Hearing the message of daniel : sustaining faith in today's world

Cover Page; Title Page; Copyright Page; Dedication; Table of Contents; Preface; Introduction; Chapter 1: Compromise or Confrontation; Clash of Empires (1:1); Faith In the Midst of a Historical Crisis (1:2); Faith In the Midst of a Personal Crisis (1:3-20); Chapter 2: Head of Gold or Feet of Clay; Nebuchadnezzar and His Dream (2:1-13); Daniel and His God (2:14-23); God and His Kingdom (2:24-49); Chapter 3: Bow or Burn; The Claims of the State (3:1-7); The Cost of Monotheism (3:8-15); The Courage of Faith (3:16-18); The Confused Nebuchadnezzar (3:19-30); Chapter 4: Heaven Rules ... On Earth.;In many corners of the world these days the climate of hostility hangs over any overt Christian faith commitment. Any kind of Christian commitment is now assumed to imply intolerance and often prompts reactions that range from a low-grade hostility and exclusion in the West to the vicious and murderous assaults on Christian believers in Pakistan, Nigeria, Kenya, Egypt, Syria and Iraq and elsewhere. Such issues are not new. Christians have faced them ever since Nero's lions, and even before that. Jews also have faced the same questions all through their history, most tragically sometimes enduring horrendous persecution from states claiming to be Christian. So it is not surprising that the Bible gives a lot of attention to these questions. The book of Daniel tackles the problem head on, both in the stories of Daniel and his friends, and in the visions he received. A major theme of the book is how people who worship the one, true, living God-the God of Israel-can live and work and survive in the midst of a nation, a culture, and a government that are hostile and sometimes life-threatening. What does it mean to live as believers in the midst of a non-Christian state and culture' How can we live "in the world" and yet not let the world own us and squeeze us into the shape of its own fallen values and assumptions' The book was written to encourage believers to keep in mind that the future, no matter how terrifying it may eventually become, rests in the hands of the sovereign Lord God-and in that assurance to get on with the challenging task of living in God's world for the sake of God's mission. Cover Page Title Page Copyright Page Dedication Table of Contents Preface Introduction Chapter 1: Compromise or Confrontation Clash of Empires (1:1) Faith In the Midst of a Historical Crisis (1:2) Faith In the Midst of a Personal Crisis (1:3-20) Chapter 2: Head of Gold or Feet of Clay Nebuchadnezzar and His Dream (2:1-13) Daniel and His God (2:14-23) God and His Kingdom (2:24-49) Chapter 3: Bow or Burn The Claims of the State (3:1-7) The Cost of Monotheism (3:8-15) The Courage of Faith (3:16-18) The Confused Nebuchadnezzar (3:19-30) Chapter 4: Heaven Rules ... On Earth. Nebuchadnezzar the Builder (4:1-8, 29-30)Daniel the Challenger (4:9-27) God the Humbler (4:28-37) Chapter 5: The Writing On the Wall The Blasphemy of Belshazzar (5:1-9) The Prophecy of Daniel (5:10-28) The Mystery of Providence (5:29-31) Chapter 6: Facing the Lions Daniel's Excellence (6:1-4) Daniel's Enemies (6:4-9) Daniel's Values (6:10) Daniel's Vindication (6:11-28) Chapter 7: Beasts, Thrones, Saints, and ... a Man The Double Vision (7:1-14) The Double Meaning (7:15-28) The Three Kingdoms Chapter 8: A Ram, a Goat, and an Ending A Pattern of Empires (8:1-12, 20-25). A Portrait of Evil (8:10-12, 23-25)A Preview of "The End" (8:15-19) A Word of Encouragement (8:13-14, 26-27) Chapter 9: Model Prayer, Mysterious Predictions Daniel's Problem (9:1-3) Daniel's Prayer (9:4-19) Daniel's Prospect (9:20-27) Chapter 10: Finale and Farewell Daniel's Final Vision (10:1-11:1) History, Hybris, and Hope (11:2-12:4) Farewell Daniel-for Now (12:5-13) Scripture Index Subject Index.