Friday, November 29, 2019

What happened to my nice life?

I know that the apostles and church fathers spent a lot of time searching the scriptures (what we Christians call the Old Testament) trying to figure out what in the world happened--this isn't the messiah we had hoped for. And to this day, we poke around looking for modern day or future meaning about those old stories of God's faithfulness when we ask, "What in the world happened" to my nice comfortable life that I'd planned out?

While searching for BIG answers, I came across a smaller one today in the story that has inspired a million Sunday School handouts and movies--Daniel in the Lion's Den. Believe it or not, I actually found a warning of what our country will be going through if we elect any of those Democrats running in 2020! Collectively they represent a possible take down of everything important to American Christians, especially the First Amendment.
Stay with me--just a little backstory--We're talking about King Darius the one who follows King Belshazzar, and Daniel, a Jewish survivor (had already been through the furnace story). Darius had a huge, powerful "deep state,"--satraps, etc. and Daniel was one of their supervisors, a pretty great job for a Jewish exile and was highly respected by the King. The deep state hated Daniel and wanted to get rid of him:
"Some men rushed into the upper chamber of Daniel's home and found him praying and pleading before his God. Then they went to remind the king about the prohibition: (think nuns who won't buy health insurance that covers abortion, or bakers and florists who won't celebrate a customer's same sex wedding) "Did you not decree, O king, that no one is to address a petition to god or man for 30 days, except to you, O king; otherwise he shall be cast into a den of lions?" The king answered them, "The decree is absolute, irrevocable under the Mede and Persian law." To this they replied, "Daniel, the Jewish exile, has paid no attention to you, O king, or to the decree you issued; 3 times a day he offers his prayer." The king was deeply grieved at this news and he made up his mind to save Daniel; he worked till sunset to rescue him. But these men insisted. They said, "Keep in mind, O king, that under the Mede and Persian law every royal prohibition or decree is irrevocable." So the king ordered Daniel to be brought and cast into the lions' den. "


So you probably know how that turns out--Daniel is saved by God and Darius the king ends up declaring that the God of Daniel is the real deal because he saved Daniel from the lions. And Darius writes a really lovely hymn/liturgy we can say today. (Daniel 6:27)
He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions.

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