Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
That’s what our story
says. Daniel was the King Darius’ advisor. He was doing well at his job—too
well, actually. His fellow advisors—his co-workers—decide that something needs
to be done. They have to get him fired. The problem is, he isn’t doing anything
wrong…so they devise a plan. They go to the king as a single group. United as
one unit, they suggest that the king pass a law…people must rely on him and him
alone for everything.
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
The punishment for
asking God for anything is being tossed into a den of lions. Daniel doesn’t change what
he does, though, and the other advisors go back to the king. They ask about the
law. “Remind me about this law from last week. Is it absolute? Was the
punishment being tossed into the den of lions?
The king confirms
everything to them. Then they reveal that Daniel—the king’s top trusted
advisor—is the one who must suffer the punishment.
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
Close your eyes. Imagine
for a second a den of lions. What do you see? Is it cozy? Furry, fluffy
overgrown cats? Do you picture Aslan? Mufasa and Simba? Some other
illustration? I mean who hasn’t seen at least pictures of The Lion King or
Narnia or the Wizard of Oz? I’d want to be around any of those characters. Sign
me up for that. They’re funny and friendly, right?
These aren’t cartoons,
though. They’re not stage characters. These lions are beasts. Killers by nature
who hunt for their food daily. Their claws are sharp knives meant for tearing;
their teeth are long, pointed, fanglike spikes that drip with hunger. Their
muscles powerful enough to pull a body apart with one strike. These are the
lions that wait in the den.
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
There are many people we
could probably relate to in this story. Daniel is the obvious one. We can
probably look around us from day to day and see the obstacles that threaten to
shake us from doing what is right. The people, the social conventions, the
risks that stand in our way of doing something we know needs to be done. It
might seem easy for us to think that Daniel could’ve just skipped a few prayer
days. I mean, he wouldn’t get thrown to the lions, and who would really notice?
But it wouldn’t be right.
We can look to Daniel
for inspiration. When it seems like talking to a certain person, supporting a
particular cause, inviting another person to church would get us weird looks
from the neighbors, we can think of Daniel and his faithfulness. The king
certainly admired him. We might think for a minute that we, too, will be
respected by the kings—the Dariuses—in our lives. Our bosses, friends, spouses,
children, etc. But we also have to be aware that there are more than Dariuses
in the world.
And...Darius was tricked.
And Daniel was trapped.
Then there’s Darius. The
king. The boss. The administrator. We can think of those situations where we’re
in charge of people or projects. Maybe for you that’s your role at work, your
life as a parent, your position as chair of this or that committee in the
community here at church. Now, all the people that work for or with you call
you to a meeting where pretty much all of them are there. They go on and on
about how great you are, what a wonderful job you do.
Wow, does that feel
good. You have worked hard, after all. Then they come up with this idea that
will improve communications and make you and all the people you’re in charge of
more efficient. Awesome! Everyone is working together, finally, and they see
the work you do, too. So you agree without really examining the idea.
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
We will make mistakes
like that. My point here is that we can understand where Darius and Daniel got
stuck. Here’s the twist in the story—it works out for both of them. Even with
the advisors conspiring against them, good wins out and God’s plan is still
served. Despite the obstacles and evil in the world.
God’s plan keeps
developing. God’s plan is working through the sorrow, fear, and struggles going
on. Darius, who up until now had just tolerated Daniel’s faith—comes to share
it, and believes in God. Wow. But we can’t forget the lead up to it.
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
The advisors. The
tricksters. What about them? They see Daniel getting promoted ahead of them,
even though he’s the new guy. The stranger in town. He’s doing good—too good.
This needs to stop. They should be getting those benefits, that favor. Jealousy
takes root and they move to destroy him.
Now, I have to admit, I
understand this, too. Having a slightly competitive streak—especially when I
was in high school (music competitions were the worst)—I know that need to be
the best, and I’ve worked pretty hard since then to rid myself of that. It
still flares up from time to time, though. Can you find it in yourself, too?
That project that you just want to go well…that you want credit for…that you
want to be recognized for?
What do you do when you
notice those feelings?
Darius was tricked.
Daniel was trapped.
Thinking like that is
perhaps human nature. We are both sinners and saints, after all. There are
times we will be immeasurably good, and there are times we will fail. Jealousy,
however, is ultimately self-destructive for the tricksters in our tale. We see
that in the verses after this story. The tricksters are thrown to the lions,
and they don’t make it. They allowed their jealousy to consume them, and it
ultimately does—it consumes them. It destroys them. If there’s anyone to avoid
being like in this story, it’s these other advisors.
The advisors tricked
Darius. The advisors trapped Daniel.
Again, there will be
tricksters in our lives. We may even be tempted to be that sometimes. The point
is to not give in to that destructive side, and to know that if we become like
Darius or Daniel—if we do get tricked or trapped—God is with us. God is still
working through us. No matter how bad it gets, God never abandons us.
God is watching us. God
is with us.
God is holding us in the
palm of God’s hand.
That’s the promise we
hear here. As for our response, there’s a theme running through this, if you
can’t tell.
We have a caution in
this story, yes, to not be destructive—it huts us and it hurts others—but we
also have assurance. We can live doing what is right. We only need worry about
that, our own actions. After all, we can only control that—our own actions, not
what others do. So that’s what we worry about, not about the many imagined
shadows that might not approve. We do what we do. Praise God. Live faithful
lives.
God is watching us. God
is with us.
God is holding us in the
palm of God’s hand. Amen.
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