28 November 2013 - lion down on the job

28 November 2013 - lion down on the job

“Did you not decree, O king,
that no one is to address a petition to god or man
for thirty days, except to you, O king;
otherwise he shall be cast into a den of lions?”

We know that we can't survive thirty days without addressing petitions to God.  But when threatened with the den of lions how steadfast are we?  When the world conspires to make us obey itself rather than God do we give in?  Will we, for instance, abandon our religious freedoms when the government insists?  When told not to pray, are we silent?  When told to provide contraceptives, abortifacients, and sterilization, do we do so?  In our day both the demand and the punishment is more subtle but it is not fundamentally different. 

We must say to the world with Peter and John, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge" (cf Act. 4:19).  Let us learn from Daniel who knows what is right in these situations.

Some men rushed into the upper chamber of Daniel’s home
and found him praying and pleading before his God.

We may be tempted to point fingers.  But ultimately, we see a system at work, over and above the intentions of any one man.

They said, “Keep in mind, O king,
that under the Mede and Persian law
every royal prohibition or decree is irrevocable.”
So the king ordered Daniel to be brought and cast into the lions’ den.

And so he is cast into the lion's den.  But these seemingly insurmountable circumstances are allowed to occur to make God's deliverance more manifest.

“There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars,
and on earth nations will be in dismay,
perplexed by the roaring of the sea and the waves.
People will die of fright
in anticipation of what is coming upon the world,
for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.

Because all this happens first people notice what they may otherwise miss or undervalue.  Whether they are complicit in throwing the devout to the lions, whether they trample Jerusalem under foot, or whether they are those who flee to the mountains with the LORD's remnant, no one now misses the LORD's coming and his salvation.

And then they will see the Son of Man
coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
But when these signs begin to happen,
stand erect and raise your heads
because your redemption is at hand.”

This is why we read yesterday that we secure our lives by our perseverance.  And today we read just the attitude that should characterize us as we persevere.  Stand erect!  Raise your heads!  We go forward as those who know that our redemption is at hand.

King Darius sees this perseverance manifested in Daniel.  He sees the deliverance with which it is met.  And he is changed.

“All peace to you!
I decree that throughout my royal domain
the God of Daniel is to be reverenced and feared:
“For he is the living God, enduring forever;
his Kingdom shall not be destroyed,
and his dominion shall be without end.
He is a deliverer and savior,
working signs and wonders in heaven and on earth,
and he delivered Daniel from the lions’ power.”

So let us all render "glory and eternal praise" to God, our mighty God, who saves us from the lion's mouth.