Sermon for Trinity 3: Dare to be a Daniel.

Daniel 6, 7 – 12 & 16

 “7 The royal administrators, prefects, satraps, advisers and governors have all agreed that the king should issue an edict and enforce the decree that anyone who prays to any god or human being during the next thirty days, except to you, Your Majesty, shall be thrown into the lions’ den. 8 Now, Your Majesty, issue the decree and put it in writing so that it cannot be altered—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.” 9 So King Darius put the decree in writing.

10 Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. 11 Then these men went as a group and found Daniel praying and asking God for help. 12 So they went to the king and spoke to him about his royal decree: “Did you not publish a decree that during the next thirty days anyone who prays to any god or human being except to you, Your Majesty, would be thrown into the lions’ den?”

The king answered, “The decree stands—in accordance with the law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be repealed.”

16 So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!”

Matthew 10; 24-31

24 ‘The student is not above the teacher, nor a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for students to be like their teachers, and servants like their masters. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebub, how much more the members of his household!

26 ‘So do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the roofs. 28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.

Who here remembers Tony Benn?

He served as a Labour MP for fifty years, including time in the cabinet. He championed radical left wing policies despite opposition from the press, from the Conservatives, and from a great many within his own party.

You may have disagreed with him, but you knew what he stood for.

Benn's mother was a Bible scholar. As a child he was told the great bible stories of conflict between kings and prophets.

He recalled, "My dad said to me when I was young, dare to be a Daniel. Dare to stand alone. Dare to have a purpose firm. Dare to let it be known."

How might this have inspired Tony Benn?

What might it mean to 'dare to be a Daniel?'

In our reading from the Old Testament we heard the story of Daniel in the lion's den.

King Darius had issued a decree that during a thirty day period anyone who prayed to any god, except Darius himself, would be thrown into the lions’ den.

We may be familiar with religion or ideology being misused to bolster the legitimacy of violent regimes, but many despots of the ancient near East actually claimed to be divine themselves, and so worthy of prayer and praise.

Darius was saying, 'worship me, and me alone, or else be thrown to the lions.'

After the conquest of Judah, Daniel had been taken by force to serve in Babylon. In the Ancient Near East conquered populations were often resettled around the Empire to destroy their national identity, and to provide cheap labour.

Through hard work and integrity Daniel had risen to high office, which made him enemies among the other officials.

They devised the decree to flatter the king and trap Daniel.

Yet when Daniel learned of the decree, he went home, opened his window toward Jerusalem, knelt down, and prayed to God—just as he had always done.

Defying a despot who held absolute power over the lives of his subjects, and who believed himself to be a god, was a brave move, and perhaps one that may have seemed none too wise.

Daniel must have believed obeying God's law took precedence over obeying human law.

He knew that the one true God, the Lord of lords and King of kings, was sovereign over all peoples and empires, and so either God would save him, or Daniel must be faithful and accept the leonine consequences.

By his honest labours he had already won the respect of Darius, and he had previously taken a stand when Babylonian law had contradicted Jewish religious practice.

The next morning, to the king’s relief, Daniel was unharmed.

Daniel explained, “My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths, because I was found innocent before him and I have done no wrong before you, O king.”

To dare to be a Daniel is to have integrity, to act out of principle, to not yield to corruption, to fearlessly speak truth to the powerful, to defy immoral laws, it is to have the courage of your convictions.

If you believe in the One God who is sovereign over all peoples, the Lord of Lords, the King of Kings, The Most High God, then there may be times you have to stand up for truth, especially against leaders who build Empires based on violence, who enslave peoples, and who act like they are a god.

Jesus warned his disciples that following him would have a cost. As his followers, that warning also applies to us.

To proclaim the good news is to assert that the Kingdom of Heaven has sovereignty over the Kingdom's of this world.

In the battle between truth and deceit, Christians must stand on the side of truth.

Often we are afraid to speak up in case we may be mistaken, or in case we are taken for a fool. We may think, ‘what does it matter anyway? No one will listen.’

There are also times when we genuinely struggle to know what the truth is.

However, are these doubts and complexities stopping us speaking out – or is it actually fear of what we might lose, or how we may be perceived?

Jesus said, ‘...for there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.’

You cannot stay hidden in the quietness forever.

However, this is no loud mouth's charter, or a license for bigots to shout the odds.

Daniel remained respectful and polite to King Darius.

Knowing that Jesus is the truth should make us humble.

It is Jesus who is Lord, not us. We are the servants, not the master.

We are subject to the truth, not in command of the truth.

To paraphrase the Apostle Paul, now we see our reflection as in a dark mirror, only when we stand before God shall we see things as they really are.

This becomes very clear when we disagree with people of good will. We have to stand up for what we believe, but we also have to remember who we believe in.

Jesus taught there are two categories of people, our neighbours – whom we are to love, and our enemies – whom we are to love.

We also have to be mindful of our own privilege - it is one thing to speak truth to power, it is another to speak from a position of power.

One must be able to distinguish between righteous anger, and pure, cold rage.

I started this sermon with a quote from Tony Benn, and so for the sake of political balance, and to demonstrate people of good will can profoundly disagree, I am going to close with a quote from a Conservative, Winston Churchill.

He once said, ‘You have made enemies? Good. That means you have stood up for something, sometime in your life.’

Amen.