Image © Pacific Press

Sabbath Afternoon

Read for This Week’s Study: Daniel 6:1-28, 1 Sam. 18:6-9, Matt. 6:6, Acts 5:27-32, Mark 6:14-29, Heb. 11:35-38.

Memory Text: “So the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him” (Daniel 6:4, NKJV).

After the Medo-Persians take over Babylon, Darius the Mede recognizes the wisdom of Daniel and invites him to be part of the new government. The aging prophet so excels at his public duties that the new king appoints him a chief administrator of the whole Medo-Persian government.

However, as the chapter unfolds, Daniel faces the result of what could rightly be called the first sin — that of jealousy. Yet, before the story ends, we can see that Daniel is faithful, not only to his secular duties under the Medo-Persians, but most important to His God. And we can be sure that, to a great degree, his faithfulness to God directly impacts his faithfulness in these other areas as well.

Daniel’s experience with persecution serves as a paradigm for God’s people in the time of the end. The story does not imply that God’s people will be spared from trials and suffering. What it does guarantee is that, in the conflict with evil, good will ultimately win out, and God ultimately will vindicate His people.

Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, February 15.

Sunday–>

Amen!(17)

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Better Than a Dentist

By Madeline Dyche

The woman was grinning from ear to ear.

But hours earlier, she told me, she had been disappointed to learn that she couldn’t receive a free tooth cleaning at the Pathway to Health mega clinic in the U.S. state of Texas.

Image © Pacific Press

The woman had joined a long line of people seeking health care and other services at the sprawling Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth on the first day of a three-day free mega clinic organized by Seventh-day Adventists. But when she reached the front of the line, she learned that no more dental openings were available for the day.

Hopes dashed, she began to turn away when a volunteer suggested that she chose another free service. She opted for a vision checkup.

After giving her blood pressure and other vital signs, a requirement for all patients, she sat down with an eye doctor.

The man looked at a printout of her vitals sign and asked a few questions. He thought something wasn’t quite right. Seeing a physician nearby, he asked for help.

The physician examined her, ordered a sonogram, and diagnosed the woman with hypothyroidism, an abnormally underactive thyroid gland. He asked whether the woman suffered common symptoms of the condition such as fatigue, irritability and depression, intolerance for cold, and weight gain.

“Yes, for six years!” the woman replied.

She had visited various doctors, but none had been able to diagnose her condition. Her medical insurance didn’t allow tests such as a sonogram, and she hadn’t been able to afford to pay for more than a medical consultation.

When I met the woman, she was leaving the Pathway to Health event. She told her story when Pathway to Health volunteers asked whether she was satisfied with her experience. I was able to empathize with her because I have hyperthyroidism, an overactive thyroid gland.

“I thought I was dying a few months ago”, I said. “I didn’t know what was wrong with me. Once I started taking medicine, I felt much better. The difference was like night and day. You will feel so much better once you get this problem regulated”.

The woman was all smiles.

“I came for a tooth cleaning, and I never would have found out what my real problem was if the dentist had seen me”, she said. “The way God worked this out has been such a blessing”.

Madeline Dyche, pictured, is a mother of two in Keene, Texas.

Produced by the General Conference Office of Adventist Mission. Find more mission stories at adventistmission[dot]org

All Rights Reserved. No part of the Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide may be edited, altered, modified, adapted, translated, reproduced, or published by any person or entity without prior written authorization from the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.

Amen!(0)

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Further Thought: 

Large feasts were common in the courts of the ancient world. Kings loved to throw parties with extravagance and luxury to show their greatness and confidence. Although we do not know all of the details of this particular feast, we know that it took place when the Medo-Persian army was poised to attack Babylon. But humanly speaking, there was no reason for concern. Babylon had fortified walls, a food supply for many years, and plenty of water, because the Euphrates River flowed through the heart of the city.

Image © Stan Myers from GoodSalt.com

So King Belshazzar sees no problem in having a party while the enemy surrounds the city. And he orders a momentous celebration, which soon degenerates into an orgy. What a powerful testimony to the hubris of humanity, especially in contrast to the power of the Lord. Through Daniel, God tells the king that despite the opportunities he has had to learn truth, “the God who holds your breath in His hand and owns all your ways, you have not glorified” (Dan. 5:23, NKJV).

“The history of nations speaks to us today. To every nation and to every individual God has assigned a place in His great plan. Today men and nations are being tested by the plummet in the hand of Him who makes no mistake. All are by their own choice deciding their destiny, and God is overruling all for the accomplishment of His purposes”. — Ellen G. White, Prophets and Kings, p. 536.

Discussion Questions:

<–Thursday

Amen!(0)

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Read Daniel 5:29-31 along with Revelation 14:8, Revelation 16:19, and Revelation 18:2. What can we learn about the fall of Belshazzar’s Babylon that points to the fall of end-time Babylon?

Whatever his faults, Belshazzar is a man of his word. So, despite the bad news, he is satisfied with the interpretation given by Daniel, which is why he bestows upon the prophet the promised gifts.

Image © Provident Collection Goodsalt.com

It appears that by admitting the truth of Daniel’s message, the king implicitly recognizes the reality of Daniel’s God. Interestingly, Daniel now accepts the gifts he has refused before, probably because such gifts can no longer influence his interpretation. Besides, at that point such gifts are meaningless since the empire is about to fall. Thus, probably as a matter of courtesy, the prophet accepts the rewards, knowing all the while that he will be the third ruler of the kingdom for only a few hours.

Exactly as announced by the prophet, Babylon falls. And it does so quickly; while the king and his courtiers drink, the city falls without a battle. According to the historian Herodotus, the Persians dug a canal to divert the Euphrates River and marched into the city on the riverbed. That same night Belshazzar is slain. His father, King Nabonidus, has left the city already, surrendering himself later to the new rulers. Thus, the greatest empire humanity has ever known to this point comes to an end. Babylon, the head of gold, is no more.

“Belshazzar had been given many opportunities for knowing and doing the will of God. He had seen his grandfather Nebuchadnezzar banished from the society of men. He had seen the intellect in which the proud monarch gloried taken away by the One who gave it. He had seen the king driven from his kingdom, and made the companion of the beasts of the field. But Belshazzar‘s love of amusement and self-glorification effaced the lessons he should never have forgotten; and he committed sins similar to those that brought signal judgments on Nebuchadnezzar. He wasted the opportunities graciously granted him, neglecting to use the opportunities within his reach for becoming acquainted with truth”. — Ellen G. White, Bible Echo, April 25, 1898.

<–Wednesday Friday–>

Amen!(3)

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Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor. James 4:10 NLT

Ever notice that Jesus did not rush over to the Pharisees right after His resurrection and tell them, “I told you so!” Jesus did not have a vindictive spirit.

By the time Joseph’s brothers bowed down to him he no longer had a vindictive spirit either. Who knows? Maybe God had the butler forget about Joseph for a couple of years because it took that long for him to realize that the meaning of his dream was not really about everyone bowing down to him. The dream was really about him saving lives. See Genesis 45:7. 

When I lived in Texas I had a friend who was a nurse but was studying to become a nurse practitioner. She told me when she was in third grade an old nun was her teacher. The nun told her she would never be smart enough to become a nurse. Now here she was not only a nurse but studying to be a nurse practitioner. Sometimes when I would call her to go out to eat, she would tell me she had to study. One Sunday I called her to go eat with me, but she told me she was busy studying. I told her the nun was long gone by now and would never know she was a nurse practitioner now, so we should just go eat. She laughed and assured  me we would eat another time. Of course the real reason my friend was studying hard to become a nurse practitioner was not to vindicate herself to her old teacher. She was studying so she could help people. The hundreds and maybe thousands of people who have been blessed by my friend’s medical ministry know nothing about what the teacher told her.  Nor do they care. All they care about is that she can help them. And that’s all that really matters – helping people. By the time Joseph’s brothers bowed down to him he had nothing to prove. He was not sitting on a throne to be vindicated. He was sitting on a throne to save lives. When Jesus was resurrected He had no desire to vindicate Himself to any of the leaders. It was enough that Mary was there at the tomb and He had risen as her Savior. He is not in heaven vindicating Himself now. He is in heaven saving lives. That’s why He lives. See Hebrews 7:25. 

I read through the Bible every year, and when I come to the story of David I had often wondered why it took David so long to actually become king after being anointed. Why didn’t he take the throne the day Samuel chose him? Why did God allow Saul to persecute him so much? Then one day I realized that Saul actually started out humble but became arrogant once he was on the throne, thus leading to his destruction. Is it possible God allowed David to wait and endure trials and tribulations on his way to the throne in order to keep him humble even after he was exalted as king? 

James says God will exalt or “lift up” those who are humble. But even after being lifted up and exalted we are to remain humble. Arrogance has no place in the Christian life at any time. Jesus told Philip when you have seen Me you have Seen the Father. See John 14:9. When Jesus said He was meek and lowly (Matthew 11:29) He was showing them the Father who was on the throne in heaven. When Jesus was working in the carpenter shop He was showing them the Father who reigns over the entire universe. When Jesus was washing the disciples’ feet He was showing them what God the Father is like. 

Jesus was never arrogant and never will be. He was never proud and vindictive and never will be. Even after being exalted Jesus remains meek and lowly. While sitting on the throne watching his brothers bow down to him, Joseph knew he was sitting on the throne to save lives. When every knee bows to Jesus it wont be for self vindication. There is no selfishness in Jesus and thus no need for self vindication. Jesus will be sitting on the throne to save lives. 

When God lifts you up, it won’t be for your self-vindication. Keep in mind that you are only where you are to serve others and save lives. 

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45 NLT

Amen!(5)

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