11/2/08 - Reformation - Daniel 6:10-12,16-23

BELIEVE BOLDLY
- Regardless of the consequences
- Because you are already saved

In 1521, four years after Martin Luther posted the 95 Theses, this former monk was summoned to the Diet of Worms. The Diet was a meeting at which both Lutherans and Catholics were gathered, as well as the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, Charles V. But Charles was a Catholic himself, and so his intentions were to force Luther to take back everything that he had ever written or said against the papacy and the Roman Catholic Church, repent of his sins, and promise to never speak against the traditions or teachings of the Church again. And if Luther didn’t cooperate, there would be consequences. Luther, however, believed in the Word of God as it was clearly written down in Scripture. And he believed boldly. He answered all those gathered there that day who were insisting on his guilt in this way: “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by clear reason… I am bound by the Scripture I have quoted and my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not retract anything, since it is neither safe nor right to go against conscience. May God help me. Amen.”
Luther knew what would happen if he boldly believed in the truth. And what he expected would happen, did. He was not only excommunicated from the Church, but he was also placed under the Edict of Worms pronounced by the emperor. This Edict declared that anyone - citizen or authority - in the entire Holy Roman Empire could arrest or even kill Luther without repercussion. Martin Luther was basically stripped of all his rights and he lived as a fugitive in his own country for the last 25 years of his life. That’s what he got in return for his faith. But Luther was not the only one during the Reformation to believe boldly.
Nine years later, Lutherans and Catholics gathered together once again. This time in the city of Augsburg. And there what we know now as the first great confession of the Lutheran Church was presented: the Augsburg Confession. But Luther didn’t present it because he was not even in the city at that time on account of the dangers to his life if he were to attend. Instead two laymen - not pastors, not professors - but regular laymen of the Lutheran church made the official presentation of this important confession. And when the emperor tried to forbid any Lutheran preaching and force them to attend a unscriptural Catholic ceremony the day before, another layman, George, Margrave of Brandenburg, boldly said, “Before I let anyone take from me the Word of God and ask me to deny my God, I will kneel and let them strike off my head.” George and the rest of those believers there in Augsburg certainly believed boldly.
And so did Paul Speratus. He boldly rejected Catholicism for the truth of Scriptures brought to light again by the Reformation when a Catholic priest. He boldly preached the true Word of God to his congregation until he was thrown into prison for doing just that. While he was in prison for being a Lutheran, he boldly wrote that beautiful and powerful Reformation hymn, “Salvation Unto Us Has Come.” And he after he was released he went right back to work for the Lord, boldly proclaiming the gospel to those in the area of Brandenburg.
And we could mention more names. Hundreds more during the time of the Reformation who not only believed in the clear words of Scripture, but believed boldly. Christians who stood up for the truth in the face of threats. Christians who publically confessed the truth despite the consequences. Christians who did not back down from the truth no matter the cost. These Christians, many of whom we will never know until we meet them in the glories of heaven, believed boldly regardless of the consequences because they knew that the Lord had already saved them.
And so it should be no surprise to you why Daniel 6 has been set for the Old Testament reading this year for Reformation Sunday. Daniel believed boldly in the same way if not more than those Christians living in Germany during the 1500’s. Daniel, a Jew from the land of Israel, was hated by the nobles of Babylon, and so they tricked King Darius into making a law that stated if anyone prayed to any god but the king for the next 30 days, that person would be thrown into a den of lions. Daniel, of course, did not let that decree change his confession of the truth at all. Scripture says that “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 go down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before.” Daniel believed boldly even though he knew what the nobles were up to, even though he knew that they would be looking for a way to catch him in the act, even though he knew that he would most likely end up at the bottom of a lions’ den before the month was out.
I would have at least closed the window! I’ve tried to put myself in Daniel’s situation, and I have decided that I would have at least closed the window. I don’t think I would have cared if that window faced Jerusalem, I wouldn’t want to risk being seen - especially if I knew I had enemies watching my house! But Daniel didn’t care. He didn’t seek out persecution or trouble, but he was not about to let someone or something stop him from confessing his faith. And he was not going to be embarrassed about who he prayed to. He would have rather had the whole world see him praying to his Lord than hide for 30 days behind his bedroom curtain.
I think I would have hid. I would have still prayed to the Lord, but I think I would have hid behind the curtain while doing it. And maybe that’s just me, but I think many Christians would react in the same way. Because we aren’t used to fighting for our faith in this country. We aren’t forced to stand up for our faith. We can sit down. We can relax. We can worship the Lord whenever and however we want. And so when even minor consequences present themselves if we were to boldly confess our faith, we tend to back off, don’t we? Maybe when you’re among family members or relatives who don’t exactly believe everything that you do, you find it hard to believe boldly. Because you don’t want to get into another religious discussion with someone and make a big deal about it. And so you actually avoid at all costs boldly confessing your faith… You see your neighbor, whom you’ve invited to church time and time again and who has turned down that invitation time and time again, and so you decide not to say anything to him anymore because you don’t want to annoy him, you don’t want to be overbearing - it’s just not worth boldly confessing your faith… You’re around friends or co-workers and gossip starts to fly left and right. And you don’t want to have to be the one who breaks up the fun. You don’t want to sound condescending, and so you don’t say anything thing to them. You don’t join in, but you sit back and smile and nod, pretending to agree with what they’re saying so that you don’t have to boldly confess your faith.
And these are such minor consequences that we try to hard to avoid! It’s not as if we are threatened with death or imprisonment or a bloody and gruesome end at the claws and jaws of lions! The consequences that we are faced with are embarrassment or awkwardness or insult. And we can’t even handle those! We shy away and we back off. We do not believe boldly, but timidly. How could we let those insignificant consequences prevent us from boldly confessing our faith? How could we consider the passing relationships in this life more important than the eternal relationship we have with God? What a disgrace. What a disgrace to the name “Christian.” How humiliating when we see what kinds of trivial things have scared us away from believing boldly in our Lord. Especially compared to Daniel.
Daniel was confronted with a little more than embarrassment or awkwardness or insult. He was presented with the very real possibility of his body being ripped apart by a pride of lions. And that possibility came very close to becoming a reality. “The king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, ‘May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you!’ And you know the rest of the story. Daniel’s God did rescue him. He sent an angel into the den to shut the mouths of the lions and Daniel remained perfectly safe all night long. “And when Daniel was lifted from the den, no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God.” Did you catch the reason why Daniel remained safe? “No wound was found on him because he had trusted in his God.” Daniel wasn’t protected because he had believed boldly. Daniel wasn’t protected because he had publically confessed his faith without fear. Daniel was saved because he simply trusted in his God. And it is no different with you. You are saved because you trust in your God and Savior. You are forgiven because you trust in your God and Savior. You are kept safe because you trust in your God and Savior. Even when you don’t stand up for the truth! Even when you shy away from a clear confession of faith! Even when you don’t believe boldly! Because God’s salvation does not depend on your boldness. God’s salvation doesn’t depend on how well you demonstrate your love for him. It depends on his love for you. And his love never backs down. It never goes away. It is never embarrassed of you. It always protects you, forgives you, comforts you, and saves you. God’s love doesn’t come to you if you believe boldly. You can believe boldly because of God’s love. And that’s one of the hallmarks of the Reformation: God’s love is free and complete. We are saved by grace through faith alone. Daniel knew that from Scripture long before the Reformation ever came around. That’s why Daniel acted the way he did.
He knew that whatever happened to him in that den of lions, he was already saved. He was already forgiven and he was already going to go to heaven no matter how he died. So what was the consequence of an earthly death compared to the prize of an eternal life? It was already his. It was already guaranteed. And he knew that the claws of beasts could never rip him away from the hands of his God. And, of course, those beasts never had a chance. God saved Daniel from that earthly pain too. Not that he had to, not that he promised to, but he did anyway - proving once again that he is all-powerful and providing yet another opportunity for Daniel to believe boldly. If persecution brings out a Christian’s true colors, deliverance from persecution brings out God’s.
The faithful men and women during the time of the Reformation saw God’s true colors of love and protection time and time again. God guarded them from the emperor’s threats by distracting Charles V with a dangerous Turkish invasion from the east at the same time the Reformation was growing and expanding. The Lord made sure there was a safe environment for the Word to mature by providing secular leaders in the territory of Saxony, called “Electors,” that were sympathetic to the Lutheran cause and were actually Lutherans themselves. The Lord promoted the spread of his truth by introducing the techniques of the printing press on a large scale so that documents and papers and sermons and essays could be distributed to all the people. The Lord put together a network of people with different skills and different talents that helped pull souls back to the clear simple words of Scripture. And the Lord protected Luther himself, although there was basically a warrant out for his arrest since 1521, so that he would die a peaceful death in 1546.
The Lord’s love and his salvation were evident on a number of different levels in a number of different ways throughout the Reformation. And looking back on those times it is amazing what the Lord did for his people and for the good of his Word. It causes us to rejoice in his work. It moves us to thank him for his love. It gives us another reason to believe boldly. Because the same love and protection he showed to Daniel, and the same love and protection he showed to those believers in Germany 500 years ago, he shows us. Love that comes from his cross. Protection that comes from his power. And a hope that only can be found in his clear and indisputable Word. Believe boldly in that Word. It was Daniel’s comfort. It was the Reformation’s rock. It is your salvation.
Amen.

“May the Lord our God be with us as he was with our fathers. May he never leave us or forsake us.” - 1 Kings 8:57