Lesson 7: “From the Lions' Den to the Angel's Den” - 3ABN Sabbath School Panel - Q1 2020

the Bible tells us in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God it says to receive with meekness the implanted word which is able to save your souls and to be diligent to present yourself approved to God rightly dividing the word of truth join us now for the 3abn Sabbath School panel our study today is The Book of Daniel [Music] hello friends welcome to 3abn Sabbath School panel my name is John Lowe McCain thank you for taking the time to tune in and join us for our continued journey through the Book of Daniel have we been blessed and the blessing is going to continue so take the time get your Bibles your pens your family and your friends and join us for this exciting excursion through the Living Word of God we're going to visit an old friend that has a new message for us we've discovered that no matter how long daniel has been written it still has a message relevant for today and the Lord is going to reveal that to us and hopefully through us to you to enhance your appreciation of the Word of God but before we go any further let us find out who our panelists are today and in fact they're not panelists to me they're my family I begin with pastor Kenny Shelton good to have you here today pastor it's always good to be here I love to study the Word of God and I like your approach and your passion don't lose that god is good privilege to be here and we have a list today I'm looking forward to it Brian day today is the day today every day is the day brother that's right and I'm just excited to continue on in Daniel it's a good lady from Texas amen okay well we're glad to have you all here today before we tell you how to get a copy of the lesson we're going to begin with prayer and Jill we'll just start with our prayer today Jesus praising you for the gift of your word and the gift of salvation and the gift of your spirit and we just asked right now that you would open up our minds and hearts to receive what you have for us in Jesus name amen now to get a copy of the lesson go to the following website a B s g dot adventist or g there there's will you download the copy but even better than that final local seventh-day adventist church and just walk in they will definitely welcome you to be a part of the fellowship and the study of god's word now the book of daniel that we're talking about today is entitled from the lion's den to the angel's den i like that title have you noticed from one to the other that's been the theme throughout the lesson study but this one in particular and i know mine i was looking at that today and i thought and i have a topic on jealousy and we're going to be breaking down what i might refer to is the liabilities of being used by God when the Lord lifts you up there's a liability and the Lord never exalts anyone who is not safe to be exalted an exalted position is a dangerous place but a person that's surrounded and filled by the Spirit of God will not be affected by the position that God allows them to occupy and the memory text is found in Daniel 6 verse 4 let's go there together and look at the memory text Daniel 6 and verse 4 and if you could summarize a chapter of Daniel 6 as Daniel is promoted and it starts all kinds of havoc in the hearts of jealous men and leaders in the Bible text says in Daniel 64 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 what's the next word faithful nor was there any error or fault found in him when I when I looked at this topic last night not too long ago I did a sermon called V ology of God and it was about this particular topic about Daniel in the den of lions ending up where God knew he would end up and you know sometimes God does not preempted ésta nation but he travels with us in that destination he didn't stop Daniel from going in the den and Daniel is the only one living that knows what it's like to live and sleep on st. Lyons Cathedral what a mattress what a mattress what a mattress the fur of a lion now I want to begin by going to Exodus chapter 20 because the topic of jealousy is a very inflammatory one and we're going to talk about various ways that jealousy is exhibited and various stories in the Bible that illustrates jealousy and then we'll also give you various synonymous words or synonyms that in fact mean the same thing but Exodus chapter 20 verse 17 the writer of this lesson points out that jealousy is in fact a violation of this commandment the commandment of covetousness and by the way the tenth commandment the covetous commandment is the root of violating all the others think about it it is the root of violating all the others think about just break it all down I'm not gonna take the time to do that right now but it says in verse 17 of Exodus 20 you shall not cover your neighbor's house you shall not cover your covet your neighbor's wife nor his male servant nor his female servant nor his ox nor his donkey nor anything that is your neighbors in fact the word covet here in fact means the person covets because they're jealous of what another person has and they really want it they can't understand that there's a young man by the name of Asaph in the book of psalms and in Psalm 73 one you want to get a chance to look at the comparisons between jealous of the wicked and then the revelation of God to take that jealousy away from us Psalm 73 as a powerful one but I just read the verses and you know the story God at loud Daniel in both in both administration's in the Babylonian administration and in the medo-persian administration because of his excellent spirit because of his attitude toward God he did not allow position to influence him or infect him and that's a very serious matter because sometimes people can you put them in a position and all of a sudden they're you know Almighty they call shots and tell people what they can and cannot do but that was not the case with Daniel Daniel knew that God put him there for God to be exalted not him to be exalted so in the interest of time which never stops let's ask a question what role does jealousy play in all these stories and all these stories I'm going to point out some stories in the Bible where you find jealousy prevalent in many ways jealousy can also be found in three different definitions one envious of someone their achievements or their advantages two envious of someone's relationship with another person that's funny I remember an older older older lady said this years ago and we had another church I'm not gonna tell you which one but we were having fellowship luncheon and tongue-in-cheek but you know I've found that even in humor there is some truth well sometimes people cover truth with humor you know they say I hope you trip and fall just kidding and but some people will say say things that they really mean this lady said but they'll cover it with a joke so this lady said to my wife if I was younger I'll give you a run for your money and because she liked to shake the pastor's hand and hug the pastor and she said that one day and I thought why would you say that yeah but she said I'm just kidding but I thought well out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks jealousy also is somebody sometimes fiercely protective or vigilant of one's rights or possessions and what that means is some people believe that you know I'm put this correctly they have the right to feel a certain way which is in fact it's true but if the way they feel or the position they've taken is incorrect and they resist correction that's a form of jealousy I'm jealous of my position even though the Bible says that God's position does not cause him to be carnally jealous he is jealous with a godly jealousy meaning he does not want to share those whom he love with an everlasting it's not a corrupt jealousy years ago I heard Oprah Winfrey say one of the reasons why she desired no longer to be a Christian is because she heard that God is jealous and why would God be jealous of her and I thought that's a distortion of cause jealousy and well let's consider the following jealousy begins in the heart Isaiah 14 verse 13 Lucifer the Bible says for you have said in your heart jealousy begins in the heart and you know what he jealousy began in his heart and then he had an eye problem I will I will I will I will I will in Isaiah 14 verse 13 to 15 he pointed out all the things his jealousy was leading him to one to covet they began in his heart jealousy also leads to covetousness second chronicles 26 16 and this is about Uzziah he coveted a position that God never gave him and it didn't happen until he was in position for more than 52 years it was in the latter part of his life that he coveted what God never gave him and he transgressed against the Lord by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense he coveted the position of the priest also jealousy leads to real to rest to resentfulness Haman against Mordecai Haman was exalted he was promoted but he was so resentful of the lack of acknowledgement that Mordecai had toward him and that led him to plot against Mordecai he desired in his jealousy and it is resentfulness to take the life of Mordecai I praise the Lord as the verse ends in Esther chapter three verse one and two but Mordecai I would not bow or pay homage and let me make a point here when people determined to destroy you they are in the position of Haman the Lord will allow them to go as far as they can and he'll allow them to give them as much time as they need to build their gallows and in the end the gallows they built for you will be the gallows that will perpetrate their own demise that's a good way of saying hanging themselves the third one jealousy leads to spitefulness sir ayan against Hagar she couldn't have children and when Hagar bore child I tell you the recommendation that she made to Abraham will never be made in my household enough said when she saw the Bible says in Genesis 16 verse 1 to 6 in verse 4 so so he the Bible says so he went into Hagar and she conceived and when she saw that she had conceived her mistress became despised in her eyes they had a hatred between each other sir I was angry with the very jealous of the attention that Abraham gave her and you know the rest of the story she sent her away but the Lord said it was your suggestion you cannot just throw her out so he sent Hagar back and said you get this matter settled so be careful don't start stuff that you can't finish the next example of jealousy was jealousy leads to evil plotting well you know he's brought Joseph and his brothers yes he was talking about that and you know what I think that Joseph had a mouth issue to be honest with you the Lord gave him a dream and he said you know Kenny the Lord dream told me last night that you're gonna be bowing to me for the rest of your life if that wouldn't lead you to try to want to hit me I don't know what you know from now on you guys are gonna be bowing down and worshiping me I know they felt you know this is our younger brother what can we do to shut him up yes and then he boasted about his coat of many colors and there was some grievance there and what they did they threw him in a pit and but they did not know that God was going to take him from pits two palaces mm-hmm also jealousy leads to hate Esau yes against Jacob he sold his birthright for lentils for POTUS too and then after he did that after he relinquished to the blessing that God intended for him the Bible says in Genesis 27 41 so Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him and Esau said in his heart remember jealousy begins in the heart the days of mourning for my father are at and then I will kill my brother Jakob jealousy leads to hate but now let me end with the cure for hate the prayer of David created me a clean heart O God and renew a right spirit within me Acts of the Apostles 271 jealousy evil surmising and accusation had closed the heart of many of the Corinthian believers against the full working of the holy spirit which searches all things yes the deep things of God don't allow jealousy to close the door that the Spirit of God wants to do in your life jealousy leads to spite this Monday's Lessing the plot against Daniel so it leads right into that sure because there was a lot of plotting going on and there's a lot of people who love the plot the enemy is a plotter as far as I'm concerned they're always laying out and it deals with jealousy I like that we're gonna be look at Daniel chapter 6 so you have your Bible be sure and turn in at least market Daniel chapter 6 6 through 9 this is going to be our read here there's going to be our foundation so that we can build on starting with verse 6 said then the presidents and the Prince isn't assembled together to the king and said thus unto him King to rise live forever you're not like when you come in there make the King feel good went in there did not want him to live forever be guaranteed all the presidents of the kingdom the governors and the princes and the counselors and the captains notice this it says they have consulted together to establish a royal statute that and to make a firm decree whosoever shall ask a petition of any God or man for 30 days save thee O king he shall be cast into the den of lions you knew where this was going right when you go Daniel chapter 6 says now O king established the decree and sign the writing it is not it not be changed according to the law of the Medes and the Persians which alters not wherefore King Durai assigned the writing and decree so you look at it here I just said there's a plot what's what's going on what's the thinking behind this you know there's something going on there's a plotting that's going on here Sunday's lesson brought that out clear and I like that with the jealousy part of it that's a plot and the plot was to simply remove for an office why because they were jealous jealous of him didn't want him breath he didn't belong he was a mouse a foreigner in the country and they didn't want him occupying a position they thought they should have and so it all centered around though and said how can we get Daniel somebody mentioned here and our previous lessons because he's he's a just man he's a good man he he loved it they couldn't find any fault with him you know we prayed that's going to be as you know when when the Lord comes he said I find no fault in us but how is he going to find it he's going to find this fault they're gonna find it in the law of God because they knew that he was going to stand fast for what he was raised with and what he believed in keep this in mind is the history repeats itself notice this God's people will be put under circumstances that they must obey God or the laws of the land and what that's that's even now it's mustering up right now is it's behind the scenes things are going on you know that the Sabbath is going to be the great test we understand that studying the Word of God the great controversy page 605 notice the law will be invoked against commandment keepers got great controversy 607 threatened with fines and imprisonment and death to me this relates to what we're talking about here because there was a death decree was there not and this if you did anything other than what they said so there was a plot going on and I tell you there's a plot going on today has the plan it's being plotted it's all being laid out in the darkness and you know it's secrecy but when these days is going to come to the surface and it's going to overwhelm most of us because we'll simply this could not happen in this country a decree would be finally be issued against those who now will decide but those who keep the seventh-day Sabbath the fourth commandment denouncing them as deserving of the severe punishment and after a certain time be put to death great controversy six 15 and 16 revelation 13:15 now as we look at this a little bit closer we realized that the main men I won't say in this kingdom came to him you know so King dereyes was soon to fall into a trap a trap was laid at the purpose of a trap is to get someone to fall in it and expectedly you know the trappers go out and they you know in the fourth they put a trap but they covered that trap right so that the the prey doesn't see it and so they'll somehow stumble into that trap and to end to be caught so he that he was being set up they were always fearful about being set up and so they wanted to make sure they wasn't but here he was it was prepared by his officers they wanted to get rid of Daniel but the trap had to be laid I noticed this he's like I had to be laid very carefully here for the kingdom had just recently went into some I want current renovations here some changes you know the government they appointed what was 120 princes and three presidents and Daniel was the the main one and the first and that just really got him jealous and so they want to make sure they get rid of him now why choose Daniel as the first president well it could be a lot of several reasons and probably all of you have different ones here but it's mentioned I think it because he had a unique spirit he had the spirit of the Living God living in him he had the Holy Spirit leading and guiding directing in every step he's right he that he took so Daniel had you know he survived the Golden Age of Babylon man here's the man with some experience here's a man not only experienced the things of the government and the way government is running and dealing with people but he had an experience with God this is what we need today than anything and what's not it's not the experience of governments not knowing what all going on in the world it's our relationship with Jesus Christ this is going to dictate the outcome of where we spent eternity I want to read something I just feel impressed to do it I'm just need to do it if you don't mind this because these are laws the land things that are happening law of God made void here this is it review and Herald December 18 1888 I have in my Bible down here it says here a time is coming when the law of God in this special sense is to may be made hot void in our land we're talking about laws being passed if you're not you know won't go along with the laws of the land then you're going to be killed notice this in a special sense has been made void in our land the rulers of our nation will by legislative enactments enforce this week on Sunday law and thus God's people be brought into great peril when our nation in its Legislative Council shall enact laws to bind the conscience of men notices in regard to their religious privileges was Daniel been challenged privileges absolutely he was and this was calling by enforcing Sunday it could be enforcing what you can't pray whatever it might be and send observance and bringing oppressive power to bear against those who keep the seventh-day Sabbath the law of God will be notice it in all intents and purposes be made void in our land and national pasta so we Renault will follow in national ruin these are things that are set up and things that a lot of people are just afraid to read they don't want to read them but how in the world can we when we studied the book of Revelation when we study the Book of Daniel these are things that set out so prominent before us as a people of God that God's saying while these are the things that you're going to be going through these are the challenges you're going to have to face history is going to repeat itself and so by the grace of God we need to look at it not trying to fill not trying to upset anyone you know not jealous as it was anyone just were jealous of God and his message that we have to give now notice that what we're going on here it says here so we see that the Daniel was chosen here Daniel survived the Golden Age we said it and the King checks out the record of Daniel he looks at Daniel's record before he points him he looks at said man this is spick-and-span there's nothing wrong with this guy he's the guy that I'd like to have set as we were in my counsel because I can trust him his officers knew this so what did they do they had to be very careful with the plot so they went to the king right quick and they said all of us have met now somebody lied all of us met it's very obvious in the context of it that all of the rulers and princes and leaders all didn't come together and all weren't in agreement it was some of those who were jealous top dogs and so they came and they said that to the king and the scene you know you know the king in his court I might say he always has in the kingdoms court and maybe it's not so bad sometime they always have their eyes in their ears there's always somebody that's watching somebody's there always somebody's listening somebody else and they're always reporting to somebody else you know they want to detect in the king's court here to detect any kind of conspiracy conspiracy conspiracy I had to say it three times people don't want to hear that word my glasses off conspiracy we have to look at it there was a conspiracy going on here and I'm saying today there is a conspiracy going on there's fake and false and all this kind of business you can get sidetracked by some of these things and unbalanced but don't there are some things that are going on we need to be more aware of and there in the court the King said I'm going to be aware of everything's going on naturally so he missed it he missed what was going on there was a few of the leaders that came in reported him all the others they they weren't there Daniel 7 they said they consulted together if anyone asked any petition as you well know you know within 30 days so say the he would be cast in the den of lions and they knew if the King signed it what would happen this is a way to get Daniel because Daniels going to open that window and Daniel's going to pray Daniel's going to do what Daniel did every day of his life true to his god amen you know what that's what we should be doing well the windows are open well the windows are closed where they were in the shopping mall whether we're in a restaurant wherever we're at were to rightly represent Christ and God in all things and what we do but you know again when they said I thought it's interesting the King here when you sit in that position by the way he had to be he was setting herself as the mediator he was a mediator because nobody could pray to anybody except they'd go through the king you remember that you great we pray through the King and then all these other things it gets answers you know so it was something that you know we have to look at and study with but I think we real realize in the hour that we live there's things that are going on and we need to be well aware of and you know what the time is coming when these things will be fulfilled again and we need to be ready for that time anyway thank you Pastor kandi appreciate that very much as you can see we're off to a flying start don't go anywhere we're going to get into the prayer of Daniel next what do you do when people are plotting against you in are very jealous stay tuned we'll be right back ever wish you could watch a three-bean sabbath-school panel again or share it on Facebook Instagram or Twitter well you can by visiting 3abn sabes cool panel comm a clean design makes it easy to find the program you're looking for there are also links to the adult Bible study guide so you can follow along sharing is easy just click share and choose your favorite social media sherilee save a life for eternity [Music] welcome back to our 3abn Sabbath school panel we're going to move to Tuesday where jill has Daniels prayer thank you so much pastor John appreciated both of you and what you brought as far as the foundation for this plot against Daniel the jealousy that the governors and the say traps had against Daniel and then the decree that they tricked pastor Kenny with a conspiracy they tricked the King into signing that into lon we know that a law of the Medes and Persians cannot be altered it could not be changed so now we see Daniels response on Tuesdays I said and I have one verse to talk to you about so let's jump into that one verse more in verse 10 in the sixth verse 10 this is Daniel's response 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 so I want to unpack that verse just a little bit the one verse then we're going to look at eight ways that we can stand for God when we're facing persecution in other words we're all going to face persecution the Bible says all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution at one point or another and we also know coming at the end of time will come a great time of persecution so we were all faced something at one point or another in our lives and it's an important to learn how should we stand to endure that persecution but before we do that I just want a little bit more at this verse here verse 10 some of the takeaways that I took from that verse you know sometimes the Bible is very deliberate and the way it writes things what I mean by that is Daniel we know Daniel is the author of Daniel but he could have easily said we end with a plot we end with the conspiracy with the decree being signed into law and then he could have just said now Daniel went to his upper room with his windows open toward Jerusalem and knelt down and prayed and pastor Ryan I would have been left wondering today don't know about the decree the day you know it was signed into law right it's very specific isn't it it says when Daniel knew that the writing was signed he went home then he knelt down and prayed so it's very specific it's like Daniel wanted us to know that with phone knowledge that he was taking his life as it were into his own hands he could be killed he still chose to honor God I think another time in the Bible were it seems to me to be very deliberate is in the foot washing John chapter 13 this is Jesus and he arose from supper and he took a towel and girded himself and began to wash the disciples feet now if he had said that we would have thought what Jesus knew he was divine but he chose to wash and be a servant in Washington disciples feet but in John 13 3 John says Jesus knowing that the father had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going to God rose from supper laid aside his garments and took a towel and girded himself so with full knowledge of his divinity he still chose to serve with Daniel with full knowledge of the Kings decree he still chose to pray he chose obedience to his God over any earthly power over any earthly law now the Bible doesn't say if he was afraid or not I don't know if he was or not but he made a choice based on principle that's right he knew he was acting in obedience to God's law even if it was in defiance to a man need law and he didn't deliberately provoke his enemies this was his custom to pray three times a day he continued in his regular custom I think Daniel understood that this was all part of the great controversy not just jealous princess and it was jealous princess not just human politics but Satan was using them as it were behind the scenes as part of this cosmic conflict the struggle between good and evil between Christ and Satan he probably remembered Daniel 3 that had happened years ago with his friends and how God had delivered them and I wonder if when he prayed he said oh God if it's in your will would you deliver me as well if it had been me I would have prayed that and he also prayed with Thanksgiving and I want to get to that that's one of her points as we get to later but I love that he prayed with Thanksgiving you know one and God are a majority that's right it might not feel like it it might not look like it but it is always true so let's look at how do we stand for God when we're facing opposition or when we're facing persecution here's eight ways first stand with expectation what do I mean by that don't be surprised by it first Peter 4:12 beloved do not think it's strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you as though some strange thing happened to you we know that all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution so stand with expectation what I mean by that is don't be surprised don't be naive don't have blinders pulled over your eyes and you're just not expecting it expect persecution expect the battle and be equipped and prepared for battle so stand with expectation second is stand with prayer that is vitally important before any battle before any persecution before anything we encounter we need to spend time prayer and we know Daniel prayed the Bible is very clear three times that day and I'm sure the day after and I'm sure after that too because that was his habit that was his custom you know sometimes we wait until persecution pastor Kenny and then we think we're going to turn to God then we think oh I really need you right now now there is true it is true I think about Peter when he calmed out and then he said hey Lord right and then God saved him and there are times when we reach out and I know that God hears and answers but if you establish right now today in the time of peace and prosperity as it were if you establish your walk with God if you establish that prayer life it will stand you in good stead when the persecution comes the day is the day of salvation today is the day to develop your relationship with God right number four stand under the anointing of the Holy Spirit that's right I think about the disciples remember right before Jesus was crucified what the Bible say all the disciples forsook him and fled because they were terrified and then acts 1:8 Jesus promises the Holy Spirit he says you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon me upon you and you should be witnesses to me and Judea and Samaria to the end of the earth so when the Holy Spirit was poured out you see a transformation in the disciples lives we see in acts chapter 2 in Peters sermon we see in Acts chapter 4 the scribes and rulers what does the Bible say they took knowledge that they had been with Jesus in other words their lives were so radically changed that was the power of the Holy Spirit so we stand on the anointing of the Holy Spirit number 4 stand on God's Word and in obedience to God's Word Acts chapter 5 this is a little further in the early Christian church and the disciples were hauled in again before the priests and scribes and we're in acts 5 verse 28 the high priest said to them did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name and look you filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood on us but Peter and the other apostles answered and said we ought to obey God rather than men so they stood on God's Word and what God's Word said instead of human traditions or human laws but not only that they stood in obedience to what God is okay number five stand and respond with humility you know we can stand on God's Word we can stand in prayer but we can stand in I would say arrogance or irritation or not in the spirit of meekness Paul writing to Timothy his son in the faith 2nd Timothy 2:24 and 25 a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all able to teach patient in humility correcting those who are in opposition if God perhaps will grant them repentance so that they may know the truth so we stand with humility because God wants to bring the people who are persecuting you to repentance as well God desires their salvation as well number 6 stand with decisive action we can be humble but still stand decidedly I think about Matthew 21 Jesus cleansing the temple and coming in with a whip now he definitely stood with some decisive action number 7 stand with love and kindness Matthew 5:44 Jesus saying love your enemies bless those who curse you do good to those who spitefully use you so there are times we need to have decisive action but at the same time we must have the love of Jesus and the humility of Jesus expressed in our actions and finally number 8 stand with Thanksgiving Daniel stood with Thanksgiving he prayed with Thanksgiving when he was faced with losing his life he still gave thanks to God 1st Thessalonians 5 16 through 18 rejoice always write and everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you so God calls us above all to stand yeah praise the Lord not bad for one verse yeah praise the Lord well I have Wednesday's lesson entitled in the lion's den and so we're going to talk about brother Brenda Kenny called the conspiracy to put Daniel in this lion's den and it was indeed a conspiracy and a plot to do evil and so actually I have an abundance of scriptures to work with and I'm very thankful for that and so while we may not get to all these verses I would like to begin with Daniel chapter 6 verse 11 and we're going to try to read through to verse 23 if time permits and so verse 11 begins to tell us here it says 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 whose petitions any God or man within 30 days except you o King shall be cast into the lion's den interesting and so I just want to as we as we kind of set this up here I just want to note the fact that it says they were assembled they assembled now we know they they plotted you know they had a symbol to plot this and I just want to reiterate what you said it wasn't all of the leaders these were just a few jealous ungodly men who had the spirit of the devil in their heart and all they'd all that they wanted to see was they wanted to see Daniel fall and themselves rise but right and so what we see here is they now they're assembling again because again they couldn't find any fault with Daniel they they tried to find every piece of evidence that they could they could not find any fault so now it's like okay you know what we're gonna put him we're gonna we're gonna really really take this up a notch and we're gonna symbol and try to catch them in the act if we can and so it's ultimately what we find here is this was this was a plan to deceive and manipulate the higher authority that's ultimately what it came to when they couldn't find fault with Daniel they decided is there any way that we can ultimately deceive and plot to deceive the higher authority that makes the decision against Daniel and that is exactly what we find happening here notice what the Bible continues on to say it says the king answered and said the thing is true according to the law of the Medes and versions which does not alter so they answered and said before the king that Daniel a little bit of prejudice here a little bit of disrespect that Daniel he he's not even worthy of just you know Daniel and that Daniel who is one of the captives from Judah does not show due regard for you O king for it says or for the decree that you have signed but makes his petition notice three times a day and how do they know that it was three times a day because they had this brother on lockdown surveillance okay they were watching day and night they had assembled together they had plotted and we see that they watched that they have they have watched very particularly so that they might catch the slightest mistake to report to the king and again I just want to reiterate the fact you could see the spirit behind these men because as they walk in you know Daniel is in a very high position he's technically their authority he's over these guys and of course you could see the disrespect in a sense that that Daniel King you know Daniel that Daniel yeah well he's not really doing what you what you said for him to do notice verse 14 and the King when he heard these words was greatly displeased with himself and said his heart on Daniel to deliver him and he labored till the going down of the Sun no so notice how it says you know that this King knew immediately what was taking place by this point he's figuring it out wait a second I see what's happening here he knew that he had been scammed into conspiring against Daniel because that's essentially what had happened he felt ashamed and why did he feel ashamed because he knew the very character of Daniel he knew Daniel was a righteous man with no ill intention to usurp him or his authority in any way he knew Daniel personally and so all of this is coming together he's starting to see now I see what's happening here he has been basically the the Kings is trying to find a loophole to possibly get around executing Daniel but of course this political circus has pushed things past the point of no return and he realizes that and so the scripture goes on to tell us then these men approached the king and said to the king no o King that it is law of the Medes and Persians that no decree or statute which the king establishes may be changed so notice how these men are further pushing this political card to try to frame Daniel they were forcing the King in on their political conspiracy and you know this reminds me of the spirit of someone who has come to my mind oh yeah how about the devil Satan you know it says in book of Revelation chapter 12 or 7 as speaking of heaven it says and war broke out in heaven and that word war there is the greek word pala MOS and the very nature of the war that broke out in heaven is you're seeing the very nature of that war right here in this particular conspiracy it's off politics that word pala MOS is simply politicking the devil knew he couldn't beat jesus in a sword fight or a fistfight or try to fight him physically jesus could have just snapped his finger and he would have been gone right he's not gonna pick a fight with jesus physically that the nature of the ward was awards a war of words it was a war of conspiracy against the character of god and so we're seeing that it's exactly what the devil is trying to pull on daniel by working through these men to try to discredit him and so that's exactly what they're attempting to do the devil divided heaven with his politics and that's exactly the spirit that we see at work here verse 16 it says so the king gave the command at daniel that they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions but the King spoke saying to Daniel I love this your God whom you serve and I can't emphasize this enough continually the god you serve continually he will deliver you you know this is a statement of faith from a pagan god or from a pagan king now I think there's evidence in this chapter that while he wasn't quite there yet you know I think that this King had been in the presence of Daniel enough he had saw the witness of Daniel he had saw the character of Daniel he had heard stories perhaps of you know how God had delivered Daniel and his friends in the past that all of this is coming together and he's making a statement of faith he's saying look I know Daniel I know Renee was a righteous man and of course he knows that declaring in faith that Daniels God would deliver him he had faith in that and I just want to emphasize that the reason why the God is going to deliver Daniel is because Daniel served him how continually and I just want to make an appeal right now please my friends we need to learn as a people to be servants of God not just on Mondays and not just don't Sabbath's and not just don't we need to learn to serve God continually and in following the example of Daniel notice verse 17 then a stone was brought and laid at the mouth of the den and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the cygnets of his lords and of course the purpose concerning Daniel might be charged excuse me that it may not be changed choose me and so now the King has went into his palace spent notice this all-night fasting and no musicians were brought before him and his sleep went from him you see this is unusual behavior from a king because most arrogant Kings are gonna be like well you know I hate that this had to happen to Daniel but oh well he could be replaced that's not what's happening here let's see he's disturbed and he went so far as to fast now why would a pagan king fast I believe he's probably as following in the example he probably saw Daniel fasting quite a bit Oh Daniel is a faster he's a prayer and so I should do the same thing if there's any hope for Daniel and so of course very early in the morning we see that he comes in and he brokeback obviously they roll back that stone he screams that aloud to Daniel Daniel's servant of the Living God has your God whom you serve there it is again continually been able to deliver you from the Lions and of course Daniel soon Daniel responds to him O king live forever my god sent his angel and shut the Lions mouths so that and I just want to pause there God knows how to shut the mouths of lions yeah the Bible says that the devil is a roaring lion seeking and he's seeking whom he may devour there may be Lions that is trying to seek to devour you but if you put your trust in Jesus Christ he will send angels to shut those in the mouths of those lions that's right the truth of the matter is my friends you see God honors truth the honors honesty and while he did not deliver Daniel from the Lions Den he did indeed save him through the Lions Den and so there's something to say here about the character of this righteous man which by the way Daniel wasn't perfect the Bible says all have sinned so Daniel was a sinner Daniel needed Redemption and when Jesus died on the cross Jesus died on the cross for Daniel but Daniel is a righteous man and he was a truthful man he was an honest man he was not a perfect man by no means but he stood for the principles of God's Word and I just want to make an appeal in the closing moments that I have you know in the days and the times that we're living in I could imagine someone in this particular situation today that would say well you know the Bible does say that you know we should be obedient to the laws of the land and coming up with a excuse as to why they should not lose their life because they're praying to their God Daniel Daniel saw past the policies he saw past the laws when laws and policies and regulations my friends when they come in between are they calls you or lead you to violate biblical principles and the plan that God has for your life it is never never an excuse to disobey God and did not stand for truth and so stand for truth we serve a God of truth jesus said I am the way the truth and the life and when we adopt and we replicate the character of Jesus in our life to be truthful and to be honest in all situations he will shut mouths of lions and he will deliver his people in time of need Thursday's lesson is vindication and we're going to be looking at a difficult scripture in Daniel 624 so let me just repeat and enlarge little it is so obvious how King Darius admired respected and just appreciated Daniel so much you can tell that because of the high position to which he was appointed and Daniel served with insight and wisdom and he served the King faithfully but he always served the King of Kings above the king of the Medes you know when you think about this Daniel set the standard for Christians who serve in public office did he not he always did what was right he never did what was wrong he always kept that open communication with the Lord so when it came to as some as you just said whether we're going to obey the laws of the land or the laws of the meat the God's law it was no contest for Daniel and even when he knew that he could be thrown into a death a life-and-death situation his past 80 years of faithfulness didn't it would be no substitute for his present faithfulness and here's what I want to say character is not forged in adversity character is revealed in adversity so the king had recognized hate its envy and jealousy Mike My Kingdom is corrupt right and he is he's upset because he has been tricked I think it's interesting that when God and I think you said this John when God bestows blessings on us he can stir jealousy among others among the wicked and he just goes back to genesis 3:15 that there is enmity between the seed of the Serpent and the seed of God so here the king is so upset with himself he is mad at these guys who have done this and here's the interesting thing just like Haman and Mordecai it backfired evil deeds often backfire on those who plan cruelty so let's look at what the king is gonna do because he's going to turn the tables on him Daniel 6:20 for the King gave the command and they brought those men who had accused Daniel and they cast them into the den of lions then their children and their wives and the Lions overpowered them and broke all their bones and pieces before they ever came to the bottom of the den now sadly the Persian law was more cruel than almost any other nation's laws and when what according to Herodotus historian on the account of the guilt of one if a man was guilty according to Persian law his whole family was obliterated so you know but when you think about it wife and children still suffer today when when a man has done evil I mean they suffer financially the shamed oh the disgrace that goes with that but I do want to point out this is not because some people read this and like why would God let this happen Deuteronomy 24:16 in the Covenant law given to Moses here's what God said father's shall not be put to death for their children nor shall the children be put to death for their fathers a person shall be put to death for his own sin so this isn't something that God put a stamp of approval on it just happened so even so God lifted his divine restrains from the Lions you know some people say well the reason Daniel didn't get eaten is cuz those old toothless Lions they were old they weren't hungry blah blah blah well you tell that to the princes and the governors who were involved because those who brought the false charges against Daniel they were the Lions pounced on them and they were devoured so there's always a somber side to the salvation of God's people when you think about it because any time eats eggs seed is delivered there's a bruising of the state of the Serpent's head so so this is when we look at chapters 2 3 and 4 Nebuchadnezzar praise God's Daniel's God in an increasingly reverent way chapter 5 Belshazzar did not but now in Chapter six Darius is clearly impacted by what God has done so let's look at verse 25 and through 27 says King Darius is he's going to announce the supreme authority of Daniel Scott King Darius Daniel 625 wrote to all the peoples nations and languages that dwell in all the earth peace be multiplied to you 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 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 Daniel Daniel from the power of the Lions mmm-hmm you know after God had delivered Shadrach Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace Nebuchadnezzar had written the decree that people had to couldn't say anything against God right so now we have King Darius who's writing this decree and I don't know if Darius was fully convinced he didn't call him the Most High God he was a polytheist but he did have a respect for God and look at this little look back at verse 26 where he said mention fear and tremble let's take note of what he says he is a living God so he saw as to his nature he was an eternal God and then he said he steadfast forever his kingdom is the one which shall not be destroyed so he sees God's sovereignty and he knows that his kingdom is not going to come to an end so he did see him as unparalleled without rival and in verse 27 he says he delivers rescues he's a delivering rescuing God he worked signs and wonders in the heaven and the earth Darius said so he's a supernatural miracle working God even a pagan King could see that so what you know it's just interesting to me here Daniel is a captive in a strange land but his devotion has a major impact his life was a witness that testified to God's power and God can use you in that way to run so verse 28 says so this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian following God if we're faithful and serve him continually it can be costly but he is Lord of all and over all and he is able to deliver that's right the Bible tells us he gives us the victory yea in Christ Jesus and so when we are true to God and like Daniel walk in the spirit and show covenant loyalty you know I like I love we'll get to this but Daniel said once when he was praying to God oh you are a God who keeps covenant with those who keep covenant with you we just have to be like the the early church when Peter said you know we must obey God and not man we should as joe said expect opposition's and you may be walking through a fiery furnace right now just like Shadrach Meshach and Abednego you may feel like you've been thrown into the Lions Den but I guarantee you if you will honor God he says humble yourselves before the Lord he will exalt you in other words he will lift you up and honor if you honor him and I think that I always think like Daniel coming out of the lion's den when they rolled back the stone what does that make you think of when they roll back the stone and Jesus came triumphant from the crowd how can you extract so much from one story even your single verse and we want to give each of our panelists an opportunity to summarize what what's on their heart pastor Kenny well I've been drawing a lot from this you know God calls some to live for him God calls some as witnesses to die for him and so we look either way God shows that he still rules that he's still in control and I just the question is asked Lisa in my heart I'm asking do I love Jesus really enough that I would stand for right what is right even if it cost me as it were your job if it cost you your family and the bottom line if it cost you your life and by the grace of God that's willing to give our life for Jesus that's right the powerful pastor Kenny I want that in my own heart and life for sure I think sometimes when you face persecution you can be afraid but I just want to encourage you right now not to fear because the Lord Jesus is walking beside you he says fear not for I am with you and he wants to walk right beside you through the midst of your trial that's right you know the Daniel went through a time of trouble this was Daniel's time of trouble and we are also as the Bible tells us gonna go through a time of trouble and just as God didn't deliver Daniel from the Lions Den but saved him through it God will also not deliver us from that time of trouble but save us through it and just as God sent the angels in to shut the mouths of the Lions God will also send angels to us to deliver us through I'm reading Psalm 91 verses 9 through 11 because you have made the Lord who is my refuge even the most high your dwelling place no evil shall befall you nor shall any plague come near your dwelling for he shall give his angels charge over you to keep you and all your ways amen I just wanted to read a comment from the lesson from the quarterly and this is what he says yes Daniel is miraculously saved his faithfulness rewarded the evil punish God's honor and power vindicated but what we see here is a mini example of what will happen on a universal scale God's people delivered evil punished and the Lord vindicated before the cosmos wow what a story we have just been blessed have we not been blessed yeah you know I'm the past all like amens can we get it Daniel has so much more to unfold to us and since I covered the topic on jealousy ponder this thought I'm modified at some but it says jealousy is the dragon in paradise the darkness in light and the most bitter of emotions in the sweetest of circumstances we pray that the Lord will remove any jealousy from your heart join us next time from the stormy sea to the clouds of heaven god bless you [Music] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Three Angels Broadcasting Network (3ABN)

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Length: 58min 30sec (3510 seconds)

Published: Sun Feb 09 2020