Introduction: Last week we discussed real people who were caught up
in the cosmic conflict between good and evil. In the cases we studied
(David, Samson, Elijah) we found people of faith who gave in to
sinful impulses. This week we look at real people who suffered
through no apparent fault of their own, but remained faithful. Let’s
jump in.
- Daniel
- Read Daniel 6:1-3. What position did Daniel hold in the
kingdom of Medo-Persia? (Daniel had a remarkable career.
If you look at Daniel 5:29 you will discover that Daniel
was promoted to “third highest ruler” in Babylon the night
it fell to Darius the Mede. However, when Darius
organized his new kingdom, he made Daniel one of the three
top administrators that reported directly to King Darius.) - How good was Daniel at his job? (Verse 3 tells us
that Darius intended to further reorganize and make
Daniel the number one administrator. He would be
second in charge to the king.) - Read Daniel 6:4. What does “at this” mean? What is
motivating these leaders to plot against Daniel? (When
they learned that the King intended to promote Daniel over
all of them, they were jealous and plotted against him.) - What was the problem they faced in plotting against
Daniel? (He was “neither corrupt nor negligent.”) - Read Daniel 6:5. What is their only angle of attack
against Daniel? (A potential conflict between the law of
God and the law of the government.) - Friend, can this be said about you? There is nothing
in your work that others can attack? The only way to
attack you is to find a conflict between your
obligations to God and your obligations to the
government? - Based on this only approach, a plot is hatched. Let’s read
on: Daniel 6:6-9. While Daniel’s “weakness” was his
allegiance to God, what is the weakness of King Darius?
(Pride. Maybe a little mental weakness too, since one of
his principal advisors was missing from this group — the
one who prayed to a different God.) - Let’s read on. Daniel 6:10-11. To whom does Daniel turn
for help? (Verse 11 says he was asking God for help.) - Wouldn’t a little “self-help” have been appropriate
here? For example, why not close the windows? Nothing
requires you to pray with the windows open! Indeed,
Jesus said ( Matthew 6:6) to pray behind closed doors. - Read the story in Matthew 17:24-27. Was Jesus’
approach to this “governmental regulation” the same
as that of Daniel? (It seems not. Jesus was willing
to compromise (not give offense) as much as possible
without compromising the principle (which was who
Jesus was).) - Why do you think Daniel refused to change anything
about the way he prayed to God? (I think he viewed
this as a test of his allegiance to God. It was an
open challenge to his faith. The context of Jesus’
statement to pray behind closed doors was to those
hypocrites who were praying just to be seen by men.
Since they were doing this only for self-glory, you
can be sure they would have closed the door if death
were the reward for public prayer.) - Why did the other administrators (v.11) go “as a
group” to find Daniel violating the law by praying?
(These guys were schemers and cowards. Since the King
liked Daniel, if just one reported this, the King
might have ignored the report and punished the one
who gave the report. If a whole group of the
administrators reported this, King Darius would be
trapped.) - Daniel 6:12-13 records that the group then reported
Daniel’s praying to King Darius. Let’s read Daniel 6:14.
What do you think is going on in the King’s mind right
now? What were his views about Daniel? His views about his
decree on worship? His views about his advisors? (He
clearly knows he has been tricked and trapped. He still
has a very high view of Daniel because verse 14 tells us
that he “made very effort” to rescue Daniel. The King
thinks killing Daniel is unfair and not in his best
interests.) - The advisors keep reminding King Darius that his
edicts cannot be changed (vv. 12, 15). Consider the
situation: the King and his most trusted advisor
(Daniel) agree that Daniel should not be killed – yet
Daniel is going to be thrown in the lions’ den. What
does this teach us about relying on men for our
freedom and welfare? (This shows why Daniel, in verse
11, was “asking God for help.” We cannot depend on
the state, powerful friends or any other person. We
must depend upon God not only for our salvation, but
for every other aspect of our life.) - Read Daniel 6:16-17. If we must depend on God, why didn’t
God work something out before Daniel got thrown in the
den? I am not a procrastinator. I am not a “last minute”
guy. Is God a procrastinator or a “last minute” guy? (God
often lets matters get to their worst point before He
intervenes. His thinking on this is revealed in the story
of Gideon fighting the Midianites. In Judges 7:2 God tells
Gideon to get rid of some of his soldiers “in order that
Israel may not boast against me that her own strength
saved her.” God wants us to be clear on who saved us. In
Daniel 6:16, the ruler of the empire acknowledged that the
matter of Daniel’s life had come down to a miracle from
his God.) - What lesson do we learn from this for the problems in
our life? - Read Daniel 6:19-22. Now, what do you think about the idea
of Daniel just shutting the doors when he prayed? - Read Daniel 6:25-27.(I believe that God impressed
Daniel that praying privately was not the right
answer. As a result of Daniel’s faithfulness, the
power of God is clearly displayed to King Darius andto the entire empire.)
- Did Daniel suffer just so that God would look good?
(Daniel obeyed. If this event had not happened,
Daniel would always have had his jealous competitors
trying to harm him. Instead, Daniel 6:24 reports that
they were no longer a part of Daniel’s life. Daniel
6:28 reveals “So Daniel prospered during the reign of
Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.” This
event also caused the King to be converted and to
announce the empire was now “Christian.”) - Esther
- Read Esther 3:13. Do you know why this edict to kill the
Jews was issued? (There was a rising young star in the
empire of Medo-Persia, a man named Haman. He was like
Daniel in that the King elevated him above all of the
other nobles. The King ordered all to bow down to Haman
when he passed by them. A guy named Mordecai refused –
probably because of the first two of the Ten Commandments.
When Haman saw this he decided to kill not only Mordecai,
but everyone with his same religious background. (See,
generally, Esther 3) - The Queen, a lady named Esther, was a Jew who had been
raised by Mordecai. He turned to her for help. Read Esther
4:12-14. What did Mordecai want Esther to do? (Intervene
with the King about the edict to kill all the Jews.) - What did Mordecai warn would happen if she did not?
(He said she would die.) - Read Esther 4:10-11. What was Esther worried about if
she intervened with the King? (That she would die.
She was facing death either way.) - What do you think about Mordecai’s warning? Was
this just “scare tactics?” (It is hard to
imagine that the Queen would be killed as part
of the decree to kill Jews. However, we learned
about the absolute nature of the Medo-Persian
royal edicts in the story of Daniel.) - How do the problems in your life compare with
the problems facing Esther?
- Let’s go back and look at Esther 4:14 again. Was
Mordecai worried about being killed? (He says that
God would find a way to deliver His people regardless
of whether Esther helped.) - Are the problems we face obstacles or
opportunities? (This story suggests that God
will have his way. The only question is whether
we will be co-laborers with Him in resolving the
problems in life.) - Read Esther 4:15-16. What were Esther’s two approaches to
resolving this national religious liberty problem? (I say
“religious liberty problem” because lives were being
threatened because of Mordecai’s obedience to God. Esther
turned to God (fasting and prayer) and direct political
action (approaching the King).) - Are these two approaches to religious liberty
problems still valid? (They certainly reflect the
Biblical blueprint for any country where individuals
have a say in the nature of the laws and individuals
can express their views without risk of harm. Beyond
that, this is a blueprint for individuals who can
influence government, even at the peril of their
life. This would not seem to be the blueprint (the
direct political action part) for individuals who
have no real influence on government and are simply
risking their lives. Prayer and fasting would be
appropriate for all situations.) - Read Esther 8:11, 16-17. What was the outcome of prayer,
fasting and courageous political action? (God intervened –
He worked with Esther to save the lives of His people.) - Friend, in these two stories we see people who remained
faithful to God even at the risk of their lives. Do you
face life-threatening problems in your life because of
your allegiance to God? God calls on you to trust, obey
and be co-laborers with Him through the most difficult of
times. - Next week: Jesus Models Victory.
