If you look to my right or left, there are these two banners. They've been there since the start in Daniel. They quote Daniel 6, 26 through 27. People are to tremble in fear before the God of Daniel, for he is the living God, enduring forever. His kingdom shall never be destroyed, and his dominion shall be to the end. And it continues on. It says, he alone delivers, he alone rescues. He works signs and wonders in heaven on earth. He who saved Daniel from the power of the lions. And this is where we find ourselves today in Daniel 6. So let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, we have just sang that we know that you are our living hope. You are our only hope. As I deliver this message, Lord, just prepare our hearts to receive your word well. Open our ears to hear and give me the strength to speak clearly. In your name we pray. Amen. Good morning, everyone. For people who It may be their first time, welcome. Daniel 6 is a very well-known chapter in the Bible, a book in the Bible. For a long time, churchgoers might have heard this in their Sunday school or bedtime story, but my hope with today's sermon is that we believers and unbelievers alike can be pointed to the truth of the God of Daniel. See, he's the only one that can rescue you, and your hope must be in him alone. To give us a clearer picture of what is currently happening in the passage, Daniel 6 takes place around 539 BC, right after the fall of Nebuchadnezzar's son, Belshazzar, or Belshazzar. Darius the Mede has just taken reign, and he murders him. We saw this last week in Joe's teaching on chapter five. Daniel predicted his demise, this king's demise, and it came to pass that very night. So for a little context, there's this really creative or cool creative writing process in the book of Daniel. Even though the first chapter is written in Hebrew and chapters eight through 12 are written in Hebrew, we get this small section in chapters two through seven that are written in Aramaic. Daniel in these chapters creates three pairings. The visual is up here on the screen for you guys. But we see in this pattern in Daniel that helps contrast these three major pairings. In chapters 2 and 7, there's these dreams. And to not spoil next week's chapter, this mirroring of dreams is one of a king's dream in chapter 2. And in chapter 7, it's Daniel's dream. In chapter 4 and 5, it speaks on king's pride. The pairing of 4 and 5 follows two prideful kings who were unrepentant. But contrast a king who eventually humbled himself and one king who stuck in his own arrogant pride met a justful ending. And so, the last pairing, chapters 3 and 6, are stories of rescuing. This final pairing is where we find ourselves today. Now, if you remember back to a few weeks ago, Dan taught in chapter 3. And chapter 3 was a story of friends who stayed faithful in the midst of trial. And so, in chapter 6, we get this beautiful pairing of another story. If chapter three was a story of a group of believers, chapter six is a story of Daniel, alone, standing firm in the midst of trial. Let's turn to the scriptures and begin in Daniel chapter six, verse one. Before we start reading, just for clarification, there's a word used in the passage called satraps. All satraps means in Greek is protector of the kingdom. These protectors would be equivalent to a modern day governor. So for today's purpose, I'll be using satraps and governors interchangeably as we read. So back to verse one. It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom's 120 governors, to be throughout the whole kingdom, and over them three high officials, of whom Daniel was one, to whom these governors should give account, so that the king might suffer no loss. Now, King Darius appointed these governors not merely to just make his job easier as king, but so that he might not suffer loss. This wording, to suffer loss, in this verse, is interesting because pretty much it means that these governors were put in these positions so that if something negatively happened in the kingdom, he could save face with his citizens. What a good king. So Daniel's position, on the other hand, could be viewed like the hand of the king or his right-hand man. These governors would report to Daniel of dealings within the kingdom. So let's pick up back in verse three. Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and governors because an excellent spirit was with him, and the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom. Then the high officials and the governors sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom. But they could find no ground for complaint or any fault because he was faithful and no error or fault was within him. Then these men said, we shall not find any ground or complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God. Now we never do find out in the book why these officials were so gung-ho on finding fault with Daniel. It could be that he was just a foreigner with high prestige and it was some form of simple jealousy. But I think it's more likely that this frustration that these governors were having to Daniel was because of Daniel's faithfulness. and the fact that he wasn't corrupt when it came to issues in the kingdom. So as it was mentioned in verse four, so this probably restricted their opportunities to enhance their income, but Daniel's character was such that they knew they couldn't find any fault in him. And so they go to find this fault between him and his God. So in verse six, picking back up in verse six, Then these high officials and governors came by agreement to the king and said to him, O King Darius, live forever. All the high officials of the kingdom, the prefects and the satraps, the counselors and the governors are agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an injunction. that whoever makes petition to any god or man for 30 days except to you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions. Now, O king, establish the injunction and sign the document so that it cannot be changed according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked. Therefore, King Darius signed the document and injunction. When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously. These men came by agreement and found Daniel making petition and plea before his God. Then they came near, and said before the king concerning the injunction, O king, did you not sign an injunction that anyone who makes petition to any god or man within thirty days, except you, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered and said, The thing stands fast, according to the law of the Medes and the Persians, which cannot be revoked. At this point, it's probably safe to say that King Darius was not expecting the man who broke the law to be Daniel. After all, he was very fond of Daniel, and he was really useful to King Darius. Then they answered and said before the king, Daniel, who is the one of the exiles from Judah, pays no attention to you, O king, or the injunction you have signed, but makes his petition three times a day. Then the king, when he heard these words, was much distressed. and set his mind to deliver Daniel, and he labored till the sun went down to rescue him. Then these men came by agreement to the king and said to the king, Know, O king, that it is the law of the Medes and the Persian that no injunction or ordinance that the king has established can be changed. Then the king commanded, and Daniel was brought and cast into the den of lions. The king declared to Daniel, may your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you. And a stone was brought and laid on the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet and with the signet of his lord's, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel. Then the king went to his palace and spent the night fasting. No diversions were brought to him, and sleep fled from him. Then at daybreak, the king arose and went in haste to the den of lions. As he came nearer to the den where Daniel was, he cried out in a tone of anguish. The king declared to Daniel, O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you continually serve, been able to deliver you from the lions? Then Daniel said to the king, O king, live forever. My God has sent his angels and shut the lion's mouth, and they have not harmed me because I was found blameless before him. And also before you, O king, I have done no harm. Then the king was exceedingly glad and commanded that Daniel be taken out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out of the den, and no kind of harm was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. And the king commanded, and those men who had maliciously accused Daniel were brought and cast into the den of lions, they, their children, and their wives. I want to make something clear. This was not something Daniel requested to happen. This one is not some form of revenge, but more likely a cultural form of justice in the Persian kingdom. In that time, if someone accused you of doing something wrong or wrongdoing, the false accuser would receive the same punishment, and that punishment would also extend to their family and their kids. And before they reached the bottom of the den, the lions overpowered them and broke all their bones in pieces. Verse 25. Then King Darius wrote to all peoples, nations, and languages that dwell on this earth, peace be multiplied to you. I make a decree that in my royal dominion, people are to tremble and fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, enduring forever. His kingdom shall never be destroyed and his dominion shall be to the end. He delivers and rescues. He works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth. He who had saved Daniel from the power of the lions. So this Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian. The end of chapter six brings us to the end of Daniel's timeline. He's probably about 80 years old. So what can we learn from this famous chapter? Daniel six brings us the climactic reality that the God of Daniel The great I am has the power to deliver and rescue. So to summarize the main point of Daniel 6, I would put it like this. Because the living God alone has the power to rescue, Christians should be steadfast in trials, even when they're alone. Because the living God alone has the power to rescue, Christians should be steadfast in trials, even when we're alone. So today I want to make three applications of Daniel 6. My first application is that God alone has the power to rescue. So live with integrity. Let's observe Daniel's integrity. In verse three it says, then Daniel became distinguished above all the high officials and satraps because an excellent spirit was with him, and the king planned to set before him over the whole kingdom. Then the high officials and satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground or complaint because he was faithful and no error or fault was found in him. Before Daniel is even in this trial, Daniel's character is already on display. It has been on display through the whole book of Daniel so far. These governors hated Daniel and wanted him to fail. They could not find anything against him. Why? Because Daniel's integrity was rooted in scripture. Integrity refers to living consistently and unhypocritically. It's really, really hard to get fired from your job if you're a person who shows up on time, who doesn't try to steal or cheat anyone, who isn't out there trying to backstab someone for a promotion, when your motive for your work is I'm gonna do everything in my power to serve and glorify God in everything I do. It's really hard to find fault in that. This is the predicament that the Satraps have. Daniel is faithfully serving his king and his kingdom, in verse 4, and he's not looking to gain anything like any power or wealth. His whole point is to be a faithful servant and living with integrity. Daniel knew scripture. His knowledge of God's word let him know that his feelings, the way he felt, weren't what controlled his actions, but faith in the word of God did. Charles Spurgeon says, if you live by feelings, you're looking for joy where it can never be found. Joy is found only in God the creator, the one who can rescue you from trials. Relying on your own will will never be enough. So Daniel's integrity is kind of a challenge for us, right? We live in a culture currently that lacks integrity. We live with politicians who, at any given note, constantly change their stances on certain topics. They try to appeal to a certain crowd. We as people ourselves have a habit to look at a person and agree with them face to face. And then after a moment, we turn around and stab them in the back, we gossip about them. Our culture looks a lot more in line with that of the C traps than Daniel. I personally struggle with this. I'm a people pleaser. I like saying yes to everyone. And I like agreeing with everyone for the sake of not being disliked. The problem with this, though, is, and something I continually have to remind myself, is we can't agree with everyone. And by doing so, we become hypocrites. Something I must remind myself is that God is my authority and I must live like it. Meaning my life is forever changed when I proclaim to be a Christian. My loyalty is to Christ, not to any other person. God is my higher authority and I am no longer living for what I feel is right, but what is true of scripture. So in my personal life, in my time of devotion and prayer, it is in pursuit to reflect Christ and his word. As Daniel's heart was to honor and obey God, so it must be for all of us. So that begs the question, right? Does your life reflect that God is your authority and you live with integrity? Now as you reflect, I want to say something for unbelievers. You cannot be a faithful person if you are the ruler of your own life. Integrity is rooted in living for the one who died for you, your sins and mine. Jesus Christ is the only man who truly lived a perfect life. According to God's law, you and I are not good people. You and I are not naturally people who can pursue Christ-like integrity. Without the precious blood of Jesus Christ that was spilled on Calvary, you are still guilty before God. You are found guilty and you'll be cast into a farther, greater pit than Daniel. There's great news though. One that Daniel foretold. Daniel said there would be a great redeemer who would rescue his people from death, but not just a physical death, but an eternal death. His name is Jesus. So I ask, If you have not made Jesus your Lord and Savior, I ask, repent, ask for forgiveness of your sins, turn from your old ways, do a 180, and pursue the great God of Daniel. My second observation, God alone has the power to rescue, so be faithful. The second observation, God alone has the power to rescue, so be faithful in this world. Integrity will lead to trials. That's a given. Now, I'd be remiss to mention that Daniel most likely knew their intentions to find fault in him. I'm not sure about you, but if I had 120 governors looking for my demise, this would lead to a lot of worry and anxiousness. Yet Daniel somehow is unaffected. about their plot. You see, right after finding about this new decree, what does he do? Look at verse 10. When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper room or an upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as he had done previously. See, Daniel's response here is to pray the same way he has done in the past, the same way he would do that very morning. Nothing changed. No law, no political change can change what he knows to be true. It is his faith in the midst of this trial that he can still be at peace. I love John Newton's quote that says, there is a peace passing understanding of which politicians cannot deprive us. This quote comes straight from Newton's comments on Daniel 2.21. He changes times and seasons. He removes kings and sets up kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding. See, Daniel's response here in chapter six is in reflection of the truth in chapter two. He knows that God is sovereign, and he knows that God is the one in control. He's in control over kings, over principalities, and Daniel's example for us, in the midst of persecution, his response is to continue to grow in steadfast prayer to God the creator. giving thanks and glory to the one who is worthy of it all. Daniel's faithfulness was fueled by his fear of God. But it's not just Daniel that is marked by faith and trust and obedience. Missionary history is filled with people who trusted God to be rescued. The story of Daniel isn't new for Christians. What is the most common response you'll see in this missionary history in trials? It's prayer. In the book of John G. Peyton, Missionaries to the Cannibals of the South Seas by Paul Sheelan, he recounts when he and his family went to Vanuatu to share the gospel with the locals. They didn't go into some forceful manner. but went to share and proclaim the gospel. That was their goal. Even still, the locals didn't want them there, and one night gathered and surrounded their houses. Their intent was to burn the houses down and kill them. And so Paden's response was turning to his wife to pray. So they prayed all night during that terrified night that God would deliver them from what felt like a lion's den. When day broke, Paden recalls that he was amazed to see that no one was left outside and every house was untouched. Paden thanked God for delivering them. Years later, when one of the very own chiefs that tried to kill them was converted, Paden asked him, what kept the chief and his men from burning down their homes and killing them that night? The chief replied, who were all those men you had with you there? Paden replied, there were no men, it was just me and my wife. The chief argued, that they had seen many men standing guard, hundreds of big men in shining garments with drawn swords in their hands. They seemed to circle the homes, and so the natives were afraid to attack. Only in that moment did Paden realize that God had sent his angels to protect them. The chief agreed that there was no other explanation Missionary history and church history is rich with accounts of faithful men and women who prayed and were delivered. The God of Daniel, he delivers and rescues, he works signs and wonders in heaven and on earth. He who has saved Daniel from the power of the lions. So, Daniel is an example of someone who did the right thing by continuing to pray. That's the right thing to do. And yet found himself in a lion's den. And for most of us, we know that can happen to us too. Doing the right thing doesn't mean life always goes easy. From Greg's many prayers, we know that's not to be true. We know life doesn't always go easy. In fact, often it's the opposite, right? We can do the right thing and end up in trials as a result, yet we are still to be faithful. Faithfulness does not stop when trial comes. It endures. James 1, verses two through four says, Conant all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness, and let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. A Christian's faith in God the creator does not stay stagnant but we are called to continually grow, even in trials. So Christians, continue to be faithful. Be faithful in your Bible reading. Be faithful in your prayer. Give thanks to God continually. Be faithful in your obedience, no matter what the results are. Be faithful through the great trials of all various kinds that God calls you to go through in life. Thirdly, God has the power alone to rescue, so be hopeful. There's this theme found in Daniel 6 of a God who can rescue, right? We see this in verse 16 when Darius shouts, may your God, whom you continually serve, deliver you. In verse 20, we also see this again. where it says, the king shouts, oh Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God whom you serve continually been able to deliver you from the lions? We see this again in verse 22 and even in verse 27. Daniel's God, our king of kings, is a God who alone has the power to rescue. This is the hope as Christians, one that I cling to every day, that we need to live with. See, Daniel hasn't been the only one that's been saved. And I'm sure Darius is hoping that if God could save Daniel's friends, right, in the fiery furnace, that he could do it again. Daniel's hope is rooted in the rich history that God will rescue his people. This isn't the first time God has saved Israel continually throughout the Old Testament. and could save Daniel. So when Darius checks to see if Daniel is still alive, what does Daniel say? In verse 22, my God sent his angels and shut the mouths of the lions, and they have not harmed me, because I was found blameless before him and also before you, king. O king, I have done no harm. God rescued Daniel, God delivered Daniel, and God saved Daniel. That's the kind of power our God has. Daniel hoped in the God who can save, and he saw God save him. Hebrews 11.33 describes Daniel as this prophet who, through faith, stopped the mouths of the lions. But the reality is that we aren't all Daniel. Yes, we may face trials, but we aren't always delivered. That's the reality. Just three verses later in Hebrews, it goes on to say that other faithful believers will suffer in hope. See, our hope ultimately as Christians has to be to God, our creator. Like the song we often sing here, he is our hope in life and death. That's the reality. Here at Tri-County, we have had wonderful champions of the faith. Over the years, God has taken many fellow members home. But there's one great trait that all these faithful believers share. That trait is hope. Recounting reading many of their last words before going to meet Jesus, you can see a constant message of how they handled these trials and how they handled the soon departure. Their faith was tied to the truth of scripture. the truth that showed them that there was a hope. Hope that in the midst of their pain and suffering, there was someone who had already, there was someone who already set them free from their bonds. There's nothing left to fear as Christians. And that there was no greater hope but to look through the cross of Jesus Christ and keep their eyes fixed on eternity. Brothers and sisters, I want to make something clear. There will be times of dismay, times where you feel hopeless, and times where you feel utterly afraid. Don't lose hope because Jesus has already saved you. After I finish, we're going to be singing Jesus Saves. and I hope that changes the way in which we sing it. Focus on the truth. Christians walk this great life of endurance knowing full well that there is a greater reward waiting for you in heaven. We must never forget that when we are alone, and the enemy is surrounding us, that we have nothing to fear. God is the Lord of Lords today, tomorrow, and forever. We have to put our faith and trust in the God who freed the men from the fiery furnace. We have to put our faith and trust in the God who shut lion's mouths. and we have to put our faith and trust in the God who shut the mouths of the lions and also died for all of mankind. Our God saves and alone our God saves. Put your hope in Christ and be immovable. Joe, would you come up and pray for us?