Daniel 3:8-18

 

March 11, 2024

 

The Fiery Furnace

Therefore, at that time certain Chaldeans came forward and maliciously accused the Jews.  They declared to King Nebuchadnezzar, “O king, live forever!  You, O king, have made a decree that every man who hears the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, shall fall down and worship the golden image.  And whoever does not fall down and worship shall be cast into a burning fiery furnace. There are certain Jews whom you have appointed over the affairs of the province of Babylon: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These men, O king, pay no attention to you; they do not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Then Nebuchadnezzar, in furious rage, commanded that Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego be brought. So, they brought these men before the king.  Nebuchadnezzar answered and said to them, “Is it true, O Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the golden image that I have set up?  Now if you are ready when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, to fall down and worship the image that I have made, well and good. But if you do not worship, you shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you out of my hands?”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.  If this be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of your hand, O king.  But if not, be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

 

A foolish king who wants all the people to bow to his rule, and when confronted with three young men who know who the True God is, and have no doubt He has the power to save them, and that He loved them.  We see Faith in action, and not fear in control.  They stood, and have we not been taught to stand and look to God?  Ephesians 6 gives this command: "Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil." "Therefore, put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand." 

 

We also see God being confronted by this foolish king, and it comes to my mind when we see Fear rule in the hearts of so many whose actions were not an act of Faith in a God who has the power to keep Covid 19 from harming you.  For me and my house, we believe our God was bigger, and so did so many others who were fired because they did not bow to the little liar who told us he was science, or the pharmaceutical companies.  It was our government's golden image, and it was a dark time for our nation and God’s Church.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Man Who “Prayed About It”

 

The Man Who “Prayed About It”

 

Anything of worth – “he prayed about it” …

The stranger that I talked to now and then;

It was always at an unexpected moment

That I’d see him and we’d stop to chat again.

 

He always smiled, as if he’d found the secret to peace

To peace within himself... and heart’s content

He’d say of some new thought – “I’ll pray about it”

And that was just exactly what he meant –

 

He must’ve gone away – I never see him,

But I’ll always have a special memory

Of the pleasant little man who “prayed about it”

And left a bit of extra faith with me.

 

The years have passed – yet I still “pray about it”

However large or small the matter seems

Somehow it just works out a little better

When you “pray about it” new tasks or special dreams.

 

Cause life’s not apt to be too much to handle

No worthwhile thing’s impossible to do

And there’s no need or hope so complicated

So difficult that faith can’t see it through . . .

 

So, whatever I’m impatient or uncertain . . .

When the course seems long, and I begin to doubt it,

I recall the cheerful stranger’s special courage

Then I find a quiet place . . .  and pray about it.”

 

D. A. Marcum

Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Image

 

Daniel 3:1-7

 

March 9, 2023

 

Nebuchadnezzar's Golden Image

King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, whose height was sixty cubits and its breadth six cubits. He set it up on the plain of Dura, in the province of Babylon.  Then King Nebuchadnezzar sent to gather the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces to come to the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.  Then the satraps, the prefects, and the governors, the counselors, the treasurers, the justices, the magistrates, and all the officials of the provinces gathered for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up. And they stood before the image that Nebuchadnezzar had set up.  And the herald proclaimed aloud, “You are commanded, O peoples, nations, and languages, that when you hear the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, you are to fall down and worship the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.  And whoever does not fall down and worship shall immediately be cast into a burning fiery furnace.”  Therefore, as soon as all the peoples heard the sound of the horn, pipe, lyre, trigon, harp, bagpipe, and every kind of music, all the peoples, nations, and languages fell down and worshiped the golden image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

 

That golden has long been gone, but the God of heaven and earth and everything that is still reigns over the affairs of man.  A very powerful man with great wealth is often the easiest person to think is great and the maker of their power and wealth.  Nebuchadnezzar was full of himself and wanted to force others to worship him.  

 

The Creator of everything that is or will be is Jesus Christ. He is referred to as the Word that was with God, in that he was God. You will find Him referred to in John, chapter 1:1-3.  The enemy of our soul hates our Lord, and he has these goals: to kill, steal, and destroy, whereas the Word, our Lord and Redeemer, Jesus Christ, came to bring life in full.

It is one thing to be liked, but only God is to be worshiped.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Daniel Interprets the Dream

 

Daniel 2:31-45

 

March 7, 2024

 

Daniel Interprets the Dream

 “You saw, O king, and behold, a great image. This image, mighty and of exceeding brightness, stood before you, and its appearance was frightening.  The head of this image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its middle and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay.  As you looked, a stone was cut out by no human hand, and it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.  Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold, all together, were broken in pieces, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away, so that not a trace of them could be found. But the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.

“This was the dream. Now we will tell the king its interpretation.  You, O king, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom, the power, and the might, and the glory, and into whose hand he has given, wherever they dwell, the children of man, the beasts of the field, and the birds of the heavens, making you rule over them all—you are the head of gold.  Another kingdom inferior to you shall arise after you, and yet a third kingdom of bronze, which shall rule over all the earth.  And there shall be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron, because iron breaks to pieces and shatters all things. And like iron that crushes, it shall break and crush all these.  And as you saw the feet and toes, partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it shall be a divided kingdom, but some of the firmness of iron shall be in it, just as you saw iron mixed with the soft clay.  And as the toes of the feet were partly iron and partly clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong and partly brittle.  As you saw the iron mixed with soft clay, so they will mix with one another in marriage, but they will not hold together, just as iron does not mix with clay.  And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever,  just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be after this. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure.”

 

What is the message to a lost world in Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream?  A world that is seeking the little gods of this world, like power, wealth, and pleasure.  Nebuchadnezzar was appointed by God to rule that world, yet he was as pagan and evil as they come.  This was from the internet, and it is well stated about this Scripture.  “In Daniel 2:31-45, the message conveyed is that God is sovereign over all earthly kingdoms and that He will establish an eternal kingdom that will never be destroyed. The passage describes a dream of a statue made of different metals, representing successive kingdoms, which is ultimately shattered by a stone not cut by human hands. This stone symbolizes God's eternal kingdom that will triumph over all earthly powers.” 

 

Our Lord and redeemer came to His own, and his own did not receive him, but to all that will, He is Savior and Lord, and He is coming back this time as King of Kings and Lord of LORDS.  His reign will be forever!  Drop those little gods, they cannot do what God can do, and in the end, you will be in a place that was not designed for you.  A place designed for the devil and his demons. 

 

From our Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

 

Daniel 2:17-30

 

March 6, 2023

 

God Reveals Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

Then Daniel went to his house and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, and told them to seek mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that Daniel and his companions might not be destroyed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.  Then the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision of the night. Then Daniel blessed the God of heaven.   Daniel answered and said: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might.  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; he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him.  To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king's matter.”

Therefore, Daniel went into Arioch, whom the king had appointed to destroy the wise men of Babylon. He went and said thus to him: “Do not destroy the wise men of Babylon; bring me in before the king, and I will show the king the interpretation.”

Then Arioch brought in Daniel before the king in haste and said thus to him: “I have found among the exiles from Judah a man who will make known to the king the interpretation.” The king declared to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar, “Are you able to make known to me the dream that I have seen and its interpretation?”  Daniel answered the king and said, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked,  but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries, and he has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days. Your dream and the visions of your head as you lay in bed are these:  To you, O king, as you lay in bed came thoughts of what would be after this, and he who reveals mysteries made known to you what is to be.   But as for me, this mystery has been revealed to me, not because of any wisdom that I have more than all the living, but in order that the interpretation may be made known to the king, and that you may know the thoughts of your mind.

 

As you read this, did you notice what Daniel did? He first went to men who knew God, his friends, and asked them to pray that God would reveal the king’s dream.​  God did so, and look at the response of David: “Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, to whom belong wisdom and might.  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; he reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what is in the darkness, and the light dwells with him.  To you, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise, for you have given me wisdom and might, and have now made known to me what we asked of you, for you have made known to us the king's matter.”

He then made sure that Arioch, whom the king had appointed to kill all the wise men, and told him not to do so, he would reveal the dream's meaning to the king.​  And the last point is that Daniel made sure the king understood that it was not his wisdom, but God, that gave Him these insights.  That was a big decision for this young man, who was standing before a man with the power to give and take lives, and had given orders to kill David and his friends, along with the other wise men.  Today, many a man takes credit for the wisdom that only comes from God.  That may be why we are in the mess we are in.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

 

Daniel 2:1-16

 

March 5, 2024

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

 In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; his spirit was troubled, and his sleep left him.  Then the king commanded that the magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, and the Chaldeans be summoned to tell the king his dreams. So, they came in and stood before the king.  And the king said to them, “I had a dream, and my spirit is troubled to know the dream.”  Then the Chaldeans said to the king in Aramaic, “O king, live forever! Tell your servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation.”  The king answered and said to the Chaldeans, “The word from me is firm: if you do not make known to me the dream and its interpretation, you shall be torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins.  But if you show the dream and its interpretation, you shall receive from me gifts and rewards and great honor. Therefore, show me the dream and its interpretation.”  They answered a second time and said, “Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show its interpretation.”  The king answered and said, “I know with certainty that you are trying to gain time, because you see that the word from me is firm— if you do not make the dream known to me, there is but one sentence for you. You have agreed to speak lying and corrupt words before me till the times change. Therefore, tell me the dream, and I shall know that you can show me its interpretation.”  The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can meet the king's demand, for no great and powerful king has asked such a thing of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean.  The thing that the king asks is difficult, and no one can show it to the king except the gods, whose dwelling is not with flesh.”

Because of this the king was angry and very furious, and commanded that all the wise men of Babylon be destroyed.  So, the decree went out, and the wise men were about to be killed; and they sought Daniel and his companions, to kill them.  Then Daniel replied with prudence and discretion to Arioch, the captain of the king's guard, who had gone out to kill the wise men of Babylon.   He declared to Arioch, the king's captain, “Why is the decree of the king so urgent?” Then Arioch made the matter known to Daniel.  And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king.

Nebuchadnezzar, remind me of a boss I work for, the guy set beside you in your car and on calls take some kind of notes, but would not share how you were doing are if he was writing something good are bad.  Always telling you he was so much better than you.  But he never threatened to have me torn limb from limb, and your houses shall be laid in ruins.   In fact, he never even threatened to fire me.

Do you understand these guys were good con men, they made their living telling the king what he wanted to hear.  I bet if you worked in corporate USA, you worked with some of those people, and they often were put oven others they were poser, only knowing how to ask what the boss believe or wanted and do that.  They were and are as worthless as these magicians, the enchanters, the sorcerers, were to the King.

What the king did not know was Daniel was a man who knew the God of Creation, who knew what the king was going to say before a word came out of his mouth.  So, all David needed to do was ask God to reveal the dream to him, and the meaning of it.  

As a follower of Christ, we have the Spirit of God living in us, why do we not ask Him to guide us in wisdom?

From ​our Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Daniel's Faithfulness

 

Daniel 1:8-21

 

March 4, 2024

 

Daniel's Faithfulness

But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself with the king's food, or with the wine that he drank. Therefore, he asked the chief of the eunuchs to allow him not to defile himself.  And God gave Daniel favor and compassion in the sight of the chief of the eunuchs, and the chief of the eunuchs said to Daniel, “I fear my lord the king, who assigned your food and your drink; for why should he see that you were in worse condition than the youths who are of your own age? So, you would endanger my head with the king.”  Then Daniel said to the steward whom the chief of the eunuchs had assigned over Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, “Test your servants for ten days; let us be given vegetables to eat and water to drink.  Then let our appearance and the appearance of the youths who eat the king's food be observed by you, and deal with your servants according to what you see.”  So, he listened to them in this matter, and tested them for ten days.  At the end of ten days, it was seen that they were better in appearance and fatter in flesh than all the youths who ate the king's food.  So, the steward took away their food and the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables.

As for these four youths, God gave them learning and skill in all literature and wisdom, and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams.  At the end of the time, when the king had commanded that they should be brought in, the chief of the eunuchs brought them in before Nebuchadnezzar. And the king spoke with them, and among all of them none was found like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. Therefore, they stood before the king.  And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom.  And Daniel was there until the first year of King Cyrus.

 

Have you been told you do not live unto yourself; you are in a vacuum; others are affected by your actions and conviction.  In David case, it was Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah.  In my case, it was not food, but a statement by my boss and others who had had too much to drink after a dinner and drinking at a meeting in Brownville, Texas, where we had dinner in Mexico.  They said we are now going to boys’ town, and I spoke up that I would get a cab back to the hotel, that I would not be going with them.  To my amazement, many said we were going back with Rice.  People are always needing a voice of conviction.  With that said, Daniel was in a bad place under the rule of his pagan Ruler.  I was not in fear for my life, but I was taking a risk of one of the bosses going after my job.  But in both cases our conviction was centered on God’s promises and commandments. 

In Daniel’s case, God blessed him and his friends with wisdom: “In every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the king inquired of them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters that were in all his kingdom.”

It was not the eating of the vegetables that gave them the wisdom and understanding; it was the Lord whom they feared and honored.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice