Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
Studying the book of Daniel is an opportunity, for Jesus Christ promised that those who "read" that particular book will be given "understanding." That's something precious! The exact wording of His promise is, "Whoever reads, let him understand" (Matt. 24:15). The word "let" implies that the Holy Spirit will release the "reader" from the deadly grip of his love of ignorance of holy truth that is so common to all humanity--"the darkness of this age" (Eph. 6:12).
In other words, the lethal spell of neglecting Bible study will be broken; the captivity to worldly pleasure will be released. "Reading" the book of Daniel will be the key that sets the soul free from the prison of this world's spiritual slavery.
The special blessing comes in a corporate sense--when people together hunger for this understanding, it becomes greater than when one in lonely solitude prays.
The word that Jesus used for "read" is itself a little stick of mental dynamite. It means much more than glancing at the news headlines. It is ana-ginosko in the original language, which means "again and again" seeking to know, repeated pondering, continued efforts to satisfy mental and spiritual hunger and thirst.
The idea in that word is a cherishing of written truth which comes from "hungering and thirsting for righteousness" (Matt. 5:6). That is wisdom! Such attention to the book of Daniel will reward you with eternal starlit glory: "Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, ... like the stars forever and ever" (Dan. 12:3). That "shine" begins now, in this present life, and it will never end.
--Robert J. Wieland
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: September 27, 2004.
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