Hope Sabbath School Lesson 7 From The Lions Den to the Angels Den

[Applause] [Applause] welcome to Hope Sabbath school an in-depth interactive study of the Word of God we are in the midst of an amazing series of studies on the Book of Daniel it's been such a blessing today we're coming to perhaps the best-known story in the Book of Daniel Daniel in the lion's den from the lions then to the angels then and what does that mean for our lives today we're glad you joined us for hope Sabbath school and if you've missed any in this series go to our website Hope TV org slash hope SS you can watch the entire series it's life changing and welcome to the team what a great series of studies and I'm excited today that Jason is gonna lead in our study you know what's exciting to me as we have team members teach is that it's an inspiration to thousands of teachers around the world young adults who is saying well I could download the outline from the website I could teach an interactive Bible study to that's exactly what we want to see happen we're glad you were all part of our Hope Sabbath School family and part of the team sharing the Word of God I'd like to share just a few emails with some of our from some of our hopes Abba school members now ask your rights from the island of Cyprus and she says hope Sabbath School has been such a blessing to me with my study group we have found your study guide helpful to us we pray God reaches hearts of fellow students we are a small group in Cyprus well thanks for writing to us Nyasha thanks for leading a small Bible study group there in your home country Sam writes from Rwanda we've heard from Rwanda recently haven't we it's my pleasure to greet you from Rwanda in East Africa we have so many hope Sabbath school members here since the first day I heard you I've been blessed by your class I like the class arrangement and how you deliver the content I'm gaining a lot of discussion a lot from your discussions and I will continue to pray for you and your families that our hearts continue to focus on the glorious second coming of Jesus be ready to shake hands with the almighty amen well I'm not sure Samba fool shake hands we might bow down and and worship but what a joyful day that will be when we see our Savior face to face Tia Vina writes from Madagascar we heard from Madagascar recently - didn't we I'm from Madagascar an english-speaking Church I really appreciate what you're doing i download hope sabbath school and i like it so much i am father of three children great is our God Amen Maranatha well I would say to you Tia Vina I'm so thankful that you are wanting to be close to God because it will bless your children in fact we'll see in our study today how our relationship with God does affect the relationships of those around us thanks for writing to us here's a note from a donor in Colorado it's a real letter from Colorado in the United States of America and it says I really enjoy hopes Abascal I watch at least once a day I'm heading towards 80 years of age I don't have or want a computer or whatever so I just sent you this message please keep on keepin on with hope service cool it's really a neat way to spend time with the Word of God I pray for you all and a gift of $10 that's part of the miracle isn't it thanks so much to our friend from Colorado and to each one of you who partners with us through your financial support one last note from Spinks Spinks in Kenya hopes Abaco has been such a blessing to me and my family for the last nine years that's faithful attendance we love singing the songs along with the class and hope Sabbath school has improved my in-depth knowledge of the Bible may God continue to bless you as you help prepare souls for the second coming of Jesus amen well Springs we have a song to sing right now in fact we have something special one of our team members who's about the same age that Daniel was when he wrote the words of our song is going to help lead in our singing so come up here Addison we'd invite you to sing with us blessed be the name of God forever and ever [Music] blessed be the name of God or ever ever and find our head [Music] is blessed be the name of God or [Music] for wisdom and might are dis and he changes the times and the seasons he removes into raises up kings in his wizard allies and knowledge to those who have understanding he reveals to the secret things he knows what is in the darkness and light wells with him he reveals deep secret things he knows what is in the darkness and light [Music] I thank you and praise you O God of my father's will [Music] thank you and praise you O God of my father's you have given me wisdom [Music] let's be the name of God forever and ever for wisdom and might are blessed be the name of God [Applause] [Music] and changes at times and the seasons kids it raises up kids because wisdom to the wise and knowledge do those [Music] secret things he knows where [Music] babies he knows when it's in the darkness [Music] thank you [Music] thank you ladies [Music] that should be the name of God forever and ever for wisdom and night [Music] Thank You Addison I think we're gonna be singing that song for a long time blessed be the name of God what a powerful prayer it is from Daniel and now we're coming to the later part of his life Jason we're gonna see how he's still trusting in the Lord God why don't you lead us in prayers would begin our study amen please bow your heads as I pray dear Heavenly Father today as we open your word as we continue seeing your leading and the story of Daniels life help us to take something from the story today that we can apply to our own lives Lord we know we're living in a period of time where these messages are very important guide our hearts got our minds and may the Spirit of Christ guide us in this lesson we pray all this and the holy name of Jesus amen amen the story of Daniel is a very exciting story he has different kingdoms that he gets involved in and yet the interesting thing is no matter what Kingdom happens to be in power God still seems to be blessing him and guiding him and we'll see today that story continues to be true even with the different challenges that he has to face now before getting into the story the title of the lesson from the Lions Den to the angel's den so when we think or when you hear about a Lions Den what are some of the words that come to mind what are some of the descriptions or even feelings when you think about a Lions Den Addison you've got some idea I would be a little bit at least a little bit terrified a little bit terrified all right try this when you hear Lions Den I've not a place I want to be not if you want to be Shawn speechless alright so we had this idea of this Lions Den as being something terrifying something that makes a speech list not a place Travis says that he would want to be and yet as we see with God's leading we can end up going anywhere so let us get into the lesson now and I'm going to ask hey Dee if you could read for us we're in the Book of Daniel chapter six if you could read for us verses one through three the story today is in Daniel six and through this entire chapter we'll see this story that happens in the saga of Daniels life alright I'll be reading from the New King James Version and it says it pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 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 set him over the whole realm alright so this is a fascinating passage of scripture before we get into all of it there's a lot to unpack here let's first look at who's the name that's mentioned first in this chapter because we're talking about this is the Book of Daniel and this is the story of Daniel and yet whose name is mentioned here darius darius yes so there's this guy Dryas darius we've never heard about him so far in this story so someone on the team tell me who is this Darius guy and what is he doing in the Book of Daniel Jonathan I see you well I can't remember exactly it's a little complex but I know he's a Meade and he's under some other kings okay somehow in charge of Babylon somehow in charge of Babylon Stephanie we know from the previous chapter that he has come in and feed Babylon he's coming in siege Babylon Daisy yeah the previous chapter the last verse in verse in chapter 5 tells us that when when Belshazzar was taken it was overthrown pretty much it was Darius who took over at the kingdom alright so we have a change in kingdoms and yet here we have Daniel and what's happening to daniel is he carried away captive because we know in previous part of Daniel that he's carried away as a captive as a prisoner do we have this story here in verses 2 & 3 Nicole you're shaking your head no he's actually given a authoritative position in the kingdom in terms of the leadership role now this is interesting because if you think about it not only was he a captive first from Jerusalem to Babylon but now he's a captive under the meat so he's kind of this double captive yet he's being given this position Travis it seems like there's just a reformation of the government of Babylon and now Darius is in charge and he's the king but I can't help but think in my mind that he heard this story that Daniel might have told Belshazzar and thought wow there's got to be something real important about this man and obviously he saw there was a there was a great spirit a good spirit within him and he elevated him to a high position elevated him to a high position yes and it even says as Travis referenced there in verse 3 there's this excellent spirit so Daniels in this high position but apparently Daniels not the only one there's other leaders in this here as well and just thinking what is it gonna be like for these other leaders when you have this one guy elevated Jonathan well I'm just thinking what is it hard to have much excellent spirit when the other people are ones that will connive and try to throw people into lions I mean maybe the excellent spirit is was one that he had compassion and he reached out to people that were in trouble just and we know from previous stories and lessons that Daniel there's a lot that distinguishes him let's get in further here into the story and see a little bit more though about how these other people are reacting to his excellent spirit I'd like to ask Gary if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 just verse 4 so let's see cuz we're getting we're being told about some of the other people let's see how their reaction is to this Daniel this is double captive guy okay all right I'll be reading from the King James Version Daniel 6 verse 4 then the presidents and princes sought to find a Asian against Daniel concerning of the kingdom but they could not find none occasion nor fault for as much as he was faithful neither was there any error or fault found in him wow this is a pretty fascinating verse here how are these other leaders reacting to Daniel are they are they happy that he's one of their materials shaking your head well you know when when they're envious they are they are somewhat jealous of Daniel and the fact that he's a double captain we're gonna call him double captive that he now has a power of authority over them why should this prisoner be able to tell me what I should and should not be doing so there's a sense of jealousy a sense of jealousy yes hey D you're I'm agreeing with your you're agreeing you you see the sense of jealousy there Stephanie yeah I would just say that it's jealousy but I think it's jealousy because he was preferred there was clearly a distinction clearly distinction Daisy I'm thinking I mean the effect that the King selected these three people to oversee the people that were over the 120 provinces so to protect his interests as a king it's possible on this thing that maybe them too wanted to also maybe cheat in a way to benefit themselves which would be cheating the king but Daniel was not into that he was faithful down to the letter and so they accept that when the king was making plans to put Daniel that means they would have to report to Daniel then you Daniel could find something on them and they were not gonna happen yes right I think it's fascinating that Daniel is the captive at the beginning of the book he comes as a Hebrew and it's the very fact that he's a Hebrew that probably helps him here because he's not Babylonian he the Medes have now taken over and they can say oh well this guy's a Hebrew and he's been a wise advisor I'll just keep him on and so sometimes the thing that works against this God uses to bless us he probably never would have foreseen that so maybe God uses his previous captivity as a 17 year old now much later in his life to actually be a blessing and allow Him some credibility Jonathan yeah just that the things of God are very practical I mean here Daniel is a follower of God and he is a prophet but he also is a very practical leader who is leading that huge Kingdom and no more definitely dealing with complex things of solving problems of this the first major capital of the world alright and we see that these guys his fellow leaders for whatever reason Daisy reference they might have some of their own selfish interest they are trying to find fault with Daniel and yet what does it say about him are they able to find any fault no fault well let's continue to see how they find fault and away with him and I'd like to ask Nicole if you could read for us verse 5 here let's see how they attempted to find fault with Daniel Daniel 6 verse 5 and the New King James Version says 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 now what does that sound like to you the only charge that could be found against the law of his God Stephanie when you hear that that that must do something for you it would to me what they were saying is that we can't find anything against him unless it's related to his relationship with God and how he is committed to God so that's how I see that verse I'm taking Jason I would be honored as someone said the only thing that that we can find that we would criticize them for is how devoted they are to God yes that would be amazing I I I know honestly for myself that's not my case I have my own errors and faults but that's amazing that they're able to say that he's without error fault unless it has something to do with his god Daisy the New Living Translation says unless they found something that had to do with the rules of his religion so they were really going after something that they could find our conflict the rules of the land so the rules of religion versus the rules of the land thing that way so something about his faith for something about the government and that could be a situation we might even deal with today now the conclusion that these guys come to shows that they were genuinely even if it was not in the best way they were genuinely aware of how Daniel was acting and maybe even if they weren't genuine seekers of after truth there apparently are some people in the story of one I can think of in particular who's a genuine seeker after truth and so our lives are constantly being examined whether by jealous people around us who may not be seeking truth or those who are seeking truth so I'd like to make it practical and ask someone or several on the team how can we ensure that we're providing a faithful witness like Daniel was how can we yes Jonathan I'm just thinking I mean people are watching us and maybe sometimes things that we would be tempted to bend corners and even simple things just there's there's yeah well how do we deal with traffic laws I mean simple things like that I mean can people truly say of us that there's nothing that we can be caught in Patricia just think we have to make sure that our connection with God is a priority for us like the Bible says that the branches must be connected to the vine hey man Gary I was gonna say looking back at Daniels life in Daniel 1 he made a commitment before he was taken captive right hehe he set his mind to God and to always follow him even in the smallest of tasks I think it begins there we commit to God even our small insignificant supposedly tasks and actions and behaviors and he will bless from there so being faithful and the little things just Jonathan yeah sometimes I think I don't know why Satan doesn't get tired of fighting a game he always loses not always wins he tries here to destroy his only faithful servant that was embodiment and it it God uses that to show that he had genuine and faithful witness I just don't know how he doesn't get tired I would also say that you know we're not perfect and when we fall people need to see that we are still clinging to the vine and so in I think when people watch you and they say oh my goodness she stumbled they'll then savor that she's she calling even closer to Jesus to get her so standing back up again so I think that's also important for us to think of also and that's a good witness to so even if we aren't even if people aren't able to say necessarily he she's without error or without fault by God's grace God sees us that way as we let him take control of our lives and guide us let's continue now in this story because there are some tactics that are used and I would like to ask Rick if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 verses 6 through 9 and as Rick reads look at what are some of the tactics that are used to pressure the king in this situation related to Daniel I'm reading from the New Living Translation so the administrators and high officers went to the king and said long live King Darius we are all in agreement we administrators officials high officers advisers and governors that the king should make a law that should be strictly enforced give orders that for the next thirty days any person who prays to any one divine or human except to you your majesty will be thrown into the den of lions and now your majesty issue and sign this law so it cannot be changed an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked so King Darius signed the law that's a that's a bit of a scary situation but let's look through and let's unpack that a little bit to see what happened you see that there are certain tactics that these government officials use what are some of the things you notice Nicole you're smiling you caught some things in there something of the word but they basically flattered flattered that's why right Jonathan Jonathan sees flattery there all right so they have flattery Oh King live forever and you'll notice that is a phrase they use but what we can see from these guys we don't know how much they really mean it Daisy's hinted as much yes Stephanie well they'd lied they lied they said that all of the presidents of the kingdom and governors and princes came together and made this decision all right so they use the arguments of the crowd even though there wasn't actually the crowd someone else any other tactics that you see being used here Travis what are some tactics you see here well they're trying to get the King to exalt himself actually to be proud and boastful even of himself and it seems like King Darius wasn't necessarily a proud King but yet they're saying we what we want to make a decree that people will worship you and you own land and you know when people said admiring you you're kind of sometimes you get into that you know thinking you know I'm not so bad maybe a people should be looking at me you know and Jonathan it reminds me of yeah first Nebuchadnezzar the first king of Babylon and almost like maybe maybe you know I mean the invader and new to Babylon and he's like well what do they did how did they act here and so it's like this is the way to act here so he's backed off all pride and powerful Daisy it was clear that they were feeding his pride because he the king purposely selected them to oversee these provinces and his administration for his best interests when they come up with this plan he's thinking okay this is for my best interest that they had ulterior motives that's right Gary is gonna say the tactic of using the government to establish worship against you know everyone else's way of worship the tactic of the government using the laws of the land to try to push some kind of influence of how a person can worship yes Sean and I was just gonna say they didn't say this decree would last just forever it was just about well it's established forever in their minds but it's only for 30 days and if this kingdom if this king was such a humble King it would have raised alarm if it went on for 6090 so many days because he would have time to think whoa what's going on here but they kept this short and sweet short and sweet so be careful when someone gives you something that looks short and sweet and good there may be ulterior motives behind particularly if that's a person that's jealous and not guided by the Holy Spirit as these guys clearly are not well now Daniels going to be faced with a very difficult situation the good news is we've seen Daniel at other points in the Book of Daniel and his friends and we've seen how they've handled difficult situations and so Stephanie I'd like if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 verse 10 and let us see how does Daniel react to the situation what does he do when he is now faced with this difficult situation that these jealous people have used against him and I'll be reading from the King James Version now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed he went into his house and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did a four time hmm so how does Daniel react to this situation does did you see him do anything crazy or panic Gary you're shaking your head it seems like he's doing what he's always done which was praising God and worshiping him as he's always done in the he's doing what he's always gotten Travis I've seen the same boldness in Daniels I saw the three men before the fire they didn't even hesitate you know there was a decree like if you worship me if you worship the image you won't be thrown into the fire and they just halted him we're not we're not doing it and here Daniel is the same spirit in him you know what the decree is signed I'm going to worship my god Edison Daniel serves as a prime example of Christian fearlessness and fidelity to the truth Jonathan I'm just thinking the previous lesson we were looking at they were trying someone was trying to bribe Daniel like with reward and now it's trying to use fear and it's like Daniels not about that like whatever the king of the universe calls me to do that's my calling and that's his focus it's my calling Nicole you know just a little deeper he pees practiced this his entire life and so nothing could stop him from doing it even with a de Karine I think that's something for us practically today we have to be practicing the things that Christ wants us to do so we can do it when in the test the test comes for us to actually be able to do it practice preparation now question though it seems Daniel he's got to be aware of these intentions he can't be you know ignorant to what's going on when he finds out why does he continue doing his custom why doesn't he try to you know expose what's going on because he's in a powerful position he would have the opportunity to say fight for his rights or defend himself against this injustice and yet Daniel chooses not to do that what's going on here Nicole why not because he completely trusts in the person that he serves he knows that God's gonna take care of no matter what these folks throw at him it's not gonna touch him if God is in control whether it's death whether it's life and so we have to have that spirit no matter what happens around us if we have a relationship with God nothing can touch us not a Z I don't have a verse if we could read it sure we'll go and give us a minute to find out what is the verse it's someone 1:8 Psalm 1:1 8 verse 6 verse 6 1:18 verse 6 and what version do you have I have the New Living Translation alright you're gonna read psalm 118 verse 6 from the New Living Translation you've got a verse that answers this question about what Daniel is facing here and a fez the Lord is for me so I will have no fear what can mere people do to me so if you know the God that she worship you know a man people don't scare you like he has so much power of people it does he says a mere people what can they do to you now I do got to ask another question along this line because there's this phrase be wise as a serpent harmless as a dove and so some people could say all right Daniel that's good that you pray to God but why not just you know maybe stare out the window a little bit and and say some nice words and throw a prayer during that time why not try to sneak it in a little bit you know you don't want to cause harm you don't want to cause problems so why isn't Daniel trying to find a way to submit to the law without causing too much offense because there's people who've given advice like that at different times Nicole because his plan isn't is to not offend man his plan is to please God and if he believes that pleasing God is sitting at the window and praying as he's always done he's not gonna change that for man Daisy and I see that the attack was not even to Daniel now they were attacking his God and so he was gonna let God fight the battle for him and I hate himself amen Travis even did this was Daniel's practice it's that just sit in the verse that we just read it was his practice so to deviate from his practice would have not only showed weakness but but not I would have showed that he didn't trust his God Shawn and I don't want to say Daniel was hiding from anything but he was doing this in his own home it wasn't like he just decided to pray in front of the king and be like ha whatever you say he was home in his own private time and I mean we'll get to it but you know people are seeking you out at your place of personal worship so I don't think he had to deviate he was doing what his conscious wanted to do which was serve God Jonathan I think he knew where was the safest place during the trial he knew in Jesus he knew God and he knew that during the trial being near to Jesus was the this place so when we know God when trials come we will always remained in the safest place we we know that's why he was always near to God during that trial Amen now this story it actually seems kind of similar there's some similarities to the test that Daniels three friends faced a couple chapters earlier on the plain of Dura so someone want to tell me from the team where they see some similarities with this situation there's this pattern that seems to kind of be emerging what are some similarities in the coal that you're seeing between what the three friends faced and what Daniel is now about to face well the three friends Shadrach Meshach and Abednego on the plain of Dura faced either death or serving the true Living God and I think Daniels gonna have that same situation it's gonna be death or served that true Living God and they come to the realization that even in death you're not gonna separate me from my true Living God that's the decision that they have to make amen I'm sure that Daniel would have been thinking about this I mean it's a very similar situation where he you know like you said he could have hidden the the guys she had wrecked me checking Abednego could have bent down and tied their shoes I mean I can always find an excuse but he knows God is with you in the furnace God is with you in the trial I mean man yeah Travis one thing that I saw but this is similar between them is neither what none of them ever thought of compromise never they're both they're both idols one's a golden idol yeah and was a living Idol hmm but they're both a direct transgression of a commandment of God should not bow down to an idol so there's the situation in some ways yeah they're not together but they've decided they purposed in their own hearts whether they're with the group or on their own that they will honor God in every situation now I'd like to ask if there's anyone on the team because there have been situations in our lives where maybe a person an organization someone tried to coerce us try to get us to act in a way contrary to the Word of God and so I just want you to kind of think through does anyone have a story in their lives where they might have faced something like that and how you might have responded does anyone on the team have a story where someone tried to get you to act contrary to God's Word through force through coercion does anyone have a testimony Gary oh it's it's been a while but I remember when I was in college I was a engineer computer engineer and I had I had a several assignments due at 12:00 or 11:59 59 on Friday night and you know I was trying to do well in school and it would be Friday I was not the best programmer and it'd be Friday Friday afternoon and I'm still at the lab and I noticed it's almost sunset and I know I want to keep the Sabbath holy I need to finish up and turn in my assignment I remember one particular example I for the life of me I thought I only had it 50% done and I said god this is all I can do right now I don't have any more time I'm gonna submit it I turned it in I kept the Sabbath had a wonderful rest from schools and work or anything I got a B+ on the assignment and I was like no God thank you so much but rewarding that decision but yeah it was my grade so you were faithful you you you had the opportunity to go with what your organization this case your school would have liked you to do which was finish it all no matter what God's Sabbath said but you decided to hold God's law your religious convictions higher than the laws of man yes Sean um kind of a similar story but the end part of it were there's a twist where I finished my final degree and there was a get-together at our professors house and at some point in time alcohol came out and they said while to celebrate you have to take a drink and the room I don't know why it happened but the room just got silent and I'm like really and you know I'm in in a graduate lab you spend a lot of time with folks unhealthy amount of time with folks in the Graduate lab and there was one person in particular who was looking at me because I I've told him many times before I don't drink I told him why we've discussed spiritual topics and it's like we locked eyes and you know all that's going through my head is like I'm not gonna drink you know I'm not gonna take this drink but I felt like he was looking at me to see what I would do and I didn't and then all of a sudden I don't know what it was was like the room just filled back with noise after I said no I'm good I'm not gonna do that and I just felt relieved at least that I didn't fail someone else who you know wronged them that look you don't have to do or give in to certain types of prayer pressure huh Wow and that's a powerful witness because we don't know all who is watching as here in the story with Daniel we don't know who all can be touched and impacted by our witness and let's look real quickly at a situation in the New Testament that the Apostles faced and I'd like to ask Jonathan if you could read for us Acts chapter 5 verses 26 through 29 and then also finishing off their 41 through 42 there's a situation the Apostles faced that can give us some principles on how to deal with situations like the one that Daniel was facing there alright I'll be reading from the English standard version then the captain with the officers went and brought them but not by force for they were afraid of being stoned by the people and when they brought them they set them before the council and the high priest questioned them saying we strictly charged you not to teach in this name yeah here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us but Peter and the Apostles answered we must obey God rather than and 41 then they left the presence of the council rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name and every day in the temple and from house to house they did not cease teaching and preaching that Jesus that Christ is Jesus mmm amen so what are some lessons you see there from the verses that Jonathan just read Jonathan you saw some lessons in there oh yeah just did we obey God rather than men we obey God rather men yes and that's yeah Daisy the previous 40 says that they got beaten up they got flogged and then after that they're saying you know what it's a privilege to suffer for Jesus Christ and they went and did it again it takes a lot of courage and again knowing who you serve to be able to do that knowing who you serve and what was their reaction they they were told even in one of the verses not to preach Jesus how does it say they finished what did they keep doing it says they kept preaching anyway yes they kept right on going and so let's see now let's continue in the story of Daniel what happens and I'd like to ask Travis if you could read for us back to Daniel chapter 6 and we're looking at verses 11 through 13 let's see what happens in the story we know that Daniel has prayed as is his custom and let's see how the story continues and I'll be reading from the New King James Version then these men assembled and found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God and they went before the King and spoke concerning the Kings decree have you not signed a decree that every man who petitions any God or man within 30 days except you o King shall be cast into the lion's den the King answered and said this thing is true according to the law of the Medes and Persians which does not alter so they answered it said before the king that Daniel who is one of the captives from Judah does not show due regard for you okaying or for the decree that you have signed but makes his petitions three times a day interesting Nicole you have some thoughts reading that section there I just want to say that Daniel is there so disgusted by the fight by him and by what he stands for and how it reflects on them they just that Daniel just and just Daniel didn't refer to him as an official a top official they'd done a deed so his should I say prisoner status has a from Judah I mean what are the safe room that guy that came from who was a captive yeah they didn't even acknowledge his position his high position as an official they just made him look like some useless person made him look like some useless person and when they came before the king so they found him praying how did they enter before the king did they did they go and immediately point him out or what is the first thing they did with the king this kind of shows you know that they're not foolish in what they're doing yes Travis they pointed out that he had signed a decree that could not change it's the first thing yeah just reinforce that making sure that he himself repeats what he said so he cannot go back on in the trial that was an accident or something so it's quite clear here that these guys are definitely working on setting up this trap they really want to get Daniel and it also may seem clear that this is more than just human power there's something going on behind the scenes these these evil men are guided by a spirit that's allowing them to apparently be very effective it seems in what they're trying to do and now we have to see what is the King's reaction and I'm gonna ask Daisy if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 verses 14 through 18 let's see how does the King react to these jealous government officials when he finds out he's been trapped alright I'll be reading from the new limit translation hearing this the king was deeply troubled and he tried to think of a way to save Daniel he spent the rest of the day looking for a way to get Daniel out of this predicament in the evening the men went together to the king and said your majesty you know that according to the law of the Medes and the Persians no law that the king signs can be changed so at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of the Lions the king said to him may your God whom you serve so faithfully rescue you amen a stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den the king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the skills of his Nobles so that no one could rescue Daniel then the King returned to his palace and spent the night fasting he refused his unusual entertainment and couldn't sleep at all that night all right so there's a lot happening in that section well what do we see here how does the King react first of all when he finds out he's been trapped what is his first method the first thing he tries to do Stephanie I think he's upset with himself he recognizes the trap he he got himself in he's upset with himself he recognizes the trap Nicole each I mean he tries to figure out a way if there's any way to try and reverse what he's done because he realizes that you know Daniel is going to be on the receiving end of his decree so he tries to maybe use the law to change the law he's trying to use some of the same tactics these men use to get him in to try to rescue Daniel yes Rick the thing that struck me in these verses is how much the King loves Daniel I think their jealousy was well-founded there's obviously a relationship here because if he's not sleeping or eating or whatever he's definitely this is a close friendship Travis the thing that gets me most about this these verses that we just read is the power of a witness who's the example of a witness of somebody who is connected continually with God my version says the king said your God whom you serve continually he will deliver you like Darius had found faith in God through the examples and witnesses of of Daniel and that just blows my mind Darius had faith that the Lions would not hurt you and he's fast Jonathan he's fasting I mean like just expressing face think he's fasting he means the follower of God he's fasting basic yes days I hope that Daniel could come through this without a scratch so this is clear this is clearly a man who while he may not be entirely converted the witness of Daniel is really impacting his life and he's starting to he's starting you can see the process of conviction starting to happen over him and he's starting to confess some things that no pagan King would confess so what is our best course of action because you see how Daniel responds in this situation he basically allows himself to be brought in this way but what is our best course of action when we realized we've been caught in a trap that's been laid by the enemy because you see King Darius he tries to use the rules the laws he tries to think about how he can get out of this trap but what is the best course of action for us as people of faith as Christians when we find out that the enemy has laid a trap for us and were caught Addison great praying for unusual wisdom saying God helped me in this situation and I need your help and you know I think I think the king is doing that too because he was also caught in a trap yes and as Rick pointed out or maybe Jonathan was that he's fasting so I think he's also calling out to the God and saying I I cannot resolve this situation but you can't and so whether we're like Daniel or the King we both of them setting an example for us that that God is our refuge and strength a very present help in trouble yes Thomas says Patricia um here in verse 14 you says that the king tried and he labored all day to deliver Daniel but then he comes to the point where he says your God who you come to who you serve continually he will deliver you so he came to the point that he I can't he said there's not I am The King and I am powerful but there's nothing in the situation that I can do but your God can Nicole I think we have to get to the point we believe God is God and that's the end of it he is God and so whatever happens whatever is gonna happen we have to believe that he is who he says he is Sean and I was just gonna say in Matthew chapter 5 if you go all the way down to verse 43 and the next couple of verses it just talks about how we should react so we may be thrown off by the trap but it talks about praying for your enemies and those who are trying to persecute you and I could only hope that Daniel was doing the same thing for the king because this is his sole salvation on the line as well and we see the steps towards him being converted and you know what a wonderful opportunity for Daniel so rather than back to this idea of thinking about our own selves how we can protect ourselves think about how we can be a witness to someone who maybe needs to to grow in their spiritual walk someone who needs to see us as an example of Jesus there and let's continue now and I'd like to ask Addison if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 verses 19 and 20 let's see what happens further in the story after a night with the Lions and I'm reading from the King James Version then the King arose very early in the morning and went in haste unto the den of lions and when he came to the den he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel and the King spake and said to Daniel o Daniels servant of living God is thy God whom thou service continually able to deliver thee from the lion's Daisy what do you see here in the behavior of the king and how he's reacting what do you notice there he had faith because I mean somebody could have said well that's it you're on the pit there's no two ways those lions are gonna tear you up but he still have faith that there was a possibility that the God whom Daniel was serving could save his life and that was the question he asked he says was your God able to save you he was waiting for confirmation that his hopes and his faith was true amen I think that's a good point Jason I think he's grieving not because he doesn't think God's able but he's grieving over the fact that he was trapped that put his beloved counselor in that bad situation but but he wouldn't have called out if he didn't believe it was possible so that's that's that is a call of faith when he calls out Oh Daniel yes and Gary we need to continue on to see how Daniel responds so please read for us chapter 6 verses 21 and 22 let's see how Daniel responds okay and I'll be reading from the King James Version Daniel 6 21 and 22 then said Daniel on to the king o king live forever my God have sent in his angel and shut the lion's mouth that they have not hurt me for as much as before him innocency was found in me and also before the Oh King have I done no hurt that's a pretty amazing testimony Travis what what impresses you the most about that when you hear Daniels response after a night with the Lions as I was reading that I almost had like tears in my thinking god I want to like Daniel I want to have that kind of faith that kind of fade that kind of courage Stephanie he respects the king Oh King live forever and then his next response was my God has sent his angel my God has sent his angel Jonathan yeah it was interesting the reasons that he gave because there was no guilt found within me and and also I've done nothing to you as well that I mean both our relationship with God yeah I God does honor us based on that but also we were talking to you we were talking about this earlier that was interesting that here Daniel waits to defend himself and he kind of lets God to the defending and then he makes the point like yeah and I didn't do anything wrong yeah focus on that initially so there's nothing wrong with saying I'm innocent I I didn't do wrong but the focus has to be not on ourselves honoring God honoring God amen and now let's let's see how the story concludes Stephanie if you could read for us Daniel chapter 6 verses 23 through 28 let's see how the story ends and let's hear this this beautiful message and testimony and I'll be reading from the King James Version then was the king exceeding glad for him and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den so Daniel was taken up out of the den and no manner of hurt was found upon him because he believed in his God amen and the king commanded and they brought those men which had accused Daniel and they cast them into the den of lions them their children and their wives and the Lions had the mastery of them and break all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the den then King Darius wrote unto all people nations and languages that dwell in all the earth peace be multiplied unto you I make a decree that in every Dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel for he is the Living God and steadfast forever and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed and Dominion shall be even unto the end he delivereth and rescue with and he worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the Lions so this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian amen Jonathan it just strikes me that maybe just like Nebuchadnezzar went through this process that maybe he's kind of going through a process as well like he's saying okay that everyone should tremble and fear before the god of Daniel I mean he certainly he has faith that God can do it but mmm just okay you take all the people and you throw him into the lion's den and you kill the people like that's not how God works God doesn't need to you know kill everybody to in order to demonstrate me okay it demonstrated that he had power of the Lions but it seems like he's beginning to realize maybe God God's mercy hasn't gotten there he's beginning to realize God's mercy and I'd like to challenge you maybe you might face a point in your life where you might have your own lion's den that you'll go through we know through Earth's history that we may face challenges whether they be at work home even from our own families I'd like to ask you that when that situation comes have the Holy Spirit give you the courage just as he gave Daniel so that he can turn your lion's den into the Angels Den thank you Jason thank you for joining us for hope Sabbath school today it's amazing story we many of us heard it as children and we thought it was great that Daniel survived but I learned today that a king was blessed by the witness of a man of God and he does say the god of Daniel but then he says he is the Living God so that's a personal testimony isn't it isn't it amazing that God could use even our adversities to provide a witness to those around us I don't know what you're dealing with but I'm just gonna pray that like Daniel we men and women of God would be faithful that through us a witness would be given to draw others closer to God let's pray father in heaven were inspired by this story and by the fact that you can work all things for good to those who love you we're thankful for that this king was blessed and drawn closer to the one true God and whatever trial we may face may we be firm in our trust in you that those around us would also be drawn closer to you is our prayer in the name of Jesus amen well thanks for joining us for hopes have a school new lessons from an ancient story we're not done with the book now we go into some great prophecies which is so relevant for our lives today but from the story of Daniel and the Lions Den take a message and be a blessing to those around you [Music] [Applause] [Applause] [Music]

Channel: HopeSabbathSchool

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Keywords: hopesabbathschool, Hope Sabbath School, Derek Morris, Seventh-Day Adventist

Id: cNiz7aINGHA

Length: 58min 11sec (3491 seconds)

Published: Tue Feb 11 2020