Daniel Review

I believe that there are several things that we can learn from the book of Daniel.  The first is that just because we are a follower of Christ doesn't mean that we are always going to be successful and in power in this world.  The Jews, during Daniel's time were in captivity, and remained so for his lifetime.  We also need to understand that just because we may be offered better things by those in power does not mean that we should accept them if it means turning away from God.  Just as Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego choose to not eat the king's meat in order to remain faithful to God, we must never accept the things of this world if they cause us to turn away from our faith in Christ.  There may be those today who proclaim that if Jesus were alive today that He would travel and live in style, but the truth is He could have done that during His lifetime if He so chose to.  Jesus came as a suffering Servant, and we are called to be like Him if we are His followers.  We are called to go into the world, even if we encounter those that we feel are demon possessed.  Our call is to reach out to even the demon possessed with the word of God, and God is more powerful than any demon will ever be.  Next, just as Daniel was given the ability to interpret dreams and visions that were messages from God, we today are given the ability to understand God's message to us.  Not all dreams and visions are messages from God, but if they are, then God will make the meaning known to us.  Daniel never had nor claimed to have any mystical power to interpret these dreams and visions, but was always quick to give God the credit for the interpretation.  We must also always give God the credit for all our success in understanding His word.  The Holy Spirit works within us to help us understand.  I do not believe that we will ever understand all that God's word has to teach us in this lifetime, because God is so much more knowledgeable than we will ever be, but we must always continue to study His word.