[0:00] And welcome to our service this evening. Special welcome to any whom you may be visiting with us as we come together to worship God.
[0:14] We pray his blessing on his word. We can begin by singing to God's praise from Psalm 34. Psalm 34. And from the beginning of the psalm.
[0:30] God will I bless all times. His praise my mouth shall still express. My soul shall boast in God. The meek shall hear with joyfulness.
[0:42] Extol the Lord with me. Let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord he heard and did me from all fears deliver. They looked to him and lightened where not shamed were their faces.
[0:56] This poor man cried. God heard and saved him from all his distresses. Then angel of the Lord encamps and round encompasses all those about that do him fear and them delivereth.
[1:11] Or taste and see that God is good who trusts in him is blessed. Fear God his saints. None that in fear shall be with want oppressed.
[1:22] The lion's young may hungry be and they may lack their food. But they that truly seek the Lord shall not lack any good. And so on though.
[1:33] We can sing these verses. Psalm 34. From the beginning. God will I bless all times. His praise my mouth shall still express. God will I bless all times.
[1:51] God will I bless all times. His praise my mouth shall still express. My soul shall not boast in God.
[2:05] God will I bless you. He shall hear with joyfulness. God will I bless you.
[2:43] God will I bless you.
[3:13] God will I bless you.
[3:43] God will I bless you.
[4:13] God will I bless you. God will I bless you.
[4:43] God will I bless you. God will I bless you. God will I bless you. God will I bless you. God will I bless you. Let us join together in prayer.
[4:55] Let us pray. God helps you to God.
[5:08] Lord God bless you. God bless you. not only a God who is, but a God who is ever-present. A God who is omnipotent, a God who is omniscient, a God who exists without beginning and without end. And as we meet in your presence, we need to be reminded of the fact that the God who is, is the God who is holy, whose holiness defies understanding, because we are so lacking in holiness. The holiness that belongs to the
[6:16] God who is, God over all is uncreated. It is essential. It is what is true of the divine being. There is no lack with you. There is no sense in which you can be anything other than what you are. Your people are in a special way, a holy people, consecrated, dedicated.
[6:51] They are those who bear the mark of the divine as you have made them your own and purposed purposed for them, that they would add to your glory by their praises and by their worship.
[7:09] And yet it is a created holiness that they possess. It is a holiness which even in their first parents who were created in the image of a holy God, who fell from that created origin and sin, and in their sin, they lost their created holiness. But that restoration, that restitution awaits them. And they will one day be in full possession of a holiness that was even not theirs at the outset. Because that holiness will be permanent. It will be incapable of being lost. Because it is a holiness that is theirs through faith in Christ. And he imputes to them that righteousness that he himself has worked out for them. And it is necessarily accompanied with that holiness that is his.
[8:29] These truths are before us in your word. And as we worship, we pray for the ability to take hold of them and to recognize the importance of God. And to recognize the importance of them. So that as we approach, we do so with with the desire to solemnize ourselves in your presence. To elevate your name in our praises and to seek that face-to-face encounter with the only living and true God that is only possible through the passion of the Lord Jesus Christ as we lay hold of him by faith we give thanks that he has opened out to us a new and a living way we pray that you would bless our gathering this evening and all who are present in this place according to the needs that they have temporal need or spiritual need perhaps collectively we have a need that is unknown to us as a congregation sometimes the future hides from us what may be true of your people and of the body of believers that bear your name but you know all things and you are able to minister to us in the light of not just present realities but future conditions also we live in a world that is uncertain we look around us in this world and we see all manner of of griefs and sorrows assailing mankind in various parts of the world there are theaters of war in places that we have a little knowledge of there are hundreds upon hundreds of thousands living there on the brink of extinction because of a lack of resources they do not have the food to sustain them or drink in times of drought and they have a hand to mouth existence we have little understanding of that we are thankful for what we have but we do not offer the thanks that we should to the
[11:06] God who is the provider of all good things we pray for these places in the world that are suffering from drought that are suffering through lack of provisions for sustaining the body those who are exposed to war those who are constantly under threat driven from their homes the Bible your word teaches us that always there have been those who are who are living nomadic experiences existences in the world those who are pilgrims and sojourners naturally speaking but your word tells us that this is what is true of your people and because we are creatures of the dust our time here is alofted to us and soon our days will be spent and our face will be firmly fixed upon eternity we pray for your blessing upon us in the light of the uncertainties that this world sets before us we pray for your people in all these situations that you would encourage their faith even such faith as is tested and challenged we remember your people here and we pray for them in the relationship that they have with Christ that they may be assured of it that they may be convinced of its reality that they may be persuaded of its enduring nature that you may encourage them so that they may go on in the faith and they may enlist others to join with them in the way that they may be encouraged in their testimony to speak often the truth concerning
[13:04] Christ and what he means to them we pray for those who are lame in their walk and who find themselves with the highways and the byways upon which they are found are challenged to their progress strengthen them we pray and grant healing to them in whatever way such healing is needed we would pray for the blessing of God to be upon all your people with all their needs remember the hospitalised those confined to care homes those who are in need of the ministry of others we pray your blessing upon all of these challenging situations is it the bereaved the sorrowful those whose hearts are heavy your voice is heard frequently amongst us but sometimes it comes unexpectedly and those who are confronted with the reality of their own frailty even as you speak through the lives of others being removed we would ask that you would encourage them to look to the one who is sovereign and who is God over all remember us as we turn to your word open it out to us open the eyes of our understanding pour out your spirit upon us as the word is opened preached proclaimed not only in this place but in all the congregations of our denomination and beyond bless the villages the towns the cities the nations of the earth the day will come when you will bring from all of these nations your people to be ever with yourself guard keep and protect us cleanse from sin in Jesus the Redeemer's name we ask forgiveness of sin in him amen we're going to read in the Old
[15:17] Testament scriptures some words from the book of Daniel and chapter 2 the book of Daniel chapter 2 reading from the beginning down to the verse Mark 23 Daniel chapter 2 and in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams where with his spirit his spirit was troubled and asleep break from him then the king commanded to call the magicians and the astrologers and the sorcerers and the Chaldeans for to show the king his dreams so they came and stood before the king and the king said unto them I have dreamed a dream and my spirit was troubled to know the dream then then speak the
[16:20] Chaldeans to the king in Sidiac O king live forever tell thy servants the dream and we will show the interpretation thereof the king answered and said to the Chaldeans the thing is gone from me if you will not make known unto me the dream with the interpretation thereof you shall be cut in pieces and your houses shall be made a downhill but if you show the dream and the interpretation thereof you shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour therefore show me the dream and the interpretation thereof they answered again and said let the king tell his servants the dream and we will show the interpretation of it the king answered and said I know of certainty that ye would gain the time because ye see the thing is gone from me but if ye will not make known unto me the dream there is but one decree for you for ye have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me till the time be changed therefore tell me the dream and I shall know that ye can show me the interpretation thereof the
[17:43] Chaldeans answered before the king and said there is not a man upon the earth that can show the king smarter therefore there is no king lord nor ruler that asks such things as any magician or astrologer or Chaldean and it is a rare thing that the king requireth and there is none other that can show it before the king except the gods whose dwelling is not with flesh for this cause the king was angry and very furious and commanded to destroy all the wise men of Babylon and the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain then Daniel answered with answer and wisdom to Ari of the captain of the king's guard which was gone forth to slay the wise men of Babylon he answered and said to Ari of the king's captain why is the decree so hasty from the king then Ari of made the thing known to
[18:51] Daniel then Daniel went in and desired of the king that he would give him time and that he would show the king the interpretation then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah Mishael and Tathariah his companions that they would desire mercies of the God of heaven concerning this secret that Daniel and his fellows should not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision then Daniel blessed the house of the God of heaven Daniel answered and said blessed be the name of God forever and ever for wisdom and might are his and he changes the times and the seasons he removed kings and setteth up kings he giveth wisdom unto the wise and knowledge to them that know understanding he revealeth the deep and secret things he knoweth what is in the darkness and the light dwelleth with him
[20:05] I thank thee and praise thee O thou God of my fathers who hast given me wisdom and might and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee for thou hast now made known unto us the king's martyr amen and be the lord at his blessing for the reading of his word to his name be the praise lord we we're going to sing now from psalm 96 psalm 96 psalm 96 psalm 96 psalm 96 psalm psalm psalm 96 psalm give ye the glory to the lord that to his name is due come ye into his courts and bring an offering with you in beauty of his holiness so do the lord adore likewise let all the earth throughout temple his face before among the heathen say god reigns the world shall steadfastly be fixed from moving he shall judge the people righteously let heavens be glad before the lord and let the earth rejoice let seas and all that is therein cry out and make a noise let fields rejoice and everything that springeth of the earth then woods and every tree shall sing with gladness and with mirth before the lord because he comes to judge the earth comes he he'll judge the world with righteousness the people faithfully we can sing these verses psalm 96 from verse 8 through to the end give ye the glory to the lord that to his name is due give ye the glory to the lord the truth is true come here to christmas astonishingves to his o'clock wake of the youth who will change the moon show and full
[22:49] The Lord adored Like I said Por the earth Do I Tenниze Charge Before Come Among The Heath And Share Of The world shall step us free.
[23:28] Be fixed from living needs of just. The peace of righteousness be.
[23:45] Let us be glad before the Lord.
[23:55] And let the earth rejoice. Let Jesus know the risen in.
[24:11] Cry unto the Lord, make the noise. Let Him rejoice under everything.
[24:29] The spirit of the earth. Then will our heavenly freedom sing.
[24:45] With blood and sound with mercy. Before the Lord be called, He comes.
[25:03] Here comes the earth of sea. Here comes the world with my children.
[25:19] Let the people hear glory. I'm going to turn now for a short time to the portion of scripture that we read.
[25:38] The book of Daniel in the Old Testament on chapter 2. And we can read at the beginning of the chapter.
[25:49] And in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled and his sleep break from him.
[26:03] Then the king commanded to call the magicians and the astrologers and the astrologers and the astrologers and the sorcerers and the Chaldeans for to show the king his dreams.
[26:15] So they came and stood before the king. And so on. And so on. Last Lord's Day we spoke of our intention to look at this book of the Old Testament.
[26:35] The book of Daniel. And our intention is to just consider some parts of it and see what it is that we can learn from this portion of scripture that is to encourage us in our relationship with the Lord God.
[27:00] If you remember those of you who were here last Lord's Day we took note of the fact that the background to the book of Daniel is really down to the displeasure of God.
[27:23] With regard to his believing people, the tribes of Israel and Judah. And after they have followed a course of apostasy, God's displeasure is made known to them.
[27:44] So that eventually what we find in the book of Daniel as the part of Israel or what was formerly Israel, the tribe of Judah are taken into captivity into Babylon.
[28:07] And the policy is pursued at that point. And Daniel is subject to that policy.
[28:19] A policy that sees the people of God being assimilated into the Babylonian way of life.
[28:32] There is an absorption of them through indoctrination and teaching.
[28:44] So that eventually what will happen is that their past will be forgotten. And they will be imbibed into a new form of life, a new system of beliefs.
[28:59] That is the ultimate end of what takes place. But Daniel, we discover, quietly defies that. And his faith in God is unshakable.
[29:14] And he defies the attempts that are made to indoctrinate himself and his friends.
[29:27] Now in this chapter, attention falls on Nebuchadnezzar. He is the king, a powerful king who is featuring very much in this next few chapters of the book of Daniel.
[29:46] Daniel. And he is powerful. He is clearly someone of considerable force.
[29:58] He is a force to be reckoned with. He is somebody who will not suffer fools gladly. He is somebody who will get his way no matter what.
[30:11] And there is, I suppose, in the initial reading of chapter 2, some debate as to the actual dating of what is recorded for us here.
[30:26] Because it says in the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar Dream Dreams. And that would mean that there is a discrepancy between that date that is spoken of and Daniel's involvement with him.
[30:45] And prior to this, it is probably just a linguistic problem more than anything else.
[30:58] But it is not something that is of concern to us. It is something that can be easily resolved by understanding that the point at which the matter at hand comes to the fore is shortly after Daniel is brought to occupy the land.
[31:23] And his knowledge of the king and the king's knowledge of him is almost taken for granted. But I want us to look at the first section of this chapter.
[31:37] It is a long chapter. There is 49 verses in the chapter. And we are looking at the first part of that, the part that we have read. And we are really focusing on this person, the king.
[31:52] And the kind of situation that we find confronting us in this chapter.
[32:05] It is descriptive of the kind of environment that Daniel has been introduced to.
[32:16] A spiritual environment that is completely contradictory to the one that he was raised in and the one that he embraces.
[32:28] And Nebuchadnezzar highlights that for us when he seeks to deal with his own personal circumstances.
[32:39] So there are three things we can speak about very briefly. The culture that is highlighted just in the first few verses of the chapter.
[32:50] The very presence of a belief system that contains magicians, astrologers, sorcerers and Chaldeans.
[33:08] It reminds us, it helps us understand the spiritual darkness that embraces the land. Then the second thing that we can notice is the fact that despite the power of this king.
[33:29] He is a king who is sovereign and who controls a huge sphere of land. His power has found him to defeat the Assyrians and take the nations around him under the sway of his influence.
[33:52] Despite that, he is somebody who is clearly personally vulnerable. He is subject to these dreams and these dreams test him so that he calls for help in that situation which he finds himself in.
[34:12] And then the third thing, if we then turn to Daniel and how Daniel has to deal with how that situation that seems remote for him from him at one level, embroils him and the wisdom that he uses in dealing with it.
[34:34] It is a narrative account and like many narrative accounts, it is very difficult to look at it with the eyes of a preacher and preach from a text as it were.
[34:50] But what we have is an indication to us of the kind of world in which Daniel lived and the kind of world that he had to live out his faith in.
[35:06] And we need to be aware of that, that the Christian believer is somebody who lives of their faith, not in a Petri dish that's free from all invasive properties, but in a world, but in a world that he has to live out his faith in the world.
[35:27] But in the world, a world that is made up of all kinds of external influences, many of which are hostile, many of which are completely alien to their way of life, and many of which are at times a threat to their Christian existence.
[35:51] Well then, when we think about this person, the king Nebuchadnezzar, we've got this sort of dichot and we've got a person who's all-powerful, a person who has all the resources that you could wish for at his disposal.
[36:20] And yet, he finds himself in a situation where his vulnerability as an individual is what is highlighted.
[36:31] In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, he dreamed dreams, wherewith his spirit was troubled and his sleep broken.
[36:44] It's not one dream, but many. And these many dreams cause him distress. And his own only result, the only way he can resolve this is by applying to what he hopes will be something that will help him address the issue that the conference is.
[37:14] And what the only thing he can do is the only thing that he knows to do. He applies to the gods of his own generation, of his own country.
[37:30] And he calls upon magicians, astrologers, socialists and Chaldeans. Now we could, I suppose, delve into what they practice and what they believe, but I don't think it's worth a while to do that.
[37:49] Clearly, what we have in this part of the world is a belief system that is very much practiced in opposition to the one and only deity that Daniel worships and disposes.
[38:13] The fact that there are many of them suggests to us that the multiplicity of divinities represented by these sorcerers, by these astrologers and so on, that they are themselves a reminder to us of weakness rather than strength.
[38:41] Because when we think of God, we think of God, the only living and true God. The God Jehovah, the God who is the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, but one God.
[38:57] And his power and his almighty nature is reinforced by the fact that he is one God. And as the one God, he created the world.
[39:14] And as the one God, he sustains the world. And as the one God, he is sovereign over all that he creates. And all the attributes that are divine are his.
[39:29] There is no division of labor. There is no sense in which there is hostility within the divine nature.
[39:42] There is a unity. There is a singleness of purpose. There is all that you would expect about the divine being that is God.
[39:55] But when you read of a pantheon of gods, when you read of representatives of a myriad host of different powers and different influences, different desires and different spheres of operation, there is always a tendency there to find conflict and division of power and so on.
[40:21] And yet that was all that Nebuchadnezzar knew. And he turns to them as he could only turn to what he knew and ask of them to supply him with an answer to his situation.
[40:40] And the situation was his sleeplessness. He was his sleeplessness. He was his sleeplessness. He was his sleeplessness caused by disturbed sleep, caused by dreams in the night. And worse still, he couldn't remember what the dreams were.
[40:53] And when we put it as simply as that, we see that the king is soliciting every single source of help that he can think of.
[41:13] Not just these ministers of the dark arts, as it were, but also the wise. Because remember, Daniel is included.
[41:25] And we know why Daniel is included. Because at the end of the chapter that comes before this, in all matters of wisdom and understanding that the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in all Israel.
[41:43] That is what is true of Daniel. He is wise. Incomparably wise. And he is wiser than every other wise person in the land.
[41:55] And purely on the basis of his wisdom, he is included amongst those that the king sends for to meet his need.
[42:09] To answer the question that he has for them. And it is, I suppose, more out of desperation, more out of a sense of the need that he has that he cannot believe can be answered that he does so.
[42:27] But we must understand as well that Nebuchadnezzar is a spiritual man. And we know that because of the fact that he has this desire to meet his problem spiritually.
[42:47] And he goes to those who are, he doesn't discard them, he doesn't discount them, he goes to them and asks for their help. Demands their help. Insists that they help, otherwise they will suffer.
[43:01] How does that make him a spiritual man? Well, I think we can justifiably say that he is somebody who understands that there is a dimension to his existence that is spiritual.
[43:17] He has arrayed around them, these wise men and these spiritual men. Now, that doesn't mean to say that his spirituality is as it should be, far from it.
[43:33] Just because a person is religious doesn't mean that their religion is what it should be. There are many religious people in this world of ours.
[43:45] And their religion would put us to shame, many of us, because they are so zealous in pursuit of the religion that they espouse.
[43:57] They are servants to their religion and they're diligent in their service. And they very often put Christians to shame in their zeal.
[44:08] Very often this is something that is highlighted in the way that Muslims, for example, point to Christian Great Britain and say Christian Great Britain should be ashamed.
[44:27] Because they say they're Christian and yet there are all of these things which they do, which we as Muslims would never do.
[44:38] And they're quite right in that. Because simply bearing the name Christian doesn't mean that you follow all the teachings of Christ if you follow any of them.
[44:52] But Nebuchadnezzar was a religious man. In fact, one of the commentators tells us that he composed a prayer on the occasion of his coronation.
[45:10] And the contents of that prayer, or at least part of them, are included in the collection of writings that are found in the British Library.
[45:25] That's not a part of the Bible, obviously. But they are archaeological artifacts that are identified as being the product of this very king.
[45:39] And the commentator has the words of this prayer. And translated by somebody who was skilled in Aramaic, which is what these words were written in at the time.
[45:58] And if you read these words, as they are recorded, and as they are held in the British Library, you could almost say that Nebuchadnezzar was offering a prayer to the God Jehovah.
[46:13] But in actual fact, the prayer was being offered to the God of the most prominent God, Marduk.
[46:29] The most prominent God of that region, of that nation. The number one God, you would say. But the gifts and the graces that he identified as needing for himself were said to come from this God of his.
[46:50] Now that does not mean that Nebuchadnezzar was a good man. Nor does it mean to say that he was anything other than a confused man. Because in his confusion, he draws upon the wisdom of others, draws upon the power of others, even the dark power of this world, in order to address his situation.
[47:17] And his situation was his discomfort arising out of dreams that he had that he couldn't even remember. All he could remember was that he needed these dreams to be interpreted.
[47:29] And he called upon these men to come and help him. You remember that in the New Testament, Paul encountered some who called upon gods and deities.
[47:45] Some of whom had no name or one in particular. And God was someone that they sought but did not know for themselves.
[47:59] And Nebuchadnezzar in many respects could be somebody who was seeking or searching out for the only God that there is and not finding him and coming far short of doing that.
[48:15] But the vulnerability of the king is seen in the way that here he is, the most powerful king, the most prominent citizen of the land.
[48:30] And he is left sleepless and distressed. And we are not told how long this went on. We are told that in the second year of his reign that this is how it was.
[48:45] But the dreams confused and the dreams disturbed him. And we are given an insight into the kind of person he was in his ruthlessness.
[48:59] You know, he didn't become powerful just overnight. And he didn't become powerful without exerting that power in a way where his enemies were removed from sight by dint of his own strong arrow.
[49:18] And this is the way he deals with these people. He says, you, you soothseers, you astrologers, you, you people of wisdom, give me an answer.
[49:32] And if you don't give me an answer, you're going to be destroyed. You're going to be torn asunder. And it is clearly something that marks him out for the kind of person that he is.
[49:53] Just imagine how disturbing it is. We all dream, I suppose. I don't know when you dreamed last. But do you remember the dream?
[50:06] I know that if we dream and the dream is a nightmare, it will certainly, it will wake us up and we'll remember some of it. But he wanted not just the dream to be remembered, but to be interpreted.
[50:22] And he could do neither. He couldn't remember the dream. He couldn't interpret it. And he wanted them to interpret a dream that he couldn't remember.
[50:33] And surprisingly, they don't think that's fair. It is a rare thing that the king requires. There is none other that can show it before the king, except the gods whose dwelling is not with flesh.
[50:51] And you can sympathize with them. He's faced them with an impossible task. This was somebody who was all-powerful, and yet he expected them to do something that they were powerless to do.
[51:10] And in that respect, I think it exposes his weakness. On one side, he is all-powerful, but his weakness makes them cry out for help where it cannot be found.
[51:28] And we remember from last week how Daniel came to be where he was.
[51:42] His wisdom is God-given. And he is left in this position where he has to, he's lumped in with the rest, he has to find an answer to this king's problem.
[52:02] And if he was like they were, there would be no answer possible. But he is not like they are.
[52:14] What he does is, he goes to the king, and he tells the king that he will supply him with the answer. He doesn't make an apology for not being able to it.
[52:25] He goes to the king, and he asks for time, so that the answer will be forthcoming. Where does he go for the answer? He goes to the God who supplies him with wisdom.
[52:41] That's the thing. Daniel gives God the glory, and Daniel gives the glory to God because he knows that whatever ability that he possesses, that ability is God-given.
[53:01] It's not because of his skills or any ability that is natural. It is because the God Jehovah is his God.
[53:13] Read verse 9. If you will not make known unto me the dream, there is but one decree for you, for you have prepared lying and corrupt words to speak before me till the time be changed.
[53:25] Therefore tell me the dream, and I shall know that ye can show me the interpretation thereof. In verse 19, Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision.
[53:38] Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Now, theologians want to debate this point, whether there is a difference between the dreams of Nebuchadnezzar and the night vision of Daniel.
[53:57] How did God speak to Daniel? Well, I think, I didn't say, but it is quite possible that the dreams of the king are from the same source.
[54:13] The dreams of Nebuchadnezzar were stimulated by God. I think the purpose that God intended for the dreams that Nebuchadnezzar has substantiates that as a possibility if not a fact.
[54:36] God is sovereign. God is the one who can speak to us through dreams and visions as he has spoken to his church through the endless ages.
[54:50] you go back to Genesis and you find God speaking to Jacob, God speaking to Abraham, God speaking to, most obviously, in the life of Joseph, the dreamer.
[55:05] God supplies that he himself then supplies the answer to.
[55:16] and the dreams that Daniel is now going to interpret can only be interpreted by the one who sourced them, the one from whom these dreams came.
[55:32] Although, of course, God could interpret them even were they sourced from another area. but Daniel turns to prayer. This is what's important.
[55:45] These men to whom the king turns are all looking to themselves to supply answers that they are incapable of supplying.
[55:59] Their resources are their own resources and they don't have the facility to supply the answers that the king solicits. That is their biggest complaint.
[56:13] They cannot open what is shared by God. They cannot open any truth that God has placed before them without the ability that God gives in order to do that.
[56:28] And that is not true about Daniel. Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision and Daniel blessed the God of heaven we are told.
[56:42] He blessed the God of heaven because he knows this was not something that he was capable of doing because he was wise, because he was discerning, because he was gifted in any way, shape or form, other than the gifts and the graces that God endowed him with, which marks him out as a believer of extraordinary import.
[57:09] But he acknowledges God as being the one who has given him that wisdom. He turns to prayer in the first instance and he praises God who answers that prayer instantly.
[57:26] At the throne of grace, God was seen by him and the answer was given to him by God. The commentator Stuart Olliot says, God is the God who is in control of history, not nature, not idols.
[57:52] He alone exercises his power in heaven and right here on earth. We cannot say we believe in the sovereignty of God unless we believe that truth to be the truth that speaks of God.
[58:13] And Daniel, we are told, blessed the name of God for all that God is and God was and God ever will be. That is the God he turned to.
[58:24] And when he comes to interpreting the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, he clearly is to be seen in that way.
[58:40] You know, we live in a world that is occupied by all manner of deities and all manner of belief systems that observe these deities, real or imagined.
[58:58] And where the sphere of influence is such that they are allowed to operate freely, then they exercise great power.
[59:19] The scripture doesn't allow us to ignore the fact that there are spiritual beings at work in this world, that there are evil spirits, that there are the dark arts, that there are evil powers that freely influence the lives of many in the world.
[59:39] and where they are allowed to function at will, then those who serve them will have a place of prominence.
[59:53] And Daniel is placed in such a position where he is virtually enveloped by such darkness and those who serve that darkness.
[60:10] And yet in the midst of that he stands out as one who can only turn to his God. And when he turns to his God, his God acknowledges him and answers him and supplies him with the answer to the questions concerning the dreams of the king, which we'll look at God willing next week.
[60:36] mistake. But don't make a mistake that remembering this is a narrative and it's telling a story, it is a true story.
[60:48] It's not a work of fiction. It's exactly the way things were. This was a place where Daniel was placed and he was placed there for the glory of God.
[60:59] and this is the kind of scenario that confronted a pagan king with pagan deities that he served and worshipped and depended on.
[61:16] And Daniel was alone in that kind of situation and yet he didn't, he wasn't silent, unwilling to test his faith by applying to that God that was his God.
[61:37] And I suppose in our society we believe still ourselves to be in a Christian society, but in name only because we are surrounded by many who serve such deities even though they don't give them names.
[61:59] The spirituality that is around us in this world is very much a spirituality that is opposed to the spirit of Christ and the spirit of the only living and true God.
[62:16] And if we are influenced by it, if we are affected by it, then the ability to do what Daniel did will not be ours.
[62:28] But he was faithful to his God and as he went to his God, God listened to him. But we'll see more of this, God willing, next large day.
[62:39] Let's pray. Lord, oh God, we pray your blessing upon your word to us and we remember that it is a word that speaks to us of great faith on the part of someone who was very much left in a place that had no place for the genuine faith of your people.
[63:07] We pray your blessing upon this word that reminds us of the God who is the one who provides all the graces necessary to live to your glory here in this world at any time.
[63:22] Forgive us sin in Jesus' name. Amen. Our closing psalm is psalm 111 and we're singing from verse 6 to the end. Psalm 111 from verse 6.
[63:37] Psalm 181 He sent redemption to his folk, his covenant for a.
[64:02] He did command, holy his name and reverend is always. Wisdom's beginning is God's fear. Good understanding they have all that his commands fulfill, his praise endures for a.
[64:20] Psalm 111 from verse 6, He did the power of his works unto his people show. He did the power of his works unto his people show.
[64:45] When he died his message, a form that let his flow.
[65:01] He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show.
[65:16] He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show.
[65:28] He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show.
[65:40] He did the power of his people show. He did the power of his people show.
[65:51] He did all my glory, his name, and reverence all the way.
[66:10] Where storms beginning, it's lost in good understanding, it's how all that is, no man for fair.
[66:36] May grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit rest and abide with you all, ever and always. Amen.