BIBLE CHALLENGE
September 26, 2021
"Then, choosing his words carefully, Daniel consulted Aryokh, captain of the royal guard, who had already gone out to kill the sages of Babel."
Daniel 2
“Then, choosing his words carefully, Daniel consulted Aryokh, captain of the royal guard, who had already gone out to kill the sages of Babel. He said to Aryokh, ‘Since you are the king’s official, let me ask: why has the king issued such a harsh decree?’ Aryokh explained the matter the Daniel. Then Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time to tell the king the interpretation. Daniel went home and made the matter known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azaryah, his companions; so that they could ask the God of heaven for mercy concerning this secret; and thus save Daniel and his companions from dying along with the other sages of Babel. Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a vision at night, and Daniel blessed the God of heaven…” Daniel 2:14-19
In the business management world, there is a saying: Maximize your strengths and manage your weaknesses. Good leaders understand they can’t do everything, and they know the importance of having a good team. They know how to delegate tasks outside of their strengths so that they don’t find themselves bogged down doing things they aren’t good at. From this, we can reason that the purpose of community is to make our weaknesses ineffective. That is, in a healthy community, we only have to operate in our strengths because someone else’s strength is covering our weakness.
“Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.” Ecclesiastes 4:12
We learned yesterday that Daniel was skilled in interpreting dreams and visions. This ability was a gift from the Lord, but Daniel was not about to take the Lord’s blessings for granted. Knowing that lives were at stake, Daniel rallied his three friends and enlisted them to pray on his behalf. Daniel was not a lone ranger. He did not simply rely on his “giftedness”; he understood the importance of a strong spiritual community and the power of prayer. Daniel knew the problem at hand needed a level of discernment that could only be reached by the counsel of God-seeking men.
Today’s passage is also a challenge to us. Do you attempt to face life’s trials alone, perhaps, too afraid to share your weaknesses with others? Or do you lean into the community of believers that the Lord has given you? Because of Daniel’s willingness to share his situation with other strong believers, the Lord gave him an insight into the humanly impossible. Remember: We may not know what the future holds, but we know Who holds the future. Daniel sought the Lord, and the un-seeable was revealed.