Often we think we know better than God- We think we know where we should start a church, whom would be a good candidate for salvation, expecting the Lord to work according to our agenda. This passage reminds us that the Lord works how and when He wants to work- He directed the Apostle and his companions to a situation that may have looked unfavorab…

Daniel walked in obedience to God, sought for the peace of Jerusalem, was cast into the lions' den and given up for dead, and was delivered because he trusted in the Lord .While persecution of the Christian is a certainty in this world, of greater certainty is the fact that the Christian will be vindicated- Those who rest in Christ will be vindicat…

It is the task of the Church to advance the Kingdom of God through the preaching of the Gospel, however, it is not a task that may be mechanically performed. Rather the Church may not, and must not move ahead of the Lord, but must fulfill out calling as the Lord directs us. We labor only after we pray and wait for His direction.…

The Christian is hated by the World as a follower of Christ and will suffer hardship no matter the circumstances in which he finds himself. A new king was reigning over Babylon, however, it did not mean less hardship for Daniel and the other exiles from Judah. Daniel did what was right before the Lord regardless of the unjust decree of the King. A …

The Apostle was in the midst of his second missionary journey. Mark was not the right fit for this ministry, but Timothy would be. To strengthen the church we must put to use those who are the right fit, with the proper preparations bringing the right doctrine.

We must learn from those who have gone before us or we will suffer the same consequences of those who have gone before us. The last king of Babylon refused to learn from the lesson that Nebuchadnezzar was taught, that pride will be judged. There is only One who is Sovereign and only One Who should be worshipped. We must as individuals and as a Nati…

The proud will be destroyed- Belshazzar, the acting King in Babylon, thought himself and his people untouchable. Yet the walls of Babylon, the -Best and brightest- of his kingdom could not bring help. In his pride he would not seek the help of the one who could help him. He would perish in his pride. Likewise, those who in their pride neglect the O…

Pride is a killer- Pride keeps us from looking to the Lord. Pride keeps us from seeing our sin for what it truly is. Pride keeps us living in rebellion against God. Pride will be our undoing as individuals and as a Nation- It was not until Nebuchadnezzar had come to an end of himself and recognized Who the Most High is that he became sane and was r…

-The most important person in the whole wide world is you- You are special-- This mindset, so prevalent in our culture today, has bred an attitude of entitlement in the Church. Entitlement and the -Me first- mindset hurts the worship, work and witness of the Church. In Philippians 2-5-8 we are commanded to have in ourselves the attitude of Christ J…

A faithful church can be hurt terribly by selfishness and empty conceit. More than one church has been rendered ineffective in her work and witness because its members came to blows over coffee creamer and carpet- Rather, like our Savior, we are called to regard one another as more important than ourselves, looking out for the interests of others.…

The pride of man is so strong, that we think we are something when we are not- Those the Lord loves He chastens. It is not until we come to an end of ourselves that we see truly who the Lord is, and this is what we begin to see in the first half of Daniel 4 with Nebuchadnezzar.

Many conflicts in the church are for bad reasons- coffee creamer and carpet- Some, however, are necessary. The conflict between Paul and Barnabas was not petty. Both men were motivated out of a love for their Savior and His kingdom. Their love for the Lord was applied in different ways and was used by the Lord to multiply the work of the Church. Co…

Pride Month- Bow to our Idol- The Christian must not. The World pressures the Christian to accept what God has forbidden. We serve a God Who remains with His people. Faith doesn't change our circumstances, but keeps us focused upon the One Who can and will deliver.

Discouragement and despair often hit the Christian, who feels overwhelmed with the World around them. There is a temptation to -Join with them- because it is believed there is no way to -Beat them-. We learn from this passage of Scripture that the God of the Bible is greater than the gods and gurus of this world- And that the Lord honors those who …

The Writer of Proverbs warns of the Troublemaker- He is the man who disregards the LORD in lieu of what he wants, and will hurt whoever it takes to get it- Beware of him O Christian as his life will suffer calamity and so will all who follow him-

The world and the kingdoms of men will all come to an end, but the kingdom of God, which was inaugurated at the coming of Christ, will endure forever. Therefore don't place your confidence in the kingdoms of men, but in Christ Who is winning and has already won-

When troubles effect the local church, it is the task of the broader church to come alongside of the troubled church and minister to her, to give guidance and encouragement to her that she may weather the storms that she has been through. We see this demonstrated for us in the aftermath of the Jerusalem Council in how they cared for the church in A…

The most profound and hidden answers to questions like- Who am I-- Why am I here-- From where did all creation come-- Where is history going-- come not from the World. This World cannot answer these so we must stop looking to it for answers. Rather, it is the God of Heaven Who alone can answer these questions. Look to Him and find your peace-…

The government has its place, but it is incapable of doing for men what they need most- We see in the beginning of Daniel 2 that man can only go so far in its help. Only God, however, can reveal mysteries. Only in God can we be shown what we need most to be delivered from what troubles us. Don't look to this world for answers-…

When the Church has a major issue that is to be settled in her courts, it is not enough to merely answer the question at hand. The goal of the higher courts must be to strengthen the local church and to care for the people in her midst. It was the church in Antioch that suffered because of false brethren, ministry must be given to the local assembl…

It seemed as though God had lost to Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians. At times it seems this evil World is winning. The reader is to understand, that we must not judge by feeble sense the happenings in this World. By the end of Daniel 1, we see that the LORD indeed wins, as He is even to this day.

There is a crisis of integrity in our land- Marriages, Church members, politicians...who can we trust- It seems many can't be trusted as there is so little integrity. Solomon is writing so that his son chooses to live a life of integrity as it brings with it security, however the perverse will be exposed-…

The tyrannical government is set upon making itself a success. Dissidents must either be silenced or -converted-. Nebuchadnezzar had control over the exiles who were brought from Judah. He had control over their bodies, minds and souls. Again it appears that the deplorable state has won, but it has not. God remains faithful to His own-…

Old heresies always resurface- Since the beginning, one of those heresies is that a man can save himself from the wrath to come. The Jerusalem Council settled this error. A man is saved by grace alone through the instrument of faith alone. Nothing more. Those who teach otherwise are teaching a false Gospel. Say -No- to those who would add to the Go…

As Christians we look at the world around us changing, and are tempted to think that God must be losing- Abortion, perversion, persecution of the Church etc. etc. At times throughout history God would appear to lose, but it is only that He may be magnified all the greater- Judah, Daniel and his friends, and the articles of the Temple are conquered …

The Gospel is not failing. The Lord is saving His people, and He will not lose a single one. Are you one of them-- If so, you will not ignore His call to come to the feast, and you will not take pride in what you are, your works and deeds, but will be clothed in the righteous garments provided by His Son.…

The Church must guard the Gospel. Ask yourself, what does the Lord require in order for a man or a woman to escape the wrath to come-- Many would place the burden upon the individual to perform right for God. However, God says to the sinner, -Sinner, look in faith to My Son and you will be saved--.

The Gospel is based upon historic events. Christ died for our sins, was buried and was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures and He appeared, not to one or two people, but up to five hundred people at one time. What do you do with the Gospel--

When judging an issue, the Church has an obligation to be unbiased in its judgment. The Church, the Apostles and the Elders of the Jerusalem church received the men from Antioch, demonstrating that whatever they may have heard, they did not judge them on hearsay or biased opinion, but upon facts. God had blessed the Gentiles through faith and not t…

As accomplished, gifted and fine a man as the Apostle Paul was, he urges the church to pray for him. Why-- Because our best efforts, apart from prayer amount to nothing- To advance the kingdom of God the church must be a people of prayer. Christian, pray-

The Church must fight for the Gospel- The good news of God's grace to the sinner through the Christ alone is constantly under attack. Too often Christians today are more concerned about being viewed as nice, than defending the truth. We are given this example in Scripture to encourage us to fight for the Gospel.…

In our spiritual warfare, we are told to, -Take up the full armor of God,-. How often the Lord's people think that to fight effectively it is just a matter of knowing the right apologetic, being smarter than the opponent. The Apostle instructs the Lord's people, beside putting on the full armor, we must couple this with prayer. Christian, do you go…

-Do you promise to participate faithfully in this Church's Worship and service, to submit in the Lord to its government, and to heed its discipline, even in case you should be found delinquent in doctrine or life---

Does it matter what a man believes-- Absolutely- One man says that salvation is the reward of his own efforts, another says that salvation is a gift of God's unmerited grace. They can't both be right. The Apostles, Paul and Barnabas, by their example show us that this is THE Issue that the Church must fight, -For by grace you have been saved throug…

The Scriptures are a gift that should be taken up by every Christian- It is the Word of God, made effective by the power of the Spirit, that is given to us, -...For the more sure establishment and comfort of the Church against the corruption of the flesh, and the malice of Satan and of the World...--WCF 1-1-...Christian, what is it that is given to…

-Do you acknowledge Jesus Christ as your sovereign Lord, and do you promise that, in reliance on the grace of God, you will serve Him with all that is in you, forsake the world, resist the devil, put to death your sinful deeds and desires, and lead a godly life---

-Do you confess that because of your sinfulness you abhor and humble yourself before God, that you repent of your sin, and that you trust fro salvation not in yourself but in Jesus Christ alone---

Salvation is from the Lord and no other- The helmet of salvation is the victory and hope that the Christian has that God has conquered His and our enemy, and having these assurances, we stand firm in the face of hardship and tribulation.

David was likely accused of being proud and presumptuous as he awaited his ascension to the throne of Israel. Psalm 131 records his attitude and heart towards the LORD. He was a many of humility, who waited upon the LORD to bring about in His timing David's sitting upon the throne, a true picture of our Lord- Hope in the LORD was not only practiced…

Satan and his demons attack our bodies and souls, our lives and our faith. He does this in order to get us to falter, to fall away, to question God and His goodness to His people. The Shield of Faith is given to the Christian in order to stand firm against Satan's fiery arrows. Take up the Shield of Faith-…

-Do you believe in one living and true God, in whom eternally there are three distinct persons - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit - who are the same in being and equal in power and glory, and that Jesus Christ is God the Son, come in the flesh--

Do you believe the Bible, consisting of the Old and New Testaments, to be the Word of God, and its doctrine of salvation to be the perfect and only true doctrine of salvation--

No man is an island unto himself. Paul and Barnabas did not act independently from the Church, not could they have done what the Lord used them to do apart from the Church- Here we are encouraged concerning the necessity of the Church for the advance of the Gospel in the World.

Living where there are snow and ice for much of the year, one realizes how important shoes are to one's well being- Even more so, consider, how important for the spiritual battle in which we are engaged the importance of having your feet fitted with the preparation of the Gospel of peace- By faith in Christ, we now have peace with God, and no matte…

The Apostles Paul and Barnabas, were not to stay indefinitely in the cities they visited, but would go and preach the Gospel and make Disciples. The regular care of the Church would be placed in the good hands of Elders, and ultimately placed in the truly good hands of the Lord, Who loves His church flawlessly-…

The Breastplate was used to protect the vital organs, it was to protect both the front and the back. So righteousness is like the breastplate as it protects us from attacks from the past and going forward. Christ Himself is the Christian's only righteousness. From His righteousness overflows a devout and holy life. How can Satan hurt us when we kno…

The first part of the armor of God necessary to effectively battle the spiritual battle in which we find ourselves as Christians is to -Gird your loins with truth-. We cannot effectively battle our spiritual enemy while weighted down with the World's philosophies and ideas. Truth matters- Biblical truth is essential for the battles that ensue as it…

A very serious part of making disciples for Christ is instructing as well as demonstrating to them what it means to persevere in the faith when faced with trials and tribulations. This we see faithfully done by Paul and Barnabas.

The conflicts we face as Christians do not ultimately come from what we see, but from the spiritual realm. Therefore the only effective way to stand firm against this unseen enemy is by putting on truth, righteousness, the Gospel of peace, faith and salvation, and fighting by the Word and in prayer.

Brothers, we must not quit- There is no place that we can go where we will not have problems, and there is no place where we can go where we will be exempt from some form of persecution- Stay the course- The trials the Lord calls you into, He will also sustain you through them-