Address on Daniel 1-Wolston

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Address on Daniel 1

by Dr. W. T. P. Wolston

http://www.biblecentre.org

2nd December 1910

130 Queen Victoria Street, ondon !"

NOW it is Daniel's personal history as a man, and as a saint of God, and as a servant ofGod want to travel over with yo! this evening. Daniel was a captive. Now thin" yo!

"now, dear friends, that the thing that str!c" one first of all was this, that if Daniel loo"ed

ro!nd he m!st have felt this, that everything is gone, it is all !p. #ere am , a captive in

this strange city. f he had not been made of the "ind of st!ff that he was he wo!ld have

gone with the tide. $he tide was r!nning tremendo!sly strong in %abylon. #ere is a manwho has eno!gh grit to stand, to ta"e his stand for God. $he meaning of his name is

interesting, 'God is &!dge.'

$he "ing for his own p!rpose tells the master of his e!n!chs that he sho!ld bring certain

of the children of srael, of the "ing's seed, and of the princes, and he now indicates what

"ind of an eamination they sho!ld go thro!gh. (o! have his preliminary eamination,

his c!rric!l!m, that which he fed !pon, his character developed, and in the close of thechapter yo! have his final eamination. #e and his three comrades come o!t at the top of

the class. have heard it said that if a man is a )hristian, he m!st necessarily be a

mil"sop. Nonsense, don't yo! believe it. * man that is a downright )hristian, it is

wonderf!l what God will do with him, and yo! will find as yo! read this man's historyhow step by step he was promoted, !ntil say, first of all, he is on the %ench+ then he is

made rime -inister+ then he is made )hancellor of the che!er of the whole "ingdomof ersia. $hat is where he comes in for his deepest trials, at the close of his history.

Well now, the eamination was this 0 it was a matter with them what they were

personally. %eca!se yo! are a )hristian, yo! need not be a fool. %eca!se yo! are on the

1ord's side there is no necessity for lac"ing anything that a man sho!ld be as a man passing thro!gh this world. God has given to !s all a little bit of gift, and each one

according to his several ability. do not do!bt that God too" into acco!nt the ability of

this fine yo!ng man. $he net thing is that he is appointed a provision of the "ing's meat,

and the wine he dran", so that at the end of three years he might stand before the "ing.

Now loo", the moment he sees what is before him, he begins to feel, 'Well, belong to

God, and "now 2ehovah has got certain principles and lines for his servant', and he had

not forgotten what he had learned as a yo!th, that is to say, he "new the 3cript!res. thin" the great lac", my dear friends, today, is that yo!ng men do not "now the 3cript!res.

$here is not the st!dy of the 3cript!res there might be, and there sho!ld be. $imothy was

told that from a child he had "nown the #oly 3cript!res. $he fact is, my dear friends, the



character of things today is immensely altered. When was an !nconverted lad456,

remember my dear mother somehow instilled into my mind as a child that there was

something very wonderf!l in the boo", and altho!gh did not "now )hrist 0 was notconverted as a child 0 they told me !sed after brea"fast in the morning get hold of the

big family %ible my father had been reading in, and wo!ld s!at cross0legged !nder the

dining0room table with the old boo" on my "nees, and there was poring over the Old$estament and its stories. attrib!te a good deal of the little do "now to the early

training my dear mother gave me. f any of yo! here tonight are fathers, see that yo!

instr!ct yo!r yo!ng ones in the 3cript!res. nc!lcate the val!e of them, and beget if yo!can in their hearts a desire that they might learn and "now the 3cript!res, and possibly

yo!r son may t!rn o!t a h!ndred fold better than his father.

When it comes to this point in the 7th verse, we find Daniel p!rposed in his heart that he

wo!ld not defile himself with the portion of the "ing's meat. #e had a good chance ofeating and drin"ing, and most men are governed by their stomachs when they are yo!ng,

and even when they get !p a little bit in life, too. Do not pretend to be men that are not

infl!enced by this. We are so constit!ted that we are so infl!enced, b!t here comes in theopport!nity for self0denial. t is a grand thing, p!rpose. Old %arnabas ehorted the

converts that with p!rpose of heart they sho!ld cleave to the 1ord. ehort yo! tonight

with p!rpose of heart to cleave to the 1ord. thin" p!rpose is a grand thing. We are far

too m!ch li"e those &ellyfish that yo! always form the ac!aintance of when yo! go tothe seaside in the s!mmertime. (o! say, 'Oh yes they are very pretty, b!t mar", every

wave moves them. (o!ng men today 0 lots of them 0 they are a mere conglomeration of

&ellyfish. $hey are moved by whatever comes along. Now, as" yo! honestly, as yo!weigh !p yo!r own history, and cast a retrospective loo" at yo!r life, so yo! thin", my

beloved yo!ng fellow0christian that yo! have been li"e Daniel, a man of p!rpose8 'No',

yo! will say, 'no'. $he man that can say 'No' is the man for a diffic!lty. f yo! will ta"e the

tro!ble to go bac" and read what God told #is people in 1evitic!s, as to what they wereto eat, 1evitic!s 55, and 99, yo! will find the "ind of food God said #is people were to

eat, and what they were.not to eat. $hen again yo! will find the story of the Naarite, the

man who denied himself wine from the day of his birth. Daniel says, ' am not going toact on the world's lines. n plain lang!age, he was a separate man. #e had this sense that

this does not eactly s!it a man who belongs to God, and he therefore declined to mingle

it in his food, to be on all fo!rs, so to say, with the world abo!t him. will tell yo! whatyo! will find. * separated man will very soon be an enlightened man, and the enlightened

man will be the !sef!l man and the !sef!l man will be the preserved man.

Now time goes on, and he feeds on that which is eceedingly simple. 1et me apply it.

(o! will find that as )hristians what yo! feed on will form yo!. mean what yo! read.;eading today forms men's minds immensely, forms their feelings. f yo! are feeding on

the st!ff which is aro!nd yo! today, do yo! thin" yo! are going to grow !p spirit!ally8

Not yo!, nor . (o! will have to be caref!l what yo! are feeding yo!r so!l on. (o! willnot be the worse for carrying with yo! a small poc"et $estament. $hat is where the 3pirit

of God will t!rn yo! to, to enlighten yo!, to feed yo! and refresh yo!.

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Well, the c!rric!l!m r!ns by. Of all the places in this world, where wo!ld yo! have

epected to find, or not find, sho!ld say, a man of God who co!ld !nfold the mind of

God8 -ost certainly not in %abylon. t was the last place in this world where yo! wo!ldhave loo"ed to find a man li"e Daniel. Now at the end of the days they come in before the

"ing Neb!chadnear, and among them all was fo!nd none li"e Daniel and his

companions+ therefore they stood before the "ing. n all matters of wisdom, and!nderstanding that the "ing en!ired of them, he fo!nd them ten times better than all the

magicians and astrologers that were in all his realm. li"e to see men come o!t at the top.

f yo! are in for some eamination it is no evidence of )hristianity for yo! to be at the bottom of the class. "now when was a st!dent !p at <ing's, m!st honestly own the

1ord helped me to hoist my flag a little for )hrist. $hey !sed to d!b me '3p!rgeon' there.

When they had their little go, it was my t!rn, and t!rned the gospel g!ns on them till

bye0and0bye they gave me a pretty wide berth. $hey all too" for granted that '3p!rgeon'was a n!mbs"!ll, and he wo!ld be at the bottom of the class. Well, they were s!rprised.

$hey did not get all the pries, can tell yo!.

Daniel comes o!t here at the top of the class. do not "now whether yo! have noticed astri"ing verse in salm 55=, verse =7. ' have more !nderstanding than all my teachers,

for thy testimonies are my meditation.' $hat was the concl!ding point Daniel reached

here. Of all in his class, of all in his college, the "ing felt these fo!r yo!ng men co!ld be

tr!sted. $hey had wisdom from God. God helps #is children if they are set to be here for#is glory and for #is service.

Well now, the net chapter, the second chapter, is not so m!ch Daniel's personal history,

b!t yo! get how he was !sed of God. What yo! have got in the second chapter ta"es

place in the early part of <ing Neb!chadnear's reign. #e had a dream. #e co!ld notremember the dream, and nobody co!ld give him any light !pon it. t is the vision he had

of the great image. #e had had that dream and co!ld not recollect what it was abo!t. #edemands that his wise men shall recall the dream and li"ewise interpret it. $hey admitthey cannot deal with this diffic!lty. Neb!chadnear was a very hot0tempered man, b!t

believe in chapter > he wrote of his conversion and p!blished it to the world. $hat

wic"ed and godless man was at length bro!ght down, and he was bro!ght to a "nowledgeof the 1ord. #ere in his hot temper he sends an order o!t that all the wise men sho!ld be

"illed, Daniel incl!ded. Now observe what Daniel does. #e desired of the "ing that he

sho!ld give him time, and he wo!ld show the interpretation. #e went to his ho!se andmade the thing "nown to #ananiah, -ishael and *ariah, his companions. #e was a

great believer in fellowship and prayer. #e gets his brethren together. ?irst he was a

separate man, net find God helped him greatly and he was an enlightened man. Now

find he is a very prayerf!l man. What is the res!lt of this little prayer meeting8 t is avery interesting story. #e goes to God with his brethren, and then was the secret revealed

to Daniel in a night vision. $hen Daniel blesses the God of heaven. $here is something

very lovely abo!t this. When he got an !nderstanding of the vision, he did not bolt off to*rioch, and say, ' have got it.' #e t!rns ro!nd and praises and worships God. #e blesses

God for the revelation. $hen observe how he draws his brethren in, '$ho! hast made

"nown to !nto me what we desired of thee, for tho! hast made "nown to !s the <ing'smatter.' f yo! can get another brother to get with yo! in prayer, do so. 3how me three or



fo!r fine hearty yo!ng men who love to come together and pray, and will show yo! men

whom God will !se. *nd show me men that are prayerless, and will show yo! men who

will drift along thro!gh life, one day happy and the net day miserable, and really no practical !se. never forget the night when was converted got an invitation to go the

net night to a prayer meeting. $hat was a splendid start. f yo! have to do with some

yo!ng converts, give them a nice, warm, affectionate sha"e of the hand, and say, 'We will pray together, and we will praise the 1ord together.' t is wonderf!l how it wor"s. Why is

it nowadays we hear people tal"ing of not m!ch blessing8 tell yo! why. $here is not

m!ch prayer. $here is not m!ch individ!al and collective waiting !pon God. $here isnot the epectation, yo! see. do want to stir yo!r minds !p, my beloved brethren over

this matter, and learn a great lesson here from Daniel. #e goes to God in prayer to have

revealed to him a most momento!s thing, and it was revealed. When it is revealed, he

gives God than"s, b!t delightf!l to me, he brings his brethren in. $here was nothing at allof self in Daniel. t was fellowship. '$ho! hast made "nown to !s the <ing's matter.'

#e comes in to the "ing, and reveals to the "ing what nobody else co!ld reveal. (o! have

that remar"able story of the fig!res which stood before him, and which is a remar"able panoramic view of the history of the world, and the fo!r monarchies that have dominated

it. $he ;oman mpire is gone today. do not do!bt it will be revived again, b!t an

empire that has perhaps tho!ght itself as great is going to pieces in eactly the same way.

$he nation is on the downgrade today. $he iron and the clay, what is firm, rigid, anddivine in itself, is mingled with the clay, which is merely h!man. (o! see today how

3ocialism and all that "ind of thing is wor"ing. $he end will be eactly the same as it

was with the empire of ;ome. When ;ome was at its f!ll height, people began to getengrossed with pleas!re, and money ma"ing and the li"e, and they lost what mar"ed them

as a martial nation, and they were overthrown. $oday yo! will find it is the same thing.

What mar"s the yo!ng men of today very, very largely8 t is pleas!re, and the ac!isition

of money so that it may be spent in pleas!re. Daniel sees the end of it. #e sees the stonec!t o!t, and falling !pon the feet of the image. $hat is the coming bac" of o!r 1ord 2es!s

)hrist in power and might and ma&esty and glory. $he empire will come !p again by and

bye, b!t it will have this remar"able feat!re. $here will be the recognition of an imperialhead, and at the same time the ten "ings. $hat is why have little do!bt %ritain will come

in, and not reland, and that is why #ome ;!le456 is bo!nd to come, let me say in

passing. do not "now when it will come, b!t it will come. reland never formed part ofthe ;oman empire, and when that empire is revived, have little do!bt reland will then

have what it is determined to have, so have not the shadow of a do!bt that will come.

$hat is the val!e of reading 3cript!re, and "nowing 3cript!re. (o! need not meddle with politics one bit, beca!se a )hristian belongs to heaven, and it is a great thing to see that a

)hristian belongs to heaven.

$he res!lt of Daniel !nfolding the image is this that in verse 57, the "ing made Daniel a

great man, and gave him many great gifts, and made him r!ler over the whole province of %abylon. $he "ing saw he was a man of wisdom and "nowledge and co!ld be relied

!pon. #e was God's man in %abylon. $hen Daniel re!ested of the "ing, and he set

3hadrach, -eshach and *bednego over the affairs of his prosperity. Daniel sat in thegate of the "ing. #e was raised to what we sho!ld term 'the %ench'. #e was the 1ord





)hancellor to give a &!dgment in the place of the "ing, the most important position,

perhaps that he co!ld occ!py at that time.

Now pass over chapter @, which does not give yo! Daniel's history. (o! find these threemen who were infl!enced by him. #ere is a very great lesson, my dear yo!ng fellow.

(o! do not "now what infl!ence yo! have on the people ro!nd abo!t yo!. 1oo" at theinfl!ence Daniel had on these three men. #is personal infl!ence on them was this, it

made them firm, and when Neb!chadnear in his impiety and folly p!t !p a great bigimage of gold, what did those three yo!ng fellows say8 $hey say to the "ing, 'f it be so,

o!r God whom we serve is able to deliver !s. f not, be it "nown to thee, O "ing, we will

not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image that tho! hast set !p.' thin" that issplendid. 1oo" at it, those men with the fiery f!rnace facing them. What wo!ld be the

harm of bowing down to worship8 t is the "ing's command, too. %!t the <ing's

command involved the denial of what was d!e to 2ehovah, and that they co!ld not give!p even if it was to cost them their lives to maintain it. t is remar"able to see the res!lt.

Neb!chadnear the "ing was astonished and says, 'Did we not cast three men into the

midst of the fire. 1o see fo!r men loose, wal"ing in the midst of the fire, and the formof the fo!rth is li"e a son of God.' What was the effect of this splendid devotedness8

$hey got the company of )hrist. f yo! want the company of )hrist, yo! will have to be

firm. (o! cannot have #is company if yo! are going to let slip that which is very

precio!s to his heart. God in his wonderf!l grace preserved them. $he only thing the firedid was that it b!rned off their bonds, and set them free. We have to ta"e care lest we get

wea", and lose o!r moral fibre, or spirit!al m!scle, so to spea", which the #oly Ghost

alone can prod!ce in !s.

Now there is only one bit more, and am going to close. find in chapter A Daniel is ableto !nfold things to %elshaar, Neb!chadnear's grandson. (o! will find at the close of

this Ath chapter again a bit of ealtation. (o! may say, 'Why the third place8' %elshaarwas reigning as &oint "ing with his father, inside the city, and now the promise was thatthe man who co!ld read the writing on the wall, he sho!ld be the third r!ler. n fact, he

was made rime -inister. Daniel read the writing. %elshaar was infidel, b!t

nevertheless he proclaimed the tidings that Daniel was the third, and he was. t was notvery long lived, his position, beca!se the "ing passed away that night. %!t loo" at the

net chapter, and yo! find somehow or other Dari!s came to !nderstand abo!t Daniel.

Who was this man that was made rime -inister in the very moment of the death of%elshaar8 (o! see what he does. t pleased Dari!s to set over the "ingdom 59B

princes, and over these three presidents, of whom Daniel was first. sho!ld call him

*cco!ntant General of the whole empire. #e was the man whom the "ing held

responsible for all the acco!nts. Well, what follows8 #e got hated. f yo! are going to be faithf!l to God yo! may epect to be hated. (o!r master was hated and re&ected by the

world, and men of the world will do their best to trip yo! !p. 1oo" at the man, they say

to one another in verse A. $he princes and the presidents so!ght to find an occasionagainst Daniel concerning the "ingdom, b!t they co!ld not, beca!se he was faithf!l,

neither was there error or fa!lt fo!nd in him. t is a fine thing when yo! are in an office

and yo! are s!rro!nded by godless men, if they are able to say this, '(o! will find no fa!ltwith his wor". #e is the best wor"er in the whole place'. $hen they appeal to Dari!s's



vanity, and say, 'O "ing, ma"e a law that nobody shall be prayed to for @B days ecept

yo!rself.'

1oo" at Daniel in verse 5B. When Daniel "new that the writing was signed, he went !ntohis ho!se, and his windows being open, he "neeled on his "nees and prayed as he did

aforetime. What effect had that decree !pon Daniel8 t had not a feather's weight. #ewas not driven to his "nees in a diffic!lty. When the diffic!lty came it fo!nd the man in

this condition of power. #e had his windows open. Now yo! "now the astern ho!seswere b!ilt low !pon the gro!nd. #e was not afraid of being seen. #e fl!ng his windows

apart. tell yo! what thin" some of !s wo!ld have done. We wo!ld have sh!t the

windows, or drawn down the blinds. #e had learned in his boo" that when God's peoplewere captive in the land of the enemy, if they t!rned towards 2er!salem, and loo"ed

towards 2er!salem, and prayed towards 2er!salem, God wo!ld hear and answer. #ere is

this man in the face of an edict that consigned him to a den of lions loo"ing towards2er!salem. Cery well, of co!rse they come and find him praying and ma"ing s!pplication

before his God. (o! "now the end of the story. #e was pitched into the den of lions, b!t

yo! m!st remember, he came o!t of it, too, and he came o!t !nscathed.

Now today there has been no boo" assailed li"e the boo" of Daniel. n o!r day Daniel isnot cast into a den of lions, b!t he has got into a den of critics. Do yo! thin" the critics

are going to destroy him8 #is boo" will come o!t from the den of critics, and when the

critics are dead and damned, the boo" of Daniel will stand. t is the word of God. $hat isthe point.

$he story is a very bea!tif!l one. $hat night the "ing went to his palace, and passed the

night fasting, and his sleep went from him. Dari!s had a miserable night, and Daniel had

a grand one. $he man in the den of lions passed a grand night, and the man who sealed

him in co!ld not sleep. $he man with a bad conscience has an awf!l bedfellow. Dari!shad a very bad night, b!t in the morning he comes o!t with a lamentable voice, and says,

'O Daniel servant of the most high God, has thy God whom tho! servest contin!ally beenable to deliver thee8' $hat is fine. thin" we serve #im intermittently. $hen said Daniel,

'O "ing, live for ever'. am all right. (o! have had a miserable night, b!t have had a

grand one. '-y God has sent #is angel, and sh!t the lions' mo!ths, that they have not

h!rt me.' Daniel comes o!t, and his acc!sers go in and yo! will find, of co!rse, the "ingealted Daniel. #e is more than ever ealted and confided in by the "ing, and this Daniel

prospered in the reign of Dari!s, and in the reign of )yr!s the ersian. #e lived thro!gh

three "ings.

We m!st not go f!rther, ecept only will draw yo!r attention to one verse in chapter 5B,verses 5B and 55. 'O Daniel, man greatly beloved.' f yo! can p!t at the end of yo!r

name -.G.%. that is the finest affi yo! can get to yo!r name. '-an greatly beloved.' %y

whom8 %y God. #e greatly loves the man that is here for God, set for #is will,determined to be by grace for #im. desire, my yo!ng friends, that it might be so with

yo! to p!rpose in yo!r heart to follow the 1ord, that #e may able to !se yo!, and to come

and comm!nicate #is mind to yo!, epressed in these three words, '-an greatly beloved.'

Address on Daniel 1-Wolston

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Transcript of Address on Daniel 1-Wolston