TODAY’S DEVOTION (Thursday 4th November 2021)
“So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation.
Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.
Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.” Daniel 2:16-19 NKJV
WELCOME TO THE 308TH DAY OF OUR YEAR OF HIGHER HEIGHTS.
Our God has been faithful and true that is why we are alive. This is a worthy saying that is worth repeated over and over again. From what we have seen so far, it is clear that a church generation that will not seek the mercies of God (either out of pride or ignorance) in all times and seasons will never escape the sword of men and devils.
I have come to realize that Men in good standing with GOD, are not super men but simple men who are always on their knees seeking mercies from God to keep them in good standing with Him. It is men who have fallen away from God that approach Him with an arrogance like the hypocrite in Luke 18.
It is still our month of God’s mercies, and it is important that we refresh our minds on the mystery of prophetic tombs so that we can spend the rest of pour days making God’s mercies our prophetic tomb.
When it comes to matters of God’s mercies, one of the many prophetic tombs that come to mind is that of Daniel, God’s watcher in ancient Babylon.
As defined on this platform before, a prophetic tomb is not a natural tomb. The phrase is just a metaphor.
People visit natural tombs. But we are not talking about visiting a natural tomb. We are talking about a prophetic tomb, and it is important that we unearth what it means so that we will not be misunderstood.
A very simple definition of a tomb calls it “the last resting place.”
A prophetic tomb is actually the last spiritual resting place of a man with an active walk and talk with GOD, especially when faced with life threatening situations.
Even you reading this have a prophetic tomb; that is if your walk and talk with God is active and progressive. It is the prophetic place in God that you rest on, especially during an attack of the enemy.
SO IT’S NOT A PHYSICAL GRAVEYARD!
For Paul the apostle, his prophetic tomb or resting place was God’s sufficient grace. He rested there at a time that a messenger of Satan was sent to him to buffet him so that he will not be exalted above measure. The Bible says,
“And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure.”
“Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:7-10 NKJV
Sufficient grace can become your prophetic tomb!
If you look at this scripture on the surface you will think that God was the one who sent the messenger of Satan to Paul, and like many have preached, to put pride under check or keep him humble. But like I have always said in our meetings, God does not commit revelation to proud people.
Revelation to the proud will cause them to blow up and become another Lucifer. God will first pass one through the school of humility before committing revelation to the person to teach or preach; especially dispensational revelations!
So Paul was already humble; he was already humble enough to bear the revelatory truths he was spreading. In fact, you see that in 2 Corinthians 12 and other of his letters to the Churches.
IN HIS LETTER TO THE CHURCH IN PHILIPPI, HE SAID;
“But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.
Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ
and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;
that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain[a] to the resurrection from the dead.” Philippians 3:7-11 NKJV
This is not the voice of a proud person. This is the voice of one who have gone through God’s school of humility and qualified to carry dispensational revelatory truths. So when we say God sent that devil to keep him humble we miss it.
God will not give you abundance of revelation to spread about with one hand, and then with the other sabotage your effort by sending a messenger of Satan to buffet you. That is not the GOD of the great commission!
The enemy was actually responsible and Paul sort a resting place through prayer during the attack, and God saved him by offering it to him.
God saved him by making “sufficient grace” available.
Paul’s prophetic tomb or final resting place in that battle with the messenger of Satan was the sufficient grace he asked for. The result was multiplied strength released into his life and ministry to keep him on his feet. That alone holds a deep lesson.
It teaches that if we make God’s sufficient grace our prophetic tomb, the attacks of the enemy will always leave us better and not bitter. Hallelujah!
OUR DEVOTIONAL TEXT HOLDS THE REVELATION OF THE PROPHETIC TOMB OF DANIEL IN BABYLON.
The Bible says the king had a dream and woke up without remembering it. Then he called his wise men, sorcerers, magician and etc. to help him out. But they could not!
Then he became furious ordered that if they cannot tell him the dream and its interpretation, he will consider it an exposure of a hidden but now known conspiracy against him. To him, that would mean they had been telling him lies all along by the interpretations they have been giving to the previous dreams he had been having and sharing.
If they had been true to him, they should vindicate themselves by telling him the dream he just had and its interpretation.
But the Bible says still they could not, and then he issued a command in response that they should all be executed. That was how the life of Daniel, who was working then as one of the wise men of Babylon due to his prophetic powers from Heaven, came under threat.
The Bible made it clear that the execution began.
I believe it began with those the king called to the palace to remind him his dream and give the interpretation. Then, the executioners starting looking for others to kill! Finally, they found Daniel and his friends also! But the Bible says Daniel answered the Chief executioner with Wisdom and requested that he see the King to request for time.
The request was granted. Our devotional text put it this way;
“So Daniel went in and asked the king to give him time, that he might tell the king the interpretation.
Then Daniel went to his house, and made the decision known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions, that they might seek mercies from the God of heaven concerning this secret, so that Daniel and his companions might not perish with the rest of the wise men of Babylon. Then the secret was revealed to Daniel in a night vision. So Daniel blessed the God of heaven.”
If you look at this scripture, you will discover that, the final resting place of Daniel (or his prophetic tomb) when his life and that of others came under the threat of the sword of man was God’s Mercy.
AS WE CAN SEE, FOR PAUL IT WAS GOD’S GRACE. FOR DANIEL IT WAS GOD’S MERCY. AND THEY BOTH SOUGHT FOR IT.
The Bible says Daniel and his friends, sought Mercy of the LORD and that saved their lives. What the king dreamt and its interpretation was revealed to him in a night vision. Hallelujah!
In each circumstances they both came out better and not bitter. Doing the will of God has a way on unlocking all kinds of things against us from the corrupt system of this world. But if we make God’s grace and mercies our final resting place in the midst of the attack, we will come out better and not bitter.
I believe, when this month was made our month of mercy, the intention was to teach us how to make God’s grace and mercies our final resting places in adverse situations. How to hold the horns of the altar of His grace and mercies, which are in Christ and not in any church building.
A people who will rest in God’s grace and mercy in and out of season will never be blown away by the perils of life. Daniel sought mercies of the LORD and God saved his life and that of others from the sword of the king. Paul sought God’s help of the LORD and sufficient grace was granted to him.
I don’t know what sword is pursuing you, but one thing I know is this; if you will make God’s grace and mercy your prophetic tomb or final resting place through righteous prayers, you will come out well like these great men did.
Learn to spend time in prayer and fasting, asking for God’s grace and mercy to help you out in any season of attack. That was what they did, and that is what we should do. Heaven is always waiting to send help, we only need to ask for it. We only need to be on the prayer need till grace and mercy is release to us!
LET THIS SCRIPTURE BE AN ADDITIONAL MEDITATION FOR YOU TODAY;
“God, you are my God; early will I seek you; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.
So I have looked for you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory. Because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise you. Thus I will bless you while I live; I will lift up my hands in your name.
My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips. When I remember you on my bed, I meditate on you in the night watches. Because you have been my help, therefore in the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.
My soul follows close behind you; your right hand upholds me.” Psalms 63:1-8 NKJV