08/02/2012 - THE GLORY DID NOT GO TO HIS HEAD

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Also Daniel petitioned the king, and he set Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego over the affairs of the province of Babylon; but Daniel sat in the gate of the king.

Daniel 2:49

Once, King Nebuchadnezzar had a dream that vexed him much but because his spirit got troubled he ended up forgetting what he had dreamed. So he summoned the wise men of Babylon so that they could make known both the dream and its interpretation, which they were not able to do. For this reason, the king ordered that they all be killed.

As the royal decree ordered that no wise men’s life should be spared, they sought Daniel to kill him as well. However, that young man wisely questioned the head of the royal guard about the reason for such a stern order, petitioned the king and gathered three of his friends, asking them to join him in prayer for the Lord to show him the dream that the king had and its interpretation. The Most High answered and Daniel changed the royal decree because when he revealed and interpreted the dream he entreated the king on behalf of all who had been sentenced to death. The best thing he did, however, was to praise the Lord.

One difference observed between those who serve God and those who want to be served by Him is loyalty: those who are committed to the Truth will always exalt the Lord! Daniel took that as an opportunity to speak about his faith and to glorify the Almighty. He and his friends had been taken captive to Babylon, but the Almighty was with them.

After interpreting the dream, Daniel was rewarded by the king by being appointed ruler over the whole province of Babylon. He was promoted by the king and received many gifts. But most importantly, not even in his glory Daniel forgot about his friends who prayed with him. So he petitioned the king who complied and appointed Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego over the affairs of Babylon. Indeed, the servants of God will never let the glory go to their head.

Being selfish is not a good thing to do. Those who helped us in prayer for the solution of a problem must be acknowledged and rewarded. No one should think one receives many blessings for being privileged. Acknowledging the worthiness of those who helped us by praying or preaching the Word avails much.

Men who truly serve God will always be loyal to their mates. On the other hand, those who do not have the fear of the Lord dwelling in their heart will act perversely: while they believe someone can give them something, they butter him or her up but as soon as they feel he or she has nothing to offer them, they treat that individual as the lost ones would do. But God is glorified in the lives of those who serve Him in spirit and in truth!

We should never despair and say that there is no way out; after all, he who serves the Lord will see that every cloud has a silver lining. Daniel received the revelation, he made the dream known and interpreted it and as a result the Almighty was extolled!

In Christ with love, 

R. R. Soares