Nov. 2, 2020

Max Wilkins on Daniel 5 – “Deeply Rooted in the Word of God”

Mark is delighted to welcome Pastor Max Wilkins, to the podcast today. Max is the President and CEO of TMS Global, an organization that exists to mobilize and deploy the body of Christ globally to join Jesus in His mission, especially among the least-reached people. Prior to taking on this role, Max served as a Pastor in Florida and Hawaii for 26 years, and he has also served and taught in more than three dozen countries around the world. The passage he has chosen is Daniel 5, which is one that Mark had never read, and is also where one of the most familiar expressions in our language comes from.

Max begins the conversation by sharing his summary of the passage, highlighting Daniel’s legacy, and, with Mark, revealing the many parallels in the lives of Daniel and Joseph. They continue by exploring the ability to interpret dreams, understanding God’s message for us, the highest form of prayer, as well as the Jewish conception of prayer. Max also details how he uses this passage to teach about leadership and explains his concept of ‘dream releasers’. The episode concludes with the lessons Max has learned about humankind, which lead into a fascinating discussion regarding the presence of true evil within people and the world. Max’s love for this passage, the lessons it teaches, and its application in our everyday lives, is palpable throughout, rendering this yet another ‘must listen’ episode of the Rabbi’s Husband podcast.

Episode Highlights:

  • · Max’s summary of the passage
  • · Daniel’s legacy
  • · The parallels in the lives of Daniel and Joseph
  • · The ability to interpret dreams
  • · Understanding God’s message for us
  • · The highest form of prayer
  • · The Jewish conception of prayer
  • · Using this passage to leach leadership
  • · Being a ‘dream releaser’
  • · The lessons that Max has learned about mankind
  • · Evil in people and the world

Quotes:

“A hand appears and begins to write letters on the wall.”

“We see what a life of faithfulness has created in Daniel, what his legacy is, what the Lord has done in his life that has made him such a great leader and a great child of God.”

“It really indicates the spirit of a person that is so deeply rooted in the Word of God, that they’re able to make sense of what God is saying in people’s lives, even when the people themselves are not able to make sense of it.”

“Just as many people today who don’t take the time to study Torah or the Word of God, they’re confused by things that seem obvious to people who have rooted themselves in what God is saying.”

“I’ve always believed that meditation on the Word of God is the highest form of prayer.”

“Prayer transforms ourselves.”

“Every human being can develop these characteristics by simply rooting themselves in God’s Word, by being diligent in pursuing God.”

“I think the best leadership is when we can help other people become everything that God wants them to become.”

“God obviously has dreams and plans for the lives of His children, and sometimes they need someone who’s deeply rooted in the things of God to come alongside them and release those dreams.”

“The writing is on the wall, you just have to read it.”

“No matter how tarnished it is…there is the residual glory of God to some degree in every human being that we encounter and…it’s worth making the effort to find that, and to focus on that.”

“Everybody that we encounter in life, every human being, has something to teach us if we’re willing to learn.”

“Son, stick your finger in a glass of water and pull it out and tell me about the size of the hole it leaves.”

“There’s pure evil in the world.”

“Part of my responsibility as one who seeks after the Lord is to try to see the Glory of God in situations and even in people, and I will grant you that there are people that I have not been able to find the glory of God in.”

Daniel 5 - https://www.sefaria.org/Daniel.5.1-30?lang=en&with=all&lang2=en

Links:

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