Daniel 2:1-28
Introduction: We are continuing our study of Daniel to seek encouragement and wisdom from God during our turbulent times. The book of Daniel has a lot to say about going through tough times but remaining faithful to God at all costs. Daniel and his friends were exiled to Babylon after King Nebuchadnezzar conquered and ransacked Jerusalem. Though they faced temptations to fully assimilate into Babylonian culture, Daniel and his friends persisted in seeking God for strength and wisdom. God’s wisdom is far above and beyond our own, but He does not leave us endlessly grasping without hope. This is exactly what we see in chapter 2 as Daniel confronts the limits of human wisdom. He turns to God, and God graciously responds to him at the right time. Like Daniel and his friends, we are exiles today, and we must look beyond ourselves to God who is the ultimate source of wisdom.
What is Wisdom?
Wisdom is a word that is spoken of highly in many circles, but it is not always used correctly. First, wisdom is not mere knowledge. It is often used synonymously with knowledge, but this is to miss something very important. Wisdom includes knowledge but entails life experience and good judgment, which generally yields a well-developed character. Wise people are certainly knowledgeable, but that is not all they are. In fact, learning wisdom is a process of humility. If we desire to be wise, we would be foolish to think we can acquire it quickly without regard to the posture in which we receive it. Wisdom often comes to us in ways that require us to grow out of a different way of thinking and behaving. On a similar note, wisdom can be imparted to us by God. In God we can find vast treasures of wisdom (Col 2:3), and we could not contain all of it even if we tried. Because of His grace, He will often grant us wisdom in different ways and at different times in life as we draw near to Him (Prov 2:6). This makes it pretty clear that human wisdom is not all there is. We see this play out in Daniel as he interacts with the mighty King of Babylon.
1. Our Wisdom
The story begins with a dream that King Nebuchadnezzar does not understand. In his confusion, he seeks his best and wisest advisors to help him interpret and understand the dream. Their inability to help him understand his dream and interpret the meaning leads to him being deeply troubled, feeling anxious, and acting unreasonably angry. Ironically, the wisest counselors of the greatest nation at the time are left powerless by these circumstances. God essentially taught the King a hard lesson in the form of a dream and its interpretation: human wisdom is limited and incomplete. It is limited in the sense that there are some things we just cannot comprehend, and incomplete in the sense that even if we do comprehend some things, it is generally not the whole picture. The significance for us here is that in the face of a confusing situation we are tempted to imitate the King’s frustrated behavior. What can we do about Covid-19? Who will we vote for? How can we know what the best response is to events that call social justice into question? This is especially difficult for those of us who value control over our own lives and circumstances. But we must accept this: God allows certain circumstances that are beyond our control to expose the limits of our wisdom. To be truly wise, then, presupposes the acknowledgement of our own limitations, and the incomplete nature of our efforts to comprehend everything around us.
2. God’s Wisdom
How is it that Daniel was able to respond differently to this situation especially considering the high stakes of a threat of death resulting from the King’s frustration with his counselors? Daniel understood the limits of human wisdom, and held a proper posture toward the wisdom of God, one of humility and trust. This can be understood in relation to what God knows, and what God makes known.
What God Knows: Simply put, God knows everything. It is part of His nature not only that He knows everything, but also how to accomplish the right ends, in the right ways, and at the right times. Romans 11:33 reminds us, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” Even in a situation that is bewildering to us, God knows how to handle it. We ought to be humbled by this like Daniel.
What God Makes Known: Daniel not only believed that God is wise, but that He can reveal wisdom to us. One of the hardest things for us to do as Christians is to trust God in a situation where the solution is not immediately apparent to us. God does not reveal to us everything we want to know, or everything we demand to know, but what we need to know. And what God has already revealed to us enables us to trust him with what we do not yet know. In essence, the sufficiency of God’s revealed wisdom elicits trustworthiness regarding His secret wisdom. We can acknowledge our own limits of wisdom, but still see value in seeking wisdom and trusting God like Daniel
3. How God Gives Us Wisdom
The heart of Daniel chapter two is not the dream of King Nebuchadnezzar, but God’s wisdom to Daniel. He says to the King in verse 27, “No wise men, enchanters, magicians, or astrologers can show to the king the mystery that the king has asked, but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.” How does God do this? For Daniel, God gave wisdom in prayer. God answered the sincere prayer of Daniel and his friends as expressed in verse 17. Elsewhere in Scripture, we see God’s desire to provide us wisdom through prayer (Jam 1:5-6). We should be encouraged that this is not in a vacuum as if it were apart from our own human experiences. Recall from Daniel 1:17 that wisdom is mentioned alongside education. Again, don’t let the limits of human wisdom prevent you from sincerely seeking human wisdom. It is fair to say that much of human wisdom can overlap with divine wisdom. Finally, God gave wisdom to Daniel in praise. Daniel did not rush off after receiving wisdom from God as if some divine transaction had been completed. He remained in the presence of God and praised Him for revelation. This speaks to the posture of receiving wisdom. When we are in a place of worship and God is more valuable to us than anything else, we are simultaneously in the place of greatest sanity and wisdom.
To the world, this is foolishness. For them, wisdom is not grounded in relationship with God, but a purely rational enterprise. But God often works in this way. Consider how Daniel confounded the wise of his day by staking his life upon something that seemed foolish. It points us to the cross of Christ of which it is written, “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God... Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe” (1 Cor 1:18,20-21).
REFLECT OR DISCUSS
What about the message is most relevant to you today? Where do you feel most in need of wisdom in the many challenges you are facing right now?
What is the relationship between wisdom and knowledge? Why is it important for us to know the difference, especially in a world overloaded with information?
What does it mean that acquiring wisdom is a process of humility? What does this mean about our inclination to seek quick answers or give/get instant advice to the complex issues we are facing today? Why is it so hard for people (for you!) to admit the our wisdom is limited and incomplete?
Read James 1:5-6. What difference does it make to know that God is generous and ungrudging in giving us the wisdom we need? Do you see value in seeking wisdom through prayer in community?
It was said in the message that, “what God has already revealed to us enables us to trust him with what He has not revealed.” What is that you wish God revealed to you that he hasn’t? How does knowing what he has revealed help you trust Him for what He has not?
Why does the gospel tell us we have to become fools in order to become wise? How does the gospel give us wisdom to trust God and no matter what is happening in the world and in our lives?
Read James 3:13-18. Here James gives us the marks of the wisdom God gives and the kind of wisdom that creates peace and righteousness. How does this provide a filter for us for who to listen to? How does this challenge you to grow in wisdom?