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At Sandals Church, our vision is to be real with ourselves, God and others. This channel features sermons and teaching from Pastor Matt Brown and other members of the Sandals Church preaching team. You can find sermon notes, videos and more content at http://sandalschurch.com/watch
Thanks for tuning in to the Sandals Church podcast. Our vision as a church is to be real with ourselves, god, and others. We're glad you're here, and we hope you enjoy this message.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Hi, guys. Welcome to Sandals Church, and we are wrapping up 40 days of prayer. I don't know about you but this series has really, really challenged me in my prayer life. And if you're just joining us, look, this is not you're not too late. God is still doing things and he's still moving.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And so today I wanna talk about praying for a movement of God. I don't know if you've ever experienced a movement of God, but I have. And when God moves, you know it. You know it. It's a lot like surfing.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:So many people have have said, well, I tried surfing. It's the hardest sport ever. Yeah. When you're trying to move. But when the ocean moves you, surfing is the easiest sport there is.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And there's just this moment where you know it's not you paddling, but it's the ocean moving you, calling you to stand up and enjoy its majestic power. And that's what a movement of God is like.
Danielle Crowley:Hey. We're so glad that you're here. We wanna just pause even now and take a moment and invite you that if you would like to be a part of the work that we are doing and God is doing here at Sandals Church, I wanna invite you today to give. You can do that at give.sc and make a donation there. And for now, let's get back into the message.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:But before we jump into this message, I wanna just just shout out to my wife who's turning 50 this weekend. So let's give Tammy a man. My bride turns 50 years old this weekend, and, you know, we've been dating since she was 18. Can you believe that? Guys, get them when they're young before they know any better.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's what I'm saying. She didn't she didn't know there was anybody else out there, so I scooped her up. And so she's turning 50, and she can kick and stretch and kick. Amen? And so can I as long as I warm up first?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen? As long as I warm up, I can do those things. We're gonna talk about a movement of God. We're gonna be in the book of Daniel for the next 2 weeks. In the first six chapters and for those of you who are new to Christianity, Daniel is one of the most important books of the bible that very few Christians have heard of and many Christians have never read.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Super important. In in Daniel chapter 7, it's when we see God call someone who looks like the son of man. It's Jesus' favorite term for himself. But Daniel is a book about 4 young people. Four young people whose parents are killed, whose king is blinded, and his sons are murdered.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The entire country of Israel is destroyed and carried carried off to Babylon. And yet, listen to me, Sandals Church, God moves. God moves in the hearts of 4 young men, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. This week, we're gonna talk about Daniel. Next week, we're gonna talk about, as we move into miracles, we're gonna talk about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:In Daniel chapter 6 verse 10, it says when Daniel knew that the document had been signed, so let's pause there. A document had been signed saying Jews Jews could not pray anymore to their god. I just wanna challenge you. We've been in a series for 40 days of prayer where you have the legal right to pray anywhere, any time, in any way that you choose. Have you done it?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Yes. Daniel lived in a country where prayer was illegal. You cannot pray and anyone caught praying would be arrested and killed. So he lived in a world, he lived in a country, he lived with a king who said, you cannot talk to god. Next verse.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber window towards Jerusalem. He got down on his knees 3 times a day and he prayed. Not once, not twice, but 3 times. Listen to me, Sandals Church. I love you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:God loves you. But if you're not praying, you're not experiencing God. Amen. If you're not praying to God, you're not gonna be moved by God. That's right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And listen to what he did. He gave thanks before his God as he had done. Listen to this word previously. Some of you are waiting to pray, you know, until you need an emergency. Let me tell you something.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Pray before the emergency. Because here's the beautiful thing about prayer. Prayer could go ahead of you. Amen? You don't just need prayer in the moment, but you need prayer for what's coming that you cannot see.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And so he prayed publicly. He prayed in his window. He prayed towards Jerusalem so everybody knew who he was praying to. And then these men came by agreement and found Daniel. You see they had set him up.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They were jealous of Daniel. Because Daniel was not from Babylon. He was not a local. Daniel was a slave. He'd been conquered.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He'd been brought to his country, and he was being promoted past the people who were citizens of Babylon. And they didn't like it, and they didn't like him. And so they had actually set up this law just to get at Daniel because it was the only way they could trip him up because the king of Babylon loved Daniel so much and considered Daniel the wisest man in the land. So they found Daniel, they caught Daniel making a petition and a plea before his god. I just wanna ask you this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If there was a trial today and you were accused of being a Christian, is there enough evidence in your life to prove it? I mean, some of you could not be convicted in a court of law for your faith because there would be no evidence of your faith. Every single time Tammy and I, we go to a restaurant, we pray. And almost every single time, we're the only people in the restaurant praying. Do you know why I pray when I go out to eat at a restaurant?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because I remember the days when we couldn't afford a restaurant. I remember those days. I remember those days. And I thank God that I have the money to eat whatever meal I wanna eat. And that didn't come from me, it came from him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Look, you want God to bless you then thank him for what he's already done. Thank him and pray. Pray. Pray in your home. Pray when you eat.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Pray at work. And it doesn't have to be weird. It doesn't have to be a scene. You can bow your head and close your eyes quietly. Tammy and I don't talk to the restaurant.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We talk to god quietly and to each other. Here's what I want you to know about your prayers. My prayers prepare me for god's purpose. It prepares me. Daniel, he got down on his knees 3 times a day, and he prayed, and he gave thanks before his god as he had done previously.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Anybody frustrated? Lack of promotion at work? Lack of a raise? Lack of an opportunity? Let me just challenge you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Start praying. Start praying. You see, Daniel went from a slave to the prime minister of his country. I want you to just think about that. Think about that.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Think about slavery in our country. Imagine someone stolen from Africa, brought here, and they become second in command of the United States of America in the 18 fifties. That's what happened to Daniel. Wow. That's good.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because he was a praying man. Yeah. That's right. Jews were despised. They were hated.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The king of Babylon, just to make a point, gouged out the eyes of the last king of Israel. But wait a minute, not before he murdered all of his sons because he wanted them to see that his own lineage died. That's how much Babylon hated Israel. And then they gouged out the eyes of Zedekiah and they forced him to live forever, listen to this, with the knowledge that there would be no one after him. Babylon was cruel, mean, evil, and yet, Daniel rose.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Daniel rose. Can I just say this? I don't know what you think is holding you back, but racism didn't keep Daniel back because Daniel knew Jesus. And he was able to rise through the ranks of racism, rise through the ranks of bigotry. Come on.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And he was able to rise. Why? Because he knew how to get on his knees. Yes. You see, listen to me.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The way up is down in your life. It's down in your life. Listen to Daniel chapter 6 verse 3. Now Daniel distinguished himself from amongst the administrators. Look.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He went to Harvard, couldn't couldn't read or write English, and he graduated 1st. He was 1st in his class. And the staff drafts, they they saw all of his exceptional qualities so that the king planned, listen to this, to set him over the whole kingdom. The king of Babylon recognized Daniel's talent and said, this guy has something special about him. There's something unique about Daniel.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And you wanna know what it was? It was his personal relationship with God. Look, if you're frustrated with your life, if you're tired of your life, why don't you ask God to invade your life? First Corinthians 29 says this, no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has imagined. What?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:What, pastor Matt? What God has prepared for those who love him. Man, if you think your life sucks, start praying. Ask god to invade your life. Ask god to do something in your life.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:This is a true story. I kid you not. My wife handed me a birthday card this week. She said I need you to write something nice. Listen to me, Sandals Church.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I misspelled the word it. If you don't know English, you got a 5050 shot of getting it correctly. And just so you know, you can't fix tit. You can't fix it. My wife's like, what's wrong?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I wrote tit. I wrote tit. This there's no fixing this. We can't go back. I have dyslexia.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I didn't know I had dyslexia till I was in the army, and I failed the eye test. That's why school was so hard. You hear me, mom? That's why. That's right.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Why can't you get your spelling right? Because the letters move. You have no idea what God will do through you. That's right. I wrote this.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Every word in this. And you wanna know why? Because God had a plan bigger than my ability. Bigger than my ability. This book is a miracle.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Do you know how I picked my college major? I picked my college major based on professors who did not require papers. I chose tests because I couldn't read. I couldn't write. I picked a professor who lectured.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's how I got through college. Because I couldn't get through a book. If God wants to do this through me, what does he wanna do through you? What does he wanna do through you? Here's the thing you need to know about prayer.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:My prayers opened God's heart to reveal his plan to me. Some of you are like, Pastor Matt, I don't know what God's plan is. Well, are you asking him? Are you asking him? My prayers open God's heart to reveal his plan to me.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:When I pitched this book to Harper Collins, I'm just gonna be honest with you, Harper Collins is not a Christian company, you wanna know what they said? No. No. We don't want to write a book on miracles because COVID is happening and people are dying. They said no.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I had to go before the vice president of all publishing and make my case, and they said yes. And then I had to actually write the book because it wasn't written. So I probably should have thought about that, but but here's the thing, you have no idea. You have no idea what God's gonna do through you. And and and I and I don't bring this book up to draw attention to me.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I bring this book up to draw attention to maybe what you haven't seen in your own life yet. Because if he can write a book through me, man, I have no idea what he can do through you. That's right. That's right. If he can take someone who can't read, and he can help them write, what could he do through you?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:So, I wanna thank everybody who bought it online. Thank you so much. I got my first review, and, be careful when you ask for people's opinions on things. So, like, you can ask me because I probably won't be honest. You know what I'm saying?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Like, if you're like, what do you think? I'll be like, oh, it's good and bad. You know? Because I don't wanna hurt your feelings. But we have this guy on staff, and he and he, he read it, and, he's a super serious guy.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And I I I I I regretted asking him what he thought about it right after it came out of my mouth, because I knew he was gonna tell me the truth. And he was like this, I said, what do you think of the book? He goes, in my heart. You ever done that? My heart my heart sank, like he stole a little bit of my soul.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You know what I'm saying? I said, what do you think of the book? Do you know what I guess? He said, Matt, it's the best book I read in years. Alright.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Alright. And you wanna know why I think this book is blessed? Listen to me parents who if you have a kid that's struggling, I know how hard reading is. So I wanted to make a book that was easy to read. I get it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I get it. I don't want to write a book that makes people feel dumb. I want to write a book that makes people feel God. Amen? That's what I want to write.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Alright? So, it comes out this week. Be be in prayer for me And here's why, I gotta do, a publicity tour. They're saying I might be on Good Morning America. It it was interesting.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They actually said, you know, it's not like we're gonna put you on The View. And if does anybody watch The View, you know, that's where men go to die. Right? But you know what I said to the publisher? And part of it is why I'm preaching on Daniel because I thought this, if Daniel can go to the lion's den for God, I can stand in front of Whoopi Goldberg.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen. Amen? And one of my one of my one of my friends said, well what are you gonna say? What are you gonna say? And you know what they're gonna do?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They're gonna pelt me on political issues. They're gonna pelt me on Trump. Like, they're like, they're gonna pelt me on everything but what's in this book. And here's what I'm gonna say, look, I know this God that you don't believe in, I know that he's real and I know that he's real because I've seen him raise the dead. Yes.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And that God, listen to me, that God I don't want to offend. That God I don't want to upset. That God, I want his blessings. And all I want them to know is that I have seen miracles done in the name of Jesus. And I want the world to know Amen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I want the world to know that he can do that through you. He can do that through you. There are stories about our church that you've never heard. Miracles that you've never seen, that our church has experienced. These this this book is full of people's stories, brave people in our church, who allowed me to share their stories of incredible miracles and some of their deepest, darkest wounds.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And I'm so thankful for this. And so here's what I want you to know, you know, as your pastor. Some of you, I get it. Money's tight, whatever. We've we've ordered thousands of books that are gonna be for free for anybody who will join a group.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You gotta join a group because God doesn't want to do a miracle just in you, but he wants to do a miracle through you and to others. And so if you'll join a group next week, we will have a book available for you for free. Amen? K? The book is not here for for me to make money, it's for you to be blessed.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Next, for all the books that are sold at Sandals Church, Tammy and I are gonna donate all of that money to our kids that are going to youth camp. And if you have a kid that goes to youth camp, amen? You know you need a financial miracle because Tammy and I had 3 kids, and it was like, oh my gosh. Summer camp. A house payment in the middle of summer.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:So so any books that are purchased at Sandals First, Tammy are gonna donate to help your kids go to camp and here's why, because I believe God does miracles at camp and that's where he first spoke to me. So, amen? So let me just say one last thing in the book then we're gonna move on. Thank you so much for for ordering online and and here's the thing you need to know, people only know about books as they're sold. That's the only way that the word gets out and I want the world to know that Jesus still lives, that he still does miracles.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And and here's the thing, the last chapter in the book in an OR with a surgeon, doctors, anesthesiologist present, everybody present. A little boy was called dead, but they said we're not gonna call him dead until you pray, Pastor Matt. This happened. I was there. I know it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I was scared to death. And I prayed over this little guy in the name of Jesus. And when I said amen, not an hour later, not minutes later, the second I said in Jesus name, amen, that little boy woke up and he is fine. He's fine. So much so that the doctor who performed the surgery, who's not a Christian, had tears in his eyes and this is what he said, it's just like the the stories my mother told me that are in the bible.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He said it's just like the miracles of Jesus. Jesus still heals. Jesus still moves. Listen to me sandals, Jesus is still alive. So here's the thing, you're like, well, Pastor Matt, God's never gonna use me in the way that he use you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Oh, he uses everybody. We worship a God who is in the business of borrowing hands to heal. All he wants is your faith. So you wanna know how Daniel became famous? Daniel became famous because he prayed.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And because he prayed, God revealed things to Daniel that only God knew. I was at the gym last week, getting ready for John Bevere to preach and there was a bunch of young guys, you know, super just jacked and buff, and they were all gathered together huddled in the lobby of my gym. You wanna know what they were talking about? Nightmares. They all had nightmares.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And because I don't care anymore, I'm just, like, you guys all need church. You need to be at church this weekend. Like, I just I just said it. I'm not even preaching. Here's what I said.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I'll sit with you. I'll sit with you. I'll save a seat for you. Okay. Because because I knew John Bevere was gonna get him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You know what I'm saying? I knew. I I knew that guy. But here's the thing is, do you know in the book of Daniel, the king was having nightmares? He was having nightmares, and so he called all of his magicians, he called all of his oracles, he called all of his wise men, and he asked them to interpret his dream, but there's a catch.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He said, I'm not gonna tell you what the dream is. And if you don't get it right, I'm gonna kill you. Can you imagine? Your boss is like, look, there's a problem and I'm not gonna tell you what it is, but if you can't solve it, you're fired. And they freaked out.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They freaked out. But Daniel was a praying man. Amen. And so they called Daniel. And do you know that Daniel told the king his dream?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He said, here's the dream you're having and then he interpreted it for the king. And the king went, okay, there's something special about you. This is what the king of Babylon said, you have the power of the Gods. Do you know why you should be praying? Because prayer is the power of the God, the one God, the true God.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And if you're not praying, you don't have that power. Next, my prayers provide God's protection. Look, when you get in your car, when you go for a walk, when you ride your bike, there are idiots everywhere. That's right. Some of you are them who think that text message is more important than your life.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Why aren't you praying before you get in the car? I'm so convicted on this. Does anybody do this when you get on an airplane? They've done studies, people touch the planes. You know, that's me.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Every time I get on an airplane, I say, Lord, I know the bible says, lo, you are with us. Okay? So I need you to be up there, you know, especially if it's a Boeing. Right? If it's Boeing, I probably ain't going.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen? So, but but I but I don't do that with my car. I don't do it with my car. We don't do that before we go for a walk. We don't do that before we go for a run.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Prayer is how you ask for God's protection. Amen. So Daniel got caught praying. Right? He got convicted praying.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's what he did wrong. And so the little rats in the kingdom, they turned them in, you know, to the king, And the king didn't even wanna bust Daniel, but he had to do it because he gave an order and he's gotta follow through. So the king gave the order and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lion's den. Now these aren't, like, California lions. You know what I'm saying?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because, you know, here's your problem. You're jaded. Just own it. You've been to the San Diego Zoo. Those lions are on Prozac.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They're depressed. They have a counselor. You know what I'm saying? Not those lions. You know, those lions, like, wanna back scratch.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:These lions wanna eat you. These are African lions. These are hungry lions. My wife and I, a couple years ago, we got a dog from Africa. It's called a boerball.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And do you know why they have Boerboels in Africa? To keep lines off the property. Boerboels are psychotic. I love my dog. She's not going to heaven.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:She doesn't have Jesus in her heart. I remember one time my dog killed a rabbit, I kid you not. I said, don't do it. She looked at me, skinned the rabbit alive, swallowed him whole, and was like, what are you gonna do? It's a African dog.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Okay. Not like the dogs you have, and those aren't even dogs. They look like stuffed animals. I don't know what that is. You know, you got your little dog in your purse.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:My dog's from Africa. These lions these lions are from Africa. Not San Diego Zoo lions. They're not like, what up, bro? They're not those kind of lions.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They threw him to the lions. And the king said to Daniel, may your god, whom you serve, listen to this word continually. Some of us in here serve God occasionally. Amen? Right?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Yeah. I did once. I served you once. May your God, whom you serve continually, even if there's a law that says you cannot serve God, Daniel still serves God. May your God whom you serve continually, listen to these words, rescue you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Let's just let's just pause here. Anybody need to be rescued today? Man, I don't know about you, but I need God to rescue me daily. There is people that have come to church this weekend and you're not even sure that there's a God, but you know you need to be rescued. What do you have to lose?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Call out to him. Cry out to him, beg him, say, God, if you're real, save me. Save me because we worship a God who saves. I love this. Daniel 6 18, then the king returned to his palace and he spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Listen to this. He could not sleep. Let me ask you a question. Do your prayers and your integrity haunt the dreams of those who hurt you? Man, think about that.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:The king has all the authority, but he is absolutely a mess because of the decision he's made. Because he knows. He is messing with someone who knows God. Do the people in your life know that you know God? Can they see it in your life?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Have they felt it? Have they experienced it? At the first light of dawn, the king got up and he hurried to the lion's den. And when he came near the den, listen to this, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice. Why?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Because he knows what kind of lions they are. He says servant of the living God. The king does not know God, but he knows that Daniel is a servant of the living God. Are you serving the Lord? Are you serving him?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Listen to me, this is my life verse. I told Tammy this yesterday. My life verse for this year is first Peter 5 verses 67. Pray for me because this is not an easy verse, but it's the verse that God has led me to. Peter writes to the church and he says this, humble thyself in the sight of the Lord so that in due time, he will exalt you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Cast all your anxieties upon him for he cares for you. Humble thyself in the sight of the Lord. What did Daniel do? His whole life, he humbled himself in the sight of the Lord. And what happened?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Time after time after time, Daniel was raised to a position of glory. Amen. Why? Because he was a man who was not afraid to get on his knees. And so the king says, has your God whom you serve continually, listen to this, been able to rescue you from the lions.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:See, here's what your friend's question is. Here's why they don't go to church, because they don't see God working in your life and they're not sure if your God can work in their lives. Man, I was on the phone yesterday with a member of our church, And you know what? The reason he came to Sandals Church? He came to Sandals Church because his wife said it's sandals or we're done.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He's a smart guy, so he came to church. Amen? You know what I'm saying? He's like, oh, good. Okay.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Thou has spoken. So he came to church and listen to this, he met Jesus. Amen. He met the living God. And his marriage and his life was rescued, and he was forever changed.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He was forever changed. And yesterday, he was at a business meeting and he was meeting with a man in his sixties, a man who's battled. His downfall is women. It's not your fault, ladies. It's his fault.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And he's destroyed his life. He's destroyed his career. He's a mess. But he knows this guy's story. He knows what happened at Sentil's church.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And here's what he asked. Here's what he asked my friend. He said, is Sandals Church for real? He said it's Matt Brown for real. You see, here's what people wanna know.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's not, do you believe in God? It's, is your God real and are you real? Because we live in a world of fakes and frauds. Are you real? Not are you perfect, not are you always holy, but are you real?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Is God really moving in your life? And so many of you, it's an election year and you want God to move in our country. Maybe God wants to start with you. Amen. He says may the king live forever.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:My god sent his angel and shut the mouths of the lions. Daniel takes no credit for it. It's not me. I didn't do it. God did it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And it's not that the lions were from San Diego, and it's not that they had ate. It's that the Lord himself closed their mouths. Why? Because I was found innocent in his sight. Why why why did pastor John Bevere talk about holiness?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Holiness is not about perfection, it's about direction. Are you living what you say you believe? Why would God move in you if he's not in you? He said, I've been found innocent. Listen to this, nor have I ever done anything wrong before you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You want god to move at your work? Then have an integrity at your work. Be the hardest worker. Be the greatest worker. Show up on time, give it your best, never lie, never cheat, never steal.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If you're mad that God has you stuck, maybe the way he's gonna unstuck you is by you operating with integrity. Daniel says, I've never done anything against you, Ken. Daniel worships a different god. He's from a different religion. He's from a different race.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Listen to this. He's been conquered and enslaved, and he serves. He serves. And he serves his earthly king. Listen to me, because he has a heavenly king.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And he believes that God is moving in his life. Let me tell you why you need to start praying today. My prayers destroy the power of evil. And if you're a parent right now Any parents in here? Raise your hand if you're a parent.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If you don't think evil is after your children, then you don't live in this world. I went out to to for a date with one of my kids and my kid was telling me what was going on in her life. And let me tell you something, as your pastor, I have to confess, I felt so foolish because the enemy was trying to swallow my kid and he did it right under my nose. Listen to me parents, start praying for your kids. I don't care if they're a toddler, they're gonna be a teenager one day.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And when they become a teenager, they're gonna care more about what everybody else thinks but you. Don't ask your kids, do you care more about what your friends think because they're gonna lie? No. No, mother and father. I appreciate your truth.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's part of the way God biologically helps our kids to leave the home. So when you have a toddler, don't just pray for that tantrum. Pray for them as a teenager. Pray for them when they go out on a date. There's all these dads in our church, they got daughters, oh, I don't I don't want them to date.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I'm like, they're gonna. They're gonna. You know? It's gonna happen. No.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't think so. You're an idiot. Start praying from now. Let me tell you something dads, if I want my wife to pray with me all I have to say is this, let's pray for our kids. I don't care what she's doing.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't care where she is. If I ask her to pray for this book, she's busy. You know what I'm saying? Let's just let's just But if I say, hey, let's pray for our son. Hey, let's pray for our daughters.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Let's pray for our son-in-law's. I don't care what my wife is doing, she stops. Dads, that's how you pray together. Man, is your marriage a mess? Has evil invaded your marriage?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Pray. Pray. You gotta pray. Here's what you gotta know, evil is real. I made the mistake this week of watching television.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Did anybody else do that? And I gotta tell you, I I don't know that I've been this disturbed in a while, which is saying something for our country. But how many of you heard the story about a mother and the older sibling that tortured the younger brother until he died? They would leave this little boy in ice bath for 14 minutes and feed him hot sauce. A mother did this to her own kid.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Can I just tell you, I wasn't okay? I had to walk away from the TV screen because my heart broke for this little guy. The very person that was supposed to protect him, his mother, is the person who killed him. That's our world. Evil is real.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's right. It is real. So what do we do? What do we do? Here's what Jesus did.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Jesus came to Peter and he said, Satan has asked for you, Peter, but what? I prayed for you. I prayed for you. Prayer makes the devil run. Prayer makes evil hide.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Prayer changes the world. Man, if there is evil over your marriage, if there's evil in your life, if there's evil attacking your children, then pray for a movement of God. So these men plot to kill Daniel because they're jealous of him, because they're racist, because they're bigoted. They can't stand his religion, they think he's a joke, and they plot to kill him. But Daniel prays.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Daniel prays. And so what did God do? God shut the mouth of the lions. The king was so overjoyed. He's so happy.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him. He didn't have a scratch, not a bite, not a nick. Why? Because he had trusted in his god.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Did you just hear what I said? Because he had trusted, listen to this, in his God. Woah, wait a minute. Why wouldn't it say in the one true God? Because the book of Daniel is the only book in the Old Testament not written in Hebrew.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:It's written in Aramaic, the language of the Babylonians. Listen to me Sandals Church, Daniel is the story of an ungodly, non Jewish nation that meets God through Daniel. He trusted his God, not our God, his God. Not who we worship, who he worships. At the king's command, the men who had falsely accused Daniel were brought in and thrown into the lion's den along with their wives.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And kids, you're like, this is harsh. Babylonians aren't Christians not saved. A little rough, the Babylonians. And before they reached the floor of the den, the lions overpowered them and crushed all their bones. See, the lions were hungry, but they were not allowed to eat the holy one.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:They were not allowed to eat, Daniel. Anybody got a pet? Do you know how hard it is to get your pet not to eat food? No. Don't do it.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Don't do it. I can threaten my dog. My dog will eat it. My dog ate an entire pizza. She's a £140.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:She ate an entire pizza on the counter in 2 bites. You know, chocolate's supposed to kill dogs, not my dog. Not my dog. You could you could put chocolate in her veins through an IV, and my dog's just like, whatever, bring it. Do you know how hard it is to get your pet that loves you, that lives in your house to do what you say?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:God said don't eat and they didn't. Isn't that amazing? You can't make your dog sit. God can make a lion sit all night long. Sit.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Don't touch him. You're gonna eat tomorrow. Yeah, we're gonna bring in the sinners. Last point, my prayers can unleash a movement of God. Amen.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Here's what you need to know about Daniel. Remember I told you Daniel was written in Aramaic? Daniel is the Holy Spirit moving on the king of Babylon, repeatedly moving through Nebuchadnezzar, moving through Darius, moving through the Medes, moving through the Persians. Constantly, god moving in a nation that is not his. How?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Through a person who's decided he is his. That's right. And here's what the king said, I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom, listen to this, people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel. He doesn't even know who the God of Israel is. He's like the God of that guy, that guy right there.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:And let me tell you something. You wanna know how you get your neighbors to come to church when they see your God moving in your life? Not my God, not a God that moved a 100 years ago, a 1000 years ago, not a God that resurrected 2000 years ago, but a God that is living and alive in you. That's how they meet him. That's how a movement of God starts.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:You want your teenagers to worship God? Let them see you worshiping God. You want your kids to make church a priority? Then make church a priority. You wanna see your kids praying?
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Then let them see you praying. Listen to what the king says, for he is the living God and he endures forever. This is a pagan king prophesying truth. His kingdom, listen to this, will not be destroyed. His dominion will never end.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:He rescues and he saves. Listen to this. And he performs signs and wonders in the heaven. And listen to me, Sandals Church. This is why next week, we start a series called miracles, and he does miracles not just in heaven, but on earth.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Amen. Right here. Right now. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions. Some of you today, you need to be rescued.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't know what lions you're facing. I don't know if your lions at work. I don't know if lions in your home. I don't know if you're lions in your computer, but I know this, we worship a God who delivers us from the lions. And if you want God to move, I'm gonna challenge you to make the first move.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Listen to me parents, there's 2 things I learned about prayer because in just a second, if you need prayer for your children, we're gonna pray for you and I'm gonna ask you to stand just in a second. Here's what I want you to know. Parents of toddlers, your prayers go before you. Listen to me, if your parents have left home and walked away from God, listen to me. Your prayers will remain after you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Just because you die, doesn't mean your prayers die. Prayers are eternal things, and they can outlast us. Think about that. The greatest gift you could give as a grandparent to your grandkids is praying for them. Because even after you're gone, your prayers will not be.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:That's right. Your prayers will not be. What we're gonna do right now is we're gonna enter into a time of worship as a church where we ask God to move. And what I'm gonna do is I'm just gonna ask you to bow your heads and close your eyes. And if I say something that speaks to you, I just want you to stand and here's what I want to do church, if somebody stands around you, I just want you to start praying for them.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We don't know what's going on in their lives, but we thank God for their courage to see God move in their lives. So we're gonna start with the most challenging relationship there is on earth, and that's marriage. If there's somebody in any of our campuses that needs prayer for their marriage, would you just stand? Thank you right there. Let's just pray over her right now.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:She's standing for marriages. Anybody raising a kid and you're worried about that kid. Maybe you're you're raising a little Matt Brown and you can't read. Don't give up on that kid. Let's pray for these families that are standing.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Let's pray for their kids. Let's intercede on their behalf. Let me ask you, is there a young person here today? The entire book of Daniel is about 4 young people, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and Daniel. Listen to me, Samuel's church.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If we wanna see a movement in this church, we need to see a movement amongst our young people, a movement of holiness, a movement of intimacy, a movement of prayer. If you need a moment right now, you need a movement of God to heal a broken relationship, maybe it's with a family member, Would you please stand? Maybe you have a broken relationship with a friend. Would you stand? We're praying for you right now.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We're asking God to move. Maybe some of you, you're overwhelmed with work tomorrow, man. You you you you just you can't stand your job. You hate your job. You can't stand the people that you work with.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Do you need a movement of God at your work? Maybe you need healing for a relationship here at church. We just want to pray right here, right now for a movement of healing with that relationship that's broken. Maybe right now you need God to speak and you need God to answer your prayer clearly. You need an answer.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:Maybe right now what you need is you need a movement in your own heart. Last week when John Bevere was talking about when he said when you know what it feels like to be intimate with God, you never want to not feel that again. Some of you've never felt that. You need intimacy with God. Cry out to him right now and say, God, I need you.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I need to know that you're real. Listen to me, Sandals Church. We don't need another service. We don't need another sermon. We don't need anymore bible studies.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:We need a movement of God. That's what we need. Right here at Sandals Church. That's what we need. I don't know about you, but I don't wanna waste my life building buildings.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I wanna spend my life. I wanna waste my life for a movement of God. I don't know if you know this, but you live in California. You live in California, godless California. We need a movement of God in our state.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:I don't know about you, people are fleeing the state. God's called me here. We need a movement in this state. I wanna see God move in our state. But if he's gonna move in our state, he has to move in our hearts.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:If he's gonna move in the lives of unsaved people, he has to move first in the lives of saved people. Oh, Holy Spirit, we ask right now that you would rest on us. Holy Spirit, we ask that you would move amongst your people. We ask in the name of Jesus, we ask right now that you would move in our hearts as we pray and we worship together. God, we cannot have a miracle in this next series unless you move.
Pastor Matthew Stephen Brown:There won't be one miracle without you. Holy Spirit, we ask in the name of Jesus that you move. We pray this in your holy name. Amen.