|
The story of Daniel in the lion’s den is a perennial favorite of children. Yet there is so much more to Daniel than a children’s story can convey. He teaches us important lessons about faithfulness, courage and prayer. What can we learn from Daniel?
Daniel’s story takes place between 605 and 540 B.C. As a teenager, he was captured in Jerusalem and taken to Babylon. He was a slave in the court of King Nebubuchadnezzar. In his lifetime, he would serve three kings and become a trusted advisor to all of them. He even served as Prime Minister of Babylon. But, we think of Daniel as a prophet as the Book of Daniel contains detailed prophecy about the times following him and the coming of the Messiah and the end times described in the Book of Revelation.
When Daniel was captured, he made a commitment to God that he wouldn’t defile his body or his heart. This meant that when he was selected to be a palace slave (an esteemed position for a slave) he couldn’t eat the rich diet they planned for him without breaking dietary law. He convinced the King to let him eat according to law for ten days to prove that his diet was better. He is brought back to the King at the end of the ten days healthier and fatter than the other slaves and the King is convinced. The lesson here is that Daniel stood firm and unwavering in his commitment to the Lord and the Lord honored that commitment, giving Daniel favor in the King’s eyes. (Daniel 1:8-19)
Refusing to do wrong, especially under threat takes tremendous courage. We are so afraid of sticking out or being different from the crowd. These things didn’t keep Daniel from his commitment to the Lord and they shouldn’t keep us from our commitments either. We make it difficult for God to bless our lives when we won’t honor Him. Faithfulness is a two way street.
Daniel was a devout and pious man. In everything, he turned to God in prayer. Nebubuchadnezzar was not an easy master to serve. He was troubled by a dream and called the wise men of the court to interpret the dream, but to assure that they gave him a true interpretation; he wouldn’t reveal the dream to them. Instead, they had to also divine the nature of the dream. The wise men told the king that this was impossible for them to do. Nebubuchadnezzar ordered that all the wise men of the court be put to death.
Daniel had risen to the position of wise man and when the king’s men came to put him to death, he went directly to Nebubuchadnezzar and asked for time to divine the dream and its interpretation. Nebubuchadnezzar granted Daniel time. Daniel took the matter directly to God in prayer. God revealed the dream and its interpretation to Daniel. When Daniel presented the information, “The king answered Daniel, and said, "Truly your God is the God of gods, the Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, since you could reveal this secret."
Here, we learn a couple of important things. First, God was able to spare Daniel’s life because Daniel was faithful in seeking God’s wisdom and guidance in prayer. When we faithfully reach out to God in prayer, we give Him the opportunity to bless us and spare us pain. Our first response to any situation ought to be to take it to God.
We learn too that God can use any situation to bring unbelievers to Him. Daniel could have had little expectation that the king would recognize the greatness of God. The king was a man so petty as to put to death all his advisors because they couldn’t perform the impossible. Our lesson is that we shouldn’t assume that we won’t be heard when we testify to the greatness of God. Don’t put off telling people about God because you believe they won’t hear you or believe you. Do your work as a Christian and tell people the Good News and let God worry about the results.
Daniel exhibits powers of prophecy all through the Book of Daniel. He interprets dreams for the kings he served and advises them for more than 70 years. The first interpretation he made for Nebubuchadnezzar was a prophecy of the ages to come, from the reigns of kings following Nebubuchadnezzar, to the birth of the Messiah and the great tribulation.
It is unlikely that any of us will be given prophecies such as Daniel received from God, yet the lesson is not in the prophecy as much as it is in the behavior of Daniel that found favor with God. Daniel was a man who was faithful in his behavior and communicated with God openly through prayer. His dedication made him a trustworthy person that God could reveal prophecy to and that man would accept prophecy from.
While we may not expect that God will bestow life-changing prophecies on us, we should model our behavior after Daniel’s. God does speak to us and gives us direction when we listen. He does answer our prayers when we ask things of Him. We must play our part and develop a relationship that allows this personal exchange. A relationship is what God wants to have with us. He longs for us to bring our cares to Him and ask for His comfort. He wishes to guide our lives and make us useful. But, He will not force Himself on us; we must come to Him and ask for His help and guidance.
The faith and devotion of one slave inspired the conversion of a pagan nation. Through Daniel we learn the power of prayer but we learn also the faithfulness of God. God’s devotion to Daniel was greater even than Daniel’s devotion to God. God even sent an angel in answer to Daniel’s prayers. “Then he said to me, "Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words.” (Daniel 10:12 NKJV)
When we are faithful in our prayers, we open up opportunities for God to bless our lives and use us. If you are having difficulty in your prayer life, perhaps studying the life of Daniel will help. “The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:16b NKJV)
| 
