For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    A wicked ruler is a greater danger to the poor than wild animals. The second proverb reminds us that evil rulers do not truly understand how things work. Mistreating and oppressing the poor shows that a ruler lacks wisdom.

    Continue to be faithful to following God’s laws even when it seems like you have waited beyond reason. There are many who will threaten and persecute us for obeying God’s commands, but if we remain faithful God will reward us. God’s rules and regulations remain as true today as they were in the past. They do not need to be changed to keep up with the times.

    God has given each and every one of us various gifts. Whatever our abilities are, whether physical abilities, mental abilities, social abilities, or some other category of ability, they are a gift from God given to us to allow us to serve our fellow believers. I will strive to always remember this and look for ways to use my gifts to serve others. Let us use the strength and energy which God supplies to us to use His gifts to help and uplift others.
    We will face insults and persecution for following Christ. We should not be surprised, nor should we complain about this. Instead we should be glad that we are deemed worthy of such abuse because it allows us to share in Christ’s suffering, even if in only a minor degree. However, while we should not seek to avoid such suffering. we should also not act in a manner calculated to increase the suffering which we experience. Trials will come our way if we are faithful, we do not need to seek them out. I want to be very careful how I word this because there are two errors which believers have made. Some believers have compromised their faith in order to minimize the suffering which they experience. The problem with attempting this is that it is not truly possible without giving up that which makes the faith of any value. The opposite error are those who make trouble and otherwise act in ways designed to get the authorities and the crowd to persecute them. This is also wrong. We are not called to seek out suffering and doing so brings dishonor to God’s name. If we live faithfully, always seeking to serve God, the suffering which Peter speaks of here will find us to one degree or another.

    When Daniel went before the king to reveal the meaning of his dream he made it clear that he was not offering the answer from his own skill and knowledge. Daniel was careful to explain to the king that he was only able to provide the king an answer because God gave him that answer. Daniel made it clear that he was not smarter, wiser, or anyway more skilled than the king’s other advisers. This is a challenge we all face. My successes and accomplishments are not because I am better than others, they are a result of God’s choosing to give me certain gifts. Sometimes, as in this story, they will be a matter of divine revelation and/or intervention. Other times, they will be the result of carefully cultivating the gifts which God has given me. And still other times they will be a combination of the two. In all cases, let us give credit where credit is due, which is to God for giving us the gift in the first place.

For today, One Year Bible Online links here.

    Wicked rulers are as dangerous to the poor as a wild predator. They are unpredictable and difficult to defend against. Rulers who oppress the people lack understanding and wisdom. Those rulers who hate corruption will have long and prosperous lives.
    A government which treats its people well will be strong and last for many years. A government which treats its people as sheep to be fleeced will soon fall.

    We may be worn out from waiting for God to relieve us from our misery, yet if we continue to keep His commands He will rescue us. No matter how dire our situation may appear, let us remain faithful to God for He will remain faithful to us. His regulations are as true today as when He first spoke them. Things may seem bad today, but we can rest assured that everything serves God’s plans and He will reward our faithfulness in ways we cannot imagine.

    Peter gives us a series of instructions that are related. However, before he does that, he reminds us that this world will be coming to an end in the near future. Therefore we should be planning for what comes after this world, by being earnest and disciplined in our prayers (there’s that emphasis on prayer again). The most important thing that we can do is show love for one another. We have each been given gifts from God, let us use them with all of our strength to serve one another. In this way we will bring glory to God.
    We should not only be prepared to face suffering, but rejoice when we do. Because when we have such experiences we become partners with Christ in His suffering. Let us just make sure that what suffering we experience is not a result of our own wrongdoing. There is no shame in suffering for following Christ, but we should not do things which will make us deserve suffering. We will find that we can continue to do what is right in the face of suffering if we put our complete trust in God.
    Peter concludes his teaching in this letter by telling the elders in the Church (in this case, I think he is referring both to those who are in official positions of authority AND those who are more mature Christians) to lead by example. They should not lord it over the rest of the Church, seeking what they can get out of it for themselves. They should care for the other members of the Church because they are eager to serve God. Those who are younger should accept the authority of their elders. Sometimes those who are older than ourselves know that something is a mistake, even if they cannot explain to us why that is the case. And all of us, older or younger, should deal with each other from a position of humility.
    There are two personality traits which Peter tells us to value highly: love and humility. If we can master these two things, we will never go far wrong.

    The dream which Daniel interprets for Nebuchadnezzar resembles the Greek “Ages of Man”. It starts with the Golden Age, followed by the silver, bronze, and, finally, the iron age. Each of these ages (or, in this dream and interpretation, kingdoms) is inferior to the one which preceded it. However, unlike the Greek “Ages of Man”, it is the current age, or kingdom, which is the golden age. While it is likely that this dream and its interpretation were influenced by the Greek stories and myths of the Ages of Man, it is clearly using those concepts to tell a different story. The Greek stories and myths about the Ages of Man show man’s influence over the universe increasing and that of the divine decreasing. However, this dream shows the divine completely overwhelming the power and influence of man over the universe.
    We transition from Nebuchadnezzar praising God for giving Daniel the interpretation of his dream to Nebuchadnezzar setting up a golden statue which he required everyone to worship. However, Daniel’s friends, Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego, refuse to do so. Some of the courtiers reported them to Nebuchadnezzar for this. We do not know why Daniel is not part of this story, perhaps he was elsewhere at the time.
    When the three young men are brought before Nebuchadnezzar they give a testimony that should be something we take to close heart. They tell Nebuchadnezzar that God is perfectly capable of saving them from whatever danger they may be put into, including any which the king might choose to inflict upon them. However, their affirmation of faith does not stop there. They testify that even if God does not save them, they will not be unfaithful to Him and go against His will. Are we willing to make a similar stand? When we call upon God’s miraculous power are we willing to state that even if God chooses not to give us our request we will remain faithful to Him?

     I am using One Year Bible Online for my daily Bible study. For today, One Year Bible Online links here. I have found that by writing this daily blog of what I see when I read these scriptures, I get more out of them. I hope that by posting these ruminations others may get some benefit as well. In order to make that possible I read the passages and write my thoughts a day in advance. If you have any thoughts or comments regarding these verses or what I have written about them, please post them.

     Having received both a description of Nebuchadnezzar’s dream and an interpretation of it from God, Daniel approached the man under orders to kill all of Nebuchadnezzar’s advisers on wisdom. Daniel told him not to carry out his orders because Daniel was able to tell the king the meaning of his dream. When Daniel was brought into Nebuchadnezzar’s presence the first thing he did was refuse to take any credit for the interpretation. Daniel told the king that no human agency has the ability to reveal the secret which the king was keeping. However, God knows all secrets and reveals them to whom He wills. The key lesson I take away from this passage is Daniel’s statement that he did not possess some special insight, not was he wiser than others. He was merely the one whom God had chosen to reveal His meaning to King Nebuchadnezzar. Do we have the same humility when God chooses to use us for His purposes?

     The second part of today’s passage from Daniel is one of my favorite stories in the Old Testament. King Nebuchadnezzar set up a gold statue and issued a proclamation that everyone was to bow down to worship it. Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego refused to do so. When King Nebuchadnezzar found out, he confronted them. Nebuchadnezzar asked them what god would be able to save them from being thrown into a fiery furnace at his orders? Their response is one that I wish to emulate in all circumstances:

If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us… But even if he doesn’t, we want to make it clear to you, Your Majesty, that we will never serve your gods or worship the gold statue you have set up.

The God whom I serve is able to rescue me from all troubles and hardships, but even if he does not, I will not serve or worship any god but the one true God.

     This passage is full of important teachings. It starts by reminding us to have disciplined prayer lives, something I struggle with. It then tells us to demonstrate hospitality to our fellow believers in an ungrudging fashion. Peter then tells us to use whatever gifts God has given us to serve others with all of the strength we have, which also comes from God. Whether that gift is one of speech, or some other means of helping others, let us seek to use it to bring glory to God’s name.
     We should not be surprised when we face trials and tribulations as a result of our faith. I will rejoice when I am insulted or persecuted because of my faith in Christ. God will not fail me in my trials any more than he failed Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego. Peter changes tack somewhat as he moves to his next exhortation. He tells us that elders, those with authority over others in the Church, should humbly use that authority to serve those others, while those who are younger should accept the authority of the elders. Let us serve one another with humility and humble ourselves before God, just as Daniel did. I will give all of my worries and cares to God because He desires good things for me and has the power to bring them into being. I will stand firm on the foundation which God has laid for me.

     We may face troubles and trials that seem to be beyond our endurance, yet God knows our limits. His love for us knows no bounds and His faithfulness is eternal. He will rescue us when the time is ripe. Let us humbly wait for His rescue for it will arrive in a timely fashion, even if not in the time we desire.

     A wicked ruler is as devastating to those he rules over as a wild predator is to someone who is helpless. A ruler who oppresses his people is a fool, a wise ruler will hate corruption. This fits in with what Peter said about leaders in the Church. Those in a position of leadership, whether it be elders in the Church, or government officials, should use their authority to serve others, not to satisfy their own desires.