Daniel Survey
Chapter 6 Outline
Rev. Bruce A. Shields
First Baptist Church of Tawas City Michigan
www.TawasBaptist.org
Confident in the Crisis
Quick Review of Daniel so far;
1 – God turns defeat into victory
2 – God is the revealer of secrets
3 – God is the redeemer of people
4 – God is the ruler of Kings
5 – God is God of justice and judgment
5:30-31
Drunken fest
Orgy
Writing on the wall
Babylon fell
Darius the Mede took the Kingdom
Daniel REMAINS 2nd in command!!!!!!
Darius saw something in Daniel.
Even today you can have a light in this dark society. People can see something in you. It’s God.
God is looking for men of integrity like Daniel even today!
KING – DARIUS
1st PRESIDENT – DANIEL
2nd Pres & 3rd Pres
120 PRINCES
Each held accountable to the previous
6:3-4 We see jealousy and envy begin to develop by the presidents and princes. Their envy led to jealousy.
But Daniel was a man of integrity.
He walked the talk.
He was what he said he was.
And because of this, no fault was found in him.
What if someone checked our lives?
Are we the people God wants us to be?
Do we walk the talk?
Are we people of integrity?
Books, magazines, movies, music.
Daniel had nothing to hide.
He had peace at night because he lived a transparent life.
6:5 they chose to attack Daniel for his relationship with God.
6:6-7
So they set Daniel up.
Daniel did not agree with or even meet with those who proposed the law.
Jealousy led to envy, envy to greed, greed to lies, lies to murder. The murder of an innocent man.
Sin in their heart had grown.
Sin cherished in the mind ALWAYS gets stronger, never weaker.
Lust, anger immorality…
When you knowingly or willingly entertain sin, it grows.
6:8 They continued to set Daniel up.
Even the king could not veto once the law was signed by the king.
6:10 Remember in chapter 5 when Belshazzar KNEW but didn’t do…Here we see Daniel KNEW and DID DO!
Daniel knew the law of man, but did not allow it to interfere with his relationship with God.
Because he knew there was power in prayer. If there is no prayer, there is no power.
Daniel knew it was God who enabled him to;
Purpose in his heart to serve God
Pass exams for promotions
Gave him wisdom and knowledge
Interoperate the dreams
Delivered Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace.
Allowed him to hold Babylon together for 7 years while Nebuchadnezzar ate grass like a cow.
Read the writing on the wall
And gave him the positions of power and authority he was in.
And he refused to compromise his faith.
God was his source for everything.
So they found Daniel praying.
The mark of who they are is the was thay are sneaing around spying on Daniel trying to catch him in some sin.
6:12 THE DECREE
at the heart of this conflict is;
Gods law vs. Mans law
God’s commands vs. Men’s commands
Gods worship vs. mans worship
THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GODS but the law said to worship Darius only!
The conflict is;
Who do you worship
How do you worship
When do you worship
Does God come first in your life?
Daniel faced this test at the end of his long life of serving God.
Loyalty to men or God?
At the end of time a test will come again calling all men back to worshiping their creator!
In the final hours of earths history;
Again the issue of worship, loyalty and obedience will come.
REVELATION 14:6
Worship the Creator!
FEAR means reverence or respect.
Respect God, worship Him the creator!
REVELATION 14:9
Don’t worship the beast!
REVELATION 14:12
In Daniel Chapter 3 and 6 – A human leader past a decree that forbade genuine worship.
In the end times – in revelation we read a human leader will unite church and state and pass a decree forbidding genuine worship.
The ISSUE – worship, loyalty and obedience.
If today we have a difficulty serving God in such a time of freedom, if the pressure of a few people get us to conform today, how will we do in the crisis of the ages?
Did Daniel prepare for this final crisis of his life at that moment? Or did he prepare by making the right decisions all along the way?
Loyalty to God
Obedience to God
Worship to God
Dan 6:16 Even Darius recognized Daniel was a servant of God.
He even tried to get Daniel out of this mess in 6:14
Daniel was in an impossible situation.
6:18 The king fasted that night
no peace
no food
no music
all night he tossed and turned
But Daniel slept.
The king in his plush palace couldn’t sleep.
Daniel in the Den slept in his prison.
Its not the house that enables you to sleep, it’s the peace that God gives you at the end of the day when you choose Him over the world.
It’s the peace in your heart from knowing you did what was right when all of the world around you is wrong.
\Nothing else gives peace although many search.
Daniel could sleep anywhere. Jesus did, in the boat during the storm.
Peace happiness and joy depend on your hearts condition.
It is not external!
6:19-20
6:22
We all have lions in our lives.
Temptations, anger, lust, bitterness, depression, discouragement.
When those lions roar, God can shut their mouths!
God wants to tame the lions in your life.
Pray to God and He will come to your den and put those lions to sleep.
He did it for Daniel and He will do it for you if you make Him the King of your heart.
If you choose Him over the world around you.
