Discovering Destiny (Part 85): God Will Bring You Through The Lions' Den
Today, we continue our focus on THE YEAR OF DISCOVERY, as we learn to maintain our posture of faith after God has revealed His plans for our future. On this Veterans Day, Isabella and I (46 combined years in the United States Army) thank every veteran who has worn the uniform. Yesterday, Daniel went home and prayed with his windows open. Today, he is thrown into the lions' den, and God shuts the lions' mouths. Daniel shows us that God will do for you what no one else can do for you.
Key scriptures for this year:
2 Peter 3:18 GNT
"But continue to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Savior, Jesus Christ. To Him be glory now and forever."
Luke 10:20 Mirror
"It's time for you to rediscover who you are from Heaven's perspective."
1 John 3:10 Mirror
"There is a very visible and vast difference between living one's life from your God identity or from a fallen man's mindset."
Proverbs 25:2 NKJV
"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter."
Jeremiah 29:13 NIV
"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
Scripture(s) we will study today:
Daniel 6:11-13 NLT
"Then the officials went together to Daniel's house and found him praying and asking for God's help. So they went straight to the king and reminded him about his law. 'Did you not sign a law that for the next thirty days any person who prays to anyone, divine or human, except to you, Your Majesty, will be thrown into the den of lions?' 'Yes,' the king replied, 'that decision stands; it is an official law of the Medes and Persians that cannot be revoked.' Then they told the king, 'That man Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, is ignoring you and your law. He still prays to his God three times a day.'"
Daniel 6:14-15 AMPC
"Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed [over what he had done] and set his mind on Daniel to deliver him; and he labored until the sun went down to rescue him. Then these same men came thronging [by agreement] to the king and said, Know, O king, that it is a law of the Medes and Persians that no decree or statute which the king establishes may be changed or repealed."
Daniel 6:16 AMPC
"Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king said to Daniel, May your God, whom you are serving continually, deliver you!"
Daniel 6:17-18 NLT
"A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den. The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the seals of his nobles, so that no one could rescue Daniel. Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night fasting. He refused his usual entertainment and couldn't sleep at all that night."
Daniel 6:19-20 NLT
"Very early the next morning, the king got up and hurried out to the lions' den. When he got there, he called out in anguish, 'Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you serve so faithfully, able to rescue you from the lions?'"
Daniel 6:21-22 NLT
"Daniel answered, 'Long live the king! My God sent his angel to shut the lions' mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.'"
Daniel 6:23 NLT
"The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted from the den. Not a scratch was found on him, for he had trusted in his God."
Supporting scriptures:
Psalm 146:3 ERV
"Don't depend on your leaders for help. Don't depend on people, because they cannot save you."
2 Corinthians 12:9 TPT
"But he answered me, 'My grace is always more than enough for you, and my power finds its full expression through your weakness.' So I will celebrate my weaknesses, for when I'm weak I sense more deeply the mighty power of Christ living in me."
Zechariah 4:6 NLT
"Then he said to me, 'This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven's Armies.'"
Galatians 6:7 TPT
"God will never be mocked! For what you plant will always be the very thing you harvest."
1 Peter 4:15-16 NLT
"If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people's affairs. But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!"
Romans 8:31 TPT
"So, what does all this mean? If God has determined to stand with us, tell me, who then could ever stand against us?"
Psalm 34:7 AMPC
"The Angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him [who revere and worship Him with awe] and each of them He delivers."
Hebrews 11:33 AMPC
"Who by [the help of] faith subdued kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promised blessings, closed the mouths of lions."
Psalm 56:3-4 NLT
"But when I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. I praise God for what he has promised. I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?"
Setting the Stage:
A couple of days ago, we saw King Darius sign the law, after being coaxed by Daniel’s peers and subordinates. But Daniel was not moved. He went home, opened his windows toward Jerusalem, and prayed just like he always had. His enemies were counting on that. The Bible says they "went together to Daniel's house and found him praying and asking for God's help." This time they did not have to dig through his records. Daniel's faithfulness was the only evidence they needed.
So they went straight back to the palace, and they were smart about it. They did not lead with Daniel's name. They asked the king to confirm his own law first, and Darius said, "Yes, that decision stands." Then they sprang the trap: "That man Daniel, one of the captives from Judah, is ignoring you and your law. He still prays to his God three times a day." Did you catch that? After more than 60 years of serving three kings, they reduced him to "one of the captives."
That is when Darius realized he had been tricked. The Bible says the king "was much distressed [over what he had done]" and "he labored until the sun went down to rescue him." He spent the whole day looking for a loophole, and there was none. At sunset the same men came back and reminded him that no law the king signs can be changed. So the most powerful man in the empire gave the order. They threw Daniel into the den, and the king called after him, "May your God, Whom you are serving continually, deliver you!" A stone went over the mouth of the den, and Darius sealed it with his own ring. Then he went home, skipped his supper, sent the entertainers away, and could not sleep at all that night.
At first light, the king ran to the den. He called out "in anguish," "Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you serve so faithfully, able to rescue you from the lions?" And out of the darkness came a calm voice: "Long live the king! My God sent his angel to shut the lions' mouths so that they would not hurt me." They pulled Daniel out of the pit, and "not a scratch was found on him, for he had trusted in his God."
Here is what I want you to see today: the king could not save Daniel, but God could, and God did.
So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.
1. When People Can't Save You, God Still Can.
Darius had the throne, the army, and the treasury, and he still could not get Daniel out. He worked on it until the sun went down. He loved Daniel, he respected Daniel, and he wanted to help Daniel, but his own signature had tied his hands. All the king could do was stand at the mouth of the den and say, "May your God, Whom you are serving continually, deliver you!" Think about that. Even a pagan king knew that if Daniel was coming out of that den, God was going to have to do it.
How this applies to you:
-- Darius loved Daniel, but love alone cannot shut the mouth of a lion.
-- The psalmist said, "Don't depend on people, because they cannot save you." Good people still have limits. God has none.
-- Your boss, your bank, your doctor, and your government all have limits, but your God does not.
-- There have been countless times when doctors wanted to save people, but they realized they just practice medicine. However, God can save and heal anyone anywhere, at any time.
-- The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal "so that no one could rescue Daniel." Man sealed the den, but man does not get the last word.
-- Darius spent the night fasting in a palace. Daniel spent the night in a pit full of lions. But Daniel was with God, so he was just fine.
-- Stop waiting on the right person to fix it, and start trusting the God who already has.
2. Where Your Strength Ends, God's Grace Takes Over.
Daniel did not fight the lions. He did not tame them, outrun them, or negotiate with them. He was a man in his 80s at the bottom of a pit full of hungry lions, and all he did was trust God. I have told you before that Daniel was graced to do many things, but he was not graced to fight lions. Since God had not graced him for it, God did not expect him to do it. God did it for him. Daniel said it plainly: "My God sent his angel to shut the lions' mouths."
How this applies to you:
-- God will never require you to do what He did not equip (or grace) you to do.
-- I am sure you know the story of David and how David killed a lion and a bear with his bare hands. David had the grace to do it. Daniel did not have that grace. So, God did what Daniel could not do.
-- Daniel was graced to run an empire, interpret dreams, and advise kings, but he was not graced to wrestle lions. So God handled the lions Himself.
-- Jesus told Paul, "My grace is always more than enough for you, and my power finds its full expression through your weakness." Your weakness is not a problem to God. It is a platform for His power.
-- God said, "It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit."
-- I call this sweatless victory: you rest, and God works.
-- Some things God graces you to do, and some things God reserves for Himself. Learn the difference, and stop wrestling the lions God already plans to handle.
-- Daniel provided the faith, and God provided the power. Do all God has graced you to do, and believe God to do what you can't.
3. When You Stand For God, God Stands For You.
Listen to how Daniel explained it to the king: "I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty." Daniel was not in that den because he cheated, stole, or lied. He was in that den because he prayed. And that makes all the difference. There is a difference between suffering for Christ and reaping what you have sown. Daniel took a stand for God, so God took a stand for Daniel, and He sent an angel to prove it.
How this applies to you:
-- If you are under attack for doing the right thing, God Himself will take your case.
-- Paul said, "What you plant will always be the very thing you harvest." If you planted the trouble, own it and let God's grace restore you. But if you are facing opposition for doing the right thing, you are not the cause, and God will provide your protection.
-- Peter said, "It is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name!"
-- Daniel never argued his case in front of the king. He let God's answer be his defense.
-- Paul asked, "If God has determined to stand with us, tell me, who then could ever stand against us?"
-- David said, "The Angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him." The lions were real, the law was real, and the stone was real. But so was the angel!
-- Your integrity may not keep you out of the den, but it guarantees you God's company inside it.
-- Daniel did nothing wrong and still faced the den. Being destined does not make you exempt from opposition. It makes you protected in the middle of it.
-- David said, "The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all." Destiny does not mean no troubles. It means the troubles do not win.
-- God never said you would not go through challenges. But He did promise to be with you every step of the way!
4. Your Trust In God Is Your Protection.
At first light, the king ran to the den and called out with a trembling voice, and Daniel answered him from the dark. Then the Bible tells us exactly why Daniel came out the way he did: "Not a scratch was found on him, for he had trusted in his God." Look at the reason. It was not his age, his title, or his résumé. It was his trust. Daniel did not go into that den expecting to die. He went in believing the God he had served his whole life, and what you believe has a lot to do with what you will experience.
How this applies to you:
-- The Bible gives one reason Daniel came out whole: "for he had trusted in his God."
-- Hebrews says that by faith they "closed the mouths of lions." Faith does not deny that the lions are there. Faith trusts the God who is bigger than the lions.
-- Daniel came out of that den with no wounds, no bite marks, and no scars.
-- David said, "I trust in God, so why should I be afraid? What can mere mortals do to me?"
-- Paul faced his own lions and wrote, "So I was delivered out of the jaws of the lion." The same God who stood with Daniel stands with you today.
-- Daniel was past 80 and decades into his destiny when he faced his biggest test. You never outgrow challenges. You just grow in your trust in the God who brings you through them.
-- Joseph went from the pit to prison to the palace. Daniel went from the den to promotion: "So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian." The den did not cancel Daniel's destiny. It confirmed it.
-- Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." Your destiny is bigger than your den.
-- What you are facing right now is not the end of your story. God is not through with you yet, so the lions cannot finish you.
-- Remember this: the greater the test, the greater the testimony!
That's enough for today.
Declaration of Faith:
When people can't help me, I know that You still can!
No king, no law, and no lion has the last word over my life!
Where my strength ends, Your grace takes over!
I will not fight the battles You already plan to win for me!
When I stand for You, I know that You stand for me!
Your angel encamps around me, and You deliver me!
I trust in my God, and I will come out without a scratch!
The greater my test, the greater my testimony!
In THE YEAR OF DISCOVERY, GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus' name. Amen!
This is Today's Word. Apply it and prosper!
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