Post by Admin on Aug 10, 2017 5:44:58 GMT
We resumed our discussion in Daniel with Chapter 9’s prayer of confession and response from God through the angel, Gabriel. As background, Daniel’s prayer came soon after the fall of Babylon to the Persians and Medes, and after Daniel had absorbed the prophecy pronounced by Jeremiah:
8 Therefore the LORD Almighty says this: “Because you have not listened to my words,9 I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,” declares the LORD, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. 10 I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. (Jeremiah 25:8-11, NIV)
Among the topics we covered tonight was how we would describe Daniel if we knew nothing else about him (“a sinner”) and how we would describe God if all we knew was Chapter 9 (“righteous, unforgiving”). That also lead to discussion about why Daniel included himself as part of the “we” confessing sins, when he could say that he had been extraordinarily faithful, or that he didn’t make the mistakes that God is punishing with the 70 years of trial. The general conclusion was that Daniel did know he was a sinner, and he recognized and humbled himself.
The prayer itself has elements of: trust, humility, honesty, worship, confidence that God is listening, and a clear and fervent request – Daniel asks! God answers (through the angel) even before Daniel is finished praying. There is much to think about our sin, and more to think about how our prayers can worship God and reflect humility while knowing that God is listening and answering, that we are having a conversation.
8 Therefore the LORD Almighty says this: “Because you have not listened to my words,9 I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,” declares the LORD, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. 10 I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. 11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years. (Jeremiah 25:8-11, NIV)
Among the topics we covered tonight was how we would describe Daniel if we knew nothing else about him (“a sinner”) and how we would describe God if all we knew was Chapter 9 (“righteous, unforgiving”). That also lead to discussion about why Daniel included himself as part of the “we” confessing sins, when he could say that he had been extraordinarily faithful, or that he didn’t make the mistakes that God is punishing with the 70 years of trial. The general conclusion was that Daniel did know he was a sinner, and he recognized and humbled himself.
The prayer itself has elements of: trust, humility, honesty, worship, confidence that God is listening, and a clear and fervent request – Daniel asks! God answers (through the angel) even before Daniel is finished praying. There is much to think about our sin, and more to think about how our prayers can worship God and reflect humility while knowing that God is listening and answering, that we are having a conversation.