We are in season that we must understand that our obedience to our heavenly father is crucial to us fulfilling our assignment in Him. To many of us have looked at what God has said and what God is saying like something we can come back to at a later date. This is not the season to rely so much on the grace of God that you walk in disobedience to what God is saying. This is a season to RE-PRESENT THE KING. FIRST, IN LOVE.
RE-PRESENT THE KING IN LOVE FIRST
1 Corinthians 13:3-8 in the message bible says, If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don’t love, I’ve gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, Doesn’t have a swelled head, Doesn’t force itself on others, Isn’t always “me first,” Doesn’t fly off the handle, Doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, Doesn’t revel when others grovel, Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, Puts up with anything,Trusts God always, Always looks for the best, Never looks back, But keeps going to the end. Love never dies.
This is the love of God that has been poured out into our hearts by the Holy Spirit according to Romans 5:5. The Holy Spirit is the spirit of love. When we allow Him to lead us He takes a pitcher and pours out the love of God on us and others daily. He leads us to stay in the fight. He leads us to live a selfless life. He leads us to be content. He leas us into humility. He leads us into self-control. He leads us to cover others in love when they make mistakes. He leads us to endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. He leads to keep our trust in God. He leads us to hav great expectations. He leads us to keep looking ahead at Jesus. He leads us to keep us from falling. John 16:13 reveals the Holy Spirit’s job is to lead you into all truth. Jesus revealed to his disciples that believed in him in John 8:32 if you continue in my word then are you my disciples and you will know the truth and the truth will make you free. The Holy Spirit has been given to us for us to continue in the truth and be made free. This is the work of the Lord in the heart of every believer.
GOD POURS OUT HIS LOVE ON US DAILY
The Bible reveals to us that in Job 7:18-19 17 “What is man, that You should exalt him,
That You should set Your heart on him,18 That You should visit him every morning…GOD HAS A PERSONAL ENCOUNTER WITH YOU EVERY DAY. However, not many of us encounter God every day. Genesis 3:8 And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day… God visited Adam and Eve every day to give them wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. He visited them to build up their most holy faith to help them be whom He called them to be and to help them carry out their God-given assignment. The word of God tells us faith comes by hearing and by hearing the word of God. In other words, faith comes when we encounter God and he pours out his love in us. Some of us wait until Sunday to encounter God but God wants to encounter us daily. When we experience the love of God daily by doing what he asks us to do we step into the second principle to RE-PRESENT THE KING IN BOLDNESS.
THE 3 BOYS OF BOLDNESS | HANANIAH, MISHAEL & AZARIAH
In the first chapter of Daniel, we see in Daniel 1:18-20 reads, Now at the end of the days, when the king had said that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. 19 Then the king interviewed them, and among them all none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; therefore they served before the king. 20 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 who were in all his realm. Daniel and his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah being promoted by king Nebuchadnezzar’s.
In the second chapter of Daniel the king has a dream no one can interpret so he decides in Daniel 2:12, For this reason, the king was angry and very furious, and gave the command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon. 13 So the decree went out, and they began killing the wise men; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them. Now we see Daniel and his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah about to be killed. However, they had favor with Arioch and ask the king to stop killing the wise men and Daniel would interpret the dream. The king agreed and in the next few days daniel and his friends prayed and God showed him the interpretation of the dream. Daniel interpreted the King’s dream and the king gives him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief administrator over all the wise men of Babylon. Daniel asks the king to promote his friends who prayed with him and the king promotes them again.
In the third and final chapter we are going to focus on we see Daniel is no longer in the picture he is serving at the king’s gate but his three friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah are. Let’s look at what happens. The king sets up a golden image he wants everyone in his domain to bow to when his music comes on.
HANANIAH, MISAEL & AZARIAH DISOBEYED THE KING
Daniel 3:12 There are certain Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego; these men, O king, have not paid due regard to you. They do not serve your gods or worship the gold image which you have set up.”
13 Then Nebuchadnezzar, in rage and fury, gave the command to bring Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. So they brought these men before the king. 14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 Now if you are ready at the time you hear the sound of the horn, flute, harp, lyre, and psaltery, in symphony with all kinds of music, and you fall down and worship the image which I have made, good! But if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?”
THEY ANSWERED THE KING
Daniel 3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” In boldness, these three boys told the king of Babylon WE WILL NOT BOW.
THE KING THROWS THEM IN THE FIRE
Daniel 3: 9 Then Nebuchadnezzar was full of fury, and the expression on his face changed toward Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. He spoke and commanded that they heat the furnace seven times more than it was usually heated. 20 And he commanded certain mighty men of valor who were in his army to bind Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, and cast them into the burning fiery furnace. 21 Then these men were bound in their coats, their trousers, their turbans, and their other garments, and were cast into the midst of the burning fiery furnace. 22 Therefore, because the king’s command was urgent, and the furnace exceedingly hot, the flame of the fire killed those men who took up Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego. 23 And these three men, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, fell down bound into the midst of the burning fiery furnace.24 Then King Nebuchadnezzar was astonished; and he rose in haste and spoke, saying to his counselors, “Did we not cast three men bound into the midst of the fire?”They answered and said to the king, “True, O king. ”25 “Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.”
These young men are a picture of what God desires to do in his church. The father desires to release a boldness in his bride that will shack up the world. They told the king even if God doesn’t move for us WE WILL NOT BOW. They recognized the God had already done enough. They were supposed to die with the other wise men that did not make it out of chapter 2. But, God. These young men are not like many today who stop going to church, stop giving, and stop serving when it looks like God is no longer moving. These young men were determined to live by faith. These young men were committed to living fearing God and God alone. These young men had uncommon boldness. I believe that if we are going to Re-Present God in these last days we need UNCOMMON BOLDNESS. These young men look death right in the face and said WE WILL NOT BOW. Then the king promoted these 3 young men again.
3 PRINCIPLES THAT RELEASED THEIR BOLDNESS
1st Principle | They Stayed Connected
Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were taken from Jerusalem and brought to Babylon as slaves. They stuck together and helped each other keep the faith. In Daniel we see them praying together, fasting together, and standing on the word of God together. Together they stood against the king and rejected the popular opinion at the time it was okay to bow at a golden image. Today, we must watch out for popular opinions and the way the majority of people in America think certain things are okay, but they are not okay with our king. We have been called like these three young men to Re-Present The King In Boldness. PROVERBS 14:12 “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof [are] the ways of death. Friend, don’t take for granted the DIVINE CONNECTIONS God has placed in your life.
Do not take for granted the leadership he has put in your life. Do not take for granted the people of God he has connected you with. We are called the body of Christ for a reason. God wants us to shack up the world TOGETHER not A PART. Daniel was more gifted than the three young, However he did not allow his gift to separate him from who God connected him with. They all stayed together. When one got promoted the other one did. I want you to know children of God your promotion is coming as you STAY CONNECTED.
2nd Principle | They Refused To Conform
These young men understood that if you do not stand for what you believe in you will fall for anything. To stand these young men had to decide what they would and would not do no matter what. The word of God they learned was not to bow before anyone but God. They learned at a young age to hide the word of God in their heart. They were able to do this by rehearsing the word of God back to themselves on a regular basis. They did what many people that come to Jesus today are not taught to do. They planted the word in their hearts until their entire beings came under the rule and reign of the king. When Matthew 6:33 declares, seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness. It is telling us to pursue first to be under God’s reign and rule in every area of your life. Also, to pursue the king to understand His ways to be able to walk in His ways. These three young me made up their mind at and early age that we are going to do what God says over what man says. We are going to fear the Lord and not man.
One of the things the Lord put on my heart was that when we obey His word it impacts several areas of our life.
- You can not walk in love and disobedience at the same time.
- You can not walk in faith and disobedience at the same time. You can not walk in freedom and disobedience at the same time.
- You can not walk in boldness and disobedience at the same time.
Boldness springs forth from the heart and men that have walk in obedience to the king. Proverbs declares, the righteous are as bold as a lion. These three young men walk in uncompromising boldness. They Re-Presented the King in a way that caused everyone in the Babylon kingdom including the king to recognize that they believed in God. Boldness is faith on steroids. The more you exercise your faith the bolder you will become.
3rd Principle | They Held On To Their Name
These young men knew who they were and they refused to allow people who did not know God to change their nature. They learned the language, studied the culture, and lived in a community that worshipped many gods. When the king first promoted the 3 Hebrew boys he gave them names that many people still call them today, but they would have never called themselves:
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Shadrach which means command of the moon god
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Meshach which means Who is what Aku is? (the moon god)
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Abednego which means Servant of Nabu” (Nabu is the Babylonian god of Wisdom and Nebuchadnezzar’s favorite god).
People today allow people to call them anything without knowing that your identity is connected to your name. God is his creative process He first speaks things into being, then he gives it a name. He said, let there be light, then called the light day. Romans 4:17 reveals to us …God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were. These young men held on to their name and I believe that they understood the divine connection was deeper than many people even understand today. If they took away all the scriptures from these young men and they started to forget who they were and where they were from their names reminded them of the God they served.
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Hananiah’s name means YAHWEH is gracious.
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Mishael’s name means Who Is Like God?
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Azariah’s name means YAHWEH has helped.
No matter how hard things get in your life do not forget the name God called you. He called you in his image and likeness. He called you fearfully and wonderfully made. He called you the light of the world and the salt of the earth. He called you perculiar and a holy nation. He called you His bride. He called you the body of Christ. He called you a new creation. He called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. If these young men did not have anything else they could have just meditated on their names YAHWEH is gracious, Who is like God?, and YAHWEH has helped. That alone would have given them the boldness and the confess to stand still and to see the salvation of the Lord.
