Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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Philosophy's Achilles
Heel An answer in the fire
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>>Announcer: It has
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Still relevant in
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Sharing messages of
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>>Chris: Over the course of the
last two weeks, we studied and
saw, in Daniel chapter
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two, that the Babylonian king,
Nebuchadnezzar, was so impressed
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by the fact that Daniel had not
only revealed the contents of
his dream, but was also able to
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interpret that dream. As matter
of fact, the Bible records that
the king actually commanded that
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they should offer incense to
Daniel. These are the very words
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confessed by
Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2:47,
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When you think about the the
utter impossibility of guessing
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the dream, it is a very
persuasive event to establishing
God's very existence. It was so
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convincing, that the king was
convinced that Daniel's God was
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able pass the most difficult of
tests, and that He was indeed
worthy of the title "God of
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gods" and Lord of kings." And so
as the result of that one test,
the weakness of the Babylonian
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gods and system of worship was
exposed, and the power of the
God of the Bible was exalted.
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Yet,as we continue our study of
the book of Daniel, we will see,
amazingly enough, that
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the king would revert back to
the worship of gods that he
confessed were actually
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inferior to the God of Daniel.
As we think about what happened
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in Babylon as recorded in Daniel
2, the king was not the only one
who had witnessed the power of
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the God of the Bible to reveal
the dream: Shadrach, Meshach and
Abednego, who were Daniel's
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friends,they were there also.
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In our study today we will draw
a sharp contrast between the
king's response to the
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revelation of the dream and the
response of the three Hebrew
boys. In the course of
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our journey today, we are going
to learn something very
important about God, and about
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human nature. We don't know for
certain just how much time
elapsed between the dream in
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chapter 2 and the events of
chapter 3. The events of Daniel
2 took place around 603
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to 602 BC, which is just a
little over two years after
Nebuchadnezzar became king. It
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is possible that the setting
up of the image occurred several
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years later around 594/593. In
Jeremiah 51:29, the prophet
records that in the 4th year of
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Zedekiah, the king of Judah made
a journey to Babylon. It is
possible that this journey was
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undertaken in reply to
Nebuchadnezzar's summons found
in Dan 3:2 in which the king
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sent word to gather all of the
magistrates and administrators
of his kingdomto Babylon. In
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any event, the amazing events of
Daniel 3 must have occurred at
least several years after
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Daniel 2 but not before the
amazing events of Daniel chapter
4 which we will study
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next week. What this means, is
that enough time went by in
order for the king to weigh
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and consider how the amazing
revelation of the dream of
chapter 2 would impact his
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life and the direction of the
nation of Babylon. So, let's
take a look at how the king
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related to the dream that no one
but Daniel could reveal and
interpret. I want you to
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remember; at first the king was
incredibly impressed with
Daniel's God, the God of the
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Bible. Yet, after the passing
of time, the Bible records these
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words found in Dan 3:1-7:
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Imagine the scene with me. While
basking in the thought that he
represented the head
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of gold, the king wasn't
satisfied with the fact that
inferior kingdoms would
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eventually take the place of
Babylon. So, instead of
submitting himself to the
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divine will and plan of God,
he fought against it. Instead of
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accepting the interpretation of
the rise and fall of nations
after Babylon that were
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represented in the dream by the
various metals, the king decided
to make the entire image of
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gold. It was his attempt to
demonstrate that Babylon would,
in fact, not fall but live
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forever. Next he would invite
representatives from all over
his kingdoms in order that
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these nations might also support
his ambitions about Babylon's
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unending reign. Nebuchadnezzar's
rejection of the will of God and
attempt to bring security in his
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realm through king worship, led
to some disastrous results.
Those who occupy positions of
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authority and are interested in
extending their power and
influence, Nebuchadnezzar's
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experience demonstrates that if
we choose not to submit to the
will and plan of God, we
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will end up worshiping and
exalting ourselves. Please take
note, in the first seven
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verses of Daniel 3, six times
the Bible records the fact that
king Nebuchadnezzar set
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up the golden image.Later in
Daniel three, the setting up of
the image is mentioned
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three other times in verses 12,
14, and 18. Nine times in this
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chapter, the Bible emphasizes
that Nebuchadnezzar set up the
image. It would seem, that the
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Bible is sending a clear
message. As the one who set up
the image, he is the one who is
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being worshipped. Although this
is certainly narcissistic,
persecuting those who refuse
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to worship the image the king
set up in his honor by throwing
them into a burning
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fiery furnace is certainly much
more disastrous than his own
self-worship. The Bible
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paints a dark picture here of
those who were once enlightened
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choosing to reject the light of
God's word and find fulfillment
in the gratification pride and
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ambition, especially at
the expense of others. It would
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appear that for Nebuchadnezzar,
confessing that Daniel's God,
the God of the Bible, is the
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true God is one thing, but
submitting yourself
wholeheartedly to Him is quite
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another.While the king was
intellectually convinced that
Daniel's God was the true God,
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he did not submit himself to the
God of heaven. Theactions of the
king represent the actions of
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many people today. People, who
are convinced and convicted of
the truth of God's existence
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and of the truth of the
Scriptures, yet, do not submit
themselves to God's revealed
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plan in their lives. It is this
fact that explains why there is
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a majority of contradictory
religious views today. It is not
because the God of the Bible
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lacks the ability to
overwhelmingly convince those
opposed to Him that He is the
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true God. He certainly did that
with the king and the wise men
of Babylon. And as we continue
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on in this series you will
find Him doing it over and over
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again! Why so many contradictory
views? Because God leaves people
free to chose. A choice
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to either serve Him or not to
serve Him. However, if we reject
Him and his plan, by
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human nature, we will end up
worshipping someone or something
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else. It is this, that then
creates all of the contradictory
religious views that we find in
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our world today. Notice
something else. There is a sharp
contrast between the methods of
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Daniel's God, the God of the
Bible, and Nebuchadnezzar's
methods. In giving the dream,
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and then revealing its content
and interpretation to Daniel,
the God of the Bible uses the
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power of intellectual and
spiritual wisdom that appeals
even to those like the king
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who have all kinds of prejudices
against Him. Think about it.
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Before Daniel revealed to the
king the dream and its
interpretation, there is no way
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that the king ever would have
stated that Daniel's God is the
true God. Yet, through the power
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of probability revealed in
declaring the dream, the
interpretation of the dream
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and its historical fulfillment,
the king freely confessed that
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Daniel's God is the true God.
However, although Daniel's God
has power to enlighten and
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convict those who do not know
Him, He does not use the power
of force or coercion in order to
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compel people to worship Him.
The king's rejection of Daniel's
interpretation of the
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dream in Daniel 3 is proof of
that. Let's contrast that with
the king's methods. In Daniel
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3, the kingassembles dignitaries
from all over his realm. He
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first tries to seduce the
allegiance of his subjects to
bow down to the image through
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the power of music. Yet when
that fails, he forces them to
bow down and worship it on the
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threat and consequence of death.
Nebuchadnezzar and the gods of
Babylon delight in power,
00:15:04.13\00:15:11.14
which is the major weapon that
they use in order to coerce
their people into worship and
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loyalty. Friends, it is not
might that makes right. Although
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the God of heaven, the God of
the Bible, possess infinite
power, his power is in the
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service of His wisdom, justice,
benevolence, and love. He does
not take any pleasure in forced
00:15:36.73\00:15:46.27
or coerced worship. He wants us
to love and serve Him out of an
intelligent appreciation of
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who He is; He wants us to serve
Him because we are free to do
00:15:54.18\00:16:02.16
so. And so in Babylon, the music
played, people bowed down. But
not everyone. The three Hebrew
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boys refused to bow down. They
desired to be faithful to the
God of heaven. Once the king
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found out that these three men
did not bow down to worship the
golden image that he set,
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he immediately called for them.
Let's read Daniel 3:14-15 and
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see what happened: The
implication behind
Nebuchadnezzar's challenging
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question is that there is no
such God that exists. It's as if
the king is saying, "If He does
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in fact exist, then I defy Him
and His ability to do anything
on your behalf."Yet, it's ironic
00:17:35.75\00:17:44.83
that several years earlier he
told Daniel that your God is a
God of gods and a Lord of kings;
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and the reason back then for his
conclusion was that no one but
the true God could reveal this
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secret. Oh friends, listen, this
story demonstrates to those who
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directly challenge the existence
of God, just like king
Nebuchadnezzar did, do so, not
00:18:05.35\00:18:12.55
because God has not revealed
Himself to them with
unmistakable evidence, but
00:18:12.65\00:18:18.96
because they have rejected the
true God and have begun to
worship other things. What is it
00:18:19.06\00:18:25.03
that they worship? Ultimately,
when we reject the existence of
God and declare that our ways
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are better than His ways, we are
in turn worshipping ourselves.
Yet, self-worship is disguised
00:18:34.61\00:18:43.55
as the worship of whatever image
they have placed in their lives
that replaces the true
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God. It could be science, art,
music, philosophy or any other
list of things. Thus,
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Atheists, agnostics and even
other religious leaders who
scoff at the existence of God,
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or at His ability, love and
power, may be doing so because
they want to stifle their
00:19:06.44\00:19:14.05
previous convictions about the
overwhelming evidence for His
existence. They are following
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after the footsteps of
the king Nebuchadnezzar.
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Let's now look at how Shadrach,
Meshach and Abednego responded
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to the king's challenge.
This is found in Dan 3:16-18
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What is it that gave these three
young men this much confidence
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in their God, that they would be
willing to stand by His revealed
will even in the midst of the
00:20:22.58\00:20:29.22
greatest pressure that was
brought upon them? If the
existence of God was a fairy
00:20:29.32\00:20:36.63
tale, or if indeed the
Babylonian gods were stronger
than the God of the Bible, then,
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certainly these young men would
not be willing to face death in
order to protect something that
00:20:41.40\00:20:46.74
they intrinsically knew to be
false. Yet, they were willing to
face death rather than
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dishonor their God. They were no
doubt familiar with passages
such as Isa 43:1-3,
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which state:
00:21:09.40\00:21:11.17
Friends, the reason they could
trust in this promise had
already been demonstrated back
00:21:45.93\00:21:51.71
in Daniel 2. You see, if their
God could reveal the content of
the king's dream, the
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interpretation of the dream, and
the incredible historical
fulfillment of that dream,
00:21:57.61\00:22:02.75
then they could confidently say
"our God whom we serve is able
to deliver us from the
00:22:02.85\00:22:10.23
burning fiery furnace" should He
choose to do so. The highly
improbable nature of revealing
00:22:10.33\00:22:17.77
the events of the king's dream
in Daniel 2 impressed them with
the thought that God can
00:22:17.87\00:22:23.97
use His ability to do highly
improbable things like protect
them from the flames. And
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that is exactly what God did. As
a matter of fact, this was a
case of fire "selectively"
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burning everything else except
their hair and clothing. While
the flames engulfed the strong
00:22:40.42\00:22:46.86
men who threw them into the
furnace, Daniel records that
these three Hebrews didn't
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even smell like smoke. And once
again, we see God revealing
Himself to the king.
00:22:54.44\00:23:02.48
Listen to what happens when the
young men are thrown into the
furnace, as found in
00:23:02.58\00:23:08.62
Daniel 3:22-25,
00:23:08.72\00:23:14.02
Beyond just protecting and
saving the three Hebrews, God
desired to make an impact and
00:24:06.04\00:24:12.58
difference in the life of
Nebuchadnezzar. The Bible is
clear that one like the Son of
00:24:12.68\00:24:18.75
God.Jesus himself walked in the
fire with the young men. What
this story suggests about
00:24:18.85\00:24:26.70
the character of God is
absolutely astounding! First,
God was doing all He could to
00:24:26.80\00:24:33.40
reach the king and open his eyes
to who God truly was. In
addition, was a very important
00:24:33.50\00:24:43.01
lesson for those three Hebrew
young men. They believed that
God existed. They had a
00:24:43.11\00:24:50.79
relationship with God and knew
that God could deliver them from
their troubles, but God
00:24:50.89\00:24:59.56
did not deliver them from their
troubles, did he? No, He didn't
deliver them from it,
00:24:59.66\00:25:07.67
but rather walked through it
with them. And here is the power
of this story. God is
00:25:07.77\00:25:22.88
doing all He can to reveal
Himself to us today. He wants us
to know Him. He wants us to
00:25:22.98\00:25:31.96
be in relationship with Him. He
wants to save us from this
planet that seems to be
00:25:32.06\00:25:38.50
spiraling out of control. And
here is the guarantee that He
has made.In whatever trial we
00:25:38.60\00:25:44.77
face, in whatever problem we are
dealing with, in whatever
challenges are on the
00:25:44.87\00:25:50.35
horizon.He will walk through
that trial with us. He exists.
He is real. And according to 1
00:25:50.45\00:26:03.86
John 4:8, He is love. He desires
a relationship with you.with me.
00:26:03.96\00:26:17.24
Today is the day to not only
acknowledge that he exists, but
today is the day to enter into
00:26:17.34\00:26:26.72
relationship with Him.
00:26:26.82\00:26:29.38
Heavenly Father we thank you
that you have revealed yourself
in a mighty way. An
00:26:30.59\00:26:35.42
now, as we see you revealing
yourself, we come to and ask
that you would give us the
00:26:35.52\00:26:43.30
strength to enter into a
relationship with you, to trust
you, to follow you all
00:26:43.40\00:26:49.17
the days of our life. We
pray in Jesus name, amen.
00:26:49.27\00:26:54.51
Dear friends, isn't it amazing
how God revealed himself over
and over again to king
00:27:04.75\00:27:11.66
Nebuchadnezzar - that He might
enter into a relationship with
king Nebuchadnezzar, that He
00:27:11.76\00:27:19.97
might save Nebuchadnezzar from
his sins. What's even more
amazing is that God continues
00:27:20.07\00:27:23.27
to reveal himself today. He's
revealed himself in his holy
word, He's revealed himself in
00:27:23.37\00:27:28.74
the world of nature, all in an
effort to enter into a
relationship with you -- to
00:27:28.84\00:27:34.45
enter into a relationship with
me, that He might save us That
we would be prepared to
00:27:34.55\00:27:40.16
live with Him forever in his
kingdom that will never end
Today, I would like to offer
00:27:40.26\00:27:47.30
to you a book, "The Thought
Makers". This book will engage
you in reading about thought
00:27:47.40\00:27:55.17
makers throughout time and how
they were led to acknowledge the
God of the bible. Here's
00:27:55.27\00:28:03.21
the information you need
to receive today's offer.
00:28:03.31\00:28:07.02
>>Chris: Philosophy's Achilles
heel -- it has been a journey
that we have taken together to
00:28:56.16\00:29:01.54
look at how God has revealed
himself over and over again with
one goal in mind - to
00:29:01.64\00:29:08.84
enter into relationship with
each and every one of us. If you
happen to have missed any
00:29:08.94\00:29:14.95
of this series, you can go to
our Youtube page -
www.youtube.com/IIWCanada. And
00:29:15.05\00:29:23.19
there you can watch any of
"Philosophy's Achilles heel" or
any other program that we
00:29:23.29\00:29:28.73
have produced. I hope you are
finding God's love in your life
through seeing Him reveal
00:29:28.83\00:29:36.87
Himself in His word and through
the world of Nature I'm glad you
00:29:36.97\00:29:42.34
joined us today, I encourage you
to join us again next week.
Until then remember, It Is
00:29:42.44\00:29:49.48
Written, man shall not live by
bread alone, but by every word
that proceeds from the mouth of
00:29:49.58\00:29:54.69
God.
00:29:54.79\00:29:55.96
$$$$$$$$$$$
00:29:57.33\00:29:58.63