Today we continue our series entitled “Pursuing Grace-Based Success!”
Here are our foundational scriptures:
(Ephesians 2:8-10 ERV)
8 I mean that you have been saved by grace because you believed. You did not save yourselves; it was a gift from God.
9 You are not saved by the things you have done, so there is nothing to boast about.
10 God has made us what we are. In Christ Jesus, God made us new people so that we would spend our lives doing the good things he had already planned for us to do.
(1 Corinthians 1:30,31 NLT)
30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin.
31 Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the Lord.”
(2 Timothy 1:9 NKJV)
Who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began.
(Read Daniel 2:17-19)
We are learning from Daniel. In Friday’s message, Daniel found out king Nebuchadnezzar ordered to have him and his friends killed, along with the wise men of Babylon, all because the wise men failed to discern and interpret the king’s dream. Daniel did not take the king’s decision lying down. He went to see the king, asked for time to seek his God concerning the dream, and the king granted his request.
This is where we pick up the story. The Bible says, “So Daniel went to his house. He explained the whole story to his friends Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Daniel asked his friends to pray to the God of heaven that God would be kind to them and help them understand this secret. Then Daniel and his friends would not be killed with the other wise men of Babylon. During the night, God explained the secret to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.”
So what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. The grace of God gives you uncommon boldness.
— The more you walk with God and allow God to walk with you, you will get to a point where God’s grace will develop a “fighting spirit” in you.
— Daniel did not just accept king Nebuchadnezzar’s decision to have him killed. Daniel fought back. He went to the king and asked for an opportunity to seek his God concerning the issue. Daniel was confident because his confidence was not in his ability or strength. Daniel’s confidence was in God and His grace.
— Being a Christian does not mean you have to be a pushover. The grace of God can empower you to be humble and bold at the same time! Daniel was humble enough to know that he was incapable of doing what was being asked, but he was also bold enough to believe that God would do what he could not do! May the grace of God have the same impact on your confidence! Especially in seemingly impossible situations.
2. You are never without hope.
— What king Nebuchadnezzar was asking for was humanly impossible. If you only looked at human ability, you would say the situation was hopeless. But our God is not limited to human capabilities.
— Daniel had hope because his hope was in God, who can do all things!
— When the doctors say they have done all they can, or the lawyers throw their hands up in frustration and defeat, God can still intervene and do what man cannot do!
— Medical professionals can fail you, and legal professionals can blunder your case, but never forget about God! He can succeed where they failed!
— As a believer, you are never hopeless because you are never helpless! As long as there is a God in heaven, there is hope on earth!
3. When you have a situation that exceeds human ability – PRAY!
— Daniel and his friends prayed to the God of heaven, asking for the impossible to become possible for them. This is the type of faith you must have. Faith for the impossible!
— Through prayer, God can do what you can’t do. Through prayer, God can go where you can’t go. We have a God who wants to bless you, but in many cases, He is looking for your agreement through prayer.
— God already knows what we need BEFORE we pray, but the Bible teaches that we must still pray. We have not because we ask not. We must ask, in faith, without a doubt, without wavering, believing that the impossible can become possible for us!
4. When you pray, pray from a position of grace.
— Daniel and his friends asked the God of heaven to be kind to them and to help them understand the king’s secret.
— The Hebrew boys were not commanding God to do anything. They asked God for grace and mercy.
— While it is true that you must pray in faith, remember that praying in faith does not mean you are commanding or bossing God around. Who are you to tell God what to do? No! What you do is come to God in faith, from a position of grace, and you seek to come in alignment with heaven, from the earth, so God’s will can be done on earth as it is in heaven.
— Daniel did not believe it was God’s will for him and his friends to die. So instead of doing what many do today (sit around and say, “Well, if it’s God’s will, He will do something about it,”), the boys went to God in prayer. They set their faith in agreement with God’s grace! That’s how we live #TheGraceLife.
5. Believe God for the supernatural – stop dreaming small!
— Daniel was not afraid to ask God for the impossible. And he did so with the expectation that the Lord would show up. Far too many believers today don’t grasp the enormity of God’s power. They ask God for his involvement, but what they are really asking for is just a little assistance. Where they could be asking God to do something that far exceeds their wildest dreams.
— If you walk with God consistently, the Holy Spirit will cause you to dream bigger than you ever have because you’ll have. But you must be trained to dream God-sized dreams.
— The greatest journey in your walk with Christ is the journey towards believing what God believes about you. I’m still not there, but I am well on my way. I’m already living a life that far exceeds anything I imagined as a child.
— When you ask God to do something that is humanly impossible, EXPECT Him to do it!
— I am amazed by Christians who pray for something supernatural and then get amazed when it happens.
— Thank God for answering your prayers — like Daniel did — but don’t be surprised. If you are praying in faith, from a position of God’s grace, then you should expect it to happen on the earth because you believe it’s already done in heaven.
6. Don’t forget to say, “Thank you!”
— The Bible says, “During the night, God explained the secret to Daniel in a vision. Then Daniel praised the God of heaven.”
— God wants you to ask, in faith, without a doubt. But God also wants you to thank Him for it.
— When you thank God in advance you are showing Him you genuinely believe it’s already done!
In closing:
— dream God-sized dreams,
— pray God-sized prayers,
— don’t limit yourself to human limits,
— it’s okay to pray for things ONLY God can do,
— believe God, even when what He said is humanly impossible,
— and thank God for it in advance!
If you make this a habit, you will close out 2022 strong and head into 2023 strong!
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for teaching me about grace-based success.
When I look at what You did through Daniel, it gives me hope! Daniel had a humanly impossible request. No human could do what king Nebuchadnezzar was asking for with their own ability. But Daniel and his friends knew they were not limited to human power. They came to You because You have no limitless. What is impossible for us is ‘light work’ for You!
Daniel and his friends prayed in faith from a position of grace, and You answered their prayers. You gave Daniel a vision; he was able to see king Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and also receive the interpretation of it. This was completely supernatural! What You did for Daniel adds fuel to my fire and hope to my heart.
When the world says it can’t help me… when doctors say they have done all they can do… when lawyers have tried all their tactics… when the world fails, YOU ARE STILL THERE, and YOU NEVER FAIL!
You did the impossible in Daniel’s life, and I believe the impossible is possible for me!
I pray in faith from a position of grace, without a doubt, without wavering, and I believe I receive when I pray.
I thank You in advance, Father, even before it’s done on earth because I believe it’s already done in heaven.
I am never hopeless because I am never helpless! I have a God, and He is always with me! Therefore, GREATER IS COMING FOR ME! I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper.
