 03:14 where we were seeing how he was obedient. 03:16 He followed what God said and God blessed him. 03:19 But there's another dynamic of wisdom 03:21 that I believe you wanted to share with us 03:23 that is still found in the Book of Daniel. 03:25 But instead of Daniel 1, 03:26 we're kind of transitioning to Daniel 2. 03:28 Yes. 03:29 So as soon as we see the story 03:32 that we talked about in Daniel Chapter 1 03:33 and then we see the reward that God gives to Daniel 03:36 and his associates for taking that stand, 03:39 God honors them and gives them skill 03:40 and understanding and wisdom, and all visions and dreams. 03:45 All of a sudden now we see Nebuchadnezzar in Chapter 2, 03:48 the king, the ruler, the strongest, 03:51 the mightiest ruler on the planet at this time, 03:53 having a dream. 03:55 And we're gonna kind of get a snapshot of that, 03:57 starting in, reading from Daniel Chapter 2 04:00 and we're gonna read all the way from versus 1 to 11. 04:04 And I'm gonna read 04:05 and then we'll talk about a little bit 04:07 to give everyone an understanding 04:08 of what we're gonna be dealing with today. 04:10 Wonderful. 04:11 Daniel Chapter 2 04:13 and we're reading all the way from verse 1 through verse 11. 04:18 "And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, 04:22 Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, 04:24 where with his spirit was troubled, 04:26 and his sleep brake from him. 04:28 Then the king commanded to call the magicians, 04:31 and the astrologers, and the sorcerers, 04:33 and the Chaldeans, 04:34 for to shew the king his dreams. 04:37 So they came and stood before the king. 04:40 And the king said unto them, I have dreamed a dream, 04:43 and my spirit was troubled to know the dream. 04:46 Then spake the Chaldeans to the king in Syriack, 04:48 O king, live for ever: tell thy servants the dream, 04:51 and we will shew the interpretation. 04:54 The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, 04:57 The thing is gone from me: 04:58 if ye will not make known unto me the dream, 05:00 with the interpretation thereof, 05:02 ye shall be cut in pieces, 05:04 and your houses shall be made a dunghill. 05:07 But if ye shew the dream, and the interpretation thereof, 05:10 ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honor: 05:13 therefore shew me the dream, and the interpretation thereof. 05:17 They answered again and said, 05:19 Let the king tell his servants the dream, 05:21 and we will shew the interpretation of it. 05:24 The king answered and said, 05:25 I know of certainty that ye would gain the time, 05:29 because ye see the thing is gone from me. 05:31 But if ye will not make known unto me the dream, 05:34 there is but one decree for you: 05:36 for ye have prepared lying 05:38 and corrupt words to speak before me, 05:40 till the time be changed: therefore tell me the dream, 05:44 and I shall know 05:45 that ye can shew me the interpretation thereof. 05:49 The Chaldeans answered before the king, and said, 05:51 There is not a man upon the earth 05:52 that can shew the king's matter: 05:55 therefore there is no king, lord, nor ruler, 05:58 that asked such things at any magician, 06:00 or astrologer, or Chaldean. 06:02 And it is a rare thing that the king requireth, 06:04 and there is none other 06:06 that can shew it before the king, 06:08 except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh." 06:13 Now there's a lot to talk about. 06:15 Oh, yeah. 06:16 Nebuchadnezzar has a dream. 06:18 This dream, perhaps reoccurring, 06:20 gets to the point where he can't sleep at night. 06:23 But the problem is, as many of us have experienced, 06:26 when we have dreams sometimes, we know we had a dream. 06:29 We know that it was vivid and we can almost believe that 06:32 we experienced it 06:34 but we can't remember all the details, 06:36 we can't quite explain it to another person. 06:38 So Nebuchadnezzar finds himself in a similar situation. 06:41 So he has the dream, he can't remember it. 06:44 But he desperately is impressed 06:46 that he needs to know what it means. 06:48 It's causing him to lose sleep literally, 06:51 he's having anxiety attacks perhaps. 06:55 So he calls in all of his counsel, 06:57 all of his counselors, his cabinet, 06:59 his wise men, his astrologers, the magicians 07:02 or whatever you want to call them, 07:03 he calls them in and says, 07:05 "I need you to tell me this dream 07:06 and give me the interpretation." 07:09 And they want no part of it. 07:11 They're trying to buy time, they are saying, 07:12 "Well, just tell us what the dream was." 07:14 And they can come up, 07:15 they can manufacture an interpretation, 07:17 just like these guys, you know, I know, 07:18 I remember years ago they used to have shows 07:20 with the psychics on the show. 07:23 And they were just kind of pull, 07:24 they were masters at kind of pulling facts 07:26 and information out of people. 07:28 And then they could craft a story 07:30 and it would kind of impress the people 07:33 and they say, "They must be talking to spirits." 07:34 Right. 07:37 This impossible task 07:39 according to the wise men and the astrologers, 07:41 they said, this is ridiculous. 07:43 They didn't say quite like that 07:44 but they were being very careful 07:45 because the king warned 07:47 that if they don't tell him the dream, 07:48 and the interpretation, they're gonna die. 07:49 That's right. Automatically. 07:51 So they're again, just saying, 07:52 "Please, nobody has asked anything like this of any man. 07:56 It's impossible for us to tell you the dream 07:58 and the interpretation. 07:59 We need you to tell the dream 08:00 and then we can give you the interpretation. 08:02 There's no nobody that knows this information, 08:03 except the gods that are not with us." 08:06 That's right. 08:07 And it's amazing because we find, 08:09 as we get ready to progress throughout this chapter, 08:12 we've seen that once again, 08:14 it's not just simply the wise men, 08:18 the so-called wise men and astrologers 08:20 and all these servants of the king 08:22 that are incapable of providing an answer 08:25 and not able to teach or explain the dream. 08:28 But it's interesting 08:30 that when Nebuchadnezzar made it clear, 08:32 if you don't do it, here's the consequence, 08:34 which of course was death. 08:35 But we find that that death was not something 08:37 that was just going to come to all of the magicians 08:41 and astrologers, 08:42 it also was gonna fall upon somebody else. 08:44 And I want us to talk about that 08:46 because we're gonna see how this all can tie back into 08:48 how we see society 08:49 and things happening in our world even today. 08:51 So we're gonna go on and look at 08:54 some more versus in Daniel Chapter 2. 08:55 Oh, yeah. 08:57 And we're gonna understand that because Daniel 09:01 and his three associates were now included, 09:04 remember, they passed the examination, 09:06 they went through the university 09:07 and they became part of this cabinet, 09:09 they became part of the counselors of the king, 09:12 the wise men if you will, they became part of that group. 09:15 So now they are included in this death decree 09:18 that the king levies against the wise men of Babylon. 09:20 And so I want to go down to verse 12, 09:24 and it kind of summarizes what the king was dealing with. 09:27 So Daniel Chapter 2 and looking at verse 12. 09:30 It says, "For this cause 09:32 the king was angry and very furious, 09:35 and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon." 09:41 And verse 13 says, "And the decree went forth 09:43 that the wise men should be slain; 09:45 and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain." 09:50 So Daniel gets the knock at the door if you will. 09:53 Yup. 09:54 And it's somebody there to arrest and kill him 09:57 and execute him. 09:59 He has no idea what's happening. 10:00 That's right. 10:01 And, you know, because perhaps at this point 10:03 he's a junior member of this counsel. 10:05 Right. 10:06 And all of that, the experts 10:08 and those with longevity in the counsel 10:10 are called to the king, 10:12 his highest advisors 10:13 and these young men who just came out of training, 10:17 you know, are not included in that elite group. 10:19 But they get a knock on the door 10:20 and now they are destined to be killed. 10:26 That's right. 10:27 So Daniel intervenes, he tries to buy time 10:30 and he's given some leeway. 10:33 He tells the king, you know, he's asking what happened. 10:35 He had a relationship with the man 10:37 who came to arrest and have him executed. 10:41 And he begins to dialogue with that man 10:43 and it gets him to buy time. 10:45 He goes to the king and says, just give us time 10:47 and we will give the dream and the interpretation. 10:50 We'll figure out what's happening. 10:51 Now here's something that-- cause what we want to do 10:53 is we want to pull something out of this right now 10:55 because one of the things I've learnt about the gospel, 10:57 one of the things I've learned about studying the Bible, 11:01 growing up, you know, 11:02 especially when I'm, entrenched 11:04 in something that to me is powerful, 11:07 hip hop music, hip hop culture is very powerful. 11:09 It's attracted, it's magnetic, right. 11:11 So what happens is 11:13 you get used to feeling and sensing power. 11:16 When you hear the music and the thump of the beat 11:18 and what you, that's the feeling of power. 11:20 When you watch somebody and they're rhyming 11:22 and they're able to take words 11:23 from right to the left and connect it, 11:25 that's powerful. 11:26 And it's a power that a person can experience. 11:29 And that's one of the reasons 11:30 why hip hop culture is so magnetic. 11:31 It's because there's a power that's involved in it. 11:34 The question is whether it's a power of good or evil. 11:36 Yes. But nevertheless, it is power. 11:38 When it comes to the gospel, 11:40 the gospel, remember Romans 1:16? 11:42 "For I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ 11:44 for it is the power of God." 11:46 God wanted the gospel to be more than lip service. 11:50 So therefore, God always wanted 11:52 in the expressions of gospel truth 11:54 that there's a practicality, 11:55 there's something that I can practice 11:57 from all these theoretical teachings. 11:59 So when we are going through this, 12:00 we're always looking for that practical application, 12:03 practical application, how can I live this experience 12:05 that I'm reading about in the Bible. 12:07 Because once we can do that, we can experience that power 12:10 and we'll find that that power is greater 12:12 than the previous power. 12:14 So it is that when you look at Daniel, 12:16 when you look at verses 17 and 18, 12:18 and you see how Daniel responded, 12:21 I'm, when I read the Bible, my imagination runs. 12:24 I start to think like what was that like. 12:26 Somebody, when he comes to your door 12:28 and says, "Look, there's been a decree 12:30 given to all of the wise men 12:32 as the result of the not answering 12:33 the king's request and they got to die 12:34 and you're one of them." 12:36 Now in the natural world, I'm thinking that 12:39 if someone had somebody knock on their door like that, 12:42 out of nowhere, 12:43 you'll probably gonna respond something to, "What?" 12:45 Yeah, fear. 12:46 Yeah, this fear and shocking everything else 12:49 but here goes Daniel, 12:50 it would seem as if he's almost calm, cool and collected. 12:52 Yeah. 12:54 And Daniel has a confidence in the God in which he serves 12:57 and while he's given this most incredible decree information 13:01 that I'm about to die, 13:03 he says, "Tell the king that give me a little bit of time." 13:06 Yeah, yeah. 13:07 You know, I mean, there's a confidence 13:09 and this confidence 13:11 had to be developed before the crisis. 13:14 Yeah. 13:15 That-- that was a crisis moment. 13:16 I mean-- It didn't just pop up. 13:18 Yeah, you know, 13:19 when someone just comes to and tells you, 13:21 "Listen, you got to die," 13:22 you know, "under the decree of a king." 13:23 So it's not like you can appeal to a court or anybody else, 13:26 the king says you got to die. 13:27 And Daniel had a previous experience before the crisis 13:32 that enabled him to remain hopeful and trustful. 13:35 This is a lesson for our viewers. 13:37 We want our viewers to understand, 13:39 you can't wait and keep putting off God 13:42 and putting off His will and putting off His ways 13:44 and then when the crisis of life comes, 13:46 you try to just go ahead and get some last minute faith 13:48 and last minute righteousness. 13:50 That's not God's plan. 13:52 And therefore, God is trying to teach us 13:54 through this lesson, 13:55 when you have a precious experience with me, 13:58 it can prepare you for those unfortunate, 14:01 you know unexpected crisis that can come in your life 14:04 that you can still remain faithful and hopeful 14:06 even in the midst of a crisis coming right to you. 14:08 That's right. That's a very important lesson. 14:10 Absolutely. 14:11 And so the reaction now, what would be the reaction 14:14 and we see the conversation, 14:17 he gathers information to figure out what's going on 14:19 and the as you said in verses 17 and 18, 14:22 we see his response. 14:23 So we get a practical glimpse 14:25 of what he did in order to obtain 14:28 what he promised to the king. 14:30 I think it's worth reading. 14:31 Yeah. Absolutely. 14:32 So Daniel Chapter 2, looking at verses 17 and 18. 14:36 It says, " Then Daniel went to his house, 14:40 and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, 14:43 and Azariah, his companions: 14:45 That they would desire 14:46 mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret, 14:51 that Daniel and his fellows should not perish 14:53 with the rest of the wise men of Babylon." 14:57 So they don't try to manufacture an answer, 15:00 they don't any-- 15:01 they actually go to the throne of God if you will, 15:05 and enquire of God, who is the one 15:07 who gave them wisdom in the first place, 15:09 who is the one that reminded them. 15:11 So Daniel, in his minds knew of the promises of scriptures. 15:15 In other words, he was the student of the Bible 15:18 prior to the crisis as we talked about. 15:20 For example, he knew such things 15:22 that we'd be talking about in certain passages 15:24 that we'd looking at in a brief moment. 15:26 The promises of God and the guarantee, 15:29 if God is the source of wisdom, 15:31 if God is the source of knowledge, 15:32 if God is the one that takes care of His people 15:34 and He's above every king 15:37 and knows the end from the beginning, 15:38 then God certainly can answer this request, 15:41 if it's according to His will, 15:42 He can answer the request of His faithful servants. 15:45 Because they know that they are in a right relation with Him, 15:47 they know they haven't compromised. 15:49 So they are asking God to do what He's promised to do. 15:52 So I want to skip down again 15:54 and look at the results of this intersession 15:58 as they go to the throne of God together as brethren. 16:01 They go and petition God for an answer, 16:04 to reveal this secret if you will, to them. 16:07 And looking at verse 20, Daniel 2:20. 16:12 It says, "Daniel answered and said, 16:14 Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: 16:20 for wisdom and might are his: 16:22 And he changeth the times and the seasons: 16:25 he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: 16:28 he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them 16:32 that know understanding: 16:34 He revealeth the deep and secret things: 16:37 he knoweth what is in the darkness, 16:39 and the light dwelleth with him. 16:41 I thank thee, and praise thee, O thou God of my fathers, 16:45 who hast given me wisdom and might, 16:48 and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee: 16:52 for thou hast now made known 16:55 unto us the king's matter." 16:59 So they petitioned God, 17:01 however long it took, we don't know. 17:03 But God gives them the dream. 17:04 He gives Daniel the dream. 17:06 He gives him the interpretation. 17:07 He gives him the answer. 17:08 And he honors God and praises God 17:11 for granting him his petition. 17:14 In other words, Daniel did not practice 17:16 the so-called ideology of knowledge of self. 17:19 Daniel did not look to himself to say, 17:20 I know the answer." 17:22 In fact, it gets even sweeter 17:23 because when we look at the way 17:25 Daniel eventually goes before the king, 17:27 there's something that Daniel says 17:28 that quite honestly if we carefully at his example, 17:32 you see in most religions, 17:35 Daniel is a well respected prophet. 17:38 Daniel is one whom individuals has acknowledged 17:40 as one who has been led by God, 17:42 one who was moving under the power of God, 17:44 and certainly was a servant of God. 17:46 So when we look at Daniel, 17:47 this is something that speaks to, 17:49 you know, several of our viewers 17:50 where we can see that 17:52 there's something we can pull out from this 17:54 as a lesson for us. 17:55 Hip hop culture teaches about knowledge of self. 17:58 I got the knowledge. It's in me because I'm god. 17:59 It's in my "bloodline." 18:01 But nevertheless, Daniel, 18:03 we see that that's the last thing 18:04 that he was approaching this situation with. 18:06 He wasn't looking to himself. 18:07 He goes to God and says, 18:09 "Lord, You are the one who has the wisdom, 18:10 You are the one who has the answers 18:12 and I'm coming to You because I need You to give it to me. 18:14 So once again, 18:16 he's looking at an outside source of himself, 18:18 recognizing his own frailty and therefore, 18:22 he says something before the king 18:23 that is absolutely incredible in verses 24 through 28. 18:27 I mean, break that down for us. 18:29 So Daniel Chapter 2:24-28. 18:32 It says, "Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, 18:38 whom the king had ordained 18:39 to destroy the wise men of Babylon: 18:41 he went and said thus unto him; 18:43 Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: 18:45 bring me in before the king, 18:47 and I will shew unto the king the interpretation. 18:50 Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste, 18:53 and said thus unto him, 18:55 I have found a man of the captives of Judah, 18:57 that will make known unto the king the interpretation. 19:00 The king answered and said to Daniel, 19:03 whose name was Belteshazzar, 19:05 art thou able to make known unto me the dream 19:07 which I have seen, and the interpretation thereof? 19:10 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, 19:13 The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, 19:16 the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, 19:18 shew unto the king; 19:20 But there is a God in heaven that revealeth secrets, 19:25 and maketh known to the king Nebuchadnezzar 19:28 what shall be in the latter days. 19:31 Thy dream, and the visions of thy head 19:33 upon thy bed, are these." 19:37 So he goes in, he tells the man that was ordained 19:41 and sent to kill him and execute. 19:43 He says, "Listen, I have an answer. 19:44 Go and tell the king, 'I have the dream 19:45 and the interpretation.' 19:47 "He rushes to the king he tells him 19:48 and Nebuchadnezzar was shocked. 19:51 He says, "Do you have an answer?" 19:52 Daniel is like I don't have an answer. 19:55 A matter of fact and there's an answer 19:56 that none of your men could manufacture, 19:59 the soothsayers, the magicians, the Chaldeans. 20:02 He says, "But there is a God in heaven 20:04 that revealeth secrets." 20:06 So he highlights the fact, again, it's not him. 20:08 He directs the attention of the mind, 20:11 even of the strongest 20:12 and the most reputable man on the planet at the time, 20:16 he directs him to the God of heaven. 20:19 That's right. 20:20 And this where it gets sweet 20:22 because Daniel is demonstrating the very principle 20:26 of why God has put this whole program together. 20:28 God wants to help, wants people to understand 20:30 that there's a knowledge of self deception 20:34 that is going throughout. 20:35 The hip hop and RnB culture 20:36 is one of the greatest reporters of this deception. 20:38 Because it teaches knowledge of self, 20:40 individuals, you are god, you have it within you. 20:44 But it goes broader even beyond hip hop 20:46 because we know that ultimately, this is new age. 20:48 I mean, new age and the new age movement, 20:50 all of it is just calling individuals 20:52 to recognize "spirituality" 20:55 where ultimately they are the ones 20:57 that determine what is true. 20:58 There is no outside source. They are the sources. 21:00 Yeah, everything is relative. That's right. 21:02 Everything is relative, nothing's absolute. 21:04 And therefore, we see that this deception is affecting 21:07 in the world and in society today 21:10 but it's especially affecting the kind of society 21:13 that we have come from, the urban society, 21:15 understanding what's going in the hip hop 21:16 and RnB culture 21:18 and this deception of knowledge of self, 21:20 in comparison to a true knowledge of self. 21:23 Daniel had a true knowledge of self. 21:24 Daniel was able to see, 21:26 "Look, I don't have the answers. 21:27 I do not have the wisdom in me naturally 21:30 to go ahead and deal with these problems." 21:32 Especially when you are dealing with crisis. 21:34 And he didn't hesitate. 21:35 It was a natural, it was natural for him 21:37 to have confidence in God 21:39 and then go and make the petition. 21:40 And was Daniel still a man? 21:42 Absolutely. Absolutely. 21:44 So it's not a sacrifice of manliness. 21:46 It's not a sacrifice of masculinity 21:49 when an individual recognizes his weaknesses. 21:52 It's a blessing when a person can recognize 21:54 where they are weak and to say, "Look, I don't have the answer. 21:57 I don't have the solutions. 21:58 But there's a God who has the answers. 22:00 There's a God who has the solutions 22:01 and He is certainly not me. 22:03 He is outside of me. 22:04 His name is the Father 22:06 and He has revealed His will to us 22:08 through His Son, Jesus Christ." 22:09 That's right. 22:11 And therefore, when I get to know God, 22:12 and Jesus Christ whom He had sent, 22:13 I get the benefits that God promises to give, 22:16 including wisdom and so on. 22:18 So we're seeing that it's not, it was not just, 22:23 you know, the fact that Daniel knew what God said 22:25 and was obedient that made him very powerful. 22:29 But in addition to that, this other dynamical wisdom 22:32 that you're bringing out to us, 22:33 is that Daniel understood his weaknesses. 22:36 He understood the true knowledge of himself 22:39 that I don't have the answers, I can't solve this problem 22:42 but there's a God in heaven who can. 22:43 And I will submit myself to Him 22:46 and His will so that I may know 22:49 what He would have me to do 22:50 and God once again rewarded him. 22:53 Not just simply with skill and understanding, 22:55 but even with the interpretation of the dreams 22:57 which it was impossible for anyone else to conjure up. 23:00 Yeah. 23:02 And so like I highlighted earlier, 23:04 Daniel had to have had this understanding 23:07 prior to the crisis. 23:09 He was prepared to meet the crisis in his natural life. 23:12 So he remembered some of the promises 23:14 and I want to look at a couple of them. 23:15 For example, in Job 23. 23:18 In Job 23, again, in the Old Testament, 23:20 this is something that he had full knowledge of 23:22 as a young Hebrew boy, 23:24 a royalty, he'd been raised in the truth 23:27 back in Israel before the exile. 23:29 So in Job Chapter 12, Job Chapter 12 23:34 and we're looking at verse 13, Job 12:13. 23:40 It says, "With Him is wisdom and strength," 23:43 talking about God, 23:44 "He hath counsel and understanding." 23:47 So he understood the wisdom, the strength, the counsel, 23:50 the understanding is with God and not with man. 23:53 So he petitioned God 23:54 knowing that that's where he can get the answer. 23:56 He had full confidence in that regard. 23:58 He had full confidence 23:59 in what God said He is and what He possess. 24:02 He trusted that 24:03 and he almost not put God to the test, 24:06 but he petitioned God based on God's reputation of Himself. 24:10 You know, it's funny, man. 24:11 I remember when I was in Queens, New York, 24:13 Jamaica Queens 24:14 and there was a area in Jamaica Queens 24:17 called the, the store called the Colosseum. 24:20 And you know, 24:22 it was where everybody went to get their sneakers, 24:23 their shirts, and everything else 24:25 and in this area in Jamaica Queens, 24:26 they had lots and lots of stores. 24:29 I remember one of the stores was called Modells. 24:31 And we were going to Modells and this is another place 24:33 where you can get your sneakers and different things 24:35 and, you know, I'm regular urban youth kid. 24:37 I'm looking for the latest sneakers, 24:38 the best, the stone washed pants, 24:41 you know, all these things. 24:43 You know, hey, this is what was popular back then. 24:45 I mean, I wouldn't wear it now, but you know, you get my point. 24:47 I remember. Anyhow. 24:48 So here it is that I'm in Modells 24:51 and I remember there was a guy 24:53 who got a little upset with me and my mother. 24:56 My whole family, we were all together, 24:58 well, not my whole family but my mother, 24:59 my father and myself, we were together 25:01 and this man got a little bothered 25:03 with me and my mother. 25:04 And when he got a little bothered 25:06 with me and my mother, 25:08 it got to a point where it really got, 25:09 he got agitated and it got to the point 25:11 that my father had to step in. 25:14 And when dad stepped in, it was amazing 25:17 how there was a comfort. 25:18 There was a complete, total confidence that I had 25:22 that because dad has stepped in, 25:25 this business is about to be handled. 25:26 Yeah, yeah. 25:27 And you know, I didn't waver, 25:29 not one bit of thinking oh, would dad lose? 25:31 I mean, I knew once dad stepped in, it's over. 25:33 This man better submit, you know. 25:35 And so it is that Daniel, 25:37 he has this confidence in his Father. 25:39 He knows in my Father is contained 25:41 wisdom, strength, and understanding. 25:44 So if I need wisdom, strength or understanding, 25:47 I'm going to my Father. 25:48 And as I go to my Father, He will impart it unto me. 25:51 And the Bible lets us know 25:52 as assurance today to us as Christians 25:54 that when we run into the trials of life, 25:55 when we run into the challenges of life, 25:57 that "we can do all things through Christ, 26:00 who strengthens us" as well. 26:03 So it's a powerful benefit. Yeah. 26:04 And in another place in Proverbs 11:2, 26:07 another thing that could have come 26:08 to Daniel's remembrance in this time of crisis. 26:11 Proverbs 11:2. 26:13 It says, "When pride cometh, then cometh shame: 26:17 But with the lowly is wisdom." 26:20 So that meekness, 26:22 that humble spirit that Daniel possess, 26:24 knowing that he doesn't have it, 26:25 but that God does, 26:27 is exactly what's needed to, for a man to be elevated, 26:30 for a man to be honored by God. 26:32 It's not the pride that I can do it, 26:34 I have the answer, I got this. 26:37 That's where the fall comes. That's right. 26:39 That's where shame comes. That's where you get exposed. 26:41 Like the wise men, who tried to come 26:43 and sweet-talked the king, they got exposed 26:45 and they were about to lose their lives. 26:47 That's right. 26:48 And this is the point that God wants to bring to us, 26:50 a true knowledge of self, 26:52 recognizing that I don't have the answers. 26:55 I don't have the wisdom, I don't have the solutions 26:58 but God does. 26:59 And therefore, when we submit ourselves, 27:01 we don't have to submit to the impressing powers 27:04 that are around us. 27:06 And I want to say this to our viewers 27:07 that always remember, you don't have to submit 27:10 to the powers that are around us. 27:12 When something is exposed and we discover that 27:14 it is anti-God and anti-Christ, 27:16 anti-Bible, anti-productivity, 27:19 then we can submit our will to God 27:21 and say, Lord, show me a new way. 27:22 Give me a new way. Give me wisdom. 27:25 And as God imparts it to us, He's gonna show us 27:27 how to walk in that wisdom 27:30 as God Himself is in that wisdom 27:31 and he will bless us beyond our expectations. 27:34 We want to thank you all for joining with us today. 27:36 This was a powerful study, 27:37 once again, of understanding a true knowledge of self. 27:41 May God continue to bless you. 27:43 We pray that you'll get your Bibles out 27:44 and study to show yourselves approved unto Him 27:46 and learn of Him. 27:48 And you will find that He will bless you 27:49 beyond your expectations. 27:51 Well, our time is up 27:52 and always remember Proverbs 2:6 27:55 that "it is the Lord that gives us wisdom 27:57 and out of His mouth 27:58 comes knowledge and understanding." |
Revised 2016-03-03