Mon.’s Devo - Daniel and the Lion’s Den

Read: Daniel 6:1-28; 2 Peter 3:1-18; Psalm 119:129-152; Proverbs 28:21-22 Darius divided his huge kingdom into 120 provinces and appointed a ruler over each. Daniel and two others were chosen to protect the king’s interests. Daniel proved himself more capable than all the other administrators so the king began making plans to place him over the entire empire. The other officers met together to scheme against Daniel and keep him from being promoted. They couldn’t find anything to criticize or condemn him with so they had to find something against his faith. Daniel prayed three times a day to God, so they decided to trick the king into making a law stating for the next thirty days, everyone in the kingdom had to only worship him. Anyone who was found worshiping another god would be thrown into the lion’s den. They appealed to the king’s arrogance and it worked. Daniel had to know this was happening and instead of appealing to the king for his rights, he appealed to God. That is where they found him, on his knees, praying about the whole situation. The king was notified and trapped in a corner by his own law. He finally had to stand by the law and have Daniel arrested to be thrown into the lion’s den. He told Daniel, “Your God whom you serve continually, he will deliver you.” The king was so distressed over what he had to do to Daniel that he couldn’t sleep or eat that night. Early the next morning, he ran to the den and yelled asking Daniel if his God was able to deliver him. Daniel told him that angels had shut the mouths of the lions because he was innocent. The king was overjoyed and had Daniel lifted from the den. Then the king gave orders to arrest the men who had accused Daniel and had them thrown into the lion’s den along with their wives and children. The angels released the mouths of the lions and they leaped on them and tore them apart before they even hit the floor of the den. Darius sent out a proclamation of praise to the Lord of Lords and told of how God rescued Daniel. Daniel prospered all during Darius’s reign and Cyrus’s, his predecessor. Peter warns us of the people who would mock God in the last days, saying that He was never coming back. These people choose to forget that God created the world with his Word. With his Word he destroyed the earth once with water and has promised to destroy it again with fire. To the Lord, a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years are like a day. God isn’t slow about what he has promised, he just doesn’t count time like we do. God is patient and wants everyone to have the opportunity to repent if they will. The “day of the Lord” is the day that Jesus will return. We will be with him as his warriors. When that happens it will be quick and the world will be surprised. He will come like a thief. The heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements will melt with the heat. The earth will be burned up. Since all the things we see are going to be dissolved one day, how should we live? We should live holy lives and be found living in peace with God and our fellow man. We have been told all these things in advance that we might grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ our Lord. To you be all the glory both now in our lives and forever. May we be faithful like Daniel and allow you to fight our battles and defend our innocence.