Jentezen Franklin - The Ripple Effect of Consecration
Daniel 1. And I wanna speak to you this morning on something that is different. I’ve never shared this before, but I pray the Holy Spirit makes it real to you. I wanna talk about the ripple effect. The ripple effect. Just like you threw a pebble into the water, and you see the ripple effect. The Ripple Effect of Consecration. I’ll begin reading in Daniel 1, and we’ll just, for the sake of time, go to verse 4. «And so, they gathered them all together young men in whom there was no blemish, but good-looking, gifted in all wisdom, possessing knowledge and quick to understand,» the sharpest of the sharp. «Who had the ability to serve in the king’s palace, and whom they might teach the language and literature of the Chaldeans. And the king appointed for them a daily provision of the king’s delicacies of the wine which he drank, and three years of training for them, so that at the end of that time they might serve before the king. Now, from among those sons of Judah were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah».
Now, I just gave you the Hebrew names. You know them as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego because they changed their names. Changed their identity. «And to them the chief of the eunuchs gave names, he gave Daniel the name Belteshazzar; to Hananiah, Shadrach; to Mishael, Meshach; and to Azariah, Abed-Nego. But Daniel,» here’s my text, «Purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s delicacies, nor with the wine which he drank; therefore he requested of the chief of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Now God had brought Daniel into favor and goodwill with the chief of the eunuchs».
I will stop reading there, except I wanna quickly go to verse 19-20. «Then the king interviewed them, and he said, and among them all none was found like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, they served before the king. And in all matters of wisdom and understanding about which the king examined them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in the realm. Then Daniel continued until the first year of King Cyrus». So, I read a lot of scriptures and I wanna sum it up. Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He invaded Israel, and he took captive, we’re told this in several different passages in the scripture, 10,000 young people. He took 10,000 young people captive. And specifically, we’re given even more detail into that insight in this text. We would call the cream of the crop. The most talented, the most gifted, the best looking, the wisest, the ones who were…
Let me read you some of the translations of the verse I just read you. «The princes that had no blemish, exceedingly gifted, those that were very skillful in science. Groomed and taut». Another translation said, «Those that were exceptionally healthy, handsome, well educated, perfect specimens». He took 10,000 and enslaved them in a sophisticated way of slavery. Not like the old Egyptians working in brick houses. This was a different type. They were given a lot of things. And just four out of the ten thousand are we ever given a report on, and you just got the four. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Out of ten thousand that were taken back to build Babylon and its culture with their talents and gifts and everything that they had, their brilliance, we’re only told that four made it to the highest position possible to literally serve Nebuchadnezzar, and he turned to them like a filters to run everything by them that he did.
The book of Daniel gives us their names. But what stood out to me is the key to it all. The key to them being in that position of influence. Not only through the whole administration of Nebuchadnezzar, but then his grandson took over and all the way to Cyrus, the next three administrations over three generations about 40 years each, it’s amazing. And right in that circle of influence was Daniel, we know, and probably Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. We don’t hear much about them, but you have Daniel there, and he’s caught up in every one of those. It all came because of one thing that he did right here. It said, «But Daniel purposed within his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s meat and wine».
Now, what was the king’s meat and wine? It was meat that had been offered on altars to gods like Baal in worship of demonic gods, and false gods, and they had offered the meat and the animal on the altar. And then, the king would eat the meat that had been offered to false Gods, and drink the wine that had been on the altar. And the scripture said that Daniel made this consecration that, «I won’t eat the king’s meat». And the person over him heard about it who worked for Nebuchadnezzar, and he said, «You can’t do that. You can’t stop eating the king’s meat. You’re gonna look puny. You’re gonna look too skinny. You’re gonna look emaciated. I cannot let you do that».
And Daniel said, «I challenge you to something». He said, «You let me give up that meat that’s been offered to your Gods, and you let the rest of these kids eat this food, but you let me eat vegetables, and drink water, and give me granola». He asked for grain, granola, minus the sugar. And he said, «Give it to me. And after ten days, let’s see who’s the fairest of them all,» mirror, mirror on the wall. And after ten days, your Bible said that they looked fairer, Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were better looking, fairer and fatter, turn to somebody and say, «Watch that granola». Fatter, fatter than those who were eating the rich meat from the king’s table. And the king commanded that they be brought before him, and he chose them, and he said, «Let them stand before me in all matters,» for he found them ten times better than all the others standing by. All because a man was consecrated and had convictions.
And he said, «I’m gonna follow my convictions». It hits three more, it ripple effects on three more, and then the whole nation. All it takes is one young person to stand up in a youth group and say, «You know, if I’m good looking, it’s because God wants to use me. If I’m talented, it’s because God wants to use me. If I’ve got an advantage in life, if I’m smart, it’s because God wants to use me, and I want God to be number one in my life. And I don’t care what everybody else is drinking and what everybody else is doing. I want to be totally sold out to God». And when one person in the youth group says, «I’ll be that one,» Then the ripple effects hit Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and it starts hitting the whole youth group. Same thing can happen in a family. Amen?
My brother, Ritchie, who’s gone on to be with the Lord, he was the one who fasted so much more. He literally went on a 40 day fast and did nothing but drink water. But I went, just a typical Sunday morning. My dad was the pastor. He preached that morning. I don’t remember anything about any of that, and I didn’t care. I was sitting back there, just went in the church service wanting it to get over so I could get out and do my thing. And I sat down, and Ritchie knew that I wasn’t living right. He knew some things. You know, little tattletales would tell on you. And he was hearing all kinds of stuff. For some reason, when we all sat down, mom had fixed a big lunch after church. And she always had a spread and man, we were so hungry. And somebody said, «Where’s Ritchie»? And they said, «He’s fasting. He’s not coming to lunch».
And I didn’t know it until after the service that night, but he had been fasting for me. And I went to church that night, and he got up, and he felt led to sing before my dad was to preach, «At the cross, at the cross where I first saw the light». And there was something about the way that he started singing it that I was as rebellious as I could be, but it tore through all of that. And I got saved. And then, others started coming and they got saved 'cause they knew me and I had influence over them. So, I want you to see it. There’s Daniel and there’s Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. There’s my brother, Ritchie, and then his consecration touched me, and when I knelt, my consecration touched others. Still is today, for the glory of God. I’m telling you, there’s a power in consecration.
Now, where did this consecration come from in Daniel’s life? Where did it start? It’s a great question and it’s so important to understand. Because the Bible said in 1 Kings 22:1 that Shadrach, Meshach, Abednego, the reason they were impacted was because of Daniel. And what is interesting is guess who was king when Daniel was a little child. Guess who his leader was when he was just a young fella. Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned 31 years in Jerusalem, and his mother’s name was Jedidiah, the daughter of Adah of… who cares? Amen. Bozrah or whatever it is. It’s wearing my brain out trying to figure it out. I’m not preaching on them. I don’t care about them right now. The thing that is important. Eight years old. Is there an eight-year-old? Did you get me an eight-year-old?
Come up, come here, buddy. I wanna introduce to y’all Josiah. This is gon' be my little illustration right here. He became king at eight years old. Is there a 16-year-old young man here? Sixteen-year-old that would come here, come here 16-year-old. Watch this. Now, you stand right there. Grayson, that’s your name? No, your name is Josiah. Now, come here. Now, he’s eight years old when he begins to be king. And the thing that is so strange about this text is he did what was right, if you go on and read the rest of that verse, it says he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and followed the example of David. And he did not vary from the left or the right. He, at the age of eight, when he became sixteen, the Bible said that he felt stirred in his heart to begin to clean out the temple because the whole land was in idolatry.
And so, as they’re cleaning out the temple, they come across Moses' Ten Commandments and the law that Moses wrote from Genesis to the book of Deuteronomy. Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. All of those books. And when he heard it at the age of 16, 16, he said, «I want you to bring me those scrolls, and I want you to read me that word». I’m talking about the power of a consecration. And at the age of 16, he made them read to him Genesis all the way, in one city, all the way to the end of the book of Deuteronomy through all five books of the Old Testament, the first five books. He sat and he listened, and he listened, and he listened for how many hours, after hour, after hour, after hour. And at some point, the word of God began to affect a 16 year old, that in that sitting, the Bible said that he began to weep, he tore his robe, he ripped his clothes, he fell down, he was weeping and sobbing, he knew that Israel was backslidden and he starts saying, «We’re gonna do more than talk about it. We’re about to have a revival in this nation».
Now, I want you to see something else. Is there a young man at the age of 26 that can help me preach my sermon? Is there a 26-year-old? Well, come on. Oh, he’s really looking… come on, little preacher man. Come on, now. Here we go. Man, we didn’t plan this. Twenty-six-year-old man of God. He goes to the valley where they were burning their children alive in human sacrifices. Their babies, sacrificing them to false Gods, and he levels the places. He goes all over the nation, and he tears down the high places in Israel, he takes out the false priest, he burns down the houses of immorality, he burns down, and I mean at 26 years old. At 16, he had a consecration for the word. At eight, he was put in a place, he was different. He did what was right in the eyes of God even when he was eight something in him. And by the time that his reign was over, he was in his 40s. That’ll be me. I started to get somebody, but I thought I can play that part.
Can I show you what is astounding? As the 26-year-old Josiah is going through the land, and the Bible said there was no king like him. As a matter of fact, when he died, they were so sad. He had so impacted in 2 Chronicles 35:25, he impacted Jeremiah, and he lamented for Josiah according to 2 Chronicles 35:25. And to this day, all the singing men and women speak of Josiah in their lamentations. They made a custom for Israel indeed they have written this in the laments, or the book of Lamentations. That text is saying the whole book of Lamentations, all the weeping of Lamentations has to do with Josiah, who was so committed and so consecrated to God, that he touched people like Jeremiah and Daniel, one human being. But he goes and rides up to Northern Israel, the last thing he does when he’s in his 40's. And when he gets to northern Israel, he sees a graveyard of kings that did evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord stirs him.
And he says, «Dig their bones up and tear their sepulchers down and their grave places down. And burn their bones». And in the middle of it, there is this verse in 1 Kings 13. And he says now, «I wanna ask you a question. What is this sepulcher over here»? And he said, «Well, this is the sepulcher of a prophet». And this is what he said. «There was a prophet who prophesied, 'Behold 344 years Mr. Josiah. Before you were ever eight, or 16, or 26, or 40 something, 344 years ago, there was a prophet who looked at the evil king that was there named Jeroboam. And he said, 'Jeroboam, you feel big, and strong, and mighty, but there’s coming one day in the future, 344 years from now, there will be a young king by the name of Josiah who will be born, and he will burn your bones.'»
I believe that there is a call on this generation. That it’s not too late for revival, but God needs one person who will say, «I’ll consecrate my life to Him». And it’s astounding and it’s astonishing, that before he was ever born 344 years plus, that a 8 year old would become king. At 16, he would devour the word of God. And at 26, he would tear down the false idols all over the nation. And in his 40's, when he burned all the bones of those kings, and he said, «You leave that sepulcher alone if that old prophet’s bones is in there 'cause he called my name out before I was ever born». He didn’t know it when he was here, and here, and here. But there was a prophecy over his life that was working for 344 years. And the power of consecration through every phase of life got him to that moment of fulfillment where he burned the bones of that evil king. Consecration matters. Dedication to God matters.