In your dreams!
Daniel • Sermon • Submitted
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Has someone ever told you “In your dreams!”?...
Last week (9/20/20), a member approached me telling me about a dream she had had. She asked me what the meaning was. My answer was simply “I do not know!”
During this month, I had a couple of weeks that I dreamed every single night. It was really affecting my rest! Some I could remember the, others not.
Have you ever had one of those dreams that you could not remember? Generally, those are dreams that terrorize us.
That was Nebuchadnezzar’s situation…
God was using different means to speak to him and to make him react from his lost condition that was taking him to Hell.
Application to Christians!
Our daily problems appear “disguised” at night. Our daily anxieties become the monsters of the darkness.
Background:
Daniel and his friends had finished their training under the best Babylonian teachers. They passed with flying grades and were found 10 times wiser than all the king’s wise men.
It’s interesting that although the king acknowledged their wisdom, he did not go to them to get advice. Do you wonder why?… Maybe he was afraid of the answer!
- Application!
Dreams that speak!
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream serves to speak to us about three things:
I- The unbeliever’s condition. 2:1-13
I- The unbeliever’s condition. 2:1-13
A life focused on material things.
A life focused on material things.
- His empire was the greatest of that time. Magnificent constructions (hanging gardens).
- He had all things people think will make them happy… But he was miserably wealthy (foolish rich). He had it all, except that which cannot be bought with money: peace of God.
“For all these things the nations of the world eagerly seek; but your Father knows that you need these things. But seek His kingdom, and these things will be added to you.” Luke 12:30-31
A life of insecurity.
A life of insecurity.
1-3
- According to verse 3, he was anxious and troubled. Why, if he had it all?
- Because he had set his mind in the things that, ultimately, produce only dissatisfaction. That’s why the Bible says,
Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.
- He lived for the things of this world, the desires of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life.
- What are you living for? What are your goals?
- We were created for God’s glory. He has given us peace; but sometimes we let the worries of life to steal it from us.
- We’ll never be content if we seek security in material things.
Ilust. Rich/Poor
A life of hostility.
A life of hostility.
- He was a very cruel man. 5
- He did not trust anybody. 9
- His life was full of anger and wrath. 11-12
I have met many unbelievers who are merciless, full of anger against other and God, and mistrust anyone. That is not a happy life, it is miserable life!
Characteristics of a godly person.
Characteristics of a godly person.
2:14-30
He speaks with wisdom.
He speaks with wisdom.
Then Daniel replied with discretion and discernment to Arioch, the captain of the king’s bodyguard, who had gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon;
- The word for “discernment, wisdom” literally means “gusto, taste”…
- Christians, likewise, must be able to discern between good and evil, between pure and impure, and between godly and worldly.
- That kind of wisdom is not obtained through studies or age, but through obedience to God’s Word. “Daniel made up his mind that he would not defile himself…” (Dan 1:8)
- That decision got him the people’s respect.
Prayer is an important part of his life.
Prayer is an important part of his life.
Then Daniel went to his house and informed his friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, about the matter, so that they might request compassion from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his friends would not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
- They acknowledged their need and inability…
- They acknowledged God’s power.
- One of the things that distinguish Daniel is prayer!
When Daniel’s enemies during Darius’ kingdom convinced the king to sign an order prohibiting to pray to any, and praying only to him, Daniel disobeyed the order and went to pray to the only true God:
Now when Daniel knew that the document was signed, he entered his house (now in his roof chamber he had windows open toward Jerusalem); and he continued kneeling on his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before his God, as he had been doing previously.
- How does people distinguish you?
He is filled with a spirit of worship.
He is filled with a spirit of worship.
Worship is the acknowledgement of God’s character, sovereignty, majesty, and power. That is what Daniel did in v. 20-23
Daniel habló, y dijo: Sea el nombre de Dios bendito por los siglos de los siglos, porque la sabiduría y el poder son de El. El es quien cambia los tiempos y las edades; quita reyes y pone reyes; da sabiduría a los sabios, y conocimiento a los entendidos. El es quien revela lo profundo y lo escondido; conoce lo que está en tinieblas, y la luz mora con El. A ti, Dios de mis padres, doy yo gracias y alabo, porque me has dado sabiduría y poder, y ahora me has revelado lo que te habíamos pedido, pues el asunto del rey nos has dado a conocer.
A godly person does not miss the opportunity to worship God… Every Sunday, as the song states, “Come, it is time to worship...” (“Ven, es hora de adorarle...”)
The Necessity of proclaiming the true king.
The Necessity of proclaiming the true king.
2:31-49
In front of all without fear.
In front of all without fear.
- Daniel did not mind if the king would get upset when Daniel would mention the true king. Kings, and those in power, need to hear about Jesus, “the King of kings”.
- His life was in danger, but he could not be quiet about the everlasting king.
Illust. NT persecutions.
Not forgetting that we belong to Him.
Not forgetting that we belong to Him.
Your Majesty, you are the greatest of kings. The God of heaven has given you sovereignty, power, strength, and honor. He has made you the ruler over all the inhabited world and has put even the wild animals and birds under your control. You are the head of gold.
“He made you king, he gave you all you have”.
Let’s never forget that God is the owner of everything! He has given you all you have! All creatures belong to Him, He made them.
- As Christians, we were bought by price: the precious blood of Christ.
With the certainty that His kingdom will be established.
With the certainty that His kingdom will be established.
“In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.
When those kings (the Romans) were in power, Jesus came to establish His unending reign in the hearts of the believers.
Let’s obey the rules and commandments of our King!