Hope in the Lion’s Den

Daniel 6:6-27

Jeremiah 36:31 I will punish him, his descendants, and his officers for their iniquity. I will bring on them, on the residents of Jerusalem, and on the people of Judah all the disaster, which I warned them about but they did not listen.’”

Daniel 1:1-2

1 In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and laid siege to it. 2 The Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with some of the vessels from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar carried them to the land of Babylon, to the house of his god, and put the vessels in the treasury ofhis god.

O come, O come, Emmanuel,

and ransom captive Israel

that mourns in lonely exile here

until the Son of God appear.

Daniel 5:30-31

30 That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed, 31 and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two.

Daniel 6:1-10

Revelation 21:1-4

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 I also saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband.

3 Then I heard a loud voice from the throne: Look, God’s dwelling is with humanity, and he will live with them. They will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them and will be their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; grief, crying, and pain will be no more, because the previous things have passed away.

Daniel 6:11-28

The Story of Daniel in the Lions' Den Helps Us See:

• The powers of this world can and do come against the power of God.

• Blamelessness (vs. 22) and trust (vs. 23) are the keys to successful survival in the face of questioning our deepest convictions.

• The Law of God is the only immutable law.

• This story is as much about the future (eschatological) as it is historical. 

__________________ has been conspired against. 

__________________ was found guilty when he did nothing wrong. 

__________________ was given a death sentence. 

__________________ was locked away, presumed dead, never to be heard from again.

The sealed tomb was returned to, expecting death, and the unexpected was found–LIFE!

We are people who live in the hope that the current reality doesn't define the future.

The future of the Lions' Den is the hope of "O come, O come, Emmanuel..."

A New Covenant

Jeremiah 36

Jeremiah 36:1-7

1 In the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, this word came to Jeremiah from the Lord: 2 “Take a scroll, and write on it all the words I have spoken to you concerning Israel, Judah, and all the nations from the time I first spoke to you during Josiah’s reign until today. 3 Perhaps when the house of Judah hears about all the disaster I am planning to bring on them, each one of them will turn from his evil way. Then I will forgive their iniquity and their sin.”

4 So Jeremiah summoned Baruch son of Neriah. At Jeremiah’s dictation, Baruch wrote on a scroll all the words the Lord had spoken to Jeremiah. 5 Then Jeremiah commanded Baruch, “I am restricted; I cannot enter the temple of the Lord, 6 so you must go and read from the scroll—which you wrote at my dictation—the words of the Lord in the hearing of the people at the temple of the Lord on a day of fasting. Read his words in the hearing of all the Judeans who are coming from their cities. 7 Perhaps their petition will come before the Lord, and each one will turn from his evil way, for the anger and fury that the Lord has pronounced against this people are intense.”

Jeremiah 36:19-31

19 The officials said to Baruch, “You and Jeremiah must hide and tell no one where you are.” 20 Then, after depositing the scroll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe, the officials came to the king at the courtyard and reported everything in the hearing of the king. 21 The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll, and he took it from the chamber of Elishama the scribe. Jehudi then read it in the hearing of the king and all the officials who were standing by the king. 22 Since it was the ninth month, the king was sitting in his winter quarters with a fire burning in front of him. 23 As soon as Jehudi would read three or four columns, Jehoiakim would cut the scroll with a scribe’s knife and throw the columns into the fire in the hearth until the entire scroll was consumed by the fire in the hearth. 24 As they heard all these words, the king and all his servants did not become terrified or tear their clothes. 25 Even though Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah had urged the king not to burn the scroll, he did not listen to them. 26 Then the king commanded Jerahmeel the king’s son, Seraiah son of Azriel, and Shelemiah son of Abdeel to seize the scribe Baruch and the prophet Jeremiah, but the Lord hid them.

27 After the king had burned the scroll and the words Baruch had written at Jeremiah’s dictation, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: 28 “Take another scroll, and once again write on it the original words that were on the original scroll that King Jehoiakim of Judah burned. 29 You are to proclaim concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah, ‘This is what the Lord says: You have burned the scroll, asking, “Why have you written on it that the king of Babylon will certainly come and destroy this land and cause it to be without people or animals?” 30 Therefore, this is what the Lord says concerning King Jehoiakim of Judah: He will have no one to sit on David’s throne, and his corpse will be thrown out to be exposed to the heat of day and the frost of night. 31 I will punish him, his descendants, and his officers for their iniquity. I will bring on them, on the residents of Jerusalem, and on the people of Judah all the disaster, which I warned them about but they did not listen.’”

We are the community that accepts the burden of struggling with this text on behalf of all humanity–sometimes working with it, sometimes struggling against it.

We have the text—or better yet, the text has us. It reveals the world as it truly is: alive and full of wonder, yet marked by brokenness, loss, and sin. But it also reminds us that this is a world where God continually speaks.

The Glowing Coal

Isaiah 6:1-8

Isaiah 6:1-10

1 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, and the hem of his robe filled the temple. 2 Seraphim were standing above him; they each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 And one called to another:

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Armies; his glory fills the whole earth.

4 The foundations of the doorways shook at the sound of their voices, and the temple was filled with smoke.

The Threefold Holy

• God is holy in heaven and on earth.

• God is holy over all the creatures of the universe.

• God is holy and without sin. God cannot tolerate the sin of mankind.

5 Then I said:

Woe is me for I am ruined because I am a man of unclean lips and live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Armies.

When Isaiah comes face-to-face with God's holiness, confession is the natural outpouring.

6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me, and in his hand was a glowing coal that he had taken from the altar with tongs. 7 He touched my mouth with it and said:

Now that this has touched your lips, your iniquity is removed and your sin is atoned for.

The Threefold Holy

• God is holy in heaven and on earth.

• God is holy over all the creatures of the universe.

• God is holy and without sin. God cannot tolerate the sin of mankind.

• God is holy and the savior of His people.

8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord asking:

Who will I send? Who will go for us?

I said:

Here I am. Send me.

9 And he replied:

Go! Say to these people: Keep listening, but do not understand; keep looking, but do not perceive.

10 Make the minds of these people dull; deafen their ears and blind their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their minds, turn back, and be healed.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

4 “Listen, Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. 7 Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your city gates.

Deuteronomy 6:12-14

12 be careful not to forget the Lord who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery. 13 Fear the Lord your God, worship him, and take your oaths in his name. 14 Do not follow other gods, the gods of the peoples around you,

Isaiah 6:10 Make the minds of these people dull; deafen their ears and blind their eyes; otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears, understand with their minds, turn back, and be healed.

John 3:19-21

19 This is the judgment: The light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone who does evil hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed. 21 But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”

• Salvation is God's work, not ours. No one can earn salvation through self-effort or by "turning over a new leaf." It’s a gift only God can give.

• Only God’s burning, transforming love can reach us. His holy, consuming love is the only power strong enough to transform the depths of our self-centered hearts.

• Radical sin requires radical love. Humanity's deep brokenness can only be healed by the relentless, life-changing love of a holy and living God.

WE are joined this morning by Rev Randy Jasper.

“I don’t have anything…” 

1 Kings 17:1-24

1 Kings 16:29-33

1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, from the Gilead settlers, said to Ahab, “As the Lord God of Israel lives, in whose presence I stand, there will be no dew or rain during these years except by my command!”

1 Kings 17:2-7

2 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 3 “Leave here, turn eastward, and hide at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. 4 You are to drink from the wadi. I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.”

5 So he proceeded to do what the Lord commanded. Elijah left and lived at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. 6 The ravens kept bringing him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening, and he would drink from the wadi. 7 After a while, the wadi dried up because there had been no rain in the land.

God provides even when it comes from an unlikely source.

1 Kings 17:8-24

8 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 9 “Get up, go to Zarephath that belongs to Sidon and stay there. Look, I have commanded a woman who is a widow to provide for you there.” 10 So Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow gathering wood. Elijah called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup and let me drink.” 11 As she went to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.”

12 But she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I don’t have anything baked—only a handful of flour in the jar and a bit of oil in the jug. Just now, I am gathering a couple of sticks in order to go prepare it for myself and my son so we can eat it and die.”

13 Then Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid; go and do as you have said. But first make me a small loaf from it and bring it out to me. Afterward, you may make some for yourself and your son, 14 for this is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘The flour jar will not become empty and the oil jug will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the surface of the land.’”

15 So she proceeded to do according to the word of Elijah. Then the woman, Elijah, and her household ate for many days. 16 The flour jar did not become empty, and the oil jug did not run dry, according to the word of the Lord he had spoken through Elijah.

17 After this, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. His illness got worse until he stopped breathing. 18 She said to Elijah, “Man of God, what do you have against me? Have you come to call attention to my iniquity so that my son is put to death?”

19 But Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” So he took him from her arms, brought him up to the upstairs room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed. 20 Then he cried out to the Lord and said, “Lord my God, have you also brought tragedy on the widow I am staying with by killing her son?” 21 Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times. He cried out to the Lord and said, “Lord my God, please let this boy’s life come into him again!”

22 So the Lord listened to Elijah, and the boy’s life came into him again, and he lived. 23 Then Elijah took the boy, brought him down from the upstairs room into the house, and gave him to his mother. Elijah said, “Look, your son is alive.”

24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you are a man of God and the Lord’s word from your mouth is true.”

• Fed by ravens

• The widow's flour and oil

• The widow's son

The miracle is that there is more than enough. There is an overflow of abundance that defies royal scarcity. More than enough, guaranteed by God! The Christian Gospel is a summons to leave the fearful world of scarcity and to practice the world of abundance in quite concrete ways. Elijah did not just happen on this desperate woman. He was sent there by God; it was his vocation to go be with her.

–Walter Brueggemann

The Christian Gospel is a summons to leave the fearful world of scarcity and to practice the world of abundance in quite concrete ways. 

“May You Hear…” 

1 Kings 5:1-5; 8:22-43

2 Samuel 7:22-26

1 Kings 5:1-5

1 Kings 8:22-23

22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of the Lord in front of the entire congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward heaven. 23 He said:

Lord God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below, who keeps the gracious covenant with your servants who walk before you with all their heart.

1 Kings 8:27-30

27 But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain you, much less this temple I have built.

28 Listen to your servant’s prayer and his petition, Lord my God, so that you may hear the cry and the prayer that your servant prays before you today,

29 so that your eyes may watch over this temple night and day, toward the place where you said,“My name will be there,” and so that you may hear the prayer that your servant prays toward this place.

30 Hear the petition of your servant and your people Israel, which they pray toward this place. May you hear in your dwelling place in heaven. May you hear and forgive.

1 Kings 8:41-43

41 Even for the foreigner who is not of your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name—

42 for they will hear of your great name, strong hand, and outstretched arm, and will come and pray toward this temple—

43 may you hear in heaven, your dwelling place, nd do according to all the foreigner asks. Then all peoples of earth will know your name, to fear you as your people Israel do and to know that this temple I have built bears your name.

1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain you, much less this temple I have built.

Omnibenevolent- God is all-loving

Omniscient- God is all-knowing

Omnipotent- God is all-powerful

Omnipresent- God is everywhere

1 Kings 8:27 But will God indeed live on earth? Even heaven, the highest heaven, cannot contain you, much less this temple I have built.

1 Kings 8:29 so that your eyes may watch over this temple night and day, toward the place where you said, “My name will be there,” and so that you may hear the prayer that your servant prays toward this place.

"My name will be there..."

The Temple bears the name of God (1 Kings 8:29)

Jesus Christ bears the name of God (John 1:1, 14)

The Church bears the name of God (Colossians 3:12-17)

Colossians 3:12-17

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, 13 bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive. 14 Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. 15 And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. 17 And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

MSG 1 Kings 8:27-32 Can it be that God will actually move into our neighborhood? Why, the cosmos itself isn’t large enough to give you breathing room, let alone this Temple I’ve built. Even so, I’m bold to ask: Pay attention to these my prayers, both intercessory and personal, O God, my God. Listen to my prayers, energetic and devout, that I’m setting before you right now. Keep your eyes open to this Temple night and day, this place of which you said, “My Name will be honored there,” and listen to the prayers that I pray at this place.

MSG John 1:14a The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood.

Tending the Flock

2 Samuel 7:1-17

1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or his stature because I have rejected him. Humans do not see what the Lord sees, for humans see what is visible, but the Lord sees the heart.”

2 Samuel 5:4 David was thirty years old when he began his reign; he reigned forty years.

2 Samuel 6:17 They brought the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent David had pitched for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and fellowship offerings in the Lord’s presence.

2 Samuel 7:1-17

1 When the king had settled into his palace and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies, 2 the king said to the prophet Nathan, “Look, I am living in a cedar house while the ark of God sits inside tent curtains.”

3 So Nathan told the king, “Go and do all that is on your mind, for the Lord is with you.”

4 But that night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: 5 “Go to my servant David and say, ‘This is what the Lord says: Are you to build me a house to dwell in? 6 From the time I brought the Israelites out of Egypt until today I have not dwelt in a house; instead, I have been moving around with a tent as my dwelling. 7 In all my journeys with all the Israelites, have I ever spoken a word to one of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, asking: Why haven’t you built me a house of cedar?’

8 “So now this is what you are to say to my servant David: ‘This is what the Lord of Armies says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, to be ruler over my people Israel. 9 I have been with you wherever you have gone, and I have destroyed all your enemies before you. I will make a great name for you like that of the greatest on the earth. 10 I will designate a place for my people Israel and plant them, so that they may live there and not be disturbed again. Evildoers will not continue to oppress them as they have done 11 ever since the day I ordered judges to be over my people Israel. I will give you rest from all your enemies.

“‘The Lord declares to you: The Lord himself will make a house for you. 12 When your time comes and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up after you your descendant, who will come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He is the one who will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and blows from mortals. 15 But my faithful love will never leave him as it did when I removed it from Saul, whom I removed from before you. 16 Your house and kingdom will endure before me forever, and your throne will be established forever.’”

17 Nathan reported all these words and this entire vision to David.

Genesis 2:1-3

1 So the heavens and the earth and everything in them were completed. 2 On the seventh day God had completed his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3 God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, for on it he rested from all his work of creation.

bet (bayt)- house

Bet-hlehem (lachem)- House of Bread

"I need to remind you of some things..."

1) I took you...

2) I have been with you...

3) I have destroyed all your enemies...

"I've done all this for you, but guess what? I'm not done!"

1) I will make a great name...

2) I will designate a place for my people...

3) I will give you rest...

bet (bayt)- house, temple, dynasty

At the center of our lives should be the questions: 

• What is God doing?

• What is God raising up or building?

Lent to the Lord
1 Samuel 1:9-11, 19-20; 2:1-10
Judges 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did whatever seemed right to him.
1 Samuel 1:9-11
9 On one occasion, Hannah got up after they ate and drank at Shiloh. The priest Eli was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the Lord’s temple. 10 Deeply hurt, Hannah prayed to the Lord and wept with many tears. 11 Making a vow, she pleaded, “Lord of Armies, if you will take notice of your servant’s affliction, remember and not forget me, and give your servant a son, I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and his hair will never be cut.”
We want to know that we are loved, seen, heard, remembered, and known by God.
"I am making a vow, Lord of Armies, please look at me and see my pain, hear me and remember me, and make me known by answering my prayer by giving me a son..."
Truths from the Story of Hannah:
• Hannah believed in the future God could create, even when her situation seemed barren and hopeless.
• God brings new life from barren places.
• Hope rises from hopelessness.
• Despair is transformed into thanksgiving and praise.
What can we learn from Hannah? 
1) We learn to bring our deepest needs to God.
• Hannah teaches us that true peace comes from trusting God beyond our control.
• New possibility in our lives comes from God, not from us.
2) We learn the power of persistence and trust in claiming God's grace.
• New possibility in our lives comes from God, not from us.
3) The right response to God's grace is to give it back.

Stiff-Necks and Mercy

Exodus 32:1-14

Exodus 19:1-6

God (YHWH) is the one who brought you out of Egypt.

God is the Deliver.

God is the Creator.

God is the Life-Giver.

God is the Protector.

God is the Sustainer.

God is the Redeemer.

God is the One who set you free from bondage.

I have been delivered.

I have a loving Creator who calls me 'good' (tov).

I have life given to me by God.

I am protected.

I am sustained and provided for.

I am redeemed.

I have been set free.

Exodus 32:1-14

Three-Part Argument (vss 11-13):

1) "Your people..." (vs 11)

2) "What will the Egyptians (the neighbors) think?" (vs 12)

3) "Remember Your promises" (vs 13)

How do we deal with the deep cry of the heart?

Exodus 2:23 After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, they cried out, and their cry for help because of the difficult labor ascended to God.

You were created for a relationship with the Triune God, and that relationship is lived out through worship and service.

Exodus 3:12 He answered, “I will certainly be with you, and this will be the sign to you that I am the one who sent you: when you bring the people out of Egypt, you will all worship God at this mountain.”

Exodus 7:16 Tell him: The Lord, the God of the Hebrews, has sent me to tell you: Let my people go, so that they may worship me in the wilderness. But so far you have not listened.

Exodus 8:1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

Exodus 8:20 The Lord said to Moses, “Get up early in the morning and present yourself to Pharaoh when you see him going out to the water. Tell him: This is what the Lord says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

Exodus 9:1 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go in to Pharaoh and say to him: This is what the Lord, the God of the Hebrews, says: Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

You were created for a relationship with the Triune God, and that relationship is lived out through worship and service.

We want to know that we are loved, seen, heard, remembered, and known by God.

Exodus 2:23-25

23 After a long time, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites groaned because of their difficult labor, they cried out, and their cry for help because of the difficult labor ascended to God. 24 God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 God saw the Israelites, and God knew.

Promises of Passover

Exodus 12:1-13; 13:1-8

Exodus 1:13-14

13 They worked the Israelites ruthlessly 14 and made their lives bitter with difficult labor in brick and mortar and in all kinds of fieldwork. They ruthlessly imposed all this work on them.

Major Events of Exodus 1-12:

• Birth of Moses

• Moses flees Egypt

• The Burning Bush

• Moses returns to Egypt

• The Plagues on Egypt (1-9)

• The 10th Plague: Death of the Firstborn

Exodus 12:1-13

1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, 2 “This month is to be the beginning of months for you; it is the first month of your year. 3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month they must each select an animal of the flock according to their fathers’ families, one animal per family. 4 If the household is too small for a whole animal, that person and the neighbor nearest his house are to select one based on the combined number of people; you should apportion the animal according to what each will eat. 5 You must have an unblemished animal, a year-old male; you may take it from either the sheep or the goats. 6 You are to keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembly of the community of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight. 7 They must take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses where they eat them. 8 They are to eat the meat that night; they should eat it, roasted over the fire along with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 9 Do not eat any of it raw or cooked in boiling water, but only roasted over fire—its head as well as its legs and inner organs. 10 You must not leave any of it until morning; any part of it left until morning you must burn. 11 Here is how you must eat it: You must be dressed for travel, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. You are to eat it in a hurry; it is the Lord’s Passover.

12 “I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night and strike every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, both people and animals. I am the Lord; I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt. 13 The blood on the houses where you are staying will be a distinguishing mark for you; when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No plague will be among you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.

Exodus 13:1-8

It is the business of the church to prophetically create the real world.

The first responsibility of the church is to define reality.

Exodus 13:14 “In the future, when your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ say to him, ‘By the strength of his hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, out of the place of slavery.

God (YHWH) is the one who brought you out of Egpyt.

God is the Deliver.

God is the Creator.

God is the Life-Giver.

God is the Protector.

God is the Sustainer.

God is the Redeemer.

God is the One who set you free from bondage.

Truth: Passover reminds God's people that our definition comes from Him- it is in His defining that we find who we are.

I have been delivered.

I have a loving Creator who calls me 'good' (tov).

I have life given to me by God.

I am protected.

I am sustained and provided for.

I am redeemed.

I have been set free.