• Fear is often the greatest enemy of faithful witness. Daniel didn't let any fear keep him from speaking the truth to the king.
• Nebuchadnezzar had the 5 P’s: The palace, power, pleasure, peace and prosperity.
But the fact that he had those things wasn’t the problem. The problem was, the king believed he achieved all that on his own. He gave himself all the credit and failed to see that it is God who sets up kings and removes kings! His main problem was PRIDE.
• “In everything man does without God, he must either fail miserably or succeed more miserably. The cruelest thing God can do to you is let you succeed and think you did it on your own because you’ll live your life independent of him—and that’s the worst thing that could possibly happen to you.” Mark Bates
• Not only does Daniel speak truth in love to the king, but he offers him a way out. He encourages him to repent (vs. 27).
• “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7: 14
• Reflection question: How might Daniel’s witness to the king shape the way you approach witnessing to others?
• Reflection question: Where in your life has pride prevented you from giving God the credit for what he alone has done?
Daniel 4: 10-27
Week 7
October 15, 2020 • Jaime Carnaggio
Daniel Week Ten
November 12, 2020 • Katie Schellack
• Think about how evident Daniel's consistent faith in God was to all of those in Babylon. So evident, that the satraps were banking on it in order to get back at him! They knew Daniel wouldn't be able to obey this injunction. • Oh to be able to seek God first in all we say and do, no matter the consequences! • There are so many gospel connections in this text. Think about the ways Darius is like Pontius Pilate, how the satraps are like the Pharisees, and how Daniel is like Jesus. • Jesus' last words, "Father, why do you forsaken me?" comes from Psalm 22. "Deliver me from the mouth of the lions" also comes from Psalm 22. • Notice how the narrative follows Darius into his sleeping quarters, restless, anxious, unable to eat . . . it doesn't follow Daniel into the lion's den.
Daniel Week Nine
October 29, 2020 • Jaime Carnaggio
• “There is a Belshazzar lurking in all of our hearts. We all need God to deliver us from us!” David Helm • We don’t know why God deals with some more harshly and others with more grace. We don’t know why God administers quick judgment sometimes and offers patient grace other times. All we do know, is that in his perfect sovereignty, he offers grace when and to whom he wants. Nebuchadnezzar and Belshazzar BOTH deserved God’s wrath. They BOTH deserved to suffer the consequences of their sin. Neither of them was worthy of God’s mercy. Things may not seem fair in the world’s economy, but in God’s economy, every ounce of his grace is a pure gift for us to treasure. • Maybe we too often presume the mercies of God. Maybe we rely too heavily on God’s grace. We think he’ll always deal with us with patient grace like Nebuchadnezzar instead of quick judgment like Belshazzar. Maybe we don’t take our sin seriously enough. Maybe we rely too much on our atonement, knowing our sins have been fully forgiven by the blood of Jesus, that we don’t rightly fear the consequences of our sins. Maybe we falsely believe, like Belshazzar, that we are indestructible. • “Whenever God brings a man to the end of himself, smashing all his props and wasting his idols, it’s a favorable moment indeed. If he will but see it!” Dale Davis • The queen remembered Daniel, which tells us that he was just as devoted to the Lord in his PRIVATE life as he was in his PUBLIC life. It tells us that his commitment to the Lord, the way he lived out his life of faith, was consistent whether he had a big audience or not. His position and power changed much over the years, but his willingness to serve the Lord, remained intact and constant.
Daniel Week Eight
October 22, 2020 • Suzie Thompson
• God, in his Grace, gave King Nebuchadnezzar a whole year to repent and turn from his pride. God is patient! But he is also just and loving, and therefore doesn't let us stay in our sin. • Nebuchadnezzar's pride is always getting in the way of him hearing God. When does our pride get in the way of hearing God? • How has God humbled you in your life? • All of this happened to Nebuchadnezzar so he would "know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men and gives it to whom he will." (Stated three times in this chapter: verses 17, 25, and 32.) • Nebuchadnezzar finally "lifted his eyes to heaven" and praised and honored God who lives forever. He looked up! When has God changed your circumstances in a way that you had no choice but to look up??