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God Saved Daniel by Stopping the Lion’s Mouth

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Bible verse : Daniel 6:10(NIV)

Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published,
he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem.

Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God,

just as he had done before.

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Babylon fell and Darius of Media became the new king at the age of 60. King Darius appointed 120 governors to rule the country well. And to ensure that there was no difficulty in governing the country, he appointed three prime ministers above the governors. Daniel, whom we know well, was one of those prime ministers.

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Daniel, who possessed God-given wisdom, was far superior to all other ministers. King Darius trusted Daniel completely.

So the king tried to entrust Daniel with the affairs of the entire country.

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In order to prevent the king from entrusting the affairs of the entire country to Daniel, other prime ministers and governors tried to find out Daniel's mistakes and sue him. But they found no fault with Daniel.

So they made an evil plan to get rid of Daniel under the pretext of keeping God's law and praying three times a day.

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They told King Darius that they should go out and make a new law.

“King Darius! May you live long and prosper. Please promulgate a law that over      the next 30 days, anyone in this country who prays to any god or person other      than the king will be thrown into the lion's den.

And please put your king’s stamp on this law so that it cannot be changed.”

Traditionally, in the Mede and Persian empires, there was a tradition that once a law was passed by the king, it could never be changed.

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King Darius was pleased that his ministers unanimously praised him.

He allowed them to establish this law, completely unaware that they were making this law to kill Daniel. And he put the king's seal on the document.

The ministers were very happy to receive the king's approval.

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Daniel also knew that King Darius had made a new law and its contents. But Daniel went up to his attic as if nothing had happened, as he did every day.

Daniel kept the window of his room open toward Jerusalem and knelt down three times a day to pray and give thanks to God.

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The ministers who were watching Daniel ran to King Darius and accused him of breaking the king’s law. King Darius was greatly shocked when he saw Daniel captured. He then realized why that law was made. But he could not change the law that already had the king's seal on it.

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King Darius tried to find a way to save Daniel until sunset. The ministers came to the king and said, “O king! Remember that once the laws of the Medes and Persians have been declared, they cannot be changed again!”

They urged him to quickly throw Daniel into the lions' den, saying that a law with the king's seal cannot be changed.

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King Darius could no longer protect Daniel with his own strength. He had no choice but to allow Daniel to be thrown into the lions' den.

King Darius went to Daniel and said, “Daniel, your God whom you have always served will save you.”

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Daniel was thrown into a lion’s den filled with hungry lions.

The ministers were relieved, thinking that they had turned Daniel into food for the lion according to their will.

They blocked the entrance to the cave with a large rock.

The ministers stamped the king's seal and their own stamp on the rock so that no one could remove it.

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King Darius did not eat anything from the evening that Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den until dawn the next day. He forbade any entertainment in the royal palace. Because of Daniel, the king could not sleep and spent the night with his eyes open, waiting for the day to dawn.

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As soon as dawn broke, the king hurried to the lion’s den. Standing at the mouth of the cave, the king called out to Daniel in a worried voice.

“Daniel, servant of the living God! Has God, whom you always serve, saved you from the lions?”

King Darius waited anxiously for any sound to come from the cave.

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At that moment, Daniel’s voice was heard loudly from the cave. “O king! I hope you live a long life. My God sent his angels to silence the lions.

God did not let the lions harm me because he knew that I was sinless.

O king! I have done no wrong to you.”

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King Darius was very happy and took Daniel out of the lion’s den.

When Daniel came out of the lion's den, not a single wound was found on his body. God sent an angel to protect Daniel from harm.

As Daniel believed, God protected him.

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King Darius was jealous of Daniel and framed him, so he made a false law and executed all the accusers and their families by throwing them into a den of lions. Afterwards, King Darius ordered all the people to serve only God,

who saved Daniel. God allowed all the people to see the reality and amazing power of God through Daniel's faith.

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God protected Daniel, who had unchanging faith in any situation.

We too have been saved by believing in the God and Jesus who saved Daniel from the lion's den. The prayers we believe in and offer to God are stronger than any power in this world. When we act with faith in God, God is always with us.

I hope that all my friends will have the same faith as Daniel and always practice God's word.

(This is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)