Intermediate Level, Block 7—Kingdom Degrading
Week 70
Daniel—His Faithfulness to God and Being Delivered from the Lions’ Den
Point to Emphasize: We should always be faithful to pray to God and He will take care of us.
Reading Reference: Daniel 6
Memory Verse: …And three times daily he knelt on his knees and prayed and gave thanks before his God, because he had always done so previously. (Daniel 6:10b)
Story Sample
King Nebuchadnezzar dishonored God and died. Nebuchadnezzar’s son named Belshazzar followed his father’s kingdom. He also dishonored God and he also died. After him, Darius the Mede received the kingdom. King Darius was considering to put Daniel over the whole kingdom. This made the other high-ranking men so jealous! They put their heads together and plotted how to get Daniel into trouble. They came up with a way to make keeping God’s law a bad thing. They decided to ask the king to make a law that would punish anyone who within the next 30 days would make a petition to any god or man besides the king. The punishment for such a one was to be cast into the lions’ den. King Darius, not realizing their evil plot against Daniel, signed the writing, making it a law.
Now Daniel came to know about this law. What would Daniel do? He was a man of prayer. He did what he would always do three times a day. He went to his house into the upper room where he had open windows toward Jerusalem, and he knelt down and prayed and gave thanks before his God. Daniel had read in the Bible the prophecy which said that the children of Israel would serve the king of Babylon for 70 years and then be free. Knowing this, Daniel was faithful to pray. Even when he knew he would be thrown into the lions’ den, he prayed. God needed someone faithful to pray and Daniel was such a person.
Some of you might see your parents praying like this. I don’t mean going to the window to pray, but do you see them praying in the morning? Or in the evening? Or praying at mealtime? It is so good to have this habit of praying and thanking God for everything! I hope all of you will follow these habits of your parents to pray every day. [Storyteller, add your personal experience of habits of prayer.]
Well, the jealous men told the king that Daniel had broken the law. Now what would the king do? He had to follow his law and throw Daniel in the lions’ den. But the king told him, “Daniel, your God, whom you serve continually, He will deliver you.” Then they threw Daniel into the lions’ den. Daniel was about to be fed to the lions, and yet he was peaceful. My, how he believed in God!
Then a stone was brought and set over the mouth of the den. The king sealed it with his signet ring and went to his palace. He did not have any entertainment or food that night. He could not sleep the entire night. His heart was so upset about what had happened. Very early in the morning, when the first light of the dawn came, King Darius went quickly to the lions’ den. He shouted to see if Daniel had been saved from the lions. Then Daniel replied that God had saved him. The king was so happy! God had delivered Daniel! So Daniel was let out of the lions’ den, and he was completely UNHURT because he had trusted in God. Unbelievable!
Daniel was faithful to pray to God. And even when a plot from jealous men caused him to be thrown in the lions’ den, God took care of Daniel. When situations are difficult, we need to be faithful to God and know that God will take care of us.
Later, The Bible says that King Darius wrote to the whole land, “I make a decree that in all the dominion of my kingdom men tremble and fear before the God of Daniel; For He is the living God and enduring forever; and His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed, and His dominion will be unto the end. He delivers and rescues, and He does signs and wonders in heaven and on earth; It is He who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.” (Daniel 6:26-27)
And Daniel prospered all the years that Darius was king.