Pray Your Way Out
Sermon Series: Life Decisions
7. All the officials of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes, the counselors, and the military leaders, have consulted together to establish a royal law, and to make it a firm decree that whoever shall ask a petition of any god or man for thirty days, except from you O king, he will be cast into the den of lions.
8. Now, O king, establish the law, and sign the writing, that it be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be altered.
9. Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the law.
10. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.
Daniel 6:7-10
Legalization of Oppression?
We normally assume that laws are passed for good and to benefit people. This has rarely been the case. There have been many laws to oppress people. Laws have oppressed people, whether it is the law that removed the Native Americans from their homeland and place them into settlements called “Reservations;” or laws that incarcerated innocent Japanese Americans on the suspicion of collaborators with the enemy in World War II. These laws were wrong, and they were evil. Whether the Jim Crow laws or the laws to suppress voting rights, these laws are not motivated by fairness and equity for all, they were motivated by the need to retain power by those who feared losing it. Such was the case of Daniel and such is the case of many who find themselves one step from a lions’ den.
While we may have questions about the unjust laws of man, we need to pay attention to what it means to pray to God. How would God have us, as believers, respond to the laws that impact our lives? What is the righteous response to the injustice and oppression of man? The prayer response of Daniel to the unjust laws of his day provides some light on this topic.
First of all, why would Daniel put his life on the line simply to uphold his belief in prayer? The fact is, the decree meant that Daniel would be bowing down to the state rather than to God. To follow such laws would mean that Daniel would be breaking his allegiance with God to pledge allegiance to Persia. Daniel decided to stand for God.
Daniel made the decision to continue his practice of praying to God as before. We must ask the question of prayer if we choose to live for God. This is a decision to separate show worship from true worship. Show worship is concerned with being seen, heard, or being highly regarded by others. True worship is based in a deep commitment to honor God.
Daniel learned to be faithful to the decree Moses gave hundreds of years earlier. If the children of Israel found themselves in captivity, they were to repent, pray, and turn back to God. When the children of Israel return to the Lord your God and shall obey His voice according to all I command thee this day, you and your children, with all your heart, and with all your soul … then the Lord your God will turn your captivity … and gather you from all the nations whither the Lord your God has scattered you. Deut. 30:3-4. The king’s new law could not deter Daniel from his commitment to pray.
Daniel understood that it was not merely the act of prayer on the line, but also the worship of his God. His need to pray was greater than the decree against prayer. Some would argue that he could have and should have closed his windows and prayed, that way he could have avoided trouble. Again, this man was acting faithfully on what he had heard. He had heard Solomon’s prayer proclamation to the Israelites. If they (the children of Israel) return to Thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, where they have carried them captives, and pray toward their land … and toward the City which Thou hast chosen … then hear from Heaven … and forgive Thy people. 2 Chronicles 6:38-39. Daniel knew the importance of prayer with his windows open toward Jerusalem. He did not want anything to block his prayers. Some would say, “I thought we were to pray in secret?” Daniel was praying in secret; he just had his windows open while praying. It is alright if others know we are praying even if they don’t know our reason for prayer. Daniel prayed on.
Dealing with Prayer Barriers
What is it that keeps us from praying as we ought? We know that prayer is a wonderful privilege given to God’s people, yet we fail to pray as we ought. Some have the impression that prayer is a simple and easy thing. Don’t you realize that prayer is engaging in spiritual warfare against the enemy of righteousness? Satan will use every barrier and stumbling block to hinder your prayers. For that reason, God’s people need to know the barriers to prayer.
First, there are the People barriers. Daniel’s co-workers at the Babylonian Department of Administrative Services could not accept the fact that Daniel’s prayers were working. Daniel was being promoted because of his prayers and faithfulness to God. This man of God was about to become their Chief Executive Officer. They wanted to do whatever they could to keep that from happening. You see they only wanted job security, but Satan wanted to destroy Daniel because the prayers were ruining his evil plans. Angels were engaging in warfare in the spirit world because Daniel and others were praying the devil’s kingdom down. So, Daniel’s haters conned the king into passing anti-prayer laws thinking that would get rid of Daniel. Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem, he kneeled upon his knees three times a day and prayed, and gave thanks before his God, as he did aforetime. Daniel kept on praying and so should we despite the haters.
People are not the only barriers to prayer. Problems themselves also present barriers to prayer. Why are problems such an obstacle to prayer? One reason is that we cease thinking about people and focus more on the problems. Rather than showing patience with people who cause us problems, we tend to fake prayer as an opportunity for religious retaliation. We allow the problems to fill our mind to the point that we hate the people who are causing us pain. Daniel did not do that. He just prayed and left the rest to God. We are reminded that Jesus said, “pray for your enemies and those who spitefully use you.” Daniel kept on praying.
The second reason that problems become such a strong obstacle is due to our dependence on our abilities. We limit our prayer consciousness to things we can do to help the situation instead of remembering Jesus’ admonition that the flesh is weak, but the spirit is willing. If we are to gain the victory over our problems, we are to unravel them spiritually. Problem focused prayers tend to become complicated and take up much of the time that would be otherwise spent in fellowship with God.
This reminds me of my farming days and trying to open the fertilizer bag. Unless you found that one thread that unraveled the bag, you could spend a lot of times trying to tear the bag apart using natural strength. When I discovered that the bag of fertilizer was held at the top by one small thread, and that the only thing required to open the bag was to pull the string – that revolutionized my thinking. Prayer works that way. Prayer unravels every problem when we place them before the Lord. He shows us that our problems are not as great as He is and that He allowed the problem in order to bring us to a new level of faith.
Prosperity is the third prayer barrier. If we allow ourselves to think that we have made it and that there is no longer a need to pray as before, we are sadly mistaken. Daniel probably did not know that there was a law being passed until after it was signed. He could have gotten comfortable in his position of authority. But that was not Daniel’s nature when it came to prayer. He did not allow power and position to create a false sense of security.
When we go through problems, we often feel like the turtle. Everything is slow and difficult to move – so we take every step seriously. But when there are times of prosperity, we often feel like the hare. So why take the race of life seriously. Hence, we end up loosing the race because we feel like we are fast enough, bright enough, or simply enough to make it. Do not be lulled to sleep by the occasional prosperous times. Be on your guard and keep on praying. Daniel did not allow power, people, or problems to interfere with his prayers to God because Daniel’s prayer was based on something deeper. It was based on seeking the heart of God and discovering the power of God. Daniel kept on praying.
The Worth of Prayer
One theologian has said, “God does nothing on Earth apart from prayer.” If that is true, what do we need to pray about? For starters, we need God’s Kingdom and not just God’s Blessing. Even with the blessing, we cannot enjoy them as long as evil continues to be the law of land. We need to see health and healing instead of sickness. Instead of a pandemic, we need a revival to span the globe. We need to see love toward one another because the world is filled with so much hate. We need to see peace instead of war. Yes, we should pray for God to rule this world in righteousness and power.
Make no mistake, Daniel’s prayer got him into trouble. Your prayer will also get you into trouble with man, but you will be in the favor of God. Never cease to pray for the land to be filled with God’s awesome glory. Never cease to pray for those who are hungry and can’t find food to eat. Pray for the mother who has to live in her car because she can no longer afford to pay the rent. She is too proud to beg and yet too poor to make it alone. Yes, keep on praying. Be aware that your prayer will get you into trouble. Let me go even further. If your prayer has not stirred something up, maybe you have not prayed enough. Go back, the way Elijah told his servants. Keep looking and keep praying.
So pray for God’s hand to move in the affairs of this Earth. Keep on praying because the prayer benefits far exceed the prayer barriers. When we think of prayer we need to first think about God’s pardon. God grants our Pardon through prayer.
Keep on praying and presenting your Petition to God. Daniel realized that the only way spiritual supplies of mercy, forgiveness, and favor could be transferred to Israel was through prayer. Our charge is to petition God as if we were presenting a legal document that contains His promises. When the Judge of all Eternity hears your petition filled with His Promises, He will make a final ruling.
Daniel was innocent yet he kept on praying. The law was in effect, but Daniel kept praying. They arrested Daniel for violating the law, but Daniel kept right on praying. They convicted Daniel and thought they were sending him to his death, but Daniel kept on praying. Daniel found himself in the lions’ den, but he kept on praying. The angel came and stopped the lions’ mouths, but that did not stop Daniel’s prayer. His prayer was more than for an emergency exit. Daniel’s prayer was filled with thanks and confessions before the Living God. Daniel kept praying and God moved.
Keep on praying for God’s presence. If everything else was going great, we need to still pray for God’s presence in our lives. The only way we can make it is to have God’s Presence through prayer. God promised not only to bless but to also be with us. I can make it without a lot of things, but I can’t make it without God. I need Him every hour. I can make it without a lot of clothes, money, and even friends. But I need God all the time. Keep on praying for God’s presence.
Keep on praying for God’s power. There comes a time when you need to understand that God desires to do more than bless us, He wants to transform us. Daniel did not realize it, but God was going to use his life as a testimony.
The king was worried about Daniel and thought that he had perished in the lions’ den. The king thought that his law had unfairly condemned Daniel. What the king did not know is that God had planned to use the lions’ den as an example of His awesome power. God was going to move in the very thing that was sent to destroy, and Daniel would give a testimony that you can still pray your way out.
Daniel’s prayer landed him a place in the lions’ den, but it had also won him a place of honor before the Throne of God. Daniel prayed his way out of the lions’ den because he recognized that God did not bring him that far to leave him. Daniel prayed and God sent His Angels to shut the lions’ mouths. Not only did God shut the lions’ mouths but He would also shut the mouths of Daniel’s critics. Yes, Daniel kept praying and prayer brought him through.
After spending the night in prayer among the lions, God brought Daniel out of the lions’ den. But then God turned the judgment around. The very ones who had accused Daniel were really the ones who could not be trusted. The king realized that they were no longer qualified to be leaders in his kingdom of Persia and Media. So the king had them thrown into the den of lions. Yes, all of this happened as a result of prayer. It is a reminder that God’s Power is given through prayer. It is no secret what God can do. He will answer your prayer, but you must keep on praying.