On January 15th, I preached on Daniel chapter 9. While studying and preparing to preach, I learned several things.
During the first year of Darius, the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of Medes, Daniel was reading Prophet Jeremiah’s scroll. He understood that the seventy-year exile should end. So he interceded on behalf of his people, confessing sin, and pleading for God’s mercies to restore the nation.
So, after reading what Jeremiah wrote about the Word of God, Daniel did the right thing – he decided to seek God’s face and pray on behalf of his people based on God’s promises.
Look at Jeremiah 29:12-14 where the LORD promised the redemption of His people from bondage if they met a condition.
Jeremiah 29:12–14 (KJV 1900)
12 Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
14 And I will be found of you, saith the Lord: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the Lord; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive.
In Daniel 9:3, we learn that Daniel set his face unto the Lord God in prayer and supplications with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. He pleaded that Yahweh would restore His people to their land for His name’s sake. Nothing else! What God has always done was for His name’s sake. Even though God loves people, He always rescued them for His name’s sake.
Upon Daniel’s pleading with the LORD, the LORD answers Daniel by sending the angel Gabriel. The LORD not only honored Daniel through the words of Gabriel, but he gave news through Gabriel about God’s greater plan!
The issue is confusing. On the one hand, Daniel was praying for Israel’s sin, hoping that God would hear his prayers and deliver Israel based on His faithfulness and for His name’s sake (Yes, God will answer that), but God also revealed a greater plan to Daniel – a plan that will be fulfilled in the future. So, even though Daniel anticipated an immediate deliverance from God, God answered for the future.
My point here is to highlight what Daniel was doing. He was seeking God’s forgiveness for his people because he learned from Prophet Daniel that God’s chosen people were no longer living as God’s people but rebelled and sinned against their God. But Daniel recalled that God Himself said He would listen to their prayers “if” they asked Him. So Daniel took that responsibility; he prayed for the wayward children of Israel and these lost people. If you read Daniel 9, you will notice how intense that prayer was.
But why would I say that Church is Lost? How is this story about Daniel and his prayer related to Church?
How can we not see a similar pattern in the actions done by Israel and how God responded to them by sending them into exile? But that was not the end of Israel. Because of God’s compassion for Israel, He gave them a plan – if they prayed, He would rescue them.
Here are my reasons to pray for Church:
- Because most of the universal Church today is living as the world is living – there is not much distinction besides claiming oneself as a Christian. The world has crept into Church. Most of the Church has the mindset of the world as opposed to a godly mindset.
- The Church is as guilty as Daniel, and the Israelites were for their sins! Verses 4-15 in this chapter is dedicated to confessing sins. Today’s Church is guilty of habitual sins, so they do not want to show their faces to God as boldly as they should. Instead, they run away from God because they fear God will expose their sins. Because of these sins, Church does not appear to be distinct as God’s people should be. Instead, they look the same as the world.
- The Church has become a reproach among nations. In verse 16, Daniel says, “because of our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and they people have become a reproach to all that are about us.” – “To become a reproach” means “an object of ridicule” or a “joke.” The Church today is making Jesus a joke.
Think about the issues going around in Churches. We see failed Church leadership. We see pastors resign because of their immoral relationships; Church members not living up to God’s Word; the prosperity gospel preachers making money from God’s people in the name of Jesus; the Church compromising to the world’s standards rather than God’s standards.
So yes, we see the need for prayer, and we must pray for Church as Daniel was praying for his people.
Please pause for a moment and pray with me for the universal Church. Would you?