Would you turn with me to Daniel
chapter 6, the book of Daniel chapter 6. Isaiah, Jeremiah,
Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel. It's right after the book of
Ezekiel. Daniel chapter 6. Daniel has been thrown into a
lion's den. How much success would you have
if you were thrown into a den of hungry lions? What could you
do to fend them off? You know the answer to that question.
There is absolutely nothing that you could do. Now Daniel has been there all
night, and Darius comes the next morning, verse 20. And when he
came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel. And the king spake and said to
Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God. whom thou servest continually,
able to deliver thee from the lions. Our question is not, are you
able to deliver yourself? The question is not, are you
saved? Are you a Christian? Do you know
for sure that Christ died for you? That's not the question. The question is, is your God, everybody's got a God, is your God able to deliver you
from the lions? Daniel in the lion's den is one
of the most well-known stories in the Bible. The idiom into
the lion's den that we've all used before comes from this story
of Daniel in the lion's den. And Daniel's courage and faithfulness
shine so brightly in this chapter. There is even a hymn in the hymn
book you have, Dare to be a Daniel. I don't recommend it. Look at these last two verses
of chapter 5 of Daniel. In that night was Belshazzar the king of the
Chaldeans slain. And Darius the Median took the
kingdom, being about three score and two years old. And it pleased Darius, and Darius
is kind of like the name Pharaoh or King, there are four or five
Darius's in history in this kingdom. It pleased Darius to set over
the kingdom 120 princes, which should be over the whole kingdom.
And over these three presidents, of whom Daniel was first, that
the princes might give account unto them, and that the king
should have no damage. Now, whoever you're employed
by, they should not have any damage because you're their employee.
They ought to benefit from you being there. And King Darius
certainly benefited from Daniel being the top man. Verse 3, then
this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes because
an excellent spirit was in him and the king thought to set him
over the whole realm. Then the presidents and princes
sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom. They didn't like him being on
top. They didn't want him to reign
over them. They didn't like his place in
the kingdom. But they could find Daniel concerning
the king, but they could find no occasion or fault for as much
as he was faithful. Neither was there any error or
fault found in him. What a man! What a man. They couldn't dig up any evil
on this man. We're getting ready to have some
kind of elections and all the mudslinging and all the seeking
to dig up evil. We see that all the time. Well,
this man was so faithful that they couldn't find anything on
him. What a man. Verse five, then
said these men, we shall not find any occasion against this
Daniel. except we find it against him concerning the law of his
God. Now they knew Daniel prayed three
times a day. They'd seen him with his windows
open. They knew that he would not bow to their gods. They knew
he would not give any credence to their gods. And so we've got
something to work with. We'll find some kind of error
in him concerning the law of his God. Verse six, Then these presidents and princes
assembled together to the king and said thus unto him, King
Darius, live forever. All the presidents of the kingdom,
now wait a minute, he's lying right off the bat. Daniel wasn't
involved in this, was he? But he says all the presidents,
it was a lie. All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors,
the princes, the counselors, the captains have consulted together
to establish a royal statute and to make a firm decree that
whosoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty
days, save of thee, O king, they shall be cast into the den of
lions. Now, O king, establish the decree
and sign the writing, that it be not changed according to the
law of the Medes and the Persians, which altereth not." It's a law
that could not change. There would be no amendments.
There would be no altering the way they made a law. It was there
for good. They were putting Darius in a
position where everything was dependent upon his will. Nothing could happen without
him. He was the ultimate cause. Nobody's going to ask anything
unless you of your will let it take place. And this is very important, this
law that could not be changed. It's mentioned three or four
times in this story. Verse nine, wherefore King Darius
signed the writing and the decree. How vain. How vain that this man would
agree to such foolishness. But he did, a lot like you and
I do. Verse 10, now when Daniel knew
that the writing was signed, he went into his house and his
windows being opened in the chamber toward Jerusalem. He knew what
was going to happen. He kneeled upon his knees three
times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he did
aforetime. He wasn't going to change. Then these men assembled and
found Daniel praying and making supplication for his God. This
is what they wanted. This was set up. They wanted this to take
place. Verse 12, then they came near
and spake before the king concerning the king's decree. Hast thou
not signed a decree that every man that shall ask a petition
of any God or man within 30 days, say that thee, O king, shall
be cast into the den of lies? The king answered and said, the
thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and Persians,
which alters not. I did sign that then answered they and said
before the king that that Daniel Look the way they referred to
it that Daniel Which is of the children of the captivity of
Judah Regardeth not thee O king nor the decree that thou assign
but he makes his petition three times a day Then the king when
he heard these words was sore displeased with himself you see
he loved Daniel He highly esteemed Daniel He saw the faithfulness
of this man, and he sent him over his kingdom. Then the king,
when he heard these words, was sore displeased with himself,
and he set his heart on Daniel to deliver him. And he labored
to the going down of the sun to deliver him. But there's one
problem. That law could not be altered. Verse 15, Then these men assembled
unto the king, and said unto the king, Know, O king, that
the law of the Medes and Persians is, that no decree nor statute
which the king establisheth may be changed. Then the king commanded, and
they brought Daniel, and cast him into the den of lions. Now
the king spake, and said unto Daniel, I have no doubt that
Daniel had told him of his God, no doubt at all. Thy God, whom
thou service continually, he will deliver thee. And a stone
was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den, and the king
sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his Lord's,
that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel. Then the king went to his palace
and passed the night fasting. Neither were instruments of music
brought before him, and his sleep went from him. He had a sleepless
night. Then the king arose very early in the morning and went
in haste unto the den of lions. And when he came to the den,
he cried with a lamentable voice unto Daniel. And the king spake
and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is
thy God whom thou servest continually, able to deliver thee from the
lions. Then said Daniel unto the king,
O king, live forever. My God hath sent his angel and
hath shut the lion's mouths, that they have not heard me.
For as much as before him, innocency was found in me. And also before
thee, O king, I've done no hurt. Then was the king exceeding glad
for him and commanded that they should take Daniel up out of
the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den and no manner
of hurt was found upon him because he believed in his God. And the
king commanded, and they brought those men which had accused Daniel,
and they cast them into the den of the lions. Their children,
their wives, and the lions that had the mastery of them, all
of Daniel's accusers, what happens to them? They're thrown into
the lion's den, and all of them are eaten alive. And they could
not do anything to stop this onslaught. Verse 25, then came Darius. Then
King Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages that dwell
on all the earth, Peace be multiplied unto you. I make a decree that
in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the
God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and
steadfast forever in his kingdom, that which shall not be destroyed.
And his dominion shall be even unto the end. He delivereth and
rescueth, and worketh signs and wonders in heaven and in earth,
who had delivered Daniel from the power of the lions, so this
Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius and in the reign of
Cyrus the Persian. What a man. What faith. What courage. Now have you disagreed with anything
that's been said regarding this man? No. Here's another question. Could
a sinner be saved by what I just said? No. In giving the true facts of this
story, have I preached the gospel up to this point? No. No. Now this story is given to
teach us the gospel. Darius is a type of God the Father,
and Daniel is a type of the Lord Jesus Christ. And if we don't
see the gospel in this story, we may look at the life of Daniel
and think, I could never live up to that. Well, me either.
I understand that, but that's not the point of this story.
This is the gospel. of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now,
when we preach the gospel, we begin here, it pleased Darius. Verse one. It pleased Darius. We begin with what pleases God. You know the message last night
on predestination that Brother Fortner brought. I thought if
I was going to bring an unbeliever to hear a message, I'd want them
to hear a message on predestination. That's who God is. That's how
He saves. I want to begin there. People
say, well you got to teach that at the end. No, you teach that
at the beginning. That's who God is. You begin with, it pleased
God. It pleased the Lord to make you
His people. It pleased the Lord to bruise
him. It pleased the Father that in him
should all fullness dwell. It pleased the Lord by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe. We begin with God's
pleasure. It pleased Goliath to set up
over the kingdom and 120 princes, which should be over the whole
kingdom. And over these three presidents, of whom Daniel was
first, that the princes might give account unto them, and that
the king should have no damage." Now, God is not going to receive
any damage. He's not going to have mercy
at the expense of His justice. He's not going to love at the
expense of his sovereignty. Now any preaching I hear that
doesn't honor God and exalt and glorify God in all his attributes
is not true. It's not the gospel. God is not
going to receive damage. He's God. He's not going to submit
to anything like that. If what I'm preaching, if what
any man is preaching does not Glorify all of God's attributes,
His sovereignty, His justice, His holiness, His immutability,
His eternality, whatever you're saying with regard to God, He's
going to receive damage. He is God. Verse 3, then this Daniel was
preferred. Who is that? The one who is preferred. Preferred by God. I love what John the Baptist
said. He was preferred before me because He was. He eternally
was. He's the great I am. He was before
me. It pleased the Father that in
Him should all fullness dwell. All. The father prefers the son. Anybody got a problem with that?
The father prefers the son. Then this Daniel was preferred
above the presidents and princes because an excellent spirit was
in him. He didn't have the spirit by
measure, did he? And the king thought to set him
over the whole realm. That's God's purpose, to set
him over the whole realm. He is king. Verse four, then the presidents
and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the
kingdom. What is the cry of every natural man? We will not have
this man reign over us. Oh, men hate a sovereign Christ. And that is where they're going
to try to find an argument. They couldn't receive his kingdom. Now understand this. You'll only
worship a sovereign. You're in his hands. He's the
King. And He can do with you whatever He's pleased to do. He can save you. He can pass
you by. He's the King. And this is what
they had a problem with. They had a problem with His Kingdom. But they could find none occasion
nor fault for as much as He was faithful. Neither was there any
error or fault found in him. Now there's only one person that
that truly describes, isn't there? The Lord Jesus Christ. Now if
you read Daniel, in Daniel chapter 9, when he's giving his prayer
of confession of sins, you'll know he doesn't look at himself
this way. Somebody without error, without fault. This is given
to typify the Lord Jesus Christ. He never sinned. He knew no sin. He did no sin. He said, which of you can convince
me of sin? Can you imagine being able to
say that to anybody? Of course not. Which of you can convince
me of ever doing anything right? But he could say, there's no
sin, there's no fault in me. Then said these men, we shall
Not find any occasion against Daniel, except we find it against
him concerning the law of his God. Then these presidents and princes
assembled together to the king and said thus unto him, King
Darius, live forever. All the presidents of the kingdom,
the governors and the princes, the counselors, like again, it
was a lie, wasn't it? Daniel was the president. He was a king,
he wasn't involved in this, but they were telling a lie, trying
to speak to this man's vanity that he swallowed up so easily.
All the presidents of the kingdoms, the governors and the princes,
the counselors, the captains have consulted together to establish
a royal statute and to make a firm decree that whosoever shall ask
a petition of any god or man for 30 days, save of thee, O
king, they shall be cast into the den of lions. It stops with
you, it stops with your will. what you say is going to go.
Now, O King, establish the decree and sign the writing that it
be not changed according to the law of the Medes and Persians,
which alters not. This law does not alter. It cannot be amended. God's holy
law cannot be changed. It will not be changed. It comes from the lawgiver. It
comes from God. It's without error. It's glorious.
It cannot be changed. Wherefore King Darius signed
the writing and the decree. Now when Daniel knew that the
writing was signed, he knew all about this. He wasn't going to disobey the
law of his God. He went into his house and his
windows being opened in his chamber toward Jerusalem. And that's
so important. That's the gospel. Why did he
pray toward Jerusalem? Because the temple was there.
Because the priest was there who went behind the veil with
the blood. And the only way a sinner could
be accepted is because of the high priest bringing the blood.
This wasn't some glorification of Jerusalem. This is where the
temple was. This is the most glorious manifestation
of the gospel. It's right here. He prayed toward
Jerusalem. He knew the only way his prayers
could be heard and accepted before God is because of the Lord Jesus
Christ. That's what that means. He prayed
toward Jerusalem and gave thanks before his God as he did aforetime.
Verse 11. They reminded the king about
what he was doing. Then these men assembled and
found Daniel praying and making supplication before his God.
Then they came near and spake before the king concerning the
king's decree. Hast thou not signed a decree that every man
that shall ask a petition of any God or man within 30 days,
save thee, O king? They were trying to make him
God, weren't they? You're going to be just like God. You're going to
be equal to God. The buck stops here with your
will. Any man that asks a petition
from anybody, any god, any king, say thee, O king, he is going
to be thrown and cast into the den of lions. The king answered
and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes
and Persians, which alters not. This law is not going to be changed. Then answered they and said before
the king that Daniel, which is of the children of the captivity
of Judah, Regardeth not thee, O king, or the decrees that thou
hast signed, but maketh his petition three times a day. And then the
king, when he heard those words, was sore displeased with himself,
and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him. What can I do to
deliver him? This law cannot be altered. It cannot be changed. What can
I do to deliver him from this law? And it says he labored to
the going down of the sun to deliver him. You see, it had
to be done that day. That very day they were going to be cast
into a den of lions and he was going to do whatever he could
to deliver his son. Now, I am going to try to say some
things that I don't have any idea what I'm talking about.
I realize that. But one of the glorious things about preaching
is You already know you're going to fail ahead of time to say
what ought to be said and to say it the right way. So I'm
telling you ahead of time, this is a failure. But I don't understand
this. God the Father, the sins of God's elect became
Christ's so that he became guilty of the commission of those sins.
The Father took the sins of the elect and laid them on Christ.
And the Father poured his wrath out upon him. Was that easy? Was that easy? When the son thought of taking
on sin, he said, Father, if it be possible, let this cup, what was in that
cup? The sins of God's elect. He's the only one. who had any
understanding of what the evil of sin is. And when he saw that
cup, he said, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. Darius sought to the going down
of the sun to change this. But the law cannot be changed. The soul that sinneth shall surely
die. God said, I will by no means
clear the guilty. Under no circumstance will a
guilty sinner be cleared. Verse 16. Then the king commanded, and
they brought Daniel and cast him into the den of lions. Now that's a humanly impossible
situation. No mere man in and of himself
could stand in a den of hungry lions and survive. Couldn't happen. And he was cast into that den. Now the king spake and said unto
Daniel, Thy God, whom thou servest continually, he will deliver
thee. And stone was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den,
and the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet
of his lord, that the purpose might not be changed concerning
Daniel. at law is going to be honored. I don't know how much the king
believed that God would deliver him because look how he spent
that night in verse 18. Then the king went to his palace
and passed the night fasting. Neither was instruments of music
brought before him, and sleep went from him. He went through
a sleepless night. Then the king arose very early
in the morning and went in haste unto the den of lions, And when
he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice unto
Daniel. And the king spake and said to
Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, is thy God, whom
thou servest, able? Is thy God able? Is thy God? Think of this question being
put to you. Is thy God able to deliver thee from the lions? Then said Daniel unto the king,
O king, live forever. My God has sent his angel and
has shut the lion's mouth that they have not hurt me. For as
much as before him, innocency was found. Now what is Innocency? That means you didn't do anything. Now Daniel went into that den
because the law that cannot be altered was broken. That's why
he went into that den. When God looked upon him, Innocency Christ Jesus the Lord went into
the tomb bearing the sins of God's elect. And you know what
he did? He put them away. You see when he said it is finished,
what was finished? Sin was put away. My sin, my guilt, my iniquity
became his sin, his guilt, and his iniquity. You see, God does
not send sins to hell. He sends the ones who committed
them to hell. And Christ became guilty of the
commission of my sin. Now you all know I'm not saying
he sinned in his person. He didn't. He knew no sin. He
never sinned. But my sin literally became his
sin. And on the cross he actually
put it away to where it is no more. It's what the Bible calls
justification. Innocency. Not forgiven. Although I am innocent. justified, without guilt. That is what the Lord accomplished
on Calvary Street. And now, beloved, every believer
has nothing to feel guilty about. Innocent, justified, perfect
in God's sight, without sin, without guilt. I like that word. Innocency. My God has sent his angel, has
shut the lion's mouth, and they've not hurt me, for as much as before
him, innocency was found in me. And also before thee, O king,
have I done no hurt. You know, he glorified every
attribute of God in his death on the cross. It's the most glorious
thing. Every attribute of God is magnified. His sovereignty, His justice,
His holiness, His mercy, His love. Every attribute of God.
His immutability, whatever you want to say. Oh, no damage was
done to the Father by His work. He glorified and magnified Him.
God's not going to let His name be dishonored in any way. And
He's able to keep the honor of His name. And He did so through
the cross of His Son. Verse 23, Then was the King exceedingly
glad for him. And he commanded that they should
take Daniel up out of the den. I love the picture of that in
my mind. I mean they lift off the rock. There he is. Lines
all around him. There he is. And they lift him
back up. That's the resurrection of our
Lord Jesus Christ being raised from the dead. They lifted him
up. So Daniel was taken up out of the den and no manner of hurt
was found upon him because he believed in his God. There is
somebody that believed God perfectly. There's only one. The Lord Jesus
Christ. And we're actually saved by His
faith. His faithfulness. I'm not believing my faith. I'm
believing His. He believed His God perfectly. And the king commanded, and they
brought those men which accused Daniel. What happened to his
accusers? They were cast into the lion's
den, weren't they? And they were just mutilated and destroyed.
Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? All accusations have been thrown
into the lion's den, and they're gone. Verse 25, then King Darius wrote
unto all people, nations, and languages. This was a letter
to everybody, kind of like Nebuchadnezzar. I said the same thing. Then King
Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages that dwell
in all the earth. Peace be multiplied unto you.
I make a decree that in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble
in fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God and
steadfast immutable forever he never changes and his kingdom
that which shall not be destroyed this one's going down I realize
that here's the one kingdom that will never be destroyed the one
of which he is king of kings and lord of lords and his dominion
his shot sovereignty Shall not have an end. There are no limits.
There are no bounds to His sovereignty. Sovereign in creation. He spake
the world into existence. Sovereign in providence. He controls
everything. Everything. He's the cause. Sovereign
in salvation. Salvation is of the Lord. Verse 27, He delivers and rescues. He works signs and wonders in
heaven and earth. who had delivered Daniel from
the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered. Oh,
the prosperity of the Lord Jesus Christ. This Daniel prospered
in the reign of Darius and in the reign of Cyrus the Persian.
Now I want to end this message with five questions, very brief,
and a scripture. Is your God Everybody's got a
God. Atheists have got a God. It's
atheism. Everybody's got a God. Is your
God able to deliver you from a law that cannot be altered? The soul that sinned shall surely
die. Can your God deliver you from
that law? Mine can. Just and justifier. Can your God deliver you from
being dead in trespasses and sins? And that's the way he finds
you. Can he deliver you from being
dead? A dead man can't do anything
for life. Can your God deliver you? Mine can't. And you hath he quickly
given life who were dead in trespasses and sins. Can your God deliver you from
this lion's den? You still have an evil nature
that's just as bad as it ever was, and it can't improve. Can
you persevere? Can you continue all the way
to the end when you've got this wicked, evil nature that's you,
and it's all your fault? And all the messes you get in,
they're all your fault. Can your God deliver you from
a wicked nature that you still possess? My God can. One of these days, if the Lord
doesn't come back first, you're going to turn into a pile of
dirt. You're going to be dead, you're going to rot, you're going
to decay, and you're going to be nothing more than a pile of
dirt. Can your God deliver you from
that? One of these days, me and you
both are going to stand before God and we're going to be judged by perfect justice. Now can your
God cause it to where it will be said to you by God himself,
well done thou good and faithful servant. Enter thou in to the
joy of thy Lord. Can your God cause that to be
said to you? That is the heritage of every
believer without exception. Those are the five questions.
And now I want to quote this verse from Psalm 40, verse 12. I know these are the words of
the Lord Jesus, but this is also the word of every believer. For
innumerable evils have compassed me about. Mine iniquities have taken hold on me. That means they've seized me.
They've captured me so that I am not able to look up. They're more than the hairs of
my head. Be pleased, oh Lord, to deliver
me. Amen.