Greg Laurie - Dream On! (12/07/2018)
- Watch
- Donate
- Become Partner
Pastor Greg Laurie highlights Daniel's unwavering stand for God from youth to old age, showing how faithfulness brings blessing and influence, as seen in his health after refusing the king's food and his long career under multiple kings. Through the king's dream in Daniel 2, he reveals God's sovereignty over history's kingdoms, ending with Christ's eternal kingdom crushing all others, urging us to pray in crisis, hold our course, and live with godly purpose.
Standing Firm for God Impresses Even Non-Believers
Here we have this man enforcing the king's will, and he goes along with the plan of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, reminding us that when you take a stand for the Lord on principle, even non-Christians are impressed. They are. And you know why non-Christians are impressed? It's because courage and conviction and principle are in such short supply these days.
Proverbs 16:7 says, “When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” So the ten days pass, and guess what? Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were healthy and strong. In fact, they looked better than the people that had eaten all that other food from the king's table, reminding us of this single point: When we make our stand for what is true, God will bless us, and a little with God is better than much without Him.
The Long-Term Blessings of Godly Choices
You know, what do we really miss in life? When we as Christians choose to not get on that merry-go-round of selfishness, drinking, drugs, partying, illicit sex, etc. You know, you go your way in life, and I'll go mine. And so you say, okay, I'm gonna just live for pleasure. I'm gonna do whatever I want. I'm not gonna be faithful to my spouse. I'm not gonna care about my kids. I'm gonna pursue my passions. Okay, fine.
And the Christian says, I'm gonna be faithful to my spouse. I'm gonna raise my children in the way of the Lord. And I'm gonna do what God wants. Now let's fast forward ten years. Now let's add ten more years. Now let's add ten more. And let's add even ten more. And now we're getting later in life. Let's see who made the right decision.
And I guarantee, when you get to that point, if you put God first and the principles of Scripture first, you will come out in the end and know that you made the right decision when the other person is reaping the massive consequences of their actions over and over again. And you know what, Daniel... Go ahead and clap for that. Someone wants to. They get credit. They start it first.
Daniel's Lifelong Faithfulness and Influence
And Daniel held his ground at the very end. Look at Daniel 1:21. Daniel remained there until the first year of King Cyrus. Now understand what that means. When Daniel was taken captive, he was a young boy. Nebuchadnezzar was in charge. Later, Belshazzar was in charge. Remember? The writing on the wall. We'll get to that later.
And then along comes Cyrus and the Medo-Persian forces. And they overcome Belshazzar. And Daniel is still a counselor to the king. Meaning that Daniel had been in a place of influence for 50 years. And no one could find a bad word to say about him. You know what this reminds me of? Billy Graham.
Billy Graham who lived 99 years. When Billy started his ministry, President Truman was in office. And we were wrapping up World War II. And then along came President Eisenhower. And then President Kennedy. And then President Johnson. And then President Nixon. And then President Carter. And then President Reagan. And President Bush Senior. And then President Clinton, of course. And then President Bush, the younger. And then all the way to President Obama.
Billy Graham has been in this place of influence. And he has been a counselor to presidents. And a pastor to our country, and a man of integrity. Billy made the world's most admired men list more than anyone in history. He was the right man in the right place at the right time.
Carrying the Torch of the Gospel
And then people say, who's gonna take Billy Graham's place? Ready for the answer? Nobody. And now let me expand the answer. A lot of people. No one can be the next Billy Graham. No one can stand in the shoes of Billy Graham, but you can be the next you. And you can be the next person that God will use in the area he has placed you.
See, our job is not to take the mantle of Billy Graham. Our job is to carry on the torch that Billy carried. And it's a torch of the gospel that must be passed from generation to generation. Because every generation needs to hear the gospel.
Daniel was that man in his day. Billy was that man in our day. And there'll be other men and women, I might add, that God will raise up—the right people at the right time. The Daniels, the Davids, the Peters, the Pauls, the Esthers, the Deborahs. The list goes on. And so, that's why you need to make your stand for Christ now. These guys did it when they were kids. And now when they're older men, they're still making that stand. And they pass the test.
The King's Troubling Dream from God
Okay, so that brings us to what we're looking at right now. And that is that the king has a dream. And it's a doozy of a dream. I don't know if it's because he had too much pizza the night before. Probably not. I don't think they had pizza back in those days. But I had pizza before I went to bed not long ago. And I had like a technicolor dream. It's like I was in a movie, right? That's the power of pepperoni right there.
And, you know, the king had a dream, but this was not one influenced by food. This is a dream that was actually influenced by God himself. The Lord gave to the king a dream that was effectively a flyover of human history. So the king wakes up, and the weird thing is, is he knows he had a very significant dream, but he can't remember it.
So he calls together all these people that are supposed to have the answers. The so-called wise men. Astrologers. Astronomers. All those people that were supposed to hear from the gods. So he says, bring them in. Bring in the palm readers. The clairvoyants. The mediums. Bring their crystal balls. Their tarot cards. Their Ouija boards. Hey, bring the Jumanji game. I don't care. Figure this thing out for me. Tell me my dream.
The Impossible Demand and God's Answer
He says, I'll make you guys a deal. If you tell me my dream, I'll shower you with riches and honor. If you don't tell me my dream, I'll tear you limb from limb and burn your house down. How does that sound? And they're saying, well, wait, wait. Hold on, king. We can't tell you your dream. Tell us the dream and we'll interpret it.
He goes, no. Well, if you're legit, you'll know the dream and the interpretation. And that's where we pick up in Daniel 2:8. The king replied, “I know what you're doing. You're stalling for time. Because you know I'm serious when I say, if you don't tell me the dream, you're doomed. So you've conspired to tell me lies hoping I'll change my mind. Tell me the dream and I'll know that you can tell me what it means.”
Now they make a true statement. Verse 11. “The king's demand is impossible. No one except the gods can tell you your dream. And they do not live here among people.” That's very true. But actually, though the gods didn't have the answer, God had the answer. And God had his men on earth and his name was Daniel. And the Lord had him on direct dial. He could just push his name and Daniel would answer the phone.
And he spoke to Daniel. Daniel was a man on earth who had connections in heaven. And guess what? You're a man, you're a woman on earth that has the same. Your prayers are heard by God.
Prayer in Crisis: Daniel's Response
So the king's henchman, Ariok, storms into Daniel's house to kill him. Daniel and the boys are saying, wait, wait, hold on. What are you doing? We're killing all the wise men because they can't tell the king his dream. And they say, hold on, give us a little time. That brings us to Daniel chapter 2, verse 17.
Daniel went home and told his friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. By the way, those are the original Hebrew names of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. He told them what happened. He urged them to ask the God of heaven to show them His mercy by telling them the secret so they would not be executed along with the other wise men of Babylon.
That night, the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Very important. Now, stop there. Daniel did exactly what God told us all to do when trouble comes. Pray. How many of you are facing trouble or difficulty right now? Raise up your hand. It's okay. Don't be embarrassed. All right. Here's what you need to do. Pray.
The Power of United Prayer
Here it comes. I don't know what to do. I don't know the answer. I'm having problems with my husband. Problems with my wife. Problems with my kids. Problems at work. Problems with the cat. Always the cat. Whatever. I'm joking. Because cats are always a problem. Thus you will always have problems with them. But still, I digress. I just like to keep the cat people hating me. Because if I let it rest, they stop. And then I bring it up again and they hate me some more.
I don't know. I actually like cats. I just like to provoke cat people. I think that's really what it is. Cats don't care what I say. They care very little. I'm very popular in the cat community. I don't know if you know that. And they have a community. All right. So. Trust me. That was not in the notes. All right. That's just... So they prayed. That's what we should do.
What did Esther do when there was an edict out to eradicate the Jewish people from the face of the earth? She effectively prayed. She said to Mordecai, her uncle. Get everyone together. Tell them to fast and to pray for me. The Lord answered their prayer. And the Jewish people were spared.
What did the early church do when James was arrested and then executed? And then on the heels of that, Peter was arrested. We read in Acts 12. The church of constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. They prayed. And what happened? Peter was released from the prison. And here we see Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego praying together. And what happens? The Lord reveals to them the dream of Nebuchadnezzar. He reveals to them the secret and its interpretation.
Secrets Revealed to Those Who Fear God
Pastor Greg will continue his message, Dream On, in just a moment. Psalm 25:14 says, “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him.” We all like secrets, right? I mean, you could be sitting in a restaurant, you know, and your table is right next to somebody else. And they are having a conversation. And you can hear it, but you know, you are not going to eavesdrop. Until they say this, “Let me tell you a secret.” And all of a sudden, what? What's a secret? I don't know you, but what's a secret? Love secrets.
My grandkids were smaller. They are smarter now. But I would say, Now we can go into this restaurant the regular way. Or we can go the secret way. Who wants to go the secret way? They don't raise their hand. We want to go the secret way, Papa. And I just take them in the side door. And they thought it was really special. Like an adventure, right? We love secrets.
Here is the interesting thing that we ought to consider. A believer has a better handle on what is happening in the world. Some of the so-called experts. The geopolitical experts. The military experts. And why do we have greater insight than some of them? Because we believe what the Bible says. We know what's going to happen. The secret of the Lord is with those that fear Him.
Daniel Gives God the Glory
Jesus said to the Father in Matthew 11, “Oh Father, thank you for hiding these things from those who think themselves wise and clever. And revealing them to the childlike.” So now Daniel is appearing before King Nebuchadnezzar. And he wants to make it very clear to the king that this interpretation he's about to reveal has come from the Lord.
Look at Daniel 2:27. Daniel said, “There are no wise men, enchanters, magicians, or fortune tellers who can reveal the king's secret. But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets. And He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar what will happen in the future. Now I'll tell you your dream and the visions you saw as you lay on your bed. While your majesty was sleeping you dreamed about coming events. He who reveals secrets has shown you what is going to happen. And it's not because I'm wiser than anyone else that I know the secret of your dream. It's because God wants you to understand what was in your heart.”
I love that. What is Daniel doing? He's giving God the glory. Make sure you do that too. You do a job well done. You do a well done job or something happens. Someone says, “Man, you're just the most caring person. You're such a compassionate person. Oh, I love that thing that you did.” Or, “Hey, you know what? The Lord helped me do it.” You're so successful in business. “Lord helped me do it.” Hey, you're a great minister. “Well, that's the Lord coming through. Thank you for that nice compliment. But I have to give the glory to God.” Always make sure you give the glory to God. Don't keep it.
Biblical Patterns and Knowing God's Will
And Daniel had a good biblical template to follow here. And that template was a story of Joseph in the book of Genesis. A very similar story, remember? Joseph, too, had the ability to interpret dreams. He was thrown in prison on false charges. And while he was in prison, it became known to him that the Pharaoh had a dream that no one could interpret. But Joseph could interpret dreams. So he was brought before the Pharaoh. And he told him what his dream meant. And the Pharaoh put him in a position of influence as a result. Very similar.
Which brings up a very simple point. And that is, the Bible tells us how to live in life. This is why you need to know your Bible. This is why we study the stories of the Bible. And the teachings of the Bible. This is why we memorize passages from the Bible. So you start learning how to think biblically. Because I'm gonna tell you something. The best way to know the will of God is to know the word of God.
And I think some people are running around trying to get a direct revelation from God. They want the Lord to give them a word from heaven. “Order the cheeseburger, my child. Now, do this, turn right, turn left.” Let me tell you something. Most of the time when I found myself smack dab in the middle of the will of God, it's not because I heard a word from the Lord. It's because I was just living by the word of the Lord. Just applying biblical principles.
So a situation comes up and I think, wait. There's a story in the Bible I just read that had a very similar situation. And I'm gonna apply that here. Oh, I just thought of this verse that I memorized. It totally applies to this thing. And then you apply those verses and live biblically and you'll find you're walking in God's will. That is what really Daniel was doing.
The Interpretation of the King's Dream
Oh yeah, Joseph, the Lord gave him the interpretation. Now I'm gonna give the interpretation to the king and I'm gonna give God the glory. So here's what the king saw. He saw a giant statue. And the statue had a head of gold. And it had chest and arms of silver. It had a belly and a thigh made out of bronze. It had legs of iron and feet of clay and iron mixed together. And then a rock that was carved out of a mountain smashed the toes.
How do you interpret a dream like that? God gave to Nebuchadnezzar a flyover of the great kingdoms of the world. Daniel interprets this for him. And we'll get into this later when we get deeper into Daniel. But verses 37 to 38, the head of gold was a representation of Babylon. And the Babylonian kingdom in Nebuchadnezzar. Babylon lasted from 636 to 539 BC. Jeremiah called Babylon a golden cup in the Lord's hand. So Babylon was a head of gold.
And notice how the metals go down and they become less valuable. Gold is the most valuable. Now we find that it has chest and arms of silver. A lesser nation than Babylon. The Medo-Persians under the leadership of Cyrus conquer the Babylonians. And that kingdom lasted from 539 to 330 BC.
Then there are the belly and the thighs of brass. Verses 39 to 40. That represents the kingdom of Greece. Led by Alexander the Great. Who conquered the Medo-Persians. The kingdom of Greece lasted from 330 to 63 BC.
And now here's where it really gets interesting. The legs of iron and feet of clay. That's the Roman Empire that lasted a long time. From 63 BC to AD 470. But then it has the toes. Ten toes. Feet of clay. Toes. You've heard the expression. He has feet of clay. Meaning they're vulnerable. They're human. That's where that expression came from. Feet of clay. Toes of clay. That are crushed by a giant rock.
The Rock: Christ's Eternal Kingdom
Have you ever dropped something on your toes? Oh man, that hurts. Big old rock cut out of a mountain. Boom! Drops on the toes. They shatter. What is this? There's a revival of sorts of the Roman Empire in the end times. And a world leader emerges on the scene with ten nations confederated behind him. He's identified in the Bible as the Antichrist. The beast.
And then his kingdom is destroyed by a rock. What is the rock? The interpretation. Daniel chapter 2:44. “During the reigns of those kings, the God of Heaven will set up a kingdom that'll never be destroyed or conquered. It'll crush all these kingdoms into nothingness. And it will stand forever.”
This is the meaning of the rock cut from the mountain, though not by human hands, that crushed to pieces the statue of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. It's a great God showing the king what will happen in the future. The dream is true. And the meaning is certain. What is the rock? It's Christ returning. And shattering these false kingdoms. And establishing His kingdom on the earth while He rules as King of kings and Lord of lords.
Takeaway Truths for Every Believer
So let's wrap this up. What are the takeaway truths? What are the takeaway truths that we've learned together? Number one. We win in the end. We win in the end. That's clear. Read the last page of the Bible. You'll see.
Number two. When crisis hits, we need to pray. That's what Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego did. Never back down. Never give up. Number three. We need to hold our course to the very end. Daniel did. And you'll be glad you did. Not give in to the enticements of this culture.
Maybe six months. Maybe a year. Before we went to heaven. I was having lunch with Pastor Chuck Smith. Chuck was a man of few words, by the way. I mean in the pulpit he would give messages. But when you hung out with Chuck privately, which I did many, many times. He was not the most verbose person. He would give rather kind of short answers.
And so I was sitting with him and I said, so Chuck, I have a question for you. If an older Chuck could speak to a younger Chuck, what would you say to yourself? What is the message you would pass on to a younger version of you? In between bites of whatever he was eating, Chuck looked up to me and said, “Hold the course.” Went back to eating again.
I'm like, hold the course. What does that mean? He just sort of looks at me. I said, like keep doing what you're doing? Right. Oh, like keep reading the Bible? Mm-hmm. Yeah, so just keep praying. Just keep walking with the Lord? Right. Hold the course. Goes back to eating. It's just like, he's probably saying, go away. I want to eat lunch. But really he was giving a really important point. Hold the course. Chuck did that throughout his life. Daniel did that throughout his life. And we need to do that throughout our lives. Hold the course.
Living with Godly Purpose and Character
Final point. We should be people of character and purpose. That's what we're told about Daniel in verse 8 of chapter 1. He made up his mind not to defile himself, or literally, he purposed in his heart. I love that phrase. Purposed in his heart. Dare to be a Daniel. Dare to stand alone. Dare to have a purpose firm. Dare to make it known. Will you be a Daniel? Are you a person of purpose?
Paul wrote to Timothy and said, you have fully known my purpose. And what was that purpose? Paul says in Philippians, my determined purpose in life is to know Him and the power of His resurrection being made conformable to His death. Lewis paraphrase. My purpose, my reason for existence is to know God. And to become more like Christ.
That's our mission statement here at Harvest. Knowing God and making Him known. What is your purpose? Everybody has one. Knowing God? Is your purpose? Knowing God? Is your purpose becoming more like Christ? Some people might say, well, my determined purpose in life is to have fun, man. All I want to do is have some fun. I've got the feeling I'm not the only one. Yeah, right, whatever. Show a crow lyric. Or my purpose in life is to enjoy pleasure. Or my purpose in life is to make money. Or my purpose in life is to be successful.
Listen, you should not be seeking pleasure but purpose. Don't be seeking success. Seek significance. Be a man of purpose. Be a woman of purpose. And I'm telling you, all these things you chase after, the things that matter will come back to you. And the things you don't need won't.
You want pleasure? You won't find it in the things this culture offers. But if you walk with God, you'll have, yes, more fun than the non-believer. Because you'll have a deeper joy and a real happiness that's guilt free. You don't have to wake up with a hangover in the morning. You don't have to live with a guilty conscience. You don't have to face the ramifications of all the bad decisions you made that come to haunt you for years to come.
Instead, you'll have the blessings of God follow you. As Psalm 23 says, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” That's the Christian life. That's the life we want to live.