I am awed by the truly faithful. I believe in God with all my heart. I believe that Jesus Christ was God who came in flesh, lived a perfect life and died for my sins some 2000 years ago on the cross. In fact, my life is grounded on that Rock. I believe I have been forgiven for my sins and that the Holy Spirit has been gifted to me (Acts 2:38). Yet sometimes, I read the stories in the Bible and I am awed by the faith I see.
In Daniel 2, King Nebuchadnezzar was troubled by a dream. He called for the magicians, enchanters, and sorcerers to interpret his dream. However, they were not only to interpret it, they were to tell him what his dream was. If they could not perform, they faced death; specifically, he told them they would be torn limb from limb and their houses would be laid to ruins. They recognized the sheer impossibility of the task.
Daniel received the details of the king's request and he asked to see the king. Daniel 2:16 reads, "And Daniel went in and requested the king to appoint him a time, that he might show the interpretation to the king." What is truly amazing though is that God had not yet revealed the dream to Daniel. His faith in the sovereign provision of God allowed him to request audience without knowing all the details, trusting that God would provide. The rest of the story shows that Daniel asked his friends to pray for him and he also sought God in prayer. God does reveal the dream and the interpretation to Daniel, who in turn gives it to the king, directing all glory to God. Daniel truly stepped out in faith. He had confidence in God's provision and God did provide.
Flash forward a few hundred years and we read of the faith of the disciples of Jesus (Matthew 17:14-20). They tried to heal a young boy with seizures, but they could not. Jesus does so immediately. When they ask him why they failed, he replies, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."
Daniel had that kind of faith. May the Spirit grant the rest of us who proclaim the name of Christ that kind of faith as well.
Daily Reading: Matthew 17, Numbers 20, 1 Corinthians 4, Revelation 1,
Song of Solomon 3, Psalm 142, Proverbs 23, 1 Chronicles 24, Daniel 2, Acts 2
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