The road to promotion
Key Passage: Daniel 3
Date: June 7, 2024
Turn your minds, if you would, to Daniel chapter number three. Daniel chapter number three.
For a bit, we’re going to focus on the road to promotion. The road to promotion. How many of you say, I would like a promotion? Anybody out there? How many of you say, I would like a raise with the promotion? Amen. And that’ll work. How about you just say they just pay me for doing nothing? Anybody want to say that now?
Somebody says, that’ll work, that’ll work. We’ll take that. But the road to promotion, and promotion can come in a lot of different forms and shapes. It may be your marriage has a whole lot more joy in it. That’d be a promotion. It may be God uses you in the life of someone. That could be a promotion. It could be financial. It could be your health. God blesses your health.
So many different avenues and ways of promotion, what that means in your life. But how do you get to the promotion? Daniel chapter number three, if you’re there already, would you say amen? Amen. Good, good. I appreciate it. I like it when you say amen. You know when you say amen, that’s like saying sick them to a dog, you know, I mean, amen, get the devil or something.
And I appreciate it, but you got it there, just put a marker there. Let me talk to you a minute about what’s going on here. There are three Hebrew boys that are in captivity. This country Babylon had taken over and took these prisoners back, and they integrated them into their country.
And there are three boys that rose. They rose pretty high up in the government of Babylon. And they were in the capital city of it. And the king, he had made this image, this statue, 90 feet tall. Now, if you can imagine that, that’s about the height of the hospital down in Murphysboro. How many have been to the hospital down there in Murphysboro? All right. Mike Arnold said, I was just there for too long. But it’s about that. It would be about six times the height of the center of our, that center part, the highest part, about six times that up. Can you imagine this big, huge statue? Now, the Bible doesn’t tell us, I think it is a statue of the king himself.
You know, big-headed fellas, they just—I think it’s a big statue of him, Nebuchadnezzar. And he tells everybody, he has all these government officials there. And he says, now when the bands start playing—I imagine some rock and roll sinful wicked band playing—and when they start playing over there, I want everybody to bow down to this statue. Well, these three…
Three Hebrew boys knew Jehovah God, the God of Israel, the God of the Bible. And God tells them, don’t you bow down to anybody but God. And they said, no, we can’t do that. But anyway, they’re all right. There were hundreds, probably thousands of people there that day in the province of Babylon. And the music started playing.
And the three Hebrew boys, can you imagine how your heart will be thump, thump, thump, thump? The people that did not bow down, the king was going to take them and throw them in this like, this just furnace, they call it. You’ve heard it said like this, burning fire. It’d be kind of like—I don’t use this term lightly—but almost like hell on earth. It’s a burning furnace.
And they’re going to be thrown into this pit. How many of you back in the day, back of my grandparents, how many had a burn pit back of the day? You know, before the EPA and all that other stuff, that messed everything up. Anyway, they’re supposed to solve it all. But I think of that. I remember my granny—my granny Levy called her—she would have us dig a big old hole. Praise God, we’re in Florida, not in Tennessee because of the rock in Tennessee. And you go put your trash in there, and every month or so you burned a burn pit. And I imagine a little bit like that. But whoever did not bow—bless you, Ms. Patterson over there, I heard that sneeze—but whoever didn’t bow, they got thrown in the fiery furnace.
Well, imagine these boys, they said, we’re not going to bow. Well, at first, everybody’s standing, no big deal. But can you imagine, as people of thousands around them, the music’s playing, and they begin to bow down? And can you imagine the boys, imagine, oh, my goodness, everybody’s—maybe so-and-so over there, he knows they’re not supposed to bow down to these false gods—maybe they bowed out. Everybody just… By the way, can I say this: as we get closer to Jesus coming back, more and more people will bow down, and you’re going to stick out more and more. But don’t bow out. Don’t bend, don’t bow. I say, nope, I bow to the Lord Jesus Christ. He’s who I bow to. Amen.
And these three boys, they would not bow. They just stood. Nope, we bow to Jehovah. That’s it. And they stood. Well, you know, when you stand, there’s always going to be the critics. There’s always the critics. Did you see those? They won’t bow down over there. Imagine they’re bowing down. You see them over there? That’s what was going on, all over the place. And then the tattletale, let’s go tell the king. Well, they ran, blah, blah, blah, to the king, you know, those three boys, they wouldn’t bow down.
And, boy, Pharaoh—Pharaoh, the king—it wasn’t Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar. The king, he liked those boys. They were rising up in the government. He said, “Ah, those are some good boys. Go get those boys over here. Let me talk to them for a bit.” And they got the boys over there, they’re standing before the king, and old Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, their hearts going, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum. And the king said, “Hey, somebody said you boys won’t bow. That’s not the truth.”
They said, “O king, we’re not going to bow. We don’t bow to anyone besides Jehovah God. And we want you to know, King, that our God is able to deliver us. But even if he chooses not to deliver us, we’re not bowing down to these false gods. We’re bowing down to Jehovah God. He’s our God.” Boy, the Bible says Nebuchadnezzar, his face—he was like, oh, you’re a good guy. Boy, he got mad all of a sudden. Just boom. Talked by a split personality. He had it. Boom, he’s just mad. You dirty, rotten, sorry, good-for-nothing Hebrew boys, and he’s just mad. I think he had road rage, if you will.
And he told him, he said, “I want you to heat that thing seven times hotter than it’s supposed to be heated up.” Man, it’s hot. And he got special ops guys. “Get those guys out there, boy, they can grab them.” And they take them over to the fiery, burning, fiery furnace, amen. That’s what happens when I talk too fast sometimes. It happens in no way to talk faster or slow. But anyway, it happens. But they took them over this burning fire furnace, and the Bible says it was so hot, seven times hotter than it was supposed to be heated. It was so hot. Maybe the bricks and everything just putting off so much heat that the special ops, Navy SEALs guys—I don’t know who it was—they big old muscle-up guys look just like your pastor. Why are you laughing about that? I’m laughing about that one too.
Anyway, these special op guys, as they’re throwing them in there, the heat just, man, it just kills them. They’re dead. And these three Hebrew boys are down there in this fiery furnace.
And Nebuchadnezzar, I always wonder, he must have had some kind of a window or something to look into because the special op guys got killed by putting them in there. So he had to have some kind of special way to look in there. Maybe he was way up on some big platform. I don’t know when he could look down in there. And old Nebuchadnezzar, he’s looking down there. He’s, “Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.” One. By the way, he had all five fingers, amen. One, two, three. Wait a second, I can’t use the other hand. Hey, come over here. Didn’t we put three boys down there? Yes, sir. He said, “My goodness, there’s four of them down there, and the fourth is like unto the Son of God.” Well, when you’re in fire, I love it when Jesus shows up, baby.
And that’s where we’re picking up the story right here in Daniel chapter number three. We’re going to start in verse number 28. Would you, if you’re able to, would you please stand and read God’s word together, Daniel 3 and verse number 28 of God’s word?
Look at that. The Bible says, “Then Nebuchadnezzar spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Amen. Who hath sent his angel and delivered his servants that trusted in him and have changed the king’s word and yielded their bodies that they might not serve nor worship any God except their own God. Therefore, I make a decree that every people, nation, language, which speak anything amiss against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego shall be cut in pieces, and their houses shall be made a dunghill, because there is no other God that can deliver after this sort.” Now watch this, verse number 30. Then the king, what’s the next word? Promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the province of Babylon. Now for just a bit, we’re going to use that as a springboard to talk about the road, the road to promotion.
Now, friend, I tell you that story because often the road to promotion is exactly like that. Lord, are you sure we’re going the right way here, Lord?
And then sometimes you ever have a burden and trial and you’re like, how long is this thing going to last? We’ve been so burdened for so long. I’m just really of the burden. You ever have battle fatigue? You know, when is it going to end? And are we ever going to get there and are we on the right road? Friend, do you notice for these three Hebrew boys to get to promotion, they had to go through a trial, a major testing?
More often than not, friend, in the Christian life, if you’re going to get promoted by the Lord, he’s going to use you much, and he’s going to be able to bless you much. You’re going to have to go through testing and trials, the fiery furnace, in order to get to the promotion.
More often than that, that’s been God’s plan. Think about people in the Bible. What about old Job? Job, did you like some promotion to get blessed twice as much and have ten wonderful children? Did you like that? Sure, I like that. All right, we’ve got to go through some major trials.
Friend, we all want the promotion. It’s a wonderful thing. And this last verse, verse number 30, “Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.” But, friend, you get to the end of promotion by traveling. And the road’s no fun. And there are potholes. There are burdens. There are nights when you’re shedding tears. There are nights when you can’t sleep.
And there are times I’m trying to trust the Lord at the best I can. But I can’t help but worry about this thing. Anybody have been there?
Someone said, either you’re going through a trial like that or you’re about to go into a trial like that. Yeah, that’s just part. You say, for Christians, for everybody, friend, saved or lost, live for the world or not—everybody, you live in this sin-cursed world, you go through trials. But the road to promotion… Abraham, how was it? How was it that you got blessed? Well, there were years and years of trusting God. And then at one point, Abraham had to take his most sacred, if you will—that’s probably not the word—the most special thing, his only son through Sarah, Isaac, and he had to offer him up. Now, God didn’t take him, but he had to, and then God said, “Hey, I’m blessing you. I’ll bless you.” That’s God’s plan, friend.
I love it when Jesus—He is our perfect example. He didn’t bypass the test. What happened for Jesus when He was out in the wilderness? What was going on in the wilderness with Jesus? He was tried. He was tempted by the devil himself. And yet after that wilderness trial, what happened? Hey, Jesus went into power, the Bible says. Power to the parts of Galilee.
Been tested. Before you have the power and blessings of God, God has to bless him. He said, “Boy, I want Jesus to come into my life and say, ‘Peace, be still.’” Boy, calm doesn’t come unless there’s been a storm, friend. Those apostles had been in that storm for a while. And boy, they said, “We’re going to wake the Master.” And finally they said, “We’re going to wake him.” And that’s when Jesus…
So Jesus is allowing those storms in your life. I don’t like them. Nobody likes them because they are a true storm to you. Mother, it’s amazing. Sometimes a storm for someone else is not a storm to you, but something that’s a storm to you will not be for them. But God knows where you’re at, friend. Amen. God knows how we all need to go through the storms.
Here’s a good thing. God sees the… There’s a song, we’re going to play it in just a minute here. There’s a song—God sees the storm from the other side. Some title—there’s a different title, same song—but some says He already sees the rainbow. I want you to listen. Just going to be a minute and 19 seconds of this song. Would you play it for us? Just want you to listen to the words of this song here.
Would you look over in the book of Job, please? Look over in the book of Job. I hope you’ll listen to the words of that and how He knows the trial we need. He sees the rain on the other side, but He knows also the purifying we have during the storm, during the trial. Job, how many of you—be honest with you—I think, I imagine everybody, but if…
Have you heard, you know pretty much the story of Job, would you raise your head? If you know pretty much the story of Job, would you raise your head? I think most of our hands are up there on that. Very good, godly man, a righteous man, one of the best Christians around for sure. But God took him through his test, losing his children, his health, and his finances went bankrupt, and it took—sometimes we think whether it took a couple days—it took about a year, a year and a half, or not exactly sure how long. Then those friends turned against him, and God was allowing him. He was on the road to promotion, but on the road to promotion there’s a lot of bumps, and he was going through the bumps. But God is on this road, and He takes you through these potholes where a truck disappears. You come out the other side a little bit cleaner if you allow Him. He’s trying to do something. He’s… Yes, that’s part of the road, a lot to it, but some of that is Him purifying, cleaning.
Look, if you will, just we’ll look at this, kind of get us going. Look at Job 23 and verse number 10. Job 23 and verse number 10. I want you to see what Job wisely says when he’s really in the heat of the test. He’s on the road to promotion, but he’s going through a hard time. And he makes this statement, I love it. It’s very often quoted. He makes it in verse 10, 23, Job 23:10. He says, “But he, the Lord, but he knoweth the way that I take. And when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.” I like that. He knows God’s trying him, purifying him, like gold is tried and purified.
But I want you to notice this. Sometimes we miss it. I want you to look over in chapter 29. Chapter 29 is really to me a very eye-opening thing about Job. Now, Job was a good, godly man, probably a much, much better Christian than I am or ever will be. But I want to be honest with you, I believe, in many—if you have a scope-filled Bible, you read the notes—he’ll say Job had self-righteousness. I dare say every single person in here this morning has some self-righteousness in them. But in kind of chapter 29, maybe 30 a little bit too, but it really shows us his self-righteousness. It’s amazing. In this chapter 51 times, 51 times, one chapter, he’ll say either the word, “I,” “me,” or “my.” 51 times in one chapter, you’ll see the word, “I,” “me,” or “my.” Let’s just read a little bit. I don’t know how much of the chapter we’ll read. Let’s just start off from verse number one. And I want you to see the self-righteousness. This is where you can really see the self-righteousness in Job. And I want you to see it.
“Moreover, Job continued his parable and said, Oh, that I were as in months past, as in the days when God preserved me; when his candle shined upon my head; when by his light I walked through darkness; as I was in the days of my youth when the secret of God was upon my tabernacle; when the Almighty was yet with me; when my children were about me; when I washed my steps with butter and the rock poured me out rivers of oil; when I went out to the gate through the city; when I prepared my seat in the streets; young men saw me and hid themselves; and the aged rose up and stood up; the princes refrained talking and laid their hands on their mouth; the nobles held their peace and their tongue cleaved to the roof of their mouth; when the ear heard me, then it blessed me. When the eye saw me, it gave witness to me because I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him. The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me, and I caused the widow’s heart to sing for joy. I put on righteousness and clothed me; my judgment was as a robe and a diadem.”
We could go on and on, finish the chapter, but you see the self-righteousness. You see what I’m talking about? My, me, my. Look, boy, when I talked, everybody’s like earfoot and talked. Boy, everybody hushed. When I came on the street, boy, even the aged, they stood up and took notice of me. He’s a good, godly man, but just a lot of self in there. You see it?
This side says, you see it over here on this side? Boy, it’s sitting there. Now, the trial, you know the trial, and the friends kept accusing him, “Oh, you’re a hypocrite, you’re a liar,” and you’re a God-save of your life and all that’s going on. And then finally God comes on the scene. And He said, “Look, Jeremy, you’re so self-righteous, you’ve got everything together. Let’s talk man to man for a bit.”
God… Everybody’s a little bit different. Some say 31. It is different numbers. How many questions? But God begins to ask, “Hey, Job, where were you when I created the earth? If you know so much, how did I put a barrier to the sea so it doesn’t flood the world?” And on and on it goes. And of course Job doesn’t know. And I want you to see the end of this saying. I want you to look over in chapter number 40. Job chapter number 40, if you would.
And God is about to promote Job. Promotion Day is right around the corner for Job. Let’s see if he’s still got all this self-righteousness in him. Let’s see if he’s talking about, “How, look at me, everybody listening to me, what all I did for the poor. I took care of everybody.” Is he saying all that? Well, let’s see. Look in chapter number 40. Look at verse number three. Job 40, verse number three.
“Then Job answered the Lord and said, Behold, I am vile. What shall I answer thee? I will lay my hand upon my mouth.” Look over in chapter 42. Chapter 42. Chapter 40, in between there, 40 and 42, God asks him a little bit more questions, and of course he doesn’t have an answer for it. And look in chapter 42.
And would you look down to verse number six? Right there, verse number six. Well, let’s go to verse number five. Verse number five. Job’s talking to the Lord. He said, “I’ve heard of thee by the hearing of the ear. But now, mine eye seeth thee.” I like that part, by the way. Boy, you come through the trial, God purges you. You could know Him a whole lot better. Before I heard about you, but now I’m seeing you, God.
Well, they can be wonderful times. The fellowship of His sufferings, Philippians 3:10 calls it. You can really get closer to Him. You’re a little bit purified. You see things totally different on the other side of the storm. But watch what he says, verse number 10. He says, verse number six, he says, “Wherefore I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” Boy, you don’t find self-righteousness now.
You find a man that has been purified by the fire. You find a man that all of “me, me, me” has gone out of him. He said, “Well, I’m a sinful man. If you bless me, it’s not because I’m all that, it’s because you’re all that now, Lord.” And then after God sends him through the trial, the fiery, the burning, fiery furnace—we’re going to get it in a minute here—after he goes through that burning fiery furnace, he comes out on the other side. God says, “All right, Job, you see what yourself, what you really are. I’m ready to bless you now.” And God says, “Hey, you had wealth, I’m going to give you wealth twice over. You had influence. I’ll give you so much influence. Even the people you know, they’re the ones that bring you the wealth.”
You have so much influence over people now. You can promote me like never before. And you see me now. You don’t hear about me. You see me now. You use that to promote the Lord Jesus Christ. I give you 10 more children. The names of his three daughters, the next three daughters, he tells us. We won’t take time to do it. But it means like a bright shining sun. Just a beautiful… One of them just, I think the friendliest, kindest person he ever met, one of the most beautiful, one of the best personalities. The names of those three girls, we’ll study out some other time. But he said, “I’ll give you ten more wonderful children.” I don’t know if the first ten were the best in the world, but He blesses him twice as much. But friend, hey, listen, listen, the road to promotion comes through trials.
But God has a reason for those trials. And more often than not, those trials are purifying us. Look at you a little over Revelation. Revelation chapter 2. Revelation chapter 2, He’s talking to the church of Laodicea, a very, very wealthy church. They got everything, hey? And well, we don’t need anything. And I said, well, maybe you do need some things. I think you’re poor and wretched and miserable, naked and blind.
I want you to see what God says for them to do. Look in verse number 18, Revelation 3:18. He said, “I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the what? Fire, that thou mayest be rich”—promotion—“and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve that thou mayest see.” By the way, when God puts you through the fiery furnace and it burns all that dross, you see everything totally different. It’s not so much about who knows you and what all you are, how many friends you have, and how many… No, no, no, it’s the Lord. You’re more focused on Him. You see Him better. You see Him so directly. But He told the church of Laodicea, “Hey, the thing you need, you need to go through the trials.”
How many like promotion out there? Anybody like promotion out there? You like promotion, amen? Boy, I like promotion. I do. I mean, anybody out there would like to go to your mailbox and get a $10,000 check? Somebody want that? Come on, that’s the kind of promotion we like there. How about maybe promotion where you lose about 10 or 20, 30, 40 pounds? Anybody? Man, come on now. Yeah, how about that? I don’t know a promotion. You say, you know, your children turn out right or whatever. But all promotion, all kind of promotion comes a lot of different ways. But the road to promotion is through testing.
Can I say this? See it as that. Don’t spend your days on the road complaining. Mr. Lewis, God has a wonderful plaque. I have it in the hallway. We have it in a hallway of our house. And it says it’s in a hallway. It says, “While you’re waiting for God to open the next door, praise Him in the hallway.” Amen.
Hey, friend, count it—while you’re going through trials and temptations and the bad time, I understand you’re going to weep and your heart’s going to break, I understand all that—but don’t get mad and bitter and complaining and moaning and groaning at the world. So God’s trying to get me to promotion. But the road to promotion is through a lot of hairpin turns and a lot of potholes. A lot of time, “When are we going to get there?”
Look over, if you will, in James. James, I have to bat—Matt, we’re going to run out of time—but real quick to hear. Look over in James, chapter number one. James, chapter one. I had such a hard time for years with this verse. I, of course, I knew God was right, I was wrong, but I just had a hard time. How in the world can you do that? And it’s a good day when God showed me a little bit more about these verses here. Let’s just sit over in James, Chapter 1. Look at verse number 2 right there. James 1, verse number 2. He says, “My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations.” Now that’s the verse I had a hard time with. Count it all joy when your car breaks down? Anybody want me out there? Anybody going to be honest with me out there? Count it all joy when your wife has cancer? Come on. That’s what he said. Count it all joy when you fall into all kinds of different temptations and trials.
How in the world can I count it joy? Look at the next verses. How can you count it all joy? Knowing, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. Now, if you’re like me, this is what I was: “All right, He’s giving me a little bit of life, but Lord, I know You value patience, but to me that’s not that big of a deal, patience.” God values it very much. But for me, I’m like, “Well, okay, give me patience, but what’s the big deal?” But He’s not finished. Knowing this, that the trying of your faith—it’s always about your trying your faith—knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience, but let patience have her perfect work. Here’s the end result He’s trying to get at: that you may be perfect, that perfect is mature. You’re a full-grown Christian now. That you may be perfect and entire—that you’re well-rounded in every area. You’re not lacking fingers, amen. You got all your fingers, and you got everything. You’re a well-rounded Christian. You got them all. That you may be perfect and entire, wanting or lacking nothing.
And He said, count it all joy because you know God’s doing something. He’s got a reason for that. I’m trying to make you a mature Christian, an entire Christian that I can bless and use. He has a reason for allowing that test to go in your life. And because you know there’s a reason for that, I can count it all joy. Because you’re trying to get me down the road to promotion. Amen. Or God can promote a well-rounded Christian.
Now, the ultimate of God’s promotion is going to be heaven one day. Anybody… Anybody, now you say, “I know, I’m ready to go to heaven,” but I don’t know about the next trainload. I understand that. But, you know, on the other hand, the wonderful thing, our promotion day, final promotion day, is going to be heaven if you’re a born-again Christian. That’s all right. Mr. Jackson, one of the men, he’s in heaven now, but he used to say, he used to say, “I’m going to be gone 30 minutes before the devil even knows what’s going on. I’m going to be in heaven.” He always said, “30 minutes before the devil knows what happened, I’m going to be walking streets of gold up there.” I like that. Now, that’s the final promotion.
But, friend, if you remember when we read over there in Daniel 3, would you go back over there? Daniel 3. Just go back over there real, real quickly here. And we’re winding it down. Ladies, you can put your shoes on back to go home, maybe. We’re getting there. Look at Daniel 3. And let’s just look at these verses here again. Look at verse number 28. Daniel 3:28. “Then Nebuchadnezzar spake and said, Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel and delivered his servants that…” What’s the next three words? “…that trusted in him.”
The final part of promotion is going to heaven, and God promotes those to heaven that have trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, the temptation is for us to trust in our goodness, our righteousness, our good deeds. Brother Roberts is about to get baptized. I’m excited about it. But, you know, that’s a righteous act—to get baptized. It’s a wonderful thing. Brother Roberts is going to be kind of squelched in his growth for the Lord to get baptized. But that water doesn’t save him. Jesus Christ saved him. And he’s not trusting in this righteous act that he’s about to do to save him. He’s trusting in Jesus to save him. That’s why I said, “But I don’t have to worry about I know where I’m going now,” praise the Lord, because Jesus will give you that reassurance. Some people are just trusting in these works they do. No, no, we’re trusting in Jesus. Trust in Him. Did you know, in Him, in the Lord—that’s Jehovah—that’s what saves?
But if you’re trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ, then the ultimate promotion is coming after we get down this whole windy road of life. All these trials and temptations. Boy, I mentioned over the hilltop that I’ll never grow old. Well, we grow old here. You know what I’m talking about? Somebody says, “I don’t know. Anybody out there feel like you’re 16?” Anybody feel like you’re 85? 105? Come on. Yeah. That’s just part of this life. And we’re winding down that road. But if you’re trusting in Jesus, promotion day’s coming.
Some of our folks who cleaned out the middle room of Building A over there, and they brought this picture out—maybe it was in the T-room, I’m not sure—but they brought this picture out reminded me here recently of this man right here, Dwayne Dauphrett. How many of you remember Dwayne Dauphrett? Brother Wayne Dauphrett. I was in her church years and years ago. And Brother Wayne, he was just a good, godly man. He spent the last years of his life, had a lot of health issues, but he spent the last years of his life just really busy serving the Lord here. He was our head deacon. He ran our youth department, did a great job, and just devoted his life. Last years of his life, remember one time he took our teens on an activity, and we just had like one or so ago. It was a local, smaller activity. I think he had like one teenager go. I said, Brother DeWain, and the thing is, when he took a teenager to activity, he’d be hurt for the next three or four days. He had a heart issue. He’d been to Mayo Clinic. They saved part of his heart muscle and so on, and just any of instance with cancer. And I said, “Brother DeWain, you know, your heart and all your problems, maybe just don’t go to some of these teen activities. We’ll do it. We’ll take care of it. But just take it easy.” I remember him telling me this.
He said, “You know, Pastor Paul, if I only have a couple more years to live, I want to spend the last days of my life like this serving the Lord.” Well, what are you going to say to a guy that says that to you? But I remember the night. It was on Wednesday night. We had gotten home from church, and we got the phone call. Brother Wayne passed. He was in Centennial Hospital up in Nashville. And then we took off, my wife and I, up there to Nashville.
And we got there before the family had gotten there, and just some nurses had been in there and whatnot. And we walked in the room. And I’ve seen a fair amount of people die and bodies and all that, you know, 24, 25 years of pastoring and all that. But when we walked in the room, I’ve never seen—I’ve never seen it, never had like this. It was amazing when he died. The nurses, everyone was commenting on this. The family got there, everyone was commenting on this: he died with a smile on his face. I’ve never seen a dead body like that. It’s just a permanent smile. The nurses and doctors all said the same thing, “Wow.”
Now, I say that and I show you the picture to say, friend, he had his promotion day. And we’re living in this sin-cursed world. It’s a bumpy road. It’s a long road. It’s a windy road. But if you’re trusting in Jesus Christ, promotion day’s coming one day. While we’re on the road, there are a lot of promotions along the way for those that stay right, going through the fiery furnace.
Would you bow your heads and close your eyes, please? Our heads are bowed and our eyes are closed. You’re there and you say, “You preach to my eye. I am. I want to view my test, my trials, my fiery furnace. I want to view them as God’s trying to get me to promotion. I realize that. Sometimes it’s just so easy to see all the bad in it, but I’m going to start seeing this thing. God’s got a reason for it. And I know you’re trying to get me to promotion.” God spoke to my heart about that, preacher. I’m going to try to view my test. You’re not going to be perfect at it, but I’m going to try to view my testing and trials as God’s trying to get me down the road to promotion. God’s trying to do a work in my life. If that’s you this morning, let’s slip your hand up. I’m going to try to see it that way. God’s trying to promote me. God bless you, many hands. God’s doing your work.
I know it’s not because He hates me. I know He loves me. I can trust Him, but He’s trying to get me down there. There’s promotion down there. These three Hebrew boys would not have been promoted if they didn’t go through the test of trial. Maybe there’s someone else. I need to view it that way. I need to see it the way God is trying to purge me, trying to clean me so He can promote me more than the end. God spoke to my heart about that right there. Anybody else? Just slip it up. Just slip it up. God bless you. Good, good, good.
God’s got a reason for those trials, those tests in your life. Maybe you’re there this morning. You said, “Preacher, I would like for Him to be thorough with me.” Great preacher years gone by, his name of A.J. Gordon. He said, when he was going through the trials, he said, “Lord, be thorough with me. Clean me, purge me. I want to be a vessel of honor for You, Lord. Would You… would You be thorough with me going through it?” Maybe that’s in your heart, your mind this morning. Would you let the Lord know about that? Maybe here this morning you say, “You know, I’ve never really trusted in Jesus as my Savior. I’ve never fully put all my faith in Jesus Christ to pay my sins. I need to be saved so promotion day one day will be heaven.”
Oh, friend, Jesus is not part of the way. He is the way. You say, “You know, I need to trust in Him. I need to trust in Jesus alone to be my personal Savior. I need to get saved today.” Anybody like that, preacher? I need to get saved today. Anybody like that? I need to trust in Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. Anybody like that? I don’t see any hands. Hey, child of God, just because we’re a child, we’ll still have the fiery furnace, but Jesus will be with you in there. And it’s trying to take you down that road to promotion, whatever that may be in your life. Let’s stay faithful. Let’s love Him through it. Let’s let Him know, “Lord, be thorough with me through it.” Would you tell Him that?
Would you please stand right there? Would you stand? We’re going to have word of prayer. Would you come and spend some time with the Lord? Would you do that? We’ll get ready to baptize during this time. Would you come? Father, thank you that we can trust You. Lord, forgive me, Father. There’s been times going through the testing that I get, oh, maybe discouraged and murmuring. Forgive me, Lord. Remind me, You have a reason, You have a purpose, trying to get me down the road to promotion. Lord, remind us all of that. Help us to be more faithful, count it all joy, as You said. Help us to live closer to that. Well, thank You, Lord, for what You do. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Original File: Pastor Paul Chisgar - The Road to Promotion - Sunday AM 05052024