Introduction
I hope if you or I were faced with similar circumstances as Daniel we too would continue praying to our God no matter what, but I suspect that most of us would try to be at least a little less conspicuous about our praying—we’d switch our prayer time to night, or close the windows on our balcony so as not to be seen, or change prayer locations altogether! After all, doesn’t Jesus warn His disciples against making a spectacle out of prayer? Daniel’s devotion to God is to be commended, but did he have to be so … public … about it?
Daniel and the Lion’s Den, like the story of David and Goliath (and probably several others), is misnamed. Instead of ‘David and Goliath’ shouldn’t that story be called “David and God”? We call it David and Goliath because Goliath adds a certain uniqueness to the story, but he comes to nothing at the hand of a shepherd boy and his God. Likewise the lions in the lion’s den in Daniel 6 are rendered harmless. That’s why I say this story is misnamed. Instead of ‘Daniel in the Lion’s Den’ wouldn’t a better name for this story be ‘Daniel in the Prayer Closet’ or ‘Daniel on the Prayer Balcony’? Connection with God is where this story gets its power, and that’s where our emphasis should be.
My theme today is “Praying On Purpose.” Daniel was a man who prayed on purpose. Do you pray on purpose? You say, Sure, every time I sit down to eat! I’ve got nothing against meal-time prayers. Meals are a great time to prayerfully acknowledge our dependence on God and to thank Him. But at meal time the meal is the occasion, not prayer. To put it simply, we know we’re praying on purpose when prayer is the occasion—the main event—and nothing else.
When I say ‘praying on purpose’ I don’t simply mean having a reason to pray; everyone who genuinely prays has a reason to pray no matter when they pray. And when I say “praying on purpose” I’m not just talking about intending to pray; no matter when or how often we pray we don’t pray accidentally. When I say ‘praying on purpose’ I’m talking about a combination of these two elements; I’m talking about having a compelling reason to pray and having an intent to pray that’s so strong it sets all other tasks and distractions aside to make prayer the occasion on a regular and ongoing basis. Don’t get me wrong, I’m in favor of occasional praying—we should pray on every occasion that we’re moved in our hearts to pray, no matter where, when, why, or for what or whom! But to be people like Daniel, we need something more; God wants something more from us, and for us. To be occasional pray-ors is to see God as someone to whom we occasionally go. But by making prayer the occasion we’re saying God is most important, and that spending time with God is the central organizing principle of our lives.
So, how do we get there in our prayer lives? How do we move from occasionally praying to making prayer the occasion? What are some of the principles that will help us pray more intentionally, not just when it’s convenient or when an occasion arises in which praying seems appropriate? I believe Daniel’s prayer life demonstrates several principles of praying on purpose. We’ll look today at three: Character, Commitment, and Consistency. Let’s look first at Character.
Character (vv. 3-4)
Leaving behind the high drama of the lion’s den and going back to the beginning of the story, we’re presented with Daniel as a man of impeccable character; I mean the guy is squeaky clean! King Darius’ organizational chart for the Persian Empire called for 120 satraps, vice-regents who administer the king’s laws in regions throughout the kingdom; they’re very powerful men. But there were even more powerful men than them, men who were closer to the king, as v. 2 says, “three ‘high officials,’ of whom Daniel was one, to whom these satraps should give account, so that the king might suffer no loss.”
As in any governing system, opportunity for corruption was everywhere, and corruption itself was always present in ancient Persia; and Daniel’s job was to keep tabs on the satraps and report any funny-business—any corruption—to the king. This is a big part of why the satraps hate Daniel. They’re jealous of his favored position with the king; they’re corrupt; and they hate him because he’s a Jew. And, according to v. 3, Daniel rises even higher: “Then this Daniel became distinguished above all the other high officials and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him. And the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom.” Daniel is a man of character; he has ‘an excellent spirit’ in him. The king sees this quality of character and knows he’s got a man he can trust.
But how did Daniel get that character? I say his character both resulted from and resulted in praying on purpose. So did Daniel get his character by praying, or did his prayer life flow out of his character? Which comes first really doesn’t matter. What matters is that God’s hand was on Daniel’s life so powerfully that even a pagan king could see it; and one of the ways Darius could see it was in Daniel’s praying on purpose. Listen again to Darius’ last words to Daniel as he’s thrown into the lion’s den, and his first words into the lion’s den the next morning in vv. 16 and 20. In v. 16 he declares to Daniel, ‘May your God, whom you serve continually, deliver you! And in v. 20 he shouts in a tone of anguish…, ‘O Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to deliver you from the lions?’”
Some might say the lion’s den was a ‘character-building experience for Daniel. Our culture tends to look at events and experiences as instrumental in the shaping of a person’s character. You’re going on a month-long mission trip? I bet that’ll be a character-forming experience! Oh, you had to spend a night in jail? Well, hopefully that was a character-building experience. Rough week with your spouse? Well, God’s using these hard times to make you both more Christ-like. Terminal cancer huh? Well friend, I don’t know how, but I’m sure God’s gonna use this to shape your character… It’s not that crises are void of character-shaping; it’s just that they tend to be quite brief compared to the routine of normal day-to-day life. And so more than shape our character, they tend to REVEAL the quality of the character—whether low or high—that we’ve been shaping through our day-to-day habits, disciplines, and routines, whether bad or good.
Daniel’s superb character had been formed through years of devotion to his God. We’ll look more closely at v. 10 in a moment, but the tell-tale phrase is found at the end of that verse: “He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.” We don’t know how long ‘previously’ was, but it’s fair to conclude that the habit of praying on purpose extended deep into Daniel’s past—long before the satraps came scheming, long before getting thrown into the lion’s den was a real possibility.
Daniel’s adrenaline may have surged when he was thrown to the lions, but his character didn’t crumble. His character was revealed, but more than that, the faithful and saving character of his God was revealed. What will getting ‘thrown to the lions’ (so to speak) reveal about who you are and what you’ve done previously—your spiritual habits, disciplines, and routines? And what will that reveal about your God? I hope it will reveal the steadfast character of a man or woman who has previously prayed on purpose in continual service of a loving and gracious God and Savior around whom your entire life revolves.
Commitment to God’s Word (v. 5)
The kind of character that reveals (and is revealed by) a life of praying on purpose is tied to another principle we find in Daniel’s story: commitment, specifically commitment to God’s Word. Verses 4-5 say,
“Then the high officials and the satraps sought to find a ground for complaint against Daniel with regard to the kingdom, but they could find no ground for complaint or any fault, because he was faithful, and no error or fault was found in him. Then these men said, ‘We shall not find any ground for complaint against this Daniel unless we find it in connection with the law of his God.’”
Frustrated by Daniel’s flawless character, the crooked officials were sly enough to know that the way to trap Daniel was through the source of his character—his first and highest commitment: the law of his God. They lived by the law of the man they served, a man who, as we see in the story, could create such laws on a whim with little or no rational basis. Daniel too served that man, but not supremely. He didn’t order his life around Darius or his laws but around God and His law. And that commitment bore itself out so regularly, so predictably in Daniel’s discipline of praying on purpose that the satraps only need the law to be in place for thirty days. Did you see that in v. 7? You have to wonder why Darius didn’t catch it. Hey guys, if bowing down to no one but me is so important, why only make it illegal for thirty days and not forever? God must’ve been blinding Darius to their scheme in the short term so that He could reveal Himself more powerfully in the long term. The satraps know they really only need a one-day law; they know Daniel prays every day. But my theory is that they ask for thirty days so that when they accuse him before Darius a few weeks later he won’t suspect them of singling Daniel out.
Can the world tell where your first commitment is? The more important question is, of course, do you know where your first commitment is? Is your first commitment to the unchanging law of God demonstrated in diligently, predictably, purposefully praying over it, meditating on it, sharing it, and living a life of character that reflects its values? Folks, we live in a culture of crooked satraps seeking to bend government and law to suit their wicked preferences and, once that governing law is so bent, to then accuse God’s people of breaking it.
I hope that, like Daniel, we’ll give them no grounds for accusation except our commitment to God’s law. And then, I hope that when that happens we respond like Daniel. When Daniel is accused do we see him jumping to his own defense? Do we see him launching an anti-smear campaign? Does he engage in name-calling and accuse his accusers? Does he fall before king Darius and beg for mercy? No, he doesn’t do any of that. He goes to the lion’s den in silence, standing on his character, standing on his commitment to God and His word. But, even before that, when the law is first passed, do we see Daniel taking issue with it? Does he claim an exemption from the law on the grounds of religious liberty? Does he ask for a private audience with the king to share his concerns about the new law? Does he use his position of power to try to block the satraps from getting their law passed? No again. He doesn’t do any of that. He returns to his first commitment with clock-like consistency and entrusts himself entirely to His God!
Consistency
That consistency is the third principle of praying on purpose that we’re considering this morning. And as we go back to v. 10, I want to show you three elements of consistently praying on purpose.
Consistent Place. First, Daniel prayed on purpose in a consistent place. “When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem.” So there we have it. Daniel’s place to pray on purpose was an upper room inside his house with windows open toward the west and the capital city of his native homeland. His upper room wasn’t somewhere he occasionally prayed; this was where—for Daniel—prayer was the occasion. This was where Daniel’s memory of Jerusalem and his hopes for the Jews’ returning there, and his vision of a coming Messiah kept him focused. For Daniel it was a place for praying. Daniel didn’t live in a shack; he had plenty of room! You and I may have to get creative about finding a consistent place. It needs to be easily accessible (somewhere in or around your house), and it should have a degree of seclusion. I’ve prayed in the utility room; I’ve prayed consistently in the garage in my car with the dome light on; right now our walk-in closet is working quite well. When you find a place for praying on purpose protect it, keep it tidy, and lovingly let your family know that when you’re in that place at a certain time, you’re not to be disturbed.
Consistent Time. This brings us to the second element of consistently praying on purpose: a consistent time. The second part of v. 10 says, “[Daniel] got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God.” For most of us, praying on purpose—having three prayer occasions per day—is something we can only aspire to and admire in others. There’s nothing wrong with wanting that, but my advice is to start with one prayer occasion, and see where God takes you from there! Daniel prayed on purpose in a consistent place and at a consistent time (which happened to be three different times). Daniel wasn’t showy about this, yet everyone in power knew about it. The same way you have to carve out a consistent place for praying on purpose, you’ll have to carve out a consistent time. And if you’re persistent in doing both of these, you will in time develop the third element of praying on purpose: a consistent pattern.
Consistent Pattern. Finding a place and time is easy compared to building the habit of praying on purpose. “[Daniel] got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.” There’s the magic phrase again! You may have never done any of this prayer stuff previously. That’s okay, there was also a time when you couldn’t walk, and now you’re a pro. How? Through practice, patience, and persistence. I’m convinced learning to pray is the spiritual equivalent to learning to walk. You and I won’t be Daniel tomorrow—or maybe ever—but the same heavenly Father who so sought and captivated Daniel’s heart that Daniel in-turn sought God by praying on purpose in a consistent place, time, and pattern wants that for you and I too. Don’t give up! No spiritual habit, discipline, or routine worth developing can be attained without practice, patience, and persistence. And I would add another ‘p’-word to that list: Prayer! Don’t be afraid to pray about your prayer life. If you lack a consistent place, time or pattern for praying on purpose, ask (and keep asking) God to give you them. Nothing that we want for godliness can be attained without prayer. Jesus’ half-brother, James, said, “You have not because you ask not.” And Jesus himself said, “ask and you shall receive.”
Conclusion
So, what’s the outcome of praying on purpose? Well, for starters, all the principles that contribute to our praying on purpose will, in the long run, be enhanced and increased by our praying on purpose. If a desire for godly character stirs us to want to pray on purpose, praying on purpose will only serve to enhance our godly character. If through our commitment to God’s word we’re inspired pray with the purpose of knowing God more, our praying with that purpose in mind will only increase our commitment to God. And if through consistency we pray more purposefully, praying on purpose will fuel more consistency, not only in prayer, but I believe in other domains of the Christian life, like witnessing!
This is the other (or should I say the ‘others’) outcome of praying on purpose. (READ VV. 25-28) To one degree or another, our praying on purpose will impact the nations. No revival or spiritual awakening in the history of redemption began apart from God’s people praying on purpose. Daniel was thrown to the lions, but he was also saved by a lion: the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Jesus Christ, who would one day come to redeem all His people from the pit. If we love our Savior, who so loves the nations, we won’t occasionally pray; we’ll make praying to Him the central occasion of our lives. We’ll pray on purpose for the all-satisfying gospel of the cross to continually go forth from our lives and lips!