An elderly man decided to oppose the system. He wasn’t being a rebel. He wasn’t out on a mission to be different. He was only following the Word of God that had passed down to him. But this made him stand out all the more.
Of course, I’m speaking of Daniel. He lived in a unique period of history. Daniel was challenged to make a decision between obeying the government or God. We can learn much from Daniel about bittersweet lesson of what it means to take a stand.
Thankfully, we don’t have to choose between obeying God and the government. Yet, we are still called to take a stand. Our faith is bombarded with real opposition everyday. It is my prayer that the Holy Spirit strengthens us through his Word, and leads us to STAND UP FOR JESUS! 1) In the Face of Challenge, and 2) To Seize the Opportunity.
1) In the Face of Challenge
Daniel lived through some challenging times. He faced the horror of war, as he witnessed the fall of his country and people at the hand of the Babylonians. The king of Babylon came in and swept over Israel, wiping it out and taking the people into captivity. Among the captives was Daniel. He was a teenager at the time. And Daniel had proven to possess a certain aptitude for leadership, so he was placed in a special school where he would learn how to serve the king.
Talk about a challenge! Daniel was being forced to serve the very king who had ruined his life! He was to aid the man who had destroyed his home and family! Yet, God gave Daniel the grace to excel. The Lord would lead Daniel to stand firm in the face of this challenge.
Daniel did excel. He had quite a record of achievements. In fact, all the other administrators and government officials were jealous of Daniel’s success. And so they concocted a scheme that would lead to Daniel’s fall. First, they checked his performance records for mistakes, but they couldn’t find any evidence of negligence or corruption on his part.
It became clear to Daniel’s enemies that they wouldn’t find any basis of charge against him. In order to bring charges against Daniel, these jealous men were going to have to create a situation where his loyalty to the king would be questioned. These evil men went to the king and pressured him to sign an edict banning prayer to anyone but the king himself. This may sound absurd, but just imagine how this must have set with the king’s ego. Picture everyone in your neighborhood being forced to pray to you, to worship and honor you, as a god! What an ego trip!
Daniel faced a challenge. He was tempted to take his eyes off of God and place his focus on human king, Darius. After all, the official decree stated: “anyone who prays to any god or man during the next thirty days, except to you, O king, shall be thrown into the lion’s den.” Daniel was being challenged to not worship God.
We face similar challenges everyday. We waged in a real battle; a battle against our faith. The war waged against our faith in Christ has to do with worship. Our own sinful hearts, the world around us, the devil himself, they all are engaged in a battle to lead us to not worship God. When we’re tempted to deny God worship, then we are tempted to deny him thanks. Thanklessness stems from a lack of faith. The more we take our eyes off of God, the less thankful we are towards him. When we take our focus off of God we see just how much we lack. W e lack solutions to our problems, courage in the face of worry. Just open a magazine or turn on the TV and people will tell just how much you lack – you lack that perfectly toned body, you lack the newest style, you lack the latest kitchen gadget. You lack the new video game system. When we focus on what we lack, then we are led to doubt God, as if he really doesn’t care. And when we doubt God, we become unappreciative of all he does give to us. We lack a desire to worship him.
Some would say the solution is to stand up for Jesus. And so you’ll hear such rhetoric: Stand up for Jesus and fight the frenzy of commercialism. Boycott Disney World! Burn those books! Throw out your TV! Stand up for Jesus and fight this great evil called government. Send letters to your senator! Challenge your leaders! Stand up and break the chains of immoral America! Stand up for Jesus because he needs you! Prove you’re worthy of him! That’s no advice, though. All that kind of talk does is tempt us to focus on ourselves all the more. The more we look to our own lives and action for a source of strength, the less we look to God for a reason to be thankful.
It didn’t take long for King Darius’ new edict to get around the beltway of Babylon. Daniel saw between the lines, though. He faced a challenge. Would he give up on God and give in to this wicked plot? Should he risk losing his life and his position in the government? Should he pray in secret instead of in front of an open window? In order to meet the challenge Daniel had to stand up, right? He had to prove to all around him that he was stronger than the temptation and was worthy of God, right?
Notice how Daniel stood up for Jesus. We read: “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened towards Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.” Daniel stood up for Jesus by bowing down before him. Daniel believed in the Savior to come. He held to the promises God had given in the gospel. Yes, even in the Old Testament, there is gospel. And Daniel got on his knees before his Savior. This posture was a symbol of humility. In essence, by kneeling, Daniel was saying, “Lord, I am nothing. I am a sinner. Have mercy on me!” Daniel knew he lacked righteousness more than anything, and so he placed his trust in the only one who could provide for his needs. He knelt before Savior he had never seen, but in whom he believed. This was part of Daniel’s regular prayer life. And his prayers weren’t just pious words spoken into the air. Daniel wasn’t building up his self-esteem. His prayers were directed to the Savior-God, the God of Abraham. Daniel’s prayers involved meditation on the Word of God. He focused his attention on what God had said as he prayed. Daniel went to the only One who could save him – his Lord. And God reminded Daniel of his faithful love in the promise of forgiveness and salvation.
It was God’s strength revealed in his Word, which gave Daniel the ability to stand up. Daniel didn’t look to himself, or to his own determination, to stand up for Jesus. He looked to the Savior himself. Daniel didn’t stand up for Jesus by boycotting the Babylonian culture. He didn’t stand up for Jesus by writing his congressman. He didn’t stand up for Jesus by defying the king’s decrees. He stood up for Jesus by simply continuing his daily devotions, focusing his attention of the Word of God. He took his stand by kneeling on the rock of salvation.
2) To Seize the Opportunity
As the Lord led Daniel to stand up in his faith, he was able to seize the opportunities God provided. By simply focusing on his Savior’s promised love and mercy, Daniel was able to be thankful. Daniel stood up for Jesus by giving God thanks in the face of worry. Daniel trusted in his Lord more than himself. He believed the Savior would deliver him from all danger – even from the gaping throats of lions. Did Daniel know an angel would close the mouths of the lions? Most likely he didn’t know how God would exactly handle this problem, but Daniel believed the Lord would work it out for good. Daniel knew that if his Savior could break the accusing finger of Satan, wash off the filth of sin, and close the gaping jaws of eternal death, well, then, he certainly could handle those pussycats.
And the Lord prevailed. As Daniel sat in the lion’s den, the words of Jeremiah may have crossed his mind: “Because of the LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning.” Daniel believed his Savior loved him with an everlasting love. And this led Daniel to be thankful, even in the face of death. God led Daniel to seize the opportunity to thank the Lord. And Daniel wasn’t the only one who praised God. King Darius was “overjoyed” to hear Daniel was alive and well. Many other people were led to praise God in Babylon, too. Under Persian law, the edict on prayer could not be lifted. Yet, by rescuing Daniel, God had simply overruled the old edict. King Darius realized that old law was now overruled and he issued a new decree stating that Jewish people were free to worship the Lord. God worked it out so that more and more would be able to seize the opportunity to thank him.
God is leading us to seize the same opportunities in our lives. The reason we can stand up for Jesus is because he first stood up for us. It is Christ who stood up and fulfilled the promises of salvation. He stood up and went to the cross for us. He stood up for us for all the times we choose to remain seated. Jesus stood up for us for all the times we choose to remain in our worry. He stood up for us for all the times we choose to be dissatisfied rather than thankful. He stood up and was condemned in our place. And he stood up and rose victorious from the grave. Jesus stood up for us because he loves us. He delights in us. He continually thanks his Father for us. As the Scriptures say, “we are the apple of his eye.” Christ stood up for us, so that we might be free to live with him and for him. We stand up for Jesus and thank him as we simply focus on his promises of grace and forgiveness. The love of Christ moves us to stand up for our mighty fortress and strength.
A certain monk in the 16th Century was led to realize this truth. And it was the grace of God, which moved this individual to stand up. I speak of Martin Luther. He took a stand on the Scriptures because he was led to see that the gospel of Christ was not being taught or believed. In the midst of all the turmoil that swirled around him, Martin Luther found a sure foundation in the promises of God. “Here I stand,” he said to those who tried to get him to back down from his confession of faith. “Unless I am convinced otherwise by the Word of God,” Luther said, “here I stand.” Martin Luther found his source of strength – his mighty fortress – in the Word of God, which bears witness to Jesus Christ.
The result was that Luther was labeled a heretic, an outlaw “wanted dead or alive.” Yet, he found his might fortress, his Wartburg – his waiting castle – in Christ Jesus. As Luther bowed before his Savior in humble trust, he was able to take a stand. We can seize the opportunity and be thankful today. As Martin Luther learned, so we confess that is by grace alone we are saved, not by anything we have done. The One who secured our rescue has saved us. The Lord didn’t use armies, politicians, or picketers. Our rescue came by a Savior on a cross. That salvation is ours – offered by the Holy Spirit in the Word of God, assured us in our Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. At last there’s a refuge built on a rock – sturdy, solid, immovable – a place where we can take a stand and be secure now and forever: On Christ the solid Rock, we stand. Amen.
