Our communication with God is to be two-way: We talk to Him in prayer and He speaks to us through His Word. Daily prayer and Bible reading is a believer’s lifeline to the Father. Are you facing a difficult decision? Are you in need of encouragement or advice? Go to the Father. Make known your requests. Read His Word. Pray “Lord, give me understanding according to Your Word.” Let the Spirit speak into your situation. Listen. He has spoken. He still speaks.
A new administration comes into power, jealous co-workers, and a governmental prohibition against prayer… Sounds like something from today’s headlines, doesn’t it? Well, actually this is what the Hebrew exile Daniel faced after Darius the Mede conquered Babylon. Even though Daniel had been an advisor to the Babylonians, Darius was so impressed with him that he made him one of his top three administrators and even planned to put him over all of his 120 “satraps” (Persian governors). Many of the Persian leaders became jealous of Daniel, so they schemed to get rid of him. They couldn’t find anything wrong with his work or character, so they focused on persecuting him for his faith. They persuaded Darius to pass a law against prayer and waited for Daniel to break it. They didn’t have to wait long. That very day, Daniel went “to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem,” and prayed. Daniel had broken Persian law, so Darius had no choice but to throw him in the lion’s den. Yet, God rescued Daniel, thus revealing His glory to Darius. In response, Darius executed Daniel’s detractors, elevated Daniel and made a “decree” instructing his whole kingdom to worship the “God of Daniel.” God used Daniel’s faithfulness to turn a prayer prohibition into a nationwide prayer meeting!
The apostle Peter wrote his second letter to awaken believers to an unclouded understanding of the faith. In chapter 2, he warned them to keep their eyes open for false teachers that would invariably try to creep into the flock. As Jesus warned, “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves” (Matt. 7:15). Persecution and trouble from without is challenging enough, but false teachers that attack from within may actually cause the most destruction. What are some signs of false teaching according to Peter: 1) “Denying” the divinity and lordship of Christ (v.1), 2) Overt sensuality or pursuit of the flesh (v.2), 3) Greedy exploitation of the flock for personal gain (v.3). What is the best way to stay alert to false teaching? Stay in the Word! By knowing the genuine, we guard against the counterfeit.
After Daniel interpreted Nebuchadnezzar’s second dream, he boldly added advice that the king repent of sin and heed God’s warning. What a special relationship God had given Daniel with the king, that he could be so bold without the king’s reprisal! Yet, Nebuchadnezzer didn’t repent, and after a year went by, his nightmare became a reality. God humbled the prideful king. I wonder why God chose to give this pagan Babylonian king such revelations? And why did God provide not only dreams, but also a faithful interpreter in Daniel? It reminds me of how God gave the Egyptian Pharaoh a dream, and then sent him Joseph to interpret it. What was God’s overarching purpose in giving such revelations to pagan kings and providing godly men to interpret them? Perhaps it was at least twofold: 1) God revealed Himself to them that they might repent and believe. 2) God provided godly prophets to find favor with the pagan kings, so that God’s people might prosper even while exiled in a foreign land. How might Daniel’s relationship with Nebuchadnezzar be applied to how we relate to worldly kings, presidents, governors and employers today?
Standing firm for your faith against an idolatrous culture often leads to persecution. Yet, the three Hebrew exiles, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, chose to remain faithful to God in spite of the threat of execution. They expressed their sincere belief that God was able to rescue them from Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace if He so willed. But they also proclaimed their firm determination that they would rather burn than bow to false gods. They recognized that their true fate was not in a worldly king’s hands, but in God’s hands.
Daniel, along with several other young Hebrew youths (probably young teens) was taken captive by the Babylonians to serve King Nebuchadnezzar. His story is a study in how to live as a believer exiled in a foreign land. God gave Daniel great wisdom and success, as he served under many kings and even kept his post after Babylon fell to the Persians. He served under several Babylonian kings beginning with Nebuchadnezzer and ending with Belshazzar, who was king at the time of the fall of Babylon to Persia (Daniel 5:29-31). He then continued under Darius the Mede and finally under Cyrus of Persia (Daniel 6:28). His service seems to have occupied around seventy years. Regardless of the king or kingdom of man, Daniel served God and the Lord gave him wisdom on how to live in this world, but not of it.
As exiles in this world, citizens of the kingdom of heaven, we have been set free from slavery to sin and the world’s system. We live in this world, but we are not of this world. Our citizenship is in heaven. Yet, this “freedom” is not a license to sin, but liberty to live for Christ. As Paul said, “For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace” (Rom.6:14). So, we live as “servants of God,” freely submitting to the authorities ordained by God, not out of fear or duty, but out of the grace and love of Christ. We have been set free to serve God.
Who is this “prince?” And where is this temple wherein such offerings are to be made? Ezekiel’s prophecy of a temple, and a “prince” that brings offerings while standing at the eastern gate, has yet to be fulfilled. The temple that was rebuilt by Zerubbabel after the Babylonian exile, and later enlarged by King Herod, did not approach the immensity and grandeur described by Ezekiel. There has been no temple worship since 70 AD when the Romans destroyed it. If Ezekiel’s prophecy is to be taken literally, then it must be considered yet unfulfilled. It appears to point to the time of the Millennium, the thousand year reign of Christ on the earth, when Ezekiel’s temple, a Millennial Temple, will stand again in a new Jerusalem. However, the identity of the “prince” remains elusive. Many see him as the Messiah, the Christ, because of his special mediatorial role, however, there is a major difficulty with this–– Christ has no need to “provide for himself” a sin offering (see Heb. 7:27). So, the identity of the “prince” remains a mystery to those of us who seek to understand such things with a high view of Scripture. Who is this “prince?” Only God knows.
As God first told Aaron (Num.18:20), He now repeats to Ezekiel concerning His priests, “I am their inheritance. I am their possession.” Certainly, this instruction is a reminder that the tribe of Levi would not receive an allotment in the Promised Land as the other tribes, but that their portion would be the Lord Himself, along with the tithes and offerings brought to Him. However, one cannot help but see the foreshadowing of those who have become a “royal priesthood” in Christ. As the apostle Peter wrote, “you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). We are the Lord’s “own possession” and He is ours! Whatever belongs to Christ, belongs to you!
The prophet Ezekiel saw a vision of a new Temple, one yet to be built. In this vision, the Spirit led him to the Eastern Gate, “And behold,” he saw the glory of God “coming from the east.” This is the same direction by which he had seen God’s glory depart in his earlier vision (Ez.10-11). This “glory” can be none other than the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As John declared, “We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). For Christ is “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Heb. 1:3). What Ezekiel saw and heard in his vision, John saw and heard with even greater detail in his vision on the Isle of Patmos. John said that His voice was as “the sound of many waters” (Rev. 1:15) and that His face shone “like the sun shining in its strength” (Rev. 1:16). There is a Day coming when we too shall see and hear Him for ourselves. Therefore, stay alert, watch and pray. He is coming again “from the east.”