Thursday, October 28
God gave him a chance!
Scripture: Daniel 3-4, Mark 12
Daniel 4:27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed. It may be that then your prosperity will continue.”
Observation
Daniel interpreted King Nebuchadnezzar’s alarming dream: the king would become mad and live like a wild beast for seven periods of time (it could be a year or some other measure of time). This was punishment for his sins, particularly for his pride, and would last until he acknowledged that the Most High is sovereign over all the kingdoms on earth.
But Daniel also said that there was a way out, a way to avoid this horror. If the king repented and did what was right and was kind to the poor and oppressed, he would be spared. And then the Lord gave the king 12 more months to repent before the judgment fell.
Application
The mercy of the Lord is great! God gave him a chance! He gave the king a chance to repent, and extended that opportunity for a full year.
So often we focus on the negative message of the prophet: judgment is coming. But judgement isn’t inevitable. The Lord always provided a chance to repent through His prophets. Judgement didn’t fall without warning and without an opportunity to repent, to change and avoid the judgment. God is merciful and always gave a chance to repent.
In this case, the king didn’t pay attention; he ignored the warning, failed to change, and walked straight into the judgment.
The mercy of the Lord is great! Pay attention to the Lord’s word, to the voice of the Spirit. When God warns or calls, He’s giving you a chance to do the right thing. Do it!
Where is God showing me mercy now? Giving me a chance? Calling me to change? Be attentive!
Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your mercy! You always give me a chance—many many chances, in fact! Help me to respond to Your mercy by doing the right thing!