December 2, 2016
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

Prayer Changes Things

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Opening Prayer

Loving Lord, I adore You. I praise You. I lift my heart in gratitude to You.

Read Daniel 9:1-19

[1] In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian kingdom- [2] in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, understood from the Scriptures, according to the word of the LORD given to Jeremiah the prophet, that the desolation of Jerusalem would last seventy years. [3] So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. [4] I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: “Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, [5] we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. [6] We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land. [7] “Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame-the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. [8] We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, LORD, because we have sinned against you. [9] The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; [10] we have not obeyed the LORD our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. [11] All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. “Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. [12] You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. [13] Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the LORD our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. [14] The LORD did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the LORD our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him. [15] “Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. [16] Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us. [17] “Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. [18] Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. [19] Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name.”

Scripture taken from the THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Reflect

“The word sin was once a proud word. It was once a strong word, an ominous and serious word. But the word went away. It has almost disappeared—the word along with the notion. Whatever became of sin?” (Karl Menninger, 1893–1990). It was front and center with Daniel.

Could it be that the themes of this prayer were the substance of what Daniel was praying about in chapter 6? If so, then he was doing far more than keeping his daily devotional time. Stimulated by God’s promises, he was interceding for God’s people. He knew that the only ground of his appeal was God’s mercy; but then that is the only basis on which any of us can appeal. God will not be found wanting. What Daniel has believed since he was a teenager, he now makes explicit. The fall of Jerusalem was not due to the superior power of the Babylonians but to the judgment of God on his people’s disobedience. God was neither taken by surprise nor overwhelmed by the enemy, but rather chose to use a pagan power as his instrument to fulfill his purpose.
This is a great prayer, because Daniel takes God and sin seriously. There is nothing casual about his approach or his attitude towards prayer. For him, confession is not to avoid the consequences but to recognize God as just. The nation has received nothing more than it deserved. Moreover, the reality of sin leaves him feeling ashamed. We have almost lost the ability to be ashamed of anything.
What stands out in all of Daniel’s praying is that it is shaped by what he believes about God: he is awesome and has a great name; he is merciful and forgiving; he keeps his word and is righteous. What prompts this prayer is God’s word to Jeremiah (Jer. 29:10–14) that the Exile will last for 70 years. That time is almost come (within three or four years) and now God’s people need to pray! As God judged because he said he would, so God will deliver because he promised. “God loves to be believed in” (Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834–1892).

Could it be that the themes of this prayer were the substance of what Daniel was praying about in chapter 6? If so, then he was doing far more than keeping his daily devotional time. Stimulated by God’s promises, he was interceding for God’s people. He knew that the only ground of his appeal was God’s mercy; but then that is the only basis on which any of us can appeal. God will not be found wanting. What Daniel has believed since he was a teenager, he now makes explicit. The fall of Jerusalem was not due to the superior power of the Babylonians but to the judgment of God on his people’s disobedience. God was neither taken by surprise nor overwhelmed by the enemy, but rather chose to use a pagan power as his instrument to fulfill his purpose.

This is a great prayer, because Daniel takes God and sin seriously. There is nothing casual about his approach or his attitude towards prayer. For him, confession is not to avoid the consequences but to recognize God as just. The nation has received nothing more than it deserved. Moreover, the reality of sin leaves him feeling ashamed. We have almost lost the ability to be ashamed of anything.

What stands out in all of Daniel’s praying is that it is shaped by what he believes about God: he is awesome and has a great name; he is merciful and forgiving; he keeps his word and is righteous. What prompts this prayer is God’s word to Jeremiah (Jer. 29:10–14) that the Exile will last for 70 years. That time is almost come (within three or four years) and now God’s people need to pray! As God judged because he said he would, so God will deliver because he promised. “God loves to be believed in” (Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834–1892).

Apply

The Christian life is a life of repentance from beginning to end. Do you agree with this statement? Why or why not? What does Daniel say about it in his prayer?

Closing prayer

“O Lord, listen! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, hear and act!” (19a). I can do more than what Daniel prayed. I make these requests because of Your great mercy (18b).

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