Daniel’s Devotion (Part 3)

Hello Friends!

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

Daniel’s Devotion (Part 3)

This chapter in the book of prophecy written by Daniel is not a prophetic passage. However, it is very practical and is one of the three very practical passages in Daniel in which we will consider in future devotional studies.

It is interesting to note that Daniel is not mentioned here in chapter 3 and there is not a definite reason that we can point to scripturally on the subject. There have been suggestions that Daniel may have been traveling during this time.

To begin with, Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, had an "image of gold " erected in Babylon, most likely an "image of a man" – himself – that was “sixty cubits” (ninety feet tall) and “six cubits” (nine feet wide) at its base:

Nebuchadnezzar the king made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its width six cubits. He set it up in the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon – Daniel 3:1

Nebuchadnezzar's wise counselors set a trap for the three Hebrew companions of Daniel – Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah – which are their godly Hebrew names. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are the Chaldean names for these three Hebrew boys. The trap for these three men was the royal order for everyone to bow to the "image of gold " when they heard the “sound of the horn, flute, harp, and lyre, in symphony with all kinds of music” the sound of music. Failure to bow would be met with the punishment:

and whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace – Daniel 3:6

The three Hebrew boys refused to bow and when brought before Nebuchadnezzar they told the King:

If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king – Daniel 3:17

That assurance was a real blessing for the three, as it is for us today, an assurance that He can deliver us from any "fiery trial". However, look at the next verse

But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up – Daniel 3:18

If God decides not to deliver us, the boys said "we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image". That is the attitude often missing today. Often we want God to be "Johnny on the spot" to take care of us on our time-table. I love that phrase – "But if not". What God decides is best, whether I think so or not!

These three boys did not "worship" and they were thrown into the furnace where they did not "burn". They not only did not burn, even the smell of smoke was not upon their bodies nor their clothing:

And the satraps, administrators, governors, and the king’s counselors gathered together, and they saw these men on whose bodies the fire had no power; the hair of their head was not singed nor were their garments affected, and the smell of fire was not on them – Daniel 3:27

When the Lord does something, He does it right! It was Jesus Christ in a "pre-incarnate" appearance that came to rescue the three Hebrew boys:

“Look!” he answered, “I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God” – Daniel 3:25

This is a great story that ended with the three Hebrew boys being promoted in the Babylonian Kingdom:

Then the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego in the province of Babylon – Daniel 3:30

Though this is not actually a prophetic passage, it does have a prophetic spiritual application. In the last days God will protect the Jewish people from the "fiery Tribulation" – a period of time known as "Jacob's trouble" – that seems to be coming very soon.

Remember: The Lord will preserve the Jewish people and has a special plan for them 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 <><

Thursday Devotional - Love and Rebuke

Have you ever both rebuked and loved a person in the same moment? I’m guessing many parents can answer “yes” to this question!

A truly godly and loving parent will instruct their child in the ways of God, knowing it’s best for them. As loving brothers and sisters in Christ, we too should desire the best for each other. Most of us don’t like conflict, but if we truly love others, we will humbly share with them God’s standards.

Last week, I gave an overview lecture of 20 chapters in Leviticus to a Bible study class and the following verses were some of the ones that jumped out at me.

Leviticus 19:17-18       ¹⁷ “‘Do not hate a fellow Israelite in your heart. Rebuke your neighbor frankly so you will not share in their guilt. ¹⁸ “‘Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.

This is our Holy God talking! He said to both rebuke and love our neighbor in two sentences back to back. They fit together. If we love our neighbor we won’t hate them or seek revenge. If we humbly approach our neighbor with the sincere and honest truth (frankness), then it’s less likely their sin will lead us to a hateful and revengeful heart attitude. Plus, if they rightly respond to the rebuke, we will help them turn from their sin and toward God. They will then enjoy a reconciled relationship with God, us, and others.

Jesus reiterated this in one of his teachings in the book of Matthew.

Matthew 18:15-17      ¹⁵ “If your brother or sister sins, go and point out their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you have won them over. ¹⁶ But if they will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ ¹⁷ If they still refuse to listen, tell it to the church; and if they refuse to listen even to the church, treat them as you would a pagan or a tax collector.  

Who have you and I avoided rebuking or confronting?

Will you pray for boldness and humility and then approach them with loving sincerity?

How will you and I be open to receiving rebuke?

Will you and I be thankful for their love and concern for us and listen and respond appropriately?

Alice

Work In Progress

Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.  Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ.  From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.  Ephesians 4:14-16

My journey of faith started right here doing devotions over ten years ago.  I have grown so much in the decade that has passed since, and yet, I feel like I am still a work in progress.  My growth moves me to be better and closer each day to the God who showed me grace and to the people who despite my flaws have shown me love that only God supersedes.  I write devotions with the hope of helping others find purpose for what God has in store for them for each day that we focus on Christ is a step of growth in the right direction.

Spiritual growth is a continual process that is aided by knowledge in His word and use of one’s gifts. One area that I have grown immensely in is sharing my faith.  With greater knowledge in the truth of His word and understanding the gifts God has given me, I have realized that I am far better at discussing faith with someone I have first gotten to know.  If I try a different approach, it does not come across as authentic or worded differently, with Godly intent.  We all grow in different ways.  Some as my pastor said the other day are best diving in to learn how to swim.  Others learn best from someone knowledgeable or applying life experiences.  Our goal is to be knowledgeable in what God expects from us so that we operate continually with ‘Godly intent.’

Growth is not meant to be easy for as Jesus said, “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:14)  In trying to grow, we will fall sometimes, but the greatest growth often comes from our failures.  One of the last things my father told me was, “Keep your hands on the plow.”  It meant keep working at it.  Don’t give up.  Keep pushing. This is how we both grow and become the mature body of Christ.  How can you grow your spiritual gifts?  What greater knowledge can you obtain to further your spiritual growth?  My prayer is that we realize that we are continually a work in progress.  Amen.

Tues Devo: Precise anger

John 2:13-16 “The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And He found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables; and to those who were selling the doves He said, “Take these things away; stop making My Father’s house a place of business.”” (NASB)

Hello,

In studying this chapter last week I noticed something that had previously I had overlooked. In the past I pictured Jesus going into beast mode and just destroying those things left and right. But as I paid more attention I saw the precision with which he acted. He wasn’t upset at the goods being sold – just where this is happening. While He drives out the animals and flips over the table – those things can be re-gathered and handled properly in the right spot. This is most noticeable by His handling of the doves – he doesn’t set them free, but just told the people to take them out.

This got me thinking – how often are we upset at the wrong things? Or how often have we started being angry about the right thing – but let than anger take over such that we are angry at everything in our path.

There are proper things to be angry and upset about – but with that we must keep our head and be precise in how/where that anger comes out.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Daniel’s Devotion (Part 2)

Hello Friends!

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

Daniel’s Devotion (Part 2)

March 25, 2014 was the 57th anniversary of the signing of the "Treaty of Rome" signed by the European leaders in the city of Rome. More on the significance of this day below. But first, let’s look to our reading for today…

To begin with, “Nebuchadnezzar had dreams” and he was “troubled” to the point of loosing “sleep”:

Now in the second year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; and his spirit was so troubled that his sleep left him. Then the king gave the command to call the magicians, the astrologers, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans to tell the king his dreams. So they came and stood before the king. And the king said to them, “I have had a dream, and my spirit is anxious to know the dream” – Daniel 2:1-3

We then see Daniel had been summoned by the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar to tell him his “dream” and to interpret it for him:

Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven – Daniel 2:17-19

God gifted Daniel with the ability to reveal the dream to the Babylonian King and to interpret it for him:

But there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream, and the visions of your head upon your bed, were these – Daniel 2:28

The dream that King Nebuchadnezzar had was of an image of a man with a head of gold, chest and arms of silver, his belly and thighs of brass, two legs of iron and ten toes of iron and clay mixed. There was a Stone that hit the image of the man and broke it into pieces:

This image’s head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth – Daniel 2:32-35

Daniel's interpretation of the King's dream was actually the revelation of the "empires" of the coming Gentile world powers from the times of Daniel until the times of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. Daniel told King Nebuchadnezzar that he was the "head of gold" – the first of the Gentile world powers.

The passages found later in chapters 7 & 8 give us the understanding that the Medo-Persian Empire followed by the Grecian Empire and the Roman Empire would take Gentile history all the way to a time when the "ten toes" would appear – the "Revived Roman Empire" of the future...

As mentioned above, in 1957 a group of European leaders met to sign the "Treaty of Rome" in Italy in which I believe set the stage for the European Union of today. A very close investigation of the EU reveals that it is at least an "infrastructure" of the fulfillment of Daniel's prophecy of the "ten toes" which will become ten nations, kings or regions…

The key verse to notice about this prophecy is noted as "the days of these kings":

And in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever – Daniel 2:44

The Creator God of heaven will destroy these “kings” and set up the kingdom that Jesus Christ will rule and reign over at His Second Coming – The 1000-Year Millennial Kingdom. This interpretation of these prophecies from Daniel fits the prophecies of John the Revelator in his book of prophecy:

The beast that you saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits. There are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when he comes, he must continue a short time. The beast that was, and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and is going to perdition. “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings with the beast. These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast. These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.” Then he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. And the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these will hate the harlot, make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire. For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose, to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled. And the woman whom you saw is that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth – Revelation 17:8-18

The evidence is very strong that we are living in those days…

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 <><

Treasures

Matthew 6:19-21 NIV

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

I am on the association board for our subdivision and this past year there have been a few residence that want us to change the bi-laws to allow building sheds.  The argument from that group is that if they can’t have a shed then they may need to move as they have run out of space.  Of course there are those that oppose it also who have said that it’s time to take inventory of what you are storing and get rid of junk. 

We are told in Matthew that we are not to store up earthly treasures, “things”.  Rather we should be storing up treasures in heaven.  What are treasures in heaven? 

Treasures in heaven are a number of different things.  Jesus is one of our treasures.  If we are committing our resources, be it money, time or talents, to do his work, that is storing up treasures in heaven. 

How are you investing what God has given you to produce more treasure for him?

Thursday Devotional - New Year Training

With the start of another year, I have heard many people indicate their healthy goals for this year. Some plan to watch carefully what they eat, some plan to be more committed to regular physical exercise and others plan to do both! I agree these are important goals, especially for believers, since our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit.

I Corinthians 6:19-20  ¹⁹ Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; ²⁰ you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

Taking care of our bodies through physical training is important, so how much more important is our spiritual training?

I Timothy 4:7b-16          Train yourself to be godly.⁸ For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. ⁹ This is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance. ¹⁰ That is why we labor and strive, because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.

¹¹ Command and teach these things. ¹² Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. ¹³ Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. ¹⁴ Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through prophecy when the body of elders laid their hands on you.

¹⁵ Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress. ¹⁶ Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.

What goals for godliness do you and I have for this coming year?

How will you and I train ourselves to be godly?

Studying God's Word for life application is the best place to start.

We also learn more by teaching others, so who will you teach?

Our sincere pursuit of the eternal God will never be a waste of time or disappoint!

Alice