DANIEL BECAME A GREAT PROPHET BY THINKING ABOUT OTHERS.

DANIEL BECAME GREAT PROPHET BY THINKING ABOUT OTHERS. 

Scripture:Daniel 9:2-11

Topic: Daniel became Great Prophet by Thinking about Others. 

"In the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of the years, whereof the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah the prophet, that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of Jerusalem. And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: And I prayed unto the Lord my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that

keep his commandments; WE HAVE SINNED, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments: NEITHER HAVE WE HEARKENED unto thy servants the prophets, which spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because of

their trespass that they have trespassed against thee. O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee. To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though WE HAVE REBELLED against him; NEITHER HAVE WE OBEYED the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing, that they might not obey thy voice; therefore THE CURSE IS POURED UPON US, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of God, because we have sinned against him."

Daniel 9:2-11

The key to becoming a great prophet is thinking about “others”. Daniel, one of the greatest prophets that ever lived, had a great heart for  “others”. You can always know someone’s heart when you listen to his prayers.  Thinking about “others” will always be a master key to having a fulfilled life. Daniel was a prime minister in different governments. Under Emperor Nebuchadnezzar he was made the ruler of the province of Babylon and the chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon. Under Emperor Darius, Daniel was the first of the three presidents. How on earth did he become so great ?

Well, Daniel could have lived his life happily because he had such political clout. His high governmental jobs were enough to disconnect him from normal Jewish society. However, your life always becomes richer because you think about others. As I have been sharing, most of the national heroes you know about became great by thinking about others. Daniel’s heart was revealed in his prayer for his nation. Daniel prayed for Israel because he knew that his nation had sinned against God. His prayer is recorded above and you will notice the words, “We” and “us”. He confessed the sins of Israel as though they were his personal sins. His burden was for the other Israelites. Even though Daniel was having a great time in the palace, he spent his time praying for “others”

Daniel prayed earnestly for Israel. He prayed so fervently that God sent angels to answer his prayers. It is Daniel’s burden for “others” that distinguished him in captivity. Israel was on his heart! “Others” were on his heart! God’s people were on his heart! He was burdened with the burden of Israel. It is not that Daniel did not have personal problems. Daniel and his friends had been castrated. They were eunuchs in Babylon. Indeed, when he asked to have a special diet in the king’s palace, he had to seek permission from the prince of eunuchs who was in charge of the eunuchs.

"Now God had brought Daniel into favor and tender love with the PRINCE OF THE EUNUCHS. And the PRINCE OF THE EUNUCHS said unto Daniel, I fear my lord the king, who hath appointed your meat and your drink: for why should he see your faces worse liking than the children which are of your sort? Then shall ye make me endanger my head to the king. Then said Daniel to Melzar, whom the PRINCE OF THE EUNUCHS HAD SET OVER DANIEL, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink."

Daniel 1:9-12

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah were probably having serious erectile dysfunction due to the absence of testicles. He and his fellow eunuch friends must have desired to have normal lives, but their lives were far from normal. In spite of his personal problems, Daniel had a heart for “others”. His prayers were not about having a miracle marriage or miracle children. His prayers were about the nation of Israel and their sinful spiritual state.  Daniel is remarkable because he thought about “others”. Daniel is remembered today because of his great heart for “others”. Daniel is honoured today because even though he had serious personal problems, he still managed to think about  “others”.

Today, many people are named after the prophet Daniel. Daniel lived thousands of years ago but we all know about him. Today, many people name their children after the prophet Daniel because he was such a great person. I am sure you know several people who are called Daniel, Danny, Dan or Dannyboy! All these people are named after this one great prophet who prayed for “others” in spite of his personal problems.

Credits : Excerpt from

Others,

Bishop Dag Heward-Mills.