5 I saw a dream which made me afraid, and the thoughts upon my bed and the visions of my head troubled me. Purpose lies at the back of will, and purpose operates through all activity. An Excellent Spirit. I urge you to have special times, special seasons; I urge you to continue in prayer. 8 Then came in all the kings wise men: but they could not read the writing, nor make known to the king the interpretation thereof. Remember that Daniel was taken from his family, home and people in Jerusalem. Do you make sure your breath is clean before you whisper to someones ear? The simplicity of the purpose for each of us is that we commit ourselves to Christ. He prayed with effectiveness. Daniel 1:20 says this about Daniel and his friends. (Ps 75:6 and Prov. Daniel, Humility, Disciplines, Christian Disciplines, Excellent Spirit. Directly after finding himself in a place of peril "he purposed in his heart." Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into his house. Daniel interpreted dreams. - Daniel 6:3. Special illumination from God flashing on the pathway saves him in the moment of his peril. As a young teenager, perhaps as young as 12 or 13 years old, Daniel and many of his friends were all taken back to Babylon as captives, to be trained in the ways of the Babylonians and become personal servants to the King. Right there, when peril threatens, there I may have grace to help. People who are spirit-filled have His nature and way of doing things. Yet he confessed, "When I would do good, evil is present with me." They will serve before kings; Moral Excellence Is there any question that God loved the world? Centered in London is every pernicious thing that is likely to blast young life. Daniel: Faith in the Face of Challenges . I will not touch the kings dainties; I will not drink the kings wine! 27 Daniel answered in the presence of the king, and said, The secret which the king hath demanded cannot the wise men, the astrologers, the magicians, the soothsayers, show unto the king; In this verse, we are told exactly what this excellent spirit was in the verse above. May 7, 2010. 12 Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and showing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar: now let Daniel be called, and he will show the interpretation. Scriptures. Purpose and prayer, these are the words that indicate our responsibility. But to the man of purpose and prayer come a growing keenness of insight, sensitiveness of soul, quickness of perception in the commonplaces, and a keen vision in the crises of life. "forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and showing of dark sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were fo." . Daniel had an excellent spirit because he had an exercised spirit, a spirit that always prayed to His God. Some men have a score of purposes, but never one named, defined, announced, to which they are committed. He moved in prophecy. 17 Then Daniel went to his house, and made the thing known to Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, his companions: When Jesus swept away the Temple at Jerusalem, He made all the earth a temple for the true worshiper, and not merely in this house or in your own private Bethel, not merely at the appointed moment, but wherever you are, with the eye unclosed and the word unuttered, you can pray. Return . The man of excellent spirit, in whom spirit excels was. They would not bow to the golden image and were thrown into the fiery furnace. What lies beyond the fact of a mans praying? Was there ever a man of stronger personality or individuality, apart from Christ, than Saul of Tarsus? To have committed oneself to some definite thing is always of value in every walk of life. 9 Then was king Belshazzar greatly troubled, and his countenance was changed in him, and his lords were astonied. The Plot Against Daniel 2 and over them three administrators, including Daniel, to whom these satraps were accountable so that the king would not suffer loss. It affords him anchorage in the time of storm, creates for him a base in the day of battle. In such circumstances perhaps the subtlest of all temptations assail the man of faith. I take you back to the point of your fall, and tell you that your fall was due to your independence. The Bible tells us more than once that Daniel was a man who had an excellent spirit. But there is another truth, the truth that Daniel knew, the truth that God and Daniel were stronger in combination than all Chaldean corruption and idolatrous evil, the truth that you and God in London are invincible against all the forces that will sweep against you. And the king spake, and said to the wise men of Babylon, Whosoever shall read this writing, and show me the interpretation thereof, shall be clothed with scarlet, and have a chain of gold about his neck, and shall be the third ruler in the kingdom. Daniel was not a man who thought of himself within the physical as possessing a spirit; he thought of himself within the spiritual as possessing a body. He would not permit fleshly indulgence of any sort to rub the bloom from spiritual life, to weaken the nerve of spiritual endeavor, to dim the vision of spiritual outlook. Good Daniel had learned to praise as well as to pray, and to offer to God that sweet incense . For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Daniel was delivered from the lions. He purposed that he would not defile himself; he was a man of excellent spirit, offspring of God, kin of the eternal, child and heir of the infinite; and he said, "My purpose is not to defile myself." Think of how the Holy Spirit operates. Then either the Bible interprets itself or else there is no interpretation. What Is a Spirit of Excellence in the Bible? When a man has formed his purpose he is halfway to victory. Therefore he . We know from the Gospels that God allowed Jesus Christ to die as payment for our sins. Daniel speaks to us today in no uncertain tone, and the message he utters at the very beginning is: That may be doggerel, but it is philosophy97the deepest secret of life for every young man or woman. 13 And the decree went forth that the wise men should be slain; and they sought Daniel and his fellows to be slain. Daniel in the Lion's Den (Daniel 6) DANIEL A MAN OF VIRTUE A MAN OF INTEGRITY. Purpose first, and prayer perpetually. A spirit of excellence is composed of the nine fruit of the Spirit. Even if you have purposed solemnly in your heart you will be loyal to Christ, you cannot help failure if you are attempting to fight the battle in your own strength. The Holy Spirit. #1. The Bible interprets itself in the verse (right where it is written), in the context, where it has been used before and scripture build up. The king promoted him ruler over the whole province of . It certainly is remarkable that this man held office in three kingdoms97Babylon, Media, and Persia. Having a spirit of excellence does not make you proud or better than anyone else; it makes you humble and thankful. Colossians 2:3 states that in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Im sure that you may have heard of a few of Daniels friends who were captured with him. 7 They answered again and said, Let the king tell his servants the dream, and we will show the interpretation of it. When the interpretation of the kings dream was asked, Daniel called his friends together into a compact of prayer, asked them to pray with him, that he might have the necessary light for interpretation. Let us, then, examine the qualities of spirit manifested in the life story of the man in whom spirit excelled and was the principal thing. and how mighty are his wonders! 12 because an excellent spirit, knowledge, and understanding to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Prayed with effectiveness. I believe that as I read it for our lesson, in the heart of every hearer, there came again the consciousness of the old fascination and the old interest. 7 The king cried aloud to bring in the astrologers, the Chaldeans, and the soothsayers. Daniel 5:12 (GW) This Daniel (who had been renamed Belteshazzar) was found to have knowledge . "This this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm." declared that though he willed, purposed, the high and the true, in execution he stooped to the low and the false. Philippians 4:8, NIV Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think about such things. The king promoted him ruler over the whole province of Babylon. It is quite impossible for a man to live without a purpose of some sort. In other words, he was a man who was filled with the Spirit. God sent His angel and shut the lions mouths. NKJV, The NASB translation of this verse says that Daniel: Possessed an extraordinary spirit., King Darius realized there was more to Daniel than mere intellect. Daniel and his friends in that age long ago, were loyal to God even in the land of their captors, and amid all the enticements of the court. An example of scripture build up will be given below. Daniel 6:3, "Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm." The Bible tells us more than once that Daniel was a man who had an excellent spirit. You can pray all you want . He did the right thing, in the right way. This is the matter of supreme importance. 6 But if ye show the dream, and the interpretation thereof, ye shall receive of me gifts and rewards and great honour: therefore show me the dream, and the interpretation thereof. This is evident at the very beginning of the story of Daniel. 10 Now the queen by reason of the words of the king and his lords came into the banquet house: and the queen spake and said, O king, live for ever: let not thy thoughts trouble thee, nor let thy countenance be changed: The Bible tells us that Joseph did not get offended at his brothers when they mocked his dreams and threw him in a pit. The Puritan fathers talked very much about ejaculatory prayer. As a Servant of God . He is replaced by King Darius in 5:31. Daniel prayed with his face toward Jerusalem every day. John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation. I love the NASB version of this passage, it says Daniel "possessed an extraordinary spirit". The purpose was the same in every case. Underlying his life somewhere, every man has a purpose in the Divine economy. What God is looking for in us is that excellent spirit, not an excellent body, even though we are told to take care of this body for it is the temple of the Holy Ghost. Notice carefully what this means. Read verse 3. That is the first and the simple purpose to which I invite every man. 16 And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace. Daniel's first request is met with favor and compassion, probably because he wasn't a jerk about it. Apply Excellence in Every Area of Life. Perhaps if we could pick out those characteristics that made Daniel into a man with an excellent spirit, then we could develop that same kind of excellent spirit too. In the days of our young manhood we feel so self-sufficient. But for us, I think that it would be best if we were to relate the character of Daniel through a spiritual point of view as well as the physical. It is the use of the means of communication between a mans weakness and Gods power, between mans limitation and Gods sufficiency. In himself, and in all his relationships, he recognized that the supreme quantity, the supreme quality, was spirit. 15Now the wise men, the enchanters, have been brought in before me to read . What does the source Hebrew word mean and how is it used in the Bible? The heart may be firmly determined on loyalty, but unless we know how to lean hard on God the forces against us will prove too much for us. *** It is a very old story (some of you are tired of hearing it97it was told you in Sunday school) the story which says that the man who can say no is the strong man. There is no private interpretation. He. What made this possible? Daniel was preferred above the presidents and officials, because an excellent spirit was in him" (Dan. Excellence brings glory to God! The principal thing in Daniel was not the physical, though he was fair, ruddy and splendid; spirit was the dominant factor in the personality of this man. You are royal priests, a holy nation, Gods very own possession. He understood visions. 6:3; Daniel had excellent wisdom and understanding - Dan. The story of Daniel is fascinating because it reveals the possibilities of godliness in the midst of the circumstances of ungodliness. 2 Corinthians 8:7, ESV But as you excel in everything in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you see that you excel in this act of grace also. Then, that being the case, no one has the right or license to give their own interpretation of the Bible. 48 Then the king made Daniel a great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him ruler over the whole province of Babylon, and chief of the governors over all the wise men of Babylon. There would hardly be a day that Daniel would not have to defend his position and declare his loyalty to God. Where you find excellence, you will find Gods favor. What did He give? Scripture build up is where understanding other parts of scripture help define and clarify the scripture you are trying to understand. Daniels spirit was the result of the way he handled himself, and the way he treated other people, and most of all, the manner in which he served his God.