May 12,13 Dan. 6:1-24,Gen 37:12-36; Ps 40:1-3 PIT DWELLERS Some people, especially farmers and those who live close to rivers that flood have been in the pits lately. Rain, mud, rising waters, flooding in some places, makes fields to wet to get the crops in, or to play golf, and that s certainly the pits. We are looking for sun, warm temperatures, dry ground in which to do the planting, play golf, enjoy the outdoors, or even cutting the grass. Praise the Lord this morning on how the Lord has blessed this Mother s Day with an abundance of sun. You know, we can always find things to gripe about in this world. Politics. Taxes. Religion. Money problems. Work problems. Family stuff. Leadership or lack of it in Washington. Why yesterday Sergio Garcia, a golfer playing alongside of Tiger Woods blamed him for getting the crowds wound up when he took a club out of his bag. Garcia then hit a wild shot into the woods. It s true, we can always find stuff to gripe about. There are stories in Scripture that deal with some people who have not had perfect lives. In fact, many of them are our heroes. Check out God s Hall of Fame in the book of Hebrews and see those names, then look them up and see why God added them to his Hall of Fame. Take Paul as an example. His own testimony would be that for the sake of the gospel message he endured being whipped many times, almost to the point of death. Beaten, tossed out of at least one town, even tossed out of some of the best synagogues. Last week we found how he ended in the pit of a jail with Silas. We also learned from the Psalms this when you think you re in the pits and no one cares, don t give up remember this.. God redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion. Praise the Lord for such a loving and kind God. Amen? Today we continue our thinking about pit dwellers helping us learn how to deal with our own pit dwelling if it ever occurs, or better said, when those pits occur in our lives. Once again we turn to a Psalm that gives us encouragement and hope. Hear God s words for all pit dwellers, past, present and future from Psalm 40:1-3. I
wait patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, and out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. There we have it again. That lousy old pit. This wasn t the first time David found himself in a pit. But he knew this.though those pits were there, His God knew. And that same God knows when we are in the pits. So David describes this pit as being slimy muddy and the mire, which means mud, swamp, marsh, sludge, slush, and morass. In other words one could say, it was the pits. This morning we turn to a couple of pit dwellers you know pretty well. Daniel was a Hebrew child taken into captivity because he was pretty smart and in good health. His journey took him to Babylon after Nebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem and took what he wanted, especially the most brilliant people and those who had strong backs. These people were in the pits because like their ancestors in bondage in Egypt, they had become slaves. Taken away from their homes, their place of worship, they were entrusted to the care of the Babylonians. It was the pits. Even though he was in captivity God blessed his faithfulness for not giving up his own faith. But trouble came to River City. Some of the leaders of the community were jealous because the King made Daniel his number two man because he could interpret dreams and things. Well they couldn t tell the king they didn t like Daniel, so they decided to puff up the king by having him declare a month long celebration where the king, and only the king could be prayed to. The king thought that was a great idea and put out that proclamation. Anyone praying to other gods would be punished. He sealed it with his seal. And his law could not be reversed, even by him. Knowing the story as you do, I ll cut to the chase. Daniel was a man of prayer. Every day at the same time Daniel would stand in his room facing Jerusalem and cry out to God in heaven. Lord your people are in the pits here in Babylon. Give us courage, strength and wisdom until you redeem us from this hell hole. Every day,
at around the same time he prayed, spoke in behalf of his people, and listened for the voice of God words which he could encourage his people. These jealous guys, with decree in hand, set out one day heading for Daniel s house around the time they knew he would be praying. Daniel could have prayed in secret. He could have covered the windows. He could have done all that so he would not be discovered but he did none of those. He was not ashamed of worshipping his Father in heaven and remained faithful to his God and prayed as he always did. He was not about to pray to the king. When they arrived at Daniel s house they saw and maybe heard him praying. If they had an iphone or ipad, or even a camera, they would have snapped a picture as proof of their allegations. But of course they didn t. But they hustled back to the king and reminded the king of his decree. They reminded him that no one was allowed to pray to other gods for thirty days and if one was found, well, it was the lion s den. He agreed that was his law, no matter who it was. Well king, we just happened to stumble upon someone praying to his God. What should we do? The king said, Bring him to me and I will have him punished. What a shock it was when they returned with a bound Daniel. Daniel my friend, I hate to do this, but you broke my law and I can t go back on my word. You will be thrown in the lions pit. The guards took Daniel and tossed him into the angry roaring lions. A stone was placed over the mouth of the den, and a weeping king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the rings of his nobles, so that Daniel s situation might not be changed. Before leaving the pit King Darius yelled out to Daniel, May your God, whom you serve continually, rescue you! Now get this. The king went home and had a sleepless night worrying about Daniel. He couldn t eat and he could not find any enjoyment, no matter what his servants tried. He was upset over what happened to Daniel. While he couldn t sleep, Daniel, on the other hand slept like a baby because God sent an angel to shut the mouths of those fierce, ferocious hungry lions. And around dawn, still wide awake from tossing and turning worrying about Daniel the king hurried to the lion s pit. When he got close he began to call out in a loud voice over and over again, Daniel,
servant of the living God, has your God, whom you serve continually, been able to rescue you from the lions? Finally when they got close to the pit and there was no sound, the king yelled again, perhaps with fear in his voice, Daniel, are you there? Did your God protect you through the night? The king jumped with joy when he heard Daniel reply, O king, live forever! My God sent his angel and he shut the mouths of the lions, They have not hurt me because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, O king. King Darius, overjoyed had Daniel released. And as scripture records, When Daniel was lifted from the pit no wound was found on him, because he had trusted in his God. There you have one pit dweller who when he found himself in the pit trusted in his God. While the king could not sleep, Daniel prayed, gave God the situation and then Daniel rested. He laid his head on one of those hungry lions and slept soundly through the night being warmed by the bodies of the other lions who watched over him. When was the last time you or I did that? We would rather be sleepless, worrying about how to get out of our pits. That brings me to Daniel s 3 friends who were thrown into their own fiery pit for not bowing down to worship a golden statue. They would only worship their own God. When the king got ready to throw them into the fiery pit they said, If we are thrown into the fiery furnace the God we serve is able to save us from it, and he will rescue us from it, and he will rescue us from your hand. You talk about faith. You talk about trusting. When you are in your pit having a pity-party would you be able to say this? BUT, even if he does not, we want you to know, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up. Praise the Lord for their faithfulness. For when they were tossed in the fiery pit and they turned the furnace full blast not a hair on their head was singed. Their robes were not burned at all.and get this THERE WAS NO SMELL OF SMOKE! God is good!!!!!!! AMEN!!! That brings me to one more pit dweller. His brother s didn t like the dreams he had about them. They didn t like the fact that dad fancied the next to the youngest
son. In fact, he was so spoiled their father Jacob gave their brother Joseph a very special, wonderfully woven coat of many colors. They resented their brother because of that. One day they had had enough of Joseph and his dreams and his special coat, his arrogance of being so special, so when he came to check on them on behalf of their dad they threw him in a pit trying to decide what to do with him. They thought why not leave him in this dark pit till he dies and we can make up something to tell dad, like some animal attacked Joseph as he tried to defend his brothers. They slept on it over night. In the morning, along comes this caravan heading to Egypt. The thought came, instead of killing Joseph, let s sell him to the caravan leader and have a little spending money to enjoy getting rid of Joseph. And that s what they did. So God redeems Joseph from the pit his brothers threw him in, and he lands up in Potiphar s house where God blesses Potiphar. But Potiphar wife was more intrigued with, or might I say attracted to Joseph so she pursued him but he fought off her advances until one day when they were alone she made a last pitch to attract Joseph and he fled leaving behind his garment as he ran stark naked from the house. With that evidence in hand, she seeks her husband to put Joseph in prison. So once again, Joseph finds himself in the pit of prison. But God blessed him and took care of him. While Joseph wondered what he did to deserve all this, God s plan was taking shape. For it wasn t long before his skills of understanding dreams brought him to the throne of Pharaoh where he was made number two man and saved Egypt from a famine, and his family beside. When his family came to Egypt they were given the richest land to live where they prospered and grew into the people of God. Now Joseph could have taken revenge on his brothers for the act of throwing him in the pit in the first place. But hear what Joseph thought about the whole situation as he spoke to his brothers Don t be afraid. You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
How s that for a pit dweller. Have you ever found yourself in a pit like that? Falsely accused of something you didn t do. Hated by someone for whatever reason, maybe envy, jealousy. Joseph was hated by his brothers so much that they wanted him out of the picture and they didn t care that their dad would have a broken heart. For years they were in their own pit wondering when Joseph, the number two man, would get even with them. And when their dad died, they thought, oh no, the time has come. But Joseph did not seek revenge. He thought of his time in the pits as part of God s plan to save a nation, and to help his own nation grow and prosper until the time was right that they would come forth from Egypt the chosen people of God. Now if we think about these pit dwellers this morning they all have something in common besides being pit dwellers. While in the pits they still trusted in their God. Here is the good part. Here is the good news. Here is where we rejoice. Here is where God really speaks to us. Each one of them came out of that pit better than when they went in. What? You re crazy pastor. Am I? Well the 3 Hebrew children thrown in the fiery furnace, King Nebuchadnezzar said, Praise be to the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who has sent his angel and rescued his servants. They trusted in him and defied the king s command and were willing to give their lives rather than serve or worship any god except their own. He promoted them. Made them leaders. The trouble makers? I don t think they faired to well. And Daniel? King Darius acknowledged the power of Daniel s God and issued a new decree for his people to fear and have reverence for the God of Daniel. He wrote, For his is the living God, and he endures forever, his kingdom will not be destroyed his dominion will never end. He rescues and he saves, he performs signs and wonders in heaven and on earth. And in Joseph s case we know how he was raised from his pits to be used by God. What his brothers meant as harm, God used for the salvation of his people.
We should have a parade praising our God who redeems not only them but us pit dwellers as well. And let me take us to a modern day pit that three girls had to endure for around 10 years. We don t want to think about what they had to endure these past 10 years. It has been reported they went through horrible things to sad, to graphic to mention this morning. For three years they have been in that pit of a home. But their families didn t give up. They prayed and they patiently waited on the Lord to act. Who knows how long they prayed, thought that they would never see family again, or even survive. But one day God redeemed them from that pit. He has taken them from that pit and put them on solid ground with their families and the healing begins. Their mothers received the greatest Mother s Day gift ever. The ones who were lost had been found. Families are rejoicing and praising God, and other families have renewed hope that one day their missing relative might return home too. Through it all, through it all, the song goes. I ve learned to trust in Jesus, I ve learned to trust in God. Any pit dwellers this morning? Like last week are some of you between a rock and a hard place? You think God doesn t care, or see your pit? Let me give you some words of hope.not only does he see you. He will redeem you. When? I can t say. Joseph was in Egypt a long time before he finally saw his family again. But learn this from the sermon last week and this one, that those who call upon the name of the Lord will find peace and freedom. The God who redeems people like Daniel, the kids thrown in the fiery furnace, Joseph, and those three abducted girls is the same God who will redeem you and place your feet on solid ground so that you can tell your story so others who are pit dwellers can be redeemed. I waited patiently for the Lord, he heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Pit dwellers, He has heard your cry. He has seen your situation. One day He will set your feet on the solid rock of his gospel message that the risen Savior lives
and that he has redeemed us. So sing hymns of praise to the one who continues to love and care for his pit dwellers. God is good..