Q4. Encouragement in Persecution

[Pastor Ralph]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

[SoiKosum]

Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution? 

 

Daniel 9: 26 - 27 foresee war, destruction, desolation, and persecution. However, in the end, the destroyer will be destroyed. We must prepare ourselves to endure over a considerable period of time. Daniel's vision has often been an encouragement to saints undergoing persecution. He knows the pain of the persecution his people endure. Persecution will not last forever. The Redeemer will end it all with his Second Coming. God will deliver his people. Jesus Christ our Lord will reign forever and ever. Amen! 

[pickledilly]

With the warning of judgment, God always gives hope and assurance of His ultimate good will, mercy, and final victory. Daniel was shown that the Jews would face terrible times of oppression and persecution. But he was also shown that they would be released from captivity to return to their homeland, Jerusalem would be rebuilt with its temple, and in the long view would be ultimately and completely delivered to be with God. There is no guarantee that Christians won't also face such times (although I don't think it will ever be equal to what has been prophesied to happen to the Jews). Indeed, history records persecution of believers and we see it going on today, with bias and growing oppression in America, and with cruel and barbaric reports from the Middle East and other areas of the world. But God has given us His prophetic word about how all will end and has a proven track record of fulfilling His Word. The assured hope and unshakeable certainty that GOD WINS is the lifeline we need when in the midst of suffering, whether that's individually or collectively. He has made concrete promises, He has proven His Word, and He will deliver His people!

[IvoryEagle]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution? 

 

LIKE SURGERY, THE PAIN IS REAL BUT WE KNOW IT IS NOT OVER UNTIL IT IS OVER.  GOD IS OUR SURGEON AND HE HAS SAID THE PAIN WILL COME BUT IF YOU ENDURE, YOU WILL HEAL & IT WILL BE BETTER THAN BEFORE.!  I BELIEVE THAT....Stay tuned..

[charisbarak]

There is a time coming when Jesus will make things right!!  PTL!

[RD35]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?   

 

Daniels visions and prophecies encourages Christians always as it gives them and us hope of a time when all tears and pain will come to and end.  That Jesus will come and deliver his people and His kingdom will come in this world.        ​

[PrayingMan]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

 

Revelation 6:10-11 "

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slainbecause of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 

10 They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?" 

11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed." 

 

Revelation 7:13-17 says, 13 "Then one of the elders asked me, "These in white robes--who are they, and where did they come from?" 

14 I answered, "Sir, you know." And he said, "These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

15 Therefore, "they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them.

16 Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. 

17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

 

 

Daniel's prophecy and passages in Revelation remind those suffering persecution that God is faithful and will prevail.  It reminds them that evil will not prevail, that God is just and that their sacrifice is not in vain.  I think the one word that describes the importance of passages like this is "Hope."  Our hope is in Jesus Christ who keeps all things in perspective and keeps our hope for something better, something more glorious in our sight.  Without hope, we see the ugliness and evil of those who oppose Christ.  But keeping our eyes on Jesus shows that evil does not have the final word.  Jesus has the final word. Amen! Praise His Name!

[hinckster]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

God will deliver his people. He knows the pain of the persecution his people endure. And that persecution will not last forever. The Redeemer will end it all with his Second Coming.

[Jen]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution? 

They are suffering for the One they love.  He is in control and victory is His (and ours).

 

"there's victory in Jesus our Savior Forever, He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood."

 

God Bless!

Jen

Romans 15:13

[Neil]

Daniel stands out to us because he will not let persecution override his

trust in God's continuing care. He is yet another of so many wonderful saints

we have seen throughout history,right up to our present day, who have kept the faith in spite of

terrible hardships. I often wonder....could I stand for the faith as Daniel did?

May God grant me such grace.

[Aleezah]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

 

• I do not know.  I do not use Daniels visions and prophecies to be encouraged.  I utilize the way Daniel prayed as an example of how to pray fervently and effectively to get my prayers answered.   

[haar]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

Because of the lessons learnt particularly the good news that evil may seem to triumph, but our God will overcome at the end. Thus His victory will be our victory. This motivating and cheering conclusion.

 

[JanMary]

Q4 Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

Prophecies show us that God is never taken by surprise...He is not standing in Heaven wringing His Hands over what is going on in the world...He is seated, fully aware of all that is transpiring, because He saw it all before the foundation of the World was formed.  (Just as He saw, chose and called each of us before the foundation of the world was formed. (Ephesians 1: 1-4) It is comforting to remember that, and that He has put in place His solutions, protections, people, and whatever else will be needed in our time of need. I love that He prophesied Cyrus, a Persian 150 years before he was born, who would come and be of service to the Jews...We can take courage and comfort in His foreknowledge, His love and His grace and mercy...no matter what is going on around us. (for me it has been over 500 earthquakes in the past 2 weeks...we live right on the Calaveras fault line....)  HE IS IN ABSOLUTE CONTROL......LORD OVER ALL. His love never fails, and He never abandons His children for even one second. In death we are immediately in His Presence. "to be absent from the body, we are present with Christ. (2 Corinthians 5:5-8)  

[Commissioned]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution because they are comforted by the fact the God cares for His people. He knows the pain of the persecution his people endure. And that persecution will not last forever. The Redeemer will end it all with his Second Coming.  We have HOPE!!! It is that blessed hope that keeps us moving forward.

[Santhana David]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

However many the number of contradictive interpretations of Daniel’s visions and prophesies by the many great biblical scholars, I catch a glimpse of God’s sovereignty in all of Daniel’s visions and I view these visions as  exemplary prophetic declarations of faith under Divine domination. On the revelations of God’s all assuring intention and interpretation of each of the visions, lies the foundation for good Christian living of every believer.

 

The assertion in Dan. 8,that the ultimate annihilation of the evil forces opposed to God and the assurance that God’s purposes will be realized as written in Dan. 9, gives us the strength to endure and hope to look forward to the day of Jesus’ Second Coming. The assurance in the Book of Daniel that God is sovereign is an encouragement to us Christians who acknowledge that the Christ’s 2^nd Coming will spell doom for evil forces of Satan – eventual defeat. This is the hope that Daniel instills throughout his writings.

 

Another aspect in my opinion, which has the influence to encourage Christians are prophesies which became a reality some 500 years later, which is the advent of the Messiah, His eventual deaths (cut off) and the still to come prediction of His Second Coming that Christians await. “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into His presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power ; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshipped Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His Kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” (Dan. 7:13~14)

 

Just reading Daniel’s prayer gives us the chills and more importantly teaches us how the structure of our prayers should be – like Daniel, we too should pray for all believers or rather Christians – for the forgiveness of sins all believers – for the return of Christians who have lost their faith – for our respective nations – for God’s mercy on all – because God’s name endures forever. Just read how Daniel configured his prayer which immediately found favor with God.

I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed:

“Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.

 

“Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you.

 

“Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him.

 

“Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us. (Dan 9:4~19)

 

Although God’s plans might appear to be delayed, Christians believe that eventual fulfillment will be “pulled off” at the precise moment He wills. God’s final judgment which we all await, will decides the destiny of the entire human race. No human being knows the day or hour of Christ’s coming (Matt 24:36), only our Heavenly Father knows the time of His return (Acts 1:7), and He will come again precisely on time. This assurance gives us faith, hope, confidence and encouragement.

 

As we all know, history is not composed of random occurrences, God stands behind every earthly event, guiding all history to one glorious event, the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. We must be aware that in spite of all evil actions motivated by Satan, God is still in charge. Ultimately, His purpose will be accomplished. Finally, His plans will be complete. All of Daniel’s prophesies and visions are graphic illustrations of God's purposes and plans. What He does, He does in His time. This should give us, Christians, great encouragement.

[Clarence]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

The encouragement could be that there will be an end to the suffering, trials and persecution.

[hanks]

Q4. 

Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution? 

God answered Daniel’s prayer as soon as he had begun to pray. This tells me that God cares for His creatures, those that are obedient to Him, and He will never leave us or forsake us. We see God tying Himself to a definite timetable of events. The fact that in the vision He had told Daniel what was going to occur, and with such accuracy, shows that He is control. He determines the destiny of all. In this passage of Scripture, we see the ability of the Word to predict events far in the distant future. It pinpoints the exact moment in history when our Lord Jesus would present Himself to the Jewish people. And this more than five hundred years before the event took place! This can only be by Divine power. Knowing all this enables us to face any type of trials, ill-treatment or persecution. 

 

[van]

Daniel's visions and prophecies encourages all people who have and still is going through persecution all over the world. They only have to keep believing that Jesus Christ is coming again and He will have end all persecution forever.

[lighthouse2014]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

Daniel"s visions and prophecy's have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries especially when under going percussion, because the visions have given them confidence and hope to endure persecutions which last only for a short while. We know the Lord our redeemer will put an end to this when He returns in his second coming, defeating Satan and setting up his Kingdom.     

[Barbiemac]

Why do you think Daniel's visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

We read this and know that at some point in time God will deal with the injustices , we always hope it is in the time we live.

[Old Jerry]

I think that Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians because we know that no matter what we go through God is with us. We have something to look forward to because we know that is not all that there is and we have something better waiting for us.

[Moises Percu]

Q4. Why do you think Daniel’s visions and prophecies have been an encouragement to Christians throughout the centuries when they are undergoing severe persecution?

 

Because these prophecies show that in the end Christ will be victorious and His people will live forever with Him.

[Clelie]

The book of Daniel has been a great encouragement to me personally. It shows the faithfulness of Daniel in spite of persecution, his faith in God and his  humility .How God knows the sufferings of His people and will set them free in due time.This has encouraged many going through persecutions to rely on a saving God as exemplified in the book of Daniel.

 

Thank you dear joyful heart for a great lesson of standing firm in times of hardship and knowing there is a God who hears and answers. 

[Krissi]

Many Christians gloss over difficult prophecies in the bible, assuming they can neither make sense of them nor apply them to their own historical era. In a way, this is true -- they are difficult to understand and some of the prophecies have already come to pass. But they do show God's character and the way He relates to humankind, and for this reason alone -- there are other reasons, of course -- the prophecies have value today.

These prophecies seem to use war/martial imagery and are geopolitical in scope. In the West, we've had a relatively long spate of peace in our own lands. War seems to be "out there," not happening at home. I believe this will end soon. War will be coming to Western shores including the United States. As this happens, the war-themed prophecies of the OT may become more precious to Christian citizens than now.

I am comforted by the idea that God controls such events or, at least, has them under surveillance! He doesn't leave us here to twist in the winds of fate, because history has a thrust or trajectory that ends up somewhere good.

Still, individuals Christians do suffer and die on this path. For the individual Christian, it may not be comforting to know that history has been created by God to take place over long periods of time toward goals that cannot be seen. Believers died in captivity, after all, and many more have died in wars since then. God's sovereign control over the forces of history do not necessarily exempt or protect individual believers who are caught up in those forces. 

Does God hear our prayers? Yes. In this lesson, God heard the prayers of Daniel and answered them. He answered by delivering some of His people from persecution and allowing others to  either endure or die.

--

As an individual, I must admit I don't find a lot of comfort in these prophecies. My life may be one of persecution and a painful death, as were the lives of many of Daniel's cohort. Some are taken out of persecution -- delivered -- while others die. This is reality. It is something that I have to deal with with my eyes open, as a Christian. My real question is this -- Will God really answer my prayer for deliverance? Can I depend on Him to rescue me from horrible situations? Will He end the persecution or will tell me to buck up, get a spine, put up with it or die?

I know that God will deliver His people writ large -- I do not doubt this. But I am not so certain that God will deliver me. I fear being caught up in forces that are painful and persecutory. So, will He deliver me? Rescue me? I pray He does, but honestly, I am afraid.