[0:00] and welcome to our service this evening as we come together to worship God we pray that his word to us would be blessed we're going to begin by singing to God's praise from Psalm 113 Psalm 113 and we're singing the whole psalm praise God ye servants of the Lord oh praise the Lord's name praise yea blessed be the name of God from this time forth always from rising sun to where it sets God's name is to be praised above all nations God is high above heavens his glory raised unto the Lord our God that dwells on high who can compare himself that humbleth things to see in heaven and earth that are he from the dust doth raise the poor that very low doth lie and from the downhill lifts the man oppressed with poverty that he may highly him advance and with the princes set with those that of his people are the chief even princes great the barren woman housed to keep he maketh unto be of sons a mother full of joy praise to the Lord give ye psalm 115 the whole psalm to God's praise praise God ye servants of the Lord oh praise the Lord's name praise praise God ye servants of the Lord oh praise the Lord's name praise yea blessed be the name of God from this time forth and praise God ye canopy day from this type forth and cause Yahweh from verm ότι from songs except God ye servants of the Lord only Godben хочешь to beressed from GodチャIP has shown to be praised lab from Christ his servants who God blessed be the name of God when church has seen Him from E Dang И бог hath and ERIC from желce Him silence goes Ga'er surpass, hope those spirits who have been wrong,?...
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[2:43] God is high, from heaven's glory reigns. And to the Lord, O God, the world, for I who can compare, And share the plumber things to see, and never bear the love.
[3:26] He brought the just and risen good, the very Lord of mine.
[3:43] And from the land of wisdom and of mercifulity, That he may die in my mouth, and will the princes stay?
[4:16] With all such joyous kings are not, the king will bless the king.
[4:33] The father of all her heart to fear, be naked and to be.
[4:50] O chance, our mother, full of joy, praise to the Lord, give thee.
[5:10] Let's join together in prayer for the stream. Let's join together in prayer. With a song of praise upon our lips, Help us to appreciate what it is to praise the name of our God.
[5:29] To understand that you are worthy of receiving these petitions that contain praise.
[5:40] And that it is not just for us so to do, but to engage in it with the understanding that it is something that is carried out the world over.
[5:54] That you are the God of heaven and earth, the one who sits upon the throne of the universe, And who is entitled to receive the praises of the children of men.
[6:09] You are the creator God. You are the one who brought this world into being, And who fixed the bounds thereof by the word of your power.
[6:23] You have settled mankind upon the earth, creating man in your own image, with dominion over the creatures.
[6:37] And yet, the very crown of creation, which man could have been, departed from their created condition.
[6:54] And so to displace the God of heaven from the very throne that was uniquely yours. Encouraged by one who is the enemy of souls.
[7:09] And we believe your word as it describes to us the outcome of the temptations that came to be experienced by our first parents.
[7:23] How they succumbed to these temptations. And how, as a consequence, this world lies today in sin.
[7:34] We plead for mercy. What else can we plead for as sinners in need of salvation? Because as sinners every sin deserves the wrath and curse of God.
[7:49] As sinners your word teaches us, we cannot but offend you as God. We sin daily in thought, in word and in deed.
[8:00] These sins are many. These sins are varied. They are varied. But all of them deserve your displeasure. And you remind us that, ultimately, we will answer for each one of them.
[8:13] Accept the sin that are covered by the blood of sacrifice. Even that sacrifice for sin offered by your own eternal Son, Jesus Christ.
[8:25] We came into this world to make satisfaction for sin by way of the cross. We give thanks for the gospel that speaks to us of him.
[8:40] That directs us to him. And that requires us to surrender all our own endeavors and put our trust in the finished work of Christ.
[8:51] Our tongue engaged in that melodious praise of your people. Recognizing that, in the eyes of our understanding, we pray that your gospel would encourage us to do that. And the eyes of our understanding be opened. The ears unstuck so that we hear the invitations to come and put our trust in Christ.
[9:10] Our tongue engaged in that melodious praise of your people. Recognizing that we are beneficiaries of your grace.
[9:24] We pray your blessing upon your church. We give thanks that you have such an entity here in this world. That the head of that church is Christ.
[9:36] That the body that is his is made up of those members who have been secured in it by way of the cross.
[9:47] We give thanks for everyone who has found in Christ all that their soul craves. And who continue to discover greater truths concerning his redemptive work.
[10:02] We pray that you would magnify your name amongst us even by adding to that number. That you would draw them in one by one, bit by bit.
[10:15] So that your church as it inevitably will be made whole, complete, entire, lacking nothing. And that perfect church.
[10:28] Perfect because none will be lacking. Perfect because they will lack nothing. They will be found in Christ lacking.
[10:40] And worshipping with nothing lacking in their worship. Nothing that would do anything other than enhance the name of the one who is the savior of their soul.
[11:01] We give thanks for the prospect that lies in store for all your people. We pray Lord that you would remember them this evening. Remember our own congregation here and all who belong to it.
[11:14] Those who are indisposed at the present time because of illness and the frailties of the flesh. We pray that you would remember any who are bound up in their homes or confined in places that are set apart for the care of those who are unwell.
[11:37] We pray for nurses and doctors and carers of all descriptions. And trust it with their care. Remember the grieving and the sorrowful. And those whose hearts are heavy because of recent visitations in Providence that have taken from them loved ones.
[11:56] Even not so recent when we are often times reminded of loved ones who were so much part of our lives. And who have been taken from this in our time.
[12:10] And when such reminders come of the love that we once shared. We need your help and your grace to encourage us to look to the source of that love.
[12:24] Even Christ the Redeemer. We pray for this world in which your church must reside. And we pray that you would bless all who find themselves under threat because of their acknowledgement of Christ.
[12:42] That makes them the target of those who are the enemies of the church. We pray Lord for your people. For all descriptions.
[12:53] Thankful. That what unites them is this relationship to Christ. One of faith. One where they trust in him. Whom to love is life eternal.
[13:04] We pray that you would bless the preaching of the gospel. Blessed in our towns, in our cities, in our villages, in our communities. Blessed so that your word will not fall to the ground void and be forgotten.
[13:22] It will yield what you purpose for it. And we pray that we would trust that. And who knows what will prosper this or that.
[13:33] May the testimony of your church be consistent. May the revelation of your name be one that draws men and women young and old to you. May the bread and diese and it will table that God will trust you and don't like it to you And they would abandon all foolishness.
[13:46] Please bear that we pray for our government. We give peace. We pray for the Parliament in Holyrood and in Westminster.
[13:56] We pray for our royal family, for the Queen and all who form part of our family circle. We pray for your sanctifying grace to be part of our experience.
[14:11] And that regardless of her royal personage, that she would be captivated by one who is the King of Kings. Who is Lord of all.
[14:24] Remember this world in which we live, where there are many trials and tragedies of various forms. Sometimes we see things that, and hear of things that perplex us and makes us wonder what kind of world we live in.
[14:43] And yet, when we consider the scene of time, we see that there is nothing new under the sun. Such desperate wickedness has always been in the world since the fall of man.
[14:58] We pray, Lord, that you would protect us even from such ravages of evil as they encroach upon our homes and families, upon our communities, upon our young and upon our old.
[15:15] Bless your word to us now as we wait upon you. May it be open to us and may we realize that you are speaking to us through it.
[15:28] Help us to understand what you are saying to us. Pardon sin in Jesus' name. Amen. Amen. We're going to read from the Old Testament Scriptures.
[15:41] And we're reading from the book of the prophet Jeremiah. And we're reading from chapter 10. From the beginning of the chapter down to verse 16.
[15:55] Jeremiah chapter 10. From the beginning. Hear ye the word which the Lord speaketh unto you, O house of Israel.
[16:08] Thus saith the Lord, learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven, for the heathen are dismayed at them.
[16:20] For the custom of the people are vain. For one cuteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman with the axe.
[16:32] They deck it with silver and with gold. They fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not.
[16:46] They must need to be born because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do evil. Neither also is it in them to do good.
[16:58] For as much as there is none like unto thee, O Lord, thou art great, and thy name is great in might. Who would not fear thee, O King of nations?
[17:09] For to thee does it appertain. For as much as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms there is none like unto thee.
[17:21] But they are altogether brutish and foolish. The stock is a doctrine of vanities. Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphahs.
[17:34] The work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder. Blue and purple is their clothing. They are all the work of cunning men.
[17:46] But the Lord is the true God. He is the living God, and an everlasting King. At his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.
[18:00] Thus shall ye say unto them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.
[18:13] He hath made the earth by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched out the heavens by his discretion. When he uttereth his voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens.
[18:28] And he causes the vapour to ascend from the ends of the earth. He maketh lightness with rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasure.
[18:42] Every man is brutish in his knowledge. Every founder is confounded by the graven image. For his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.
[18:54] They are vanity, and the work of error. In the time of their visitation they shall perish. The portion of Jacob is not like them, for he is the former of all things.
[19:09] And Israel is the rod of his inheritance, the Lord of hosts, who is his name. Amen. And may the Lord add his blessing, to his reading of his word, and to his name be the praise.
[19:27] We're going to sing some verses from Psalm 25. Psalm 25, the first version of the psalm. Psalm 25, the first version of the psalm.
[20:06] Kindnesses, for they have been of old forever. My sins and faults of youth do thou, O Lord, forget. After thy mercy, think on me, and for thy goodness great.
[20:20] God good and upright is. The way his sinners show, the meek in judgment he will guide, and make his path to know. The whole paths of the Lord are truth and mercy sure.
[20:34] To those that do his covenant keep, and testimonies pure. And so on. But to sing these verses, Psalm 25, the first version of the psalm from the shore.
[20:49] Show me thy ways, O Lord, thy path so teach thou me. Show me thy ways, O Lord, thy path so teach thou me.
[21:11] Until the Lord built in glory. And the witness cannot live in吧.
[21:29] For thou art more the thou, the dust to keep the nations same and I upon thee all the day expecting to attain thy take the mercy door I'm ready to remember I'm coming God is just morning I'll be now born forever my sense and false so good could
[22:41] I all forget how thy mercy may come have him come forth the you have made God good and righteous the fourth is The meek in judgment, he will guide the wicked child to know.
[23:36] The home that's of the Lord, hearted and mercy should.
[23:52] The meek in judgment, he will guide the wicked child to know.
[24:10] I'd like us now to turn to the book of Daniel, the book of Daniel and chapter 2.
[24:30] Daniel chapter 2, reading at verse 17.
[24:41] Then Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael and Athariah, 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.
[25:04] Then was the secret revealed unto Daniel in a night vision. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven. Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, for wisdom and might are his.
[25:21] And he changes the times and the seasons. He removed the kings and setteth up kings. He giveth wisdom unto the wise and knowledge to them that know understanding.
[25:37] He revealeth the deep and secret things. He knoweth what is in the darkness and the light dwelleth within. I thank thee and praise thee, O thou God of my father, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee.
[26:00] For thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter. And so on. Well, as you know, we are endeavouring to look at this book of Daniel.
[26:17] And we want to see if we can get a measure of understanding about this man and this relationship with God and what it may have to say to us, even in our own current situation.
[26:46] You will remember last week we looked at the opening section of chapter 2. And it was my intention to move on forward to think about the answer given to Daniel regarding the dream of Nebuchadnezzar.
[27:08] But looking again at this section that we read, I think when you reflect on what Daniel is saying at this point, it is not just important for the understanding and interpretation of the dream that he has been told of, along with the rest, but that it also brings very firmly to our attention the nature of his relationship with his God.
[27:52] And if we don't understand that, if we don't grasp that, then we won't understand some of the other things that Daniel does and that God does through Daniel.
[28:08] You will remember that request that came from the king, not a request, a command. And such a command was, as far as anyone could say, it's very unreasonable.
[28:23] He wants his own mystics to interpret a dream. Not only are they to interpret the dream, but that dream that they are to interpret he himself has no recollection of what that dream is.
[28:44] And that is, to any reasonable person, that is not something that any rational person would expect of another.
[28:56] But that is what the king brings before the soothsayers and mystics, as I said. And, of course, the wise men.
[29:07] And Daniel is included in that group of people. In the first chapter, we read, in all manners of wisdom and understanding that the king inquired of them.
[29:20] He found them ten times better than all the magicians and astrologers that were in Israel. And Daniel is included in that category of wise men.
[29:32] But just for this evening, before we look at the dream and its interpretation, it is important for us to recognize that Daniel himself sees the interpretation of the dream as not something that he himself can do.
[29:53] This prayer, if it is a prayer, and it's interesting how some people describe it. Some say it's a psalm of praise.
[30:05] Some say that it is a prayer of thanksgiving. Or, at the very least, it is a petition of thanksgiving.
[30:22] A prayer that is focused on thanksgiving. Which would, to us, seem quite strange because it comes even before Daniel discloses the meaning of the dream to the king.
[30:42] But we can understand, when we read these words closely or carefully, that thanksgiving is at the heart of what he has to say.
[30:54] And in verse 17 and 18, we read, Daniel went to his house and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Asariah, 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, whose situation was a perilous one, as was the situation of his friends.
[31:28] Some of the commentators suggest that the king had already begun to execute the wise men and the soothed seers of the land.
[31:53] It wasn't just that he had that he had decreed that if they did not supply an answer, that he had already set about bringing them to judgment and condemnation.
[32:07] Now, maybe that understanding is based on a tenuous interpretation of what Daniel himself says when he says to the king, why are you making such a haste?
[32:22] Why are you moving so quickly as it were? But, there is no question but that Daniel was in difficulty, as was his friends.
[32:35] and he knows where to take that difficulty. We said something of this last Sunday.
[32:49] But, what Daniel believes undergirds, I think, what goes on not just now, but the teaching that we find contained in the whole book.
[33:02] Daniel and his friends stand out because of the nature of the relationship that they have with God. They trust God implicitly.
[33:14] They understand who God is and they have a knowledge of him that encourages them to go to him in the first instance.
[33:27] A God they know to be God like no other God. And when he comes with these words he is acknowledging the attributes of God that mark a mouth as God.
[33:43] Attributes that are divine and no other God can possess. In that passage we read there from the book of the prophet Jeremiah, Jeremiah distinguishes, he more or less separates the deities of this world from the only living and true God.
[34:07] He clearly shows the imperfections that mark them out, the inabilities that stand out, the lack of ability they have, they have legs, they can't walk, they have ears, they can't hear.
[34:28] The psalmist says the same. But when Daniel acknowledges his God, he knows that the God that he goes to is the God who alone is able to answer his petitions.
[34:48] So when he comes, he doesn't come alone and I think that's important for us to see in the very first instance. He comes to his companions and he as it were, presents his case in the presence of his companions and he says, this is where we are and this is what needs to happen and he encourages them to carry the burden with him.
[35:20] and I think that is something that is important for us. It's important for us because whenever we are presented with a situation that we may confront in this world, as believers if we do in fact believe in God, that this is something that we can share with others and that we are right to share with others.
[35:54] And before he does anything at a personal level he is able to come trusting his friends that they will bear the burden with him.
[36:11] but even before we say anything more about that, I think it's important for us to remember that where Daniel begins, if this whole section of the chapter is devoted to the thanksgiving of Daniel, it acknowledges that he recognizes his own inability, his own puny resources, his own inability in whichever way he recognizes it, and recognizes instead the power of God and the ability that God has to deal with him.
[37:02] But even before we go into that in detail, what you recognize is something that we often forget. the duty that we have to come to God with thanksgiving, to give the thanks to God for what he does.
[37:23] He prays to God and he pleads for mercy, or mercies, amongst them the mercy of the salvation of his life, but the mercies that include the ability to interpret the dream and understand it even without knowing beforehand what that dream was.
[37:47] But he gives thanks to God. Now, it is so easy for us and for him to overlook that fact, because if you just put yourself into a situation, it is a pressure situation that he is in.
[38:05] If we understand what's happening, you know, when you read, when he speaks to the messenger of the king and tells him that he's ready to interpret that, you will find Ariokh brought in Daniel before the king in haste.
[38:32] that's in verse 24 or 25. The servant of the king sees the urgency of doing that because he is under sentence of death.
[38:48] The king is about ready, if not, as we suggested, possibly even already, executing some of those servants who have not done as they could.
[39:03] But even with that sense of urgency, Daniel engages in this psalm of thanksgiving, prayer of thanksgiving, whatever it is.
[39:14] He doesn't allow the urgency that the situation presents him with to forget the duty that he has to thank God.
[39:26] God. Now, if we think for a moment of the many times any one of us could have had an urgent prayer to God, we have some difficulty, we have some requests that we come to God with, and to our way of thinking God must hear us and answer us immediately.
[39:50] immediately, and we may be right, but when God answers that prayer immediately, or even having made a delay, how ready are we to come to God with thanks?
[40:09] How often do we rightly present our case before God? Whatever it is we're doing, but whether it is something trivial in the scheme of things, or something, I was thinking particularly safe when I go away to the mainland, and I'm driving on the mainland, like this time, four years, more or less since I travelled to Glasgow by car.
[40:39] Now, I don't know how comfortable you are driving on the mainland, but there's a certain part of that journey, not just driving on the A9, but coming into Glasgow at the end of the journey, the pace of traffic and everything that's happening around you, it makes me very nervous.
[40:57] So, before we travel, we commit the journey to God in prayer, and I'm sure you all do that in some way. Whatever you're doing, you might say to God, well, help me, help me get through this, help me do this.
[41:13] And the prayer is offered, it's just, it goes heaven, heaven, or before you know it. But how quickly is the thanksgiving? How rapidly do you say to God, well, you've answered my prayer, you've done what I asked, or is it something which I overlook?
[41:35] Now, maybe that's a trivial example, but I think it's a very key thing as far as Daniel is concerned. said, not only do we find him coming to God with his need, and his need is great, but at once, as soon as he recognizes, as soon as God opens out his understanding as to what is requested, he prays with thanksgiving.
[42:04] as I said to one of our gentlemen this morning, he when we were speaking about the topic this morning, he mentioned the example of Jesus and the ten lepers, and only one of these lepers came to Christ with thanks.
[42:27] thanks. And that example is an example from the scripture, but it's not in the scripture just for to pass the time, it's an example of how we are by nature.
[42:42] We do not give God the glory of our thanksgiving as often as we should, or as readily as we should. We can notice, as I said, that God is not only described as possessing the attributes of wisdom and power and knowledge and omniscience.
[43:06] He is at source. It's right for us to recognize that God is all of these things. He is divine, and as divine he is all knowing, he is all seeing, he is ever present.
[43:20] We mentioned this on Thursday evening. All the attributes that are divine, are found in him. But Daniel goes further than that.
[43:31] Not only does he acknowledge it, but he identifies these attributes as attributes that he is willing to allow his people to draw upon.
[43:46] He possesses these things, things, and he endows his people with these faculties of power, if you like, and wisdom and knowledge.
[44:02] But he is at source. That's the thing that Daniel wants us to understand. That when God is God, he is all of these things, and he can be all of these things separate from us, without us accessing any of these things.
[44:23] He can be remoded from us. His knowledge can be complete and entire, without that having any bearing upon our existence. His power is power that belongs to him, and yet that power is something that he allows his people to access at his appointment to draw upon.
[44:48] Where is the gospel? If it is not a gospel that, by reason of his power, he is willing to bless. If God would choose not to bless his world to us, if he remained remote and apart and distinct from his creatures and unwilling to interact in any way meaningful in our lives, what would be the purpose of the gospel, but the gospel is blessed because by the power of his spirit, his word is brought home with might and power on the lives of believers and unbelievers alike.
[45:24] He can convict the sinner of their sin, and he can remind us of the need that there is for us to close in with Christ.
[45:35] Without him doing that, we would continue as we are. Daniel never falls prey, to the desire to keep to himself the glory that is God's.
[45:50] He doesn't rush from his knees even into the presence of the king in order to elevate himself because of his power of reason, because of his knowledge, because of his abilities.
[46:03] God is the one he identifies as the source of that. In the book of Psalms, the psalmist says this, Do ye ascribe unto the Lord of people every tribe, glory do ye unto the Lord and mighty power ascribe, give ye the glory to the Lord that to his name is due, come ye into his courts and bring an offering with you.
[46:34] By nature we're selfish, by nature anything we do, boy we can play no feathers and say this is me, this is how good I am, this is how brainy I am, this is how discerning I am, even in spiritual things.
[46:55] But the word of God reminds us that to God belongs the glory, Paul says, just as another example in 1 Corinthians, For who maketh thee to differ from another?
[47:12] And what hast thou that thou didst not receive? Now if thou didst not receive it, why dost thou glory as if thou hadst not received it?
[47:24] Paul is there recognising the weakness that marks us out in our fallenness, where instead of recognising the gifts that we receive, are indeed received by us from the God who is the giver of every good and perfect gift.
[47:46] Such power as is described in verse 21 can only be divine. And to know something that is hidden is one thing.
[47:59] But to be able to explain it in a way like Daniel is expected to do can only be by reason of God's intervention and God's revelation.
[48:20] creation. And you see again, Daniel, when he thinks about God, when he talks about God, when he thank, praises God for what he is, you know, he elevates him beyond our natural ability to recognize what we would expect God to be doing, humanly speaking.
[48:46] you know, he tells us that he is able not just to predict the changes that are in the times or the seasons, but he is able to carry out such a change.
[49:01] Did you notice that? In verse 21, he changes the times and the seasons. He removes kings and setteth up kings.
[49:13] This is what he does. This is what he alone is able to do. Earthly kings can't do that. I can't do that. To raise kings and to bring them to nothing.
[49:29] And I was looking at this, I was reminded of how Samuel was embarrassed about Saul's rebellion and back sliding.
[49:41] And God was pained by it. God was pained by it himself.
[49:52] It repented me that I have set up Saul to be king, for he is turned back from following me and hath not performed my commandments.
[50:05] And that confuses some people and they say, did God not know what kind of passion Saul was? Did God in some way come shocked in elevating this man to the throne and finding out somewhere along the line that Saul was not capable of ruling well?
[50:25] No, that's not what it says about God. It says something about man. Man wanted Saul on the throne. Saul wanted Saul on the throne.
[50:36] And Saul's inability to rule well, to follow God at his command is down to Saul and not to God's inability to know who he was. God does not change the way we do.
[50:53] The way we mean change. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. I was reading just coincidentally this morning daily readings.
[51:09] Alistair Begg, he was saying, from our perspective it may look as if God has changed his mind. But God always remains true to his word.
[51:22] Every word that he's spoken in a world that is always changing and where even the best of us cannot always keep our word. He is the ground for our confidence and our joy.
[51:39] Because he doesn't change. Not in the way we mean change. But it goes beyond even the ordinary.
[51:50] In the thanksgiving that Daniel offers here, what is clear is that God possesses the knowledge of what Daniel describes as the secret.
[52:03] What is in the darkness? What is mysterious? What is deep? And God, that is the realm in which God operates.
[52:19] And he is able to operate it because he is light. And is that not the case? Is that not what we see when God does something?
[52:30] Something that we don't understand. We say, well, why? We talked about it in the morning. Why? Why does God allow these things to happen? Why does God not prevent these things from happening?
[52:42] Puritan Brooks says this, the sovereignty of God is that golden scepter in his hand by which you will make all bow, either by his word or by his works, by his measures or by his judgments.
[53:04] God is sovereign. And when we look at his sovereign activity, we are in awe of it, mostly because we do not understand at times what he is doing.
[53:23] So you will read the writings of Paul David Tripp. And he describes his own personal experience when he was away at a conference, I think, preaching somewhere.
[53:42] he is based in America. And he got word from his wife and he knew from her tone that there was something seriously wrong.
[53:53] I don't know if she explained to him right away, but he recognized that there was something serious. injuries. And what had happened was his daughter was walking home from her work and as she walked, a drunk driver driving his car had mounted the pavement with his car and she had been jammed between the car and the wall.
[54:21] and she suffered serious injuries, I think. He mentioned something like 11 broken bones in her body and internal bleeding.
[54:33] She was very seriously ill and on a life support machine, I think. so he went home and he went to the hospital and he just came in and he saw his daughter on the hospital bed and he says, in his own words, I lost it, I lost it.
[54:54] Because he saw the fragility of human life there, he saw his daughter at death's door and he just didn't know what to do or what to say and all he said to his daughter was in a coma, was that God was with her.
[55:13] You would expect a Christian to say that. But he wasn't, he wasn't at that moment in time terribly convinced of what he said.
[55:25] But he said four years had to pass. Or four years passed when she went through incredible pain and them along with her.
[55:38] And one thing that he was convinced of and this is what he said, I held on to the thought that our lives are not out of control.
[55:49] There is no mystery with God. He is never caught off guard. God is with you in your moments of darkness because he will never leave you. Your darkness is not dark to him.
[56:03] Your mysteries are not mysterious to him. Your surprises do not surprise him. He is in control. And in a sense, this is the truth that Daniel had a hold of.
[56:23] Remember, he had been asked to interpret a dream that was not his own and that had not been explained to him.
[56:37] Nobody knew what the dream was. Could you have been placed in a more difficult situation and yet God is not a God who is anything other than the God who is light in the dark, a God who is equally at home in the glaring publicity of light as he is in the secret place.
[57:05] And this was what Daniel was acknowledging. We find in the book again and again Daniel, not projecting himself, but projecting the God who is his God.
[57:22] His humility shines through. His acknowledgement even the acknowledgement that he has of his friends. We should have made more of this.
[57:34] The place that his friends, his companions had in prayer. We shouldn't, we shouldn't, I suppose it's all down to what kind of people we are, but I think it's integral to the Christian faith that we should be willing to share our burdens with others that we trust.
[58:01] And to do so because we trust that God is one who hears and answers prayer. But if that trust is not there, then the concept of prayer will not be there.
[58:18] why is it that the Apostle James tells us about the effective nature of the prayers of the just and righteous man?
[58:29] Because it is. But he also reminds us that the prayer of one is not the prayer of one, it is the prayer of many, sharing that burden of prayer.
[58:45] And Daniel in that respect, he recognises the fact that God has given him insights, but he includes his companions in that.
[59:00] I thank thee and praise thee, O thou God of my father, who hast given me wisdom and might, and hast made known unto me now what we desired of thee.
[59:13] For thou hast now made known unto us the king's matter. It's not a slip of the tongue. It's not a minor issue.
[59:25] He includes the companions that prayed with him and for him as those who God answered in their prayer for Daniel and for the knowledge that was needed.
[59:42] he was and before we can even begin to understand the actual dream itself, which is what we're going to look at next week, God willing, we need to understand the sense that Daniel had of God and his relationship not just with him but with his people, not just willing to hear the prayers of one person but the prayers of many, even when these prayers might come from different sources, they still were prayers that magnified the name of God.
[60:26] Well, may God help us to understand for Daniel this life and why he is the way he is. Let us pray. Lord, we give thanks that there is such a passion as Daniel in the scripture, that he is such a one that not only knows the wisdom of coming to God with prayer but to acknowledge that the God who heard his prayer is the God who answered it and who comes with thanksgiving accordingly.
[60:58] May your life be one of thanksgiving for the many things that we enjoy from your hand, things that we daily supplicate for, whether it is the food that we eat, the clothes that we put on our back, the creature comforts that we take for granted and that many in this world are without.
[61:20] Help us to acknowledge that you are our God and that you are a God worthy of receiving such things. Bless us together, pardon, sin in Jesus' name. Amen.
[61:32] The closing psalm is psalm 139 and we're going to sing from verse 11 to 14 four stanzas. Psalm 139 at verse 11 If I do say that darkness shall me cover from thy sight, then surely shall the very night above me be as light.
[61:55] The darkness hideth not from thee, but night doth shine as day. to thee the darkness and the light are both alike all way. For thou possessed hast my reins, and thou hast covered me when I within my mother's womb, enclosed was by thee.
[62:12] Thee will I praise, for fearfully and strangely made I am. Thy works are marvellous, and right well my soul doth know the same.
[62:23] These verses, if I do say that darkness shall me cover from thy sight. If I do say that darkness shall be covered from thy sight, then journey shall that of any night shall be as die.
[63:03] Yet darkness hath not roll thee, but night shall shine and day.
[63:20] follow包ホ A flower of discovery When I went in my mother's womb And rose and washed by thee They were my grace on me A glory of the day
[64:24] They gave thy love Thy works are far as a sign My well, my soul, God, know the same Glory, grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit Rest and abide with you all, ever and always. Amen.