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Daniel chapter 9, beginning at
verse 1. Hear now the word of the Lord. In the first year of Darius,
the son of Asherus of Median descent, who was made king over
the kingdom of the Chaldeans, In the first year of his reign,
I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which
was revealed as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet
for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely 70 years. So I gave my attention to the
Lord God to seek him by prayer and supplications with fasting,
sackcloth, and ashes. I prayed to the Lord my God and
confessed and said, alas, oh Lord, the great and awesome God
who keeps his covenant and loving kindness for those who love him
and keep his commandments. We have sinned, committed iniquity,
acted wickedly and rebelled, even turning aside from your
commandments and ordinances. Moreover, we have not listened
to your servants, the prophets who spoke in your name to our
kings, our princes, our fathers, and all the people of the land.
Righteousness belongs to you, O Lord, but to us open shame
as it is this day to the men of Judah, the inhabitants of
Jerusalem and all Israel, those who are nearby and those who
are far away in all the countries in which you have driven them
because of their unfaithful deeds which they have committed against
you. Open shame belongs to us, O Lord, to our kings, our princes,
and our fathers, because we have sinned against you. To the Lord
our God belong compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled
against him, nor have we obeyed the voice of the Lord our God
to walk in his teachings, which he set before us through his
servants, the prophets, Indeed, all Israel has transgressed your
law and turned aside, not obeying your voice. So the curse has
been poured out on us, along with the oath which is written
in the law of Moses, the servant of God. For we have sinned against
him. Thus he has confirmed his words
which he had spoken against us, and against our rulers who ruled
us, to bring on us great calamity. For under the whole heaven there
has not been done anything like what was done to Jerusalem. As it is written in the Law of
Moses, all this calamity has come upon us, yet We have not
sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our iniquity
and giving attention to your truth. Therefore, the Lord has
kept the calamity in store and brought it on us. For the Lord
our God is righteous and with respect to all his deeds which
he has done. But we have not obeyed his voice.
And now, O Lord our God, who have brought your people out
of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand and have made a name for
yourself. As it is this day, we have sinned. We have been wicked. O Lord, in accordance with all
your righteous acts, let now your anger and your wrath churn
away from your city, Jerusalem, your holy mountain, for because
of our sins and the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem, and
your people have become a reproach to all those around us. So now,
our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his supplications,
and for your sake, O Lord, let your face shine on your desolate
sanctuary. O my God, incline your ear and
hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations
in the city which is called by your name. For we are not presenting
our supplications before you on account of any merit of our
own, but on account of your great compassion. Oh, Lord, hear. Oh, Lord, forgive. Oh, Lord,
listen and take action. For your own sake, oh my God,
do not delay, because your city and your people are called by
your name. Now once more, having considered
various aspects of fasting, we come to a fourth message on the
subject. Now so far, we have said that
at its most basic level, that fasting is simply abstaining
from food and drink. However, biblical fasting is
more than this. As we saw previously, biblical
fasting is nothing less than the humiliation and the affliction
of the soul. It is a hunger for God. And as we will see today, there
is another aspect of fasting. Biblical fasting is an aid to
prayer. Now today, based upon our text,
we will look at the following two points. First of all, the
certainty of judgment. And second, an aid to prayer. So again, the certainty of judgment
and an aid to prayer. Let us first consider point number
one, which is the certainty of judgment. Again, we read, beginning
in verse one, in the first year of Darius, the son of Asherus,
of Median descent, who was made king over the kingdom of the
Chaldeans. In the first year of his reign,
I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which
was revealed as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet
for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely 70 years. Now the context of Daniel's fasting
and prayer is said to have taken place in the first year of the
reign of Darius. This was shortly after the fall
of Babylon to the Medes. Now, in order for us to understand
how the people of God arrived at this point, it is important
for us to consider the history of Judah and Israel up to this
point. You see, God had raised up the
Israelites to take the land of Canaan from its former inhabitants. The Israelites were to destroy
those people, for their sins had reached the ears of God. Now, what were the sins of Canaan's
former inhabitants? Well, Deuteronomy 18, 9 to 12
tells us. The text says, when you enter
the land which the Lord your God gives you, you shall not
learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. There shall not be found among
you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through
the fire, one who uses divination, one who practices witchcraft,
one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who casts
a spell, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.
For whoever does these things, these things is detestable to
the Lord. And because of these detestable
things, the Lord, your God, will drive them out before you. Again, if you read Leviticus
18, the entire chapter, God commands his people to be different than
the nations that had inhabited the land. In addition to the
sins listed in Deuteronomy 18, 9-12, the nations also practice
all manner of vile sexual activity, including adultery, homosexuality,
and bestiality. And so, three of the main reasons
why these nations were judged related to the sins of idolatry,
sexual immorality, and child sacrifice. Now, sadly, the people of God
would eventually follow in the footsteps of the nations that
they themselves had dispossessed And though the Lord was patient,
there came a time for God's own people to be judged and exiled
from the land. Now Israel, after the death of
Solomon, split into two. There was Israel to the north
and then Judah to the south. And in 2 Kings 17, 5-8, we see
that Israel would be captured by the Assyrians in 722 BC. 2 Kings 17, 5-8 states, Then
the king of Assyria invaded the whole land and went up to Samaria
and besieged it three years. In the ninth year of Hosea, the
king of Assyria captured Samaria and carried away Israel into
exile to Assyria and settled them in Hala and Hebor on the
river of Gozon and in the cities of the Medes. Now this came about
because the sons of Israel had sinned against the Lord their
God who had brought them up from the land of Egypt from under
the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt and they had feared other gods
and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord had
driven out before the sons of Israel, and in the customs of
the kings of Israel which they had introduced." So Israel, according
to this text, was judged and exiled from the land because
they had committed the same sins as the previous inhabitants of
the land. Judah, on the other hand, would
successfully remain free for another 136 years. But again, Judah, seeing the
judgment of God on her sister Israel, also persisted in sin
and suffered the same fate as God would raise up the Babylonians
to subjugate his people and exile them from the land. And so it was during this time
that Daniel is exiled. He is only a teenager. He's just a youth. Now Jeremiah prophesies of the
judgment of Judah in Jeremiah 25. Jeremiah 25, 1 to 12 states, The word that came to Jeremiah
concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim,
the son of Josiah, king of Judah. That was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar,
king of Babylon, which Jeremiah the prophet spoke to all the
people of Judah and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying,
From the 13th year of Josiah the son of Ammon, king of Judah,
even to this day, these 23 years, the word of the Lord has come
to me, and I have spoken to you again. and again, but you have
not listened. And the Lord has sent to you
all his servants, the prophets, again and again, but you have
not listened nor inclined your ear to hear. saying, turn now
everyone from his evil way and from the evil of your deeds and
dwell on the land which the Lord has given to you and your forefathers
forever and ever and do not go after other gods to serve them
and to worship them and do not provoke me to anger with the
work of your hands and I will do you no harm. Yet You have
not listened to me, declares the Lord, in order that you might
provoke me to anger with the work of your hands to your own
harm. Therefore, thus says the Lord
of hosts, because you have not obeyed my words, behold, I will
send and take all the families of the north, declares the Lord,
and I will send to you Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, my servant,
and will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants
and against all these nations round about. And I will utterly
destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing and an everlasting
desolation. Moreover, I will take from them
the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the
bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstone
and the light of the lamp, This whole land will be a desolation
and a horror, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon
70 years. Then it will be, when 70 years
are completed, I will punish the king of Babylon, and that
nation, declares the Lord, for their iniquity and the land of
the Chaldeans, and I will make it an everlasting desolation." Now, I want you to first notice
that God was patient with Judah. Jeremiah says, I have spoken
to you again and again, but you have not listened. And the Lord
has sent to you all his servants, the prophets, again and again,
but you have not listened. Judah did not heed the warnings
of the prophets. Instead, they committed the same
sins of Israel and did not believe the word of the Lord concerning
judgment. Now, you know who did not think
that the judgment of God would come upon them? the former inhabitants
of Canaan. And you know who else? Israel. They did not consider that the
riches of God's kindness and tolerance and patience should
have led them to repentance. Instead, they presumed upon His
grace and mercy, even as some of you presume upon God's grace
and mercy this very moment. For some of you, you won't believe
in the judgment of God until there is blood in the streets
and the sword is at your door. Some of you are unconvinced that
the judgment of God is real. You say that's just the Old Testament
or people back then were not civilized. People today are civilized
until they can't feed their families and resources become scarce. When law and order Decrease. Mad men take control. Brutal men who care nothing for
human life arise. And God will use these types
of men to chasten his people. But afterwards, he judges them
also. Jeremiah again says in verse
12, then it will be when 70 years are completed, I will punish
the king of Babylon and that nation, declares the Lord, for
their iniquity and the land of the Chaldeans, and I will make
it an everlasting desolation. God most certainly judges the
unrighteous, whether that be from among the heathen or from
among his own people. Even as the Apostle Paul remarks
to the church at Corinth, The unrighteous will not inherit
the kingdom of God. Do not be deceived. Now, it's towards the end of
this 70-year period prophesied by Jeremiah that we find Daniel
in chapter 9. At this time, Daniel is in his
80s. He's an old man. But rather than
live a life of retirement and ease, we see that Daniel goes
to work. Now, I want to encourage some
of you older saints with a word of application here. You see,
there is still much that you can do in the kingdom of God. You might not be able to go on
the mission field, you might not be able to stand in the pulpit
and preach hours on end, but you can pray, you can fast, There
is much need in the body for fasting and prayer for the success
of the work of ministry at Grace Fellowship Church. May I encourage
you to fast and pray on behalf of your elders and behalf of
all the various needs within the body of Christ. You see,
Daniel was not just An example to the youth, but to the ancient. Well, turning again back to verse
two of chapter nine, we read, in the first year of his reign,
I, Daniel, observed in the books the number of the years which
was revealed as the word of the Lord to Jeremiah, the prophet,
for the completion of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely 70 years. Daniel, understanding the times
and the word of God, enters into a time of fasting and prayer. Again, in verse three, We read,
so I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek him by prayer
and supplication with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. Daniel's response concerning
the activity of God in the world was not one of cold indifference. He did not say, since God is
sovereign, it is needless to pray. Rather, he understood that
this was a unique moment in time, which not only required prayer,
but also fasting. Now, this brings us to point
number two, which is that fasting is an aid to prayer. All throughout the Bible, again,
we see that fasting is usually accompanied by prayer. For instance,
if you recall last week in Psalm 35, verse 13, David says, but
as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth. I
humbled my soul with fasting, and what? Prayer kept returning
to my bosom. And again, we see a similar response
from the prophet Nehemiah concerning the remnant of the exiles in
Nehemiah 1, 1-4. Now in these verses we read,
the words of Nehemiah, the son of Hakaliah, Now it happened
in the month Chislev in the 20th year, while I was in Susa, the
capital, that Hanani, one of my brothers, and some men from
Judah came. And I asked them concerning the
Jews who had escaped and had survived the captivity about
Jerusalem. They said to me, The remnant
there in the province who survived the captivity are in great distress
and reproach. And the wall of Jerusalem is
broken down and its gates are burned with fire. And then it
says, when I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned
for days. And I was fasting and what? Praying before the God. of heaven. Now, Daniel and Nehemiah
were not contemporaries. However, it is in response to
Daniel's fasting and prayer in chapter 9 that he receives a
prophecy later in verse 25 that is partly fulfilled during the
time of Nehemiah. This prophecy has to do with
the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem. And so Nehemiah, decades
later, like Daniel, engages in a time of fasting and prayer. Nehemiah, like Daniel, sought
the Lord. Going back to verse three of
Daniel nine, he says, I gave my attention to the Lord God
to seek him in prayer. You see, Daniel was a man who
regularly sought the Lord through prayer. Now, earlier in chapter
six of the book of Daniel, we gained some insight into Daniel's
prayer life. If you recall, at this time,
Daniel was being promoted through the kingdom. Verse three of chapter
six states, then this Daniel began distinguishing himself
among the commissioners and the satraps. That's just another
word for governors. because he possessed an extraordinary
spirit and the king planned to appoint him over the entire kingdom. And so this made the commissioners
and the satraps jealous. And so these men hatch a scheme
to have King Darius sign into law what would, in effect, make
it illegal to pray to any god for 30 days. Now the penalty
for breaking this law was death. And so what does Daniel do? Well,
we read this in verse 10. Now when Daniel knew that the
document was signed, he entered his house. Now in his roof chamber,
He had windows open towards Jerusalem and he continued kneeling on
his knees three times a day, praying and giving thanks before
his God as he had been doing previously. According to these
verses, Daniel did what he always did. In defiance to the governing
authorities, Daniel prayed to God. He obeyed God rather than
man. Generally speaking, Christians
are to obey the governing authorities. There are times, however, when
obedience is not an option. And so we see that Daniel prays
to God in defiance of the law. Now in one sense, this is not
anything extraordinary that Daniel does. For he was a man who regularly
prayed to God. In fact, according to this text,
we learn that he did so three times a day. Now, to our shame, myself included,
we are not a praying people as we ought to be. And one of the
areas that we see this reflected in is when we gather for corporate
prayer You see, the attendance at our prayer meeting speaks
volumes to the value that we place on prayer. Now could it be that we don't
value the public gathering to pray as much as we should because
we have neglected this practice in private? This is to our shame,
brethren. And we need to learn from Daniel's
example. Daniel normally sought God in
prayer. We also see that on certain occasions,
Daniel not only sought the Lord through prayer, but also through
fasting as well. Later in chapter 10, for instance,
we see that Daniel sought the Lord with a partial fast. That is, that he did not abstain
from food and drink altogether, only certain kinds of food and
drink. Again, Daniel 10.1-3 states,
In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a message was revealed
to Daniel, who was named Balthasar. And the message was true and
one of great conflict, but he understood the message and had
an understanding of the vision. In those days, I, Daniel, had
been mourning for three weeks. I did not eat any tasty food,
nor did meat or wine enter my mouth, nor did I use any ointment
at all until the entire three weeks were completed. Now, on certain occasions, the
regular practice of prayer is not enough. We see, for instance,
if the addition of verse 21 in Matthew 17 is accurate, then
the disciples were unable to exercise the demon because of
their lack of prayer and fasting. And so as one writer notes on
the verse, and by such abstinence from food
as fits the mind for the highest exercises of religion and leaves
it free to hold communion with God. And so Daniel, on this occasion,
performs a partial fast in chapter 10. Now in this example, we gain
more insight into the practice of fasting. In certain instances,
a partial fast is every bit as good as a full fast. Now, for
some of you, you may feel guilty that you are unable to completely
abstain from food and drink due to physical restrictions. That's okay. In certain instances,
a partial fast is completely acceptable. If, for instance,
a woman is pregnant or physically there is some condition that
would prevent someone from engaging in a full fast, then a partial
fast is okay. Now at this point, wisdom from
some of the older writers is instructive for us on this subject. Arthur Hildersham notes this
regarding partial fasts. I grant that such as cannot thus
abstain cannot keep a fast, but yet may they keep a day of humiliation
in an acceptable and effectual manner as they that can fast
best, provided one, that they abuse not this liberty and pretend
necessity when there is none. But remember that they have herein
to deal with God, who knows their hearts and flesh. Two, that that
which they eat upon the day of humiliation be neither for quantity
nor quality, such but that they may still preserve in themselves
such a feeling of the want of food as may afflict nature, as
we see Daniel did in Daniel 10.3. I ate no pleasant bread, neither
came flesh nor wine within my mouth, neither did I anoint myself
at all till three whole weeks were fulfilled." Again, brethren,
the Lord knows our frame. Let us not, therefore, pass judgment
on one another during a day of corporate fasting if someone
eats or drinks. On the other hand, let us not
say that we cannot fast if indeed we are able to. Instead, Let
us seek in those times of extraordinary need to lay aside food and drink
for a season in order to seek the Lord through fasting and
prayer. Daniel, again, was in such a
moment of need. And so he fasts and prays. Now, we see the main content
of his prayer can be summarized in the following three words. It is confession, adoration, and supplication. Daniel prays confessing his sins
and the sins of the people. Again in verses four to five
he says, I pray to the Lord my God and confessed and said, alas,
oh Lord, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant and
loving kindness for those who love him and keep his commandments. We have sinned, committed iniquity,
acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from your
commandments and ordinances. Daniel in adoration also declares
that God is just and righteous in all of his judgments. He says
in verse 14, for the Lord our God is righteous with respect
to all his deeds which he has done. Finally, Daniel in supplication
appeals to God for mercy and compassion. He says in verses
17 to 19, So now, our God, listen to the prayer of your servant
and to his supplications. And for your sake, O Lord, let
your face shine on your desolate sanctuary. O my God, Incline
your ear and hear, open your eyes and see our desolation and
the city which is called by your name, for we are not presenting
our supplications before you on account of any merit of our
own. but on account of your great
compassion. Oh Lord, hear. Oh Lord, forgive. Oh Lord, listen and take action. For your own sake, oh my God,
do not delay because your city and your people are called by
your name. Well, In closing, I end with
one final point of application that provides us with actionable
steps. Like Daniel, we need to go to
the Lord in fasting and praying. confessing our own sins and the
sins of this nation. We are a nation full of idols. If you recall last week, we were
reminded of the 64 million babies aborted in this country. And
every day, children are being sacrificed to the idols of freedom
and convenience. For years, the sins of homosexuality
and adultery have polluted the land. Idolatry, sexual immorality,
and child sacrifice I remind you that the Lord had judged
the inhabitants of Canaan for these sins and even his own people. How then can America stand unless
the people of God intercede with fasting and prayer? We must weep
and mourn and cry out for mercy, for God is righteous. Now, this fact should greatly
trouble us, not for ourselves, but for our nation. Recall the
words of Nahum. one three the lord is slow to
anger and great in power and the lord will by no means leave
the guilty unpunished we are a nation that is guilty
we are guilty of the blood of the innocent We are guilty of
all manner of sexual immorality. And we are guilty of gross idolatry. And the word of God says that
the Lord will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. Let us therefore like Daniel,
plead with God for mercy in fasting and prayer on behalf of our nation. Likewise, I say to the unbeliever that
you too must plead with God for mercy for your own soul. For even now you stand before
a holy and righteous God as condemned. All of your sins cry guilty,
guilty, guilty, and the Lord will by no means leave the guilty
unpunished. So I say to you today, flee to Christ, for though He
is a righteous judge, He is also a merciful and compassionate
Savior. Amen? Let's go to the Lord in
a word of prayer. Heavenly Father, what more can be said? We confess that as your people, we have not always walked in your ways.
We have not always sought you in prayer as we should. And Lord, you are righteous.
You are holy. But you are also merciful and
compassionate. And so we plead, not based on
any merit of our own, but for your namesake, that you would
forgive us as a people at Grace Fellowship Church. for the sins
of idolatry, sexual immorality, Lord, and even for those who
may have sacrificed their children. Lord, we pray that you would
forgive us. And we pray that you would stir up in our hearts
a desire to intercede on behalf of this nation, Lord, that stands
even right now guilty before you. Lord, let us not think that somehow
we are special. that the judgment of God that
fell upon nations time and time after time for the same sins
cannot fall upon America. And so we plead with you, God,
for mercy. We pray for your compassion,
Lord. Have mercy on us as a nation. Forgive, Lord. Help us as the people of God
to stand for what we know to be true. Give us strength in
the coming days. Give us grace that we need, Lord.
For you not only tell us what to do, but you also give us the
strength, the power, and the ability to do these things. And
so we thank you for all that you are and who you reveal yourself
to be. Be with us, strengthen us, I
pray. In Jesus' name, amen.
Fasting - An Aid to Prayer
Series Fasting
| Sermon ID | 1021241310285712 |
| Duration | 47:38 |
| Date | |
| Category | Bible Study |
| Bible Text | Daniel 9:1-19 |
| Language | English |
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