Jentezen Franklin - Don't Forget His Dream - Part 2
Open your Bibles with me this morning, to the book of Genesis 42... "Now Joseph was governor over the land. And it was he who sold to all the people of the land. And Joseph's brothers came and bowed down before him with their faces to the earth. Joseph saw his brothers and recognized them, but he acted as a stranger to them, and spoke roughly to them. Then he said to them, 'Where did you come from?' And they said, 'From the land of Canaan to buy food.' So, Joseph recognized his brothers, but they did not recognize him, and noticed then". Everybody say, "Then". When he saw the brothers that had done him so wrong and saw the brothers that he had not seen in 20 plus years, "He remembered the dreams that he had dreamed about them".
What was the dream? If you read the book of Genesis in 37, 38, he dreamed of a harvest, and he saw those brothers bowing down in that dream. But he saw a harvest bowing down, the harvest bent over representing, Jesus said, "The harvest is ripe, souls, the lost". He remembered the dream when he saw his brothers. I want to talk to you for a few moments. And I'm really gon' preach to dreamers, and you'll say, "I don't have one". Well, you're in the right place today. Daniel 2, there's a strange dream that God gave Nebuchadnezzar, Babylonian king. And in the dream, it was so dynamic that it would shape the entire story of human history. He saw a statue in a dream that had a gold head, noticed the deterioration of human existence, kingdoms. It starts with gold, it has silver, brass, iron, and then ending with clay feet.
I believe, I believe prophetically and all of those different materials represented different kingdoms that have come and gone in human existence. I believe we're now at the clay feet. Everything could collapse. And in the dream, Nebuchadnezzar saw a stone, a simple stone start rolling down the hill and hit that statue that was so powerful of human ingenuity, and power, and glories, and kingdoms of kings and men. And that rock, that stone hit the feet, the clay feet and it collapsed and suddenly the King of kings and the Lord of lords said, "I brought a new kingdom to take over the world". But here's the amazing thing about this dream, he forgot it when he woke up.
You would think something that important, something that is historic and world-shaking, but he could not recall it. He forgot it and he said, "The thing," that's what he called it in Daniel 2, he said, "The thing has left me". So, he calls his magicians, and he calls his soothsayers, and his fortune tellers, and his witches, and he calls them in, and he says, "Tell me the dream and tell me the interpretation. I cannot bring it up. I can't remember it. I've forgotten the dream". And he said, "If you don't do it, I'm gonna kill you". I believe that a lot of people have forgotten the dream. And God needs to give a restoration of the dream to every person in this room.
You see, we don't just sing to sing, we don't just come to church, to come to church, we don't just do what we do to do it. The only reason that we're not in Heaven today, the only reason the rapture has not taken place yet, is because God is still trying to get somebody else saved. He doesn't want them to be left. He doesn't want them to go to hell. In the story of Joseph, the Bible said that, "Jacob, Joseph's father, loved him more than his other sons and made him a coat of favor, a coat of many colors that represented his favor on his son. And it upset the other brothers because his favor was on that boy in the form of that coat of many colors".
It's the favor of God upon His children, that I believe upsets hell as much as anything. And it's obvious to me, we don't take any credit, we're careful to give God the glory. But I just want to proclaim that God's favor is upon this church. That God's favor is upon this place. That God's favor is upon His people, and upon His families that are represented under the sound of my voice at all of our campuses. I don't have time to waste anymore, and I feel like saying, when the favor of God is on you, you need to recognize the favor of God is on you. Not for your glory, not for your fame, not for your name, but for his name and His Kingdom that will never end.
Turn to somebody and say, "The favor of the Father is here". I think about Esther, I think about how in the book of Esther God's name is not mentioned one time. It's the only book in the Bible God's name is not found in any form. He's not even mentioned. Not one time does it saying somebody prayed to God or anything. Esther... You remember the story of Esther? There's a man named Haman, he's gon' kill all the Jews including her, and hang Mordecai from a hanging noose. It's bad. And God is nowhere in the whole book of Esther, His name in no form is mentioned. Which tells me sometimes God doesn't autograph everything He's doing. He's just doing it. He's not telling you about it. He's not signing His initials on it. He's working even when you don't see it. He is working even when He's not announcing it or autographing it.
The stuff you lay awake and worry about, He's already sustaining it and saying, "Now the enemy has delayed and hindered, but I'm just gonna use that to get all of this junk out of you, Joseph. But when you get there, the dream will be sustained". Somebody shout, "My dream is alive. The dream is alive. The dream is alive". I have a dream, I wanna see revival come back to this nation that has lost its mind. And has turned it's back on God and is absolutely going in the wrong direction in almost every area. I want to see a Holy Ghost revival, that is the dream. It's not if I get this win in office or that happens, no man, nobody is gonna fix this nation, it's too far gone.
The only thing that can turn it around is revival. And if revival hits, look out. I don't believe we have to bury America. I don't believe we have to compromise and say, "Well it ain't what it used to be". It will be if we have revival, and somebody's gotta remember the dream. There are two things that could have stolen the dream from Joseph, and they are the same things that will steal your dream.
Number one, when he saw his brothers he remembered his dream, not his bitterness, not his animosity, not his anger. There is nothing that can steal our dreams like animosity toward our own family, our own brothers, our own sisters, our own mom, our own dad, our own son, our own daughter, our own father, our own mother.
There is nothing that will dry up and steal the dream more than you allowing bitterness to get in you and start hating someone, and wanting revenge. Instead of remembering their lies, instead of remembering the pit, instead of remembering the prison, instead of remembering all the things that he had gone through, he remembered the dream, and he realized if I hadn't gone through that, I couldn't be where I am. I would have not been in Egypt. What they did was wrong, but God meant it... They meant it for my evil, but God has used it for my good, so why should I be embittered against them? He remembered the dream.
Secondly, this is so important. Think of how the Bible described Joseph in the text, he's sitting as the governor of all the land, he has a coat that Pharaoh himself took off of his back, a robe, and put on him. And put his ring on his hand. He is living the blessings of palace life. In favor with the King, I mean he's ruling and reigning and on top of the world. And it's possible that maybe the reason he didn't remember the dream is he was so caught up in the party in the palace and the blessed life. Not that God didn't put him there, not that God didn't give him all of that, but it could not and was not supposed a great threat is the more God blesses us, we allow those things to steal the dream.
He got distracted with the palace. He got distracted with the party. He got distracted and forgot about the harvest. Forgot about the dream. The dream was about the harvest. It's almost like Joseph had completely forgotten what this was all about, and I'm afraid that's a picture of the church. The palace is a type of the church when we get saved. Do you remember the story? Joseph was in prison and he was in prison with the butler and the baker, and he said to the baker when he said, "I had a dream, interpret it". And he said, "Well in the dream you gon' get called up before the king, and they're gon' cut your head off". And then he moved quickly to the next person, and he said to the butler... 'cause that story's over. And he said to the butler, he said now, "In three days, you're gonna... You had a dream and here's the interpretation. In three days, you're going up before the king and he is going to restore you in the palace". And he had one request, "Don't forget me".
Don't forget those down here that are still in the prison. Don't forget how horrible it is, these chains, this prison house of sin. When you're back in the palace, when you're back in the favor, when you're enjoying the festivals, the palace life, the beauty and all of the blessings of a home, and everything that God has blessed you with. Don't forget the dream Joseph, don't forget. Joseph said, "Don't forget sir, the prisoners, the crying while you're partying. The crying while you're going to church and having a big time, somewhere there's prisoners dying, crying, sighing, lost hope". But the Bible said that when the baker made it to the king, he forgot him. He forgot the dream, he forgot Joseph, he forgot the prisoners.
When your dream begins to come to pass, and God calls you and pulls you out of sin and out of chains and out of prison houses, of addiction and pain and brokenness, and blesses you with His favor and His presence. Free Chapel don't ever forget the prisoners. Don't ever forget the people you've left behind. You were right there with them, but God, by His mercy, and grace, and favor, brought you out. And our job is to remember the dream, and not forget that harvest is still crying for somebody to reach, for somebody to care. And I believe we're living in a time where the Holy Spirit is saying, there's people crying, dying, and sighing, don't forget the prisoners.
Remember what the dream is about, it's not just about blessing you when you get in the palace, but it's about the harvest. Let the bitterness go, the unforgiveness go, the revenge go. Focus on the harvest because God has sustained the dream. Nothing they've done could kill that dream, 'cause God gave that dream. And the dream to see your family saved, God gave it. God gave it. It's sustained. I wonder this morning, how many veterans are in the room today? At every campus, how many veterans? Just raise your hand if you're a veteran, at every campus. Raise it high. Unashamed. I have never done this except this morning, but I want every veteran that will, to get out of your seat and come stand down here this morning.
Men and women, come on, come on, just come, just come up, just come. We love you. We thank God for you. I want you to come. I want every veteran in the house. If you've served in any of the branches, come, come, come. Everybody stand up on your feet. Don't move right now, this is a sacred moment. Unless you're a veteran, don't move. At every campus, I want every veteran in the room to come down front. Because somebody's gotta get a dream for America. Somebody's gotta believe that God could save America. We've come too far to watch the destruction and devastation that we're seeing in this nation. The cities are being overtaken with crime and violence and hell. The prisoners of sin... In the prison house of sin are crying out to a church that's having a party. "I'm ready, that's all that matters. I'm free, that's all that matters".
If we're not careful we forget the dream. God has so much more. And it starts with revival. You can't get it through politics. You gotta turn to God. You gotta turn back to God. We gotta stop being wicked people. We gotta quit doing wicked things. We gotta quit slaughtering the innocent. We gotta turn away from immorality. We gotta get back. Come on church, don't look at me funny. We don't have time to play those stupid little games. If we're not gonna stand up for the word of God, what are we here for? I'mma tell you something, it's on your money. I don't know how much longer it will be on your money, but it's on your money. "In God we trust". That's why we're great. That's why God's blessed us. That's why God's had His hand on this nation. In God we trust. Not in man, not in this, not in that, not in this humanism, in God.
With every head bowed and every eye closed, if you would say, "Pastor Jentezen, pray for me. I'm lost. I'm backslid. I'm far from God. I wanna get right with God. Pray for me". If that's you, boldly raise your hand. Don't hesitate, do it all over this room. Do it all over this room. Do it right now. If this message was for you and you know it, you need to have God restore the dream of living and serving Him. Keep that hand high. Every one of you that have your hand raised at every campus, get out of your seat and come stand up here on this platform with me or with the pastor that is there. Come right now.
If you raised your hand, come right now. Here they come. This is the miracle. This is the dream, this is the dream, this is sons and daughters bowing their knee. This is moms and dads. Come on, come on. Here they come. Pray. Pray soldiers, pray. Pray right now. God save America. Starting right here. God save America. Come on, here they come. Here they come. They're still coming. They're just streaming. Come on, come on, come on. Come on backslider. You're fighting it, quit fighting it and yield to God's love. Come on, come on. He knows your prison. He knows the chains. Don't worry about it. Come to Him, just as I am. Come on. They're coming, they're coming. Clap your hands. As long as they're coming, we gon' clap. Pray right now. Everybody pray out loud. Say these words:
Lord Jesus. I surrender my life. I turn it completely over to you. You are my savior. You are my Lord. You shed your blood. You died on Calvary's cross to save a wretch like me. And today I am forgiven. Today my name is written in the Book of Life. I renounce Satan. I renounce his evil deeds. And I give Jesus Lordship of my life. I receive it now. I'll never die. When I die, my spirit will live forever in Heaven. I am forgiven.
Praise the Lord. Throw your hands up gentleman and ladies and declare, I wanna close with this. "Yes Jesus loves me. Oh yes, Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves me. The Bible tells me so". Lift your hands all over the room and sing it again. Yes, Jesus. He still loves you, dear lady. He's smiling over your life right now. He's smiling where you're at right now. "Oh yes, Jesus". Yes. He knows your name. He knows who you are, and He loves you. "The Bible tells me so"! Sing it one more time. Throw your hands up in love and close your eyes and sing it to Jesus. Yes. "Jesus loves me. Yes, Jesus loves. Jesus loves me. Oh yes, Jesus loves me. The Bible tells me so".