The Bible: From Victim to Victor

"The Bible" series - "A Story of God and Us All"

The stories of the Bible - through the age of the patriarchs, the Exodus, the wanderings in the wilderness, the Conquest of Canaan, the period of the judges and the kings - eventually led to the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of God's people in Babylon.

The entire nation was reduced to nothing. To rubble. To victimhood.

But God had a plan, as He does for every one of us. His plan was to work their redemption in such a way to turn them from victims to victors. And the stories in the book of Daniel give us some inspiring insights into how God's "great salvation" changes us from victims to victors. And the first such insight is this:

1. I can be victorious because "there is a God in heaven" (Daniel 2:1-48).

• v27-28 - God reveals secrets and mysteries
• And God has revealed to you, in His Word, "the mystery of Christ" -- Ephesians 3:9-12 "I was chosen to explain to everyone this mysterious plan that God, the Creator of all things, had kept secret from the beginning. God's purpose in all this was to use the church to display his wisdom in its rich variety to all the unseen rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. This was his eternal plan, which he carried out through Christ Jesus our Lord. Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently into God's presence."

2. I can be victorious because my God "is able to save" (Daniel 3:8-27).

• (Tell story of three Hebrews, emphasizing Daniel 3:17-18: "If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God whom we serve is able to save us. He will rescue us from your power, Your Majesty. 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."
• You and I can have that kind of confidence, too. He was able to save Noah and his family from the flood. He was able to save his people from slavery in Egypt. He was able to save the nation of Israel from oppression by Philistines, Moabites, and Edomites.

3. I can be victorious because "my God sent" (Daniel 6:1-22).

• (Summarize story of Daniel in the lion's den, ending with v. 22, in which Daniel reports to the king that "my God sent His angel and shut the lions' mouths.")
• You and I can say the same, except that God did not send an angel, but a Son; (John 3:16). His ability -- and willingness -- to save is most powerfully shown in the coming of Jesus to earth and the cross by which he worked salvation.

Application:

1. Listen to what Daniel said after the mystery of Nebuchadnezzar's dream was revealed to him.

• Daniel 2:20-22 He said, "Praise the name of God forever and ever, for he has all wisdom and power. He controls the course of world events; he removes kings and sets up other kings. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the scholars. He reveals deep and mysterious things and knows what lies hidden in darkness, though he is surrounded by light."

2. Listen to what Nebuchadnezzar said after Daniel's friends were delivered through the fiery furnace.

• Daniel 3:29b "There is no other God who can rescue like this!"

3. Listen to what King Darius said after God saved Daniel from the lions' den.

• Daniel 6:26-27 "I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel. For he is the living God, and he will endure forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his rule will never end. He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions."

God's "great salvation" provides victory over sin, death, and the devil, and it can be yours today.

• Romans 8:35, 37 Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
• 1 Corinthians 15:56-57 For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.
• Colossians 2:9-15 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority. When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead. You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.