"In the first year of Darius...I, Daniel understood by the books.., by the word of the Lord through Jeremiah....Then he said, 'Do you know why I have come to you? And now I must return to fight with the prince of Persia; and when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come.'" (From Daniel 9 & 10)
Sarah and I saw a woman crying in our church meeting last Sunday. She eventually left the meeting, before we could "do" anything. We pray for her. We know so little of the pain of those around us. For now, we are thankful that she knows Jesus. The battle in life is the same battle of which the messenger told Daniel. Yes, many of our "battles" are personal, but they are also cosmic. What we saw in our sister is also going on in the saints throughout the earth, and in, "heavenly places."
As I went through Daniel this quarter, I again was impressed by our texts. First, "understanding" only comes, "by the books," viz., the Bible. You can go to all the seminars, read all the books, listen to the greatest preachers, but if we do not, "underst[an]d by the books," we do not understand. I know I sound like the proverbial "broken record," but this record is not broken. It is the Powerful, Eternal, "Word of God/Words of God."
Second, the battle of which you and I are a part is cosmic in nature. I have always thought that there were two appearances in Daniel. The first is called, "the vision" (v.7). This may be called speculation by some, but I believe it was the Lord Jesus Christ (see Revelation 1). Daniel heard the Words of Jesus, then went into, "a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground." Verse 10 tells us of the second appearance, "Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands." The messenger then tells Daniel, "....I have come because of your words." But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael...came to help me...." Then he told Daniel, "....when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come." And we can say, "then the prince of Rome, Byzantium, the Holy Roman Empire, Ottoman Empire, American Empire." Yes, indeed. Each empire, each nation has an assigned "prince."
Today in prayer, I was so very aware of the Prince of America. What do we do with him? We keep interceding, praying, "in the spirit," keep praying Jesus' Words. We all have personal battles, struggles which could consume us, but we are in such an hour that we need to, "press on," in our battles, and press into the battle for men and nations. The same One Who gave strength to Daniel is the One Who is, "the Strength of my life," Jesus, the Christ.
Father, in Jesus' Name, teach me what I need to know here. Amen.
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Sarah and I saw a woman crying in our church meeting last Sunday. She eventually left the meeting, before we could "do" anything. We pray for her. We know so little of the pain of those around us. For now, we are thankful that she knows Jesus. The battle in life is the same battle of which the messenger told Daniel. Yes, many of our "battles" are personal, but they are also cosmic. What we saw in our sister is also going on in the saints throughout the earth, and in, "heavenly places."
As I went through Daniel this quarter, I again was impressed by our texts. First, "understanding" only comes, "by the books," viz., the Bible. You can go to all the seminars, read all the books, listen to the greatest preachers, but if we do not, "underst[an]d by the books," we do not understand. I know I sound like the proverbial "broken record," but this record is not broken. It is the Powerful, Eternal, "Word of God/Words of God."
Second, the battle of which you and I are a part is cosmic in nature. I have always thought that there were two appearances in Daniel. The first is called, "the vision" (v.7). This may be called speculation by some, but I believe it was the Lord Jesus Christ (see Revelation 1). Daniel heard the Words of Jesus, then went into, "a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground." Verse 10 tells us of the second appearance, "Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands." The messenger then tells Daniel, "....I have come because of your words." But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael...came to help me...." Then he told Daniel, "....when I have gone forth, indeed the prince of Greece will come." And we can say, "then the prince of Rome, Byzantium, the Holy Roman Empire, Ottoman Empire, American Empire." Yes, indeed. Each empire, each nation has an assigned "prince."
Today in prayer, I was so very aware of the Prince of America. What do we do with him? We keep interceding, praying, "in the spirit," keep praying Jesus' Words. We all have personal battles, struggles which could consume us, but we are in such an hour that we need to, "press on," in our battles, and press into the battle for men and nations. The same One Who gave strength to Daniel is the One Who is, "the Strength of my life," Jesus, the Christ.
Father, in Jesus' Name, teach me what I need to know here. Amen.
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When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
Hebrews 12:2
Hebrews 12:2
