Daniel Part #2-God's Strategy to Protect and Advance in a Bad Harvest 2-22-09

Daniel Part #2

God’s Strategy to Protect and Advance

In the Midst of a Bad Harvest

2-22-09

Daniel

·                    In the midst of a bad harvest

·                    Review History

·                    Daniel and friends

·                    US in bad harvest

Chapter 1—

·                    See Enemy’s Strategy to Destroy (In bad harvest)

·                    God’s Strategy to Protect and Advance (In bad harvest)

Enemy’s Strategy to Destroy

·                    Come Against the Younger Generation of Leaders

o       Talked last week about—Hitler—strategy—young—outlive

·                    Attack their Royal Inheritance

o       Talked last week about afraid of royal ID—enemy strip away

o       Royal priesthood

·                    Change the Way They Think

o       Mindsets

·                    Change Their Identity (Name)—Talked last week . . . .

·                    Taking them Out By Getting Them To Open Subtle Doors To Darkness

GOD’S STRATEGY TO PROTECT and ADVANCE (In bad harvest)

Call to be RADICALLY Obedient

Radical Obedience released RADICAL Advancement/Favor

8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way.

Interesting thing—in middle of bad harvest

·                    Everything SHIFTS

·                    One day—royalty—nobility

·                    Next in den of Magicians/captivity/idols

·                    Remember Judah had been backsliding

o       Perhaps, atmosphere ‘mixed’

o       Idols + God

Daniel and friends had RADICAL choice

·                    When you are in the MIDST of a bad harvest—you will have to make a RADICAL Choice!!!!!!!

·                    Would they ‘go with the flow’

·                    KEEP sliding with world

·                    OR Radically align with GOD

Everything Changing

·                    Navigating an avalanche—SWIMMING in snow!!!!

In a lot of ways—bad harvest

·                    Nationalizing banks—healthcare

·                    Avalanche of change in US

When avalanche hits

·                    You can let it bury you

·                    Or swim with wisdom

When earthquake comes

·                    You can let it fall all around you

·                    Or align with strength

Family in tornado in South—run to bathroom—safe

When Daniel saw slide

·                    Idol food

·                    Swam against it

·                    Aligned rightly

·                    RADICALLY OBEYED

It didn’t make sense to those who watched

·                    After all—it was just food

·                    Everyone else went with the flow—why couldn’t they?

But because he did

·                    Opened doors of blessing for D and F

·                    Positioned them to have a voice in their LAND—Generation

·                    Application 2009

• No compromise

5 The king assigned them a daily amount of food and wine from the king’s table. . . . . .

8 But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. 9 Now God had caused the official to show favor and sympathy to Daniel, 10 but the official told Daniel, “I am afraid of my lord the king, who has assigned yourc food and drink. Why should he see you looking worse than the other young men your age? The king would then have my head because of you.”

11 Daniel then said to the guard whom the chief official had appointed over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, 12 “Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink. 13 Then compare our appearance with that of the young men who eat the royal food, and treat your servants in accordance with what you see.” 14 So he agreed to this and tested them for ten days.

He Resolved to Feed On the Right Stuff

That is a key in the midst of a bad harvest

·                    You and I are going to have to make a CHOICE

·                    What will we FEED on??

o       Mind

o       Heart

o       Emotions

It’s VITAL you watch your DIET!!!

Action

In midst of bad harvest

·                    How will we respond with our actions?

Ps 1—sit in seat of scoffers?

·                    Complainers

·                    Poison our lives

·                    In everything give thanks—Betsie/Corrie ten Boom

When feed on right stuff—you can see with faith

·                    Does this mean denial?

·                    No—it does mean capacity for FAITH

What are you FEEDING on in bad harvest?

·                    It’s VITAL you watch your diet!!!

This is a time when we need to be RADICALLY OBEDIENT

·                    They won’t get why I won’t—but I can’t

·                    Daniel and Friends stepped into RADICAL obedience—God blessed them

·                    How do we navigate a season like we’re in?

Economy only one piece

·                    Anti-Christian sentiment

o       ‘Moral Culture’—Rick Ryan

o       Relativism—DEFINE

§        God raising radical obedience in face of relativism

·                    Predatory nature

o       Media

o       Culture

o       Anti-kingdom

·                    Wars—9-ll

·                    Instability

Called to Find the Narrow Way

·                    Needed to make a choice—How am I going to NAVIGATE a season like this???

·                    I’m in a land where everyone else is going this way

o       Do I go along?—Had to find the NARROW PATHWAY

So how do you do THAT??—Narrow Pathway???

·                    How foreign was this new land for Daniel/friends

o       Had been in royalty??

o       Raised to fear God

o       Magicians—etc—training

o       Demonic mindset

o       Demonic Food

o       And yet in the midst of this chaos—God had a narrow pathway for them

o       If they would ALIGN with Him—they could move INTO the new thing

Matt 7:13

13 “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell* is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. 14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

The Tree and Its Fruit

[1]

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.[2]

·                    Some of you in tough situation

·                    God has harrow pathway for you—NO COMPROMISE

·                    Adapting to the place he was in

o       Discovering God’s purpose in a foreign land

o       When life takes you some place you didn’t expect/plan on:

§        Job change

§        Single

§        Autism

§        Etc.

§        God is THERE in your MIDST

§        Hebrews Amplified Scripture—He is THERE

§        Lord your God in Your MIDST—right where you are!

·                    In midst of shaking/judgment—aligning with wisdom       

o       Gave self over to course of study

There IS a narrow pathway

·        In the world but not of the world

·        Wise as serpents harmless as doves

One of WAYS: 

o       EXCELLENCE

o       New thing—new language—new culture

Speak the language

·                    Good—missionary

·                    But DON’T forget  MOTHER TONGUE

·                    Balance—excellence without compromise

o       Wasn’t what he knew/was used to

o       Could have shut down—don’t want to

o       But instead—gave self to excellence

o       So God could POSITION Him for the new thing before Him

§        Shaking—repositioning

§        Wisdom in this place

o       (Perhaps could do something with there was an appointment before him in the new season—describe new season for Israel)

o       He needed to ‘jump the waves’—‘change surfboards’—as he navigated the chaos

o       Had decision—will I align with new thing (develop—there are divine appointments for alignment—opportunities)

o       Will I not compromise—stay aligned with God

o       Vegetables//Fruit/Water—First layer of fast

o       Not feasting on idol food—develop—research

The education in view doubtless involved astrology, divination and other ‘arts’. The young men needed to depend on the promise of Is. 3:1–3 long before the events of ch. 3!

Behind structure—there was a BIGGER Picture

·                    You hear about being mentored as MAGICIAN

o       Why?  Spiritual hunger—WAS THAT GOING ON???

o       False access

o       Daniel and friends—true access

§        World hungry TODAY

§        We’ve been given TRUE Access—but we need to ACCESS it—live in it

o       God anointed them to have the ANSWER in the midst of a kingdom of CONFUSION

Because they WALKED in the Narrow Pathway

o       They had the WORD for the season—the word that was needed

§        But they had a choice

§        Will they ALIGN with the word?

§        Will they find the NARROW pathway in the tough situation?

§        Will they step OUT in the place of influence?

§        Or will they GO WITH THE FLOW

§        And compromise?

This is a CORE decision that the Daniel and friends had to make

·                    OUT of that place of decision

·                    God used them as a voice

God Confirmed His Favor in SUPERNATURAL Ways

15 At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who ate the royal food. 16 So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.

His world had changed—turned upside down

As we navigate the narrow way

·                    Radically obedient

·                    Feed on right stuff

We’re going to SEE Favor of God expressed over our lives in supernatural ways

·                    Provision—blessing—wisdom

·                    Daniel and friends more healthy

·                    Looked DIFFERENT than world

·                    Favor on them

·                    Health

God wants to release divine health on us—in us—

God’s provision in hard times

·                    Watch for it

·                    Celebrate it—MAGNIFY the Lord in it

·                    It breaks authority of evil one

·                    Shuts access points

As we align—radical obey—feed right

·                    God will bring promotion–favor

·                    Watch for it

Daniel And Friends COMPLETED their SET Time

·                    Appointed Time

·                    Season

·                    18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in

·                    Appointed time for Daniel and friends

·                    Season of development

We are in a season of development

·                    And we need to give ourselves to God’s development in our lives

In midst of season—God DEVELOPING something in their lives

·                    They LET GOD WORK

·                    Kept pure

·                    Became schooled/trained

They weren’t sure what life would be at the fullness of time—no guarantees!

·                    But they gave themselves to GOD (Not the KING) in the SEASON in which they found themselves. 

·                    They knew God was working IN this tough season (‘In EVERYTHING God is at work . . ‘

United States entering a season

·                    God wants to work something in us in that season

·                    Are you giving self over to HIS training

o       Development—

Are you giving yourself over to the PROCESS of GOD in the season you are in?

·                    There was a PURPOSE behind all they were going through

·                    Would they align to it?

There is a PURPOSE to the turmoil we’re going through

·                    Will we align to it?

Radical Favor—Divine Promotion

18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. [3]

Godly Wisdom—Operated in a GREATER GIFT than the world had (change/modify/edit)

17Now as for these four youths, God gave them knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom: and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.[4]

20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom[5]

Out of the radical obedience

·                    Came supernatural wisdom/favor

·                    The word for NOW

o       World hungry for the NOW word

o       Dieing for it

o       Magicians—purpose to reveal mysteries—guide the way

o       Church is meant to be ones that HEAR the voice of God

o       Doesn’t come through witchcraft/manipulation

o       Comes from a vibrant relationship with the Living God

·                    Revealed to them mysteries

·                    Gave them a peak into big picture—saw things no one else had (develop/smooth out)

I truly believe in this hour

·                    World is hungry

·                    Looking everywhere

·                    Speak through church

·                    True alignment—voice in the land

·                    If we will step into this—God want so release into

Finally:

·                    Because radical obedience

·                    Fed on Right Stuff

·                    Found NARROW Pathway

God CONFIRMED favor

·                    Supernatural ways

·                    Divine PROMOTION

And STRATEGIC PLACMENT

Divine Placement

21 And Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus.

[6]

God positioned Daniel and friends to be a voice in the land

·                    Influence

·                    Leadership

This is our HOUR Body of Christ

·                    As we . . . .

·                    I believe God is going to give us DIVINE PLACEMENT

Africa ministry

·                    Plague

·                    Holiness

·                    Church gateway—

·                    God wants to release answer through HIS people

·                    Hope in the land

·                    Hungry

·                     

Position them to be VOICE in generation

·                    Radical sign to generation

·                    God is still the way—hang on

·                    Other side of 70 years—going to be brought back

·                    Radical Obedience opened MYSTERIES—eternity—visions

Need to do more with the fruit/blessing/release that came on the other side of their radical obedience.

18 At the end of the time set by the king to bring them in, the chief official presented them to Nebuchadnezzar. 19 The king talked with them, and he found none equal to Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah; so they entered the king’s service. 20 In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king questioned them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his whole kingdom. [7]

----

c The Hebrew for your and you in this verse is plural.

* Greek The road that leads to destruction.

[1]Tyndale House Publishers. (2004). Holy Bible : New Living Translation. "Text edition"--Spine. (2nd ed.) (Mt 7:13-15). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

[2]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Mt 7:13-14). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

[3]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Da 1:18-19). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

[4]American Standard Version. 1995 (Da 1:17). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

[5]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Da 1:20). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

[6]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Da 1:21-2:1). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

[7]The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Da 1:18-20). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.