At the beginning of your supplications the command was issued, and I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed; so give heed to the message and gain understanding of the vision (Daniel 9:23).

What an awesome epithet! To be highly esteemed by the LORD!

This was said of the prophet Daniel because he was faithful and humble. He did not compromise his obedience to the Lord, even on threat of death. He did not parade his knowledge and authority but humbled himself before God and the human authorities that God had ordained to rule. He did not forget his national identity as an Israelite in a foreign land, but identified with them in their sin and judgment and prayed for their deliverance in keeping with God's Name and promises. Consequently, while living in Babylon, he proved himself responsible, reliable, and excellent in every way. And he did not fail to give sincere counsel and witness to the foreign leaders, that they should submit to the only true God.

Friends, let us consider the example of Daniel, for in a sense we too are in a foreign land with godless leaders. Our citizenship is in heaven, as is our hope. Let us prove ourselves to be reliable, responsible, and excellent in every way while living in this world. Let us not fail to use the platform that God has given us to povide sincere counsel and witness of the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 

What is more, let us not bicker among ourselves, likely the worldly do. Let us not be so easily offended or give offense, for all the trappings of this world will soon pass away. Instead, let us give our attention to knowing God's will through His Word and upholding the primacy of God's truth over every opinion, experience, interest, or pursuit. There is nothing more central to our witness!

Daniel confessed the sin of his people and the judgment they were experiencing in this way:

As it is written in the law of Moses, all this calamity has come on us; yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our iniquity and giving attention to Your truth (Daniel 9:13).

They failed to give attention to God's truth! Let us not be found to have a similar failing.

I prayed to the Lord my God and confessed: "Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong. We have been wicked and have rebelled; we have turned away from your commands and laws. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes and our ancestors, and to all the people of the land. "Lord, you are righteous, but this day we are covered with shame—the people of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and all Israel, both near and far, in all the countries where you have scattered us because of our unfaithfulness to you. We and our kings, our princes and our ancestors are covered with shame, Lord, because we have sinned against you. The Lord our God is merciful and forgiving, even though we have rebelled against him; we have not obeyed the Lord our God or kept the laws he gave us through his servants the prophets. All Israel has transgressed your law and turned away, refusing to obey you. "Therefore the curses and sworn judgments written in the Law of Moses, the servant of God, have been poured out on us, because we have sinned against you. You have fulfilled the words spoken against us and against our rulers by bringing on us great disaster. Under the whole heaven nothing has ever been done like what has been done to Jerusalem. Just as it is written in the Law of Moses, all this disaster has come on us, yet we have not sought the favor of the Lord our God by turning from our sins and giving attention to your truth. The Lord did not hesitate to bring the disaster on us, for the Lord our God is righteous in everything he does; yet we have not obeyed him. "Now, Lord our God, who brought your people out of Egypt with a mighty hand and who made for yourself a name that endures to this day, we have sinned, we have done wrong. Lord, in keeping with all your righteous acts, turn away your anger and your wrath from Jerusalem, your city, your holy hill. Our sins and the iniquities of our ancestors have made Jerusalem and your people an object of scorn to all those around us. (Daniel 9:4-16 NIV)

Daniel is considered by God to be among the most righteous (Ezekiel 14:14; Daniel 10:11), yet here he is identifying himself with the sinful people of Israel and profusely confessing their sins. It reminds me of Isaiah's confession, "I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips" (Isaiah 6:5). I don't know of any passage in Scripture that compares with the above passage, where there is such a repeated and pronounced confession of sin. As I read it, I am humiliated. Daniel's contemporary, Ezekiel, wrote God's words:

"I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one. (Ezekiel 22:30 NIV)

Daniel is that man, and here he is doing the very thing God desires. He is interceding on behalf of God's people and on behalf of Jerusalem. Even though he could not stay God's hand in destroying Jerusalem, he is claiming the promise that God made through Jeremiah, namely, that God would restore His people to their land within seventy years time (Daniel 9:2; Jeremiah 29:10). But he does not claim the promise by making demands of God but by confessing the very sins that caused the destruction in the first place, for this is in keeping with God's will. His prayer does not change the prophetic promise, nor would it hinder it, but it gives expression to the attitude that God desires and what would keep Jersualem from being destroyed again. 

Friends, let us remember to interceded for the church spralled throughout the world. As Paul wrote, "If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it" (1 Corinthians 12:26 NIV). He spoke of the interconnectedness of the church. And our concerns should not merely be with external challenges to the church but even more to the need for internal holiness. As was true of Israel, so we might also say of the church. Our greatest enemy is not outside of us but within us, even within our own hearts in the measure and sincerity of our devotion to Him. 

Like Daniel, we ought to profusely confess our sins and admit our unrighteousness. And as we do, we ought also to make our appeal to God's grace and God's help for the sake of His Name:

"Now, our God, hear the prayers and petitions of your servant. For your sake, Lord, look with favor on your desolate sanctuary. Give ear, our God, and hear; open your eyes and see the desolation of the city that bears your Name. We do not make requests of you because we are righteous, but because of your great mercy. Lord, listen! Lord, forgive! Lord, hear and act! For your sake, my God, do not delay, because your city and your people bear your Name." (Daniel 9:17-19 NIV)

Notice, just as Daniel repeatedly confessed their sins, he repeatedly acknowledged that the deliverance he sought was not because they were righteous but because of God's Name, even His reputation for being merciful and fuflilling His promises to His people. 

As Daniel, so let us acknowledge and declare that God has saved us by His great grace, and let us seek God's favor in our day in keeping with that same grace, humbly and sincerely confessing our sinfulness as a people.