And yet you still have the same sinful dreams and desires. My dear friends in Christ, how many years have you travelled through lent? Has it actually worked? DoesnвЂ™t it seem as if your life is a sort of insanity? You keep doing the same thing. It also doesnвЂ™t seem that he helps us with tragedies from in here-our own sinful desires and dreams. Because it doesnвЂ™t just seem as if the Lord doesnвЂ™t help us with tragedies that come from out there. 9:15 BHS-T)}}ДЄnd in that context Darius and every unbeliever on the face of the planet has the right to ask us why we serve the Lord so continually. Later on in this same book, Daniel prays for his people and says, вЂњwe have sinned, we have acted wickedly.вЂќ (Dan. And for that reason he was guilty of death and hell after death. He was guilty of having the same sort of sinful nature that we have. He is not guilty of being put to death for worshipping the one, true God. But thereвЂ™s a very specific context to these words. Daniel says to Darius that he is not guilty. Why would Daniel so continually serve him? And we already have an answer: No human seal can stop the Lord.

He wants-needs to know why Daniel is so faithful to this god. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, Your Majesty.вЂќвЂќ (Dan. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. 20 When he came near the den, he called to Daniel in an anguished voice, вЂњDaniel, servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions?вЂќ 21 Daniel answered, вЂњMay the king live forever! 22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. 19 At the first light of dawn, the king got up and hurried to the lionsвЂ™ den. 18 Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night without eating and without any entertainment being brought to him. But there is more to learn from these words: вЂњ 17 A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that DanielвЂ™s situation might not be changed. But we, like Daniel, have the promise that no seal or law of the land can keep the Lord from using the hardship for our good, or even from taking the tragedy away entirely. And what that means is that there will be times in our lives when the Lord allows trauma and tragedy into our lives. It is not stupidity to continually serve our Lord. 6:17 BHS-T)}} And no seal could keep Jesus in the deep, dark, tomb in JesusвЂ™ day.ДЄnd we learn so much from this. No seal in DanielвЂ™s day could keep Daniel in the deep, dark, well in DanielвЂ™s day. They look at you and say in their hearts, вЂњWhy bother? Why do you continually serve Jesus?вЂќ But my dear friends, we know the truth, donвЂ™t we? We know that no seal can stop our God. He knew this because no human seal could stop the Lord in what he wants and promises to do.ДЄnd itвЂ™s good for us to talk about Darius and Daniel this evening because the attitude that Darius has is the same attitude the world around us has. He knew that the Lord was perfectly able to rescue him from the mouth of the lion. He knew that the opposite could be true too. He knew that if God allowed the tragedy to happen no human seal could stop the Lord from using it for good. Daniel knew that there would be one of two outcomes. He knew that human seals could not stop the Lord. No one could help Daniel.Д«ut Daniel knew that Darius did not. He worshipped his God even when all the laws of the land told him not to. He was tricked into putting into law that anyone who worshipped any other gods than the one Darius followed would be put to death. The king said to Daniel, вЂњMay your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!вЂќвЂќ (Dan. And through this king, GodвЂ™s word asks us the same question: Why would you serve the Lord continually? In Daniel 6, we read: вЂњ 15 Then the men went as a group to King Darius and said to him, вЂњRemember, Your Majesty, that according to the law of the Medes and Persians no decree or edict that the king issues can be changed.вЂќ 16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lionsвЂ™ den. We are just about to hear a king ask one of the LordвЂ™s people why he serves the Lord continually. This evening, that is the sort of question that GodвЂ™s word asks of you.

And when it keeps failing, we keep doing it. There is the old quote that insanity is taking the same action, over and over again. All of us in our lives know of examples where we try, but it doesnвЂ™t seem to work.

Remember from dust you came