Daniel’s Devotion (Part 5)

Hello Friends!

Welcome Back! Let’s continue our study of “Daniel’s Devotion” from God’s Word…

Daniel’s Devotion (Part 5)

Daniel chapter 6 is one of the most practical chapters in the Bible. However, it is also prophetic. You may recognize the story from your days in Sunday School and maybe even have seen the drama played out in a church program. It is a wonderful story of the "steadfastness of Daniel":

It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom one hundred and twenty satraps, to be over the whole kingdom; and over these, three governors, of whom Daniel was one, that the satraps might give account to them, so that the king would suffer no loss. Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm – Daniel 6:1-3

Darius the king had published a decree that told his subjects they were not allowed to offer up a prayer to anyone other than the King himself:

So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him. Then these men said, “We shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God.” So these governors and satraps thronged before the king, and said thus to him: “King Darius, live forever! All the governors of the kingdom, the administrators and satraps, the counselors and advisors, have consulted together to establish a royal statute and to make a firm decree, that whoever petitions any god or man for thirty days, except you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the decree and sign the writing, so that it cannot be changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which does not alter.” Therefore King Darius signed the written decree – Daniel 6:4-9

This decree was meant to bring harm to Daniel, but instead it brought praise to Daniel's God!

You know the story so well, so allow me to just bring to your attention some of the highlights of this portion of Daniel that we are using for our devotional reading for today. There are many blessings to be found in this passage. Here are just a few.

Daniel, as was his custom, went to his chambers and kneeled to pray towards Jerusalem, as he had been commanded. By the way… Daniel was not trying to hide as he prayed. He prayed with the windows open so that all the Kingdom could see the faithfulness of Daniel:

Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went home. And in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days. Then these men assembled and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God – Daniel 6:10-11

Daniel's enemies rushed to the King to report Daniel going against the King's decree. Daniel decided that it was more important to obey God than man. When we do that we must be ready to face the circumstances – no matter what the cost – as was the case with Daniel:

And they went before the king, and spoke concerning the king’s decree: “Have you not signed a decree that every man who petitions any god or man within thirty days, except you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions?” The king answered and said, “The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which does not alter.” So they answered and said before the king, “That Daniel, who is one of the captives from Judah, does not show due regard for you, O king, or for the decree that you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day – Daniel 6:12-13

The King, realizing what his decree meant to Daniel was very displeased with himself and wanted to change his decree but was reminded by his men that the "law of the Medes and Persians" would not allow the king to change that order which would send Daniel to the death as a punishment for simply praying.

And the king, when he heard these words, was greatly displeased with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him; and he labored till the going down of the sun to deliver him. Then these men approached the king, and said to the king, “Know, O king, that it is the law of the Medes and Persians that no decree or statute which the king establishes may be changed – Daniel 6:14-15

How important is our prayer time? Would we be willing to face a death sentence to be faithful to the dictates of God for our spiritual lives? Daniel is a perfect example for us to follow! What a promise that Daniel was reminded of by the King as he was being thrown into the lion's den:

So the king gave the command, and they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. But the king spoke, saying to Daniel, “Your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you” – Daniel 6:17

As we "continually serve Him" He takes care of all our needs – even physically. There is so much more in this passage that we could share. Let me draw your attention to the prophetic portion of our reading for today:

 I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom men must tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. For He is the living God, and steadfast forever; His kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed, and His dominion shall endure to the end. He delivers and rescues, and He works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian – Daniel 6:26-28

The King put out another decree that in all of the kingdom men should "tremble and fear before the God of Daniel.” The entire kingdom would recognize the God of Daniel as the "living God” who was “steadfast forever” and that “His dominion shall endure to the end."

The kingdom that will "endure to the end" is the one that Jesus Christ will set up after the seven year Tribulation, yet in the future…

Thank you for reading! Don’t miss next week’s continued investigation of Daniel’s Devotion…

May the Lord Jesus Christ continue to bless you with His perfect love, mercy and grace!

Keep looking up and sharing the Gospel while there is still time… Hallelujah and Maranatha – come quickly Lord Jesus!

Blessings!

Shane <><

Terrible Twos

Ephesians 4:2

Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

This verse was a great one for me this week as my son, who will be 2 next week, has really been really testing us, especially me lately.  I realize this is part of the age but it really is a time that as parents, we have to learn to be patient and loving. 

This made me think about how much do I test God?  Am I like a 2 year old at times?  God is beyond patient with us, more so than we ever deserve.  Let’s work today on being as patient with others as God is with us and trying not to test God as much as a 2 year old.

Thursday Devotional - A True Sister

The apostle Paul was quite an amazing follower of Christ. I’m sure some doubted the sincerity of his conversion at first, but I don’t think there’s any room for doubt now. His life was full of evidence that He loved God with His whole heart. He was a true father to many.

I Timothy 1:1-2          Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope, ² To Timothy my true son in the faith: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

Well, today is my niece’s spiritual birthday! Maria asked Jesus to forgive her of her sins and accepted Jesus Christ as her Savior three years ago today. I wrote a devotional about it three years ago and how evident it was in just the first 24 hours after her conversion that the Holy Spirit was actively working in her life. She had become my true sister in Christ!

Well, three years later, there’s even more evidence. She continues to have a concern for the lost and remembers to take things to God. She will take big and small victories or trials to God through praise and petition. One such example, a few weeks ago we were all eating dinner together and discussing all the various trials going on in our own lives and the lives of others around us. Maria chimed in and said we could pray to God about it all. So, we did just that, we all stopped in the middle of dinner and lifted up various concerns to God.

Maria is not only my niece, but most importantly she’s my true sister in Christ! We’re celebrating that today!

Who are your true brothers and sisters in the faith?

How evident is it that you and I are true brothers and sisters to others?

When was the last time you and I shared our faith?

Or when was the last time we wrote an encouraging letter to a fellow believer?

Who will you and I encourage today?

Paul, as a true spiritual father to Timothy, showed his love to him by continuing to encourage and instruct him. We have two of his letters to Timothy for our own encouragement and instruction!

Alice

Certainty over Luck

And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.  `Hebrews 11:32-34, 39-40

There are many things in life that people will say is left up to chance.  “Hopefully, we will get lucky,” one would say.  “There’s risk in everything,” another might say.  With so much uncertainty in the world, why should we ever feel certain that things will turn out in our favor?  After all, what goes up must come down, right?

Faith in God gives us certainty that all things happen with good intention.  Last week, I mentioned faith as, “Assurance about what we do not see.”  (Hebrews 11:1b)  Years ago, I remember getting into an accident and totaling the car I was just about to finish paying off.  This was just after my wife and I had just purchased a new home which we knew would tighten our budget.  Then, my wife was laid off from work just prior to our move.  Did I mention that this was the year of the Great Recession?  I still remember vividly where we had nothing left in our bank account, and I just looked to God crying, “I don’t know what else you want me to do.  I can’t do this on my own.”  Now some would believe that we were victims of bad luck or unfortunate circumstances.  Yet when we had nothing, we still had God.  The very next day, a check came in the mail covering all the upcoming expenses for the next week.  That’s what faith will do.  And what did God’s intention teach me?  First, I learned dependency on God and surrendering all to Him.  Second, I learned contentment appreciating what God has blessed me with.   When we have faith in God, there is no luck or coincidence.  There is God’s righteous intention and the chance to gain wisdom and clarity of His purpose for our lives from it.

Acceptance of God’s will gives clarity in all situations.  Things cease to affect us adversely, and become opportunities to gain understanding of God’s plan for our lives.  What circumstances have you been given that need a God-centered perspective?  How can we have certainty of God’s goodness in uncertain times?  My prayer is that we don’t buy into luck but instead have certainty in Jesus Christ.  Amen.