b) The confession of Daniel, v5-15.
i)
This is the heart of Daniel's prayer. We have considered Daniel’s view of God. But there is another thing to consider about
Daniel’s confession and that is his view of sin. I have noticed this in some of the “Psalms of
confession” (e.g. Ps. 51) where the repentant one uses many terms and phrases
to describe the sin that was committed.
These people are not just blowing smoke, trying to make God think they
are really sorry. That, of course, is a
ridiculous thought. Their words indicate
they understand not only their sin but the effect of their sin in their
relationship with God, in the nation, and in their own lives. We can meditate on these things and come to
understand the terrible effect of our own sin(s). Sin is...
(1)
v5: (Sin) Missing the mark. (v15,16). That is the meaning of the Hebrew term and
also the Greek term in the New Testament.
(2)
Iniquity: perversity, moral evil. (v16). This term also brings in the fact of “guilt.” Whether we feel it or not (in our society, it’s
all about feeling; get rid of the guilt feeling), we are accountable to God and
have failed to live up to that accountability.
We are guilty, deserving of punishment.
(3)
Wickedness: badness, evil nature. (v15). Our sin is part of the general sinfulness of
humanity. Humanity is primarily “wicked”
and what we have done is to contribute to that judgment.
(4)
Rebellion: resistance or defiance to authority. (v9). When we sin we have exerted our will against
God’s will.
(5)
Turning aside from God's commands. Of necessity, when we rebel, we find that we
have departed from God’s commands.
(6)
v6: Failure to heed the prophets. This was true in Israel; they had rejected
the words of the men God had sent to warn them and call them to
repentance. God has and is sending His
servants into this world to preach the gospel.
The greatest sin is the failure to accept that message, and those who do
will be held accountability.
(a) Let
me add a thought. A friend and I were
talking the other day about Jonah, that he did everything he could not
to preach God’s call to repentance in Nineveh.
We found it interesting that the Ninevites repented, having heard the
message from a not-so-committed prophet.
That is not, and should not be, the standard. But it reminds us that what people need is
God’s message, the call to Christ.
(7)
v7: Unfaithfulness to God. This word can be translated trespass
but speaks of a treacherous act, where we go against our word. Sin does just that! As Daniel says, “shame of face” belongs to us
for our sin.
No comments:
Post a Comment