Have you heard these phrases before?
"Your days are numbered."
"The writing is on the wall."
"You have been weighed and found wanting."
All three phrases come from Daniel 5.
All three have made their way into the public imagination of our culture.
All three pack a powerful emotional punch.
These phrases are deeply moving because they communicate some of the most profound, self-evident truths about our existence. Our days are truly numbered (but by whom?), The writing is on the wall (but what does it mean?). Deep down inside, if we're honest, we know we are being weighed (by whom?) and we don't measure up (to what?).
So what do we do with these truths? Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die? That's what the king does in Daniel 5, and we see how foolish it ultimately is. He sees the writing on the wall and continues boozing to blind himself to the more uncomfortable facts of reality.
How then shall we live? Join us as we look at the powerful story in Daniel 5.
Daniel 5
May 1, 2016 • Daniel 5
Daniel 1
April 3, 2016 • Daniel 1
You ever feel like living a faithful Christian life is an uphill battle? Like the deck is stacked against you? Like you're Sisyphus, pushing a massive boulder uphill, and when you're almost at the top, you gas out and the stone comes tumbling down the hill, almost crushing you in the process? There are so many temptations in this world, and so many more in the city. How in the world can you remain faithful and flourishing, instead of faithless and languishing? You ever feel like you're the absolutely only Christian in your circles of influence? Maybe one of the only Christians in your whole school, company, and or community? Perhaps in your whole city? Well, you feel like that, because in Boston, it's statistically true. Sometimes, the Christian life feels like you're living in a den with lions, who are ready to devour you alive. Sometimes, it feels like there are lions on the outside, and lions of the heart on the inside. Join us as we start a study through the epic book of Daniel and learn some timeless (and therefore, timely) lessons of how to live in the lion's den.
Daniel 3
April 17, 2016 • Daniel 3
Today we have the blessing of studying one of the most famous and beloved stories in all of Scripture: the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego thrown into the fiery pit. It's a phenomenal testimony of the unwavering, ironclad, immovable faith of three young men, in the face of the most dire of circumstances. This text is chock-ful of faith-building and live-giving lessons. A primary question the text poses before us today is: am I going to declare the Lord to be my God, my primary allegiance, come what my, or will I bow to the multitude of glittering idols that the world present to me? The same battle these men fought, is actually waged daily in our hearts over much lesser issues. Furthermore, so many questions arise from the text: ~How can Nebuchadnezzar force everyone to worship this image he's built, immediately after he just proclaimed to Daniel, "Truly, your God is God of gods and Lord of kings." ~Couldn't Shadrach, Meshach, and Abelnego have bowed down to this image in public, but still worshiped Jesus in their hearts? Why the brouhaha? ~Why didn't God save them before they are thrown into the fire? Didn't he cut it a little close there? ~Who was the fourth person in the fire pit with them? Join us as we answer these questions and more.