innocent

At The Mercy Of Lions

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, “Thy God whom thou servest continually, He will deliver thee.”  And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his lords; that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.
Then the king went to his palace, and passed the night fasting: neither were instruments of musick brought before him: and his sleep went from him. Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste unto the den of lions.  And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, “O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the lions?”  Then said Daniel unto the king, “O king, live for ever. My God hath sent His angel, and hath shut the lions’ mouths, that they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before Him innocency was found in me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.”  Then was the king exceeding glad for him, and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he believed in his God.
Daniel 6:16-23

Daniel had found himself in a pit of trouble. It was big furry, with big teeth and a big roar. How did he get here? It was not because he wanted to be in this pit full of hungry growling beasts of the field. It was because he had prayed, and he had continued to pray to God, even after a King Darius had written and sealed an edict that forbade any one under his rule to pray to anyone except him for thirty days.

King Darius loved Daniel. He had been deceived by some advisers who actually were jealous and envious of Daniel, even hating him so much they wanted him dead. They must have kept an eye on him, because they caught him in his daily time of prayer, praying despite the king’s edict.

The king had Daniel put in the pit with these hungry lions, and even says to him, “Your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you.” The king could not go back and remove the edict, so he spent the night fasting, and no sleep. He yearned for Daniel to be alive as he hurried to to the den of lions. I would not be surprised to know; if it could be known; that Daniel slept all night in peace.

What did the king find when he arrived at the den? He found Daniel alive and well, without a single scratch or injury of any kind.

Lions show no mercy. There are many times in Scripture that “lions”is used referring to mighty, and wicked rulers of nations, but not here. These lions were the big, furry beast that roar loudly, and have big claws in their feet. The only reason these hungry beast did not kill and eat Daniel is that God had mercy, closed the mouths  of these lions, and thusly was merciful to him.

What can we learn from Daniel’s time with the lions? First of all, we can learn to be faithful; even though he knew of the edict, he continued praying to the One God whom he faithfully served. Secondly, we can learn that God is the Sovereign of the universe, He is creator, and in control of all things, even the mouths of hungry lions.

Just as his three friends – Hanniah, Mishsael, and Azariah had been delivered from Nebuchadnezzar’s fiery furnace, so also is Daniel delivered. Only God can do such.

I pray that when I am faced with making such decisions in tough situations I will have the strength, and the faith to stand for the Lord, as did his three friends, and Daniel.

The thing that must be known is that these stories are more than just stories, they are not just historical record, they are God’s truth, and He shows us how we ought to live. The first thing we need to do is to believe God, and His word. If we believe His word, we will believe the words of His Son Jesus Christ. The following are the words of Jesus, believe Him,

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.  He that believeth on Him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.” John 3:16-20

Believe Him, and all your sins are forgiven, and you receive eternal life.

 

Innocent Blood

/ Tim A. / Leave a comment

“Then Judas, which had betrayed Him, when he saw that He was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, ‘I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.’ And they said, ‘What is that to us? See thou to that.’ And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, ‘It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood.’ And they took counsel, and bought with them the potter’s field, to bury strangers in.
Wherefore that field was called, The field of blood, unto this day.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying,
‘And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of Him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; and gave them for the potter’s field, as the Lord appointed me.’ ” Matthew 27:3-10

In a Just Society

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“The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.
For the transgression of a land many are the princes thereof: but by a man of understanding and knowledge the state thereof shall be prolonged.
A poor man that oppresseth the poor is like a sweeping rain which leaveth no food.
They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.
Evil men understand not judgment: but they that seek the LORD understand all things.
Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness, than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.” Proverbs 28:1-6 (KJV)

Far too often we notice there are not too many “Just Societies”.  Even in the United States of America more often than not, there is injustice.  Money is needed to get a good lawyer to defend oneself from a false charge; or even to be sure one can get a fair trial.  I do believe in our Justice system, but I also see the injustice in it.

A man or woman charged with a crime is supposed to be seen as “Innocent until proven guilty”; but that does not always happen either.  We all too often begin condemning the indicted individual with a guilty verdict long before the trial; even on the streets, and highways and byways of the areas around the case.

The following are thoughts for Proverbs 28:1-28…

Verses 1a, 4, 12, 15, 28 – A look at the wicked. The wicked are those who refuse to recognize the way of God, His Word, and refuse to submit themselves to Him; whether rich, or poor. 1.) The wicked see a conspiracy behind everything that is against them, and flee. 2.) For anyone to turn their backs on righteous laws is to give praise to the wicked who break those laws. 3.) When the wicked rule and are in leadership people tend to hide. 4.) Wicked rulers among poor people are as devastating as an angry growling lion (Job 24:4; Prov. 19:12; 1 Peter 5:8).

Verses 2, 5, 8-9, 11, 16-17, 21-22, 25-26 – A look at the wicked who are wealthy; leadership, rulers. 1.) Many rulers, maybe “Big government” is a result of a wicked nation. 2.) True justice is not understood by the unjust; and that goes along with exhorbitant interest, profits, low wages, etc.. 3.) The unjust will be “cruel oppressors”, and will most likely have “blood on their hands” thus face eternal judgment. 4.) Greed, partiality, will ultimatley bring poverty into the lives of those who practice it – ultimate destruction.

Verses 3, 10a, 13, 24 – The wicked poor. 1.) You would think a poor man would be more understanding of the poor; but the wicked poor will stoop to the lowest degree in order to improve their own situation in life. 2.) Destruction awaits those who would lead an upright individual astray – take Balaam as an example (Numbers 31:8, 16). 3.) It is the tendency of all wicked people to cover their transgressions, and even refuse to believe they have transgressed (v. 24).

Verses 1b, 6-7, 10b, 12a, 14, 18-20, 23, 27 – The way of righteousness. 1.) The righteous have no reason to fear the thing so the world or of man; they have died to the wickedness of the world. 2.) The poor upright are better off, and wise in God. 3.) The Lord will bless those who are upright in the things he/she possesses. 4.) There is glory and happiness in the fear of the LORD (vv. 12, 14). 5.) Salvation, plenty, and blessings are the reward of the righteous. 6.) A just and righteous tongue is favored; and gives to the poor, and shall not lack (vv. 23, 27).

The only way to a just society is through the Lord Jesus Christ.  He has told us…

“For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 5:20

We can only receive that “Justness” that righteousness through the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.  Believe Him, trust Him: call on His name (Romans 10:13).