August 20, 2006
Scripture:
Scripture:
Can we just read a verse from Revelation 1; verse 5: “And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us …” or as Mr. Darby says, “loveth us” (present tense); “… and washed us from our sins in his own blood.” But it does not stop there; “And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.”
EG Hymn 380 – Standing by a purpose true, Prayer Daniel 1 • The children of Israel were taken captive by King Nebuchadnezzar, who took them to Babylon. Then the king decided to have some of his captives taught about the ways and language of the Chaldeans and feed them the kings food, vv. 3–5. V. 6 tells us Daniel and his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, were chosen among others. They were given Babylonian names, and then started on their three year program. But, v. 8, Daniel knew the meat the king had was offered to idols first, so he asked the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. The prince liked Daniel, but he was afraid that the king would see that they were not as healthy as the others were and he would lose his life. So Daniel went to Melzar, the one over him and his three friends, and asked him to test them for ten days. They would get pulse (vegetables and seeds) and water for the ten days, and at the end, if they looked healthy, they could continue. Well, after the ten days, not only were they healthy, they looked better than all the others. So Melzar allowed them to continue their diet. For three years they continued learning, and God gave them knowledge and skill. When Nebuchadnezzar finally tested them, he found that they were ten times wiser than anyone in Babylon. God helped them through all of this because they honoured Him. But let’s go back to v. 8 for a moment, because that is where it all started. Daniel was still quite young, but he purposed in his heart. He had to overcome the fear of what the others might think of him and make the decision he knew was right. Every day, we have to make decisions as well. It is as though we come to a “T” in the road.
He stood at the crossroads all alone, The sunrise in his face; He had no thought for the world unknown He was set for a manly race.
But the road stretched east and the road stretched west, And the boy did not know which road was best, So he took the wrong road and went down, And he lost the race and the victor’s crown.
He was caught at last in an angry snare Because none stood at the crossroads there To show him the better road. Another day at the selfsame place, A boy with high hopes stood; He, too, was set for a manly race, He was seeking the things that were good.
But one was there who the roads did know, And that one showed him which way to go. So he turned away from the road that went down, And he won the race and the victor’s crown.
He walks today the highways fair Because one stood at the crossroads there, To show him the better way.
In this poem, there was one to help the second boy along. We have the Bible to give us direction in life, and the Lord is always ready to help us as well. “Them that honour me, I will honour.” If we remember this, we will be blessed.
Hebrews 11:23–29 • V. 23 brings us to the beginning of a new section. To explain these sections, see the “Witness - Walk – Warfare of Faith” chart. We know how the Israelites went from Egypt, through the wilderness, and into Canaan. As Christians, we are in all three places at once. In Egypt, we are strangers in a corrupt and violent world. The Red Sea is a picture of the Lord dying for us. Then we are pilgrims, going through a dry and barren desert. At the Jordan, we are crucified with Him, and then we can enter Canaan, the enjoyment of Heaven here on earth. When in Egypt, we are witnesses of faith; in the desert, we are walking by faith, and we are fighting warfare of faith in Canaan. If we are in the enjoyment of Heaven, you can be sure Satan will be fighting against us. But now we are looking at Moses. In v. 23, the faith seems to be more on the part of his parents. By faith, they saw something in Moses that made them realize that he could be the deliverer. It is interesting to turn to Genesis 15:13–16; God told Abraham that his offspring would be strangers in another country for four hundred years, but would one day be set free and go back to Canaan to be God’s arm of judgement on the Amorites. The Israelites must have known this, that someday, somehow, they would be set free. Moses parents must have known this, and it gave them the faith. Their faith went beyond the fear factor of Pharaoh’s command. But beyond all the faith, you can see the intervention of God. Bringing Pharaoh’s daughter down to the river and letting her find Moses. Then Miriam was able to get Moses’ real mother to look after him and finally he went to live in the palace. Many of the Israelites must have thought, “This is it. Moses will influence the king to let us go.” But God had another plan, one that would bring Him the glory. Moses went out into the backside of the desert. He spent the first forty years of his life learning what the world was. He spent the next 40 learning who God was; and he spent the last forty years learning who man was. In Egypt, he spent 40 years learning to be somebody; in the wilderness, he spent 40 years learning to be nobody, and then God could use Him. But Moses made decisions as did Daniel. Daniel’s position looked good: instead of being in broken down Jerusalem like Jeremiah, or by the river Chebar like Ezekiel, he was in the king’s palace, right where God wanted him. But he still had to decide to do right. Moses was also in a heathen palace; it seems he experienced everything there before he rejected it all and realized that God did not want him to stay there. He had a refusing and a choosing, choosing to suffer with his people, God’s people. He was probably in line for the throne, but he rejected the prospect of that and followed God. He, like Daniel, purposed. God has given us each a purpose in life, but we need purpose of heart to fulfill it. EG Hymn 269 – This world is a wilderness wide, Prayer