Daniel 10-11 - Resolved faith

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Good morning again. I do apologize for not introducing myself before and past today, one of the pastoral team here. It's my delight today to bring you God's word. We are doing our series in Daniel Resolute Faith. I'm wondering how are you going with that? Have you learned some things in the last several weeks that has challenged your faith, challenged your growth, maybe helped you to refocus about how you think about God, whether or not you'll be able to walk in His presence and even though things are crowding in around you, you stay close to Him. Now humanity, sometimes we drift apart from God but you know He's a loving God. He desires you draw back to Him and all it takes is a humble heart to come back and say Lord I need you. And as we've been going through the different chapters of Daniel for different things have come up but we keep coming back to that understanding that this is a man who was placed in a very very harsh and foreign land. The culture was different and yet he stayed faithful to God. And the story continues today. Chapter 10 is the start of the end of Daniel. In my readings and understanding I get to do the first part A of B and C that is following in 11 and 12. And so I suppose as we read God's word, it's always a challenge isn't it, to say is this about me Lord today? Oh gee, I really hope that such and such is listening to this because I know this is a word for them. Make it personal today. Let's pray. Heavenly Father we thank You Lord as we draw into Your presence at Your Word and we thank You for the songs we can sing to declare those who are in faith with You Lord have a victory. Father we know that there's a cost to following you. You said so yourself. Your son Jesus said take up your cross daily and follow me. That indicates to us that it's not a better rose, it's not all fluff and bubbles Lord but it is about a resolute faith or it's about a time to walk with You in the things that are going well and things that aren't going well but You're never distanced, You're never far. Lord help us and teach us from Daniel. Continue to Lord develop that in us. And Father I pray today as we speak examine Your Word that Lord the words will speak of Your words in Your name. Amen. So we understand that the and we've talked about this every week. We keep putting up every week but I think it's good to keep that thing happening with us that if we're going to be good disciples that we need to have a resolute faith and the definition is servants or disciples who trust in God and yield up their bodies to Him rather than serve and worship a God except their own, any God except their own. And there are so many gods that we do encounter in, we do encounter in our world things which sometimes we don't realise. They can sneak in and make it the focus of our attention and take away the sovereignty of God in our lives. Well we know that in the book of Daniel, they don't follow a logical sequence as we would like them to that are running chlorinals, they jump all over the place. We've looked at Nebuchadnezzar, Belchisar, Xerxes and Darius and now we're looking at Cirrus, King of Persia, Mede Persia. The Great King had combined two people groups together, the Medes and the Persians. And it says here that in the start of chapter 10 that this is Daniel's vision that he has in the third year of King Sirius's reign. King Sirius only actually could control Babylon for nine years. When he took over he had done heaps of things beforehand and then when he came over he took over Babylon, he had the biggest empire in the world. And it only lasted for nine years because he died in battle according to the historians. We read about Cirrus being in place in Ezra 1 and we're going to be studying Ezra now, integrated studies and I don't want to steal anyone's thunder but I just thought it might be good just to have a quick read of Ezra 1 just to see where he's coming from, to see where Cirrus is coming from. In the first year King Sirius of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord, spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cirrus, the King of Persia, to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also put it in writing. This is what Cyrus King of Persia says. Now this is a king of a foreign land. This is what he says. He says, the Lord, the God of heaven has given me all kingdoms and all earth. He's appointed me to build a temple for him in Jerusalem in Judah and his people among you may go up to Jerusalem in Judah and build the temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who is in Jerusalem and may their God be with them. Pretty astounding that in a foreign land, in the whole context that God moves in the hearts of the leaders and so we come to chapter 10, the third year so he's already sent back those who are in exile. He's given the opportunity under Zerubbabel. Do I say that right, Dylan? Zerubbabel? He sent them back but Daniel remained. You think if he was going to be resolute in his faith, think that this would be his lolly for being good, that I will go back now because that's my birthright. Seventy years ago they ripped us out of our country and now here he is. Let's read chapter 1. Sorry, verse 1 from chapter 10. In the third year of Cyrus, the king of Persia, a revelation was given to Daniel. It was called Belchazar, which is interesting. He kept his Babylonian name. It is a message was true and is concerned a great war. The understanding of the message came to him in a vision. At that time, I, Daniel, mourned for three weeks. I ate no choice food, no meat or wine, touched my lips and I used no lotions at all until after three weeks it was over. On the 24th day of the first month, as I was standing on the bank of the Great River at the Tigris, I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen with a belt of fine gold from Ufas around his waist. His body was like topads, his face shone like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs gleamed of the burnish bronze and his voice sounded like thunder of the multitudes. Dramatic reading there. I, Daniel, who was the one who saw the vision, those who were with me, did not see it, but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. So I was left alone. Gazing at this great vision, I had no strength left. My face turned deftly pale. I was helpless. Then I heard him speaking and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep, my face to the ground. A hand touched me and set me on my hands and knees. He said, Daniel, you are highly esteemed. Consider carefully the words I'm about to speak to you and stand up for I am now being sent to you. And when he said this, I stood up trembling. Then he continued, do not be afraid, Daniel, since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding for God, I'll just talk louder, your words were heard and I have come in response to them. But the Prince of Persia, kingdom, resisted me 21 days. Then Michael, one of the chief priests, came to help me because I was detained and there was the King of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future for the vision concerns of time yet to come. And while he was saying this to me, I bowed with my face towards the ground and I was speechless. Then one who looked like a man touched my lips and opened my mouth and began to speak and I said to the one standing before me, I'm overcome with anguish because of the vision, my Lord, and I feel very weak. How can I, your servant, talk with you, my Lord? My strength is gone and I can hardly breathe. Again, the one who looked like a man touched me and gave me strength. Don't be afraid. You are highly esteemed, he said. Peace, be strong now, be strong. Then he spoke to me. I was strengthened and I said, speak my Lord since you have given me strength. So he said, do you not know why I've come to see you? Soon I will return to fight against the Prince of Persia and when I go, the Prince of Greece will come. But first, I will tell you what is written in the book of truth. No one supports me against them except Michael, your Prince. And I, in the midst of the year of Darius the Mead, took my stand to support and protect him. Pretty incredible, isn't it? He's a man in these 80s, as we'll be able to discover as we look through the notes. And he was there. He remained while the remnant returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. And you've got to ask the question, well, why is that? And understanding that when he did something like this, he wanted to make sure he was going to be a presence. Even when things were going well, he wanted to be a presence in his workplace. He wanted to be a presence in his society. He wanted to be a presence in his community, such with his resolute faith. It also tells us that spiritual maturity isn't measured in time, but in obedience. Just because he did his 70 years of service doesn't mean he gets a tick and he can move on. It's in his obedience to stay. I'm going to stay here and minister to those who are left. I'm going to stay and be available for the future kings, however long they last. I'm going to stay and continue to be a man of God in this place, in the presence of others. Because God's present is needed. Did you realize that? That you are God's presence where you go. You're the person who steps into the darkness. You're the person who can take that hope of Christ into all circumstances and situations. And how we interact with those around us reflects upon our God. And when we take that beacon with us, we take that light in our hearts, which we sing about. And we are as God needs us to be present for folk who will search and seek. There's a gentleman out in the Locking Valley who's a builder, a Christian guy. And he conducts himself in such a way that the guys who have the foulest mouth and the weirdest understanding of pornography will contact him for advice. Guys who will swear at him on the work site will come to him quietly by the tucker box and say, hey, can you just help me out here? I've got this thing in my life. I'm not sure what to do. He doesn't cast them away. And so when you stop swearing, come and talk to me. He doesn't say, when you stop looking at that stuff on your screens, come and talk to me. He says, just come and talk to me. Actually, he doesn't even invite them. The witness I've heard, he hasn't told me this. Other people have told me this and have profoundly affected how I interact with people. It's that he lived his life in such a way that others will noticing him and then pointing them to him. And the people who pointed him won't believe us. When God puts you into the presence as needed, that is resolute faith. You hang on to that faith rule. You can say, Lord, use me where you want me. You won't be struggling in your workplace now saying, this place is absolute hell. Why are you here? Why am I here, Lord? Ask him, am I here because you need his presence? Your presence here, Lord. Sometimes it's not easy, but that's what resolute faith is. Daniel endured dreams and visions, interpreted for powerful kings that could take their life at an instant. We see that. All the satraps and the wise men and the magicians in the previous chapters were beheaded and killed by the sword because they didn't meet the king's expectation. But here he is. He's still there interpreting for kings. His physical barrier is not withstanding. I love the, I just put that sentence together. I thought, man, when you get old like me, you can't let the physical barrier stop your faithfulness. I didn't even get a chuckle then saying, Dougie, you're not old. Okay, sorry. It doesn't matter what age you are. God can still use you. You don't retire from the kingdom of heaven. We've got pastors and former senior pastors in our church and pastors in our church who are serving faithfully because of that. You might not know who they are and you might never work out what they did before, but God is still using them in a powerful way. You're never too old. It amazes me that Daniel in his 80s is still struggling and grasping with the reality of what God is. And then we read in the early part of that chapter, such was his faithfulness. It was a challenge that he was praying and fasting. He was in deep mourning. Now I looked into that and I thought, well, why is he in deep mourning? Did he miss everyone when they had the farewell party to go back to Jerusalem? And according to some sage advice from commentators, it was he was mourning for the sin of his people. What a challenge. It doesn't tell us what they are, but God had placed in his heart a heavy burden to pray for those who were struggling in sin. Does God ever do that to you? Not in judgment, just when you notice something. You notice somebody's not quite walking right with the Lord before you even speak to them. Pray. Lord, do you want me to speak to them? Oh, Lord, can I just pray for them now? Lord, just move in their life. Such was Daniel's resolute faith that he was drawn to do this for his fellow man. Then we come to the part about the vision. The vision is outstanding. It's outstanding. It's mind boggling. Verse five says, I looked up and there before me a man dressed in linen with a belt of fine gold from Mufas around his waist. His body was like topaz, his face shining, lightning his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of Bernie Stein and his voice like the sound of multitudes. Imagine encountering that in prayer. Standing on the bank of the Tigris, when I was in Grade 8, I learned ancient history and I did pay attention to some classes. And apparently there's a thing called the fertile crescent that antiquity has been studying for aeons, for ages, and it is around Babylon. So it's the Tigris Euphrates and this big crescent where the rivers run and in between them is this beautiful fertile land. I've got the ziggurats of Ur built there. All sorts of things happen. The Babylonians were quite good at their architecture. The hanging gardens of Babylon was based on the ancient wonders of the world. And so he's standing on the Tigris so lots of things could have distracted him, the beauty of his surroundings. And then he has a vision. He's been fasting for three weeks. He's been praying for his people and he has a vision. We talked about fasting a little while ago and the challenge always is, is that does God encourage you or challenge you to fast? Does God say, hey it's time to just spend time with me? What I love about this is that Daniel wasn't seeking an outcome. He wasn't seeking the next step. He was just living with God. His resolute faith had bought him and taught him over those years that it's time to sit down. It's time to pray. It's time to fast. It's time to abstain from certain foods. And then God spoke to him. God came to him. And the angels said that I've been held back. But the description here is the same description in Revelation. It's the same in Ezekiel 45. It's a person's way of trying to describe the awesomeness of God. According to Theologians, that awesomeness is called, and I've got to get it right here, the awesomeness was called a theophy or a precarnate appearance of the eternal Son, which is a Christophene. So it was an attempt to actually say this is what God might look like. Years ago in youth group we used to do this exercise where we had a big sheet of butchers paper unrolled on the ground. We get someone to lay down it and we draw an outliner with a nickel. And we'd say, if you were designing God, what would you have? Write down the things around this shape. It's interesting how young people decide what God might look like. And I thought it would be good to do that in church one day with all the old people. How would you design God? How would you think God looked like? Would you come up with all these sorts of revelations like Daniel would have looked differently to you? One of the strengths that came out of this is that Daniel's authenticity comes out. And when his authenticity comes out, he is recognized for his faithfulness with resolute faith. In verse 7, when he came to be watching and seeing this vision, it says that he was the only one who saw it. The rest of them trembled with fear and hid themselves. They couldn't see it, perhaps they heard it. They couldn't see it, perhaps they felt the presence. They were in such fear of what was unknown they fled. But Daniel had been brought into the vision. He had been shown the vision. And it says in verse 8 that he had no strength. He was overwhelmed. He had no strength. He didn't say, I felt like a million dollars. He just said, I had no strength. It says he was trembling to his hands and his knees. In verse 15 he was speechless. In verse 16b he says, I was overcome with anguish. And in verse 17 he had physical maladies. All those things happened in the presence of God. We shouldn't be fearful of being in the presence of God. We respect who God is and he'll speak to us where we are and who we are. But I love the authenticity of this being recorded. It shows that this guy wasn't bulletproof. It shows that he was just a humble man. It shows that he was a man of God. And in the presence of God in this vision he felt that overwhelming sense of pressure. And God spoke to him with words and a affirmation. When I was looking at this I thought, in all these things that happen Daniel was available in his brokenness. See sometimes we think we have to get ourselves right with God to do things. I'm not yet right, not ready to give my life to Lord because I want to live my life. I've heard that several times. Once I get married and get my house set up and have a few kids then I'll settle down and find God. That's called a nominal faith. It's not living day by day. And in his brokenness and sometimes God needs to just take away the things that we falsely support us so we can see him more clearly his brokenness. I'm wondering if he was a man who lived with God day by day in this situation. There's a song that was written back in the 90s by a band called DC Talk. I'm not going to sing it, don't worry. But the lyrics are quite interesting. This is what it says. I live a simple life. I take a day at a time. I spend my mornings with God before I hit the grind. The subtleties of darkness never cease to amaze as a physical world creates a spiritual haze. Blinded by distractions lost in matterless affairs. Reaching through the darkness trusting you will meet me there. Day by day by day. Oh dear Lord these three things I pray. To see thee clearly. To love thee more dearly. To follow thee more nearly day by day. You cruise around the corner you watch your back. You sweep your feet down the alley streets. Sometimes you creep. I never see you coming. Monday, man, you're on my back like a knapsack strapped with heavy burden. No, you cannot condemn me. You won't buy. I won't buy your bags of goods. You've got nothing for me anyway. And that is why I pray. Day by day. Three things I pray. Interesting isn't it? We live day by day with God. We're reminded that things still happen to us. But God is ever faithful. Our understanding of looking at the chapter of Daniel is not just three pastors sitting in a room with a darkboard going like this. We're prayerfully thinking of Lord what do you want us to bring to the church that challenges both us and our church. Because we don't be a people who just sit around and go here this is a great church. I love all the people here. We want to be people that sees God's vision. And all our different understandings, our walks, no matter whether we're broken or whether we're feeling great or whether we've overcome things or we're coming on the good side of things. We want to make sure we do what God wants us to do. We want to be His disciples and do the things He's called us to do. Listen to the words of affirmation that come from disciplined actions because of resolute faith from Daniel. Verse 11, you are considered esteemed stand up. You'll be wonderful if God say that in your prayer. Since you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before God your words have been heard. Humility and prayer. How awesome is that? Do not be afraid you are highly esteemed than a revelation was given to him. Colossians 3-2 says set your minds on things above not on earthly things. One of the aspects of Daniel's resolute faith that in the midst of this vision which is about to be told and that's coming in 11 and 12. In the midst of this vision he encounters this this angel as vision. And a couple of things come out. It speaks about first of all we understand what Daniel has been through. What you have been through. It also speaks about the victory we have in God because when we are faithful, when resolute, words like that on the screen now appear in our lives, in our hearts and our spirits. Because God doesn't want us just to sit around. He wants us to be motivated. He wants us to think how can I be the person you've called to me be Lord. How is it possible that I can set my mind on your things? Lord cast away the things that are in my way. Lord take away the visions I don't need. That I may see you more clearly. That I might concentrate on what you want me to do. As disciples we're called to do that. If you are searching God today, you're searching for God today and the message for you could be this is something you need to look into deeper. This is something you need to step into with faithfulness. This is something that I won't let you rest until you pay attention to me. If only you ever been pursued by God in your life you know what that feels like. You know the things are definitely cut away. Things have happening and all of a sudden you're in the presence of God just like Daniel was and you're standing face to face with his vision and you're not quite sure how to grasp it. And he's saying I want to speak to you now. Listen to me. We learn in Daniel 2 that Resolute Faith recognizes the source. In verse 19, do not be afraid. You are highly esteemed. He said peace be strong now. Be strong. When he spoke to me I was strengthened and said Lord speak to me since you have given me strength. Can I let you know a little secret? Before I get up and preach I usually stand or sit and I say Lord I can't do this without you. As gifted as the Gabbas I am. As prone to tell wild stories. Lord I can't do this without you. I need you Lord to help me bring this message that you've put in my heart. And you'll see me if I'm standing down beside where Shariah is I have my head down. I'm praying like stinking Lord don't let me muck this up. Lord this is your message. I don't want to be the person who ruins it for you. Folks we all have those times when God gives you the strength to do it. You're going into a circumstance or situation and if you just stop for a second and say Lord I know you can strengthen me. You've called me to do this. If God is speaking to your heart today about giving your life to him he's giving you the strength right now through his spirit to step into that space. He's giving you the background you need. He's giving you support you need to step out and say Lord I need you. Those you've been walking with Jesus for a long time do you still need him? Always debate whether that should be a rhetorical question or not. Ephesians 3 16 says these words I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his spirit in your inner being. The oldest gone the newest come. Paul wrote that letter to the Ephesian church to Timothy and he said Tim I just want to pray for your brother. I want to pray this prayer over you and my prayer for you is that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with the power through his spirit of you in a being. When Jesus lives in your heart he gives you the power. You are the person who has escaped from hell. You've been given new life. You walk in the victory of Jesus. Didn't we just sing that longer? Yeah good because I wrote the words down while we're singing. You've escaped from hell. Do you feel like you escaped from hell? Do you feel like you're living in hell now? The air conditioning not on it feels like probably healed in it. Okay so just finishing up. Daniel teaches us that have resolute faith is surrendering to God wholeheartedly. He committed his whole life to God from the time when he stood defiantly as a teenager before Nebuchadnezzar and said I'm not going to eat this food right the way through his ministry and his interpreting dreams and visions. He was committed to surrendering his life to God. He did it through prayerful intercession. He was praying on behalf of others continually praying that God will know that people will know who God is saying to the king so overburdened with grief King I don't want to share this with you this vision because it's yucky it's terrible but I've got to say it you've asked me to say it I've got to tell you what it is. He kept praying his intercession. He stood when others fled and others were going to flee he stood it says so in this in chapter 10 there he the vision was coming and was all happening but he was standing his ground and he stood and accepted what God was teaching him. He confronted the challenges he wants us to confront our challenges as well to overcome them the living day by day in his presence that's a great great message from Daniel and lastly he was transformed by his presence by God's presence. Our full values in the church are informed through his word transformed by the spirit in reach through fellowship and outreach to the taking the good news of Jesus Christ. I really think that Daniel he must have read our cheat sheet and decide these are my values too it might be in the other way around. Can I encourage you this week they should sing this last song worship team you can come wandering up if you want can I challenge you this week to just surrender your lives to God like Daniel did be available for him be prepared to learn something fresh in you be prepared that you may get a leading from him a touch from him a guidance from him. Can I ask the other thing too those who were serving morning tea can I ask you used to hang around oh they're already left because I want you to have the full time of experience as well if you're on the coffee cart let the coffee sit it's okay because it's about spending quality time with God we know you love to serve and we know we have a process but folks this is time to spend with God in his presence being transformed by him Lord we thank you Lord that as we goes through the day by day that you are desiring to walk with us how do we thank you for Daniel and his his heart Lord to Lord serve you faithfully be resolute in his faithfulness father as he contributed to those around him father as we lean into the next two chapters father as a church help us with clarity Lord help us with revelation but father in the meantime this week ahead father go before us Lord show us where we need to be resolute Lord challenge us father to reach out and touch you Lord to be in your presence Lord to share your word to stand at the ground that we need to stand because we love you we know all this can only happen because it comes through peace we have in Jesus Christ and father for those who are searching and continue to search those at home and maybe watching for the first time those who joined us online father those who are here today Lord help them father we pray to reach out and trust in you you are good and gracious God in your name amen