Marked By God: Part 5
Marked By God: Part 5 || Day 3
Daniel 1:1-21
"During the third year of King Jehoiakim’s reign in Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and besieged it. The Lord gave him victory over King Jehoiakim of Judah and permitted him to take some of the sacred objects from the Temple of God. So Nebuchadnezzar took them back to the land of Babylonia and placed them in the treasure-house of his god. Then the king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief of staff, to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah’s royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. “Select only strong, healthy, and good-looking young men,” he said. “Make sure they are well versed in every branch of learning, are gifted with knowledge and good judgment, and are suited to serve in the royal palace. Train these young men in the language and literature of Babylon.” The king assigned them a daily ration of food and wine from his own kitchens. They were to be trained for three years, and then they would enter the royal service. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah were four of the young men chosen, all from the tribe of Judah. The chief of staff renamed them with these Babylonian names: Daniel was called Belteshazzar. Hananiah was called Shadrach. Mishael was called Meshach. Azariah was called Abednego. But Daniel was determined not to defile himself by eating the food and wine given to them by the king. He asked the chief of staff for permission not to eat these unacceptable foods. Now God had given the chief of staff both respect and affection for Daniel. But he responded, “I am afraid of my Lord the king, who has ordered that you eat this food and wine. If you become pale and thin compared to the other youths your age, I am afraid the king will have me beheaded.” Daniel spoke with the attendant who had been appointed by the chief of staff to look after Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. “Please test us for ten days on a diet of vegetables and water,” Daniel said. “At the end of the ten days, see how we look compared to the other young men who are eating the king’s food. Then make your decision in light of what you see.” The attendant agreed to Daniel’s suggestion and tested them for ten days. At the end of the ten days, Daniel and his three friends looked healthier and better nourished than the young men who had been eating the food assigned by the king. So after that, the attendant fed them only vegetables instead of the food and wine provided for the others. God gave these four young men an unusual aptitude for understanding every aspect of literature and wisdom. And God gave Daniel the special ability to interpret the meanings of visions and dreams. When the training period ordered by the king was completed, the chief of staff brought all the young men to King Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them, and no one impressed him as much as Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. So they entered the royal service. Whenever the king consulted them in any matter requiring wisdom and balanced judgment, he found them ten times more capable than any of the magicians and enchanters in his entire kingdom. Daniel remained in the royal service until the first year of the reign of King Cyrus."
Marked people understand that revelation problems are opportunities for promotion.
Beloved, do you know why God is marking people in this ministry and all across the land? Because there is a revelation problem in the land. And if someone doesn’t step up with the truth, thousands upon thousands will not only lose their lives, but they will spend eternity away from God and in a devil’s hell.
Therefore, people who have been marked by God will begin to be placed in certain opportunities to relate revelation. These opportunities will cause them to be promoted in places that otherwise they would not have been allowed to enter. There is no way Daniel gets to stand before the king without this revelation.
The challenge we have had in the past is that the people who didn’t value the mark of God stood before the king and sold them a dream instead giving them a revelation. The king dreams and the prophet gives the revelation. If the prophet doesn’t give the revelation from God then the world comes up with something and calls it God.
The problem with this is that it is now considered truth because the world has the stamp of the prophet on it. This is why God would not allow the magicians, wise men, or astrologers to have this revelation. They could not be in charge of the truth because they didn’t serve him. “Therefore, Daniel, stand up and give the revelation and don’t sell out.”
This is how we as a nation have gotten so far from the truth. God would elevate kingdom leaders and place them before leaders of this nation and instead of giving revelation they would nurture their sin. Therefore, the kings of the earth took charge of what is considered truth and what is not. This is how we have presidents, senators, and governors of this nation who can’t tell you how many genders there are.
This is how marriage has been redefined in this nation. This how you are ridiculed, ostracized, and attacked if you stand up for the unborn in this land. And not just attacked by the world but attacked by the church. How did all this come to be recognized as truth? Because prophets and preachers sold a dream to the king instead of giving him truth. Therefore, he paid for the dream and came up with his own truth.
Why am I saying this to you? Because God is marking many of you. The possibility that some of you will stand before leaders in the land is high. The possibility that some of you will stand before governors and even presidents are high. And when you get before then remember this; your assignment from heaven will be to give revelation. But the temptation from hell will be to sell a dream.