Well, from Daniel chapter 6,
as I said, a question this morning. From verse 20. Is thy God whom thou service
continually able to deliver thee from the lions? Everybody has
a God. There's no question about that.
The atheist has a God. The Lord said in his book that
the atheist's God is his own belly, his own appetites, his
own lust. And we find that to be all of
our cases by nature. Is that not right? Our God is
our belly. Our God is what we can get, how
we can promote and pamper and praise our own flesh. Is thy
God able? This is a question that every
man would do well to consider and to answer in his heart, not
with just the lips. Because everybody believes they're
going to heaven when they die. Did you know that? Everybody
thinks that, for one reason or another. They've been a good
old boy all their lives, or they've been good to their mama, however
vain and foolish their hope is. Everybody's got hope. When a
man runs out of hope, that's when he kills himself. Everybody's
got hope. It may be a vain and empty hope.
When they lay down on that bed that they've made and try to
cover themselves up, the covers may be too short to cover them,
but they're going to cover themselves with them. The question really is not, do
you believe in God? That's not the question. Everybody
believes in their God. That question is asked by religion.
That's the question, you know, do you believe in God? Satan
believes in God. The question is, who is your
God? And is He able to save you? Can
He save you? Because you need to be saved.
Paul said, My prayer to God for Israel is, not that they might
come to my way of thinking, that they might be saved. That they
might be saved. The lions are the penalty of
God's law. by irreversible, unalterable
decree from the king. The king's authority is absolute
in his law. It was according here to the
law of the Medes and the Persians, which can't be altered. Once
that law goes forth, it doesn't come back. It doesn't get compromised. It doesn't get lessened. The
law is the law. God's law is that way. Unalterable. irreversible, uncompromising. Daniel must face the lions. And it was by the law. It was
right, wasn't it? It was according to the law of
the king. Daniel was guilty. He was guilty. And he had to
face terrible and swift destruction. The prospect of the judgment
of divine law is a horrible thing. A horrible thing. Because we
don't talk much about it, don't mistake this. It is a horrible thing. We don't
dwell upon that. We don't preach a lot about hell.
We don't try to scare people into making decisions or getting
things right, you know. But the Bible teaches some things
clearly regarding hell, regarding the judgment of God. And I won't
take time this morning to deal with that, except to show, as
our text describes, the terrible prospect of judgment. Look at
verse 24 again. And the king commanded, and they
brought those men which had accused Daniel. And they cast them into the den
of lions, them, their children, and their wives. And the lions
had the mastery of them and break all their bones in pieces before
they even came to the bottom of that den. Terrible. We think
about the women and the children especially being ripped apart
by these lions, and it's almost unthinkable. And yet those who
are precious to us in this life, those who we think of the most
fondly, those who are dear to our hearts, are subject to suffer
swift, horrible, and violent, eternal destruction at the hands
of the king because they are deemed guilty
in his sight. Our precious children are subject
to that judgment. Do you think about that much?
Those of you who have children, if not, that person or persons
that you love the most. That's why we're trying. We try
to be diligent about teaching our children about the mercy
of God in Christ. God is king, and they need to
understand that. They need to know that there's
a throne, that there's somebody running the show, and it's not
them. You know, your children think they're running it. That's
pretty obvious in the home, isn't it? They think this world was
created so they'd have a playground to play in. They need to find
out otherwise before it's too late. God is sovereign and he
saves whom he will. Is that too complicated for the
children? Is that too complicated for you?
Did you understand that, that God saves whom he pleases, when
he pleases, the way he pleases? That's not too complicated. God is king and his law is inflexible. It's inflexible. God doesn't
change his law. He's not going to save you in
a way that's not consistent with his justice. If something's got
to go, his law or you, guess what? King Darius had a dilemma,
didn't he? He's either got to repeal his
own law Or he got to kill Daniel, one of the two. And that being the choice, Daniel's
got to go. His law is inflexible and the
punishment of God will be absolute and unceasing. They do need to,
our children need to understand that. Ah, but what they really
need to hear more than anything else is that there is a Savior. There is one who faced the law
of God for us. One in whom no fault was found.
One in whom innocency was found before God. And he went into the lion's den
and he represented me in there. And he came out untouched. He came out untouched. He came
out of the grave. Having borne the penalty of the
law, he satisfied the demands of the law, and yet ever lives
to make intercession for me." That's the one that they need
to hear about. But God's law, His justice, I appreciate the
honesty of that hymn. I thought of it when I wrote
this, that song, Brethren We Have Met to Worship, the honesty
of the words. It says, Brethren, see poor sinners
round you, slumbering on the brink of woe. Death is coming. Hell is moving. Can you bear
to let them go? Do you give a thought for that
at all? See our fathers and our mothers and our children sinking
down. Can you see them that way? Can
you see them with God's wrath abiding on them? It'll change
your perspective a little bit if you ever do. Some harden themselves
against the law and justice of God and say things like, well,
I don't believe a loving God could send people to hell. Read
the Bible. Read the book again. That's all
I can tell you. Read the book of Revelation and tell me who
it is that's going to cast devils and men and women into the lake
of fire where they're going to burn forever and ever and ever. You tell me who it is. You find
out and let me know. This is why we earnestly warn
sinners, flee to the city of refuge. The avenger of death
is on your heels now. Except you repent, Christ said,
every one of you will perish swiftly and violently. He compared
it to the ones that a tower fell on and crushed them. He said,
do you think they were greater sinners than you are? Think again,
my friends, except you repent, except you change your mind about
God and yourself and how God deals with sin, you'll perish
like that swiftly and violently. When you're just walking along,
enjoying life, you know, I've got my, I'm my own man. Yeah,
you are until God says, that's it. That's it. And then your soul will be required
of you. You won't be your own man. You'll be his. You're his
now. You'll realize it then. The avenger
of blood. And there's one refuge. There's
a city whose builder and maker is God. A city of refuge. Let's talk about God's law for
a little while, and then we'll talk about the answer, the remedy, the hope. Look at verse 8 again. 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 altereth not. Wherefore,
King Darius, sign the writing and the decree." God's law has
never changed and it never shall change. The fact that we are
not under the law for acceptance with God does not mean that the
demands of the law are not upon us. It simply means that for
the believer, those demands have been met. You see the difference? It's not God doing away with
his law in our case. It's God being satisfied, his
law, his justice being satisfied upon our substitute. So don't
think of God's law as having passed, though Christ is the
end of the law for righteousness, to everyone that believe he's
the end of the law for righteousness. I don't keep God's law for righteousness. I'm glad I don't have to because
I can't do it. But don't think God's law is
done away with. Be careful also not to think
evil of the law of God. I'm glad that I'm not under the
law of God. There's no hope for a sinner
like me in the moral law of God. Romans seven Listen to this. Do you think evil then of God's
law? Is God's law bad? Don't talk to me about the law.
That's a bad thing. That's not our attitude, is it?
Paul said in Romans 7 verse 12, wherefore the law is holy and
the commandment holy and just and good. He said in verse 22
of that same chapter, for I delight in the law of God. after the
inward man. I don't keep it, because I can't. I would. Didn't he say that in
that chapter? The things that I would do, I
don't do. And the things that I would not
do, that's what I do. But we love God's law. The law
is merely a written expression of God's holiness. If you despise
His law, what are you despising? Are you despising? I'm just glad
that there's more to God's character than what is revealed in his
bare law. His law reveals his justice and
his holiness. But he's also revealed this about
himself. I will have mercy. I will have
mercy on whom I will have mercy. But his law doesn't change. He
must have mercy in a way that's consistent with that law, or
he will not, he cannot have mercy. You see that? If King Darius
just decides, well, I was just joking around when I made that
law. He can't be king anymore. You understand that? He's not
king because his word doesn't mean anything. We'll get us a
king that means what he says. And they would have. There aren't
any loopholes in the law of God. All of man's laws have loopholes. Well, it says this, but, you
know, there are extenuating circumstances. There are none of that, none
of those with God. No loopholes. As badly as Darius
wanted to spare Daniel, it says that, that he walked up and down
all night. He couldn't sleep. He loved Daniel
and he wanted to spare him, but the law had to be satisfied.
Galatians 3 in verse 10, for as many as are of the works of
the law are under the curse of the law. What does he mean as
many as are of the works of the law? That means you're trusting
in your working of the law for righteousness. Is that you? Whatever that is, you say, well,
I've I haven't done the Ten Commandments, but I believed on Christ and
I'm living the Christian life. If that's your hope, You're a
goner. Paul said if you be circumcised,
the smallest thing, the littlest thing, if you do that in order
to please God, if that's your hope, you're standing before
God as in you've taken care of business, Christ shall profit
you nothing. Nothing. And if Christ profits
you nothing, there's no profit for you under heaven. As many as are of the works of
the law are under the curse of the law. Don't you hear the law,
Paul said? For it is written, Galatians
3 10, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things
that are written in the book of the law to do them. To do them. You understand God's
law, don't you? God's law demands absolute continual. Did you notice that word continueth?
You have to have always done so, and you have to keep on doing
so. Everyone that continueth not in all things. And notice
two more words in Galatians 3.10. All things. Let me make something
clear. You've broken every aspect of
God's law. The spiritual nature of God's
law is, well, I haven't ever cheated on my wife. The Lord
Jesus Christ said, if you've ever looked on a woman with lust
in your heart, You've committed that sin in your heart. How about
now? How about now? And let me make something else
clear. The book is clear about this. To be guilty of one aspect
of the law is to be guilty of the whole law. For it is written, Cursed is
every one that continueth not in all things that are written
in the book of the law." Notice one more word in that, to do
them. Not to hang them on your wall,
not to put them in your driveway, not to, you know, use them as
a checklist. I've acted right today to do
them. to do them, to measure up. And
just like King Belshazzar, we've been weighed in God's balances,
and every one of us has found warning. Paul said, all have
sinned and come short. You found warning before God
Almighty. There are two kinds of people
that the law sees, those who have done it and those who have
not. He doesn't see anything else
listen to Romans two verse eleven turn over there with the Romans
chapter two. And verse eleven. Romans two eleven for there is
no respect of persons with God for as many as have seen without
law shall also perish without law. Who is that without law? If you look at the context of
that, Paul is talking about the Jews and the Gentiles. The Gentiles are those who have
sinned without law. They didn't have the revealed
law of God, the written law of God. Does that give them excuse? Have they sinned? If they sin without law, they'll
perish without the law. The fact that, well, I didn't
know any better, that's not an excuse before God. Without the law,
that's not an excuse. Well, I didn't ever read the
Bible. You sin without law, you perish
without law. There's two kinds of people before
God. Those who have sinned and those who have not sinned before
his holy law. And as many as have sinned in
the law, The Jews, having God's revealed law, shall be judged
by the law. Look at verse 13. For not the
hearers of the law are just before God. It doesn't matter if you've
heard it, hadn't heard it, had it revealed, not had it revealed.
But the doers of the law shall be justified. There's one that
can stand in God's holy hill. He that hath clean hands and
a pure heart has never lifted up his soul unto vanity. So you
see where we are, and I want us to understand that in the
beginning. The law said, thou shalt not. Did King Darius' law
say that? You shall not do this, and Daniel
did it. Guilty. Subject to the law and
justice of God. And the doers of the law in thought,
word, and deed. That's where a lot of people
trip up here. and think, well, I've been a pretty good fellow,
you know. Paul said, according to the law, I was blameless.
But when the law came to my heart, sin revived and I died. I realized
what I was when the spiritual nature of the law was revealed
to me, and I knew that all of the evil that is identified by
the law of God and condemned was dwelling right here in my
heart. That's when this sinner died before God. And then Romans
3, 19, listen to this. Why did God give his law? Now,
we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them
that are under the law, that every... Now, what does that
mean? Why is law given to begin with? Because you're guilty of
it. Because you're a sinner. The
law is given Because of seeing isn't it? It's given to them
that are under the law. I didn't know anything about
my guilt until the law came. Christ said they had no sin until
I came and turned the light on and then their sin was exposed. Their sin was revealed and the
law of God has that effect. Why does it say thou shalt not
commit adultery? Because we're adulterers in our
hearts. Why does it say, thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy mind, with
all thy soul? Because we don't. Not so that
we will. You see what I'm saying? If the
law condemns something that no man would ever do, it would be
silly, wouldn't it? It would be superfluous. It condemns
what we are. That's what I'm trying to get
across. It says it to them that are under the law. Why? That every mouth may be stopped.
What have you got to answer before God? Not a thing. Not a word. Job said. We couldn't answer
him a word. If he enters into judgment with
us, we can't answer him a word. And all the world become guilty
before God. That's the purpose of God's law
right there. Not to save. The law can't do
that. The law can't do that. Not to
relieve guilt, but to reveal it. Reveal it. Daniel was guilty
before God, and his mouth was stopped. He didn't say, well,
I broke the law, but I, you know, it was a stupid law. You never
should have made that. No. He shut his mouth, and he
walked into the lion's den because he was guilty, and he knew it.
Every mouth stopped. stopped, and by God's grace,
we have to submit and say, Lord, if you put me in hell, you'd
be doing the right thing. Have you come to that place?
Have you bowed to the law and justice of God and said, He's
right. He's right to condemn me. And
we come to that. He does stop our mouth, doesn't
he? He gave the law for that purpose, and it works. God does
what he does and accomplishes the purpose whereby he, for the
reason for which he did it. He gave the law to shut my mouth,
and it shut my mouth. And all of his people's mouths
are shut by the law of God. And everybody else will be shut
before long. And to cause us to reveal our
guilt before God Almighty, Daniel was guilty. Darius wanted
to let him go, but how is he going to do it? Either the law
or Daniel has got to be sacrificed, one or the other. If Darius lets
Daniel go, he can't be king. How do you expect, how do you,
how do you expect to be spared from the wrath of God? Is your
God able to deliver you? He can't repeal his law. He can't
make an exception in your case. Darius couldn't do it. If he
could have figured out a way to do it, he stayed up all night
trying to figure out a way to do it. What is your hope before
God? Well, some people say, well,
God is a God of love. Yeah, that's right. Darius loved
Daniel, too, though. But he couldn't spare him. He
couldn't spare him. Not on that basis. Well, I've
always tried to do my best. Well, first of all, you hadn't
either. And secondly, even if you had done your best, what
is your best before God? It's sin. All of our righteousnesses,
according to God, are filthy, repulsive rags. Daniel, because
of the kind of person he was, had favor with the king, but
that didn't help him in this matter. Is that your hope, that
you've been a pretty good fellow? You'd be surprised how many people
are trusting in that. I've talked to people that have
said, well, I'm not a religious man, but I've always tried to
live a good life. Is that right? Daniel lived a
pretty good life, but he was guilty of the law, and he had
to be sentenced and punished. Well, I've always been a member
of the Bible-believing Baptist Church. Judas was an apostle,
and he's in hell right now, in hell. Darius's dilemma is the
great dilemma of the ages. How can Daniel, who is guilty
before the inflexible, unalterable law, be spared the punishment
of that law? Everywhere we go in the Word
of God, we find that issue confronted everywhere. In our study in Job,
what did we find out? Job said, I know it's so of a
truth, but how can man be just with God? How can I be guilty
before God and yet not suffer His wrath? How can He look upon
a guilty, vile worm like me and be pleased with me? Is that the
same issue? And then in our study in Romans,
we have a written study in Romans that we're putting in the bulletin.
What do we see there? Romans 3.20. Therefore, by the
deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight. The law says Daniel's got to
die. Ah, but then Paul in chapter
3 and 4 and thereafter, he begins to speak of that righteousness
of God without the law. There's a way to be righteous
before God without keeping his law. There's the answer. There's
the hope. And we're studying the book of
the first Corinthians and second Corinthians one nine. Listen
to this. Turn over there with me. Second
Corinthians one nine. Second Corinthians one in verse
nine, but we had the sentence of death in ourselves that we
should not trust in our sales. Why did God give his law? We
have the sentence of death. Guilty. Why? That we shouldn't trust in ourselves.
That we look outside of ourselves and not say, well, I know I've
done some bad things, but... No. The sentence of death. That we might look for help in
another. Look, seek salvation in another. That we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God that raises the dead. who delivered us from so great
a death, and doth deliver, in whom we trust, that he'll yet
deliver us." Is your God able to deliver you? He has delivered
me. He delivers right now, and He
will yet deliver me. Is your God able to do that?
How's He going to do it? Jonah said, out of the belly
of hell I cried. What are you talking about, Jonah?
Salvation is of the Lord. How has God delivered us? We're
through. I want to read you two passages of Scripture. Turn to
Romans chapter 5. I want everybody to understand
this, even if you think I'm a fool and don't know what I'm talking
about. I want you to understand what I'm saying this morning.
Romans 5 and verse 18. Therefore, as by the offense
of one, judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so
by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon all men
unto justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience,
many were made sinners." Daniel was disobedient, wasn't he? The
circumstances of that law don't make any difference in the type
of it. It's the king's law. It's unchangeable,
and it's penalty of death by penalty of death. And he was
disobedient to that law, and our father Adam was disobedient
to the law of God. And by that one man's disobedience,
every one of us was plunged into guilt, guilt before God, under
the wrath of God by nature. So by the obedience of one shall
many be made righteous. God saves us by substitution,
by redemption. Daniel pictures me in that I'm
guilty. I'm under the law, and God's
wrath is upon me, rightly so. And I walk into the den of blinds,
and I've got nothing to say in my own defense. I deserve it. But he pictures my Savior, too.
Because my Savior went into that den of lions for me, and he was
innocent. There was no guile found in his
mouth. No guile. Pilate said, I find
no fault in him. And he went in there, and by
his righteousness, many were made righteous. By the obedience
of one, my Savior, my substitute, shall many, all of his people,
everybody he represented, everybody Adam represented, Everybody Christ
represented is made righteous by his death, his blood, and
his righteousness. Galatians 4, and we're through.
Turn to Galatians 4, please. Galatians 4, and verse 4. But when the fullness of time
was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under
the law. He became subject to his own
law. Why? To redeem them that are
under the law. That's me. Who's the law talking to? Them
that are under the law. That's me. That we might receive
the adoption of sons. Do you understand There's one
answer to the dilemma. How can God's law be satisfied? How can his justice remain intact? How can he not compromise his
holiness and deliver me? It's going to take a miracle,
isn't it? I can't work my way out. I can't talk my way out
of it. Daniel couldn't. How was Daniel saved? By a miracle
of the grace of God. God shut the lion's mouth. And
our Lord Jesus Christ did so. He satisfied them. The lions
weren't hungry when Daniel was in their way. Why? Because they had eaten everything
they could eat. The law of God is fully satisfied
for me. Every one of its demands are
met. They're not hungry when it looks at me. It's satisfied. How? By His blood. and his righteousness. Let's bow in prayer. Lord, thank you for grace. Thank you for free, full, sovereign
grace. Thank you for coming where we
were and doing for us what we could not do. what the law could
not do and that it was weak through the flesh, you sent your own
son in the likeness of sinful flesh in foreseeing and condemned
sin in the flesh. Thank you for his condescending grace to come
here and become what we are, that we might be made the very
righteousness of God in him. Thank you, Lord, for that grace.
May we see and understand this dilemma and the answer to it.
Your law must be satisfied. And if we're to go free, somebody
will have to pay in our stead. Somebody will have to die. The
demands of the law have to be met. But by your grace, our hope
is in our substitute, who fully satisfied the law on our behalf.
and gave himself an offering for our sin. Help us to remember
him, Lord, in this ordinance this morning as we partake of
these elements, Lord. Help us to think beyond the elements
in our very heart of hearts to worship him who loved us and
gave himself for us.