Dreams, Prayers & Answers from God Message 02 of the series, “Courageous Faith” I. One night Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon (605-562 BC), summoned his wise men to interpret a troubling dream. “One night during the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had such disturbing dreams that he couldn’t sleep. He called in his magicians, enchanters, sorcerers, and astrologers, and he demanded that they tell him what he had dreamed.” -Daniel 2:1-2 (NLT) Note: Babylonian kings believed their gods communicated through dreams, omens and signs. “I have had a dream that deeply troubles me, and I must know what it means.’ Then the astrologers answered the king in Aramaic, ‘Long live the king! Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.’ But the king said to the astrologers, ‘I am serious about this. If you don’t tell me what my dream was and what it means, you will be torn limb from limb, and your houses will be turned into heaps of rubble! But if you tell me what I dreamed and what the dream means, I will give you many wonderful gifts and honors. Just tell me the dream and what it means!’ They said again, ‘Please, Your Majesty. Tell us the dream, and we will tell you what it means.’ The king replied, ‘I know what you are doing! You’re stalling for time because you know I am serious when I say, ‘If you don’t tell me the dream, you are doomed.’ So you have conspired to tell me lies, hoping I will change my mind. But tell me the dream, and then I’ll know that you can tell me what it means.’ The astrologers replied to the king, ‘No one on earth can tell the king his dream! And no king, however great and powerful, has ever asked such a thing of any magician, enchanter, or astrologer! The king’s demand is impossible. No one except the gods can tell you your dream, and they do not live here among people.’” -Daniel 2:3-11 (NLT) Note: The Wise Men didn’t know the true God or how to get in touch with Him. Life Application: God forbids us to consult psychics, mediums and fortune-tellers for direction. “…do not let your people practice fortune-telling, or use sorcery, or interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the LORD.” -Deuteronomy 18:10-12 (NLT) “…we met a demon-possessed slave girl… a fortune-teller who earned a lot of money for her masters. She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, ‘These men are servants of the Most High God, and they have come to tell you how to be saved.’ This went on day after day until Paul got so exasperated that he turned and said to the demon within her, ‘I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.’ And instantly it left her.” -Acts 16:16-18 (NLT) II. Because others failed to interpret the king’s dream Daniel found himself in a very hostile situation. “The king was furious when he heard this, and he ordered that all the wise men of Babylon be executed.” -Daniel 2:12(NLT) a. Daniel handled himself with wisdom and discretion. “…men were sent to find and kill Daniel and his friends. When Arioch, the commander of the king’s guard, came to kill them, Daniel handled the situation with wisdom and discretion. He asked Arioch, ‘Why has the king issued such a harsh decree?’ So Arioch told him all that had happened. Daniel went at once to see the king and requested more time to tell the king what the dream meant.” -Daniel 2:13-16 (NLT) Life Application: “Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.” -Colossians 4:5-6 (NLT) b. Daniel asked his friends to pray with him about their situation. “Then Daniel went home and told his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah what had 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.” -Daniel 2:17-18 (NLT) Life Application: “If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you.” -James 1:5 (NLT) “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.” -Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)
c. Daniel thanked and praised God for revealing the king’s dream. “That night the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven. He said, ‘Praise the name of God forever and ever, for he has all wisdom and power. He controls the course of world events; he removes kings and sets up other kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the scholars. He reveals deep and mysterious things and knows what lies hidden in darkness... I thank and praise you, God of my ancestors, for you have given me wisdom and strength. You have told me what we asked of you and revealed to us what the king demanded.’” -Daniel 2:19-23 (NLT) Life Application: God will reveal things to us through the Holy Spirit if we surrender our lives to Him. “‘No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.’ But it was to us that God revealed these things by his Spirit. For his Spirit searches out everything and shows us God’s deep secrets. No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.” -1 Corinthians 2:9-13 (NLT) d. Daniel gave God all the glory when he explained the King’s dream. “The king said to Daniel (also known as Belteshazzar), ‘Is this true? Can you tell me what my dream was and what it means?’ Daniel replied, ‘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 will 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 is not because I am wiser than anyone else that I know the secret of your dream, but because God wants you to understand what was in your heart.’” -Daniel 2:26-30 (NLT) III. God is in control even when it doesn’t seem like it. “The king said to Daniel, ‘Truly, your God is the greatest of gods, the LORD over kings, a revealer of mysteries, for you have been able to reveal this secret.’ Then the king appointed Daniel to a high position and gave him many valuable gifts. He made Daniel ruler over the whole province of Babylon, as well as chief over all his wise men. At Daniel’s request, the king appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to be in charge of all the affairs of the province of Babylon…” -Daniel 2:47-49 (NLT) Life Application: “God knows how to rescue the godly from evil trials.” -2 Peter 2:9 (MSG) John Schmidt |
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Connect Group Questions To prepare for this week’s meeting, take some time to focus on the following questions and write out a few brief answers. Be prepared to share them with your group. 1. Looking back at your notes from this week’s teaching on praying for wisdom was there anything that particularly caught your attention, challenged or confused you? 2. When was the last time you prayed for God’s direction and wisdom? What problem were you facing? What happened? 3. What do the following Bible verses teach us about the importance of prayer when we are in a tough spot?
Daniel 2:12-23
Philippians 4:6-7
James 1:5-7
I Peter 5:7
Psalm 55:16,17, 22
What keeps us from praying more than we do? 4. What can we learn from the following Bible passages about consulting fortune-tellers, horoscopes, psychics and mediums?
Deuteronomy 18:9-13
Isaiah 47:13-14
Acts 16:16-21
Why does God consider consulting mediums and psychics “detestable?” (see Isaiah 46:9-10) Why do many people read their horoscope daily? What are they looking for? 5. Our current series is entitled “Courageous Faith: Standing firm in a time of compromise.” Do you think we are living in a time when Christians need to be courageous? If so, why? What kinds of compromises are people making in our culture? 6. At Centerpoint we often say that in order to grow in our relationship with God we need to:
Surrender Listen Pray Obey
How do these steps relate to our ability hear God’s voice and sense His leading?
