Daniel's Answer Today

Daniel’s Answer Today

3/8/17

All of us at one time or another has wondered if God was really listening to our hearts when we pray or ask Him questions.  We can study His Word and try our best to comprehend His presence but it still is a difficult task to keep Him in the forefront of our minds and heart at all times.  All of us forget that there are forces around us that block our communication with God which reemphasizes the importance of having a relationship with God instead of relying on the surrounding religious atmospheres.  We have a wonderful example of this truth in God’s Word and it provides us with the aspects of what really is going on around us and how we should recognize the warfare for our survival.  God wants us to hear His voice for it carries eternal life but in order for us to understand His words, we must first carry His Word in our heart so that our spiritual eyes and ears and know.

When the story of Daniel begins it is known that his life had been set apart from the vast majority of the people in Israel and that God had His eye on Daniel for a special purpose.  What is difficult to maintain is just how Israel’s condition would be when Daniel would receive the benefits of God’s eye, for Israel was taken into captivity by an enemy who was considered worse than what the heart of Israel was, a position that confounded many in Israel.  Furthermore, Daniel was taken from his environment and placed into a special court for the King of Babylon, a setting that would make anyone skeptical and nervous for their future.  We must also remember that Daniel was a young lad when all this first transpired, and who would have contemplated that Daniel’s entire life would be spent as a messenger for God in a captive state.

With the exception of a small contingency inside Israel, most of the population had no idea as to why they had been completely defeated and now taken into a strange land to be held in captivity.  They could not understand why God would allow such a humiliating defeat to be bestowed on their existence.  They were the children of God and His chosen people!  But as we see the book of Daniel unfold, we can easily determine that Israel did not understand exactly why God allowed this to occur and it was not a hidden secret by God but a choice that Israel made and then completely shoved God out of their lives instead.  What scares me the most about this setting is that in today’s society we are making the exact same deadly choices as Israel did so long ago and since we know that God is a consistent God on all levels, we have no excuses when He deems the word “enough” from His Holy lips.

Daniel Chapter 10 provides us with a unique picture of how a person with a relationship with God endures a dire situation.  The atrocities that Daniel heard about and personally witnessed is hard for one to imagine but while this vague idea of a life is difficult to contemplate, we must keep this Daniel’s placement in the forefront of our lives because God can and will change our course if we do not begin to adhere to His Word.  Daniel Chapter 9 paints this picture of Israel’s iniquities before God and how they did not even know that their actions were that “bad” for they had placed them into the acceptable category of worldly goods and it is this chapter that Daniel prays to God and asks for guidance and offers not only the repentance of Israel but for himself as well. 

Daniel 10:10-15 states the following and sets the tone for the topic of this message from God: “And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.  And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am I now sent.  And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.  Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.  But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.  Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.  And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward the ground, and I became dumb.”

Now there are about 15 or so other messages that reside in this passage of Scripture alone but the one that God wishes for our hearts to hear here is one of a personal matter.  While this passage was written and took place a very long time ago, its meaning and truth continue to play out in our lives today.  As stated in the opening paragraph, humans have a great tendency of forgetting what is actually around them and tend to focus on the immediate circles around them without noticing the entire work of art surrounding them.  Daniel had prayed for repentance and for forgiveness in this passage and right from the beginning of this word, God makes sure that Daniel understands that God loves him and knows his faithfulness to Him.  Daniel’s reaction to this message from God is one of complete humility and fear of God, for at the end of the introduction of the angel’s words Daniel falls back to his face and knees.

All throughout the book of Daniel, it mentions Daniel’s conversations with God and at one point even quantifies his talks with God during a given day.  It is this example of how we need to be in communication with God for it is our eternal lifeline that we live in this manner.  Do you think that Daniel would have known exactly what to say to the king and the court sessions that he was thrust into if he had not been in constant contact with God?  Do you think that when he was chucked into the lion’s den that he would have had the faith and trust in God that he demonstrated?  Would Daniel had succumbed to the pressures of his environment and given up if he had no recollection of what God was performing in his life?  All of these questions drew conclusive answers in Daniel’s life as those moments passed, yet Daniel knew exactly what his situation was and he knew exactly the position that Israel was in, he knew why he and Israel were in those positions and most importantly Daniel knew and understood that God knew where he was and what was occurring around him.  It was this knowledge that kept Daniel from falling apart, for when the angel spoke to Daniel, he still fell to the ground dumb but through his faithfulness, God came with an answer.

We must remember that Daniel was a human being, alive and breathing person who actually existed.  This means that he experienced different qualities of life and even had his world turned upside down by a group of people that were not from his neighborhood.  His economic status changed, his living status changed, the people around him changed, and every inch of his life was altered with the exception one huge detail and that was that his faith in God never wavered one bit.  It was this small detail that did not change that set Daniel’s course before God and the world into motion and probably saved Israel fro further devastation.  Yet, while Daniel continued this communication and relationship status with God, his world still fell around him and his nation crumbled to a worldly authority, a lesson that could have been avoided and the specific target of what God wants us to understand today.

There was no question that when Daniel was a young boy that Israel was a blessed nation.  Every indication that we have during this time frame states that Israel was not in want and that they had great influence over the region.  With this status undoubtedly came enemies that wished to destroy them but Israel knew that they would be protected by God because of their “status” in Him. It was this belief that came to be their downfall, for their eyes became focused on their status and not the One who gave them that status.  As time went progressed their eyes became more engraved in the world than God and by the time God said “enough”, it was too late to save their nation.  Now, we know that not all of the people in Israel left God’s eyes but we do know that the majority of Israel did and it was this contention that led to their demise.

The nation of Israel was a defined nation during this time period.  The events of Israel’s demise are well documented in secular history as they are in the Bible and many details remain as to the suffering that this nation endured during this period of defeat. The reason that this example of Israel is important to our lives today is that this nation and the beacon that God gave her a long time ago is on the same path that Israel took when Daniel was alive.  It is frightening the similarities that our nation partakes into that of what Israel believed and lived.  The call of God still rings superficially from our mouths but stops there and that call has been beaten from our hearts by a lifestyle of selfish lusts from an enemy that we have embraced instead of kicked away.

There is good news to be given here!  And it the type of news that God desires for His children to have and this good news will immediately be recognized too, and even better is that the process to which this news would arrive relies on one thing only and that is the repentance of our sins before God.  Just the prophets of old proclaimed to Israel that they did not have to fall prey to their enemies, neither does this nation have to fall to the judgment of God either.  The modern day prophets have already spoken about what is to come to this nation and the effect of our demise that would have on the world.  The good news is that we do not have to follow the pattern of what God’s Word records we can delay this tragedy for an extended amount of time if we only turn our hearts back to God and live through the communion and relationship with God as Daniel portrayed.

It does not take a rocket scientist’s brain and knowledge to figure this equation out.  It is a simple process and belief that will correct all of the flaws, grief, and sin that we now condone.  It would be a miraculous change to witness a congressional passage of a law that actually helps promote God and the strength of His nation instead of one that divides and conquers through political lines; kind of sounds like denominational lines too.  Today we have built up the belief that we do not need God or His Word in our lives because of the status of living that we exist within.  As long as we adhere to this philosophy our lives are in grave danger of being overthrown by an enemy that will be used against us.  What unsettles me is that Israel knew about the presence of the Babylonians and how they operated during the time of Daniel, yet God used them to completely destroy what Israel believed that they obtained by themselves.

A great many times I have heard that when one speaks about God and His Word that it is always doom and gloom and there is nothing positive that can be said about God and His Ways.  I can understand this line of beliefs especially when one looks at God’s Ways through the selfish and worldly keyhole.  Study this passage in Daniel and include Chapter 9 as well and one cannot help but notice almost exact word for word ideologies and beliefs that the world holds true today, more troubling is that this nation and the other nations around us have willingly adopted these ideas as laws.   God understands that He has asked me to write about this setting a few times before, but as His Word is completed He wants us to understand that we have a choice and the choice is clear and easy.

Our lives are going to be filled with pain and agony as we progress through our days, this is a given and there is nothing that we can do about this.  However, we can have the opportunity for our nation and our existence as a whole not go through added doom and gloom if we make one simple choice to place and then keep God number one in our hearts.  Daniel gives us a perfect status of relationship with God and if we as a nation redevelop this type of relationship then we will be able to miss the added pain and suffering that will be allowed to fall on our lives.  Why should we have to endure such a sad ending that only provides an unspeakable agony that will last for an unforeseen amount of time?  The GOOD NEWS IS THAT WE DO NOT HAVE TO ENDURE THIS PROCESS!!! 

We do not have to follow the exact example of what Daniel had to go through and the nation of Israel had to face.  If we as a nation develop a relationship with God our troubles will be solved and our enemies will be scattered, God’s Word says this!  This is good news, people!!  And it is easily obtained if we only give up our lives to God and allow Him to rule instead of us.  The world does not want this for its message is one of selfishness that is based on an eternal death lie.  It is time for the Church to repent and to once again activate her mission of preaching and teaching the gospel to the dying world.  If we listen to this truth our nation and many others with us shall reap God’s benefits and protection.  We can have our boundaries eternally restored to the perfect conditions that are needed for our survival, it is an easy choice.

God gave us this example of Daniel for a reason so that His children today could avoid such disastrous occasions in the future. God is still alive and His Word still rings true today.  His love for our lives has not diminished in any capacity and it is always His desire to see His children live in peace, prosperity and under His protection.  Daniel’s answer from God was a direct Word that God recognized Daniel and the purity of his heart.  God recognizes our hearts too and it is His desire for our hearts to cry out for a relationship as Daniel did.  Daniel did not waiver while the destruction of Israel occurred, as of this moment we have the opportunity to restore our relationship with God and miss out on the utter destruction of our livelihood.  Let us be like Daniel and not like Israel.  Choose God and His Holy Ways over the death opportunities of the world.

DLB