Praying Through God’s Word: Daniel

DANIEL

1:1-2:16
‘Daniel resolved not to defile himself’ (Daniel 1:8). We thank You, Lord, that Daniel was devoted to You. It was not easy to live as Your faithful servant. His dedication to You was put to the test – ‘Test your servants’ (Daniel 1:12). Our faith is put to the test. We ‘suffer many trials’. Why, Lord, do You allow our faith to be tested by ‘all kinds of trials? – ‘The testing of your faith produces steadfastness’. ‘These have come so that your faith, which is much more precious than gold, may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed’ (1 Peter 1:6-7; James 1:2-3). Knowing that ‘every trial falls from above, traced upon our dial by the Sun of Love’, may we learn to ‘trust You fully’ and ‘find You wholly true’ (Mission Praise, 421).

2:17-49
‘In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a Kingdom that will never be destroyed’ (44). We thank You, Lord, that Your Kingdom is the only Kingdom which stands forever. Your Kingdom is eternal. We thank You that, through Christ, ‘the Kingdom of God has come near to us’ (Luke 10:9). Christ is the ‘King of kings’ (Revelation 17:14; 19:16). ‘His throne will last for ever and ever’. ‘His Kingdom will never end’. ‘He will reign for ever and ever’ (Hebrews 1:8; Luke 1:33; Revelation 11:15). Teach us, Lord, to sing, from our hearts, ‘Christ triumphant… ever reigning… enthroned for ever’: ‘Sin and death and hell shall never stifle hymns of love. So, our hearts and voices raising through the ages long… this shall be our song: Yours the glory and the crown…’ (Mission Praise, 77).

3:1-30
‘We want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up’ (Daniel 3:18). We have no other king but You, Lord. You, alone, are King. You, alone, are to be worshipped. We are to ‘have no other gods before You’. We are ‘not to make for ourselves an idol’ which takes the place of the Lord (Exodus 20:3-4). You, Lord, must come first in our lives. You are to be our ‘first love’ – ‘the love of our heart: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart…’ (Revelation 2:4; Mark 12:30). Jesus asks us, ‘Do you love me?’ He waits for our reply: ‘I love You’ (John 21:15-17). May we sing, from our hearts, ‘I love the Name of Jesus. King of my heart, He is everything to me’. ‘I love You, O Lord, You alone… my God who shall have all my praise’. (Mission Praise, 285,286).

4:1-37
‘His Kingdom is an eternal Kingdom; His dominion endures from generation to generation’ (Daniel 4:3). The generations rise and fall – ‘You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new grass of the morning… by evening it is dry and withered’; ‘As for man, his days are like grass… the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more’ (Psalms 90:5-6; 103-15-16). You, Lord, are ‘the everlasting God’: ‘From everlasting to everlasting You are God’. Your love is an ‘everlasting’ love: ‘From everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear Him’. You, Lord, ‘have established Your throne in heaven, and Your Kingdom rules over all’. We thank You that You are ‘our dwelling-place throughout all generations’ (Isaiah 40:28; Psalms 90:1-2; 103:17,19).

5:1-31
Teach us, Lord, not to ‘praise the gods of gold and silver…’ (Daniel 5:4). Material possessions must never take the place of God. Seeking material prosperity is not to be the most important thing in our lives. We are to ‘seek first Your Kingdom…’. We are to ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ’ (Matthew 6:33; 2 Peter 3:18). Teach us to say, from our hearts, ‘I’d rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I’d rather be His than have riches untold…I’d rather have Jesus… than to be the king of a vast domain and be held in sin’s dread sway. I’d rather have Jesus than anything this world affords today. I’d rather have Jesus than men’s applause, I’d rather be faithful to His dear cause; I’d rather have Jesus than world-wide fame, I’d rather be true to His holy Name’ (Mission Praise, 319).

6:1-28
‘He is the living God and He endures for ever; His Kingdom will not be destroyed, His dominion will never end’ (Daniel 6:26). You, Lord, are the living God. You are also the loving God – ‘His love endures forever’ (Psalm 136). You are the King. You’re a very special kind of king. You’re ‘the King of Love’. The coming of Your Kingdom will be the victory of Your love: ‘Kingdoms of the world become the kingdoms of the Lord: Love has the victory for ever!’ May we enjoy the victory of Your love as we lift our hearts to You in worship: ‘Who can see Your greatest Gift and fail to worship You?’ May we enjoy the victory of Your love as we give our lives to You in service: ‘Let us labour for the Master… Let us talk of all His wondrous love…’ (Church Hymnary, 388; Mission Praise, 86,759).

7:1-28
‘There before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven… His Kingdom is one that will never be destroyed’ (Daniel 7:13-14). We thank You, Lord, for these great words. They point us to Christ’s description of His Second Coming, the Coming of His Kingdom: ‘They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory’ (Matthew 24:30). In Revelation 1:7, we have another echo of Daniel’s ‘vision.’ As we think of these great things, may we be inspired to lift up our hearts to You in praise: ‘Look, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him’. ‘Lo! He comes, with clouds descending… Yea, Amen! let all adore Thee, high on Thine eternal throne; Saviour, take the power and glory, claim the Kingdom for Thine own. O come quickly! O come quickly! O come quickly! Alleluia! Come, Lord, come!’ (Church Hymnary, 316).

8:1-27
We read, Lord, about a ‘vision’ concerning ‘the distant future’, ‘the time of the end’ (Daniel 8:26,17). We catch a glimpse of Satan, the very powerful enemy of God’s people. Satan’s power is very frightening – ‘His power shall be great, and he shall cause fearful destruction…’. It was the power of Satan which lay behind the ‘stern-faced king’: ‘He will become very strong, but not by his own power’ (Daniel 8:23-24). We thank You, Lord, that Satan’s power will be broken. We thank You that Satan faces certain defeat – ‘He will be defeated.’ How will he be defeated? We will not defeat him – ‘He will not be destroyed by human power.’ There is only one Power able to destroy the power of Satan: ‘He shall be broken by the hand of God’. ‘Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (1 Corinthians 15:57).
9:1-27
‘O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act!’ (Daniel 9:19). How, Lord, do we know that You will hear and answer our prayer as we look to You for salvation? – ‘The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against Him’ (Daniel 9:9). We come to You with our sin – We are ‘dead in our sins and wickedness.’ You come to us with Your grace – ‘By grace you have been saved through faith.’ We come to You, Lord, deeply conscious of our sin. We know, in our hearts, that we can do nothing to save ourselves. The way of salvation can never begin with the word, ‘I’. It always begins with You, Lord. It begins with Your love – Your great love for us’: ‘God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our sins’ (Ephesians 2:1,4-5,8).

10:1-11:13
Daniel came to God in great weakness – ‘I am helpless… My strength is gone…’ (Daniel 10:16-17). We thank You, Lord, that Daniel received great strength from You – ‘The One who looked like a man touched me and gave me strength… When He spoke to me, I was strengthened…’. Daniel’s strength came from Your love and Your peace. You assured him of Your love for him. You called him a ‘man greatly beloved.’. We thank You, Lord, that You spoke Your Word of peace to Daniel: ‘Peace be with you.’ As You revealed Your love and peace to him, he came to realize that there was no need to be afraid. He could ‘be strong’ in You (Daniel 10:18-19). When we are weak, help us, Lord, to come to You and receive your strength – ‘His grace is sufficient for us. His strength is made perfect in weakness’ (2 Corinthians 12:9).

11:14-45
Help us, Lord, to live for You – ‘The people who know their God shall be strong and do great things.’ Help us to stand against Satan – ‘The people who know their God will firmly resist him’ (Daniel 11:32). Teach us that, if we are to live for You and stand against Satan, we must ‘put on the whole armour of God’. ‘Strong in the Lord’, we ‘take our stand against the devil’s schemes’ (Ephesians 6:10-11). Help us to rise to the great challenge of living for You and standing against Satan: ‘Soldiers of Christ, arise and put your armour on, strong in the strength which God supplies through His eternal Son… From strength to strength go on, wrestle and fight and pray, tread all the powers of darkness down and win the well-fought day that, having all things done and all your conflicts past, ye may o’ercome through Christ alone and stand complete at last’ (Church Hymnary, 441).

12:1-13

We read, Lord, of two very different futures – ‘everlasting life’ and ‘everlasting contempt’ (Daniel 12:2). We thank You that we receive ‘eternal life’ through ‘believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.’ Through faith in Him, we ‘know that we have eternal life.’ You give us Your promise: ‘He who has the Son has life.’ To those who ‘overcome’, through ‘believing that Jesus is the Son of God’, You give this promise: ‘I will never blot his name out of the Book of Life.’ Alongside Your promise, there is also Your warning: ‘He who does not have the Son of God does not have life.’ To those who refuse to come to Christ for salvation, You give this warning: ‘If anyone’s name was not written in the Book of Life, he was thrown into the lake of fire’ (John 20:31; 1 John 5:5,11-13; Revelation 3:5; Revelation 20:15). Help us, Lord, to heed Your warning and trust Your promise.

He is Coming With The Clouds ...

"There before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven… His Kingdom is one that will never be destroyed’ (Daniel 7:13-14).

These words point us to Christ’s description of His Second Coming, the Coming of His Kingdom: ‘They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory’ (Matthew 24:30). In Revelation 1:7, we have another echo of Daniel’s ‘vision’: ‘Look, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him’. ‘Lo! He comes, with clouds descending… Yea, Amen! let all adore Thee, high on Thine eternal throne; Saviour, take the power and glory, claim the Kingdom for Thine own. O come quickly! O come quickly! O come quickly! Alleluia! Come, Lord, come!’(Church Hymnary, 316).

Satan’s power is very frightening. Satan’s power will be broken.

In Daniel 8, we have a ‘vision’ concerning ‘the distant future’, ‘the time of the end’ (Daniel 8:26,17). Here, we catch a glimpse of Satan, the very powerful enemy of God’s people. Satan’s power is very frightening - ‘His power shall be great, and he shall cause fearful destruction...’. It was the power of Satan which lay behind the ‘stern-faced king’: ‘He will become very strong, but not by his own power’ (Daniel 8:23-24). Satan’s power will be broken. Satan faces certain defeat - ‘He will be defeated’. How will he be defeated? We will not defeat him - ‘He will not be destroyed by human power’. There is only one Power able to destroy the power of Satan: ‘He shall be broken by the hand of God’. ‘Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (1 Corinthians 15:57).

A Faithful Follower Of The Lord

Daniel was a faithful follower of the Lord. He refused to follow a worldly way of living (Daniel 1:8). He loved the Lord. He refused to follow a way of life which would harm his walk with God. He is a great example for those who take seriously the call to live in obedience to God. As we read about Daniel’s single-minded devotion to the Lord, we are challenged to live in obedience to God’s holy Word rather than following the ways of the sinful world which is always threatening to pull us away from the Lord.

In Daniel 2, we read about Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and Daniel’s interpretation. God is speaking to Nebuchadnezzar. God is speaking through Daniel. The heart of the message, given in Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and Daniel’s interpretation, is summed up in Daniel 2:44 - “At the time of those kings, the God of heaven will establish a Kingdom that will never be destroyed ... It will be established forever.” These are prophetic words. They look far beyond Daniel’s time. They look ahead to God’s eternal Kingdom.

“Look, I see four men ... The fourth one looks like a son of the gods” (Daniel 3:25). These words of Nebuchadnezzar point beyond the servants of God - Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. They point to the Son of God - our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The Son of God saved His faithful servants. He saves all who put their trust in Him. He saved them from the fire of Nebuchadnezzar. He saves us from the fire of judgment.

“Stop sinning and do what is right” (Daniel 4:27). This was the Word that God spoke to Nebuchadnezzar. This is the Word that God speaks to us. “Now, I, Nebuchadnezzar will praise, honour, and give glory to the King of heaven. Everything He does is true, His ways are right and He can humiliate those who act arrogantly” (Daniel 4:37) - This was Nebuchadnezzar’s response to the Word of Lord. In Nebuchadnezzar’s response, there is a call to worship, addressed to every one of us. It is a call to humble ourselves before God. It is a call to learn from Him and live for Him.

The handwriting on the wall (Daniel 5) is a word of judgment. Numbered, Numbered, Weighed and Divided - This is the message that came to Nebuchadnezzar from God. God has numbered the days of your kingdom. He will bring it to an end. You have been weighed on a scale. You have been found to be too light. Your kingdom will be divided. It will be given to the Medes and the Persians. Down through the centuries, these words could be repeated, time and time again. Human greatness is brought to nothing so that the glory might belong to God alone.

Daniel in the lion’s den (Daniel 6) - What a remarkable miracle we have here. When we read about it, our thoughts move on to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. The resurrection of Jesus is a far greater miracle than the deliverance of Daniel. Daniel was delivered from the threat of death. Jesus was dead - and He was raised to life. We rejoice in what God did for Daniel. Our joy is so much greater when we think of what God has done for us through the mighty resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ, our Saviour.

Saved by grace, saved through faith, saved for good works

Ephesians 2:1-10 
What we were without Christ (Ephesians 2:1-3); What God has done for us in Christ (Ephesians 2:4-10)
Ephesians 2:8-10 - saved by grace, saved through faith, saved for good works
By grace - but not without faith and good works
Faith and good works - the fruit of grace
Faith and good works - Grace has done this.
The grace has come from God. The glory goes to God.

I just know ...

I just know. This is what I think. This is how I feel.

These are the kind of things some people say when they speak about having faith. 

Often, their idea of faith is very vague - and says more about themselves than it says about God.

We read these statements, I just know. this is what I think,  this is how I feel, we see a lot of I in them, and we wonder, what about God, where is he in all of this?

When our faith is real - firmly grounded in the Lord, we do not think so much about ourselves - what we believe and how we feel. We think more about the Lord and what he has done for us. Rather than giving out our own thoughts and feelings, we concern ourselves with something much more important and much more valuable - sharing the Word of the Lord.

Our thoughts and feelings come and go. Sometimes, we have positive thoughts and optimistic feelings. At other times, our thoughts are more negative and pessimistic. The Word of the Lord is very different: "the Word of the Lord endures forever" (1 Peter 1:25).

It's one thing to have a 'faith' that is a dormant thing. It's quite another thing to have a faith that's grounded in the Lord's Word. 

Some people say, "I'm a believer", but they don't really have much idea exactly what it is they believe in. Often, they are "blown here and there y every wind of teaching" (Ephesians 4:14). 

What about the wind of the Spirit? What happens when the Spirit of the living God is working mightily? Go back to Acts 2. What do we find there? When the Spirit of God comes like "rushing mighty wind" (Acts 2:2), there is the teaching of God's Word and the preaching of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour - and people are brought to faith, but it's much more than, 'I've got my own faith. You've got your faith, and I've got my faith. I keep my faith to myself.' Faith that is grounded in God's Word, centred on God's Son - Jesus, and inspired by God's Spirit, is a life-changing faith. It changes people. They can't just go on as they always have done, making vague statements about 'faith' without really be changed by the Lord. On the day of Pentecost, the people who responded to the teaching of God's Word, the preaching of Christ and the moving of God's Spirit became new men and women: "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer" (Acts 2:42). When people were transformed like this, the world listened to what they had to say. They knew that this was no empty faith - a faith that didn't really make much difference. This was faith that was less about my faith, and more about the love of God, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit. Their faith was so much more than just their faith. It was faith that had come to them from outside of themselves - from the teaching of God's Word, the preaching of Christ crucified and risen, and the powerful working of the Spirit of God. If we, in our generation, are to be men and women of faith, we must learn from those who responded to the preaching of the gospel on the day of Pentecost - learning to listen to God's Word, learning to rejoice in Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord, and learning to move in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Don't blame me! It's not my fault! ...

Don't blame me! It's not my fault! 

These words take us back a long way - back to the Garden of Eden, back to the beginning of sin (Genesis 3). It's not just a story from a long, long time ago. It's our story. It's the story of every one of us. We don't confess our sin. We make excuses for ourselves. What does God say about this? He says, 'Really? - Do you really think it's not your fault? Do you really think you're not to blame?' Let's go back to Genesis 3. What do we find there? We find sin - and, before that, we find temptation. What's the connection between temptation and sin? Temptation gives us a choice to make. Temptation came from "the serpent" (in Revelation 12:9, we learn that "the ancient serpent" is, also, known by the names, "the devil" and "Satan.) When did temptation become sin? It became sin when Adam and Eve chose to do what the serpent suggested they should do. The temptation came from the serpent. The sin came from Adam and Eve. It's still the same today. We are tempted. We sin. When do we sin? - when we give in to temptation: "Yield not to temptation, for yielding is sin." Why does God's Word speak to us so forthrightly about our sin? - It's because he wants us to confess our sin and receive his salvation. God never speaks to us about our sin so that we'll be depressed about how sinful we are. He speaks to us about our sin  so that we will see our need of his salvation. God doesn't leave us in the place of our sin - the Garden of Eden. He takes us to a better place. He takes us to the place of Christ's crucifixion. He shows us his Son - Jesus, our Saviour: "In Christ, we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us" (Ephesians 1:7).