Dreams, Yes. Revelation, Please! | Dream Again - Part Three | Sunday Service

The Lord is here this morning to meet us in a powerful way.

I'm just going to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit today and shift a few things in our service this morning.

The whole thrust of my message today is how God wants to do the impossible through you.

I'm going to be preaching out of Daniel chapter 2.

Daniel 2 · chapter mention

Story where Nebuchadnezzar has a dream and makes a request that is beyond any kind of request that's ever been requested before.

And no one can do it, but Daniel steps to the forefront to do the impossible so that God cannot just be made known so that he can be glorified, so that people can be saved, so that his purpose can be promoted.

I want to declare over your life this morning that God's getting ready to put you into some situations that are going to look impossible in the natural.

But the Bible says, through him who believes, all things are possible.

So I'm going to ask you just to be seated right where you are this morning.

I'm going to allow the worship team to kind of go back, but don't go far.

Caleb, you got to stay.

Because I'm not going to be incredibly long this morning.

There's an interesting fault about the person of Daniel in Scripture.

The Bible tells us that Daniel was one who did difficult things.

That he had this incredible quality, this incredible characteristic of solving problems that no one else could solve.

That God supernaturally gifted him with the ability to do what no one else could do.

In church and theological circles, many times we allude to this as the Daniel anointing.

That there's an anointing that God desires to pour out upon his people that enables us to do impossible things.

That he enables us to solve difficult problems, to bring revelation where there is confusion.

That he wants to pour out his spirit on you in such a way that you're going to be able to do things that you never could have done before, things that you cannot do in your natural ability, and it's for one reason.

So God gets the glory.

And when God gets the glory, you know what happens?

People get saved.

His purpose gets promoted.

So I need you to hear me this morning that God is going to enable you, He's going to empower you, He's going to pour out His Spirit upon you so that you can do impossible things, not so that you get the glory, not so that you get promoted, but so that God gets the glory, and those around you cannot deny it.

That God wants to move in you and through you in such a way that it's undeniable.

I'm ready for God's activity to be so powerfully present that it's undeniable.

Daniel chapter two shows us how this begins to transpire in our lives.

Daniel chapter two, we're going to read just the first few verses to kind of set the context of the story that is happening in Scripture and how God supernaturally uses a man named Daniel to literally change an empire.

Do you realize what can happen when God does something impossible through you?

It doesn't just change your life, it doesn't just change those around you, it has the power to affect the very fabric of a culture, and our culture needs an encounter with Jesus.

Our world needs an encounter with Jesus.

Well, how does that happen?

It happens when God does something impossible through us.

When God does something that is completely undeniable, that people on the outside look at and say, only God, only there must be a God.

And your God is the God.

I want to live my life in such a way so that when people look at me, they don't see me, they see the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.

I want Him to do some things in my life and through my life and in your life and through your life that those around you would say, only God could do that, and they run and they bow at the feet of Jesus.

Starting in verse 1.

In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams.

His mind was troubled and he could not sleep.

So the king summoned the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, the astrologers.

Let me let me summarize that for you, the wise men of Babylon.

To tell him what he had dreamed.

And when they came in and stood before the king, he said to them, I have had a dream that troubles me, and I want to know what it means.

Can I pause here just for a second for you?

It's one thing to have a dream, it's another thing to know what the dream means.

We've been talking about dreams.

The theme for our church this year is dream again.

And and it and I believe that God is divinely depositing dreams, new dreams, fresh dreams, impossible dreams in our lives.

But it's one thing to have a dream, it's another thing to know what that dream means.

This is where King Nebuchadnezzar is.

He's had a dream and he knows it means something.

He knows that it matters, he knows that it has significance, but the purpose is lost on him.

Then the astrologers answered the king, the wise men say, May the king live forever.

Tell your servants the dream, and we will interpret it.

This makes sense, doesn't it?

Tell me your dream, and I'll give you the revelation of it.

I'll tell you what it means.

That's a normal kind of request.

And then the king replied to the astrologers, this is what I have firmly decided.

If you do not tell me what my dream was and interpret it, did you hear what he just asked for?

Do you hear what his request was?

It's it's it's it's somewhat natural to have a dream and tell somebody else the dream and then give you some form of an interpretation of it.

But but to make this kind of request to say to someone else, not only do I want you to interpret the dream, but I want you to tell me the dream I had last night in my mind.

That's unreasonable.

How many guys would say that's unreasonable?

That's that's just that's just too far.

That's that's not possible.

The impossible I can do all things through Christ.

This is an impossible request, and and and watch the wise men's reaction to this request.

Let me let me finish what the king says.

He says, I firmly decided if you do not tell me my dream and what it was and interpret it, this is what he says.

I will have you cut into pieces and your houses turned into piles of rubble.

This is a bad day.

How many of you have had some bad bosses in your day?

If any of the staff raise their hands, you will see how bad a day it is.

How many of you have had a leader, a boss, a manager make a difficult request of you?

Yeah, yeah.

All of us at some level are how many of you have not just had a difficult request, but but it's an impossible request?

It's just, it's not feasible.

It's it's not it's not possible.

Well, how many of you have had a request that was so difficult that was so impossible that your life was literally on the line for it?

Anybody?

If you're here today, we have counseling services.

I mean, we've we've all had things asked of us that was difficult and hard and unreasonable, maybe even impossible, but we've never had a request like this, where your life is literally on the line, your house is getting ready to be turned into rubble.

This is a difficult, difficult, difficult request.

If you tell me the dream, Nebuchadnezzar says, verse 6, and explain it to me, you will receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor.

So tell me the dream and interpret for me.

And in verse 7, and once again they replied, let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will interpret it.

I like their response.

They're like, wait, you're you're just being unreasonable.

You're you're you're asking something that's not possible.

It's it's it's above and beyond what anyone has has ever asked before.

Then the king answered, I'm certain that you're just trying to gain time because you realize that this is what I have firmly decided.

And if you do not tell me the dream, there's only one penalty for you.

You have conspired to tell me misleading and wicked things, hoping the situation would change.

How many of you have argued with somebody above you so that the situation may change?

So then tell me the dream, and we'll know what to interpret it.

And the wise man answered the king again there is no one on earth who can do what the king asked.

No king, however great and mighty, has ever asked such a thing of any wise man before.

Not only can we not do this, it's never been done.

And it's so far beyond the realm of possibility that it's never even been asked of anyone before.

What the king asks is too difficult.

No one can reveal it to the king except the gods, and they do not live among humans, but our God does.

This made the king so angry and furious that he ordered the execution of all of the wise men of Babylon.

So the decree was issued to put the wise men to death, and men were sent to look for Daniel and his friends to put them to death.

Our human tendency, our natural fleshly tendency, is to back away, to avoid, to run from impossible requests that are made of us.

If we are in this situation, we are like the wise men here.

We are trying to argue with the king, we are trying to work our way around the request.

We may even try to run from it, avoid it.

Come on, somebody, you know what I'm talking about.

That's what we do in this situation.

But what if, oh, I need to, I need you to hear me this morning.

But what if these impossible situations are the very situations that God wants to put us in so that he can be made known?

What if the very situations we avoid are the very situations that God wants to place us in the middle of so that he can be made known in an undeniable way?

I dare say everyone here this morning and every person joining us online would say something to the effect, God, do the miraculous in me and through me.

Yet we avoid miraculous situations.

We run from them, we try to work our way around them.

We don't, we don't, we don't want to disappoint somebody.

We don't want it to be too difficult, we don't want it to be too hard, we don't want it to be too impossible, but I just wonder if that's the very situation God wants to put us in because when he shows up in it, it's undeniably him.

How many of you could say with me, there's been some impossible situations that God's put me in before?

And instead of turning to Him, I ran from it.

I tried to extricate myself from the situation because it was too hard, it was too impossible, it was too difficult.

Over and over and over again in Scripture, we find our God as we were singing about him just a moment ago, the Almighty One, the most powerful one, putting his people in impossible situations.

He tells a man named Moses, I want you to go tell Pharaoh, the most powerful man on the planet, to let his workforce go.

That's impossible, church.

That's impossible without God.

He tells Joshua, I want you to go to the most fortified city in Canaan.

It's so fortified, it doesn't have one wall, it's got two walls, and all I want you to do is walk around it and let me be God.

He tells Gideon, you got 10,000, but that's too many.

Amen.

You've got 10,000.

It's too many.

I want to bring you all the way down to 300.

In case you're wondering, the Midianite army was numbered at 135,000.

300?

135,000?

He he tells David, a boy, to go fight Goliath, a giant who's a man.

That's impossible.

And then Jesus in the New Testament has been teaching all day long.

Y'all think I teach a long time.

And it's late in the day, and everybody's hungry, and the disciples come to Jesus and say, hey, you need to send all these people away so they can go eat.

And then Jesus looks at them and says, You give them something to eat.

Then the apostle Paul, the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, is speaking to the churches in Asia Minor.

And he says, if you'll lay your hands on the sick, they'll recover.

How?

Because there's a God in heaven that loves to do the impossible through you.

There's a God in heaven that loves to put his people in positions where when he moves, there's only one explanation.

There is a God in heaven.

And when he gets the glory, other people get saved.

As a matter of fact, the Bible says when we Give God glory, he draws all men unto himself.

And few things give God glory, like his people doing impossible things.

Three things Daniel does in this story that posture us to do the impossible.

Everybody say three things.

There's three things that Daniel does in this story that posture him to do the impossible through God.

That God just releases something in him and through him that completely shifts the story, and God gets the glory, people get saved, and God's purpose gets promoted.

Here's the first thing that Daniel does, and it's the first thing that we need to do when we're put in an impossible situation is that number one, we need to turn to God.

Everybody say, turn to God.

Turn to your neighbor and say, turn to God.

Turn to the other neighbors, say it's time to turn to God.

Tap the person on the shoulder in front of you and tell them it's time to turn to God.

So they go round up Daniel and Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendigo and tell them what the king has decreed.

And in verse 16, we find Daniel goes to the king and look what he says.

He asks for time.

He asks for time.

Why does he ask for some time so that he may interpret the dream?

What do you think Daniel is going to do with the time that he's asking for?

Everybody say it, turn to God.

He's going to pray.

This is important.

This is so important.

Because when you're in an impossible situation, what you turn to first reveals what you trust in most.

I'm going to say that for those in the back of the room that didn't get it.

When you're in an impossible situation, what you turn to first reveals what you trust in most.

So here's my question: Who's your first call?

Who's your first call when you're in an impossible situation?

Is it to your sibling?

Never.

Is it to your mom or dad?

Maybe.

Is it to a mentor?

Probably.

Who is your first call?

Because your first call reveals who you trust in most.

And the Bible tells us that Daniel asked for time for one reason so that he could turn his attention to God, who is the revealer of mysteries.

God and God alone is the one who gives the revelation.

And can I tell you that it's one of the primary functions of the Holy Spirit to give revelation?

It's why, part of the reason that why he has come, that he delights, like he desires, that he loves to bring revelation to the people of God for what they're facing in their lives.

It's not like it's kind of something he likes to do or something that he likes to do intermittently when he's fasting.

No, the Holy Spirit delights.

Look at this.

Acts chapter 2, verse 17, on the day of Pentecost.

Acts 2:17

In the last days, God said, I will what?

Pour out my spirit on all people.

I'm gonna pour out my spirit.

Why are you gonna pour out your spirit?

So that your sons and daughters will what?

Will do what?

Will do what?

What is prophecy?

Prophecy is declaring the word of the Lord into the future.

What he's saying here is that I love to pour out my spirit so that you can have revelation for your life, revelation for your family, revelation for your job, revelation for your destiny, revelation for the impossible situation that you're facing.

Why?

Because when we live in the revelation of God, he gets the glory.

He goes on to say, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams, even all my servants, both men and women.

I will pour out my spirit in those days, and they will what?

And I will do what?

Show.

I will show God of Holy Spirit wants to show you.

Who you call in.

Who you call in.

Who you call in when you're facing an impossible situation.

Daniel first turned to God.

That was his first call.

Secondly, he gathered a group of people.

He gathered a group of people.

He turned to God first, then he turned to some brothers second.

Verses 17 and 18.

Then Daniel returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends, Hananiah, Mel, and Azariah.

He returned to his house and explained the matter to his friends.

And then verse 18 says, and he urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

I want you to notice here what Daniel doesn't do.

Daniel does not posture himself as a lone genius.

Daniel does not lock himself up in a player closet all by himself.

What he does is that he gathers a group of close friends in order to storm heaven together on behalf of earth.

What does this reveal?

It reveals that revelation comes more clearly in community.

Revelation comes more clearly in community.

Some of you are facing impossible situations and you're needing revelation for what you're going through, and you just can't get it.

Maybe even you're praying to the Lord and you're getting pieces and parts, but it's not clear.

The reason maybe you don't have the revelation that you want is because you're trying to do it by yourself.

We have a problem.

I'm not, I and I say that with all intensity today.

We have a problem in our culture today, and it's hyper-individualism.

We have a problem in our culture today, and it's called self-sufficiency.

We have a problem in our culture where we are taught if you're gonna get ahead, you gotta pull yourself up by your own bootstraps.

Can I declare over your life today that's not biblical?

When you read scripture, rarely do you see I more you see we.

The pronouns scripture uses are very pointed, purposeful, and powerful.

The pronouns that we see most often in scripture are plural, not singular.

How did Jesus teach us to pray?

The Lord's Prayer.

Almost everyone here could say the Lord's Prayer.

How does the Lord's prayer?

How does it begin?

Hour, hour, hour, hour, hour.

What is our is that singular or plural?

It's our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven and give.

What is that?

Plural, it's plural, it's not singular, it's plural, it's plural.

Stop living this life alone.

You were made to live it in community, and the revelation that you're seeking, God may not give it to you until you find a group of men and women to lock arms with and live life with.

This is what Daniel does.

He first turns to the God of heaven who is the revealer of mysteries, and then he goes, grabs his brothers.

Every person in here needs some brothers and sisters to fight with.

Let me tell you this.

If you're struggling, I don't care who you are.

If you try to live this life alone, the enemy will work you over.

Every time in Scripture, the people of God got alone and isolated from community, they got in trouble.

Not once, not twice, not ten.

Every time you were made to live in community.

This is what Daniel does.

He grabs his brothers and says, Hey guys, we gotta storm heaven on behalf of earth.

We're an impossible situation, and only God can do it.

What does the Bible say?

The Bible, Jesus actually taught this that if two or three are gathered together in his name, everybody say two or three, two or three.

Y'all trailing off really bad.

Everybody say two or three, two or three.

Touch somebody and say two or three.

If two or three are gathered together in my name, translated, you've turned to me.

You following me this morning?

Two or three are gathered together in my name, and you turn to me.

What does he say?

If you ask anything, everybody say anything, it will be done in heaven and on earth.

The answer that you've been looking for that has evaded you to this point is found in community.

This is what Daniel does.

He grabs a group of people.

I implore you, as your pastor, stop, stop it, stop trying to live this life of faith alone.

You can't do it.

You weren't designed to do it.

But do it all the more as you see the day of the Lord approaching.

Number three, Daniel and his friends expressed their gratitude.

Listen to this.

They turned to God, they got together in a group of people to storm heaven on behalf of earth.

And then when God gave the revelation, they began to worship.

Verse 19, during the night, the mystery was revealed.

Get this the mystery was not revealed until they turned to God and got together in community.

Then Daniel did this.

What does Daniel do?

Everybody, what does he do?

He praised his first reaction to the revelation was to praise God.

He began to lift his voice in worship.

He began to declare, there is no one like our God.

He is great and greatly to be praised.

Praise be to the name of God forever and ever.

Wisdom and power are his.

Daniel doesn't do that.

The first thing that he does is he begins to worship.

Why?

Because worship sets the right focus.

What do I mean?

What I mean is if I go directly to Nebuchadnezzar and give the answer without worshiping first, I might be tempted to take credit for the revelation.

Worship protects us from ourselves.

Worship protects us by setting our focus on the Lord rather than ourselves.

That's why worship is so important in your life.

Many times I tell people, before you ever ask God of anything, you need to spend some time in worship.

Because worship sets your right focus.

It gets the focus off you, it gets the focus off the problem, and it gets the focus on the one who sees and knows all and is able to bring the solution to the problem that you're facing.

Worship has the power to change your focus.

And this is what Daniel does.

Daniel begins to worship.

He gets his guys.

We're going to worship and we're going to thank the Lord for all that he has done in our lives by revealing this mystery.

And then if you read on in the story, you find three things happen as a result of them turning to the Lord, praying together, and worshiping the Lord in gratitude.

Three things happen: God gets the glory, people get saved, and God's purpose is promoted.

And that's what God wants to do in you.

He wants to use your life as a vehicle of his glory so that other people can come to know him and his will and his way gets promoted.

You stand with me where you are this morning.

I'm going to ask my worship team to join me, and I'm going to ask the prayer team to join me to my right and to my left this morning.

And we're going to hang out here for a few minutes just in prayer because I believe there's going to be a divine download, a divine impartation to your life this morning.

That God is going to impart to you a Daniel anointing today.

He's going to give you the ability to solve difficult problems.

He's going to give you an ability to walk in the impossibility of man, but what is possible with God?

How many of you would say, Pastor, right now I'm facing an impossible situation?

If that's you, just raise your hand right where you stand.

Anybody said, Yeah, I'm facing, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I see that.

I see that hand.

I see that hand.

Okay, in just a moment, I'm gonna ask you to come and we're gonna we're gonna pray with you as Daniel did.

How many of you would say, I know God is depositing a new dream in my life, but I don't know its purpose.

I'm wrestling with its revelation.

I know there's some significance to it, but I just I'm struggling with knowing what it's for.

You're you're kind of like Nebuchadnezzar.

You know you've received a dream, you just don't know what it means.

If that's you, you just raise your hand right where you stand.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Hands, hands going up, absolutely.

How many of you would say, in just a moment, I'm gonna invite you to come and pray as well?

Partner with one of our prayer team members.

God's gonna give you divine revelation today.

How many of you would say this morning?

That God I know is positioning me for a divine purpose.

Maybe you've received a promotion.

Maybe you've been placed in a position of leadership and influence.

And you desire to steward it well.

You desire to promote God's purposes, not your own, and you're asking for the grace of the Lord.

The grace of the Lord to steward it well.

If that's you, we just raise your hand right where you stand.

Yeah, yeah, I see those hands.

I'm going to ask the worship team just to go ahead and begin leading us in worship.

And I'm going to pray over us this morning.

If you raised your hand this morning, I'm going to ask you to take a step out of your seat, a step of courage, a step of boldness.

Come and meet with one of our prayer team members.

And we're believing today that there's a divine impartation of the Holy Spirit to empower you right where you are to do the impossible so that God gets the glory, so that people get saved and set free, and so that his purpose is promoted.

Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray over your people today.

A Daniel anointing.

I pray, God, the ability to do difficult things.

I pray, Father, the ability to do the impossible through you.

I pray, God, that we wouldn't run from these situations.

God, that we wouldn't avoid them, but we would plant ourselves in the middle of them so that you can get the glory.

So that you can become known in undeniable ways all around us.

And right now, I just release it over your congregation.

In Jesus' name.

Will you move out of your seat right now?

Just begin to move out of your seat and come.