Peace in the Angel’s Den
May 22, 2016

Scripture: Daniel 6

I. You can have peace in a dangerous world by living as a pilgrim.

A. When Daniel chapter 6 opens, the Babylonian empire is no more. It has been replaced by the kingdom of the Medes and the Persians. Daniel was so good at his job that the new king Darius wanted Daniel to be his right hand man. This caused the 120 satraps, or provincial leaders, to be jealous of Daniel and to want to get rid of him. The only way the satraps figured out they could hurt him was if it was in connection with the law of his God (vs. 5). So the satraps came up with a plan that would put Daniel in conflict with God’s law.

B. The life of Daniel tell us that we should expect trials if we love God and obey Him. We should expect rejection from people in this world. We should live then like pilgrims. The pilgrim knows that this world is not his home. That is how Daniel lived. We can see from Philippians 3:20 that this is also how the Apostle Paul told the church to live: “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” We’re not from around here. We are all from away. We are simply pilgrims here on earth until Jesus brings us home.

II. You can have peace in a dangerous world by persisting in prayer.

A. The satraps had set up a trap for Daniel involving prayer. The new law said you could only bring your prayers to Darius. But Daniel was in the habit of praying to our great God. Notice how Daniel prayed in spite of his stressful circumstances. What kind of prayer did he pray in vs. 10? It was a prayer of thanksgiving. He thanked God for His goodness. By openly praying to God in defiance of the new law Daniel was preparing to die. He was getting ready to be eaten by lions. But he kept praying anyway.

B. Pray like Daniel. Begin your prayers with thanks to God for His greatness. When you begin your prayers with the bigness of God, the bigness of your problems gets cut down to their proper size. And you can end your prayers with peace. This is the promise of Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

III. You can have peace in a dangerous world by trusting in God’s salvation.

A. Daniel was saved from the lions! He was still alive (vs. 22)! Daniel had not been saved out of his trial. But Daniel had been saved through his trial. Darius had a testimony of faith in God after Daniel was saved. His testimony is recorded in Daniel 6:26-27: “He is the living God, enduring forever; his kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end. He delivers and rescues; he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth, he who has saved Daniel from the power of the lions.”

Application:
Pray to “our Father in heaven” to experience God’s peace in this world.

Sources:
The Prophecy of Daniel
Commentaries on Daniel by Iain Duguid, Tremper Longman III and Joyce Baldwin