I love the Old Testament Saints. They didn’t have the luxury of wasting their time. Following the law was onerous. You had to understand the law in relation to the atonement for sin and to ensure you followed it to the letter. The book of Daniel gives us a unique window into the spiritual life of one of the finest Old Testament saints to have ever lived. It also gives us a detailed picture of how to conduct a faithful interaction with the one living God, Jehovah.
How Daniel prayed is described in the book of Daniel chapter six verse 10 as “...in his upper room, with his windows open toward Jerusalem, he knelt down on his knees three times that day, and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as was his custom since early days.” So Daniel prayed in the morning timed with the morning sacrifice, in the middle of the day, and finally in the afternoon timed with the evening sacrifice. Notice that Daniel prayed toward Jerusalem in accordance with Solomon’s prayer of dedication for the temple offered centuries before. Daniel did this because the daily sacrifice was not in effect at the time of the exile and by praying toward Jerusalem he was following the precedent that Solomon had set in praying directly to God from Jerusalem.
Now given how successful that Daniel was as a prophet and leader of his society in Babylon. I think we can argue that his was a life well lived for God that would serve as an example to men and women of faith in our time. God heard and acted on Daniels prayers. When Nebuchadnezzar sort interpretation of his dream. God heard and gave Daniel the interpretation of the King’s dream. It is pertinent to look at Daniel’s method in approaching God to ask for his help. The first thing that he did was to share his problem with other believers. He explained what the King wanted to Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah, his fellow expatriated Israelites.
Daniel 2:18 “He urged them to plead for mercy from the God of heaven concerning this mystery, so that he and his friends might not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon...” NIV
God revealed the King’s dream to Daniel and he began to praise and to thank God.
Daniel 2: 20 “Let the name of God be blessed forever and ever,
For wisdom and power belong to Him.
21 “It is He who changes the times and the epochs;
He removes kings and [ab]establishes kings;
He gives wisdom to wise men
And knowledge to [ac]men of understanding.
22 “It is He who reveals the profound and hidden things;
He knows what is in the darkness,
And the light dwells with Him.
23 “To You, O God of my fathers, I give thanks and praise,
For You have given me wisdom and power;
Even now You have made known to me what we requested of You,
For You have made known to us the king’s matter.” NASB
This is a model to Christians of how to successfully approach God in prayer. It is also worth noting that Daniel continued to be a faithful servant and prayer warrior from his youth to the end of a very long and successful life as a leader of Babylon under the Caldeans and the Medo-Persian empires. In Daniel chapter six we find Daniel under attack from the enemy. The other satraps of the empire petition the King to pass a law against the worship of any deity except the King himself for thirty days. Daniel goes home and prays with his windows open making no effort to hide his worship of the living God.
The satraps inform the King and Daniel is arrested and placed in the lions den. The following scripture describes the outcome.
Daniel 6:19 “At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lions’ den. 20 When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, “Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?”
21 Daniel answered, “May the king live forever! 22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.”
23 The king was overjoyed and gave orders to lift Daniel out of the den. And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.” NIV
Those who sort to have Daniel killed were thrown to the Lions and eaten immediately and the King sent a out a Royal Decree.
Daniel 6:25 “Then King Darius wrote to all the nations and peoples of every language in all the earth:
“May you prosper greatly!
26 “I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
“For he is the living God
and he endures forever;
his kingdom will not be destroyed,
his dominion will never end.
27 He rescues and he saves;
he performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
In Daniel Chapter 9: verses 1 -17 the great prophet prays a prayer of confession and petition on behalf of the nation of Israel. He seeks an answer from God as to when Israel will be restored.
Ch: 9:V1 In the first year of Darius son of Xerxes[a] (a Mede by descent), who was made ruler over the Babylonian[b] 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.” NIV
God answered Daniel’s prayer immediately and sent the Archangel Gabriel to give Daniel a specific answer about the time frame for the repatriation of Israel and the reconstruction of Jerusalem.
By being a devout and ordered man of prayer Daniel was able to succeed in every facet of his life. Three times each day he spent time kneeling in prayer with Jehovah. This brought him close to God. It helped him to maintain a devout fellowship with God which kept him holy and sanctified as a believer. It enabled God to place Daniel in a position of the highest power for the benefit, and protection, of Israel during the exile. Daniel was also, through his faith, able to allow God to demonstrate his mighty power to the people of Babylon and Persia.
He showed the modern Christian how to approach God in prayer. As the book of Daniel unfolds we see him using the praise, confession, thanksgiving, intercession and petition as a part of his prayer routine. This structure brought him into direct communication with Jehovah. To draw close to Jehovah and to succeed in the Christian walk, putting in place a structured prayer routine enables the believer to become disciplined, sanctified and obedient to God. It is the cornerstone of the victorious Christian life.
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