Sunday, October 3, 2021 AM

Are just feeling under the weather in your prayers especially for Becca just that her oxygen numbers would come up and that she might be able to come home for Jackson as well. A few announcements as we get started this morning come back tonight for our evening service at 530 and then looking ahead to this Wednesday we've got a few people that are that lead some ministries on Wednesday night that are going to be out of pocket so we will not have dinner for the church this Wednesday and then also tag will also be off this Wednesday as well but we're gonna pick those back up next week both the meal and tag.

But this Wednesday we will have Bible study and prayer in the fellowship hall so that's at 630 p .m. come for that. And then looking ahead now that we're in the month of October will have Reformation celebration on Wednesday October 27th at 545 in the that's always a fun thing for everyone to participate in.

And then the Sunday before that truth group in the evening then as well. Our Friday verse for this week comes from Titus chapter 3 verses 4 through 6 but when the goodness and loving-kindness of God our Savior appeared he saved us not because of works done by us in righteousness but according to his own mercy by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.

Amen. Few other announcements. This coming Tuesday at Christian Heritage Academy there's going to be a hymn sing so it's kind of a it's a program first time that it's been put on but the junior high and high school choirs are going to sing traditional hymns and maybe some more modern hymns but everyone here is invited to attend.

It's free to attend at the CHA auditorium there on 29th Southeast 29th Street and Sunny Lane in Del City but at 7 p .m. you are welcome to come and there's plenty of space if you need to social distance from from people but it would be a good night to come and worship together with other believers.

Also we want to give you guys the opportunity we had Vernon Denny Johnson here a couple weeks ago sharing their work their mission work that they've done in Africa and we want to take up a love offering for them.

So the plates will be at the back of the auditorium and if you want to just mark love offering Vernon Denny Johnson but we want that money to go towards really the publishing and printing of God's Word in the Palico language.

They've spent many years doing the hard work of translation and that translation is complete and now they want to put it to paper and get it into the hands of those people over there. So love offering for the Johnson's.

We'd appreciate that. Also we're coming closer to Christmas time so Operation Christmas Child Giving is going to be continuing for the next couple months. So there's some needs in your bulletin you can see for the month of October flip flops sunglasses some other things as well.

And then there's always needs in the sewing ministry so related to Operation Christmas Child we're going to have a brief video to watch for Operation Christmas Child and then after.

That video is done dad will come up and open us in prayer. In Matthew 28 Jesus.

Said go and make disciples of all nations. As a student I can't really go around the world and share the gospel but I can share the gospel with people.

By packing shoeboxes these shoeboxes change children's lives. I was watching.

These children and in my heart I was just feeling pain. I asked God that what must I do what must I do to help these children. He's where he brought the Christmas child shoeboxes and the great again as a.

Student you can make an impact missionally to be part of something global the global mission without even having to go overseas. This is gospel. Opportunities. On both ends of the box this shoebox is so much more than just a gift for a child it's really the plant to an eternal life being.

With Jesus a lot of these children their life is absolutely transformed.

Mikey I was excited from here up to that. Yeah they hear the good news kids.

Can contain something that's exciting to them I will say they're the greatest.

Evangelist. When I went to the greatest Jenny my heart was open and when I always read my books it seemed like God is with me. I feel like I'm in heaven. My life really changed when I accept Jesus. I was like born again.

It can be a.

Way to just show them that someone cares someone out there loves them and just knowing that like God loves them in this tangible way can really make an impact. So shoebox is such an incredible opportunity for a child to get to know Jesus and then not just that but for that family to also get to know Jesus.

And so it just multiplies beyond that.

They really change. They know scriptures they know prayers they know how to pray. Those kids they used to pray for me and tell me some scriptures when I stole them but there's no other way I have to give my life to.

You stop drinking alcohol and she's now the woman of God.

God change their life. It's a big business and I really appreciate it.

As a student and serve in a real way we have just witnessed in this video the.

Joy that comes to the heart of one who has been redeemed by faith in Christ. Lord fill us with that joy this morning. I think often when we come to this time on Sunday mornings at least for me my mind often goes to Mary and Martha and I often am reminded of the fact that I am so much more like Martha and Mary.

I am distracted by many things cares of my heart circumstances around me my own sin. All these things all these things. Often Lord keep me from looking to you from being more like Mary who just desired to come and sit at your feet and to worship the Lord.

Would you free us this morning from all the things that distract our hearts and help us today in this moment to turn our eyes upon Jesus. Lord thank you for your grace and your mercy your loving-kindness toward us.

You are worthy of all praise. May your name be exalted make Christ be lifted up. Fill us Lord with the Holy Spirit that we might offer up to you this morning the sacrifice of praise the fruit of lips that glorify your name.

Thank you for the time that we have this morning to gather together. And Lord may may these moments go with us. May the work of your word continue to bear fruit not just this morning but throughout this day and in the week to come.

Thank you for your loving-kindness in Christ. And we give you glory honor and praise and blessing in Jesus name.

Amen would you stand with me for a call to worship this morning is in Psalms 71.

Psalm 71 will be reading verses 9 -11. So if you're here or if you're online read with me together. Do not cast me off in the time of old age forsake me not when my strength is spent for my enemies speak concerning me.

Those who watch for my life consult together and say God has forsaken him pursue and seize him for there is none to deliver him. And so if you would turn in your Psalms for worship hymnal page 71 B will be singing right out of this passage of Psalm 71.

It's marked it's marked. Verse six and seven is in our little black him those.

Hymns modern and ancient. Page 71. I'm sorry excuse me. Page 21. By faith we'll.

Sing all the verses. The greatest I faithfulness. Morning to the book of.

Isaiah chapter 2 be finishing. The chapter will start in verse 12 this morning as we read together simultaneously filled with the fear of the Lord and at the same time have comfort in what we read starting in verse 12.

For the Lord of hosts has a day against all that is proud and lofty against all that is lifted up and it shall be brought low. Against all the cedars of Lebanon lofty and lifted up and against all the oaks of Bashan against all the lofty mountains and against all the uplifted hills against every high tower and against every fortified wall against all the ships of Tarshish and against all the beautiful craft and the haughtiness of man shall be humbled and the lofty pride of men shall be brought low and the Lord alone will be exalted in that day.

And the idols shall utterly pass away and people shall enter the caves of the rocks and the holes of the ground from before the terror of the Lord and from the splendor of his majesty when he rises to terrify the earth.

In that day mankind will cast away their idols of silver and their idols of gold which they made for themselves to worship to the moles and to the bats to enter the caverns of the rocks and the cliffs of the cliffs from before the terror of the Lord and from the splendor of his majesty when he rises to terrify the earth stop regarding man in whose nostrils his breath.

For of what account is he. Would you pray with me our Holy Heavenly Father. What a sobering passage. A passage that when we read we should be filled with holy fear of you of your justice of your perfection of your sovereignty.

Father you are over all things by all things all things hold together by the power of your word. And yet father we as believers who have put our trust and our hope in the saving work of your son Jesus Christ as terrifying as these words are we can find comfort and peace in them knowing that the justice that we seek and we desire will surely be handed down from you and it will be perfect and it will be complete.

Father as we worship you this morning through song through the reading of your word through the preaching of your word help us to be hopeful joyful not to fear man and anything but to put our trust in you and to rest in the fact that in the end you will be glorified.

We ask all these.

Things in Jesus name amen. You may be seated. We're gonna continue our song.

Service back to our Psalms for worship. Handle. If you would turn to page 59 B we're gonna sing I wait for you. This tune will be familiar to you. To tune is.

The same as be still my soul page 95. Church for gathering us together this.

Week lord it's been a long two weeks not being able to gather here on a Sunday to rejoice in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. What I pray that she would sustain our church and continue pouring out your grace upon us and and provide for us the health.

That we need the safety and the courage and the focus and everything we need to continue as a church or we are entirely dependent upon you for this. Well we have your promise from your son Jesus Christ that the gates of Hades will not prevail against that which he is building and that we are built upon the rock of of his life and death and resurrection and even now we serve him in his ascension and and eagerly look forward to the day when in complete and utter victory Christ returns.

So father we look to you and we ask again that you would provide what we need to worship you and to rejoice in you and to be in unity together loving one another in Christ. Father we ask that you would help us today as we read your word as we consider its meaning.

I pray that you would reveal to us your son Jesus Christ. He would be the not only do we know him as the light of the world but father the light of our lives in every aspect. I pray that you would that you would cause Christ to shine and to illuminate who we are in your eyes.

So we would see things your way and that we would say things your way. That we would confess your truth and our sinfulness and Christ's glory and our lowliness and that by the truth of your word that you would guide us into all wisdom into all truth and to all courage in these days.

And I pray this. And I pray for those who can't be with us today who are sick and struggling. I pray that she would bring healing and through their lives as you would restore them by the power of your Holy Spirit because of your love for us because of your son Jesus Christ who died on the cross for our sins and bore our sicknesses and sorrows.

What I pray that you would just heal our dearly beloved ones who are sick and ailing. And what I pray that you would encourage those who are far from us and can't be with us today. I pray that you would give them great comfort in Christ and I pray that there would be joy in their hearts as they ponder the resurrection of Jesus.

And I pray all these things for his sake. Amen. I'll invite you to open your Bibles to Daniel 6. Daniel chapter 6. Starting a new chapter in this book you may have noticed how complete each chapter seems.

A full story encapsulated in each chapter and the title I have for this chapter is a discerning son a discerning son. Daniel is a book full of riddles. A book full of riddles they we see real life riddles in the matters of statecraft where life and death are always on the line.

We also see apocalyptic riddles and the fabric of dreams and visions display displaying the rise and fall of of empires. A Daniel is a book of riddles in which wisdom triumphs over all and the riddles of Daniel are all answered in the revelation of Jesus Christ.

In chapter 1 we learn that wisdom is the principal thing facing all the problems of paganism. What we need is God's wisdom which of course begins with the fear of the Lord. In chapter 2 we observe that wisdom is justified by all her children and that those who fear the Lord will triumph with Christ in his kingdom.

Chapter 3 we were reminded that by wisdom Kings reign the government rests upon Christ's shoulders and statism ultimately fails when it meets Jesus. In chapter 4 we meditated on God's resistance to the proud and rejoiced in God's grace which humbles us unto salvation.

In chapter 5 we looked at the hand writing on the wall and the importance of God's revelation. We don't know our doom unless God reveals it to us. And as we come to Daniel chapter 6 we turn our eyes to a discerning son by whose excellent spirit we are shown the blessings of obedience in the fear of the Lord.

So I'm going to read the first 10 verses of Daniel chapter 6. Daniel chapter 6 verses 1 through 10. If you'll please stand with me as I read these words of our Savior and Sovereign Jesus Christ by his spirit through his prophet Daniel it pleased Darius to set over the kingdom 120 satraps to be over the whole kingdom and over these three governors of whom Daniel was one that the satraps may might give account to them so that the king would suffer no loss.

Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps because an excellent spirit was in him and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom but they could find no charge or fault because he was faithful nor was there any error or fault found in him.

Then these men said we shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him concerning the law of his God. So these governors and satraps throng before the king and said and said thus to him King Darius live forever.

All the governors of the kingdom the administrators and satraps the counselors and advisors have consulted together to establish a world statute and to make a firm decree that whoever petitions any God or a man for 30 days except you Oh King shall be cast into the den of lions.

Now King established the decree and signed the writing so that it cannot be changed according to the law of the Medes and Persians which does not alter. Therefore King Darius signed the written decree.

Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed he went home and in his upper room with his windows open toward Jerusalem he knelt down on his knees three times that day and prayed and gave thanks before his God as was his custom since early days.

This is the word of the Lord praise be to God may be seated. Sometimes pictures pop up on my screensaver or my background or whatever in my office or my laptop of my kids. So who's that I and I tell him well that's a hero.

That's a hero. That's Archer Pulaski or that's Tim Stevens or that's James Coates. They're in prison for the good for preaching the gospel. They were told not to preach the gospel and they did anyway.

And they got thrown in jail right in front of their kids sometimes thrown down in the middle of a highway handcuffed. Sometimes people tried to burn their houses. Travel restrictions. Articles written by doubting churchmen who have given their the run of their churches over to the state.

And these doubting churchmen write scandalous articles against them for preaching the gospel when they've been told not to called fools. They are discerning sons called fools they are discerning sons.

We've also been watching dispatches from the front Tim Kazee's documentary series wherein he is on the front lines where the church is pressing forward in the kingdom of God and our brothers and sisters in Christ give out Bibles and worship on Sundays.

And they gather for prayer. And they try to feed the hungry. And they they baptize new converts and all of its against the law. And they break the law day after day week after week defy the civil magistrates all in the name of Christ.

These are there's. They are called fools but they are discerning sons and daughters. These are people. I hope my children will consider modern-day examples to follow when and women who fear the Lord as we consider Daniel's response to tyranny I think we should keep in mind the wisdom of obeying God rather than man.

Proverbs 28 7 says. Whoever keeps the law is a discerning son. Whoever keeps the law is a discerning son but a companion of gluttons shames his father. Wicked men oppose the law of God. That's no surprise.

But along with that comes an opposition to the man of God. Wicked people oppose the law of God and so they oppose the people of God goes hand in hand. But as we see in Daniel chapter 6 I think this is the lesson of Daniel chapter 6.

Lawmakers must submit to the lawgiver. Lawmakers must submit to the lawgiver. And we start off from verses 1 through 10 and consider that the discerning son the discerning son obeys God rather than men.

I think it's helpful to offer examples to our children and to our grandchildren and it's good to be even be those examples for them. But having done so we have not achieved our goal by simply you know daring them to be a Daniel.

We've not really achieved the goal yet because Daniel wasn't even a Daniel except that he was filled with the Holy Spirit and emulating Christ. That was the difference in his life in Daniel. Actually it serves as an important picture of Christ a type of Christ and and it's important that it is to Jesus always to Jesus that we and our children and our grandchildren are to look the discerning son obeys God rather than men.

We're going to think first of all about the blameless behavior of Daniel which of course points us to Christ. And in fact we often see pictures of Christ in these situations. Remember Joseph falsely accused suffering brought low brought back up high at the right hand of not first Potiphar.

Then the right hand of Pharaoh David persecuted brought low cast out brought back to high office Mordecai. There's Mordecai at the right hand of the hazardous in the book of Esther. And we keep on seeing this picture of someone at the right hand of power faithfully serving suffering opposition yet overcoming.

We just see that picture again and again and again. Look there's God's anointed servant at the right hand and a wise man at the right hand. We see this in verses 1 through 3. It pleased. Darius has said over the kingdom 120 say traps to be over the whole kingdom and over these three governors of whom Daniel was one that the say traps might give account to them so that the king would suffer no loss.

Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and say traps because an excellent spirit was in him and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. We've been looking at the kingdom of the Babylonians.

That's your chapters 1 through 5. And Daniel. Now we're on to the kingdom of the Medes and Persians in the in the dream that Nebuchadnezzar had of the statue of the four empires the four kingdoms there was the golden head and then there was the silver chest and arms.

And the silver chest and arms represented the the the double the double empire of the Medes and the Persians. And this empire was not as glorious as a kingdom as Babylon. They did not shine as bright they did not bask as fine.

But it would have more reach. It would have more reach and so they had a bigger need for organization. They had four capital cities. They had many different people groups many different kingdoms in this one empire and so their need for a bureaucracy was clear.

So Darius the king he was not interested in an inefficient government. He did not want waste and incompetence and graft and corruption to go unchecked. So he tried to organize things in a way that would highly advantage him and the Empire.

He wanted his Empire to be kept in fighting trim a well-oiled machine that suffered no loss. And why did Darius want this. Because he was made in the image of God. He was made in the image of God exercising dominion and being organized and trying to accomplish things.

This is hardwired into Darius because he's made in the image of God and he wanted to be as efficient as possible. And so his approach was to appoint 120 satraps over all the different provinces of his government was a satrap.

A satrap is like a combination of a district attorney a sheriff and a county commissioner. You put all those three together. You get a satrap. And there's 120 of these appointees and in three groups 40 to a group and they'd all report to a governor and then the governor's report to Darius.

And this is the way that Darius thought would be best to organize his empire. It wasn't too long before he noticed that the third of his Empire under Daniels governorship was doing really well compared to the other two.

Like man this third of the of the Empire is is doing really good. Everything's going smooth. I'm getting a lot of return on my investment. But these but these two thirds over here they're not as good.

I think there's something to this Daniel character and so he's thinking mate I'm gonna put Daniel in charge of the whole thing. Daniel exhibited wisdom and abilities which proved his capacity to run the whole Empire.

Now what is the source. What does the text say. What is the source of his competency ahead of his proficiency. Because he has an excellent spirit within him. Now we are not left to guess at what kind of spirit that is.

This isn't a matter of having a good attitude you know positive thinking. What kind of spirit is this. We well we have already been told. We have already been told throughout the previous chapters in even in this chapter that it is the Holy Spirit who is in Daniel at the Holy Spirit anointed Daniel for this role.

And so Darius like Potiphar and Pharaoh before him and a hazardous after him finds it very compelling to have a right-hand man who could handle all this in the Empire. We're gonna think more about that in a moment.

But it's clear that the Holy Spirit makes a real discernible life difference in a person's life. You can tell the difference between somebody who has the Holy Spirit and who does not. Darius is a pagan Emperor and he can see the difference.

There's a difference in Daniel and the difference is the grace of God at work through the power of the Holy Spirit in his life. So he is a wise man here at the right hand of Darius. Darius wants to exalt him even more.

And verses 4 through 5 we see the profile completed by the faithful servant without fault. The faithful servant without fault versus 4 and 5. So the governors and satraps ought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom.

But they could find no charge or fault because he was faithful. Nor was there any error or fault found in him. And then these men said we shall not find any charge against this Daniel unless we find it against him a concerning the law of his God.

Dale Ralph Davis says this chapter begins with a miracle. Look a squeaky clean politician. These Chaldeans jealous of Daniel like that man. We don't want him elevated even further. He's not even a native.

He's he's you know he's from the West. He's not even an Eastern person. And good grief. We don't want him to be continued to be elevated. We want the power. We want the recognition. We want to keep doing what we want to do.

And being less than the efficient. They poked around in all the usual places. Hey let's bring this Daniel down. This is not going to be hard. We all lie cheat and steal. We'll just find out how he's lying how he's cheating and how he's stealing.

And we'll take him down. Simple. Yeah. He's not a local. He's a foreigner. It'll be easy to to peg him with these things. We'll scandalize him and then we'll get rid of them. And they couldn't find anything.

They thought everybody lied and cheated and steal stole because they. Because they did they figured everybody did. It's amazing when government officials do not act corruptly and their administration flourishes in righteousness.

They can't be charged with corruption. Incredible. So they decide to isolate him based on his faith. This little lot of Daniel was shining too bright for their comfort and they wanted it out. So how do we do that.

I was. Well we've got to. We've got to do something to change the laws. To change the to bring the civic religion to bear upon him in such a way that he'll have no way out. And he'll break a law. And we'll we'll have him then.

Proverbs 28 verses 4 through 5 says. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked. Think about that. Those who forsake the law praise the wicked here. Any praise of the wicked in our culture. Any praising of the wicked in our culture.

Why do they praise the wicked. They have forsaken the law. But such as keep the law contend with them. Those who keep the law contend with those who praise the wicked. They don't pat them on the back and say oh it's okay.

I'm glad that you are glad about yourself being glad. And whatever you do they contend with them. Verse 5. Evil men do not understand justice. But those who seek the Lord understand all. I wonder if we believe this Proverbs 28 5.

Evil men do not understand justice. We have to stop listening to evil men trying to tell us what justice is. They don't have a clue. They don't know what right from wrong is. They don't know what justice is.

And the church should stop listening to evil men trying to tell us what justice is. Those who seek the Lord understand all. Why. Because we're so smart. No. Because the Lord is the light of the world and he illumines everything.

So we can see what things are. Why was Daniel outperforming the other governors to such an obvious degree. Why did they were. They're so jealous of him. Because he outperformed him. Well it's because of the excellent spirit.

Chapters 1 and 2 and 4 and 5 say again and again that the Holy Spirit is in Daniel. The Holy Spirit is in Daniel. Everybody takes note of the Holy Spirit who is in Daniel. And it is clear that the Holy Spirit is in Daniel.

The primary evidence of the spirit-filled person is the fear of the Lord. That's how you can tell. We need to be discerning children in our day. Which means that we need to follow through on that exhortation and Ephesians to be being filled with the Holy Spirit and submit to one another in the fear of the Lord the fear of God.

This is exciting news for the Jews. This is exciting news for the Jews because all the promises about the new covenant was to come. The promises in Ezekiel the promises in Jeremiah the promises in Isaiah even the promises out of Deuteronomy the promises of the new covenant to come that God would establish in Jerusalem in Judea in that land of promise the new covenant would be marked by every single member of the covenant being filled with the Holy Spirit.

They would all be spiritually alive. Not one of them would lack the breath of God in spiritual life. All of them every member of God's people would have the very same spirit that Daniel had. And this is important because there was work for them to do.

Israel and Canaan was a recapitulation of Adam. In the garden. They had they had work to do be fruitful multiply fill the earth and subdue it spread out the the light of God the image of God throughout the world.

They had they had work to do but they were failing at it. As bad as Adam failed in the garden Israel is failing in Canaan. Look at them. They're all in exile. Look at the city. It's torn down the temple is destroyed.

Look they're not doing a great job at all. But they got a promise. They got a promise about the new covenant. About the Holy Spirit coming about about Jesus. About Jesus the Messiah coming born of a virgin and he was going to change everything.

And where would Jesus Christ be. Where would Jesus Christ be. Where is he today. Is he not at the right hand full of wisdom. Is he not at the right hand a faithful servant. Is he not at the right hand king of kings and Lord of Lords.

All authority been given to him in heaven and on earth. And where are we. Paul says we are seated with him seated with Christ in the heavenly places. Everything belongs to Christ. We belong to him and we've got work to do in the name of Christ.

We need to declare the authority of Christ over all things. And we need to live out the the righteousness of Christ in all things following him following his lead. The path back to what we're supposed to be in the image of God is only through Christ with him and through him who's at the right hand.

Daniel is at the right hand of Darius and he is working hard and he is doing well. What is what is he up to. Well as a lawmaker he has submitted himself to the lawgiver and the lawgiver is God. And Daniel's a lawmaker in the civil realm.

And so he has submitted himself to God who is the law giver. And you've got a wonder. Daniel has lived through the the ups and downs the turmoil of Babylon who destroyed Jerusalem and brought such sorrow and suffering to the people of God.

Daniel served there and he was elevated under Nebuchadnezzar forgotten under Belshazzar. Now he's elevated again under Darius. Now he's in the Empire of the the Medes and Persians. And Daniel is working hard getting up every morning going to work and helping the Empire of the Medes and Persians flourish.

Let's go. Let's let's let's be more efficient folks. Let's make sure that the taxes are being used as efficiently as possible. Let's make sure we don't have any corruption going on. And let's make this the best Empire we can make it.

Why is Daniel doing that. Why is Daniel doing that. Shouldn't he be agitating complaining loud and long about these big unjust corrupt systems that are oppressing him and his people keeping him from being able to go back home and and see the Holy Land that he was ripped out of when he was just a little kid.