Nebuchadnezzar has a troubling dream that for which no interpreter can find meaning. Daniel seeks God in prayer and receives a revelation from God. When he gives a favorable response, all around recognize the power of God.
(Daniel 2:1-49)
Sermon Outline
There is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries. (Daniel’s words to King Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel 2:28a)
King Nebuchadnezzar’s Bad Dream: The Crisis (Daniel 2:1-13)
Daniel Speaks What God Reveals (Daniel 2:14-45)
Daniel Leaves the Results to God (Daniel 2:46-49)
Speaking God’s Words Today – 3 Guidelines
- Be alert to crises.
- Get God’s words right.
- Relinquish the results to God.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
- There are different kinds of wisdom. The “wisdom” of Daniel chapter 2 is about hidden things that only God knows, unless he reveals those things to human beings. How is the wisdom Daniel displays in chapter 1 different from this? (See Daniel 1:11-13)
- The “wise men” were of all different nations and ethnicities. How might Daniel’s actions to save their necks in Daniel 2:24 be a partial fulfillment of Genesis 12:2-3?
- In Daniel 2:23, how does Daniel remind himself of his continuity with those before him? How has reminding yourself of God’s faithfulness to Christians in the past encouraged you?
- In Daniel 2:25, Arioch took Daniel to King Nebuchadnezzar and said, “I have found a man among the exiles from Judah who can tell the king what his dream means.” It’s not quite true that Arioch “found” Daniel. Why do you think he says this to the king?
- What might Daniel 2:41-43 be saying about lack of unity in a kingdom or nation?
- When Nebuchadnezzar finds out from Daniel that his kingdom is going to be okay for right now, he elevates Daniel and his 3 friends but then goes back to business as usual (Daniel 2:48-49). Have you ever done something like this after a health scare or some other kind of close call?
- What does Daniel 2:30 say about how God uses his people in non-believers’ lives?
- Daniel lived in a culture that was hostile to his faith. Do you think the culture in our coun- try today is toxic to Christianity? Why or why not?
- Daniel delivered the word faithfully. But look at his life. What can we learn about his strong connection to God in worship and prayer from Daniel 2:19b-23 Daniel 6:10? How can you learn from Daniel and be the kind of person who will hear God’s words and deliver them faithfully?
DIG DEEPER
- Google Josef Tson, former president of the Romanian Missionary Society to see how he spoke God’s words in the 1970s and early 1980s when Romania was under communist oppression, even under the threat of death.
- We have reports that God reveals his words to people in dreams and visions even today, especially to Muslims. Explore what is happening in the Muslim world through the Crescent Project here.