LORD’S DAY, APRIL 22
Daniel 4:1-3
Psalm 2:1-12

“Serve the LORD with fear,
and rejoice with trembling.”

SIGNS AND WONDERS

“How great are his signs! and how mighty are his wonders! his kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and his dominion is from generation to generation” (Dan 4:3).

These are the last recorded words of the greatest king of ancient Babylonia; for they were written after the events described in this chapter, and were designed to attract attention to his astounding experiences and discoveries during the last seven years of his life.

It is possible that the king enlisted the help of Daniel, his trusted minister in charge of Jewish affairs, to prepare a decree in words that would be honouring to the God of Israel and understandable to all Jews. The expressions are very similar to those of Psalm 145:13.

Great as this testimony was, it is tragic that it came forth from the king’s heart only at the very end of a lifetime of resisting the God of heaven. If he had made this confession back in 602 BC, following Daniel’s interpretation of his dream, and had served God faithfully thenceforth, he might have conquered the world, if it was God’s will. Only our Lord Jesus Christ, among human beings, was a perfect servant to the Father, and therefore will be granted the entire earth as His domain at the time of His Coming (Ps 2).

Deathbed testimonies are indeed a marvelous evidence of the grace of God. But too many people live with that possibility in mind, and have no genuine assurance that it will ever happen. “Boast not thyself of to morrow; for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth” (Prov 27:1). Every parent should trust God to help him lead his own children to Christ at an early age, with a lifetime to live for Him!

THOUGHT: “Only one life, ’twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.” (C.T. Studd)
PRAYER: Lord, teach me to number my days, that I might devote my heart to wisdom.